Today Is...

Hannah started Kindergarten (Homeschool) this year and I wanted to make it fun by having a daily chart for her. I had seen one in a catalog that was much smaller than this one and planned to order it. However with shipping it was going to be almost 40 dollars... which is a lot these days, right?

Well, I happened to be perusing the dollar store in August when I came across these sets of cards that had the days of the week, months, etc. and then a sewing idea hit my mind... I wonder if I could make a chart myself for less? I went to JoAnn Fabrics and found red vinyl for the background and also bought clear vinyl to sew on pockets. The ladies there recommended using my widest stitch setting so as to not perforate the vinyl (great idea!) I used heavy upholstery thread and placed the pockets on with masking tape before sewing. I think my total cost was somewhere in the 13 to 15 dollar range and I'm super happy with how it turned out. Hannah loves her chart and is very proud to use change the cards daily and use the pointer to "read" it to me.I even had some vinyl left over for the monthly calendar and the 100's chart too!

Whoa Buddy!

So, I went to the Doctor today (we're down to visits every two weeks) and he thinks baby may have dropped... which might explain why I've been feeling generally cruddier and tireder the last three days. Except that it's just a bit too early for buddy to come. My hospital won't even see me if I go into labor this week, and would have to go to another one about an hour away, which I'd rather not do. I'm not sure if our little man is excited about his sister's upcoming horse show this weekend and thinks he needs to be here to see it in person or what...

Doctor said I should take it easy, so I went right home and crawled up into the garage attic frantically searching for baby blankets and such... I have been planning on getting the room ready and slowly have been doing things here and there, but figure I have 6 weeks left! I know, I know I should not have crawled up there, but I was careful and Emelia did help me get the stuff down. Yes, I did get in trouble with my hubby when he got home too. I promise I won't go up there again until after little man arrives:) But I was happy to find some neutral blankets, the changing pads I thought I had thrown out (which you can't find in stores anymore!) and the sheets for the cradle. So at least I should be able to get the cradle ready in the next day or two in case our little cowboy does decide to arrive soon.

Starting tomorrow I have to take it easy... not sure if I'm so good at this, but will try. The girls say they will help out too... Now watch, I'll go two weeks overdue... Uff Dah!

We got a new car seat and stroller in August and the girls were super excited to try it out with the baby doll. Hannah's torn between excitement and not sure if she wants to give up her position as baby of the family. I guess we are all in for a bit of "rocking our world" coming up really soon since it's been awhile since there's been a real little baby in the house!
And yes, the stroller is definitely BOY... so I hope he still comes out with all his boyness, otherwise SHE will have to settle for a blue and brown stroller and seat! It seems that they do not make much for neutral strollers these days... its either definitely girl or boy.

The Mad Bomber

If you live in Minnesota you should know what the Mad Bomber is... as in the hat you can't live without if you're gonna survive our cold winters... Actually I have never owned one, but about all the men I know do have one, including my hubby. About a week ago Ted took the girls somewhere and this is how Hannah arrived home... filthy dirty face and sound asleep in the Mad Bomber. I'm not sure how she got so dirty so quickly, or why the hat was in the car with this sweltering summer we've been having, but I guess I can say my hubby is one prepared man! And she slept quite a long time with all that sound being muffled out by layers of fur!Here's one of my recently completed projects for a friend who had a baby boy in May. I loved the fabrics and the pattern was very simple and easy to put together. The strips came cut out in the kit and I just arranged them, pieced them and did a bit of "stitch in the ditch" for the quilting part.
I just got our buddy's room painted a light blue and now I'm trying to figure out what to do with the guest bed to make it go with the crib bedding. The current spread is light pink, and I think that just won't do... (Even though I do LOVE light pink!) Stay tuned for first day of school pics coming up real soon:)

Boys Drool...

At least my baby boy will be doing that very soon, I know! Anyways, since I am not technically inclined, I couldn't figure out how to put comments on the album I just posted, so the easiest thing to do it just make another post...

These pics were taken in July at JCP. Usually I take the girls pics and try to do something fun and creative for their yearly pics, but this year my body is doing all the "creating" it can handle, and the free sitting fee with my portrait card was just calling my name. I thought the lady did such a nice job we just bought the cd with all the pics on it. I decided to make an album of our last "Girls Hurrah" and thought you might like to see it, even if it is kinda small.

