First Days and New Normal

Howdy.  I've got some back to school photos of my cuties.  August was a big change in our routine and we are loving it.  Dakota started 3rd grade on August 10.  Corban had his practice day of kindergarten on August 12.  Sage started daycare August 17 which is when Corban started full time and I went back to work.  I know you are disappointed that I don't have a "back to work" picture of myself but the kids are cuter anyway.  After 2.5 years of yoga pants and running shoes I am actually enjoying dressing up and putting on make up.

I had contemplated going back to work when I had 2 in school but hadn't really approached the subject.  I got a call from my former employer asking me to come back to help.  We agreed on a part time schedule so I could balance family and work easier.  After two full weeks, I am really loving it.  The kids are all thriving at school and even Sage is loving her new independence and friend time.

I really prayed about this transition and feel like going back to work was just what I needed at this time.  I am loving relaxed mornings, a little adult time during the day and then family time in the evening.  While I do miss my gym time, I am thankful the weather has permitted me to hit the pavement in the evenings.  The kids and Jacob have even started riding bikes alongside me which makes it extra fun.  I'm really hoping this routine continues to go well for us and that we aren't just in a "honeymoon stage" of something new.  I'll get back with you in a few months and let you know.  Until then...

 First day of 3rd grade.  She's wearing an outfit that her boyfriend of 8 years bought her for her birthday.

 Sage walked brother in on his first day.

 Corban was SO excited about school.  He only went one day the first week and they did assessments and assigned teachers after that week.

 Sage has loved every day of school so far.  Side note:  Since it was my first day of work, Dakota got herself and Sage ready while I was in the shower because she knew we couldn't be late.  She even did her hair.  I didn't have the heart to redo it and crush her little 8 year old spirit so I left it like this all day.  Dakota is such a big helper with Sage and she genuinely helps with a cheerful heart because she adores her baby sister.

First day of school with his real teacher.

Eggs Up

I've mentioned before about getting chickens.  Now the fun has begun.  Our girls started laying while we were on vacation (of course!).  Thankfully we had a house sitter who checked on them and pulled the eggs.  We have 3 of our 6 laying eggs now and the other 3 should be laying soon.

We got our chicks at "Chick Days" in February at Tractor Supply.  We paid the extra $1 to ensure they were female because we didn't want a rooster.  They were super easy to raise and are pretty low maintenance.  

 Our girls are red sexlinks.  They are supposed to be good producers and tame.  I would say they are definitely a mild mannered chicken.  We planned to name them after flowers but are just now being able to tell them apart.  Like the one on the left has a white neck and one is completely solid.

We chose not to free range ours because of too many predators - 3 of the canine variety in the backyard, foxes, hawks, etc.  They have a pretty large area to roam in and they are free to go back and forth between their pen and their house.  This is less work for us too so we don't have to put them up at night.

 I caught this girl in her nest when I went out to feed them one morning.  They seem to be laying between 9 and 10 o'clock in the morning.  Since I am going back to work, checking for eggs will become an afternoon routine.  It's one of the highlights of my day - simple pleasures.

 A perfect brown egg for the picking!

 We are all excited about our fresh eggs!!

We are slowly getting rid of the store eggs and switching to backyard eggs.  Since I took this picture last week we are done with the store bought and are trying get a steady supply of eggs to meet our needs so we don't have to buy any.  We eat a lot of eggs in our house so we need all 6 to start producing to keep up with the demand.  I'll get back to you in a few weeks with a report of how they are doing!

Quiet Book Cover & Bubble Gum Machine

I finally got around to making the cover for Sage's quiet book.  I think it took me so long because I wasn't sure what I wanted it to be.  There are so many colors going on in the book that I didn't want the cover to compete with that.  I finally decided to go with something that was special for me which was an old pair of jeans.  The jeans I used were actually my dad's in the 70's.  I then wore them all through high school and college.  I would still wear them for their vintage awesomeness but I'm not into showing my undies.  SO - what better way to give them new life.

I used this tutorial for the cover but had to modify it a little bit.  The long piece needed to be 30" and well, my family is short and these pants were a 28" inseam.  So - I actually had to piece some material together in order to make it work.  Since I was dealing with some old and oddly shaped material, it's not perfect but I still love it.  And let me save you time - order your 3" rings on Amazon.  They are hard to find in stores.

