Wreaths

I had been wanting to make a fall wreath for our front porch and a few other crafts, so this morning Gus and I made a trip to Hobby Lobby. And this is what happens when your son has your phone while shopping. (and there were about 20 more that looked just like this)

Here is my finished product!

 

I hung it in the house just so I could work on it. Now this is the first wreath I have made like this, and I can't believe that it turned out. I really enjoyed picking out what to use, and I feel like it was a good deal comparing it to the price of wreaths you can buy already put together at Hobby Lobby or other stores.

I posted this picture from Pinterest a few days ago, and I had wanted to make one for Little Miss's room.

Source: iaminthearmytoo.blogspot.com via Catie on Pinterest

I bought stuff today to make it. As I was shopping, I came up with a few changes that turned out well!

 

 

I added the tulle to mine. I got the decorative pearl pins (corsage pins) and flowers in the bridal section at Hobby Lobby. This was very easy to make. I followed the directions on the blog from the pin on Pinterest, and then I just added the tulle. I put green on first, similar to leaves or greenery. I added the pink tulle in the middle of the pink felt. This was easy to make and not super expensive. 

Wreath ~ $5

Fabric~ on sale- $2.50 (I bought 1/2 a yard and only used about half of it)

Pink Felt~ 25 cents

Tulle- on sale $2.50- per color

Pearl Pins~ $2

Flowers- on sale $2.50

and then I used some regular pins as well

These prices are just an estimate of what I remember. 

I am enjoying doing crafts so much!! Yay!

Linking to Serenity Now 
Linking to Blissful and Domestic
Linking to 30 Days

Oh Pinterest

Oh Pinterest, I can't believe how much I use you now! I thought I might be crazy at first when I decided to check you out. And now, I find all my ideas for all kinds of things from you.

Recent finds:

Source: tastykitchen.com via Catie on Pinterest

Baked Chimichangas- so yummy!!! One recommendation is to heat the tortillas just a few seconds in the microwave so they don't crack. I topped them with my Ranch Jalapeno Dip, so good!! Here was mine: 

Source: alizadventures.blogspot.com via Catie on Pinterest

Apple Cake- not an exact recipe, but mine still turned out yummy. I added cinnamon and nutmeg. Top it with ice cream- yes for a Fall Treat!!! 

Source: simplysogood.blogspot.com via Catie on Pinterest

I'm planning to try this crusty bread tomorrow! 

Source: ashleykaitlin.blogspot.com via Catie on Pinterest

I'm planning to make this Million Dollar Spaghetti to go with the bread- cheese and pasta- can't go wrong :) 

Source: allthingstarget.com via Catie on Pinterest

If I only lived near a Target!! This has great deals to get at Target. 

Source: yumm.com via Catie on Pinterest

I've been craving crab rangoon, and I really want to try these baked ones to make at home. Just looking at the picture makes me hungry.

Source: iaminthearmytoo.blogspot.com via Catie on Pinterest

I want to find some fun fabric and make one of these wreaths for Little Miss's room. 

I could go on and on, but I better stop there! Follow me on Pinterest, there's a link on the top right side of my blog. 

P.S. Check out the Erin Condren Giveaway at Life in the Green House.

Dear Little Miss- 27 Weeks

Dear Little Miss,

Do you know how excited we are to meet you in about 3 months????

Your Daddy, brother Gus, and I all got to see you today on the ultrasound. You have the cutest little nose. We got to see it in 3D, and it looks like your brother's which we love. I cannot wait to see it in person.

We spent this weekend getting ready for you. Your nursery is looking more and more like a little girl's room. Your crib was put together by your Daddy, Gus and me. Gus was a very good helper, but we had to keep an eye on him.

We also painted your room. It's so bright and cheery. I'm so excited to have a baby girl who I can share all girly things with. I hope and pray that we can not only share all things girly, but that we can be friends too, just like my mom and I.

Each time I feel you move and kick, it brings a smile to my face. You make me so happy, and I haven't even held you yet.

I want you to know you are loved, loved by me, loved by your daddy, and most of all loved by God. You are a precious gift, such a blessing in our lives.

We are counting the days down until we bring you home, and praying each day that you are growing and are healthy.

Love forever and ever,

Your Mommy

Gus Updates

I just know I am going to forget so many of the cute little things Gus does! I'm trying so hard to put a lot of them here in this blog, so I will remember.

~ I wrote last week about Gus holding Josh's hand to pray. Gus has also started saying "Amen." Love it :)

~ When we play with Gus we often say "One, Two, Three." Now when we say one, he says, "two" and then he will either just start laughing, or he will say three and laugh afterwards.We could only catch him saying "Two" once on this video.

