The Escandon's Family Blog

My Inspiration

2009-04-30T20:20:00.000-07:00

We're still working on the kitchen project here. In case you were looking for photos. We went to Disneyland for a couple days so it threw us for a loop!

I thought I would share how I decided on colors and ideas for our kitchen.

I don't consider myself creative by any means. I have difficulty seeing a vision of what I want something to look like and then actually bringing it to life. So, I started browsing the HGTV website. I saw so many things I liked and then so many things I down- right- hated. I'm not a huge fan of contemporary or modern. Although, Paul really likes contemporary and modern. He likes the clean and sleek look. I, on the other hand like my home to feel comfy and cozy. I want my kitchen to be a place you can come to, slouch in a chair, and sip on a cup of tea or have some comforting soup when you are sick. I want my home to be lived in. Not on display. Even though we have some differences, I think we have found a way for our styles to mesh.

I browsed the photos and it really helped me filter the styles that I liked and what I didn't like!

(All photos courtesy of HDTV.com)

While these kitchens are nice, they aren't for me!

These reflect more of me and what I would like to enjoy in my kitchen:

This is the one that really caught my eye:

When I saw the above photo, I had basically made up my decision. I wanted a "barn" or country red on my bottom cabinets and I was thinking of an off-white color for the top cabinets. I really liked the two toned. I think it will really help open up our kitchen and make the space more inviting while adding some color.

So, off I went to the local big box home improvement store. I came out with a can of Rustoleum Country Red and a can of Navajo White.

I only bought one can because I wanted to test it out first. I was really trying to avoid all the sanding involved so I just wiped everything down with some TSP and then added a coat of primer. Then, I added the coat of color. I was so amazed at how easy it all was! Pfft! This was gonna be a cinch! I was too chicken to paint a cabinet with the red color. The deep color just made me nervous. What if I didn't like it? Would it be hard to remove or cover up? So, I decided to paint a little wooden stool I had instead- just to test the color.

I reeeeaaaalllllly liked it. That was it. I got back in the car with my two kids and stocked up on all the spray paint I thought I would need for my cabinet doors.

I thought I could use the same technique to paint the bases of the cabinets (or the boxes) with out sanding but with out using spray paint. The spray paint fumes are very strong and I didn't want to bring them into the house. I also didn't want to cover everything in plastic to protect from over spray! So I decided to get regular paint for the bases. Navajo white is a pretty basic color and that was easy to find. The red color was another story.

I took with me my little stool so the paint department could match the color. Well, apparently the gloss in the spray paint made it difficult for the machine to pick up the right color. It was calculating the color as a pinkish color due to the flash of the camera it uses to read the color. So the lady behind the counter decided to manually adjust it... All was good until I got home.

[Not sure why but I thought it would be a great idea to start this project Easter weekend... with the plan of having guests over here. I still don't know what I was thinking... its been almost 3 weeks and we are still not done.]

We stayed up really late Friday painting. I rushed everything and decided to primer and paint the bottom cabinet boxes in the same night. Remember, this isn't spray paint I was using. I was really unhappy the next day when the paint was scratching off! Long story short... and probably a rushed judgment, we decided maybe that wasn't the way to go and we started from scratch! Some parts of our cabinets aren't real wood and have a very slick surface, affecting the way the paint was adhering.

We had to wait until after Easter, and a week later we got my mom to watch Clare for us. I emptied all of my cabinets and put everything in my living room. Again, tell me why I thought this was a good idea with two little kids running around here?! Said "stuff" is still in my living room but it now looks like a cat 5 hurricane came through too! Oh, wait. She did. Her name was Clare.

I also noticed after painting the boxes that the color I chose for them did not match the spray paint color I chose for the cabinet doors! I had to scrap all the plans I had to save time and spray paint. The good news is that the color the lady custom mixed turned out to be a better and deeper color than the spray paint I had picked out! It was a blessing in disguise, really.

Paul went out, bought a hand sander and we got to sanding. It took us an entire day for sanding alone. It will take me months to collect all the dust that has accumulated all over the house. So, here I am.. little by little am trying to catch up with the primer and painting. All by hand with a paint brush.

The Saturday before Easter in the midst of all of this a friend of ours came over with his mother who had just finished re-doing her kitchen as well. She had the nerve to show me the photos and give me more crazy ideas... hehe. I was perfectly happy with a simple paint job. That is, until she showed me these photos.

Here is J's beautiful kitchen (I hope you don't mind me sharing)!

Next time I'll show you what ideas took from this and ran with...

Meet Bessie

2009-04-23T10:21:00.000-07:00

In our short 4 years of marriage we have had yet to own a new appliance. I don't think its so unusual.

Most of our refrigerators have been hand me downs or purchased through craigslist, dishwashers and ranges always came with the house- including this house.

When we bought this house it came with a small fridge, stove, dishwasher, and over the range microwave. The fridge was white, range is two toned, and the other two black. I guess the previous owners couldn't make up their mind on appliance colors. Quite frankly, I was grateful to have any appliances at all. The Good Lord knows we didn't have the money for new ones and so many foreclosed homes (like this one was) have been stripped of anything of value... including appliances!

I used to have a fondness for black appliances. I always thought they were so sleek and shiny. That was obviously before I had a two year old running around here and I actually had time to wipe my appliances down after every meal.

