Beautiful days!

We had such a beautiful day yesterday, and it's going to be wonderful today and even warmer tomorrow! YAY! The kids are thrilled because they get to be outside without bulky coats LOL. Bob had them out yesterday, so I was able to do a good mostly thorough clean of the house yesterday. Some things I didn't get to, but the decluttering was amazing! I got rid of so much!

Krista is getting so big...she rolls and scoots all over the place now. I'm sure the kids are tired of me saying "Get that little stuff off the floor". Angelina had a skit on Friday in her class, on Dr. Seuss's "The Lorax" for Earth Day. They sang "What a Wonderful World" by Louie Armstrong, and than at the end, her teacher showed a slideshow of pictures of the children she took, and played the Hawaiin version of the song. To hear it, here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztepu9bIMBE

Get your tissues out, as it's a real tear jerker LOL. She did wonderfully though. We are working with Matt on being neater with his school work. Other than being messy and rushing through, he's doing great!

Anna is doing great in school too. SHE CAN READ!!! We are so proud of her :) Allie is really excited about Kindergarten. I'm going to request the teacher Anna has, so I have to write that letter this week. Alaina is just growing! She's getting so tall, and just loves to draw. She drew a picture of a whale the other day, and it looked just like one!

Here are some pics of the kids :)

Goofy children--Spring Break Has Begun

Spring break is now upon us. We had a wonderful Easter. The children were perfect angels in church for Easter Mass. We sat in the "big church" (I finally evicted daddy from the quiet room) and the kids were perfect. We sat in the front pew and they really did "WOW" us :)

Afterwards, we came home and they played for a while. Than we met my parents, brother, sil and the kids, my aunt and cousin for brunch. It was so yummy, and boy what a spread. Again, the children were fabulous! They ate most of what they were given and sat patiently until it was time to go. They weren't ancy and just loved being out in their "fancy" dresses.

So, here we are, Monday, our 2nd day of spring break. They were generally good today, just going nuts in the house. It was a bit chilly to take the baby to the park as she is just getting over bronchitis. Maybe tomorrow. Anyway, here are some silly pictures from today.

Krista trying to reach for a bag of bread/goodies from Uncle Mark...and than "kissing" a banana. The girls were eating a push up pop that daddy bought them. Lastly, a shot of Krista not very happy. Enjoy!

Shorties

I finally finished the shorties I started the other day that I'll be selling as soon as I get my wool wash. I got some yarn friday so I can knit some of these babies up to sell. I nailed the kitchener stitch (which is a way of closing up the gusset without any bumps). I'm putting this in a post of it's own because my next one will be about the kiddos LOL

The Knit Skirtie

I finished the skirtie for Krista last week. I can't believe I didn't post pictures of the final product! It came out so cute and looks wonderful on her. The wool is just so soft and not scratchy at all. A few posts down is a picture of her in the shorts portion...I just then picked up the stitches and knit the skirt. She is also rolling all over the place now. I'll put her on the floor on her back and she flips right over like a pancake LOL. The first picture is of her in the skirtie, the 2nd was snapped a moment after the first. She doesn't stay put for long!

Super busy knitting

I have been so busy knitting it's not even funny. Sewing and knitting take up lots of my free time, but I need both to help me unwind. I just finished this knit tank top for the site. Anna is my model, but it will fit better for a size 4. I dyed the yarn myself and I think it came out great! I also made some velour/flannel washcloths/babywipes and they came out beautifully. I'll get pictures of those later today. Oh, and I finally got a picture of Krista smiling. Whenever we pull out the camera, she just studies it and looks so serious.

The kids are doing wonderful. They start their spring break tomorrow and are excited for Easter. I still need to get things for their baskets...nothing like waiting for the last minute LOL. I'll post more later on...have lots to do yet LOL.

