What to be for Halloween

Abby has had a lot of choices of what to be for Halloween. Her first option was a Halloween Pumpkin Fairy...so cute. Until we tried the outfit on. Not going to work. It was way too small.

Then my friend Ruby loaned us her pumpkin outfit that her son Jack wore when he was about her age. She cried and cried.

So I looked and looked today at the store. I couldn't find anything and didn't want to spend any money....so tonight I made her a little outfit. It is cute and she can wear it without crying. I Hope.

I feel like this is a bit like Goldilocks and the 3 bears. I am definitely hoping that the 3rd time is the charm and just right. (Plus it has little froggies in the pattern and Abby loves frogs right now.)

I am so far behind....

That baby is taking up all of my time. But here are some current pics of her...

Crabby Abby & Grumpy Gertie

Abby has started taking an interest in her dolls. Yesterday at FUll Bloom she wanted to play with one of Pat's. So I pulled out Grumpy Gertie for her and she has been playing with her. I put her in one of the cute outfits that Grandma Susan made her.

Which is better....

A cooking spree? Or a shopping spree?

I think they both have their advantages....however; one makes you want to lose weight while the other makes you gain weight. :)

While on vacation at Hilton Head...I went on a shopping spree. Not too much but enough to make me enjoy wearing clothes again and want to look good. Though it is expensive.

Now that I am home. I am trying to do more home cooking and make it fun and exciting. This means we have been doing a lot more baking. Though I am trying to keep it healthy and less caloric.

First, I made some mini muffins. They were yummy, 4 of them were equal to one size muffin…and I went a little overboard in eating them. I had 6 of them. This wouldn’t be so bad, except the muffins had a ton of fiber in them. I used a basic oatmeal applesauce muffin recipe that I found on allrecipes.com. Then I made some creative changes based on what I had around the house. I added some butternut squash, applesauce, carrots & fresh cherries. MMMM…they were yummy!!

Then I made 2 sets of buttermilk pizza dough. One set for us to eat and freeze and one for a friend who has helped me out a lot. I made pepperoni & olive pizza. Not super healthy but better than eating out. Yesterday, I made a nice tomato, cucumber & onion pasta salad from fresh produce I received from Sheldon’s co-worker. The tomatoes were delicious and so ripe. I cheated a bit and added a little bit of pepperoni and cheese and used Italian dressing to marinate the salad. However, to go with the salad and to make a complete supper I made focaccia bread from a recipe on allrecipes.com. It made a ton of it so I ended up freezing over 2/3 of the bread. We will have some more for dinner tonight. I also, ended up making some fresh salsa yesterday. Though I have to finish it….Abby didn’t let me add the cilantro. I am hoping it tastes good. I added a bit of cucumber to it as we had so many of them.

Then today I ended up making a low fat oatmeal chocolate chip cookies that I modified again quite a bit. Baking Bits, the blog I found them on had such a fantastic picture. Mine didn’t turn out the same way. Probably because I made quite a few changes based on what I had in the house. I reduced the brown & white sugar to half and then added 2 bananas, wheat flour, coconut and butterscotch chips…and a couple of carrots. I figure they were sweet and nobody would notice, however, it would be a nice dose of extra nutrients.

Using scissors instead of a rotary cutter...

well at least for the most part. This morning, Abby decided that 4 am was wake up and stay up time. So after a lot of struggle...daddy & I decided to go shopping and walking. So we did that and came home around 6 am. By this time Abby was asleep, daddy had to get ready for work and I had to fill out insurance paperwork. Not very fun. Then at 10 I had a chiropractor's appointment. So this morning was very busy. Since Abby decided mommy & daddy woke her up really early...she took another nap and I decided to work on a art quilt. I have a few people whom I would like to make something similar for at Christmas time so I wanted to practice. I took a picture I had of Rocky and turned it into my quilt.

