Busch Gardens 2009

Debi Downer

Maybe Morgan has an incredible memory and remembers the last time we went to a pumpkin patch. Maybe Morgan is a lot like me and likes festive things to be really festive. Or maybe Morgan is a Debi Downer.

We went on a field trip with Claire's school to a pumpkin patch nearby. If you are comparing it to any of the pumpkin patches from Pittsburgh, it was lame-o, small, underwhelming, boring, and did I mention lame-o? But that's just me. Claire enjoyed it. Most of the kids enjoyed it. Morgan. . . well. Let's let the pictures do the talking:

{Here is Claire and her big feet, pleased to be posing next to a giant pumpkin face}


{Now here is Morgan. This isn't a random pictures. This is her, with me begging her to look up. She refuses and continues for several minutes to look down dejected}

{Hayride. . . still no smiles from the Morgsters}


{Here are some of the girls in Claire's class, looking so happy. Notice Morgan, though. Still no smile. She is probably looking at the rock, thinking, "This rock is having more fun than I am."}


{But can you blame her? Look at this thing. This was the only activity, beside the hayride, for the kids to do. It was a dirt hill, with a couple of 5 ft slides on it. Major lame-o!}


{And this is how Morgan felt about it. She stood that way, making that exact face for about five minutes}

What Benjamin Franklin Didn't Know

When I was Philadelphia, in the Benjamin Franklin Museum (major snoozer), I saw a big quote on the wall that said, "Speak little; do much", from Poor Richard's Almanack. My first thought was--obviously he has never been on a girls trip.

Poor Richard, indeed.

It has been over a week since I returned from the rock-awesomest girls trip ever and I still have a grin on my face. In the last few, harried weeks of Pittsburgh, as everyone was preparing to move, we made a desperate pact to meet up somewhere for a girls trip so it wouldn't be so sad to say goodbye. And six months later, after about 273 emails, some backing out and jumping back in, to the joy of all involved, it came to fruition, in sunny Orlando.


Nine girls, all moms, four pregnant, three nursing, two photographers, and a double batch of German Pancakes. It was heaven.

{Libby, Amy, Me, Gina, Jana, Debi, Elise, Rachel, and Melanie}

There isn't a lot to outline as far as an itinerary went. We chose Orlando so we could sit outside at the pool all day and talk. We talked and talked and talked and laughed our butts off (that's just figuratively, as you can tell from the pictures, mine is bigger than ever). We had late nights, late mornings, and anytime we tried to go somewhere, even if it was just to the pool, we were slowed down by gabbing. We were making up for six months of lost time and lost conversations. And since I don't know how to really tie it in, I will just come out and say it- we also had a craft night- making flowers and hair bows. No joke. We did.

It was so wonderful to see so many of my friends again. They are truly so much fun to be around and I can't wait to see all of them again. I also wish, for just one day, we could of had our kids with us, so that the kids could see each other and I could see how all of them are growing and forgetting all about me (sigh). But I knew my kids were at home, enjoying some time with daddy. Cody was great about taking the kids and all the responsibilities that went with them. The first night I was back home, as we were settling into bed, Cody said something pretty profound.

"You know, motherhood. . . everyday is like Groundhogs Day."

I think he was referring to the movie, and not the actual holiday, because then that really wouldn't make sense.

It was just what I needed. It was the best girls trip . . . ever . . . well, at least until the next one.

{We went to a couple outlet stores. Here I am, trying on some subtle accessories.}

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All photos courtesy of Photos by Melanie. You can see more of her Orlando pictures here.

Cracked Bell

Last week was a busy, traveling week. I visited 5 states and was only home for one day. Being 35 weeks preggers, I had to get the traveling bug out of me for the rest of the year. The first part of the week, I was in Florida, but I will post more about that trip later. The second trip I went on was to Philadelphia for a wedding. We left early Friday morning, and in less that five hours, drove along the eastern shore of VA, Maryland, Delaware, and arrived in Pennsylvania at one of the most beautiful places you could ever envision living in during the fall-- Chadds Ford, PA.

The wedding was nice; Cody was a groomsman and wore a tux, and I fought desperately to keep two unruly girls quiet during the ceremony. Claire kept whispering rather loudly, "This is boring. Weddings are so boring."

