Welcoming The Newlyweds

Not too long ago, I came across this super cute Newlywed Front Door Surprise.  I was inspired- and as luck would have it, I knew some dear newlywed's of my own that I could surprise with this fun little welcome home gift!

So a few of us put a little something together for the Newlyweds to greet them as they returned to their home to start a new chapter of life together.  I hope it brought a smile to their faces!

To my friends, Susanna and Brian: wishing you guys a lifetime of happiness and fun surprises!

Flower Vase: Empty pickle jar from my fridge.  I soaked the labels off and covered it with a burlap fabric scrap.  You can also mod-podge the jars to give them an antiqued look.  Cool tutorial on how to do this here.
Flowers: Hydrangeas from our front yard
Funny looking bow:  Crepe Paper I had laying around the house :)

Fishing, Crafting and a Mommy-Daughter Date

It was another great weekend at the Brown House.  Weston was gone for a good bit of the weekend fly-fishing with some guys from the church and Aubrey and I spent some serious quality time together.

Here's what we did:

Aubrey read some books

We loved on Chloe and said "Good Dog."

We did some crafting

This was a gold 11x17 picture frame I picked up at an estate sale.  I spray painted it white, distressed it a little, and covered the back with stenciled burlap. I thought it was a fun little accent for the guest bedroom (which needs some serious sprucing up.) 

Played in Aubrey's new kiddie pool in the back yard 

Not pictured.  But notice the rosy, sun-kissed cheeks below!

Went on a date to Chick-fil-A.  

Fished up some sewing projects

4th of July Dress for cousin Brooklyn

And finally Dad came home!!  Aubrey was beyond excited- she wouldn't let go of him. 

Tiny Baby- 11 weeks

We got to visit tiny baby today.   We go back to the doctor on June 28th when, hopefully, we can do the anatomy ultrasound and learn the gender.  Until then, the new baby will be lovingly referred to as "Tiny Baby."

Tiny Baby- 11 weeks. Arms and legs and everything!

Everything went well at the doctor and we got a sneak peak at Tiny Baby, again!  Everything is looking good so far- Tiny Baby has some arms and legs and is starting to look less like a tadpole and more like a little human.

This early on in pregnancy it's easy to forget that there is a tiny human being growing inside of you.  Sure, feeling really tired and a little bit "weird" is something you carry around with you daily, but what is amazing is when you're reminded that there is a little person in there too.  I just love it!

Here's a pic of Tiny Baby just 4 weeks ago-- barely a blip on the radar. (hint: the tiny white spot in the big black circle is the baby)  It's crazy how much can change in just a few short weeks.  I love you little one.

Memorial Day Weekend

We had big plans for this Memorial Day weekend.  We bought a new kiddie pool for Aubrey, planned to host shrimp boil at our house, and made plans to go swimming out at PawPaws house.  Then on Saturday, out of the blue, Aubrey came down with a really high fever.

It's frustrating when you know they don't feel well, but they can't tell you exactly what's wrong.  All swimming plans were put on hold and we spent the weekend trying to get/keep everyone healthy.  Basically everyone just hung out in their PJs for most of the weekend.  We went ahead with the shrimp boil-- Aubrey even ventured outside for a bit to hang out with everyone.  The shrimps (aka- skrimps) were delicious, the company was fantastic and luckily it wasn't unbearably hot outside! All in all it was a good weekend.

Maybe some R&R on a HOT holiday weekend was just what we all needed!

Sissy- spending most of  the weekend in her PJ's 

Had to get a finger prick at the doctor :(

Skrimps

Aubrey and Tera

Sewing

At long last I have discovered a hobby- something that I love!  I initially wanted my new hobby to be photography, but I'm terrible at taking pictures.  So on to the next thing....

This past November (2011) I decided to take up sewing.  It all started with a hunt for the perfect Christmas stockings.  I couldn't find anything I liked so I decided, "Well, I guess I'll just make some."  I bought this cute little sewing machine on Amazon, watched LOTS of youtube videos and got to work on my stockings.

 The "Lil' Sew & Sew"

I was really pleased with the final product-- after all, I didn't know the first thing about sewing and this was my very first project.

Christmas Stockings

Rumor got around that I had been sewing and Weston's parents gave me a sewing machine for Christmas.   I'll have to admit that the big fancy machine was REALLY intimidating compared to the Lil' Sew & Sew.  But I got used to it and have been sewing and monogramming like a mad woman ever since.

To date I have:
Sewn the curtains in our living room out of painter's drop cloth
Helped a friend sew almost 40 burlap pillows for her wedding
Made several pocket squares for Weston
Helped the ladies at the church sew little pillows and positioning tubes for babies in the NICU
Created pillows for my office
Monogrammed dinner napkins for a wedding gift
And have started making dresses for Aubrey (and a few of her cousins)

Teeny Tiny Valentines Day Pillow for the NICU Babies 

Today the Lil' Sew & Sew will go to a new home and I hope the new owner (my college roommate) will  discover a love for sewing as I have.  I still have much to learn- and I look forward to it!

Lindsay

18 Months!

Happy 18 months to my sweet girl!

Aubrey's favorite words:

Hey

Bye

Poo Poo

Thank You

Wuh-zee (I have no idea what this means but she says it ALL THE TIME!)

DaDa

Mama

Mmmmmmm (when her food is so yummy)

Bless (for when you sneeze)

Moo

Shoe

Bite

Although she can't communicate much with her own words, she definitely understands what we're saying.  She responds appropriately to things like:  "Let's go to Aubrey's room," "It's time to brush your teeth," "Time for a bath,"  "Let's get in your high chair,"  and  "Do you want a snack?" just to name a few.  

She loves to sing songs like Ba Ba Black Sheep, Bye Baby Bunting, Itsy Bitsy Spider, and ABCs. 

It's amazing how much she's grown.  We couldn't feel more blessed.  With another one on the way, I just want to soak up this time with Aubrey while I can!  

Finished Origami Mobile

Earlier I posted about making an origami mobile for Aubrey's room and I finally finished it! Aubrey was really pleased with how it turned out. :)

Total Cost:

About $5-$10

She loves it!

Steps:

1. Fold your paper cranes. I used origami paper and scrapbook paper. The scrapbook paper was harder to work with because its thickness.

2. Gather your supplies (needle, thread/floss, 1 pack of small beads, 2 dowel rods, paint, hook)

3. Cut your dowel rods to the desired size and paint them whatever color you want. I painted mine white. *I wish I had used flat dowel rods instead of rounded ones. You can also use wire.

4. Thread the floss through the paper crane and secure both sides of the crane with a metal bead (picture below).

5. Secure the dowel rods in a T-shape and hang the paper cranes from the rods.

6. Balance the mobile by moving your paper cranes farther in or out on the rod.

7. Cut excess string and hang from a hook on the ceiling.

Here are the instructions I found online and followed.

Supplies

Crane with the floss threaded through

Finished product