Fall Fever

With the onset of Autumn, it seems that everyone is talking about fall, fall, fall. But, we're still having temperatures in the 90's, high humidity, and my AC is still running full blast.




So, in an effort to get excited about fall like the rest of the world, to pretend that there was a chill in the air, that I needed another blanket at night, that I was pulling out my sweaters and wooly socks, I made some cute pumpkins to decorate the house (come November, that is. First the Halloween decorations must come out). I saw the idea here and loved them so much I thought I'd try my hand at pattern-less pumpkins. I'm not very good at anything without a pattern, but they turned out okay. Not as gorgeous as the originals (loved the fabric she had), but not too bad for around $2 a piece.

Now, back to my flip flops.

Extreme Bedroom Makeover

Just before school started the girls talked me into repainting their room. It's only the third time in six years. The boys keep asking, "When are you going to repaint our room???" Hmmm... never?

Anyway, they are into pink and zebra right now, so that's what their room is too, naturally. It turned out so cute and "teen" looking. Here are some pictures of the various stages:

What the walls used to look like

Meghann helping to apply primer

See my head over there in the corner working on the primer?

And now, the AFTER pictures... (drum roll please)

A HUGE thank you to Aunt Liseanne for all the CUTE vinyl clings and zebra dots. The dots just totally made the room and the girls kept saying over and over how "amazing" all the vinyl clings were. They are definitely perfect. THANKS, LISEANNE!

Curtains made by mom

Wall canvases made by Meghann

We even found a spot for a dot on Meghann's shelf

Last week I was feeling a need to start and finish a project all in one day so I made this pillow sham for Meghann's bed. She bought the sheets and I made the sham, complete with zebra piping all the way around (hard to see).

vinyl cling above the closet

Another cute font

above Courtney's bed

I love this wall - the font on that vinyl is so fun. As Brady was hanging this one we joked that he needs one that says "Dad's make the best wall hangers!" :) Courtney made these canvases to hang above her bed.



And finally, this is Meghann on Sunday afternoon trying to get some rest. I like to call this picture "Zebra on Zebra." More to come later this week on that darling dress!

Birthday Re-Cap

I had to post this picture of Spencer and his excitement at getting a new Wii game for his birthday. You can practically see all the way down his throat! I'll bet the dentist would love for him to open that wide.

He had a great birthday. Thanks Grandma and Grandpas for the gifts you sent. I'm posting pictures of those too, along with the birthday treats (pencils) he took into his class.

Spittin' in Style

I made 12 burp pads for a friend who is due to have a baby in a few weeks. I'd never seen these colored diapers before, but she bought them off ebay and then had me cutsie them up. I think they turned out nice. When I took them over her mom was there and she asked, "Dina, are you sure you're going to name the baby Zac?" We both said, "Yep, it's a done deal!"

Here's an interesting side note:

Her first child has 8 letters in her name

Second child has 7

Third child has 6

Fourth child has 5

Fifth child has 4

Sixth child - you get it by now. He's going to have 3 letters to his name: ZAC

Business is Picking Up

I ran a small MissionaryAprons.com ad in the September/October issue of LDS Living magazine (page 89 for any subscribers). Since then, I have definitely noticed business picking up a bit. Last week I had about 10 orders. Hooray! Here they are, all lined up and ready to be mailed on Monday.

Ode to a 9-Year-Old

Happy Birthday, Spencer!

9 wonderful things about this boy:

1. He works hard on his cub scouts.



2. He is the best whistler this side of the Mississippi. He can be heard whistling amost any time of the day (except when we're driving in the car and all of the other kids are saying, "Spencer! Please stop whistling!" We've had to institute a "no whistling in the car" policy to keep the peace.)


3. He is a quick learner. It only took one time of him getting into my make-up (and being horrified when he saw himself in the mirror) and he's never done it again! :)

4. He's a great swimmer (but he never ventures into the water without his goggles).





5. Not only is he a great swimmer, he's awesome on the skim board at the beach!

6. He is a great friend to our neighbor, Joniel. Those two are inseperable.

7. He is my right-hand man in the kitchen. He loves to cook and as he told me once about four or five years ago, "Mom, if you need the eggs cracked just call me and I'll come a running cuz I love cracking eggs!" He comes running every time he hears me in the kitchen. Last Sunday he even sat down and read a cookbook.

8. He's a daddy's boy through and through. (He was thrilled one day when we were pulling hand-me-downs out of a box and realized he and Brady had nearly twinner shirts).

9. Even though he's a daddy's boy, he never lets me leave his room at night without a hug and kiss.

Have a great birthday, Spencer!