I think it turned out cute. I figured too that it would be a go project to work on as I didn't need to use my rotary cutter and I was pretty tired. Here is Abby recovering from her lack of sleep....and right after this was taken we discovered that she had cut her finger. We are not sure how she did it...however, she must have wanted to be like momma. Luckily, we didn't need to get stitches. Though she is wearing a sock on her hand now.

Some Pretties...

Today, Abby and I went out for a few hours so that daddy could take a nap. Unbeknownst to momma...Abby did wake up last night....though mommy didn't. I was very excited this morning thinking she slept through the night. Well daddy quickly informed me that wasn't the case. So to be nice, we went to the Farmer's Market in Watkinsville and bought some yummy bread from my friend Vanessa.

Then we decided to go to the local quilt shop. I wasn't supposed to buy anything...however they were having 60% off and I picked up 2 magazines and some fabric. Well one of the mags had a tutorial on how to make pot holders and I have always wanted to do that....so before going to the 4th of July party...Abby and I made them.

They aren't perfect but they are pretty cute. Abby was sitting so nicely next to Rocky and right at the last stitch...I looked over and his claw was hanging out of her arm. She was more scared of me yelling at him then the actual scratch. Not sure what happened, but I think she tried pulling his tail or something.

Happy Father's Day Everyone...

Hope all the new daddies gets lots of sleep...and all daddies get lots of love. I know Sheldon & Abby are having a great first Daddy Day.

Come join us at Full Bloom....

If you are in Athens, GA this Saturday. Please come and join us!

Here is a list of some of the goodies that will be available.

Yikes....

Well...I made a decent skirt. Now I have ruined it. :) I accidentially cut it with my scissors yesterday when I was cutting some fabric. So I am going to add some fabric tomorrow and create a new hem on it.

To go with it...I used some of the same fabric to make a reversible purse. It was fun and a bit hard as it took me 3 or 4 tries to figure out what I needed to do to make it reversible. I finally did it. It isn't perfect but I think it turned out cute.

Tomorrow, a couple of the fabric stores has patterns on sale...I might take a peek...especially since I am not a skinny minny, none of the larger sizes are in the economy packs.

What else. Abby has a new summer hat. She looks adorable. She now knows the sound of the camera and stops what she is doing to pose.

Lastly, here is the other project I worked on yesterday. Homemade pretzels. They are yummy. Also, since Abby is eating more solids I have been making my own. We started off with some baked sweet potatoes. Then a banana, and the last couple of days she has been eating homemade applesauce. It hasn't been too hard as I am also trying to use the crock pot for stuff. Tomorrow, I am going to cook up some butternut squash.

Have a great day...

Blacksmithing Update

Hi,

Sheldon has been bugging me about putting up his blacksmithing photos. Though he won't tell me what to say. So I will make up something.

When Sheldon and I went to the renaissance festival in May I discovered that he wanted to learn how to blacksmith. We knew that he wouldn't be able to do it on his own at our house as there are lots of tools that are involved. Though I am not sure if we knew it at the time or not....his boss at the EPA does blacksmithing. And he invited Sheldon and a postdoc student Carl to come up and try it. Well they have been several times and I am not sure about Carl but Sheldon loves it. His first creation was a BBQ fork. Which he teases me because I call its shape organic. Next he made a throwing knife which turned out very cool. Then he was going to work on some tongs but I asked him to make something for me. And he ended up making me a heart. He isn't quite satisfied with it as he wasn't able to make it as pointy on the ends as he would like....but I love it.So when we move and get settled into our new life when Sheldon graduates....I have a feeling an anvil and a forge will soon be on the way.

TFL

Jennie

Archivers Visit

Yesterday was a fun but never the less long and busy day. I meet with a group of woman from the PCMB (Lynnie, Danette, Sherry) and we had lunch, hung out at Archivers and then took a cardmaking class.It was a lot of fun and I was exhausted when I came home last night. We meet at 12:30 and the class wasn't over until 6:30. My feet were swollen and I guess I looked miserable. But overall I felt great...just didn'thave a lot of sleep from the night before.

