oh january

Between the shelving books during the days and trying to exercise in the evening, life has been flying by. there are so many Christmas presents that I made for family and friends that i never blogged about [shame on me]. the one problem is that i did not take pictures of most of them [again...shame on me]. probably my favorite quilt that i have made to date is a zigzag one that i made for my sister [sadly...this is one of those presents i do not have a picture of]. i found this fabric online and absolutely fell in loooove with it. the mustard print on top might be my favorite print of all times.

i promise to have a picture asap [if my family up north would help me out with a few snapshots...that would be lovely].

i also completed a quilt the beginning of this month that meant a whole lot to me. i made my first tee shirt quilt for a dear friend. this was not just any tee shirt quilt. without getting into too much detail, one of mine and my husbands closest friends was taken to be with Jesus last september 7, 2010. Heath's death was difficult for family, friends, and out entire community. i felt honored and privileged when Heath' sister asked me if i would make a quilt out of his tee shirts. there are many elements that go together when making a quilt: cutting, piecing, sewing, ironing, more sewing, pinning, etc. i have come to see the importance of each step and the transformation from lifeless, random pieces of fabric, into something which breathes life and warm is the reason i quilt. however, completing this process with something of someone who meant so much, it was quite a different experience. while emotional, it was tender and refreshing knowing that these pieces of fabric that once hung on Heath's shoulders would be comfort and warmth for his dear sister.

I will be honest, i was not completely thrilled with the back. if i had more time and more space, i would like to think that it would have turned out a bit differently. this ended up being almost a queen size quilt thus marking the largest quilt i had ever completed. also, please forgive the pictures; it was a rainy day and we had to snap the quickest pictures ever. i am proud to say that one of my quilts has traveled the world and is now in Australia with Hannah. She is completing a DTS [discipleship training school] with the organization YWAM [youth with a mission]. if you would like to read more about what Hannah is doing, click here.

we have a busy weekend. wedding shower tonight and birthday party tomorrow for my husband's grandmother [i just finished up her present and threw it in the wash...i will post pictures on that present after she gets it!]. our little man turned 10 months old yesterday. i can't believe it. i love him so much, even his mullet and obsessive thumb sucking.

December

the past few weeks have completely flown by. i am finding that my days seem to do that as of late. i am starting to understand what people mean when they talk about blinking their eyes and before they know it years are gone. being that this time of year is my favorite time of year, i find that it is always over before it even begins. i have so many projects to make, foods to bake, and gifts to wrap, i rarely find time to sit and truly appreciate this splendid time of year. i am making a point to do that this year. to soak in the beauty that is Christmas. to wake up each morning with a thankful heart. to praise the Lord for his tiny baby he sent to be born and walk among men in order to save us all.

in the meantime, mine and my husband's best friends welcomed their son into the world two days before Thanksgiving (mom was able to have a natural unmediated labor and i am so flipping proud of her!!) i had been planning on making him a quilt, but wanted it to be really special. while i usually just buy fabric from my local joann's (being that they send me a tremendous amount of coupons), I fell in love with this fabric on etsy and just had to have it. it was so worth every penny i spent on it. we delivered the quilt to the hospital and i think that it was a hit.

fabric stack freshly ripped from the bag

completed quilt

close up

back

back close up

Loudon has been growing like a weed. this past month has been a huge month for us. crawling, pulling up on everything, two bottom teeth, and a whole heck of a lot of personality. he turned 8 months old last week and he is becoming such a little boy.

he loves to lick the sides of the pack in play

funny face

november

the house is quiet. my cup of tea is steaming, and i just devoured a slice of sourdough bread covered in ginger spiced sweet potato butter. i love thanksgiving break. i have found that my capacity to love has grown in the past few weeks. i have slowed down [to the best of my ability] and tried to enjoy the little things. i used to be much better at this, but i am guilty of letting life get me down and out and the beauty of life goes, sadly, unnoticed. perhaps it was my trip to the emergency room a few weeks ago that has been catalyst for this shift in perspective [i had a lovely trip to the emergency room due to an accelerated heart rate.... over 165 which they could not get down...followed with a full blown panic attack.] all is fine, praise the Lord, and as of today my cardiologist said my heart functions beautifully and looks structurally sound. the Lord protected me, my heart and my mind, and i am so thankful for that. since the incident, i do find myself lingering in hugs a little longer and enjoying the sound of giggles more than ever before. prayers of comfort and peace have been filling my prayer journal, both for myself as well as for many dear friends of mine who have said goodbye to precious parents over the past few weeks.

