It is finished

After several weeks I finally completed a pettiskirt for Avery!  Took forever, but I got side tracked by alot and the project would sit for days, or I ran out of thread and couldnt get in to the craft store.  Not to mention, its hard to sew with the kids awake since they are intrigued by my new sewing machine and want to touch it and push the pedal and try to sew my fingers to the fabric in the process.  Not to mention, theres LONG pieces of fabric involved in these little skirts, and I have a tiny house that during the day is covered in toys which makes it difficult to lay fabric out on the floor, especially long pieces.

She was SOO excited to put it on and has been bugging me for the last couple days to put it on, but it hasnt been done so I've said no. So this morning, when I said "ok Avery,its done, come put it on!" Her eyeballs got huge and she smiled and was excited and then I got it on her, and she wanted daddy to look at her once..... and then pretty much she didnt want anyone else to look.  I tried to get her to pose for a picture, and she refused and kept trying to run from me.  She would not twirl or anything.  She loves the skirt though.  She's just 2 and wishy washy and one minute wants to have every ounce of attention and then when she's finally got it she wants nothing to do with it.  So anyways, love the terrible twos.  But isnt the skirt stinkin' adorable?????  And it was so easy!  Time consuming, but easy.

So that is the first of a couple of new products i'm adding to my tutu business.  Or, at least hopefully.  I need to figure out a good system for making these so that i can get them made in a timely fashion without taking time away from everything else!  It would sure be nice if I had a craft room.

So anyways, I think the next skirt will be a little quicker since theres less fabric involved, but i'm still trying to understand the directions.  I'm really excited to get started though! :)

Oh, and yes, I dont know if I mentioned in a previous post that I got a new sewing machine?  I know i've mentioned that i have been wanting to, and i'm SOOO glad i did!!!!!!!  http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_02098030000P?prdNo=7&blockNo=7&blockType=G7 Here's the one I got, and while it doesnt have all the bells and whistles, its not top of the line.... it did get really good ratings, it does everything i was wanting and needing it to do, and it has been a dream come true!  I dont know how I used the other one for so long.... which was only like a year and a half if that?  Bless Jadon's little heart for getting that other one for me.  Up until then, I had no interest in sewing and when I needed something sewn i'd just do it by hand (pain-in-the-NECK!) So, in buying my other machine, Jadon sparked my interest in sewing more.  Oh but good heavens that machine did not make things easy to sew on!!!!!!!

Blah blah Blah blah

I wish I had a computer in my shower. Why? Because I do a lot of my deepest thinking in the shower. Why? Because thats where i'm uninterrupted... most of the time. So alot of the time when i'm in the shower, i'm blogging in my head. Is that weird? So i've got like 5 different blog posts going on in my head during any one shower.

And if im not shower blogging, i'm thinking about the things that are stressing me out, trying to think of how i can organize them so they arent stressing me out anymore.

I'm so glad March is almost over. The later part of the month has calmed down from the beginning of the month. It was quite overwhelming though. Last week I signed the kids up for swimming again. I had intended to start them in April, but after this month has been so overwhelming for everyone in the family.... except Avery.... Derek and I decided to wait until May and give ourselves an extra month to recover mentally and emotionally. We didnt feel like starting the chaotic schedule of swimming lessons up again just yet. Neither Derek nor I felt like we were mentally "there" just yet.

So I know you're probably wondering what in the world could be causing me to be stressed out. I dont work, i'm a stay-at-home mom. I've got plenty of time, right? LOL. I keep asking myself the same question. I keep thinking that I should have a ton of time, but I cant figure out where it goes, other than today that has been wasted with responding to emails and blogging. But, that has to be done too, right?
To be honest, my mind feels so jumbled lately, and this has been happening for a few months now. I am a big fan of lists, so I always write out what I need to do on a list so I can see exactly what needs to be done, then its not all bouncing around in my noggin creating chaos.

I'm making some changes to my tutu business. Big changes. Changes that will be taking more time, and i'm not sure exactly how to apply the changes into the business. I do know that i'm excited that i'll be selling a product that is of much better quality. Boutique quality. Sewn. Not just a tutu where a piece of tulle is tied around a piece of elastic, which is something that any blonde can do. I'll still make those too, and charge cheap for them. But i'd much rather make a product that I will be much more proud of! And much more proud to sell!
So that has been a big stressor because I feel like I have a TON to do and NO time to do it. I've been hoping to have some products made by now, but it just hasnt happened. I ran out of thread. So, Debra, Karla, (and anyone else who's willing) i'll definitely be asking for your help in the near future. I've tried recruiting my husband to help in the past. God bless him.................he tried. ;)

Have I ever mentioned how impossible it is to get ANYthing completed during the day when the kids are awake, that includes blog posts? I think i'm going to stop this post now before I go nuts because i'm about to go nuts because i keep hearing every 5 seconds "mommy mommy mommy mommy i need i need i need i need i want i want i want i want i want" and apparently a tornado of crayons, markers and colored pencils came through the kitchen, as well as coloring books.

