Trapped Inside

The last 2 days have been snow days here in North Texas, and we just got word that tomorrow will be a snow day as well. No school for Jake! Unfortunately we really can't go out of the house because it is supposed to feel like zero degrees outside and it's super icy. It's more of an ice day than a snow day.

Since we're housebound, I've gotten to work on and cross off a bunch of projects on my To-Do list. The first few pictures are of 2 infant car seat covers that I made. I think I'll keep the brown one for myself and give the blue one to a friend. I made them using the following tutorial (although I changed the dimensions a little): http://cally-cruze.blogspot.com/2009/10/infant-carseat-blanket.html. The funny thing is that I already decided on this design when I noticed my cousin's wife Mia made the first comment on the tutorial. That's when I knew it was a great find.

Eli has also had fun playing in the infant car seat...
When Eli turned 1 year old and we moved to the house we're currently renting, I decided to make him a name plaque for the wall of his room. I just finished making one for Adam (that's the name we've picked for our son in utero). Below is a picture of the finished product.


And lastly, I made the magnets for Adam's name for our family night board.Who would have thought being housebound would be so fun!

Millions of Peach...

It ends up that we made the jackpot by moving to the house we're renting. Not only do we like the look of our little abode, but there are four beautiful fruit trees in the backyard. Peach, green apple, plum, and we're not yet sure about the fourth one.

For the past few weeks we've noticed lots of fruit growing on one of the trees, but at the time we weren't sure what kind of fruit was growing. Peaches!! They're small, but they're definitely peaches. We hadn't been in the backyard for a few days, so when we went outside yesterday we were surprised to see so many peaches on the limbs of one of the trees that the limbs were actually starting to bend and break from too much weight. You know what that means...peach harvest time!

Below is only part of what we picked. By the end of the afternoon that whole tub was full to the top, and we still have a few more to pick in a week or so when they're more ripe.

Eli has two methods to eating peaches. Here is the first method...

Here is the second method...


We also have this gorgeous apple tree that isn't quite ready to pick. They sure look pretty, though.


And we end the afternoon with a shirtless boy and his favorite backyard toy.

Filling Wall Space

If any of you have been to our apartment, you know that we have one wall in our living room that is large, white, and empty. We've been wanting to fill the space with artwork that is nice, large, and meaningful, and we finally did it! I got out my rusty artist hands (I haven't really done any artwork since high school) and started working on a series of three pieces. Below is the finished product. Thank you, Jake, for the art critiquing and for cutting out the matting and doing a masterful job hanging the frames.

(Don't mind the flash bouncing off the glass in each of the pictures.)

(Pictures 14"x19" - Frames 19"x24")
(Charcoal & chalk pastel)
These three pieces represent the roles God plays in our life.

The Potter's Clay

Living Water

In the Palm of His Hand

Being Startled Is Hilarious

Who knew being frightened would be so fun. The video quality is bad because we used our webcam for this.

A few of my favorite things

#1 This is the Baby Trend Travel System in Mesa. There are many cool features about this travel system, but my favorite thing is the handle on the car seat. The handle has a soft rubber grip and triangular shaped handle which makes it so much easier to carry.













#2 Baby Trend Jogging Stroller. If I had to chose between a regular stroller and a jogging stroller, I would definitely choose the jogging stroller. Jake got me this jogging stroller for Christmas, and I love it. The car seat from the travel system (above) also locks into this stroller.













#3 Eddie Bauer Play Pen / Bassinet. We got this for $40 off at Target. It has been great.

















#4 Fisher-Price Starlight Papasan Cradle Swing. It swings both side-to-side as well as front-to-back. It also has music and outdoor sounds, a mobile, and a light show. After a few fussy nights with Eli we decided to invest in a swing, and it has been well worth it. Eli loves the swing, and it gives Jake and my arms a rest from bouncing a fussy baby.











#5 JJ Cole Bundle Me. I think that the reason why Eli loves his car seat is because it has this great Bundle Me cover. It is super comfortable. This cover is also great for when Eli and I go on walks with the jogging stroller when it is a little chilley outside.

Word Test

89 words

Speedtest

Jake is on the News!!!

Jake was on KLS news this weekend for the Evangelical-LDS conference we attended. Jake is currently the leader of the interfaith program at BYU, so he was chosen to be the Latter-day Saint student interviewed. You can see the article and view the video clip by visiting the following link: http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=343&sid=2002175.