It's been a while

I know it's been a while since I've blogged. Life has been crazy and hectic. The kids have been sick on and off, and I've been going through a rough time this past week. The doctor is thinking I have an incisional hernia (at the site of c-section incision scar) and that some of my bowels are pushing through. In any case, I had an ultrasound done yesterday so now we just sit and wait on the results. If that is what it is, it needs to be fixed asap through surgery. If that is not the case, than I need to go to a gastroenterologist to rule out colitis/crohn's/ibs. What a whirlwind of emotions I'm feeling right now. I'm pretty scared with what's been going on with my body. When I get scared, I get quiet and try to keep very busy. It's been a rough week.

The kids are doing great. We have parent teacher conferences next week (so the kids have half days) and Easter/spring break starts next friday. The kids are excited to have over a week off of school.

Krista is 4 months old already! I just cannot believe how fast she is growing. She is now 13 and a half lbs and is 24 and 3/4 inches long. She is still nursing great :)

I've been busy sewing diapers/baby carriers/ other things and knitting away. Here are some pictures of the diapers, of the kids, of the pouch I made and dyed and of the little skirties I'm knitting for Krista (although in the pic, they are just the shorts...the skirt gets added on later...I hope to finish it today).

Angelina and Anna got haircuts last night. I gave Anna a little bob and she looks so precious! Angelina saw it and wanted her hair a little shorter, after just trimming her ends. Her hair went from past the mid back to near her shoulders and she loves it. There is nothing like a fresh new look to boost your confidence.

Well, time to get Anna ready for school...until next time.......

My first pocket diaper

Well, we are switching to cloth diapers. I just need to order a couple of more supplies before I can make the diapers, although I do have some prefolds that I got yesterday. I'm just knitting a soaker to go on top (they are like little shorts/pants that go over the diaper made of wool for absorbency). Anyway, I'm going to be making Pocket diapers (where a soaker pad is inserted and than taken out for washing) and aio's (all in one). I made my first pocket diaper last night. It's not usable, but I wanted to get the "pattern" down and really see if I can do it. It was the first time sewing with elastic, and I used the wrong stitch, but you get the idea of how the diaper is supposed to look. I'm really excited about this, helping out with the environment as well as saving money. When I get good enough, I'll be making nighttime training pants for my allie :)

Krista's Baptism

We had Krista's baptism last sunday, February 11th. It was absolutely beautiful as was she. The baptism was at 1pm at St. Peter's Church in Pt Pleasant. There were 2 little boys being baptized that day as well. It was wonderful. Here are some pictures of her getting dressed and getting baptized.

Our new baby!

We have a new baby!!! Finally a vehicle that seats all 8 of us. It's a 2000 Ford Excursion, black with a tan leather interior. I can't wait to take her for a ride!!

Lined ring sling with pocket

So I was chatting with my friend, and we were coming up with ideas for products for our site. Tonight, I made a lined sling with a pocket, that was supposed to be a sewn in carrying bag. The idea is to have the sling fold into itself when not in use into a drawstring bag. What I had in mind didn't work, however, I came out with a double pocket attached to the sling tail. The first picture is of me in the sling...the main pattern is a paisley type with stripe lining. The second picture is of the drawstring pocket on the tail. The last picture is of the pocket with drawstring closed (where keys, wallet, that kind of thing is kept) and a diaper with wipes in the back portion (behind the original pocket). I think it came out pretty cool :)

Lined baby sling

So, I changed my baby sling pattern a little. I've been making them for over 3 years now! Wow the time flies (I can't believe it more and more each day). Anyway, I bought fabric to start on some stock for the website (I'll post the address when we go live), and I've been eyeing this one up since I got it...that's the bad thing about being in the sling business, every sling I make I want to keep LOL. Anyway, I cut the fabric in half lengthwise (it was too bulky with it being 45 inches wide) and I folded the fabric differently around the rings and came up with this design. This is also my first successful lined sling. It came out great. My dd Angelina took the picture for me since dh wasn't home from work yet LOL. It was a quick pic because I needed to start dinner. I'll be wearing the baby lower next time, with the rings closer to my arm pit for more of a fan effect on my shoulder. Cute, huh?

