Graduation... Finally

After changing my degree TWO times and being blessed with TWO beautiful children, it only took me TWO extra years to finally graduate! Now that it's over and done with, all I can say is that I'm glad I stuck it out. It was great to see family and friends- and for those who tried to make it but couldn't... I missed you & wish you could have been there too :) Many thanks to everyone who supported me through the years, heaven knows I wouldn't have made it this far without extra help!

Mama & Boston

Mimi & I (mimi was the other gal who went to Paducah, KY)

Mama & Brooklyn (her first ponytail!)

Dr. Bruce Cameron, Dr. Donna Brown, me, Dr. Sonya Meyer

-professors, advisors, my favorites :)

Vintage Vixen

Back in December I made a Christmas dress for Brooklyn from the scraps of another dress I had made for a competition. We couldn't show the dress at the time, but now that the contest is over it's fair game for the public to see- so I thought I'd share a couple pics of "Vintage Vixen".

The competition was the American Quilters Society (AQS) Hobbs/Bonded Fiber Competition & Fashion Show in Paducah, Kentucky. I flew there with my advisor and two other girls from the class who also had submitted dresses. The only catch for the competition is that you had to construct something that was quilted, but wearable. I chose to do a gown because that's the last thing I think of that would have batting in it and be quilted... but I wasn't the only competitor on that same mind track, there were quite a few dresses.

I didn't win anything, but I'm proud to have placed somewhere in the top nine of an international competition. One of the girls I went with got first place in the amateur division. I'm still really pleased with the entire result, it was a great experience and my last hoorah before graduation!

Vintage Vixen on Natalie (my model for the pictures and also the gal that got first with her own dress)

Detail of the godets in the skirt - I machine embroidered floral designs and stippled (the swirly stuff) with metallic thread

Detail of the bodice - I stippled the bodice with metallic thread then added 3-D flowers for dimension. I created each flower by a technique called Tsunami Kanzashi (much like oragami) where I had squares of my fabrics and folded tiny petals, then strung them together to create a flower

There's no way I'll ever fit into the dress- so this was my model at the competition! The dress was slightly too big on her and she had a hard time getting down stairs with four petticoats on, but otherwise she did a great job

& a pinch to grow an inch!

One year ago, we brought home a beautiful baby girl!!



The 12 months have been full of fun... so we decided to keep her :)

We had a little birthday party for Brooklyn - thanks to all her friends and family who shared the fun night with her :) She was so excited to dig into her cake! Even Boston couldn't keep his fingers out of the frosting while mommy was decorating the cake (my little helper)!





One of Brooklyn's presents from daddy and mommy was a princess 'ball pit.' Daddy was such a trooper to blow it up with air all by himself that night so she could wake up to it the next morning :)

Happy Birthday, honey girl - We LOVE You!!!

Sleeping Beauty

Brooklyn missed her morning nap yesterday - she was just a little too tired to make it through lunch!

Eye on the Ball

Now that the cold weather is settling back in for a few days it makes me appreciate how warm it's been lately. It's been so nice for the kids to play outside and go for walks and take in some sunshine! A lot of the snow in our yard has melted away, so we decided to play some baseball the other afternoon. I think Boston was more excited that he could swing his bat as hard as he could and really whop the balls - we've been making him take it easy inside the house :) Even Brooklyn got to chase some of his "home runs," the kiddos had a lot of fun!

Wagon Ride

We went to Montana a couple weekends ago for a quick trip to visit Chris' grandparents. Although the ride was long, Brooklyn got to ride in her new car seat that faces forward- she was so excited to be able to see everything and not be staring at the back of the car! Boston even hit the jackpot- Chris' aunt sent him home with a bag full of about 10 dinosaurs!

While we were there we had to think of a few things to keep the kids occupied- luckily his aunt & uncle had a little old wagon that we could pull the kids in for a ride around the block! There was even detachable sides to keep the kiddos in the wagon and prevent them from falling out :) They loved it! We even convinced Boston to "hold on" to Brooklyn to keep her safe- what a sweet big brother :)

Cruisin' Along

A number of people have been saying they want to see Brooklyn walking, so here it is...

