Sleepy Time Pooh!

So I guess now is a good time to BLOG, since I haven't done so in FOREVER! There are lots of babies coming this summer. Some to friends and at least one to family. So I have been a busy bee lately making little goodies. My latest finished product has taken me a lot longer than I originally anticipated, which became frustrating for me. However, I am quite pleased with the finished product and I can't wait to give this to my brother-in-law and sister-in-law, who are due to have their very first little bundle-O-joy within the next week.

Like I said, USUALLY it doesn’t take this long for me to finish a project, but I was working on other projects in between so that I wouldn’t get bored with this particular pattern. I love the look of it. Its a very simple stitch. Its so pretty, but its so monotonous. The middle is somewhat like a bobble stitch, then around that main part I just added a few rows of DC’s in the different colors.

The inspiration for this blanket came from the border for the nursery (seen in the last picture), so to match that I just made simple DC granny squares to put around the border of the blanket. I found a really cute flannel at JoAnn’s that had all the pooh characters taking a nap, which just seemed fitting. So of course, I had to get it and sew it on.

I’m pretty pleased with how the blanket turned out…However, I am still needing to really work on my sewing skills. I guess its true what they say…practice makes perfect.

Yummy Cupcake

Niagara Falls into Yarn

I'm really not much of a blogger, but I think this past weekend is something worth a mention. There were so many fabulous memories and all shared with one of my bestest buds!

For several months my husband was trying to help me plan some "get-away" time for just me. A time to get away from it all (kids, house, hubby, dog, cat, etc.) and catch up on some much needed rest and have some "me-time". It seemed like nothing was really coming together. Nothing sounded quit right for me and as much as I wanted to get away, I was nervous about being "alone". Thats when Gege came to the rescue! Nothing quite like a bestie with the same passion (obsession) as yours. YARN - CROCHET - YARN - HOOKS - YARN and OH! Did I mention YARN???

Gege had been wanting to go to Canada forever and up until now, had not had the opportunity. I didn't care where we went, as long as it didn't involve changing any diapers, listening to whining, cooking any meals or listening to any animals chasing each-other through the house. She discovered a couple places online that she wanted to go to...YARN places! So this began our trip planning...and the feeding frenzy that IS our obsession. For the next couple weeks we planned and plotted out our trip all centering around going to a couple yarn stores/factories and napping...and a little extra here and there.

For day one we planned on getting to Canada, getting settled in our room and then having about a half a day to see the sights...well, the main sight, being the Niagara Falls. I mean, we were RIGHT there. But instead we got a little TO settled into our room and we both passed out on our nice cozy beds and the the comfiest pillows you could ever imagine. I know for me, that pillow had been calling my name for at least several months. We woke up a little after dinner time, ordered some nasty pizza and headed out for a little stroll. We thought we could walk all the way to the falls, but yeah, that just didn't happen. The falls were a little farther from our hotel than we expected and my gimpy leg wasn't allowing it. So we opted for plan B, take a couple pictures of the scenery and head back to the hotel to get ready for a LATE movie. Ok, the movie was only at 10:30, but for me being a SAHM and having early risers in the morning, I'm not use to being out past 9ish anymore...this was late. Naughty even! We saw the movie The Other Guys and OH MY GOODNESS! What a funny movie. I laughed the whole all the way through. I was quite impressed with Mark W.'s comedic acting skeelz! I didn't know he had it in him...not to mention, he IS rather "easy on the eyes".

On Friday we began our journey into Listowel, Ontario, Canada. What a beautiful drive. We drove through (what we think was) a rather large Menonite farming community. I just am so drawn to (fascinated) their way of life. I love seeing all the beautiful farms and the horse drawn carriages and the "simple-ness" of it all. I often wonder how they do it with all the fast paced technology of today. I always find that it really relaxes me to drive through communities like this...sets a mood of peace over my being. Which was probably very timely considering the frenzy that was just ar

ound the corner.

