Forget Spring Cleaning...

I've been all about Spring Projects this year.

I've been wanting to make a book wreath forever and finally got to it.  It's a great addition to our entryway.

I decided that Jilly needed some seersucker in her wardrobe this summer.  This skirt was so, so easy- I did it in one night (that's definitely a first for one of my sewing projects.)  I liked it so much, I made a matching one for my cute niece Kirra.

Bryan's parents were getting rid of this shelf and we said we'd take it.  I stained it then painted these frames to go with it in Jilly's bathroom.

These onesies are for a friend's baby that arrived on Sunday morning!

 After the skirt success I decided to try a dress.  This pattern was awesome, and even though I made lots of mistakes it turned out okay and looks cute on her.  I felt like Maria Von Trapp, except this dress is not from old curtains but clearance fabric

 Last, but not least, we finally have a mirror for over our fireplace!  I hated that empty space on our wall so much, but it took a while to decide what we wanted and then to find a great deal ($20 on craigslist, we were thrilled.)  I stained it a million times, and I'm still not sure if I want it to be darker, but it's hanging for now and has been a huge improvement to the room.

What projects have you been doing?

five on friday

1. Bryan walked in the door Monday evening and told me he was "in mourning."  On his bike ride home from work he ran over and killed a squirrel.  He's felt terrible about it all week.

2.  Jilly graduated to a booster seat this week and meal times have been much, much more pleasant.

3.  My mom hates bananas.  So, naturally, I assumed I hated them too and never really ate them growing up.  Then I went off to college and surprise! I like bananas.  Banana bread was also a new concept to me, but one that I have embraced as a welcome solution to brown, mushy, old bananas.  I made this banana bread this week and it is tasty.

4.  It's been fun this spring to discover the flowers around our neighborhood.  Right next to our house we have this beauty-

and it makes me so happy because it reminds me of this lovely day-

5.  We were planning to go camping tonight with Bryan's parents, but the forecast is not looking very good.  I'm not a huge camper in the first place, so camping in the rain is basically my worst nightmare.  Solution: Bryan and his dad are camping (die hards) while Jilly, my mother-in-law, and I enjoy soft beds, indoor plumbing, and electricity for the night.  In the morning we'll meet up with them, and that will be plenty wilderness experience for me.

Hello Monday

Hello Orangevale Parade.

passionate clapping

 learning what parades are all about

 we were all in green- accidentally

Hello new running shoes.

it had been 5+ years since I got a new pair
4.5 miles and my feet were singing
(yes, I'm wearing 2 different socks, I was trying to hurry and my sock drawer wasn't cooperating)

Hello nursery.

she LOVED it

(and so did we!)

no matter what I did, she would not look at me for a picture

Hello Sunday popsicles.

Hello painted baby toes.

Hello Solar Eclipse.

it was so cool

it got pretty dark for a few minutes

all the shadows took on this crescent shape

so we essentially saw the eclipse on the ground

Hello Zucchini Fries.

can I eat you every day?

recipe here

After such a great weekend, we're ready to start another Monday
(hello Monday series inspired by Lisa Leonard)

friday five

1. Jilly goes to nursery for the first time this Sunday!  Her friend who is a year older told us she would "hold Jilly's hand if she's sad and make sure she doesn't eat playdough."  I feel much better knowing that Rosy will be looking out for Jillian.

2.  I have about a million projects that are half-finished right now and I'm going crazy!  I just need to sit down and finish something so I can at least feel some sense of accomplishment.

3. Jillian had her 18 month checkup this week.  She's still in the 17% for weight but now is in the 75% for height.  Those Martinez genes finally kicked in!

4. Right now I'm reading/listening to 4 books- 11/22/63 in book form, Jane Eyre on my kindle, Graceling on my ipod when I go running, and Small as an Elephant in my car.  I love that they're all so different-  historical fiction, classic, fantasy, and realistic fiction.

5. For the past few years we've picked a show to watch on netflix during the summer (because summer tv is lame.)  In 2010 it was Lost, 2011 was Prison Break, and this year's is . . . 24!  I've seen random episodes, but I'm excited to watch the whole thing.

Mother's Day Weekend

On Saturday we took Jilly to the pool.  She learned what daddy does at the pool:

And what mommy does at the pool:

Then we drove to Bryan's parents' house and we went to Lumpy's for delicious burgers, onion rings, and milkshakes.   After eating we went to the park, which had these fun spinny chairs- not exactly the brightest idea right after eating your weight in grease.

Sunday morning Jilly practiced walking in high heels.  She was actually quite good at it!

At dinner with the whole family Jilly loved playing with Tylee.  I found this picture of them playing last year, it's crazy what a difference a year can make!

I love this little girl to bits!

18 Months

18 things about our 18-month-old

1. Jilly loves drinking out of straws.

2. Jilly's only allowed to have her paci in her bed, but she's gotten very sneaky- she leaves them close to the edge so she can reach through the bars and grab one.  All the time she comes to me with a big mischievous grin behind her paci.