Starting a WAHM business

A very good friend of mine and I are starting a wahm (work at home mom) website business. We should be live in about 2 weeks or so, but I've been working on my stock. As well as baby ring slings, I'll be doing some knitwear. Here are two sweaters, just like Krista's. They are both wrap sweaters, but the tan one has a ribbing along the trim instead of the rolled trim. Krista is my model :)

2 Months old already!

I can't believe the baby is 2 months old already! Time sure is flying. I took her for her well visit yesterday. She is now 11 lbs, 22 1/2 inches long and her head is 38 1/2cms. She really is doing great. She's in the 50th% :) She holds up her head really well, loves to be held and talked to. She just wants to stand all the time. She still sleeps alot, and gee, look at how fast she's growing, no wonder why!

We got report cards last week. Matt is doing excellent. There were things he needed to work on last marking period that he totally excelled in this marking period. Angelina and Anna did awesome as well. We got the "----- Is a pleasure to have in class" for each of them.

Enjoy the pics :)

Let's FLY!

I started to do Flylady again. You can check out her website at www.flylady.net It's a wonderful system for cleaning, organizing and decluttering your home. I went to town yesterday and did a basic surface cleaning/wipe down/vacuuming/dusting of my home yesterday. Now I can work on my zones and my daily routines and just be done with housework in minimal time, leaving time for the "fun" stuff in life.

And, I shined my sink...ain't it purty??

Getting so big!

Krista is just getting so big!! I had to take Allie to the ped the other day for a boo boo on her thumb, and while there, we weighed the baby. Here is the breakdown:

Birth: 6lbs 8oz
3 days: 6lbs 3oz
2 weeks: 7lbs 7oz
7 weeks: 10lbs 15.6oz

Momma's milk is doing this baby good! The older kids are doing great with her...they just love her to pieces. I have pictures on my camera that I need to get off, but here are some to show for now. Krista in her bouncy seat with Anna and Krista with a fretful look on her face LOL.

Sweater/Hat/Bootie sets

I've been really busy knitting up these little sets as gifts. I made this sweater for Krista and it came out so cute, so I made 2 sets as gifts, I have one more to go for a gift and I'm donating a set to a friend for a LLL gift auction. Aren't they cute? My dd's doll is the model, she is a newborn baby size doll LOL.

Now for the specifics. The hat is my own pattern. The booties are my version of the Diy, knitty gritty suede booties and the sweater is from Lion Brand.com, the Lion Cashmere blend luxury kimono.

1 Hour Booties

I took out the SnB Nation book from the library and found this cute little pattern for 1 hour baby booties. They are supposed to take 1hr or less for the pair...they were a real quick knit, only they use bulky weight yarn. The only bulky weight I have is Patons Allure, which is a furry yarn (so soft and yummy nonetheless). So I wanted to try the pattern. They look like little mary janes but instead of doing the strap, I just threaded a strand of yarn through the bootie and tied it in the front.

Sweater Time...

knit my first "real" sweater for my little one. I have made a reglan sweater, but I really didn't like it all that much, plus the seaming is just so different. I made the Lion Brand Kimono wrap sweater (can be found on Lionbrand.com under knit patterns). It calls for Lion Cashmere blend, but I substituted with Bernat Satin (it was what I had on hand and didn't know what else to do with). It came out wonderfully!!! Here is a pic of the sweater and of my little one wearing it. I plan on making this sweater, a hat and bootie set for gifts...I know of a few gals having baby girls :)

Baby pictures

Krista is 1 month old already! Where is the time going??? She is started to coo and really respond to us, she's been holding her head up for a while now...she is just getting so big! The kids are just loving her :) She is nursing great...really getting to be a chunky monkey. Here are some pics :) ENjoy!!