Misc. Monday: Marbles

We started using a marble jar for Lilly. Lots of teachers use them in their classrooms. It's a pretty simple concept that reinforces positive behavior. Every time she does something good, we put a marble in the jar and when it fills up, she gets a small prize.  We came up with the rules together as a family. My favorite of Lilly's is, "Don't squish Iris." We wrote all our house rules on the chalkboard. Don't get me wrong; she still gets time outs and loses privileges, but I kinda felt like that was all we were doing. She has responded beautifully to her marble jar and it is amazing what she will do for a marble. She loves the attention and the praise for making good choices and we love not having to punish her constantly! She is making us very proud.  I found the jar label at livinglocurto.

Sew Crafty Saturday: Oh, Dolly!

Here's four new doll quilts I finished right before everything got so hectic at work. I can't believe how much I miss summer already! This was our speediest and happiest summer yet. I'm not exactly sure when I'll get a chance to sew again in the near future. This weekend will be full of cleaning, laundry, errands, going through my work tub, and spending time with my precious family. Let me tell you, Kindergarten is another world. Everything I was told did not prepare me for my first week in Kindergarten. Some can read. While some don't know what letters are, and have never held a pencil or crayon. There was not a day last week when two or three did not cry, and they have to go to the bathroom all the time! They sneeze on you, pick their noses, then want to hold your hand. At one time, I had three on each hand because they were holding my fingers! God made them cute, little, and sweet for a reason. I LOVE THEM ALREADY! My team is amazing, and my sweet Dan was a major support this week. The weekend will be over before I know it, so I'm off to enjoy it. I hope you have a wonderful one too!

Misc. Monday: New Beginnings

No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead. Philippians 3:7 (NLT)

I think this certainly pertains to my every day foibles in life, but it is especially true after my first day of Kindergarten!

Sew Crafty Saturday: Baby Bunting Quilt

I made this little bunting quilt for our new Goddaughter, Amelia. We were honored to be a special part of her baby dedication today. Her parents, Bobby and Amy, are wonderful friends of ours. You can check out their sweet life by clicking on "mommyhoodwithmia" to the right. I am so proud of how this quilt turned out and I especially love my original patchwork binding. I first saw the quilt on a pretty cool life. In typical "Michelle" fashion, I changed mine up a bit. I decided to quilt the blanket more than Cheryl did, and changed the binding. Now that I have mastered the mitered corner, I'm using it! Then I saw this one over at little birdie secrets where the author added a bird applique and ric rac to the binding. I have another one in the works and my wheels are spinnin!

Wee-Ones Wednesday: Big Bear Part II

Misc. Monday: Sweet Natalie

Dan and I went to see Natalie Merchant at the beautifully remodeled Orphium Theater last Friday. She sang and shared children's poems from her new album, Leave Your Sleep, and then went on to perform some of her greatest hits. She played for almost 3 hours, with no opening act. If you have kids, you must buy her new CD. It is simply amazing! I love it so much that I even went through the trouble of searching for it on Amazon for you. The CD comes with a small book containing each poem, and a brief bio on its author. Merchant worked on this project for more than seven years, and even funded the project herself. She says the idea came to her when her daughter started asking her some serious questions about life. It is not merely a "children's CD," as much as it is a CD about childhood. Some of the songs are light and silly, while others are much more somber. As parents, Dan and I are always striving to expose our children to great literature and music. Of course we own, Wow, Wow Wubzy & Backyardigans CDs too. But this is sooo much better!

Sew Crafty Saturday: Before and After

I am in love with this little dresser! I asked my friend Amy if I could rescue it from her trash pile. She said yes, and here is what it has become. Dan did all the hard work for me: cleaning, sanding, repainting, and attaching the new knobs from Anthropologie. I used Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Crafts as a template and guide for the birdies. Her book is quite amazing; I borrowed it from the library along with her newer Encyclopedia of Sewing. They are definitely worth checking out. I used Modge Podge to attach the birds and the top piece, and lined the insides of the drawers with oil cloth. The dresser is in our bedroom right now, but could easily move in to either of the girls rooms. Decisions, decisions...

Wee-Ones Wednesday: Big Bear Lake

Happy girl, beautiful day!

Thinking about it...

Iris joyfully drank much of the lake. I guess both of our girls are crazy-wild!
Check out the cat fish... amazing!
Concentration = Silence

She could not have had more fun.

Dan says this is his favorite family picture of summer 2010!

I usually try to edit out the number of pics I post, but we had so much fun on our annual Big Bear trip with my parents. I can not get over how much our girls enjoy the water. They were so pretty and happy today that you are lucky you are not staring at 20 shots of them at the lake. That said, I think I'll have to post the rest of our trip another day...

Misc. Monday: Boo Hoo...

Dan and I went to a wedding on Saturday, and I bought a new dress for the occasion due to the encouragement of my friend, Heather. Since Dan and I looked so cute, I couldn't resist having my mom take some pictures. Lilly was very excited to see us all glammed up, so she got out her boa and posed with us for quite a few. Earlier in the day, she had given me her pirate telescope (decorated toilet paper roll), and told me to take it the the ball (wedding), so I could look out for the mean step girls (from Cinderella). I felt like a princess!

Fast forward to yesterday, I upload the pictures as I normally do and delete them off the camera. When I looked in the file on the computer for the pictures, I could only see one (and you are looking at it)! How could this have happened? I looked adorable!! Lilly was too cute & Dan was super handsome!! The moment can not be recaptured. I guess, in my haste and multitasking mode, when I hit control all to drag the pics over...I didn't. I dragged only one, and not the best one either. Ugh! Will I ever learn?

Sew Crafty Saturday: Just A Few Things

Have I told you how obsessed I've become with buntings? Hence, the new bunting bag.
Look at how I repurposed my old curtains?
Doesn't she look adorable in the little headband I made?

Here's quilt pieces cut and waiting patiently for some extra time and my sewing machine.

I have been working diligently for our "Four Feathered Friends" craft fair that is coming in the Fall. I will not have much time because school is just around the corner, and I've been up to my new classroom a few times to unpack and set up. Since I'm in a new room, my job share partner and I decided to hang fabric for the bulletin boards. Fitting, wouldn't you say?

Wee-Ones Wednesday: What A Baby!

Iris is officially 16 months old now, but she is still our baby. This little girl barely says a word, but is super smart! Sneaky, is more like it! She opens the fridge and doors, brings you her shoes to say she wants to go out, takes Lilly's toys, sneaks your food, runs off with purses, hides pacifiers, and sweetly cuddles on command. Yet, she ironically won't sit still for a book, something her wild sis will always stop for! She loves music and has some amazing dance moves already. She is definitely a Michael!

Miscelaneous Monday: Line 'Em Up

Lilly absolutely loves to line up all her "babies." She makes sure that each one has some sort of cookie, tea cup, or plate. What a sweet heart!