Evelyn Casual Update ~ 10 Months

Enjoying the outdoors... we enjoyed a few warm days a few weeks ago!
Grandma and Grandpa are going on a 3-week trip soon... Evelyn wanted to practice being a stowaway ;)

She enjoyed antiquing with Mommy. Daddy just had to carry her around and make sure that her "tick" arms wouldn't grab anything (we call them her "tick" hands because she swings them around hoping to grasp something to hold onto... just like a tick waits on a piece of grass waiting to grasp our legs!)
We enjoyed a trip to the other grandparents' house where she read with Grandpa and did dishes with Grandma!

She does play by herself pretty well, as long as she is well-rested and there are no distractions (someone walking by or hearing someone talk in another room). Here she is playing with toys in the upstairs toy area, playing with my scraps, reaching for Uncle Adam's TV and finding Grandpa Quail's pop stash :)

She needed water-ed down prune juice to "loosen" her up a bit. She loves snack time... popcorn, prunes, Gerber's "Lil' Cruchies", Cheerios, etc, etc :)

This teacher and bookworm love seeing her daughter enjoy books!

Christmas Trees Table Runners

Before Christmas, Christa hosted a Modern Trees quilt-a-long featuring the Tri-Recs ruler set. I loved how the quilt looked and I bought the rulers at a local quilt shop on a whim with no definite plans on making it. Then, I made this tree skirt top and all of a sudden I had strippy, Christmas scraps! I cut the triangles - I got about 20 out of the tree skirt scraps. It wasn't until last month that I finally found the black fabric in my mom's stash and the brown fabric in my stash... along with the backings and the bindings.

It was time to make some table runners!

My quilting is a bit rumpled and some of my points are cut off, but overall I am happy with my two additions to my Christmas decorations! I look forward to using them next Christmas!!! When my mother-in-law saw my runners, she decided to make one, too! She hopes to make a few more for presents. I look forward to making more as well; maybe making more of those tree skirts will give me good reasons to make more ;)

Evelyn is 10 Months Old!

Happy 10 months, Little Girl!

• Naps are slowly getting better, although we're trying to figure out how many she needs a day... sometimes she gets two and sometimes she gets three. Just depends on her mood that day.
• Mac and Cheese is her favorite. Beans and peas and noodles and fruit are all yummy, too. We've been introducing meats... she"ll eat them most of the time. We love that she feeds herself instead of us having to take turns eating and feeding her with a spoon. (I also let her try some chocolate pudding... you know, so she can try sweets a few times before we give her some cake on her birthday!)
• Her smiles and laughter are contagious.
• Her cranky moods are contagious, too ;)
• She has learned how to do "How Big" - definitely a highlight of the past month!
• The crazy update of the month - we tried giving her scrambled eggs(knowing it's a possible allergen, but she did fine with peanut butter), which ended in a big red rash on her face where she rubbed it. It was gone by the next day, and it didn't seem to bother her (which we were super thankful for). We tried again a few weeks later, with no reaction... although she only picked up and ate a small piece. It appears then that it was a one time deal, but of course we'll still be careful. 
• Walking still hasn't happened yet, although she gets closer each and every day. She is very comfortable walking while only holding one of our hands now, instead of both.
• No new teeth... we're still at 8.
• Still loves music and "dancing" although the dancing may have less to do with music than it does with her being happy - she also "dances" while sitting on my lap and to the noises of blenders and washing machines).
• She loves exploring the dishwasher, washing machine (under supervision), and the outdoors through windows.
• Flappy books are her favorite - she has only torn of three flaps in three books, so that's don't too bad ;)
• She'll smile at strangers as long as they don't try to hold her. Church is the perfect example of this. She will smile at people behind us, but if anybody wants to hold her after the service, she quickly cuddles into our shoulder (the only time she truly cuddles!).

Ok, that's all for now. Watch for more Evelyn updates in the casual post coming later this week :) And before we know it, she'll be 11 months... and then 1 year old!

February Goal... Success!

Using my time management ideas that I outlined on my goals post, I was able to whip February's ALYOF goal out in no time! I added the border, basted it and then quilted lines diagonally both directions through the squares. Here is little Peter's quilt (born in January to one of my college friends). It has already been packed up and mailed out. I hope the little baby (and his parents) enjoys it!