"May the Lord give strength to his people! May the Lord bless his people with peace!" Ps. 29:11

"In peace i will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety." Ps. 4:8

"This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life." Ps. 119:50

"For the Lord comforts Zion; he comforts all her waste places and makes her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song." Is. 51:3

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." Matt. 5:4

i love you friends and am praying for such sweet peace and comfort to overwhelm you all. 

we celebrated Loudon's first Halloween a few weeks ago. although we did not go trick or treating, we did have Loudon dress up and help hand out candy [and by help I mean look cute]. 

happy bear

saturday

life for the past two weeks has been a whirlwind. work is going well. waking up at 5:15 am....well you tell me how you think that is going. the days fly by at work [which i am so thankful for]. Loudon seems to be doing wonderfully with his g-mommy during the days. he has recently fallen in love with his jumper, his walker, and trying to grab anything you are holding in your hand. this past week g-mommy has been at the beach, therefore his aunt KK watched him monday and tuesday. his grandma flew down from Virginia and has spent the remainder of the week with him. while i know she came down mostly to spend time with her grandson, it has been so wonderful having my mother here.

saturday was an interesting day. i am using interesting because i am still uncertain what word truly fits the information we were told. let me start from the beginning.

there is this picture in my mind of a just born baby laying on his mother's chest starting wide-eyes into her eyes. that never happened with Loudon. we would get little peeks every now and then, but he rarely opened his eyes the first few weeks of life. about three weeks old he began opening his eyes more consistently. however, he never seemed to fully open his eyes. we just figured he had little eyes, being that both his father and I have smaller eyes as well. his right eye seemed to open bigger than his left. it never bothered us....we felt it was an endearing physical characteristic. i would be lying if i said i never compared my friend's babies eyes to Loudon. I would think "I wonder when Loudon will really open his eyes wide?"

At his two month appointment our pediatrician took a look at his left eye. he did not seem too concerned, therefore just made a note to check it again at his four month appointment. At his four month appointment our pediatrician explained how he was concerned with Loudon being able to see how of that left eye, being that his eyelid was almost covering his pupil. he referred us to an eye doctor for a second opinion. saturday morning we went to our eye doctor appointment. Loudon was diagnosed with congenital ptosis in both eyes (his left eye is worse than in the right). having never heard of this before, we have spend the day researching [which i love to do...being the librarian that i am]. in a nutshell, congenital ptosis is when the eyelid muscles are not fully developed, thus not able to open without difficulty. we have noticed that Loudon tilts his head back to look at things, as well as raises his eyebrows frequently, both indicators of congenial ptosis. the only means of correction is through surgery. our doctor here has performed this surgery numerous times, but being that Loudon is so young, he has referred us to the Emory Eye Center of Emory Hospital. our doctor did say that the doctors at Emory could decide that Loudon's condition is not severe enough for surgery at this time. if that is the case, we would be able to wait a few years and have the surgery done here when Loudon is a few years older. the doctor did dilate Loudon's eyes to see if this condition has affect his eyesight. thankfully, it has not. we found out yesterday that our appointment with the doctor at Emory is September 14th at 9:00am. at this time, we just ask for your prayers. while surgery seems inevitable, and is the only means that the doctors treat congential ptosis, we know that our all powerful God is in the healing business. we will continue to keep yall updated on this entire journey!

tomorrow

tomorrow has been a day that has been pushed to the back of my mind for some time now. underneath diapers, pieces of fabrics, tears, giggles and burp cloths august 3, 2011 has been buried for the past four months. tomorrow is the day that i kiss my little man goodbye and watch as he begins spending his days without me.

tomorrow i am going back to work.

working in a school has its advantages, one being summer vacation. having a baby the last week in March also has its advantages [taking the rest of the school year off for maternity leave]. i am grateful that i was able to have four months with him. i have been able to hear him laugh for the first time, flip over from his stomach to his back, see him sit up on his own for about 5 seconds at a time, discover his hands, feet, mouth, colors, patterns, and his toys. i am so thankful for the care he will be receiving...one of his grandmothers will take care of him, which is a near perfect situation [the perfect situation being me staying at home with him]. i have been spending the last few days doing little else except be with him.... soaking him in. we read, we play, we laugh, we watch "chicka, chicka, boom boom" video about 20 times a day, we listen to the beatles, and we nap. i guess i have sorta gotten attached to him.

i decided last week i wanted to make him a quilt before i started back to work. i finished it in three days, and i have to say that i am so proud of it. it was my first attempt at machine quilting [i have only ever made tie quilts]. so, i guess you could say that it is technically my first quilt. i was not sure where i was going to go with the colors, but i found this awesome robot flannel print and i knew that this was going to be the foundation for the quilt. anyone who knows me at all knows that i am obsessed with earth tones [browns, greens, oranges]. however, i wanted to pick colors i knew Loudon would love. so far he has loved his quilt [and i measure his love for it by how much he stares at it and drools].

