Silly Monkey

I've been working on Monkey's quilt/blanket for about two weeks now. I guess it's not truly a memory quilt because it's made from his daddy's old dress shirts and not his clothes. I just wanted for him to have something handmade for Christmas, not that he'll even realize the difference considering he's only nine months old. I promise to post pictures as soon as I'm finished. I'm not promising a masterpiece but I hope that Monkey can appreciate it when he gets a little older. Maybe he'll even pass it down to his children. Hmmm....just a thought. :)

It's official! As of today, I am now a stay-at-home mommy. It was a tough decision to make, simply because I didn't know if I could teach my little monkey all that he needed to learn. I know that he needs the socialization with the other infants that were in his class. I questioned whether he would get bored being with mommy all day, everyday. There were so many questions tumbling around in my noggin. Some friends were encouraging while others stressed that he should continue in child-care. Luckily I have an incredibly supportive husband who has more confidence in me than I deserve, so here we are. The first day has been great. My sweet little Monkey woke up with a big smile on his face and it hasn't left yet. Maybe this is the beginning of a wonderful thing!

So today...well actually tomorrow begins the first day of my commitment to lose weight or my "journey to fitness". My whole life I have been a petite size four. Well, boy has that changed since I met and married my Prince Charming. Not only did I gain the ten pounds of "happy weight" (which I wasn't so happy about) but I actually gained another whopping 25lbs. (Sheesh). After two years of wedded bliss, next comes my pride and joy, baby #1, and brings along with him another 60lbs. Needless to say when I stepped onto the scale during my ninth month of pregnancy I nearly fainted. Of course my great doctor (he really is great) assured me that it was all completely normal and to be expected. (Definitely not what I was expecting!!) Luckily I lost 45lbs within the first three months but goodness gracious do I have a long way to go. Actually 35lbs to be exact. I have some wonderful friends who are supporting me %100 and loving husband who thinks I'm hot no matter how many stretch marks I have. :)My first deadline (20lbs loss) is my son's first birthday (March). This has been a very sensitive area for me and I was a little nervous about putting this out into the great wide world of the internet but I think this will keep me accountable. So I have a plan, the support, and the motivation. With all that said...here goes nothing.

Before I embarked on my journey to learn how to sew and create beautiful pieces, I prayed and asked God to bless this endeavor, let it bring Him glory in which ever way He sees fit, help me to stay committed to learning (I sometimes lose interest in things that don't take off instantly), and to send someone who can "show me the ropes". Well, I casually mentioned my new found interest to a group of friends who then dropped the name of a few seamstresses that are also members of our church. I felt a bit intimidated first because I had no idea who these people were, and secondly, because I did not know what I would actually say when I did meet these people. "Hi my name is .... and I want to learn how to sew" is not really a good conversation starter nor does it make for a great introduction. Welp, I was invited out by a group that I don't normally spend time with. I had already spent a million bajillion hours in the sun on the day of the outing so I wasn't sure if I really wanted to go. Seeing as how the commitment had already been made, I quit my whining and joined the group. God heard and answered my prayers. I ended up meeting two of the ladies that my friends had suggested earlier. Not only did these two lovely ladies agree to "take me under their wings", I found out that one of them lives just around the corner from me. Oh it gets better, the ladies used to make clothes for Vogue!!! How awesome is that!!! Granted it was a million years ago, who would've thought that, in my little old town, you'd meet such cultured ladies. It is such an honor to have them say they will take on this huge "task" of teaching me. :) I thank God that He does nothing by accident. He put us all in just the right place, at just the right time. I look forward to the time spent with these ladies and the blessings that will come forth through what we make and the fellowship we share. All to the glory of God.

So I've become a craft idea junkie. (I should probably talk to someone about this) While looking on different blogs, I found a tutorial for felt food. Wow!!! There are some really good tutes out there. It is amazing how real and detailed some of the food looks. I think this is going to be my first project on my new sewing machine. I will post pics of all the good and the bad. I'm excited because the children in the church nursery will have new things to play with (if it comes out well). I may even make a menu for the food. Hmmmm... :) It is my goal to have at least 4 projects going on at once. Wish me luck!

I saw this writing prompt on another blog and thought it was a neat idea. I like lists so I thought I'd take a whack at it. Here goes....

1. Clean out the clutter in my closets. (Such a daunting task)

2. Finish at least 4 craft projects. (Hopefully I will get around to finishing more but with a 3 month old I don't want to get my hopes up too high)

3. Get my entire home on a regular schedule. (Oh how I love consistency)

4. Cook a homemade dinner at least 4 times a week. (Whoa am I ambitious or what?!)

5. Go to the beach and enjoy it! Care-free!! No worrying about what needs to be done at home, school, or church.

6. Go out on a date with my husband at least once a week.

7. Keep my feet nice and neat. (no more embarrassing my husband)

8. Hug and kiss Papa Bear and Baby Bear a million times a day.

9. Lose 15lbs of "baby weight". (If I can stay away from those darn Oreo cookies that stalk me everyday)

10. Create another list of things I want to do.

11. Become more diligent in my praying, reading the Bible, spending time with God. (If nothing else gets accomplished on this list, this one is a must)

12. Read at least 4 of the 20 million Christian Living books that we have on our bookshelf.

13. Write each of my friends a thank you note telling them how much I appreciate their friendship. (I owe them that much after what I put them through while I was pregnant)

14. While I'm at it, I better write and send out the thank you notes for all the wonderful baby gifts from 5 months ago. (I'll admit that I am a slacker!)

15. Organize a yard sale.

Can I change the title of this post to 15 things I vow to do this summer. This is tough!

16. Transition Monkey (also known as Baby Bear, Judah, JuJu, and Pumpkin) to his crib in his own room. (maybe that can wait til next summer)

17. Watch less TV.

18. Commit to walking/jogging everyday.

19. Watch every movie in our movie collection with my husband.

20. Enjoy more evenings on the couch with Papa Bear and Baby Bear.

21. Update my blog twice a week.

22. Print out one million of my two million digital pictures to frame and put around the house.

23. Take family photos.

24. Organize my cabinets and pantry.

25. Get caught up on laundry. Trust me, it will take the WHOLE summer :)

26. Keep a journal.

27. Laugh harder, longer, and louder!


28. Plant flowers in my front yard

29. Read to my silly monkey every night.

30. Share my testimony with 10 people.