The fabric is from a fat quarter bundle I purchased from Fat Quarter Shop. It's called Amusement Park by Anton & Ink for Camelot Cottons. It was on sale (less than $2 a fat quarter if I remember right), and I thought it was a great collection for baby boys - I have plenty of options for girls, but my boy fabric options were a little slim. I cut the bundle into charms and 2.5" strips. I have enough for another baby quilt, plus some got put away into my scrappy 5" baggies and into my I-Spy charm baggie. I purchased 1 yard of the red dots to border two baby quilts.

I "stole" the backing from Mom's stash. We were going through her stash and organizing and cleaning out, and we decided that this panel would be a perfect backing. I love each of the bears. The sleeping bear is dreaming about what he'll be when he grows up and each letter of the alphabet has a different career (except X, Y, Z). It's definitely not a modern motif, but I don't think Peter (or my friend) will mind! Yay for stash busting!

Check out my sidebar for all my favorite linky parties... Linking up!

Are you... "Thinking Ruffles?!"

I'm hopping into another blog hop! This one is all about ruffles :) Since the announcement, I've already finished one project... I hope to make one or two more, so wish me luck!

Let's all...
"Think Ruffles!"

March 5th - 14th

(My day is the 5th!)

9 Month Casual Update

Another of those late but still necessary posts... some casual scenes of Evelyn.

 She still loves being outside. She used to be quiet and observant, but she has started to chatter a bit more outside as well. She loves being tossed around - no fear! She smiles at the cows, and she enjoys the sled. We sadly don't have enough snow anymore for the sled, so the sled is currently in our car's trunk for when we go "north" to see my parents again... they are only two hours away but have a lot more snow.

 She has started playing better by herself! Of course, she can be easily distracted if she hears or sees someone, but for the most part she does well. Taking things out of boxes, baskets and tubs is a favorite activity... especially pots and pans and clean laundry. I am excited because she has actually taken an interest in books. For awhile there I was getting nervous - I'm quite a book worm when I get involved with a good book or series, and I would love for my daughter to enjoy them as well.

 She also loves playing with my sewing items. Don't worry, I only leave things in reach that are safe... no rotary cutters, pins or scissors! But things like rotating cutting mats, rulers and scraps, I don't mind if she'll play with, especially if it gives me a few more minutes to finish sewing the seam I'm working on ;)

I love watching her with her Daddy... and I laugh at how Daddy plays with her. Here he decided to pile all her toys on top of her. She didn't seem to mind, ha! She loves music and so was enthralled when Dan played the guitar for her.


Soon it will be time for the 10 month updates. Guess I better get the next set of pictures off my phone!

Evelyn at Christmastime

 This post is only a month or so late... but better late than never!

There was the perfect little sleigh at my parents' house to take Evelyn's Christmas picture with. Mom actually puts all the Christmas letters in it, but I just dumped those out ;)

Later that day, Auntie Sarah gave Evelyn a new book (and Roxy gave lots of licks... Evelyn just laughed and laughed). This book has flaps and textures and has since become one of Ev's favorites. 

And who could resist sharing some of her crazy faces?

Then, with Dan's side there is a tradition of having Great-Grandpa pull the little ones along in the toy wagon. Evelyn wasn't quite sure what was happening, but she still gave out a few smiles. Don't you just love that bedhead? The following day, Ev enjoyed showing her second cousin her new toy... He is just 8 months older.

Finally, what is Christmas without a few carols sang around the piano? That top picture may just become a postcard for next year. She doesn't beeline for the piano as often anymore, but for awhile there, she couldn't get enough.

Merry Belated Christmas ;)

February Goals

My friend's little boy, Peter, arrived about a week early... time to get this quilt done! 

February goal: border, baste, quilt and bind :)

I have recently found the best way for me to be productive with little Evelyn underfoot... prep at night after she goes to bed, and sew during the day - either while she's playing by herself nearby or taking a nap. Prep work usually means cutting, ironing and pinning - all things that require movement and action - all things that entice little Evelyn to come check out what Mommy's doing instead of playing with her own toys. But, if I just am sitting at the desk and sewing, sewing, sewing, I can usually get quite a bit done with her in the same room as me. Yay!

You can see here a nice pile of small projects ready for me to swipe through the machine... baby leggings, baby bibs, burp cloths and quilt bindings. That top bib was one of Evelyn's cousins' bibs when they were younger and I recently copied it and made 4 bibs for gifts. I'll have to take a picture of one to show you before I package it up!