This was right before bedtime and she was exhausted, so she was patient enough with me to let me video her, but only a few minutes later she was throwing a fit because she was so tired! If you listen carefully, you can hear Boston on the potty yelling "I"m done" :)

It really only took a matter of one week to master the skill- she has been trying to walk for the past month but just didn't have the confidence yet to do it. The other week I decided to let her walk around naked as often as she could (I've heard that sometimes that is suppose to help- maybe its a wives tale?), and it worked. Within a couple days she was cruising all around the house! It's so cute to see how proud she is of herself :)

Outdoor Plumbing

Yesterday while Boston was coloring I caught a glimpse of his toosh- we must have a little plumber in the family :)


(sorry it's a little fuzzy, I took the pic with my phone)

Cookies!!

Brooklyn got her first taste of an Oreo cookie - it was DELICIOUS! She definitely has a sweet tooth like her mama :)

Chris went into the kid's bedroom to get Brooklyn when she woke up from her nap. He found her like this...



... with her legs between the bars, kicking and jabbering to herself! (she looks unhappy in the picture, but she really was having a fun time)

Chris quickly left the bedroom to grab the camera to take pictures, but since he left without getting Brooklyn she became upset and started crying. So Chris got this picture too...

Poor little girl thought her Daddy was going to leave her there... what a Daddy's girl!

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Simply put, Boston is a climber. So it comes to no shock that Brooklyn sees her big brother climbing on everything, and wants to be just like him! She's even figured out that if she starts on a small object, she can progress to a bigger object, and bigger, and bigger... until she's on top of her little world! Sometimes I ask myself, "where is her mother?" Hopefully soon she'll figure out how to climb back down so I won't worry about her falling - until then, she's getting a real kick out of seeing my panic expression when I catch her in the act :)


Climbing from the floor...
to the rocket (ride)...
to on top of the blocks table...


to on top of the end table...
to the couch...
the sky is the limit :)


This is her "caught in the act" expression - or her trying to act innocent :)

We've even taken away the rocket ride from the area so she won't feel as comfortable climbing... but that didn't work either. Instead, she climbs on the little chair, and stretches across the dinosaur to get to the blocks table - she's a brave monkey!



And her "disappointed" expression for mommy pulling her down from a high place, AGAIN.

Man's Best Friend

We are really lucky to have a pet that can handle the constant teasing from a two-year-old boy! Our dog, Bruin, has been through the cuddling, to crawling, walking, chasing, and riding attempts from Boston... now it seems to be Brooklyn's turn. The poor dog can't escape the two of them- I just thought I'd share some cute pics :)

Under our island in the kitchen there is a little cubby hole with a shelf where we keep hats, gloves, etc. Bruin has also claimed it as her spot for hiding her toys and occasionally herself! Sometimes she can even sneak in there without anyone noticing... but when the kids find her in there they either try to get her out, or fit in the small space with her. Both options end in a giggle-fest!



Brooklyn got a table with entertainment things on top for Christmas and we have to stick it in the corner against the walls so she doesn't push it around as she tries to walk. Bruin has also found that underneath the table is a perfectly cozy spot for her- even with the kids playing around her :)

Movie Night

We took Boston to his first movie at the theatre the other night with Chris' parents- Boston absolutely loved it! We went to go see the "Princess Frog" show. Although it might seem like kind of a girly movie, it wasn't - it was actually a pretty entertaining flick and I would recommend it to any parents with kiddos. Supposedly it's the best movie since Lion King (I don't know if I'd give it that much credit though)

Anyway, I wish I had pictures but we got to the theatre right as the lights had been dimmed so I didn't want to be rude and have a camera flashing :) Boston really enjoyed the whole experience. He took turns sitting on everyone's lap - mainly on Dad's, I think he liked sitting on Daddy since the popcorn was within reach :) He stared at the screen the entire time and a couple times I caught him with a huge grin from ear to ear! But in true fashion like he always does... once the movie was over, he stated loudly "over, it's over... go to Boston's house." I'm glad he had a fun time - thanks again grandma & pop-pop for treating us to a movie :)

Happy Holidays

Although it's a little delayed, we still wanted to wish
Happy Holidays to all our family & friends.
We hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and
look forward to a happy & prosperous New Year!!

