Christmas Recap

This is likely going to end up being a very photo-heavy post.  I've been meaning to get to it for a while, but with a toddler and a newborn and more and more visitors making their way to our place (which has been wonderful) there hasn't been much spare time lately.  I'm going to hammer it out quickly before Sprout wakes up to nurse again.  

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Since we were still in the hospital on the 25th, Christmas came to our place a little late this (last) year.  The good thing about The Bean being little still is that he really had no idea that we missed the 25th and was just as happy to celebrate on the 28th once we were all back home.  

We waited until Grandma and Grandpa came over to start any opening of gifts.  The Bean really didn't have any idea of what was going on prior, so again, it wasn't hard to keep him away from the presents... not until he had opened a few. ;)  

He started out the day having breakfast with Grandma.  

Once The Bean finished eating, we started opening gifts.  He had so many presents from us, Grandma and Grandpa, other relatives, and (of course) Santa.  What I found really nice is that after almost every present he would sit and play with it for a while.  That also gave us some time to open gifts in between his.  (We also got very spoiled.)

Note: Not everything got photographed, and even if it had been, there's no way anyone would want to see all his stuff, but he did get many very lovely and generous gifts.   

The Bean got a few new books.  This is a beautifully illustrated copy of The Night Before Christmas that Jen and I picked out for him.  Sprout didn't get many gifts, but she did get a copy of The Nutcraker that is also quite lovely.  I hope that the kids' keep these books and if they have children, are eventually able to read them to their kids.

The Bean LOVED his stocking.  It had three Folkmanis puppets in it that he had a lot of fun feeding his pretend food to.  That still seems to be his favourite thing to do with these puppets.  (He also likes it when they "bite" him.)

This sock-monkey-in-the-box was a big hit, but it didn't take him long to figure out how to push the little button on the top to get it to pop up, rather than having to wind the crank.

...real drums!  He got lots of smaller percussion instruments too, along with a harmonica that he got when my family celebrated Christmas together earlier in December.  He loves pulling them out now and playing along when we're listening to music in the evenings.  We had considered putting a ukelele on his wishlist, but for his age, I think the percussion instruments are more appropriate.

...a Thomas bridge, as well as Annie and Clarabel and a musical caboose (we got a laugh out of that one) for his new train table.

The curvy board.  It took him no time at all to start playing around with it.  :)

...and the train table!  We've had this for MONTHS and waiting until Christmas to give it to him was so challenging, but we're glad we did.  He loves it!  Right now the Lego side seems to be getting more use than the train side, so it's nice that it has both options.

A sweet classic book from Grandma and Grandpa.

Santa even brought a few things for Sprout.  :)

Christmas jammies.

Special "Baby's First Christmas" ornaments from my best friend and Sprout's Oma.  We didn't put them on the tree until after we brought her home.

This one was a little late, but my aunt brought over a new handknit hat for The Bean.  Isn't it cute?!

Tomorrow (hopefully) the birthday update!  Can you believe that our baby boy is going to be TWO?!

Slowing Down

I wrote a little bit about our vacation in my last *Navalgazing* update.  I am so glad we were able to get away and to see the family.  Still, it is nice to be back home and get back into the routine here.  It's been a very busy summer and though I've certainly enjoyed it, it will be nice to have some predicatbility to the days again. 

Yesterday morning, I pulled out my little notebook and wrote down my "To Dos" for the day.  Not everything got crossed off, but I did accomplish a good bit.  Today's list will likely be shorter, but with some bigger projects (it's finally time to get all my school papers sorted and packed away).  

Some photos from yesterday:

Saying hello to the little birds that hang out in our front yard.

Hanging laundry on the clothesline.

Finishing up Sprout's first mama-mades.

Doting on the recovering patient.

Hopefully I'll get into a routine of blogging more regularly too.  At the beginning of the summer I thought I'd have time to update most days, but our schedule hasn't really allowed for that.  Now that things are slowing down, maybe it will.

Some People Just *Get* It

...I am not one of those people.

Lately, I've been reading all kinds of blogs... mommy blogs, educational blogs, design blogs... and it seems like every two minutes I'm saying to Allison, "Hey, listen to this idea!"  And, Allison (patiently listening to me explain) has usually already heard of the idea and has started doing something similar.

Anyway, looking at this picture from Allison's Ikea Hack post made me realize how sometimes Allison just *gets* stuff that would take me years to think of or figure out and then implement.

See the top shelf?

It has two pieces of pretty cool art on it, right?

Right.   (You're supposed to agree with me there.)

The picture on the left is a piece we ordered from Etsy.  The piece on the right is a picture that one of Allison's students drew for The Bean last year.  When she put the shelves up last week, Allison found the picture, grabbed the frame from a pile of empties, cropped the picture, framed it, and added the finished product to the shelf (all while entertaining The Bean during my morning to sleep in).

I didn't even know we had half that stuff.

The student who drew the picture was a favorite of mine because she took a huge shine to The Bean last year, so I was ecstatic to walk in and discover her artwork displayed so nicely on his new shelf.

I might not *get* it, but I'm glad Allison does.

To be fair, Allison totally doesn't get electronics, but I'm an ace.

Is there anything your significant other seem to be able to do that you would just never think of? 