From August 2, 2011

[awesomeness]

From August 2, 2011

[quilt front]

From August 2, 2011

[quilt back]

vacation

well we had our first vacation as a family of three. i was a bit apprehensive about the 12 hour drive to my parents in virginia with a three month old. we have worked hard to get Loudon on a schedule, and we have found that he thrives off of the consistency. whenever he misses his afternoon nap he sleeps worse that night....so, needless to say, i was scared what he would do being in the car for 12 hours. we decided to spilt up the time going there. we stopped for the night at kendall's uncle's place in Charlotte. although we did not get there till after midnight (combination of not leaving when we wanted and stopping twice for 30 mins each time to feed the baby), it was nice to visit with family for a bit. Loudon was so tired that the transition from car seat to pack-n-play was flawless. we finally got up to my parents house early the next evening. overall, i was impressed with the little guy. a 12 hour trip is not easy for anyone, much less a three month old. time with my family was wonderful. we spent a few days at the beach with some of my extended family. many of them i had not seen since our wedding almost four years ago, and many more of them i had not seen in 10 years. kendall and i were so looking forward to the time at the beach, and it did not disappoint. being that we usually spend time either at the gulf or hilton head, the ocean in maryland was quite a different experience (i grew up going to this beach but had not been there in years and years). the waves were huge and the water was a crisp 67 degrees. it was refreshing, as opposed to the water down here that actually makes you sweat while you are in the water. we were curious as to how Loudon would like the ocean, being that he hates baths and hated the one time he got in a pool. he did surprisingly well! although we only put his feet in, he never cried!

i had my birthday while on vacation. i celebrated by eating oysters on the half shell, buying a pair of earrings from target, and thoroughly enjoyed a dairy queen reeses peanut butter cups ice cream cake.

we decided to leave to come home at 2:30 in the morning. it was the best decision we could have made. Loudon eats about every three hours, so we tried to plan our stops for food, gas, bathroom's on this schedule. it worked out beautifully. we stopped three times to feed and would hit all three things each time. we got home at 2:37 pm....almost 12 hours on the dot. we were so proud of how well he did on his first road trip. while it was a great vacation, it is nice to be home. i love that i feel as if our house is home now. i love that i look forward to coming back here to rest, to relax, to settle, to love on my family, to swing on the front porch, to drink a cup of coffee.

we rounded out our vacation time by celebrating the forth. we swam, we ate good food, we watched fireworks. i was excited about seeing how Loudon would react to fireworks.... he slept. he slept through the booming fireworks. oh well...maybe next year he will enjoy them =).

after my birthday dinner

our little family [excuse the crazy hair]

Loudon's first time in the Atlantic

waiting for fireworks [right before he fell asleep]

growth. restoration. change.

while each of these concepts are closely related, growth, restoration, change, they all vary slightly in how they present themselves. i find myself relating to each of these throughout my daily life. i am being faced with the reality of growth, being that next week i will be turning 27. just two weeks ago the Lord reminded me of many promises.... and this remembrance is the catalyst for restoration. in the obvious ways [being a mom], change is something that i have become most familiar with, both unexpected and welcomed. throughout this monday i have found precious examples of each of these.

growth:

[our herbs]

[my son practicing sitting up]

restoration:

[25 dollar craigslist find....before the restoration]

[8 dollar thrift store find...before the transformation]

change:

[my sister-in-law took the mason jars that we gave away as our favors at our wedding four years ago and made them into redneck wine glasses. awesome.]

i am learning to embrace the growth, appreciate the hard work that goes into the restoration, and smile at the changes.