We FINALLY made it to the tent sale at the Yarn Factory Outlet and my heart started racing and I was getting butterflies in my stomach. I started thinking, does my husband really realize what he has sent me off to? When we walked in there was a woman at the front asking if we needed a "shopping bag" and obviously, both Gege and I said YES! We were then handed a 30 gallon trash bag. I actually started to worry about Gege...well, more about her husband upon her return from this trip. As I was standing there trying to process what was happening, I turned and looked and there was no more Gege. I lost her before I even started. This place was awesome. Huge boxes FULL of yarn. It was actually overwhelming. I didn't know where to even begin. After a couple hours there, filling up our bags and wiping the drool from our face, we paid for our "booty" and headed into town because we had passed a used book store that I wanted to go to. One of my goals was to go to a used book store to look for some pattern books. Once we got there, the guy told use they actually had a booth set up at the tent sale. OMG! We had completely missed it because we had completely zeroed in on the yarn and didn't see ANYTHING else. So e went BACK to the tent, found the books and I actually found a treasure of a crochet pattern book. I am already working on a vest that I found in the book. Can't wait to wear it this fall.

So after the frenzy, we were completely exhausted. We headed back into Toronto for the next two nights. We decided to have a fabulous dinner at a Greek restaurant that night and get back to our crochet.

On Saturday, we went into the city of Toronto to Queen Street. Makes me think of Georgetown, DC (Gege thought NY). This place gave me serious anxiety. Very closed in and TONS of people and chaos everywhere. We parked our car and headed into what I would like to refer to as "yarn heaven". A place called Romni Wools. What the WHAT?!?!?! I have never seen anything like this. Every single nook and cranny was stacked with Yarn. And not just the yarn you see at like JoAnn's or A.C. Moore (nothing agaist those places), but this stuff was different and colorful and all kinds of textures. It was amazing. And we had only scratched the surface, they also had a BASEMENT of overstock, discount and discontinued yarn. What the WHAT the WHAT?!?!?! I found some super fun yarns down there and Gege even got a fun tutorial from two fabulous, silly ladies on spinning. I LOVED this place. Lucky for our hubbies its a 10 hour drive for us...LOL. Otherwise I'd be in there everyday.

On Sunday we knew it was time to head home and we only had one more stop to make before our trip could be considered "complete"...Niagara Falls. We drove around on the Canada side trying to find parking for at least an hour before we decided it would have to be something done on the States side. So we began our LONG, tedious journey of crossing the border. Parking in NY (surprisingly) was much easier and it was only a short walk to the falls. The view completely took my breath away. I have never seen anything so beautiful in all my life. We took lots of pictures and some video because the sound is so amazing too. And a sweet couple took a picture of Gege and I next tot he falls...a perfect keepsake of a perfect vacation get away.

So I have been home for almost a week now and I am still not down from my high from that trip. My hubby has already ok'ed for me to make this an annual event. So Gege, I can't wait for our next adventure together. Love you girl. I couldn't have asked for a better travel buddy!

I haven't written in here in quite a while.  There has been lots happening in the Wright household.  Since the last time I wrote, Kayla has turned a year old.  Its just nuts to look back on this year with her and how fast it went by.  We had so much fun with our family and close friends celebrating her first birthday.  She LOVED the cake...a little too much I think.  It was hysterical to watch her eat it.  She had it all over her face, her hair, even up her nose.  She was in heaven.

Thanksgiving was a very eventful weekend for us.  We spent Thanksgiving Day with my side of the family.  My baby brother was up from Florida with his bride-to-be and this was the first time we all got to meet her.  She is awesome and such a perfect fit for my brother.  My other brother and his wife were up from southern VA and its always nice to get to spend time with them.  So my whole family was together this year.  Its so much fun...so much chaos...so much food.  On black Friday I got to go out shopping with my mom, sisters, sister-in-law and sister-in-law-to-be in Manassas.  We all had a great time and we all found some really great deals.  Then, in true Letsen women fashion, we had lunch at Olive Garden...it wouldn't be a Letsen girls outing without it.  Then on Saturday we were back in Rapp with my family to go and see a customer of my Dad's who does this amazing train set in his back yard...it was so cool.  We also went to the Peppermint Tree farm which is also a Letsen family tradition of many years, to cut down a tree for my parents home (and my sisters got one too for their homes).  Sunday we spent the day with the Wright family eating some Thanksgiving favorites and enjoying each others company...and of course, it wouldn't be a Sunday afternoon in the Wright home without a football game.