~We have had some cooler weather AND RAIN!!! It has felt great outside and Gus has enjoyed being outside more. He was playing with the dogs and some sticks a few days ago.

 ~ Gus looked very grown up today as we were getting ready to go to McDonald's for lunch. One of my favorite things is when Gus has been playing and he walks back to the table where I'm sitting. When he sees me, he gets excited and has a big smile on his face.

~Now that my belly is so big, I have been telling Gus that mommy's baby is in my belly. He likes to pat my belly. And when I ask where mommy's baby is, he looks at my belly :) He still hasn't said baby yet so we'll keep working on it!

25 Weeks

  Pictures Taken in Little Miss's Room :)

How far along: 25 and 1/2 Weeks (100 days left!!!)

 

Size of baby: Eggplant (9.2 in, 2 lbs)

 

Maternity Clothes: Yes! I try to wear a few other things, but I'm constantly pulling them down over my belly. I still can wear a few of my dress.

 

Movement: A lot!!! I can see my belly jerk from side to side. Sometimes when I get up from lying or sitting, I can see exactly where she is. Oh how I love it.

 

Sleep: Fairly normal! Gus was sick this week and had me up more than usual, but I guess he was just getting me ready for when Little Miss gets here.

 

Symptoms: Starting to be a little more tired and less energy. Swelling hasn't been too bad. I sometimes have round-ligament pain when I stand up. But other than that, I've been feeling quite good.

 

Food cravings/aversions: I have been a little more hungry the last week or so.  

 

What I am looking forward to: We get to have another sonogram in a little over a week. I cannot wait to see our baby girl again. I'm ready to start working on her room, we plan to finish painting soon. Gus has been interested in my belly lately. He was walking around on Friday sticking his out! We are still working on getting him to say "baby."

I feel like my belly has looked a little different this pregnancy. I think she is sticking out a little more than Gus did. Here I am at 25 weeks with Gus.

As For Me and My House, We Will Serve The Lord

"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Joshua 24:15

"Every good and perfect gift is from above." James 1:17

"Don't you see that children are God's best gift?" Psalm 127: 3 (The Message)

From the time we found out Gus was on the way, it has been my prayer that he would come to know the Lord as his Savior. More than anything, this is my desire for him. And I know that there are many other people who have prayed for my son as well. My prayer for me as his mother, is that I will know how to teach him and show him the importance of Jesus in my life, and that he will come to know God's saving grace. 

When your child is young, all you can do is pray- pray for wisdom in raising them, pray for their soul, and pray that you will grow closer to God so you can be an example. As they grow, there are more and more things you can teach them. 

 We have several books that I think will help Gus learn more about God. It gives me such joy every time he chooses these books for me to read to him. And as I read them over and over and over again, I pray the words will never leave him. Here is are several we have:

Gus and I also listen to Bible songs throughout the day. I have a Cedarmont Kids station on my Pandora radio on my phone, and I turn it on for us to listen to. I hope he slowly learns these songs by heart. 

We pray each night before we eat dinner. As I wrote about yesterday, Gus has started sitting at the table next to Josh. Last night when Josh and I held each other's hands to pray, Josh asked Gus for his hand. For the first time, Gus gave Josh his hand and held it through the prayer. This gave me so much joy and brought a tear to my eye. As I sit here and write this, Little Miss is kicking inside me, and I have all the same prayers for her. 

 Josh and I have been reading The Power of a Praying Parent together, and I highly recommend it. I can never be reminded enough to pray for my children.

I wanted to share my joy with you today. And I hope this can serve as a reminder for you as it will for me to pray for you children. 

"I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth." 3 John 1:4

Sick little man and some organizing

The last few days have been a little rough around here. Gus started running a fever on Monday morning. He hasn't had much of a fever since early Wednesday morning, but he is still not himself. I hate seeing him feel bad. It was very apparent he was not himself when he would just sit in my lap for long periods of time. He wasn't being my little firecracker like usual. Although I cherish those moments I have had to just hold my little boy, we have had some difficult ones too. He has sometimes just felt bad and cried, and I just can't seem to find anything to make him happy. Naptime has been off, which is really hard on a little boy AND his mommy. And I think we have both been watching the clock each day, anxious for our Daddy/husband to get home. This is only the second time Gus has really been sick. I count this as a true blessing to have such a healthy little boy. I have tried to stay home most of the time so Gus can rest and get to feeling better. Since I've been home, I have been working on some little projects, such as the one I posted about on Monday cleaning out my pantry and fridge. I organized a few other places in the house. I cleaned up the cabinet above our dryer and cleaned all the stuff on top of the dryer. I used these bins (family dollar- 3 bins- $5)

 

I also decided to replace some things above our washer. These actually were left by the previous owners of the house, and I had just never got new stuff.