 This is the front.  I actually meant for the pockets to be on the front but I used a fabric on the inside with trees on it.  I didn't pay attention when constructing it and if the pockets are on the front then the trees would be upside down.  Whoops :).  Also, I'm not loving the purple/pink buckle so I might make a fabric one out of the same tree material and get a green buckle.  This works for now though.

The pockets are still functional so I am planning on making a little doll or something attached by a string that she can keep in the pocket.  There are some quiet book pages that use dolls so maybe if the string is long enough then the doll could function for all of those pages??

I plan on adding a little patch on the inside cover with an embroidered note for Sage.  This tree material is leftover from my favorite dress that I made for Dakota.  I can't wait until Sage can wear it one day.

And while I'm sharing - I have a new page.  Sage loves this page and as soon as I gave it to her she said, "I match?"  She knew exactly what to do with it and it's helping us work on colors - "pupple" is her easiest to identify.

I found this idea on here but I'm pretty sure that is not the original source.  I've tried finding it but turned up empty - my apologies for not giving credit where it's due.  Since I didn't have a pattern for this page I searched for a clip art that would give me the shape I needed.  Here's the one I used.  It took me a few printings to get it the size I needed.  The buttons were purchased at Wal-mart.

The next page I am going to make for her is a piggy bank page.  She's really into her real piggy bank right now and is always dumping the money out so she can put it back in.  I also still have 2 unfinished pages that I mentioned in my last post.  

Easy Days. Harder Days.

Today I was mowing the yard (I can't say grass because I'm pretty sure the grass to weeds ratio falls in favor of the weeds) and got to thinking about our 2004 AT Thru-hike.  It's been 11 years since we spent 5 months hiking 2,200 miles from Georgia to Maine and it is still such a rich part of our marriage.  We frequently laugh about crazy moments trekking through rural America - the people, animals, food consumption, body functions, etc.  And we still find ourselves sharing our stories with people fairly regularly.  Not because we want to brag about our accomplishment but because it is our foundation. It only marks 3.7% of our marriage (I think I did that math correct but somebody smarter, feel free to correct me) but it's had one of the most lasting impacts.

We began our journey a month after "I Do".  Yes, we had a glorious honeymoon in Hawaii for almost 2 weeks but then returned to pack and tie up loose ends related to the real world.  After a wonderful farewell weekend with friends and family at a lodge, we headed North.

We weren't the first couple to hike as newlyweds and we won't be the last but people seemed amazed that we would want to spend our first married year doing something so physically challenging.  The most common phrase we heard on our hike was, "If you can get through this together, then you can get through anything together."  We never really understood the sentiment.  Those were easy days.  

We Woke Up.  Ate.  Walked.  Ate.  Walked.  Ate.  Walked.  Ate.  Ate.  Ate.  Slept.

What's so difficult about that?  We had no bills.  No debt.  No cell phones.  No yards (of the weed or grass variety) to mow.  No house to clean.  No bosses expecting us to be in meetings.  No worries.

It was a time of sweet conversations, constant physical achievements, daily time in God's Word, daily prayer time as a couple, loads of encouragement and some pretty amazing views.  Aside from potty breaks, we were side by side pretty much the entire 5 months.  Joined at the hip.  It really was beautiful.  Maybe you find that odd but Jacob and I truly, I mean truly, loved being together.  We still do.  If we could be together all day, we would, and we'd enjoy it.  We never get tired of one another.

We are no longer living in the "easy days" era of marriage.  We still have very good and blessed days but they are certainly more draining.  These harder days include three little (as in size, not magnitude) gifts that I can't imagine life without.  These days also include

bills, dirty dishes and laundry, work meetings, church meetings, phone calls, spilled milk, schedules, worrying whether dessert is going to my hips, etc.

But these days are important.  While the easy days taught me about enjoying life and love, the harder days are teaching me patience, grace, balance, discipline and soooo much more.  These harder days strengthen me as a person and strengthen our marriage and I am so thankful for them.   If we can get through these parenting days together, I know we can get through anything together.

There will come a day when my kids will be grown (sniff), our house will be paid for, there will be less plates to serve (meaning less dishes to wash) and we no longer have to "clock in" to receive a paycheck.  We will return to the easy days where we wake up, eat, walk and sleep but I know deep down we will miss these harder days. 