Our Little Family

We've been planning to get family pictures done for such a long time. We honestly do not have any pictures with all four of us in the shot since Brooklyn's blessing nine months ago!

Now that Brooklyn is getting so mobile we figured we better do it pretty soon before she crawls (or walks) away and doesn't hold still for the picture. We were surprised though, Brooklyn loved getting all the attention and was such a poser! I'm so glad she wasn't afraid of the camera or the photographer :)

Boston on the other hand wasn't too thrilled to do pictures. He has done this a couple times before in a studio, but wasn't in the mood to smile or let go of Chris' hand. Luckily the photographer had a couple tricks up her sleeve to entertain him and make him happy :)

And finally, our little family of four :)

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

Just wanted to share some pictures from Christmas Eve...

We went to a Christmas Eve church session tonight, so we got the kids all dressed up in their holiday outfits. I made Brooklyn's dress from some leftover fabric from one of my projects in school (I'm kind of proud of my project so pictures will eventually come later- I entered the dress into a contest so technically I'm not allowed to post anything to the public until after judging- so perhaps sometime in March... if I remember) Anyway, I also made a little black vest for Boston with a red hankie that matches Brooklyn's dress, but he didn't wear it tonight.

During the church service Boston was a little wiggly, so Chris told him to count the ceiling fans. He began with "one... two... two... two... two... two... etc." Although we're still working on the numbers concept, I know he CAN count past two! He also felt the need to say very loudly so everyone could hear, "over, its over" at the end of every song :)


Brooklyn's Christmas dress
I'm getting so excited for her to start walking,
she is getting pretty brave and has been making
small attempts to take 1-2 steps without holding
any fingers! Won't be long before she's running
after Boston :)


Brooklyn & Boston - they have a hard time sitting
next to each other for pictures!

After the service we went to grandma & pop-pop rusch's house for dinner and to open one present. They both opened a gift of pajamas (yes, that was planned- the sooner pj's are on, the better!). Boston was so excited for his new pj's- they are 'Buzz Lightyear' and have a wing-like section attached between the arms and bodice for flying. He kept showing us how he could flap his wings and fly just like Buzz!


Brooklyn's big blue eyes :)

Boston in his new pj's...

riding a stick horse...

and wearing an army helmet - yep, it's normal :)

Caught Red Handed

The kids and I were at my mom's house this morning- I've been sewing stockings for our family and was using her machine to embroider names. For the most part, Boston stayed in the living room watching a Christmas movie while Brooklyn and I spent time in the sewing room.

I had told Boston earlier to not touch any of the presents under grandma's tree- I really wasn't worried since he hardly notices the presents under our tree at home. However, grandma happened to have 'Thomas the Train' wrapping paper that caught his eye. At one point I went into the living room to check on him and found wrapping paper scattered all over the floor - and four boxes that at one point had been nicely wrapped (sorry Brooklyn & Alex).

Among my scolding, I told Boston that this was going to put him on the naughty list and HoHo (Santa) wouldn't bring him any presents - that made him pretty sad and he almost started crying. I felt so bad, I explained that we would just have to make some cookies for HoHo and he would like us again- that made him smile (I think it was more the thought of cookies that made the tears go away!)



Needless to say, the situation kind of put me in my place - I had to remember that my son is still just a little guy and he was only acting like any curious two-year-old would. This is one of those things where in the moment it's not funny... but only a couple hours later I find it hilarious :)

Tis the Season

We've had a busy month with another school semester ending (Hooray- one more left!) and trying to get everything in order for another joyous holiday season. I just thought I'd share a few cute pictures we've taken lately- enjoy!

Also, Happy Holidays to all our family and friends!

Santa's Little Helper


Boston's HUGE candy sucker

(he actually ate the entire thing!)

Brooklyn crawling on Daddy

I think it's adorable when I catch Boston sleeping

in this position - precious babe :)

We call this "chubby bunny"

Found a fun way to play peek-a-boo

Our Christmas Tree