Free Pattern of the Month

Over at the Grosgrain Fabulous blog, they are having a fun, free pattern of the month.  Each day they will feature a new sewing pattern that you can download and create!  I don't sew but there are such fun ideas that I couldn't help but share.  Check out today's too, it's a very awesome stuffed dish and spoon to go with the nursery rhyme.  It makes me wish so much I had the talent!!

A Little Black Rain Cloud

My sister, Lulu, loves Disney stuff.  She collects the movie music boxes (which are amazingly cool).  She also collects the movies and the plush animals.  She has a pretty great collection really.  And when we were kids, we used to go to the Disney Store at Metro North Mall and hang out.  One day when we were there, there was a little Winnie the Pooh song playing and it got stuck in Lulu's head.  All day long she sang that dang song until I wanted to kill her.  And to this day I have that song memorized because of that day. 

I'm just a little black rain cloud

Hovering under the honey tree

I'm only a little black rain cloud

Pay no attention to little me

Ev'ryone knows that a rain cloud

Never eats honey, no, not a nip

I'm just floating around over the ground

Wondering where I will drip

Anyway, this song is kind of where I am this week.  Dustin has been gone for a long stretch of time and I am tired.  You've read my posts this week about my crazy baby and the rice krispy treats.  Last night it was a sour cream container, a spoon and a sink.  I won't get into the details but the bottom line is, it is hard doing this all week and missing your husband and getting stuff done extra for school not to mention keeping a house clean and working.  But then, the icing on the cake, our babysitter gave us her notice for next year.  Which is sad, we'll miss her dearly and now we have to go through the stressful process of finding new care for next year. 

It is scary, branching out to find new care.  Reese has made friends, sweet friends, at our sitter's house.  And it has been hard for me to find the right balance of not driving far, a nice person, and a decent price.  It's my baby girl and I want her to be happy somewhere. 

So, I've turned into a little black rain cloud.  I've been dripping all over people this week.  I hope the storm blows over but at this point, it could go either way. 

Fine!

Fine is the word that I know Reese would've shouted at me last night if she could've.  We had a little bit of an argument, if you could call it that.  I found this argument to be hilarious.  I literally laughed out loud as she toddled back to say she was sorry.  Here's what happened......

My grade level is in charge of pay day treats this month.  I love to cook so I got a little ambitious on my attempt at making something great for the whole staff.  I should've just bought some cookies and been done with it, but no, not me.  I decided to make Rice Krispy Treats.  You know, like on the commercials, where the mom is smiling and has a pretty apron on and a huge bowl.  Her kids are laughing and eating small morsels of yummy marshmallowy goodness.  Just like that.  I pictured Reese sitting on the counter loving the sweet snack.  Me smiling as I stirred all the cereal that stayed in the bowl.  That's not quite how it went down.

What really did happen was that Reese wanted a bowl of her own.  So I thought, "oh great idea! She can eat while I mix these up really quick and then she can go to bed."  Riiiiiight.  She took the bowl and dumped the entire thing on the ground.  I let her to buy some time to get more done and then I was going to let her up to help.  Silly, Lindsay.  Before I knew it she was pissed.  Rice Krispys were all over the floor and being crunched into the carpet with every step I took.  She whined louder and louder, I was cussing under my breath with marshmallows up to my elbows and finally I snapped, "would you just knock it off?"

Wow, was that the wrong thing to say!  She looked at me as if to say, "FINE!"  She burst into tears, ran to the other room, sobbing the whole way.  I was secretly glad for her to go for just a second.  I washed my hands and chuckled to myself, I just knew she was getting her nigh-nigh (blankie).  And a few seconds later she came sobbing back into the room, blankie in tow.

I sat down on the crunchy kitchen floor and she curled in my lap with her thumb.  I knew she was sorry and so was I.  We cuddled for a minute and then I put her on the counter where I stirred Rice Krispys all over the kitchen.  She tried a little bite and then decided she just wanted to watch.  I didn't have on an apron and she wasn't loving the marshmallowy goodness but it was as close to the commercial as she and I were going to get. 

