Dear John...

(my mom and dad in the early years. My mother is still this beautiful.)

Your memory is never far from me.

Our new little man is so smiley and squishy and huggable and loveable.

Your heart would melt if you could see him.

I often think about the day you came to the hospital upon the arrival of our sweet princess (our first baby, your first grandbaby) into our lives.

I remember how you saw her and your eyes welled up with tears.

I loved that you wore your emotions on your sleeve (and yet it's something I don't always like about myself).

You loved her with out knowing her or feeling her kick for 9 months.

You loved her even though you weren't here everyday to see my ever-enlargening belly.

You loved her before she even knew she would love you.

because she was mine and you were her grandfather, you loved her.

Unconditionally.

Love is amazing.

Love is something I want very badly for my kids to know.

the kind of love you had for me and my brother and mom.

and the love that you shared with pumpkin.

She loves you still.

Your memory is engraved on her little 5 (and 3 quarters) heart.

We love you.

and miss you.

but mostly, we appreciate you and the love that you shared.

thank you for teaching me about love.

love,

your most beloved daughter

Gifted and received.

When you have a baby,

you get gifts.

It feels good to get gifts.

It also feels good to give gifts.

but not just any gift...

a hand made one...

gifted:

for the pincushion pass swap I sent some m&m's,

some Amy Butler fabric scraps,

and a one of a kind pincushion--

trust me--I couldn't duplicate it if I tried :)

Received:

This awesome

(HUGE)

pincushion in my fave colour combo

and some beautiful glass head pins

I'm loving swaps!!

So Fun!

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gifted:

one yummy lap quilt

for:
my mother-in-law,
whom I actually "like" and love dearly
(it's not true what they say about mother in laws you know...)

Fabric:
Cotton Blossoms by Bonnie and Camille for Moda

Purchased a layer cake wayyyyy back


this is the back that my hubby helped me with :)
thanks Honey!
This the front.
(before washing and drying)
this is it all crinkly and soft after being washed and dried.

Size:
54" x 63" prior to washing

approximately 50" x 59" after a trip through the dryer.

Received:
yup...she definately liked it!

A nice warm fuzzy feeling knowing that I've given something useful,
personal, loveable and sentimental.

and I made it.
All. by. myself.

from me.
to her.

no wonder quilters are the most generous people.
they've figured out that it pays more to give than to receive.

Although if you want to send me a gift I won't turn it down!

a big thank you!

Look at this quilt!

Isn't it fabulous?!

I just adore the modern meadow line of fabric

--how did they know?

Thank you soooo much, Tethered Threads 2 Block Swap ladies!
Thank you all so very much!!
I was shocked!
And it is sooo beautiful!
Honestly,
I'm not sure if it was the hormones or the surprise,
or just the deep heartfelt thankfulness,

but I started to cry when I took it out of the envelope.

Quilters truly are the most generous people.

They've made me feel so blessed to be a part of such a great group of quilters.

I've learned so much more about quilting by being part of a swap.

These ladies are talented.

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Little Peanut is doing well and growing so fast!

He's gained a pound in less than 2 weeks

and aside from being on a sleep strike last night,

he's an extremely contented baby.

You'll see more from me soon but for now I've got to go give a cuddle to my kiddos.

I have been very busy...

holding,

cuddling,

squeezing,

kissing,

cherishing,

and thanking the Lord for this little bundle of cuteness.

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Our new little guy showed up on July 23rd, 2010 at 12:20 am.

He weighed 7lbs 9oz and has big feet :)

2 hours of labour

(yes, you read that right)

and one push and we had our newest little man in our arms.

Our kids just love him!

What a blessing.

A lot of prayers, (my own and from others),

went into the making of a beautiful birthing experience.

There is nothing better than seeing the richness of the blessings the Lord doles out.

Nothing.

I feel great and am enjoying some downtime with the family.

but I'll be back soon with more details.

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And thank you to those of you that have encouraged me the last few months.

It means alot.

Good news and some crafty goodness

First the GOOD NEWS!!!

I'm 3 centimetres dilated!!!

Yay!

this baby is on it's way soon!

Now, an udate into the crafty goodness around here as this will probably be my last post until after baby #3 joins our family....

I finished my quilt!

and it's at the quilters and I should have it back by the end of the week!

Here is the top:
and here is the backing:

i chose to have it professionally quilted because my hubby wanted it to have a soft cuddly scrunchy look and I can only do straight quilting.

Can't wait to bind it and throw it in the wash!

Pumpkin is attending her first ever real birthday party!

I saw this post on Bridget's blog, Everyday Chaos, in the morning and by the afternoon I had a gift!

Yeah!

It's getting sunny around here and the kids were due for Big Kid sunglasses.

I had seen this idea on Disney's blog (which sadly she is no longer writing)

and bought me some potholders.

Jazzed them up and instant sunglass cases!

and best of all--

No scratched lenses!!

Lastly I bought a pair of jeans for Pumpkin hoping they would fit.

no such luck. too short!

So they instantly

(or should I say after I decided what to do with them)

became some super ruffly and fun capris!
they were so easy and she gets lots of compliments!

So there you have it!

hopefully the next time we talk these 2 will have a new sibling!!

Wish me luck!

as the days creep by

I am greeted by stares lately.

Gaping mouths.

Hoots and hollers across parking lots of

"You're still HERE?!"

Or,

"You haven't had that baby yet???!"
No I haven't.

I guess this is the life of an overdue mama.

I'm only 3 days overdue.
Not so bad.
Who am I to say that this babe is actually overdue?

It says in the Bible that only the Lord knows the hour of our birth.
I'm trusting His plan for this baby.
It's hard though.

I find myself anxious in these last days.
Wondering when, how, and what to do when it all happens.

I LOVE being pregant.
honestly.
I could do this for another couple of months.

so we'll see.
I would like to know whether we're having a boy or a girl however...
I'm sure this child will arrive before it's 13th birthday...
and with a small head, if you don't mind.
Please and thankyou.

Mostly we are just so excited to meet this new little person
of whom we have struggled over names for the last 9 months.

Lord, help me to be patient.
Accept your timing.
Help me to have peace.

Welcome BABY!
We're waiting on you :)

progress...

ready to be pieced....

I'm loving how quickly these HST blocks come together...

this is one Cotton Blossoms layer cake and 6 extra squares of fabric...

(my layer cake was missing 4 squares)

We'll see how I like it once it's all pieced :)