In the past couple weeks she has taken a few steps on her own.  Today she seems to be trying a lot more to walk.  Even getting up from the ground on her own.  Its so exciting.  I have been praying very diligently for my kids to walk.  Noah has been walking SO MUCH on his own.  He actually gets quite frustrated with his walker these days and much prefers to go it alone.  He doesn't even want to hold our hand.  What an absolute miracle.

We are definitely looking forward to Christmas being right around the corner.  This year we will spend Christmas Day with the Wright side of the family and head out to my side of the family that weekend.  We are very much looking forward to the New Year and all the hopes we have for a good year.  This year has been very challenging for us and we are praying for some rest, and newness in the new year.

Potty Training part 2

So Sunday ended being a HUGE fiasco. We thought after the day he had on Saturday he would do alright...maybe an accident here or there due to the distraction of traveling and playing with cousins...but we didn't think it would be as bad as it turned out to be.

The trip went great. We stopped twice along the way and we got to mom and dad's accident free. YAY Noah! We actually thought that would be worse than actually being there. Boy were we wrong. I don't think in all the times we took him to the potty there was a single time we went there without wet undies. Poor guy. He was too distracted and having too much fun to even consider going to the bathroom. How can you blame him though. He has had uninterrupted play for the past 4 years. He's never had to even consider the idea of going peepee in the toilet. By the end of this day though, Kevin and I were ready to throw in the towel and put him back in diapers. On the way home I was practically in tears because I just kept thinking about how Kevin had to go back to work on Tuesday and there was just no way my back could take that "heavy lifting" all day. I was in pain just from the few times I tried to help out. So we discussed some more options and the one that seemed to make the most sense was for Kevin to spend all day Monday (Labor Day) in the bathroom...literally...with Noah.

That he did! He set up a blanket, picnic style, on the floor and we put tons of books that Noah likes to read, games (candy land is his favorite right now), prizes for good potty time, and lots of snacks and juice/water. The night before we bought a doll at Walmart (for $9) that could drink a bottle and then go peepee. We heard this was a really good way to show the kids how to go on the potty themselves. I took Kayla and went out for a while. When I came back I heard lots of yelling going on and I couldn't quite tell if Noah was crying and upset or if they were playing. I found out later, they were playing candy land and Noah was screaming out what he was getting on his cards. SO CUTE!!! He was having so much fun and Kevin was doing such a great job of showing Noah how to go potty by making a game of it.

By about 4 in the afternoon, Kayla was down for a nap and I was on the computer, Kevin came out from the bathroom and said Noah had fallen asleep. I got very nervous, but Kevin seemed as cool as a cucumber. He said Noah so far had remained dry. Noah stayed asleep for about an hour or so and remained dry the whole time. Kevin put him on the potty right away when he woke up and he went a lot. SUCCESS!!! He was learning how to hold it for the potty. What an amazing feat!

Today I was a little nervous sending him off to school because he wouldn't go before he left. So I put a pull-up over his undies, just in case. This is the note I got home after school: Noah wouldn't go on the potty, but he remained dry all day. WOW. I am so shocked that he remained dry without ever even going to the bathroom while he was at school. I had a guy here from out gas company when Noah got home from school today. SO I wasn't able to take him right to the bathroom...but when I did, his pull-up was a bit full. Oh well, we'll just keep plugging away. He's remained dry since we took that pull up off. We have had one good trip to the bathroom so far.

SO AMAZING!!! I am so proud of him. I think this is really great considering we got a late start on the potty training business!! GO NOAH GO!!!