Here is a picture of Lynnie after we were teasing her about oopsing up one of her cards. The instructor didn't explain that once that glue is on there...it is on there. We figured it out quickly.Next, is a picture of me and Sherry as we settled down for the class. Here is a picture of one of the cards that we made. It seems that the trend is towards brown instead of black ink of everything and it was a softer look.
Finally, here is my pregnant belly. I told Sheldon that I didn't realize I was this big. He said...yes you are. No wonder I waddle everywhere.

Baby Update & Other Stuff

Hi,

Sheldon once again told me that it has been awhile since we have (I) updated the blog. We were out of town last week visiting my mom, Sheldon was analyzing his samples from Tunisia and I went to CKC--Charlotte.

First off, it is always a wonderful thing to visit my mom and stepdad. I love that Sheldon has to go to NC to get his samples analyzed. My mom spoils me. I guess being pregnant and not very mobile helps a lot. But it is nice. For awhile there it was every few months that we saw each other...lately it has been every month. Plus she is going to help us when the baby comes along.

Secondly, Sheldon is very excited. He is finally able to start writing his paper as his analyzes have been working out. So after work he takes about 1.5 to 2 hours to work on it. And I am leaving him alone. Which is very good...because once the baby gets here...it might not be that easy.

Thirdly, I had a fantastic time at the convention. I had never been to one before and I had the best roommate and class pal. GiftsbyHeidi. I was a bit nervous as we didn't know each other super well before going it felt like I have known her forever. Poor Heidi though, I couldn't walk very well....and she is from the DC area. Plus, we were ablet o visit with two of our other online buddies---Gayle & Lisa. I still have to finish my projects....I finished some the other night. But I haven't been super motivated. Heidi can really book though.

Since coming home, I had to take the second Gestational Diabetes test....I failed the first one by 9 points....So Thursday I had to go and take the 3 hour. Luckily, I passed. So that is good news. Next tuesday, we have our 28 week Ultrasound. This should be very fun.

On the crafting note, here is a picture of my weekly challenge card. It was supposed to be Halloween with non-traditional colors.

And finally, today Sheld & I went and registered at Target. My mom is hosting an online baby shower for us and told us...REGISTER. So while there, I found this cute onsie with an owl on it. (We have decided that Athena the Godess of Wisdom is Abigail's guardian angel....we saw an owl out hiking, the other day driving home from my mom's, then when we went to the doctor's we did a u-turn on Athena Drive. So if that isn't a sign...I am not sure what is. So we decided to dress up Batman in the outfit. I was quite amazed at how well he took it. Doesn't he look cute?

My baby loves music & Sheldon is nesting

Classical Music that is. :) Every night we listen to music while falling asleep. First we were listening to Beethoven and my aunt told me that might be too much of a stimulant so we switched to Yanni. Well, it is back to Beethoven. As she definitely didn't like Yanni. While listening to Beethoven I would get little hits and kicks every now and then in time with the music....I loved it (didn't have to give her a sugar high to get her to move). Then with Yanni, nothing!! Nada!! She sleeps right through it. So it is back to Beethoven.

You should see us at naptime. I am doing my best to tap on my belly in beat with the music...but if you know me...you know that I have no rhythm at all and cannot keep count. She does a much better job.

--------------------------------------
I have found that Sheldon is getting the nesting instinct. We had to make a list of all the projects that need to be done. I thought it was what was supposed to be done this weekend. No....it was shortterm and longterm. YIKES. I was exhausted just writing the list. Luckily for me, a lot of the projects are ones he has to do. So my section of the list isn't as bad.

TFL and hope you have a great weekend.

Jennie

New Living Room

Hi...

I am sure some people are sick of me talking about this now. :) But I am so excited. It has been such a long time since I have had ny new furniture. My other sofa was hurting my behind so bad. And being pregnant definitely doesn't help.