We just had our first day of school today and hopefully I can post some pics of that and recent sewing projects soon!

Girls Rule!

Click here to view this photo book larger

The Jackpot!

I hit the jackpot today and I just know my mom, my thrifty sister and my hubby will all be so proud of me!

I've been frustrated because I just need a few fall long sleeve tops to get me through until buddy decides to make his appearance... but there are none to be found. Most maternity places I have checked are just not getting things out yet... probably due to the wonderfully HOT weather we've been having and no one else cares about fall clothes yet. My request I feel has been simple... I just want a few long sleeve t-shirts with the ruching on the sides... they are comfy and flattering (two very important things when you are getting BIG FAST!)

So, I stopped by the local used store today (it's right next to our JoAnn Fabrics store - yay!) just to see if they had anything yet. Well, my jackpot was 5 new long sleeve tops for $22.00! Oh yeah, baby! Two of them were the kind with the ruching (just what I wanted) and all of them in colors I like to wear:) So, since one of those t-shirts at Motherhood is $25.oo and they almost never go on sale, I'm quite pumped about my jackpot:) And another added bonus is that one of them says it's a nursing top, so I'll have one shirt that will be handy now and later! Plus nursing tops are expensive and nobody buys them, right? I could just say it's my lucky day, but I know way better than that... God is in the details and I believe he cares about us so infinitely... I know he put those tops there just for me! Praise God for my jackpot!

Oh, and here's a few pics of some of my recent food cravings. I think I have been whining to Ted all summer long about just wanting a chicken sandwhich with mozzarella cheese, pineapple and ranch dressing on top... Of course there is never one of these on the menu. Well, when we had our getaway a few weeks ago, lo and behold, a chicken sandwhich with pineapple... YUMM DELISH! It was missing the ranch and cheese, but hey it was a great compromise:)
And with all of our children I have craved watermelon. If you put it in front of me I probably won't even share with you, or my kids! One night we didn't want to spend a million bucks to eat dinner out so we went to the grocery store and this is what looked good to me. Since we were in a hotel room I could not really cut it up, so a plastic spoon did the job just fine. And no, I did not share with Ted. (But I did share with my growing boy:)) Oh, looking at this pic just makes me want more... I think there's still some in the fridge!
Oh and here's a random pic of a purple cone flower we saw at a flower garden while on our getaway... I love cone flowers and they seem to be thriving despite the intolerable heat. Way to be persistent! A good reminder for all of us to hang in there...

My New Diaper Bag!

OK, here it is... my new diaper bag that I sewed recently for our newest family member, who is set to arrive around the first part of November. Yep, that's right, it's a bouncing baby BOY!

I cannot tell you how shocked we were to find out this news. That might sound silly to some, but we really didn't think it possible to have a boy. You see, I am from a family of all girls and so far me and my sisters have all had GIRLS! I kept asking the doctor, are you SURE? He said that the picture of his boyness was the clearest he's ever seen... and he's been delivering babies for awhile!

So, after the initial shock I have slowly warmed up to the idea that my pink reign has to end. To start the celebration of more manliness in the West household, I made a cute (or should I say handsome?) bag of browns and blues to tote all of his stuff in. (Hey any excuse to make a new purse is a good excuse!)

I've also made him the most soft and snuggly blanket from a fabric called minky that I will try to post soon. It's so cuddly though that I think he will have to share it with mommy... (and I've found the girls already trying to steal it too!)

I just cracked out the blue paint today, as our guest room is currently the most lovely shade of pink... but that just won't work for our little buckaroo. That's right a cowboy for the Wests, how fun. We've been dreaming up cowboy names and you can feel free to submit your ideas just for fun! It's hard to decide on a good boy name! And mom, YES, I have your submission already (GEORGE STRAIT)! I did start this bag with a pattern, but altered it quite a bit to get the bag you see here. I added the blue strip on the top, quilted it to make it more durable and added pockets to the inside for diaper and wipe compartments. I kinda want to use it now but I better just be patient!

Well, it's time to get this mama off to bed because Mr. Cowboy seems to be a night owl and likes to groove as soon as I lay down! He's even woken me up at night with his line dancin' and foot stompin':)