I learned a few things last night.  First, nigh-nigh is the fixer of all problems.  Second, we might get mad but we love each other and we can fix it.  Third, if it looks good on television, it's probably a lie.  And finally, vacuums don't clean up crunched up, smooshed in Rice Krispy treats.

Wordless Wednesday- Easter Style

Easter

We had a wonderful Easter at home. This was Reese's first chance at an egg hunt and she loved it. She wasn't that great at the objective but it was fun to her to look at all the colors and wander around. We had a hunt with her cousins on the Neal family side on Saturday and then we hunted for eggs a little at my side of the family on Sunday morning. That was fun but we missed our favorite guy ever, Deakan, so it was a little bittersweet. Next year I can imagine him and Reese running through the yard at the speed of light. I know they'll be so cute. But here are a few highlights of the day.





There will be more to come.  I have some in her big fancy Easter dress too but my camera died and I'm waiting on Dustin to email me the pictures from his phone. She looked adorable in it!

11 Years Today

11 years ago to the day (date) was my senior prom.  I don't know how much that dates me but it's true. 

We were big stuff that year.  We rented a limo, we drank gin shooters, we sang a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad song which still makes me laugh and blush.  We partied it up, we stayed out all night.  We danced the night away and had a the kind of memories that prom is supposed to be about.  Now that it is prom season it makes me a little nostalgic for dressing up and having fun hair.  A little depressed about the carefree spirit of one with no bank account or car payment too. 

And while we're on the subject about memories, I should quickly touch on the beautiful ladies in this picture.  I had a hard time digging up a picture without the boys in it, considering that it was NOT my high school sweetheart who I married, I decided he really didn't need to be part of this post.  But from the left, we have Jenny, my fun-loving friend who loves to be outdoors, who has legs up to her chin, who loves to dance to Footloose and sing her heart out to Grease.  Jenny was my first friend in Brookfield and I love her more than my luggage!
Amber is next.  Her dress is a beautiful red and she was so excited to be the striking beauty she is in it.  We got our dresses together and stopped each time we had a fitting for Little Cesear's breadsticks.  Amber loves to have a good time and we've had many a fun night together.
Next is Mary.  She is the Godmother to my girl.  She has a beauty of her own named Clara Jean.  Mary is the kind of person I think I always strive to be.  You will never catch Mary griping or gossiping about people, she just doesn't have anything bad to say.  April 24th is also the day Mary  got officially together with her now-husband.  Funny that I would remember that, but it was a big deal then.  Getting together with your high school sweetheart at the prom during a dance.  How romantic!  They're kind of that way though.  Romantic and sweet.  I love them a lot.
And the last girl is me. A younger, skinnier, more carefree version of myself.

And a good time was had by all......

That's a Wrap

Today, I had my first Diet Pepsi after the end of Lent.  I wasn't going to do it because it is my intention to give up my pop addiction but we stopped to get Reese some late lunch on our way home to the city.  I looked at Dustin as he got out and smiled, he must've known what the smile meant because he came out of the gas station with a Pepsi in his hand.  I drank a long drink and when I was through Dustin laughed and said, "ahhh there's my wife, I've missed her!"  I guess I'm better with a little caffeine and aspartame!!  But honestly, I'm going to work really hard to keep this up.  Check back in a couple of weeks and see how it's going, only time will tell!!

The Tantrums

Everyone knows the Terrible Twos are real.  It must be so hard to know what you want and not be able to communicate it with others so you can have it.  A mom can teach words, teach sign language, do whatever in her power, but the fact remains, tantrums happen.....says the mom of a fairly well-behaved 18 month old. 

I have caught a quick glimpse to what tantrums really look like and I'm gonna tell you, I'm afraid.  What do I do with this strong-willed girl who cannot tell me what she wants?  That's scary enough.  But what really frightens me is when she asks for something, says please, but still can't have it.  Case in point, yesterday she wanted Chips Ahoy cookies for snack.  She saw them on the refrigerator, pointed, said please but did not get them.  She didn't need cookies for snack.  She had a perfectly good snack.  So, that was it, let the tantrum begin.