Originally, we went to Ashley furniture to buy a set we saw a few months ago. The salesperson said to come back for the 4th of July sale. Well, we had two problems when we came back.....first the furniture wasn't in the store. And I wanted to try it out again before buying to make sure it was comfortable. The second, the cost went up $50.00 from last time (it wasn't on sale) and the delivery cost went up an additional $25.00.

So we told them we would think it over and come back.....so since I was bummed I decided to go to Big Lots to see if there was any crafting supplies. While there we walked around looking at the furniture....and in the back....they had a very similar sofa to the one I had originally looked at at Ashley....even made by Ashley. However, it was a better fabric and color and the shape was a bit different...not as boxy. The best part it was cheaper. I believe it was originally almost $200 less, then because it was the floor model and had a few minor dings and stains we received an additional 20% off and their $100 sales incentive.

Not only was the couch there but the storage ottoman too.....and it was 1/2 price of what we saw at Ashley...plus we also receive a 20% discount because of some dings. Now, I am not sure about anyone else....however, I know that my having these pieces in my house for a week I will probably spill or scratch something up.....so getting a great sales price....that doesn't bother me. :)

So we had it delivered and the delivery company we used was great. We were going to have it delivered on Wednesday as we needed to find a way to remove old furniture. So I told Sheldon that I would put it up on Craigslist and say it had to be gone by Sunday....that way he had today to find someone to help him remove it if there were no takers. (You can see why I thought there would be no takers.)


We definitely didn't think there would be. However, we received several calls. And it was picked up yesterday. So I called the delivery company today and they delivered it right at 5:00.

So, I definitely have to say.....look at alternatives to the expensive furniture companies. I never though I would buy a Sofa at Big Lots....but wow we saved a lot of money and received better service overall than at Ashley.

TFL

Jennie

PS...any decorating tips would be great. I want to accent with yellow as it is in our painting...however, Sheldon wants to do red. Plus you can see that the kitties love it.

I never posted what we were going to have....

I was so stressed and nervous...however, when we went to see the specialist last week I forgot to post it....everything was fine. :) The baby's heart, brain, and everything seemed to be growing properly. I was on target for weight and size. (I was a bit nervous about that as I hadn't gained a lot of weight...but in reality I don't need to.)

We have pics but haven't scanned them yet. :)

Drum Roll Please......

IT IS A GIRL!!!!!! We are going to name her Abigail Danielle.

Poor Sheldon is in such trouble....I have already been on a buying spree....girl clothes are so cute. :)

Jennie

Unexpected trip & on TV (Kind of)

Sheldon and I ended up going to North Carolina so that he could work on his samples at UNC. We didn't think it was going to happen and I had called my mom the day before to tell her that....however, I didn't listen to my voice mail. :) So I ended up having to call her back. We left last Wednesday and came back on Tuesday.

We had a great time.....I was able to visit with my mom and stepdad while Sheldon was off working. Plus, we ended up going to the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit at the Science Museum. That was pretty interesting.

NOw we are home and we have very upset kitties....they won't leave us (me) alone. I am going to go crazy....all they want is 24/7 worth of attention. Oh wait, that is what they wanted before. LOL

Yesterday, I was supposed to clear out some stuff around the house. However, I joined a PC Pro Swap on PaperCrafts and it was a fast turnaround....only 2 weeks and I had to make 11 cards. So I worked on that all afternoon/evening yesterday. I guess this swap is going to be on tv.

The theme is summertime fun---Birthday or Thank you's. I left my inside blank so the cards can be used as either. I had already colored my images (as I was going to use them for New Year's cards) so that saved me a lot of time.

However, I did lots of layers and fake sewing....I cannot wait until I can learn how to sew for real.

Thanks for looking. Jennie

I have been so far behind....

Not only on my blog but checking out my friend's blogs. I am so sorry about that. I have been creating but not feeling very communicative lately. Does anyone else go through stages like that?