The next morning, we took off to Liberty Square in Philadelphia to check out some American history, but it was raining, I am a lazy 35 weeks pregnant, and Independence Hall was 'sold out', so we only stayed about an hour before we decided we'd seen enough and headed home. My favorite part of the whole trip was the drive along the eastern shore. I didn't see any ocean, but the whole drive is through beautiful, picturesque farms and rural towns. So beautiful!

I had to force myself to take pictures just to document that we visited Philly. They are lame pics but at least generations to come can look at them and agree, they are lame.

Our Walk

If I have talked to you about what it is like where I live in Virginia, you no doubt heard me complain of the heat, humidity, and my hardwood floors. All three were the bane of my existence this summer. But I knew once the weather cooled a bit, I would have a much rosier outlook on life and my location. And though fall is a bit hesitant to show it's head here, it has definitely cooled off some, allowing me and Morgan to actually go outside during the day and get some much needed exercise. A couple weeks ago, as I was on my walk, I realized how beautiful my little part of town is. My walking route here is probably my favorite out of all the routes I have ever had. So I decided to snap some pics, not only to prove it to you, but also so you can now imagine where I live. I always like to be able to visualize where my friends and family live as they tell me stories of their lives, taking place thousands of miles away. So here ya go:

{Here is Morgan, getting hydrated before our walk. The messy sidewalk is due to a ginormous pecan tree in our front yard that's dropping nuts like it's goin' out a style.}

{This is the bay, which is usually smooth as glass and so beautiful (just not on the day I took this pictures). Across the way is a Nordstrom (I just had to point that out for Jana and Libby- maybe they will come visit me).}

{We live in a real historic area and this part of town they have worked to keep it restored and beautiful. These streets are fun to walk down and read the history plaques they have for many of the houses.}

{These trees, Crepe Myrtles, are everywhere and they are so beautiful. They line the streets and blossom all summer long. Still blossoming.}

{Just a beautiful historic home!}

{Paddle boat ferry which will take you across the bay.}

{Really, just some beautiful homes. This blue one on the corner is one of my favorites.}

Oh, and me and the hard wood floor have come to a begrudging compromise. I will keep the dust off it and not care so much that I can see little grubby footprints all over it.

PS: Remember my friend who makes birdy slings bags? Well, she is having a giveaway for one of her bags. Go to her blog to check out the details, and then go to her website to see all the cute bags (and now tutu's) she has for sale (and notice how she now has a bag named after me. I had to beg).

Nesting?

I may or may not be nesting, but if I am, it isn't the clean up the house kind of nesting. It's the creative energy kind of nesting. I have been doing a lot of sewing and crafts lately. I am not at all prepared for the baby boy (for instance, my sewing area is where his nursery will be and nothing for his room has been set up, NOTHING). I am not super worried, even though I have less than two months. I am not worried but procrastinators don't worry until crunch time.

So here is one of the things I have been doing:

I have been having fun making these little fabric flowers- they are easy, pretty, and have so many uses. The first thing I used them for was making a belt to wear with my black dress. I only have one maternity dress and it is plain black. I get a little sick of wearing it the same way every week, so I made this sash to wear with my dress (and with some other shirts I have) to change it up a little bit. I really love the way it turned out.

(this fuzzy black shirt isn't my Sunday dress, but I wanted to show you what it looked like as a belt)

Here is my attempt at a self-portrait, but I couldn't get a very good picture of the belt. Hopefully you get the idea.

This is me, 32 weeks pregnant. I, of course, chose the most flattering angle as you all don't need to see the full gloriousness of all my weight gain.

These flowers are pretty easy to make. You just need some polyester fabric (I used this pretend-silk fabric, organza, and some tulle). Then you cut little circles, singe the edges with a lighter (polyester fabric curls when it gets burned). Then layer your circles together, sew them together while adding some beads, and presto. These can be used for belts, head bands, bobby pins, or put a safety pin on the back and put them anywhere.

PS: If you want a birdie sling, but have zero desire to make one, I have two friends that make and sell the slings. They even do custom orders- how cool are they!

Funky Threads
Sassy Seamstress

For Lizzie Jane

Okay Lizzy Jane,

It's finished and will soon be on its way to its new home.

Hope you enjoy and welcome to the birdie sling club!