Vehicle Day

A few weeks ago, my sister and I took the kiddos to Big Vehicle Day at our local shopping center. For those of you in the Twin Cities - we were at Southdale. Apparently, the have a Vehicle Day every year. The drivers of different vehicles arrive at the mall parking lot and set up their rigs in one corner. Macy's provided free water and sugar cookies. There was a trailer for mini donuts in one corner, a port-a-potty in the other. And between all of that? A dump truck. A fire truck. A school bus. A city bus. A zamboni. And everything in between.

I'm already excited for next year. Kid will be a year older, and will (most likely) be even more interested in big trucks!

And the best part? Okay. Two parts.

1. Kid was worn out. Nap time was fabulous that day!

2. This event was FREE!

Baby No More (sorta)

My little boy has made it to his due date! Hooray!

Technically, his adjusted age is 0. I'd say he's pretty advanced for being so young!

Today, though, his status of "youngest grandchild" got passed on to another. I'm fairly certain I mentioned it early, but my sister has been pregnant. Her due date? Just five days after mine.

But today, five days early, they welcomed the newest member of our family. Jacob was born at 12:25 this afternoon, a mere 4 hours after my sister's water broke.

Apparently she and I do things (well, the whole labor thing, anyway) rather quickly.

Ava has already proven to be a rock star big sister to little Jacob, but sometimes calls him Baby Kid.

Such a beauty that Jacob is. We can't wait to get know him and love him up!

Two!

Miss Bean, my adorable niece turned two on the 21st of July. How can that be?

It seems like just yesterday, my sister called to let us know that she and her husband were headed into the hospital. Being the close family that we are, we all jumped in the car to be there when the bean was born. Shortly after 5am, we were welcomed back into the room to meet the new addition. Quite the tiny thing she was. Of course, we passed her around the room and snapped tons of pictures.

And now the little lady is two, and she is quite the silly little girl. I love the way she yells "oh man!" and "awesome at the appropriate times. And if the theme song to Dora comes on? Dance away she does!

We celebrated the Bean's birthday at an indoor play place. I, of course, had to get her presents (yes, plural!). Inspired by an old friend's (friend is used loosely, we hung out in a large group of friends throughout high school, but never really got to know each other) goal for a year of handmade gifts, and a particular gift she made for her daughter's friend, I decided making something for Bean was a great idea!

I scoured the internet for a jumbo crayon roll pattern and found this tutorial at Raising Oranges. The only difference between mine and hers is that I used a ribbon closure instead of a binder. And, I can't sew straight.

But all that matters is Miss Bean loved it (and the Dora coloring book). And being handmade makes it even more special. I may not ever be able to do a year of handmade gifts, but it is definitely something I'd like to do more often!

Holy Busy, Batman.

Here's the thing.

I am home right now, and have been for about 15 minutes. I need to leave in 25 minutes. This is my life for the entire week, and next. Needless to say, it is a busy time of year. I feel like the husband and I have been go-go-go for at least a month now. In fact, I don't remember the last time I actually went grocery shopping and bought more than just what was needed for that night's dinner. I don't like that.

I did get the chance to run to the fabric store. Let me admit something quickly. I was crabby Saturday afternoon. Since I was home alone, I decided to head to my local fabric store to learn that it will be moving in a few weeks. SALE!

I bought $110 worth of fabric and paid $23. Totally awesome. I have some awesome plans for the fabric: pillows, a skirt for my niece, pants for my nephew. I can't wait to start creating and show you all the awesome things I make! Wait a minute, though. I don't know how to sew very well (I'd call myself a novice!), so we'll see how these projects actually turn out...