Envelope Pillow Cover

The last time I did any sewing was in my eighth grade Home Ec. class.  I remember making a draw-string bag, and a stuffed animal of some sort.  Nothing I really loved or held on to.  Over the past year or so, I've become interested in learning how to sew again. I think it'd be great to be able to whip up a pair of pants for The Bean or make a simple little blanket to have picnics on.  Anyway, I must be talking about it quite a bit, because for my birthday Jen and The Bean surprised me with an introductory sewing lesson. 

The class was this morning.  It was at a cute little shop downtown called The Workroom and I could tell the instructor was very passionate about sewing.  She explained the basics of the machine and how to thread it properly and then had us work on sewing an envelope pillow cover.  I probably could have managed something a little more advanced, but it was a good introductory and I'm already looking at the other classes they offer! 

The pillow is now living on the glider in The Bean's nursery.  I like how cheerful it looks.  Owen (the hippo) does too! 

{this moment} Silly Boy

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.



Inspired by SouleMama.

The Bean's Nursery

We picked up The Bean's rug when we were in PA, so now his nursery is complete! We're very happy with the way it turned out. It's a nice cheerful room for him to spend time in. (He's even started napping in his crib during the days.)

{this moment} Monkey

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.



Inspired by SouleMama.

Rug for The Bean's Nursery

Just a quick update because I'm excited that we just made our last (big) purchase for The Bean's nursery.

This...


It's made by a woman named Laurine who I found on Etsy. Her shop is called greenatheart and she makes rugs (and other things) out of recycled t-shirts that she purchases from local charities. We contacted her with a custom request in November, and she told us it would be a bit of a wait until she had time to make our rug, but I'm so happy with the result! I can't wait to see how it looks in The Bean's room.

Mama Mades

This is a pair of booties that I made for our little bean. They were the second pair of booties I ever made. I didn't have the guage figured out well and they are teeny tiny. Both fit pretty much in the palm of my hand, so I suppose they will probably only fit the bean for the first week or two, but I don't mind. His little toes will need to stay warm.



I learned to make hats last winter and these are from then. Two are small, and one is slightly bigger. Having a baby in Canada in January, I imagine he'll be wearing hats a lot.



I don't know where I got the idea to make a sock monkey hat, but onceit was in my head it was too cute to ignore, so I adapted my basic hat pattern, adding a pom-pom and ear flaps. Jen wants me to add on monkey ears, so I still have to do that. The thumbless mittens I made up. I think it'll look very cute when he's wearing a plain white onesie and these handmades. Be on the lookout for pictures. ;)



Leftover sock monkey wool got make into a larger sized hat and some booties.



More leftover wool into a stripey hat. I like stripes.



Finally some matching mama-baby hats. I made the big hat for myself last spring and had just enough left over for a baby hat. We'll look cute on our walks together.

Baby Shower, Take Two

We had our second (local) baby shower last weekend. My sister and a friend from high school co-hosted. We included guys this time because my cousins really wanted to be there, one of my oldest friends is transgendered and we wanted him there, and a lot of our other friends are in couples so we thought it would be nice to be inclusive. The guys were totally into it! A lot of them had never been to a baby shower before so I think they had a a lot of fun.

Again, we got so spoiled. We are well on our way to being prepared for our little guy's arrival. I think the only two things we really NEED still are a crib matress and a glider for the nursery. Not too bad with two months to go!

Here are pictures of the cake my aunt made and the cupcakes my sister made:





Talented ladies that they are, both also gave handmade gifts for our little boy. The green hat and mitts are from my sister and the white hat and mitts and bunting bag with star hat and booties are from my aunt.







We're so lucky to be able to wrap our baby up in items made with love just for him.

Baby Showers and Laundry Mishaps

Last weekend we drove to the States because Jen's mom was throwing us a baby shower. It was a quick trip there and back (we arrived at 1am on Saturday morning, and left at about 2pm on Sunday afternoon) but we had a really nice time. A lot of Jen's family was there, as well as some friends of the family and friends of ours, including my best friend who flew in from Boston for the event. I felt a little bit overwhelmed, but also very lucky that we have so many loving and supportive people in our lives.



We came home with a trunk FULL of baby gear. The two big items that we really wanted and received as gifts were a co-sleeper (from Jen's parents) and a Medela Breast Pump (group gift from Jen's other relatives). We also received receiving blankets, onesies, sleepers, outfits, toys, bottles, a few baby carriers, a nursing pillow, and a gorgeous handmade blanket among other things.

Yesterday I was trying to be productive and get all of the clothes and blankets and whatnot washed and put away, so I threw some of the stuff into the laundry with a blanket. Even though I put it through on a cold cycle, and even though I was careful to separate anything I thought might bleed, something bled all over the new baby stuff. I was so mad at myself. I was up until 1am soaking things in Oxiclean and rinsing them trying to get things back to their correct colour. I was able to get some of the stains out, but most of stuff that was white is now a more "organic cotton" colour. I'm about to go downstairs again now to try to give things one last rinse in the machine. I'm not as upset as I was yesterday, but I'm still upset. Jen reminded me that the baby's going to spit up all over most of it anyway, but I'll be able to forgive him for that a lot more easily than I can forgive myself.

Anyway, off to do laundry... Again.