Awwww Man

Ever since Kassidy could hold her head up, we've tried establishing our bedtime routine.

It goes something like this:

Bath time

Chase naked baby around the house time

PJ time

Comb out tangles time

Mommy/daughter snuggle time

Milk time

Story time

Prayer time

Good night kisses time

And finally off to bed time!

And from the beginning, after we finish reading our book, we fold Kassidy's hands, bow our heads, and say our good-night prayer together as a family, ending with a very loud, and very proud, A-men.

And Kassidy's favorite part is the very loud, very drawn-out A-men.

Until the other night, when she enthusiastically waved her folded hands out in front of her, scrunched her little nose, and very loudly and proudly said

Awwww Man.

Sorry God, that's just Kassidy.

The same Kassidy that also likes to run away from her Mommy after bath time so she can cook in the nude.

I live with a leprechaun

So this post is for my new friend Bill. Bill stumbled upon my blog just the other day, started reading, and stayed hooked on my awesome humor for about an hour.

And then he told me this.

Kudos to how you and your husband get the most out of every moment.

And Bill's right. No matter how crazy or stressful our lives may get, finding joy in the small things and making those simple moments a memory to last a lifetime is a blessing. 

And Bill telling me this reminded me that I missed blogging (the past few months have been hectic to say the least). Because my blog is a reminder of how I want to live every moment of my life. And how even the smallest moments may be ones you'll never want to forget.

So thank you Bill for reminding me this.

So after more than four months on hiatus, I'll leave you with this.

I live with a leprechaun.

You know how every time you dry a load of socks, and there always seems to be one lonely sock left at the end, and we blame it on the damn leprechauns?

I found the leprechaun. She's about 31 inches tall, blonde hair and full of personality.

Because while on a hunt for my missing bra, I found these instead.

My missing flip flops.

Unfortunately, my bra is still MIA.

I blame the leprechaun.

Privacy

Today I found myself locked in a itty bitty bathroom with a 55 lb. dog and a 26 lb. child.

This was not by choice.

All I wanted to do was go to the bathroom like any normal person ever wants to do.

But before I knew it, there I was, sitting on the toilet, dog's head resting comfortably on my lap as my child tries to crawl into it as well.

And I couldn't even call for help because Kassidy was smart enough to shut the door behind her, meaning that Daddy couldn't hear me.

So, I did what any resourceful Mom would do. I finished my business, trying not to accidentally elbow my guests in the process, put on my big girl pants (literally), moved Kassidy to one hip to wash my hands, petted Massey on the head, and opened the door to freedom.

And I won't lie. I was a tad impressed with myself in the process.

Just call me Martha Stewart: DIY Rustic Christmas Stocking

I have been officially sewing since January, and by officially, I mean that I have sewn a Pebbles costume for Kassidy for Halloween, two taggies for two very well-deserving little babies, and finally — Kassidy's Christmas stocking!

I won't even tell you that every time I approach a new sewing project, I usually have to sew at least one, sometimes two, practice projects first. Okay, I guess I will tell you. Because it's too funny not to.

Just ask Kassidy how her first Pebbles costume fit. Because, well, it didn't.

And Brady forced it over her head anyway. Poor baby. We had to literally cut her out of it. And limit her food intake in the process.

Nevertheless, as soon as Kassidy was born last July, I knew that I wanted to make her Christmas stocking, because I am a snob when it comes to Christmas decorations. And because I can never find exactly what I am wanting. And it's stupid to spend $50 on a stocking that I am not 100% in love with.

Too bad I was too hormonal and inept last Christmas to get her stocking made in time, but this year, I had no excuses. After thinking about making it since the first of this year, I finally sat down to make it about a month ago, and after only screwing up the first weekend of work, I quickly found my groove and produced this.

Not too shabby, huh?

So that you don't give me more credit than I deserve, I bought the burlap stocking with jingle bells at a discounted price from Old Bryan Marketplace last Christmas, so I did not have to make the actual stocking. But I did sew the patches, cuff, insert and add all the bling, so for that, you can give me credit.

In case any of you are curious how this beginner actually pulled this off, here's the step-by-step process.

First, I traced, cut and sewed the stocking insert. I used a khaki-colored fabric.

Then, I traced, cut and sewed the patches for my stocking using a red and white plaid fabric.

I used a red rose-patterned fabric to make my cuff.

Which I then hand sewed onto my stocking insert.

I used green embroidery thread to attach my patches to my burlap stocking.

Once my patches were on, and my stocking insert was stuffed into my stocking, I made a bow out of green velvet ribbon and sewed it to the edge of the cuff, adding a metal K button with some hot glue.

I also added conchos because I like conchos.

And then I hung Kassidy's stocking on the mantle with her Mommy's and Daddy's stockings (that were not sewn by me).

See how well they coordinate?

Just remember. If I can do this, anyone can. Anyone.