3. She can say baby, woof woof, meow, tweet tweet, pretty, shoes, stick, hot, cheese, hi, bye, mama, dada, uh oh, ah choo, no, yeah, and I did it!

4.  She also can say many many things in Jilly language.  She has a cute little voice that sounds like a chipmunk and goes nonstop.

5. She sleeps!  Just a month ago she finally started consistently sleeping through the night.  She goes to bed at 8 and wakes up sometime between 5:30 and 7:00 (unfortunately, usually closer to the 5:30 end)

6.  She takes 2 hour and a half naps.  I keep thinking she'll grow out of the second nap, but since she wakes up so early she still really needs the sleep.

7. She likes to rub her face in soft things.

8. She loves babies and dogs.  She'll run over to both and say, "Hi baby!"

9. She loves "Yo Gabba Gabba" (dumbest.show.ever.)

10. We keep her sippy cup on the bottom shelf of the fridge so whenever she's thirsty she just goes and gets it herself.  Makes me laugh.

11. Jilly has 12 teeth now.

12. Whenever we're outside she collects sticks, rocks, and pinecones.  We have a collection outside the front door that I won't let her bring inside

13. Her favorite foods are graham crackers, hot dogs, chicken nuggets, rice, green beans (canned, not fresh), popsicles, and anything chocolate

14.  She insists that we wear shoes at all times.  If we aren't wearing shoes, she'll find a pair to bring us.

15. Jilly loves to play peek-a-boo on the hammock

16. She loves to hold my hand and walk along the curb- perhaps a budding gymnast?

17. When we skype with my brother he always makes a funny face and Jilly thinks it is so so so funny.  She's been working on her own funny face.

18.  Jilly gives the best kisses!

Happy Mother's Day

Exactly eighteen months ago I became a mom.  I've learned a lot and have a lot more to learn still.  I'm so grateful for this happy, spunky, little girl who makes every day more joyful.

Happy Mother's Day to all!

five on friday

1.  I had a meeting Sunday night and Bryan put Jilly to bed while I was gone.  On Monday morning Jilly woke up (at 5:45, ugh) so so excited to see me.  She kept hugging and cuddling with me.  Melted my heart.

2. This week I let Jilly try painting with some watercolors.  I took off her shirt and was very glad I did when she started painting on her tummy!  (and that is a perfect view of Jilly's enormous belly button hernia)

 

3.  On Sunday afternoon I was browsing pinterest and found these cookies.  Luckily we had all the ingredients on hand and a few hours later we were scarfing down these little yummies.

4. It seems that summer has arrived and we've found our new favorite evening activity- eating popsicles on the hammock.

5.  Our library has a waiting list 248 people long for 11/22/63 so I was shocked when I found a copy on the new release table.  I quickly snatched it up.  The only problem is I only have it for 3 weeks and it's massive!  I figured out that I have to read 42 pages a day, and I'm already a day and a half behind.

Half Birthday

Last week I went through this thought process-
"Jilly is almost 18 months which means she can go to nursery- hooray!
If it's almost Jilly's half birthday then it is almost Bryan's half birthday too
Remember how I haven't done anything for Bryan's birthday for the past 2 years
(last year I was busy planning Jilly's first birthday and the year before I was getting ready to have Jilly any day)
Bryan's pretty great, he's worth celebrating
I'll have a half birthday party for him!"

And so I invited a few friends over to surprise Bryan on his half birthday.  I do realize most people don't celebrate half birthdays, but everybody likes an excuse to get together and eat cake, right?

14 1/2 candles

Jilly may have been hesitant when eating her birthday cake, but when she saw this cake she knew exactly what to do

Baby Beluga

In first grade my teacher often played music on a record player (gah, I'm old.)  On your birthday you got to choose the song, and I was so so excited to choose my very favorite song "Baby Beluga."

That summer we took a family trip to Yellowstone and I remember sitting in the car with my cousin singing "Baby Beluga, Baby Beluga" at the top of our lungs.  No doubt the adults thought we were just adorable.  (Ashley, do you remember this at all?)

Last week I noticed that our library had a wide CD collection and as I was perusing I found a Baby Beluga CD!  We brought it home and have been listening on repeat.  I'm not sure that Jilly appreciates it as much as I do, nor is she impressed that I can sing along, but I love sharing little things like this with her.

Playgroup

Every Tuesday morning some friends and I do a "kid swap."  One morning a month I get these 7 cuties (3 three-year-olds, 1 two-year-old, and 3 one-year-olds) and the other 3 Tuesdays I get a free morning.  This playgroup idea is brilliant.  Jilly is (kind of) learning to share and take turns, once a month I get to channel my teaching skills and plan a little activity for the kids, and three mornings a month I have 2.5 hours of extremely productive time!