the lack of...

http://fg.ed.pacificu.edu/bailey/resources/mat/mat.html

Sometimes in life there are ruts. A rut is like a puddle or pot hole. Because of grad school, life is in a rut. I study, I lesson plan, I cook dinner (the do the dishes) and put Pinkie to bed. I'm in a rut. All the cool things we do squeeze in on the weekends I forget to take pictures of or I'm too lazy to download them lately...

The pic above is all my grad student friends (to-be Teachers). We finally submitted our Work Samples (huge project) and today was the first day of full time teaching. Hooray!!!

2nd graders are exhausting. I can see May 23rd on the horizon.

Handmade Holiday

Here are two of the things I made for family for Christmas. The top is the apron I made for my Aunt Kimmie. She requested purple and it is reversible! My favorite part is the ruffle at the top.

The second is the jumper I made for my niece, Brookie, and Pinkie. Cousins with matching dresses!!! Yeah!!!

It is brown denim, lined with a cute brown flower and a blue circle flower applique on the front. Pinkie's is too big :( I don't think Brookie has worn hers yet. The sizing on the pattern was really hard to figure out for the girls! It's not like two year olds will let you measure them...

Shock and Awe

Surprise!!!

I'm currently recovering from the shock of becoming a Minivan owner... yes, I (mother of ONE) own a van. In a weird and unfortunate turn of events, we needed another car. Luckily, my Papa bought himself a Christmas gift Lexus (crazy, I know) and had a van to spare.

We debated, pondered and prayed about getting a car- hopefully this VAN saves our wallet and carries our family safely.

Ugh, I am a van owner. I'm only 25, you know. I only have one kid, you know. Please don't make fun of me. I'm still absorbing the 'oldness' of it all.

But, if you want to ride in luxurious comfort, watching a DVD, using our GPS and listening to satellite radio, I'll pick you up after nap time...

Semi-Homemade Holiday

This Christmas I was inspired by Alie, my Grandma and the need to give gifts of love and effort. Not to knock the effort shopping with the masses takes, but I felt the need for personal effort- time, frustration and pride.

Of course, after all my hard work, I forgot to take pictures of most of what I made. But here's the low down on my gifts:

1. Monogram pillows for my mother-in-law found here

2. Jumpers for Pinkie and my niece, Brookie- chocolate brown denim with a blue/green star

3. Half aprons for my sister, Grandma and Janice found at Martha Stewart.com

4. A full apron for my Aunt Kimmie, she requested- pieced together by patterns I found online

Then today, Shanna and I made headbands and ribbon belts. She saw the headbands done on the Today Show and we found the ribbon belts here. They are super cute. I will post pictures soon. Happy New Year!