Going Places!

Spencer thinks he is such a stud these days! He will be walking before Halloween for sure. Then I will have 2 trick or treaters!!!!

Priceless

I. LOVE. MY. LYLA. GIRL!

Lately when we are out and about... everyone notices Spencer. His big, round, blue eyes, and his curvy, addicting smile. And every time Lyla hears people raving about her brother, I can sense her feelings being hurt. She gets sensitive, and wraps around my leg, and gets whiny. And it breaks my heart. Yes babies just attract attention, I just wish Lyla didn't notice how much attention Spencer gets.

So.... since I think Lyla is just wonderful, here is to my sweet girl.

I notice you, and I think you are beautiful, and I rave about you every chance I get! I hope you know it is more important for people to notice WHO you are, not WHAT you look like. And you ARE super! I love that daily you ask me "how are you doing today mom?" I love that you notify me when I am being a "cranky pants" and that I need a nap. I love to watch you discipline your baby dolls for doing "naughty things", and then turn around and "nurse them to sleep". You are going to be a fantastic mother some day. And you already are a fantastic daughter. I love you. I am so glad that you are mine. Yes you are my touchy soul, and it is definitely hard to get you to be as light and smiley as Spencer, but that is because you are YOU, and you are different than he is. You are special. Just be you.

And in honor of you, here are some of my October favorites so far:

How crafting works around here

My friend down the street was talking to me about doing an advent calendar for Halloween. Which led me to look at Halloween advent calendar blogs. Whilst blog hopping, I ran into one where a lady took an old clock, and used scrap book paper to refinish it, and added a witch cut out into the middle and put the hands back on. The clock was broken so she put them at 12, and said the clock was bewitched to stay at midnight, and that it was her witching hour clock. How cute, right? And how much work, right? Who has the time, right?

I loved the idea of a "Witching Hour" clock, so I put a spin on it, and I used polymer clay, because I already had it, and I know that it works like silly putty and will pick up any image printed with toner. So I designed it in 2003 Microsoft Word (I was exceedingly limited, ugh!), printed it out, rolled out my clay, and put the paper on it, and baked it. Here is the finished product! Of course it isn't a real clock, so I just put a clay hand on it that is stuck at 12.
Now that being said... I am going to get on a soap box. Everyone blogs with their best faces on. We are all out here sharing our lives with others, because we have this need for others to validate our amazingness by commenting on the amazing things we have done. I am so guilty of this! And when I read peoples blogs, I always come away feeling inadequate, less than perfect, and with need to do something over the top so I can write a swell blog post about it, that everyone will comment on.

So maybe this isn't you, maybe you read all those blogs where the women can cook, sew, take care of her perfect baby, clean, design, take a amazing photos, is super spiritual, and always looks beautiful, and maybe you walk away from it not feeling like an empty soul who can barely keep it together most days. But if in the off chance you are like me, and feel like most blogs are geared at making us feel worthless, then let me share something with you:

This blog post was to show my cool, easy idea with you, not to make YOU feel like I am super woman and you are not. I want you to know exactly what went on at my house to make that decoration... everything that went into it that you don't see in that photo: What should have taken 2 hours, took a week. I only worked when Spencer was asleep. Lyla was one the counter playing in my clay and rolling it in the pasta machine, while I worked. I worked in my underwear on several occasions, because I didn't get around to showering or dressing (sad but true). My otherwise clean house was exceedingly messy. I had piles of clean unfolded laundry on my bedroom floor. I was also guilty of yelling at Lyla on two occasions as she stuck her finger through my project to make it look "pretty".

So let me say this, when we see a fabulous blog, and think to ourselves how the heck does she balance everything so fabulously and have all that time to do all that fabulous stuff? Just remember, you are fabulous, and you are amazing... and while that lady was doing all that fabulous stuff, something had to give. Her life wasn't pristine like the picture or blog would have you believe.

Ok, soap box over.

This and That

On Saturday we went to Old Tucson Studios with Tyler and AmiCheri. We would have had a fantastic time, except for one minor detail: it was blazing hot outside! Did I mention BLAZING? I think we hit the record high for the month of August or something. And unfortunately Lyla got heat exhaustion, and was burning up the rest of the day and into the night. But that aside, it was pretty cool.

Here is Mister Squishy with his Uncle Tyler. I just can't get over this little guys cuteness factor! I mean, I know I'm his mother, but he is just too cute for his own good, don't you think?!
Right before this photo was taken we went to go see the can-can dancers, and Spencer thought he had died and went to heaven... Jesse kept trying to cover his eyes and Spenc would yank his dad's hand away and strain to see the dancers, and his eyes were glued on them as they danced around the room. One came right up and sang right into his face and touched his hand... and let me tell you, that just made his whole little life right there! He was smitten!

And here are my other two jailbirds. Ironically Lyla's face is real in this photo... we didn't even have to ask for it! Aren't they just a pair!

So our hens started to lay! And I am so stoked! The eggs are blue, like an instant Easter egg. Anyone ready for an egg hunt?! So here is my little familia showing off our new loot! And I must admit, I kept clapping my hands on my legs and saying "good girls" to our chickens, and I probably looked like a lunatic.
And yes, as much as I complain, my babies do actually sleep...sometimes. And even less sometimes do they actually sleep at the same time, so I had to document it for sanity purposes.
He is completely on the move these days. Knee and army crawling. He cut his lower two front teeth a few weeks ago, and today his top ones are coming through. Yikes! He is growing so fast.
Jesse and Lyla built a cool fort, and here is Lyla smooching on her daddy, who is "locked" in.
I just love this smile. Lyla is, for the most part a pretty serious girl... but when I get a true smile, it just brightens my entire day! I love to see her happy.
Lyla and her friend Isaac heading to the Tucson Children's Museum... Lyla loves to hold hands, I think that is adorable. Right after this we had a meltdown because Isaac didn't want to hold her hand... so sad : (
And this picture... just to emphasize the cuteness factor I mentioned before!!!!!! Oh, I just can't stand it!