Winter keeps on going

I mustve read the calendar wrong.... I was certain it said that spring started yesterday, but surely I wouldnt have woken up to a couple inches of snow had spring started yesterday, right? But then again, this is Oregon and the weather never follows the rules. But then again, it sounds like the weather isnt following the rules anywhere these days!
So yes, we woke up to snow on the second day of spring, which is rather depressing to say the least. This time of year I get major spring fever and all I can think about is how badly I want spring/summer warmer/sunny weather to be here so I can get outside in my yard and plant flowers, smell the freshly cut grass of the mowed lawns in the neighborhood, and not have to be freezing to death! Now that i've lost so much weight, I no longer have that extra insulation to keep me warm, so the cold weather has been MISERABLE for me, it has been sooooooo cold!!!

Whats even more ironic is, we hardly ever get snow in the WINTER, so the fact that its now spring and we are getting snow is maddening. Its been snowing all day, it has not let up. The flakes havent been real big, nothing to make any more accumulation really, but its kept it from melting. Which is also ironic. Here's how snow works in the Willamette Valley. We are rarely lucky enough to have it snow on the valley floor to begin with. But, when it does, it will only snow and stick for awhile if it snows at night. So you wake up in the morning and its snowed. You get excited (in wintertime that is), schools close, everyone freaks out about an inch of snow, but then by 9am, it has stopped snowing and has already begun to melt. By noon, everything has melted except for spots that are shaded, but by days end, those spots are also mostly melted as well. And usually after noon it starts raining.

So, today is ironic on many levels.
1- its snowing
2- its spring and its snowing
3- its after the noon hour, and its still snowing.
4- its after the noon hour, the snow is still coming down, and the stuff that you woke up in the morning to is still on the ground.
Someone please tell me WHAT IS GOING ON???????

Another ironic weather story, last week when Derek was in Wisconsin, it was 80 degress there. In Wisconsin. In March. Wisconsin. Its just weird. Its all weird. Everythings just been so weird this month. When will normalcy return???? Will it return??? Its hard to stay focused when everything seems so out of whack.

On a POSITIVE note.... today I get my migraine medicine refilled. Imitrex. The stuff I take after I get a migraine to make it go away. The stuff I was taking way too often and running out before I was allowed to get it refilled again. The stuff that I had to take so often that my doc decided to put me on the preventive migraine stuff. Usually by the time I am able to get Imitrex refilled, i'm completely out, have been for several days and have been borrowing Imitrex from my MIL who seems to have an Imitrex tree in her house somewhere. This month, i'm happy to announce, that I still have 3 out of 9 pills left! Which is equivalent to 6 migraines. If that makes sense to anyone other than my fellow migraine sufferers. In other words, I had at least 6 less migraines this month than I have in the previous months. I dont know yet if its the preventive medication or not because every once in awhile I do have a "good" month where I dont have many migraines, so we'll see how the next few months go. I'm hopeful though.

I also receieved the results of my 24 hour heart monitor. And they did see that I was having some palpitations (duh), but nothing to be concerned about unless it is persistent or worsens, then i'll need to see my doctor again to talk about it further. But, since the day before Jadon's birthday party, i've only had it happen once, and that was when Derek told me he had to go back to Wisconsin again, which I knew about, but thought it was only for 2 days, but apparently its a bit longer than that. The heart thing has got to be stress related. Which is rather freaky. But then again, completely treatable... I just have to figure out how to relax myself. Wait! I know! See ya'll later! I'm going to Hawaii for a few months, i'll be back in July when the weather gets better and maybe by then life will be back to normal, then i'll leave again in October when the weather gets crummy again!

Oh, i've compiled some pictures on Smilebox. They are of Avery's gymnastics and Jadons birthday party (cant remember if i've posted those or not), and todays snow day.

Photo album generated with Smilebox

Five

Five years ago I met this little guy, and he changed my life :)

First birthday
Second birthday

Third birthday- I have a hard time believing this was his 3rd birthday.... what a big difference there was between his 2nd and 3rd ! Not to mention, it really seems like just yesterday!

Fourth Birthday

And here he was on saturday at his 5th birthday party at Wacky Bounce. Any traces of baby are gone now, he certainly is looking like a boy now.
As you know, i like to make the kids cakes.... they havent turned out that great in the past, but i keep doing it anyways for whatever reason. I guess i feel like its more meaningful. I like making them even though they arent very good... what can i say, i'm a glutton for punishment i guess. Lucky for me, this year we looked at cakes online, he saw a simple lego cake online that he liked best and thats the one he wanted me to repilcate. Thank goodness it was a simple one! That cake was his cake, and the other kids got cupcakes with legos on top. The legos I made with molds and candy melts- eazy peezy!

The party was good, the kids had a blast! Tomorrow is his birthday snack day at preschool, so I get to make more cupcakes and i've got leftover legos that i'll put on those as well.

