crafting bug

Yay! I sold my first pair of earrings on Etsy! Of course they were purchased by a very dear and supportive friend for her sister-in-law. Oh well, I guess we all have to start somewhere. Perhaps the young lady will wear them and her friends will ask her about the earrings . . . .

I've decided if I don't have the energy or desire to work on the D when the Noo goes to bed, then I'm going to be productive in other ways - which means no TV! A friend of E's and his partner are having a baby in March - today we are going to their shower. He's a sex ed educator and she's a yoga teacher. He has a son and daughter by two different women - we're all secretly (and not so secretly) that the third times the charm. Interestingly they have asked for their baby gifts to be second hand when possible. I truly respect that - I wish I had it in me. I have purchased some really great gently used clothing for the boy, but I guess the consumer/first time mommy in me always wants the latest and the "best" for him. I try to rationalize certain purchases for him by telling myself those items will be passed on, which is pretty legit, considering we know at least 3 couples who are having babies in the next few months.

The couple whose shower we are attending today are opting for g diapers, reusable cloth diapers with flushable/biodegradable inserts, so we got them a pack of the inserts, an extra copy of Good Night Moon we have lying around and a gently used little cotton shirt. However, what I'm hoping they'll love the most is the card I made for them:

I used patterned paper and then sewed in little details for the legs, nest, wings, and leaves. Next time I'm going to try it with some fabric scraps - when I can get my hands on some (which should be soon - the MIL gave me sewing classes for my birthday (which I really wanted, but can't afford). Anyway, I love how it turned out - I think it's just darlin'. One of my goals is to stop buying cards for family and friends and try to make them as often as possible. I still am a sucker for beautiful letterpress cards though. Aaah letterpress . . . . don't get me started!

melt/breakdown

Yesterday was a very, very bad day - for all parties involved. For the past few weeks, the boy has been pulling himself up - everything - chairs, tables, people - everything is something to be explored and conquered. That's all fine and dandy - it shows that he's thriving, growing, hitting developmental milestones, blah blah blah. What I'm not digging is the pulling up in the crib. He pulls up and then just stands there and cries or yells until I show up - he's not horizontal, so there's no way he could accidentally fall asleep or gasp, put himself to sleep. It involves me picking him up and putting him back down - rubbing of the back and vigorous patting of the butt (it gets real vigorous by the 3rd time I go in). Yesterday we hit an all time high of one hour. It took me 57 minutes to put him down. I had to call the hubster to tell him that I was this close to shaking the boy. It was bad, the rage and steam coming out of the ears, the worry, all of it. I mean the boy was tired, rubbing his eyes out, grinding his head into the mattress, but stubborn as all hell. I was supposed to meet people for lunch but decided against it - he needed his sleep, since his afternoon naps have all but dissolved.

Just as I'm doing some deep breathing exercises, the little sweet boy WAKES UP. That's half an hour later!! But I took it all in stride - we'll go out for lunch. Of course he was the perfect little charmster at lunch, and when we all got up to leave, he started rubbing his eyes. Oh, great - we have a nice little walk to get home and then he'll fall asleep on his way home. No, not on the way, not once we got home. Fussy as all hell, but not sleeping. And that is when I started crying and called the hubster with the very subtle code "COME HOME NOW!" He was home within 10 minutes (bless his heart) and whisked the boy away and told me to sleep, which I gladly did for two hours.

During the two hours I am knocked out, the m-i-l comes over - they're all hanging out downstairs so I can sleep. Very thoughtful. In the two minutes E comes up to check on me, the little guy falls over and cuts his face on the stove. He's fine, I'm fine, we're all fine, but C'MON, lady, really?!! I know accidents happen, but c'mon. He's lucky he didn't poke his eye out. SHE'S lucky. Anyway, I was too tired to be whatever. And I have a free babysitter, and accidents happen. So enough about that.

