baby E's quilt

I've been wanting to try my hand at quilting for a while now and with two family members expecting babies, the timing couldn't have been better. After doing my research, (ahem..spending too much time on pinterest) I loaded the kiddos in the car for a quick long and exhausting trip to Joann's. 

Parents-to-be chose a sheep theme for baby E's nursery. The colors for the nursery are light blue, navy blue, grey and cream. I love the idea of a sheep themed nursery! Its unique and fits the fun and playful personalities of baby E's parents. 

I spent an entire Sunday with a friend cutting out the squares and piecing this quilt together. I knew that I wanted to use as much of the sheep fabric as possible. I made the pattern with the sheep fabric first, then added the rest of the squares. As long as the same fabric wasn't close to too much of one color/pattern I was happy. 

Quilting is hard work. And I have a new found respect for quilters. I learned a lot from this project...mostly what not to do...and I'm looking forward to making another quilt.  

I'm really happy with the outcome of baby E's quilt. I hope his parents will enjoy it too. 

13 random things I love about my husband

It's Valentine's Day. My valentine...my husband...is the most amazing person in the world. This will be our 13th Valentine's Day together. On our first Valentine's Day, my husband gave me a black teddy bear puppy. And..I didn't give him anything in return. This sad tale is one that he enjoys retelling over and over again..

Since then I've given my fair share of gifts...including a second teddy bear puppy and heart boxers. :)

To celebrate our 13th Valentine's Day together I wanted to share 13 random reasons why I love my husband:

1. He works hard so I can stay home with our kiddos. 
2. He is a great dad. I love watching him play with our kids. It makes my heart smile. 
3. He can still surprise me. Example...the roses in the picture above! 
4. He know so many random facts. He's my go-to guy for information. 
5. He is fun to play table top games with! Yes, he is competitive..but he makes it fun. 
6. He can fix anything. And if he doesn't know how to fix something he knows where to look for information on how to fix it. 
7. He doesn't like dark chocolate. I do. More for me. :)
8. He is slow to anger and quick to forgive. 
9. I love how we can talk about so many different thing. After all these years we still have things to talk about. 
10. He gives the best back massages. 
11. He graciously puts up with all my crazy DIY ideas for our home. Yes, there is a lot of eye rolling and signing..but he usually comes around.  
12. He plays the guitar.  
13. He gives the warmest and best hugs. 

Happy Valentine's Day my love. 

Alara @ eight months

Alara @ Eight Months 

• Alara has been officially evicted from our room! On Monday, my husband strongly suggested that it was time for Alara to move permanently into her own room. I was hesitant. She has been waking up several times during the night and honestly I didn't want to keep going from my bed to her room all night long.  But, he was insistent that she would sleep better in her own room and so far my husband had been right. Alara has been sleeping so much better and wakes up once or twice during the night. 
• In addition to moving out of our bedroom, Alara's two bottom teeth finally came in. She has been rolling her tongue over her teeth all week. I don't think she knows what to do with her new teeth yet. 
• She has mastered crawling. Alara can quickly crawl from one end of the house to the other. I've been keeping her busy by scattering her favorite toys all over the living room. Lucas and I enjoy watching her crawl from toy to toy. We both shout out encouragements and cheer when she finds a new toy.  
• While holding tightly onto stationary objects (the sofa, chairs, the bed etc.), Alara will take small uncertain steps. It's only a matter of time before she is officially walking. 
• She loves to eat! Alara has tried many different fruits and vegetables. So far she hasn't shown a preference for a particular food - everything is yummy!  
• She loves soft things - teddy bears, cotton balls, batting fabric, blankets..etc. 
• When Alara get excited she  will scrunch up her nose, squint her eyes tightly and kick her little legs back and forth as fast as possible. It is adorable.