I don't know what I'm going to do with this new stage.  I guess ignore it and it'll go away.  I guess I need to stick to my guns and say no and mean it.  Ugh, if only real life was that easy.  But I do try and I'll keep trying and trying and trying.  And maybe one day I'll have a sweet little lady who folds her hands when she goes in a store instead of stealing Hello Kitty chapstick and throwing it at her mother.  A girl can dream right?

Wordless Wednesday

A Few Loose Ends

I haven't been so great at blogging lately.  It seems like everything and nothing has been going on.  We don't do much in the evening but Reese is doing some of the silliest things all the time.  She is a card and I think she knows it.  She gets that from her father.  So here are some things that have been going on with us. 

Reese is getting more and more steady on her feet.  There are fewer falls now and she is even starting to pick up her pace a little to "jaunty walk" that she believes is a run.  It looks so funny when she puffs out her chest and gets to moving.  Especially when she's being chased.  She giggles like a hyena and checks behind her back to see if they are gonna get her.  She is so funny.

Easter baskets are in full swing.  I'm trying to come up with ideas of what to put inside eggs besides candy.  A few coins/dollars and some stickers but beyond that I'm at a loss.  I like to do holiday cards too but I can't think of a handprint idea that is Easter themed.  Especially with Mother's Day so close, I am just running out of creative ideas.  PLEASE HELP!!!

Dustin is excited for the season too.  It's turkey hunting time and he couldn't be more excited.  He walks around the house gobbling like a fool.  As if we don't have enough noise around that place.

Life is going by so quickly and so slowly at the same time.  It's the time of the year that I like to refer to as the water balloon race.  Just hold that leaky water balloon together and get it past the finish line, the end of the school year is coming, hold it together and summer will be a great reward!

Wordless Wednesday

It's Time for my Close Up

Reese thought she would ham it up a little this weekend.  Here's a little glimpse into the emotions of a toddler!

Wordless Wednesday

The Many Faces of Reese

Reese is like the comedy and tragedy faces of a play.  One minute she is walking around happy as a lark, the next she is screaming in agony of only the most wronged human on the planet.  I wish she could give me a head's up when the storm is beginning to blow in, but perhaps the lack of communication is the cause of the storm.  Either way, I need a helmet, and I need it five minutes ago.

Tonight she wanetd spaghetti but she didn't want it on a plate.

She wanted to go outside but only if she could have a cookie.  (I can thank her father for that)

She wanted me to fill up her empty shampoo bottle with water but she didn't want me to hold it.

She wanted to open the dryer door but close it before I got any clothes in.  Then she wanted it open, then she couldn't get it open so she laid on the floor and cried until I opened it.  Then she did it all again.

Oh Reese, she is a mess.  But she is quite funny most of the time too.  We had a family party this weekend and I think she kissed everyone there.  She loves her new shoes and she keeps looking at her feet checking out how pretty her toes are.  She lifts my shirt to "ticky, ticky, ticky" my belly button.  And if there is a dog in a five mile radius you can bet there is a little girl panting her head off because she loves them so.

So sure, she wears the tragedy mask as if she were made for the part.  But the comedy mask, well, it trumps all.  One laugh from that little stinker and Dustin and I look at each other, grin, and wonder, how did we ever get so lucky?

A Baby Dunk!

Reese got a basketball goal for Christmas.  We got it out for some spring fun this weekend.  I'm still cheering for a cheerleader, but basketball may be in our future!  This was even cuter when I wasn't holding the camera because when I clapped she clapped for herself a lot.  That was half the fun!

The Winner!!

True Random Number Generator

Min:
Max:
Result:
8


Okay, I can't get the Random Generator to freeze on a given picture, but when I typed in the number of comments and hit generate, the number 8 came up. So the lucky winner is: Lulu and her comment below.

It's hard to choose a favorite dog breed, they are all so cuddly and lovable! I have to be partial to my current dog and say I love Miniature Pinschers! Gotta be loyal to Cowboy!

Lulu
Thank you all for commenting and for participating, this has been a fun contest and giveaway.  I appreciate all the fun feedback I got!