Valentine.

I thought this year I would get all crafty and help Brinley make Valentine's for her class. I came across some blogs with adorable print out Valentine's (easy ones). Brinley spotted these alligators from Skip To My Lou.

I thought, sure those look easy (and they were), only if you have a few extra HOURS to spend cutting out and putting together. Then I would suggest going to the store and letting your child pick out their favorite. Brinley ended up playing a game on the computer and tearing the couches apart to make a fort, while I did the rest. She did glue on a few of the eyes though. I made the alligators for the boys (11) and easy heart and tissue paper valentines for the girls (11).

The alligators had candy in their bellies while I tied the hearts to some goodie bags for the girls.

Girls like hearts, right? Well, let me tell you, I got an ear full when we went to Brinley's class to deliver the Valentines. A lot of "Where is my alligator?" "Why didn't I get an alligator?"

I've learned my lesson. Next year I will either start 2 weeks ahead of time and make the same Valentine for everyone or just have Brinley pick some out at the store. I made something completely different for her teachers, but there were only two of them, plus they got a little extra with theirs too, Subway gift cards (we weren't able to get them anything at Christmas because we missed the party due to school being cancelled).
Brinley had a great party with frosted sugar cookies , strawberry floats, games and messes.She loved getting Valentines from her classmates. Her favorites involved tattoo's and pixie sticks.

Tomorrow we have plans to go to breakfast with Matt, since he has to work. Then tomorrow night, to some friends house for a steak dinner and games...if my sister, Julie, doesn't have that baby tomorrow.

baby quilt.

This was my first project I finished this year. I couldn't show it until after my sister, Julie's baby shower. It's made from scrap fabric. A lot of it was from clothing that she had altered a little and then sold on ebay. Again, I didn't measure anything so it's not square, nor is it in anyway perfect.

Hopefully, the baby won't notice and Julie will have a story to tell the baby about the history of the fabric.

I think the next quilt I make will be for our bed. I just have to figure out the colors I want to use. Our bedroom is more on the masculine side, so I am thinking grey's...hmmm. Suggestions?

first quilt of the year.

I LOVE my sewing machine.

I finally got my mom's birthday gift finished...three weeks late. But I did it and I love how it turned out. Especially since I did no measuring, at all.

Its not for a bed, but for cuddling up on the couch reading a book or, in my Mom's case, watching FOX News or CNN. Mom, I hope you like it.
I picked out the fabric just for you.

This isn't my first project on my new machine, but I can't post the other one yet.

I have found a love for stippling. I think I'll be doing it on most of my quilts I make. I hope to make one a month, at least.

******

on another note.

Sunday, we went out to visit Olivia. It had been the first sunny day we have had in weeks (it only lasted two days). We hadn't been out there in a while because of the snow. (Its kinda hard to haul a 5 year old and a car seat through 3 feet of snow.) When we got out there, they had plowed clear out by where Olivia is buried. They had had a funeral there sometime last week. I will just note that I am greatful for the chimes that hang on a hook just above her. They had plowed the snow right up to her, even moving the rocks we placed out of the way. I think they would have plowed right over her had it not been for the chimes. My baby has a large amount of snow sitting right on top of her grave. If the headstone had been placed, I think they would have destroyed it.

It made me a little frustrated. Matt wasn't as concerned about it as I was. What if we had spent time beautifying her little place and they had ruined it. I feel as if it is sacred ground.

When you grieve the loss of a loved one, emotions come and go at really odd times. It has been over 14 months since Olivia's death. I find that I will start crying and not sure what has set it off. This past Sunday was Stake Conference. The Stake President told a story of a gift that was given to his son's family at Christmas time. The gift was a cookbook from an 8 year old neighbor friend of their son. When they opened it they weren't sure why he had given it to them, until they read the dedication page...

a few months before Christmas, this family experienced a miscarriage. Written on the dedication page was a note from this boy, "To the Pitchers, because they lost a baby and they need a gift." (I hope I got most of the story right)

Both Matt and I were in tears, I don't know if it effected anyone else the way it did us. For an 8 year old neighbor boy to remember what this family was grieving was just sweet.