Magic Potty Day

Yesterday was a big milestone for Noah. Potty training! Up to this point he has shown absolutely no interest whatsoever to going peepee on the potty like a big boy. But we figured, at 4 years old, we just couldn't wait any longer for him to be "ready". They say that one of the biggest signs to look for is a child "asking" to go potty. Well, Noah just never did that. As a matter of fact, when we would ask him if he would like to try, he would begin to really fuss about it. Noah has gotten so big though, that I am really struggling to change his diaper anymore. So we felt it was time, plus with kindergarten right around the corner we need to get this under wraps.

The day yesterday went pretty well. We started off strong. We had a couple accidents through out the day, but we were trying to be very consistent about going every 10 minutes and just working our way up from there. He was all about the praises when he would go peepee on the potty and I even made a chart for him to mark his progress using NEMO stickers. I think he really liked that. He really wanted a DORY sticker, but those stickers are bigger/puffier so we thought we would save those for a big event (like poopoo). So we began to try and bribe him with a DORY sticker for that. We are also telling him, no downstairs (his play room) until he goes poopoo. We are nervous that he'll get down there and go in his pants because that is normally where he goes, because its private for him. I think towards the end of the day he was starting to understand that he needed to tell us when he needed to go, except that he was telling us just as he was beginning to go in his pants. I am sure we will get that part of it down before this long weekend is over. By the end of the day we were all very tired. LOTS of running back and forth to the potty yesterday, but I must say, we did feel successful. I think 4 accidents for a first day is pretty remarkable.

Today we are really going to try and push poopoo on the potty and we are starting out the day with 30 minute intervals. Also, today we are going out to visit my parents, so that puts a little more challenge in the training for us. But I know he can do this. We have already mapped out a couple places to stop and go potty.

We are so proud of our Noah!!! What a big boy!!!

Just got back from a long vacation...I think it was about 10 days altogether. We went down to Myrtle Beach. Great weather all week. A thunderstorm or two, but nothing that took an entire day in the sun away from us.

Kayla went through some big milestones while we were there. Not only did she cut ANOTHER tooth...her first front tooth on the top, but she also learned to crawl. My life is changing so quickly. She was into everything and all over the place.

Both kids were thoroughly entertained all week by their cousins. Kayla was doted on by all of them, while Noah was getting crazy with them. I think this beach trip really taught Noah how to interact with his sister. It is such a joy to me to see him finally acknowledging her.

Noah and Kayla both had a great time in the pool. We got Noah a blue tube to wear around his waist, he calls it the "blue sun" and he was able to float around the pool on his own without so much help from daddy and mommy (mostly daddy as I was tending to Kayla). Kayla had a baby floating device that was really great. Both our kids love being in the water.

We went to Broadway at the Beach a couple times for restaurants, but on the last day we were there we did some shopping and let Noah ride some rides.  Boy, did he ever have a great time.  He rode on a motorcycle ride that popped-a-wheelie during the ride (merry-go-round style).  But the one that gets 5 starts was the big trampoline thingy (have no clue what it was called).  He was beyond excited about it and once he got on...the look on his face was PRICELESS.  He actually got very mad at Daddy when it was time to take him off.  That is one we will remember forever and one I am sure he will go on each time we are there.  As a mom, to watch was a little terrifying...however, as happy as it made him all my fears melted away.

This week at home I have noticed Noah really watching after his sister and it really blesses my heart. He see's her picking up something or doing something she shouldn't be and he tells her no...almost like a warning to me to let me know she is in "danger". When she is napping he asks where she is...so cute. Its taken so long for him to even notice her and this is really just remarkable to me that he is doing this now. I think it took that time with his cousin's to see how they interact and react to each other and Kayla, for him to realize she is his sister and she needs him.

So now we are back to the old grind. Kevin went back to work yesterday and I felt super lonely without him. Its tough going that long having him right by my side, every day all day to him being gone all day again. I miss my babe!