*disclaimer:  None of this was meant to be a complaint about this stage in life.  Our life is good.  Our marriage is good.  Our kids are good.  When I refer to "harder days" I just mean life is more complex these days.  I realize nothing about my life is truly hard.

Paris in Spring - Versailles

My last day in Paris was not actually spent in Paris but just outside in Versailles.  I had heard this was a "must see."  While the house was a little extravagant for my liking, I adored the gardens.  I did appreciate the history that comes with the house but somebody should have told King Louis that he could lay off some of the decorations and they'd still know he was king.  Since I grew up going to the Biltmore Estate fairly frequently, I had thought this would be like "the Biltmore of France."  Let's just say King Louis made the Vanderbilts look simple and casual.

When I arrived, the line was really long for the house so I went straight to the gardens - which was smart because I had them all to myself, sort of.  There was an exhibit going on that had classical music playing in each section and that was pretty cool.

 Orangerie.

 Bosquet de la Salle de Bal (Ballroom Grove).

 My only disappointment with the gardens was that the fountains were not turned on.  Apparently they are only turned on during the weekend.  It would have been amazing to see them all spouting.

 Bassin du Miroir (Mirror Fountain). This was the only fountain turned on and it was dancing to the music.

 Jardin du Roi (King's Garden).

 Bassin du Char d'Apollon (Fountain of Apollo's Chariot).

 Bosquet de la Colonnade (Colonnade Grove).

 Bosque de l'Encelade (Encelade Grove).

 Bosquet des Bains d'Apollon (Grove of Apollo's Bath).

 Bosquet des Trois Fontaines (Three Fountains Grove).

 One of the three fountains.  Don't you feel like Ariel should bust up singing, "look at this stuff, isn't it neat, wouldn't you think my collection's complete" from this place??

 Bassin de Neptune (Neptune Fountain).  Who doesn't love a narwhal?

 This picture isn't very good but I wanted to show how every.single.inch had decoration on it.

 Bust of King Louis XIV by Bernini.

 Hall of Mirrors.

 This was the king's bed.

 This isn't a very good picture either but I found it comical.  It's the dining room and the table is where the royal family ate.  The chairs were for people to watch them eat.  Based on the size of the room a lot of people could watch.  Do you think they ever had to tell their kids to "sit down and eat your vegetables" while the masses looked on?

 When I got back into Paris via train, I took a quick trip up to the top of Arc de Triomphe for some final views of the whole city.

That tall building on the right was our hotel.  Less than a 10 minute walk away.

Well, that concludes my Paris in Spring series for you.  It was such a fun trip and I'm already itching for another international adventure.  Anybody want to send me somewhere??  

Hello My Name Is

 It's been a while since I posted a finished Quiet Book page.  You can see the first few here and here.  I've actually had this one done for a while but was trying to finish up two others before posting about it.  The other two are 85% finished but they require materials that I keep forgetting to pick up at the store.  They involve a mailbox and a camera and are super cute.  But about this page...

I wanted something easy to teach Sage her name.  Lucky for her (and me since I had to cut out the letters) she has a short, easy name.  I have seen several pages with names but I came up with the design for this one.  I wanted it to look like a chalkboard so I found a fat quarter that fit that look.  I then did basic embroidery to look like the writing was done in chalk.  I just free-handed all of that but if you are stumbling across this page and need help, let me know and I can create a pattern for you to trace - just leave a comment with your email.

For the name I used a basic font in Word and printed out her name.  I cut out two pieces of felt for each letter (1 is too thin for detachable pieces).  They are stitched together (sorry you can't tell) with a rough stitch and have a piece of white velcro on the back.  You can buy pre-cut felt letters at Hancocks or Joanns but I'm trying to use what I have and would have been left with a pack of letters that I have no use for had I bought some.

I stitched the pieces of black velcro (sorry you can't tell this either) on in the places that the letters need attached.  So far, she seems to be doing well with attaching them.  We'll get to spelling later.

I finished the back off with a fun school fabric and then added the grommets.

I still need to get the cover made because the first one I started I was unhappy with so I haven't started again.  The pages are so colorful that I'm struggling with what color to do the cover so it's not an overload.  I'll get to it eventually.  Anyway, I hope you enjoy this little page and I'll hurry back with the others.  I've been pinning a million that I want to tackle and with lots of summer travel, she will need some car entertainment too!