I hope that people don't forget my daughter or what she meant to us. That another baby doesn't replace the one that was lost. Everyday I look at Sarah, she reminds me of what we would have been doing last year with Olivia. I think about the complaints I made while I was at the end of my pregnancy with Sarah, and regret wanting to be done, because that was all I had with Olivia.

I would write more, but I am headed down to the hospital for photos this afternoon.

the button tree craft

i have been asked by at least a hundred (okay, not really, but it sure seems like that many) people about where we got all our buttons. Well, we collected them over the year, bought some at Walmart bought some through a favorite site of mine, ETSY.com You need about 500 buttons for a large tree.

The best place to buy styrafoam cones is at Michaels (with the coupon, of course).

The pins are the most expensive, so buy them at Walmart, enough to pin on 500 buttons. we like the large pearlized ones.

Whalaa...hours of fun. It will keep your children, or yourself, busy for a very long time.

As for the pom poms, for the garland, the dollar store is the cheapest place I've found.

Have fun crafting!

pom pom garland

to keep Brinley busy while i got a few things done, i had her make garland for her tree. this is an easy and cheap craft. just make sure your child is old enough to use a needle and thread.give your kids a pile of fun pom poms.

have them thread them onto a somewhat "sturdy" thread/string...
in any order they want.
let them place it on their oh-so-pretty-sparkly pink Christmas tree.

what did we do for Thanksgiving, you ask?

My day before Thanksgiving was spent with the flu. It wasn't fun. I don't recall the last time I was that sick. Luckily, Julie and Becca were around to do the prep work for Thanksgiving and I just laid on the couch and got up every few hours to nurse the baby.
Thanksgiving morning I was feeling much, much better and Sarah even let me get a little sleep through the night.

With a bunch of cousins in town, Brinley was in heaven and I haven't seen much of her. She has been spending the nights with them and having a blast.

So, with me feeling better and family in town, the Thanksgiving Day festivities began with me picking up the turkey from Longhorn Barbecue. I will just say that it is so nice to have someone else cook (smoke, in our case) the turkey and leave the oven open for other things to be baked. By the way, the turkey was DELICIOUS and I think it should become a tradition...

Then Matt and I took Sarah out to Olivia's grave for the first time. Actually, she's been out there, but sat in the car with Matt while I visited her site. It was a little...okay, a lot...emotional for me. I guess because when I saw Sarah there, it just brought back a flood of memories from a year ago and the thoughts of where Olivia would have been if she were here.

Since my Mom is staying with my sister, Corinne, until she has her baby and my dad worked Thanksgiving day, we crashed at their house, because it can fit everybody, and made button trees again this year...Do you have any idea what 10,000 buttons looks like? Well, it's a lot and no that wasn't a typo, i really meant 10,000 buttons.It was fun. We also played a little RockBand again, until my dad came home. He doesn't particularly like that game. It's a bit noisy.

We also spent a good chunk of time going through ads for early morning shopping. That's right, we are some of those crazy people that get up at 4am to go shopping with the 8 million other crazy people just to get a good deal. And I took Sarah with me...she was perfect and I bundled her up for the 23 degree weather. I actually ran into quite a few new babies with their moms while shopping. I say" If your going to be up with the baby at 4am anyway, why not go shopping."

When we got home, it started to snow and has been snowing all day...it was perfect for the start of the Christmas season. I got my Christmas decorations out and will work on the outdoor lights tomorrow. Since Matt had to work today, we are going to wait til tonight to decorate the tree. It should be fun.

thank you Merv for watching all the kids so that Julie, Brian and Becca and I could go shopping. And sorry, Julie, for giving you the flu...