forgive me

please forgive me, for i am long overdue for a new post. i could blame it on my crazy life, the dirty dipers, the hungry husband, but i will actually blame it on my camera. i have been meaning to post pictures of the baby shower gift. my nice digital camera [gift from my wonderful father] has been giving me some problems [by problems i mean not working]. i am usually really good with technology [not meaning to brag, but i am a media specialist=)], but this was giving me the run around. the last time i used it i depleted the batteries. so i charged them up, put them in the camera. nothing. so i charged some others i had, put them in. nothing. i went to walmart, bought a brand new charger and batteries, charged them, put them in the camera. nothing. charged the old batteries in the new charger. nothing. new batteries in the old charger. nothing. well tonight i sat down to finally write this post and tried one more time [old batteries]. worked...finally. i will chalk it up to this....i blew out the space where the batteries go [high tech...right]. i was able to take reasonable pictures of my latest projects and now now, a week later, posting these pictures.

here is the gift i gave to my friend last weekend. she is having a little girl and the bedding is this cute pink and red flowered print. i made a matching car seat cover and changing pad/diaper/wipe holder. [excuse these pictures...they were taken with my little point and shoot, being that my other camera was inoperable *see above paragraph if you missed this]

[the final package]

the diaper/wipes holder opens up to a changing pad [it has the flower on it]. the car seat cover attaches onto the car seat handle. i received one of these and fell in love. [again sorry about these terrible pictures]

here are a few projects i did this week:

I found this pillow online and had to make it. this blog has recently become one of my favs:

Cluck Cluck Sew

a summer tote. it is large and just perfect for all my junk [well actually only about 20% of what i carry around with me is mine...the rest is for the baby]. i loosely followed this pattern:

Summer Tote

i am sorta obsessed with this flower. i found a tutorial online and have been going crazy. this was my first flower. trust me there will be plenty more to come.

i made my first craigslist purchase this week. i found an antique dresser for 25 dollars! although one of the legs is broken, it was still worth the money. i have grand ideas for the dresser and am thrilled to get started on that project. before pictures will be up soon [as long as the batteries cooperate]. i also bought an end table at a local thrift store today. 9 dollars with tax. i love good deals.

tomorrow our baby will be 12 weeks old. wow. it just seems like yesterday i laid eyes on him for the first time. we recorded his birth, and i am so thankful for having that moment on record [ it is tastefully done....PG rated]. i love watching it. i love that i will always be able to remember. i love that i will always remember my first words after he was born "thank you Jesus". it is so special

12 weeks ago

today: he found his feet. he sat there for maybe 20 minutes wiggling his feet and staring at them. he realized that he was the one moving them. i love watching him learn and grow.... best part of my day.

the good, the bad, and the ugly

the good:

two weeks ago my sister, Loudon, and I took a trip to Angel's Antiques in Opelika, AL. i saw this clock and fell in love with it. jaima, my sister, convinced me to get it. when i am about to make any sort of purchase i ask myself "am i going to regret not getting this?" if the answer is even 25% yes, i go for it. i love the colors, the design, and the feel of this clock. for 17.00 dollars i am very pleased with the purchase. i haven't decided where to put it in the house yet, but it is on my list to get done this week.

the bad:

while this is maybe one of my favorite pictures of Loudon to date, it seems as if he was having a bad moment. i love that bottom lip. he is a pro at sticking that thing out, and i secretly love it everytime, even though i know that it means he is not happy about something (i sorta feel bad about that). we took our first road trip this weekend up to atlanta to visit some of kendall's family. loudon's aunt kk is holding him here. he had just spit up on her and we were laughing about it. obviously he was embarrassed and not appreciative at our laughter.

the ugly:

we had our two month check up last week. to be honest, i was a bit nervous. we have had feeding issues and sometimes i wonder if he has been getting enough milk from me. i was scared that the pediatrician would not be happy with Loudon's weight gain or something. i hear of infants younger than Loudon weighing over 12 pounds or something and i wonder "should he be that big?". well, he weighed in at 11 pounds 2 ounces, two whole pounds bigger than his birth weight. the doctor was very pleased with that and all was well. then came the shots. those nurses have it down to a science. they get on each side and poke at the same time. everything is over in less than 15 seconds. well, he cried. i held him and kissed him and by the time we were in the car, he was asleep. the worst part was taking the band-aids off. they were cute snoopy ones, and taking them off meant I was the bad guy who was going to make him cry. i ripped the first one off. he looked at me for a second, then that precious bottom lip came out and then the crying. then we repeated two more times. i hated seeing him in pain, but i knew that it would be short-lived. while i have only been a parent for 10 weeks....God, the father, has shown me so much about his heart for me, his daughter. each day, in multiple circumstances, he reveals a little morsel of his character to me. he cares for me, for us, so much... so much more than i care about my little boy....wow.