Author: Kathleen

link roundup / 14

Today I’m sharing some stuff I found around the internet. Enjoy!

>I played soccer my whole life until I got pregnant, and although I don’t really follow the professionals, I can appreciate this goal.

>Craftsy is having their big fall course sale right now, for two more days. I love their classes!

>Janssen rounds up eight great apps for preschoolers that I want to try.

>Elise’s handmade clutches (only 29 available starting 9/22) are awesome and I only wish I had room in the budget for one.

>3 tools for photographing a dark home. This is one reason I need a new camera; our home doesn’t have a ton of windows and it’s surrounded by trees so it always seems dark.

>Essentials for beginning runners. Totally agree with this list. I want one of those water bottles!

>Thoughts on mornings. Are you a morning person, or trying to be? I am, but the kids wake up way too early for me to take advantage of that!

>Realistic depictions of motherhood. Not (lol).

September 20, 2014
tgif : the i’m so tired edition

Taking a page out of Stephany’s book to recap my week. Contrary to the above picture (which was last weekend) it has been overcast and rainy the last several days, which is kind of appropriate. Even though it keeps me perpetually soggy, I am grateful for the relief from the intense heat.

The high of my week was a playdate at Chick-fil-a with my sister-in-law and one of our friends from church. It started out kind of rough, but eventually the kids calmed down and there was a solid 20-30 minutes where they were all playing happily and Liam was content in his high chair and we got to sit and have girl talk time.

The low of my week was an hour-long screaming meltdown by Meredith at bedtime…and all the other meltdowns (but that was the worst). She’s in one of those phases and it just might do me in – send chocolate.

The best money I spent was a medium cafe mocha at work the morning after the above meltdown.

A podcast episode I loved was “Decisive Blogging” on How They Blog with Kat Lee & Anne Bogel from Modern Mrs. Darcy. Thanks to Kerri for introducing me to this podcast! This was the first episode I listened to, and it was perfect for me in that Anne talked a lot about balancing her blog with her very full life.

My weekend plans include attending my second Houston Modern Quilt Guild meeting (I hope) and a huge family fun day for my company, as long as it isn’t pouring down rain. We are also hosting a dinner for our church life group. As far as personal projects go, I’d like to finish a book, get the tricky part of the binding done on my quilt, schedule some blog posts, and run 6 miles (the farthest I’ve ever run – yikes).

September 19, 2014
liam at eight months

He:

>Has one tiny little bottom tooth poking through. You can’t really see it but rub your finger over his gum and you’ll get poked. :)

>Chews everything in sight. Especially my face and hair.

>Can be pretty vocal at times. He still rarely cries, but sometimes he just likes to yell for the fun of it.

>Is still huge. 95th percentile, did I mention that?

>Has become very purposeful with his movements and grabbing. We really have to watch what we leave close by him.

>Loves food. Any kind.

>Still isn’t very close to crawling. He hasn’t even pushed up all the way yet. I think he just has so much weight to lift that it’s hard for him. :)

>Has a nickname – “Rocky.” Meredith came up with it for who knows what reason.

>Took a nap in the crib once. It was his first time ever to be in the crib at home.

I:

>Am so happy about the kids’ new room, and now I need to tackle the prospect of getting them to sleep in their own beds at night.

>Have a difficult time holding Liam these days because of the intense hair-pulling that immediately happens.

>Worry about having enough breastmilk to send to daycare each day. I only have a few bags on reserve and lately I don’t seem to be keeping up.

>Am worn out from the past week and a half. We had a slow summer at work but things are definitely picking up and I’m feeling it, especially when I’m running the clinic alone. Add to that a sick husband and a dramatic toddler and I need a long nap.

>Have been “off” on my morning routine. The kids have been waking up early again (as in 5-5:15 a.m.) so I’m not getting much, if any, time alone. David is leaving for work an hour earlier due to traffic. It’s led to really hectic mornings and a feeling of chaos inside of me.

>Really look forward to getting a real camera. I’m feeling the limitations of my iPhone a lot these days.

>Think I want to do mostly handmade gifts for Christmas this year, so I need to start planning that now.

>Also need to plan for all the birthdays that happen in January, including David’s and Liam’s first!

Meredith has been calling him her baby lately. She’s either loving on him or pushing/hitting him. Sigh. But at least he’s learning to fight back in his own way:

For reference:

0 months
1 month
2 months
3 months
4 months
5 months
6 months
7 months

Meredith at 8 months

September 18, 2014
project life 2014 : weeks 35 – 36

Kind of a funny story about this spread. I thought it would be fun to make a video of me putting the entire thing together from start to finish. Problem: my only camera is my iPhone. But I get these ideas in my head and I can’t relax until I figure out a way to execute them.

Picture me on Saturday afternoon during precious naptime rigging up an elaborate harness using yarn and thumb tacks in order to hang my iPhone from the ceiling. I was climbing on the table and moving furniture. Positioning my supplies just so. I finally got it figured out and went to work.

I didn’t give any thought to the spread beforehand, so there was a lot of downtime on the video where I was just staring and thinking. The next day I was halfway through editing the video and thinking it was going to work, when I realized it cut off when I was about 75% through with the spread.

I was tempted to be upset by the wasted time, but instead I just had to laugh at myself. The whole thing was ridiculous. I still want to make a video one day, but I don’t think I’ll attempt it until I have a real camera with a tripod.

So anyway, this is from August 25 – September 7. It’s not one of my favorites, actually. I think I was rushing for the video. Lately I’ve been a little unhappy with my spreads in general. I love how sustainable it is for me to complete one every two weeks, but then the spreads themselves are full of photos and there is very little white space or room for journaling. So I’m trying to find a balance of simplicity.

The photos I turn black and white are usually either grainy or have colors that stand out in a bad way. My dad always takes pictures of our family when we get together (see below) but they are just simple snapshots, usually in bad lighting. But turn them black and white and brighten them up a bit and they are a great addition to the album.

I’m also so glad I captured a photo of David and Meredith going through their bedtime play routine. They have several little games they’ve made up and I think it’s both of their favorite things they do together.

Half of the right hand side was devoted to the room switch we did. It took a lot of time and energy.

I’m not done decorating their room yet, and I’m also not set on the final furniture placement. But I do hope to share it with you one day.

I love combining two or more photos on one 4×6 card when there is a similar theme going on.

So that’s another spread in the books. I’m going to continue doing two weeks per spread for the remainder of this year, but I’m feeling the itch to reassess my method going forward.

September 17, 2014
art journal / 2 (and possibly the last)

I did this simple art journal page awhile ago when I was doing my Bible study on James. At the time I intended to make a page whenever something struck a chord with me in my study. Well, I couldn’t keep up. God was really speaking to me, but I began to feel like I was “behind” on this for-fun project. So I stopped.

I still love the idea of an art journal and I love looking at them, but I find when it comes time to make my own I am overwhelmed by the blank page and I would keep putting it off and focusing on other things. The little pockets of Project Life work much better for me. :)

So for the moment, I’m shelving my art journal. It’s still there within reach, but I’m focusing on other projects right now – including survival of Meredith’s threenage years. ;)

September 16, 2014