We go to the doctor's on Tuesday and find out if it is a boy or girl. I hate to say that I am always thinking that something is wrong. We went on the 10th and heard the heartbeat and all. However, the minute I leave I think that there is something wrong. It is still too early to feel the baby move....and I was thinking that I could feel movement...but I haven't noticed as much lately. I figure 1 the baby is getting bigger so it will feel different and 2 the baby is probably movement when I am not paying attention. So this has been taking up a bit of my attention....my worrying. :)

Poor Sheldon has been getting the brunt end of the deal....not only have I been worrying about the baby, but our sink died and we had to wait almost 2 weeks to get the replacement part (just came today) and we have been hit by sugar ants. So I have been a real grouch.

Thanks for listening!!!! I will do in a separate post some of the items I have made.

Jennie

A Couple of Cards...

Hi,

I have been a bit slack this week in creating. It has been so hot here that I don't feel like doing a lot during the day. Well that isn't true. I think I read 3 books in as many days. I haven't done that in probably 5 years. In high school I would read 5 or 6 200 page books a night. I would start reading at 3 pm and besides eating dinner...do nothing but read untill 1-2 am.

This first card I made for the informal challenge on PaperCrafts Mag website. It was to do a Paper Piecing Card. I found a free quilt pattern online and used that for my square.
The second card I made while Sheldon and I were watching a movie. My friend Janice sent me some Whipper Snapper images..She always colors hers using Prismas and Gamasol, however, she recommended that I not do that since I am pregnant. So instead I used my copics.
Thanks for looking...and I hope you ahve a great night & weekend. Tomorrow Sheldon and I are going to go garage saling.

Jennie

Fun at the Fair!!!

SHeldon and I went with a friend to the Renaissance Fair today. :) We left at about 9:30 and just got home...at 8:30. We are tired....and a bit sunburnt. However, we got to see a bird show, blacksmith, glass blowser, the jousting, and a bunch of different shows. It was fun!!! I think I drank about 10 gallons of water while I was there. I actually ate pretty healty. LOL All 3 of us had chicken cesaer salads in a bread bowl.

The first show that we went and saw was the Birds of Prey. It was sponsored by an organization called EarthQuest and we saw a Red Tailed Hawk, a black vulture and a Andes Condor.
Then we watching the Flying Debris Juggling Act. Next, Sheldon and I went and saw the Blacksmith create a nail. While he was doing the show a woman came up and told him that his building was on fire. He took it all in stride....it must have happened before. After that we saw the Nickel Shakespeare Girls who do a show about all the women (or men playing women) in Shakespeare. It was pretty bawdy. Then we had an hour to the jousting and our friend Curt wanted to see that. So we were walking around and decided to watch the Washer Girls. It was a much better show than I thought it was going to be....they did use Sheldon for a prop during the show and she told me afterwards that he makes a great couch. My feet can testify to that every night. :)

Then we accidentially came upon the glass blower. Which I was glad we did as it was one of the shows I wanted to see. He made a glass mug. It was so fun watching all the kids faces. I didn't even think to tell Sheldon to take pics of it.

After that, was the joust. I will tell you the truth. I was so exhausted by then...that I just sat around and people watched. It was 5:30 and not in the shade...so I was definitely exhausted.

Finally, here is a picture of Sheldon & I (with my baby bump starting to show.) Have a great day!

Jennie

Birthday Card

Hi...

I bought PaperCrafts 101 Magazine...it is 14.99 but definitely worth it. I loved all the cards and actually decided to try and to make one.

The one I did is on page 81 called Eat Cake. My layout is pretty similar but I used flower instead of a rub on wording (eat cake) in the middle. Plus I placed a sentiment down in the corner...which they didn't have. I was originally going to put a puffy cake sticker in the middle...however, it was too big and the wrong colors.

I won't say who this card is for....they might be reading. :) Probably not!!! I will just say....somehow my DH his mom & his dad's birthday's are all a couple of days apart. And I doubt it is for dh or his dad.

Also, I didn't have a piece of chipboard so I made my own version of the circle cutout using my CB.

Thanks for looking.

PS...the designer of the card in the mag is Angelia Wigginton