Every year that I can remember, the weather on Jadon's birthday has been so unpredictable. Afterall, its springtime (or just about) in Oregon. I dont know what it was like the day he was born, but I think every year either on his birthday or during his parties have been stormy. Last year a freak wind storm blew through. This year, is no exception. We've started out the morning with some snow. Yesterday we had some high winds that knocked the power out, which of course had my worry wart son.... well.... worried. And it was daytime! Imagine if it had been nighttime! :)

Jadon Matthew, I love you! Happy 5th birthday my sweet son!

Stress

Stress is a weird thing. It can effect all people differently.

I mentioned a few weeks ago that March was to be a busy month for us, and that I was already feeling overwhelmed. Then Jenny got sick, and suddenly it just felt like everything started to unravel in our house. Seems like one thing after another, little things, big things, health related, house related, etc, it just keeps hitting. (Just for the record, I do not in ANY way blame Jenny for this... God is just throwing us a curve ball right now to see how we can handle it.)

My health has taken a new turn as well. I'm not sure whether its from my new migraine medication, or whether its stress, but my heart has been skipping beats. Some days it happens only once, other days it happens more often. I mentioned it to my doctor on tuesday and she seemed to think that it was stress. She said it was extremely common, wasnt worried about it, but put me on a 24 hour heart monitor anyways (I think she was humoring me.) Of course, it only happened a total of 3 times in that 24 hour period though. I havent gotten any results back yet on that heart monitoring. Oh, and since my last appointment a month ago when I started on my new migraine medication, I have lost 6 pounds, which was a little alarming to my doctor since i'm at an acceptable weight now. (no, i havent been trying to lose any more weight) My stomachs been in knots over the last couple weeks so i've found it difficult to eat large amounts. Stress.

Jadon is having a really difficult time dealing with the events of the past week. Last sunday we went to see Jenny, and he wanted to go back and see her, so we let him. I think it hit home with him, and he's been worried ever since. Worried for her. That night he wouldnt go to sleep because he was worried that Aunt Jenny would never wake up. He's also scared to death he is going to get sick and end up in the hospital with things attached to all ends of him. He seems to be having some kind of separation anxiety with us at night, so we've had to stay with him in his room until he falls asleep, and we've had to leave his bedroom lamp on all night. He doesnt want to go to school or to his birthday party because he has a bit of a cold and doesnt want to make his friends sick. He's so paranoid about anything related to illnesses, sicknesses, hospitals, doctors, etc. We have to be careful to word everything cheerfully and in a very easy going way so as not to scare him, and anything else has to be talked about when he is not within earshot. I hope he eventually gets over this, but its really hard watching him worry like this right now. This, of course, makes me worry more.... its a vicious cycle.

I just feel like between Derek, Jadon and I, we are all feeling so broken- mostly emotionally and mentally. Sometimes I wish I were a turtle so I could just pull my head into my shell and block out everything going on around me.
But then i'd still be left alone with my thoughts....

Jenny

Its a little ironic how my last post was about germs. The next day my sister-in-law was taken to the E.R. and is now on life support. I dont want to give out the wrong information, and there has been sooo much info thrown at us all in the last few days its overwhelming, but sounds like it may have all began with strep throat and pneumonia, and progressed to much more, someone please correct me if i'm wrong.
They have now figured out that she has streptococcal pyogenes. She needs your prayers. Please pray. Continually. We've seen the power of God exactly a year ago when my friend Tiffany was going through her life threatening things, and she is a miracle today, and I love going into her store and seeing her smiling face standing behind the counter!

Jenny is not only an Aunt to my kids who love her to pieces, she's the baby sister to my husband, an amazing sister-in-law to me, and a friend to both of us. We love her so much and cant wait for her to open her eyes again and say something smart alec! :)

Germs! Germs! Everywhere!

So far it seems to have been a fairly mild winter with regards to flu's, colds, viruses, illnesses..... then out of nowhere BAM!!!! One day I sign on to Facebook, I scroll down to look at everyone's status updates, and here's what everyone says:

-Hubby is horribly sick.
-Kids were up all night sick.
-All 6 of my kids have been sick all week with no end in sight and now i feel like i might be getting it.
-I'm so sick I want to die.
-Everyone in the office is sick.
-I'm sick. Hubby is sick. Kids are sick. Even the dogs and fish are sneezing.
-Vomited my guts out all day.
-Went to ICC today and sat in the waiting room with a vomiting kid and a woman who said she needed to vomit her mcdonalds up.
-My throat hurts so bad i cant eat.
- I have a fever of 120

Ok, so the only one that was actually on someones status update was the one about the person going to ICC with the vomiting kid and the lady wanting to vomit up mcdonalds. But, you catch my drift. All I see is posts about everyone being sick. Miserably sick. As a person who is highly germaphobic, this literally sets me into panic mode. Literally.
I'm on edge. March is turning out to be a heck of a busy month, and I am already feeling overwhelmed by it... the last thing we need is to be crippled by illness.

I think i'll go bathe in some bleach now! ;)