I sat down at 10:00 this morning to start writing this. Last night I had the brilliant idea of putting him in his sleep sack for his nap - it restricts his movement (poor thing). So this morning, we nursed, then got in the sleep sack and put him down. Some crying for 5 minutes then some loud complaining and at 10:12 - silence. Out. Success. It really is all about learning by doing. I'll give LS that much - they were right about that.

By the way, no one is laughing, people:

There are no words to describe my disgust and sadness.

Happy Love Day!

Last night we went out on a date. A sushi restaurant - we haven't had any sushi since we moved to to the Bridge. It was nice to get away for a few hours and be able to have some adult convo and check in with each other. We left dinner feeling like we are both happy with the life we have carved out for ourselves. Noodle is such a big part of our lives now, it's important for us to remember us. There is a lot of stress involving money, debt, etc. but I feel like we have a strong foundation. So good convo and touching base, good sushi, ridiculous bill for dinner. Sushi is definitely more expensive here than in Chicago. Let's just say we won't be eating out for the rest of the month.

I had Noodle with me for most of the week - the mother-in-law wasn't very available. Then a play date canceled - so I had a moment of panic, but really, it's not so bad anymore. He's a lot of work, but the joy he expresses and creates overrides the work (mostly). While he took a good long nap in the morning, I made a Valentine's Day present for the hubster. Cheesy, but it's me, and it's him.

I printed the photos on photo printer and stuck it on a mini canvas. Then I shellacked it with a coat of PVA. I like the effect of the PVA - I'll have to play around with it some more. I think I'm constantly struck by how much has happened to me in the past few years, and how much as happened to us. So I think I'm always trying to find ways to "document" it somehow, for lack of a better word. Sometimes I can't believe I'm married, much less with a little family of my own. I guess this is my way of pinching myself. I also got him this book I Like You - everyone needs this book.

It is a small gesture, cute but I think incredibly meaningful as well. It made me laugh out loud as well. Some of my favorite lines are:

I like you because if I think I am going to throw up
then you are really sorry

You don't just pretend you are busy looking at
the birdies and all that

You say maybe it was something you ate

You say the same thing happened to me sometime

And the same thing did

It made me a little teary-eyed, too. But then again, what doesn't?

In the afternoon I tried to put the boy down for a nap. All three times he refused to got to sleep. Before he would just cry and cry. Now he does this. This is what he looks like when I come in his room:

The bordering seething rage I sometimes feel when he won't go down for a nap all but dissolves when I see him teetering in his crib with no pants on, giddy with love for his mama. Yes, it's time to lower the crib.

So he finally convinced me he just wasn't going to take an afternoon nap, even though he was rubbing his eyes like crazy. So he sat in his Svan and ate his Mum Mum and watched me make these:

Happy Valentine's Day, friends. I love you all.

I am now an Etsy-er!

What a wonderful week I had in Chicago, visiting with friends, eating good Mexican and Thai food, and going for a fun girls' night out viewing of He's Just Not that into You. I can still remember watching the male co-writer of the book on Oprah, dishing out "advice" to women with varied sordid dating lives, while thinking about my own sorry dating life or lack thereof. I miss Chicago, my life there and all the good people I know. It's all just so easy back there - everything here is two steps forward, one step back.

In an effort to get out of my funk, over the weekend I decided to officially join the wonderful and creative world of Etsy. I love all things handmade and regularly visit the shops to see what crafty and talented people are up to. Of course handmade is usually more expensive than mass produced, but after making a few necklaces and earrings here and there as gifts for friends, I've gained a new appreciation for the love, time and effort that goes into things handmade.

Although sparrows and owls and all things naturey circa 1970s are very in now, I have to say that I've always been drawn to sparrows, in spite of the city girl that I am. I made a pair of these earrings for Enid's birthday - they also happen to be my first item for sale on Etsy (thanks, Enid, for the stellar photography). If you're so inclined, check out my "store." Better yet, use it as an excuse to check out some truly amazing and covetable items made by some very talented people across the world.

Chicago, Chicago!

Woohoo!! Here I am, Chi-Town. I miss you so much. I cannot wait to see you and play with you!