 

I got these frames and just printed a few things and had on picture to put in them ( frames- $2 each at family dollar). I plan to change out the printables for seasons and holidays.

My Boys :)

Another thing new around our house is where Gus sits to eat! He has been sitting in his bumbo at the table some to eat. I give him a fork or spoon and let him eat like a "big person." He seems to be enjoying it. 

Today, Gus woke up at 5:30 am today :(. But, we have been back on track with naps, so hopefully things will be getting back to normal. 

Cleaning and Organizing

If you enjoy Pinterest as much as I do, you have probably seen all the pins about organizing and cleaning different areas of the house. I saw this pin a few weeks ago, and it inspired me to clean our pantry.

Source: dollarstoremom.com via Catie on Pinterest

Amazing right???

This morning I planned to go to a nearby town to shop a little, but my Gus woke up with a slight fever. So I thought it best to stay in town. I got us ready and then drove down to Family Dollar. (I know.... if you know me well you know this doesn't happen often). I got just a few things to help me organize. This pin said they got all the supplies at the Dollar Store, but they only had a few things at our Family Dollar like these. I ran by Sonic on my way home, put Gus down for his nap, and started organizing.

 Here is what I started with: 

Please tell me that I'm not the only one with a scary pantry like this!!! I pulled everything out, threw away everything out of date. Then I started organizing. Sure, I think it would be fun to put everything in a separate bin, but that just wasn't practical for me and my pantry. My shelves are very short and not very deep. So I just got this basket, and some plastic bins to put a few things in. (basket- $6, set of 4 plastic bins not pictured- $6)

 I also had to tackle the bottom of the pantry- oh how I hate having a million plastic grocery bags. If I could just remember to take me cloth ones more often!

And here is the finished product- the tops shelves. I put all my sugar (brown and powdered) in a bin, and then I put all my cookie cutters and cupcake liners together in one. I already had the red plastic bin and that's where I keep potatoes and onions. I also put things that come in small packets, like instant oatmeal and microwave popcorn in a bin as well. 

And I cleaned up the floor! This bottom shelf is one of my favorite things now. I used the basket I bought to put chips, snacks and bread in. And I threw a bunch of the plastic bags away. And this is my poor little sick helper. 

I am glad I got this finished, and hopefully we can keep it this way.

I also cleaned out our fridge, which included take out the shelves and scrubbing them. I had this on my list to do last week and didn't do it. It's amazing how your fridge doesn't look stuffed when you have it cleaned out! Hopefully I can keep this clean too!

   

I hope this might give you some practical ideas for your pantry. I didn't get mine to look like a Pinterest picture, but it works for us!

Over the last few months, I have been trying to keep our home better organized and cleaner. I think this makes our life as a family easier. It makes me feel good when I have things straight, and I don't have to constantly walk by clutter. I still have a long way to go, but I am doing things one step at a time. What I did this morning I hope will relieve a little stress in our home. When I get things organized, it makes me happy! :)

It's August, so that means it's Fall... right?!?!

I know...... posting two days in a row! Crazy!

So my favorite time of year is Fall! I love the cool crisp air, leaves falling, wearing Fall colors and clothes, I could go on and on. And on top of that, it is leading to the MOST wonderful time of year- CHRISTMAS!

I don't change the decor in our house much in the spring and summer. Once it won't be super frowned upon- the Fall decorations come out!

 I got this candle from Bath and Body works this week, I love the smell!

 All I bought for this was the string and popcorn. I had seen the idea on Pinterest and gave it a try.

 I just added the bow and popcorn to this too.

 This was a printable I found on Pinterest, and I put it in the kitchen. I had the frame in a closet, so it didn't cost a thing!

I may add a few more little things, I saw this on Pinterest and want to do it too when it gets closer to Thanksgiving:

Source: google.com via Catie on Pinterest

Here are the pins from Pinterest I got my ideas from:

Source: myheartsdesireblog.com via Catie on Pinterest

Source: thepinkinkdoodle.blogspot.com via Catie on Pinterest

 The only thing I bought was the popcorn. I already had the string I used for these projects. I still feel like I updated my decor, but it only cost me $2!!

My little man and I have been have a few adventures this morning- which included him getting wet coffee grounds all over the house- really fun for mommy! I love this guy though.

 

Show and Tell Friday