life's moving fast

Wow! Things are moving fast around here and although it's exciting, it hasn't seemed exciting enough to blog about. For Memorial Day weekend we went to the cabin to spend time with Kevin's parents. Great-Grandma even stopped out with Aunt Jane to say hi! The girls love being up there and were thrilled to see everybody. Their favorite part of the weekend is sitting on the tractor and riding in the Ranger. Spoiled kids!

Gretchen also went to the beach for the first time! She wasn't sure, at first, but quickly realized that splashing was fun and even took a digger into the water but survived with a smile.

We got some new carpet in the family room (yay!!) and have generally been busy playing with the neighborhood kids. We play before dinner and after dinner until sometimes, Charlotte brings herself in because she's so tired! Elaine was kind enough to lend me her bike (indefinitely) so after I get Gretchen a helmet, I plan on biking to parks with them this summer (instead of driving). Should be fun!!

kaleidoscope quilt

I've finished my very own Christmas Kaleidoscope quilt top. But after looking at it some more, I've decided I really need to add a few borders. The quilt measures approximately 55x81 so if it gets a little bigger it will be ok. I really like to snuggle under blankets.

For this quilt I followed Don't Call Me Betsy's Kaleidoscope QA with a two block pattern. I had a hard time with the pattern because my lines didn't quite work out. It might be that my pattern block wasn't accurate? I'm not sure. But she has you trim the block to be 12.5" square and I ended up having to make them 12" square. Yikes. Some of the triangle points aren't very pointy, but from far away, it looks great. Good thing this one is for me...

A tip for you...

A woman in my MQG, Cindy, told me that you can easily use an eyebrow brush to take out seams when you've sewed something together wrong. I hate ripping seams out and this little tool (from Sally Beauty) let me rip an entire seam in like 30 seconds. Go. Run. Out. And. Buy. One!

happy mother's day

Happy Mother's Day to all you mom's out there. I have to say, becoming a mother was the best thing I ever did. My girls are the light of my life and continue to teach me new things every day. They make me smile [and scream], but mostly smile at them every night.

And don't think I became a mother and instantly knew what to do, because I didn't. However, if it seems that mothering came natural to me it's because I had such a wonderful example in my life. My mother is the best. The whip cream, the extra frosting, the cherry on top. She beats all!! She's patient, kind, loving, and silly. I love her and hope my children can continue to know her for a long time to come. Thank you for everything you've taught me and continue to teach me. Thank you for believing in me even when I didn't believe in myself. I love you!!

WIP Wednesday

It's been crazy around here. We've had a little too much rain which means we've spent a little too much time indoors. The evenings have been ok so Charlotte's has had a few changes to go for a walk and play outside. I haven't been doing much sewing either. Too tired these days!

The other weekend at my MQG meeting I had to chance to really start working on my own Christmas quilt. I have half of the blocks created and just need to finish the other 18. But again, I ran out of white fabric and need to make a trip to the store. I'm using the Don't Call Me Betsy Kaleidoscop QA. I did have to trim my blocks to 12" square as they weren't quite close to 12.5" square. I must have done something wrong?!

The girls are good. Kevin just got double pink eye so hopefully the rest of us don't get it. Gretchen is getting a gazillion teeth at once and has had temper, fever, and diaper rash to prove it. She is into everything but still a cuddle bug. Charlotte is her normal self and loves to play outside as much as she can.

buttermilk-blueberry breakfast cake

I can't take any credit for this recipe. It's not mine and I didn't think it up. All I did was find it on Pinterest and make it this morning at my mom's house. If you like warm, blueberry, fluffy, not-too-sweet goodness, then this is for you. It's super easy to make as you can pretty much mix everything together in the mixer and scoop it into the pan. At some point I plan on doubling the recipe to put into a 9x11 pan. Now that would be one happy breakfast crowd!

Blueberry cake recipe from Alexandra's Kitchen, you really need to check it out.

summer's almost here

I love my neighborhood!!, a photo by Midwest Family Life on Flickr.

This week we got another sampling of summer here in Wisconsin and wow, it was great! Besides Charlotte, there are five other little girls in our neighborhood, within just a few houses, for her to play with. Since school is still in session they can only play after school or on the weekends, but Charlotte looks forward to it all day long. She is usually looking out the window at the driveways trying to convince me the neighbors are home.

This photo was the other night, three of them were still over in our backyard playing. Kevin was helping them catch butterflies and then letting them fly away. I think each girl got one! They were pretty excited!

This brings me to another observation of mine. I've turned into the Mom that would rather have all the kids at her house. These are all nice families, I've met the parents and spoken on numerous occasions, but I still prefer all the kids to be at my house. Gretchen is still young enough that she has to be with me, so if they are at our house she can play with the big kids, but I still just like having my kids around here. We have a great yard, it's big, and I feel safer when I can have one eye on them.

Do you think I'm overprotective? I think I'm just a Mom.