The dishwasher that came with the house was over 10 years old and inefficient in numerous ways! At least once or twice a week I had to rerun the load because everything was still dirty. About 2 times a week I had to wipe down our dishes with a towel dampened with vinegar. I tried decreasing the amount of detergent I was using, adding washing soda to the mix to soften up the water, and adding vinegar to the rinse cycle. And the results?

What results? Nothing worked! I tried to take the filter and sprayer out for a good cleaning and soaking... but they were stuck and I couldn't figure out how to get them out. I searched for the manual online... but it could only be purchased!

So, sometime during the whole kitchen remodel thing, it was said in passing that we should look into getting a new dishwasher. We always try to be so conservative when making decisions like this. We mentioned it, then put it off, then we would talk about it and let it go again. Finally, one day out of curiosity (I swear!), I started looking into dishwashers.

All my preliminary searching was done online. I read about the features I wanted and the brands that I thought were reputable.

Initially, I wanted a Maytag because I always here people talking about their "Good Old Maytag"! I found out that Maytag isn't what it once was and its manufactured by the same company as Whirlpool. There was Kenmore, GE, Bosch, and LG. I had read mixed reviews and testimonials about all but one. The Bosch.

But... but... the Bosch is so expensive! There is no way I can justify spending $1,00o on a dishwasher... I had heard from others how reliable their Bosch dishwasher is, how well it cleaned, and how quiet it is.

Quiet. That word got our attention. Our home has a VERY open floor plan. I can only wash dishes at night before we all go to bed. Even so, the dishwasher can be heard through the entire house. Because of this fact, I often times plan on starting it "later" after we spend our family time in the family room because of the noise alone. This in turn becomes completely forgetting about the dishwasher. When I forget to run it at night, I have to wait until morning. If I wait until morning, we run out of hot water and it throws off my entire morning routine. You get the point. I could easily deal with a fridge that is falling apart or a stove that has to be lit manually. But a dishwasher that doesn't function properly was a serious problem. It was starting to affect my productivity! Seriously.

Last Thursday, armed with my list (it was a mental list, but nevertheless, it was a list) of must haves for the new dishwasher we went looking.

Wait. Let me back up there. I forgot to mention why we were actively looking for a dishwasher.

As I was just browsing the net at dishwashers (having never done this before) I became very confused as to the sizes these things came in. I didn't realize that most of them are a one size fits all deal and their heights can be adjusted, as do the sides have rubber flaps to fill in gaps on the width.

Call me stupid, but when I went to measure the space for the dishwasher, I didn't really know how to measure them. Do I measure the dishwasher itself? What about the cabinets? How do I know how deep it is? Does the dishwasher go all the way back to the wall?

I wanted to get it right this time. No mess ups. So, I walked over to my neighbor's house and asked him what size dishwasher fits in our spaces. By the way, he installs appliances professionally so I thought he was the perfect person to ask. He told me that its the "standard" size. But wait, why is it that on the BB website I can choose from 21", 22 ", 23", 24", & 25" in width? The same went for height and depth. I was given so many choices, and his answer for me was "standard". Not wanting to sound like an idiot, I said thank you and politely walked back to my side of the street. I figured there just had to be a sticker on the dishwasher giving me the dimensions right? Kind of like a fridge. I got my screwdriver and got to work. Pulled it out and gave a quick peek around the edge. I couldn't tug far because everything was still hooked up. I didn't get the info I was looking for and gave up. I then tried to push the dishwasher into its cubby. I met a little resistance and then gave it a quick shove. I sighed and figured I had enough to worry about with the kitchen cabinet painting.

As I was pulling out the quarter round to sand and paint the cabinets, I noticed some water next to my fridge and under the laminate floors. The quarter round was soaked. I was worried. Really worried. I hadn't noticed water before and it was really hard to tell where this was coming from. The area next to the fridge and sink was sopping wet. So was the area by the dishwasher. I was concerned about a possible pipe leak under the cabinets.... or in heaven forbid, my foundation. Haha, dramatic right? Well, I didn't want to take any chances.

I called our home protection people to send a guy out. And they did. And he looked. Then he asked me some questions. Then he told me I broke the water supply line to the dishwasher. Great. I pulled the darn thing out and compromised the water line. He told me I could replace the hose for cheap, but the HPP company wasn't going to cover it.

That's when we just decided to go for it. We just needed that little shove to get us to jump. So, later that night we went to the store to look.

And we came home with this:

Paul did the install himself!

I named her Bessie. Well, I didn't formally name her but it sounded good for the title of the post. But I like it so I think it will stick. Can you guess the reference?

Bessie is a Bosch. I know I said there was no way, but this one was reasonably priced and in our price range! Remember that list of must haves? Here it is along with everything that is included with Bessie,

Noise Reduction Package - Check
Child Lock- No
Food Grinder- No
Tall Tub- Check
Hidden Control Panel- No
Delay Start-No

Ultimately we decided that we lived with out those other things all this time, and we would rather not have them if it meant we could buy a quality brand that cleans well and is on the quiet side! At first I was really bumming about the child lock, because I discovered it didn't have it after we got home. But Clare hasn't had too much interest lately in it. She's basically a no frills get the job done machine.

I have used it only 4 times since then! It is so big that I can go 2 days before washing a load! We love it and we are happy we went with Bosch!

Unfortunately, it has made us realize how crappy our fridge is. For reals.

An entire shelf out of commission.

Oh, and this is a great feature.

I should also mention (or maybe I shouldn't?) that this fridge was received from someone on Freecycle and came with complementary mice in the back. Ewe. **shudder** Don't worry, the mice have been taken care of a long, long time ago and there has been no sign of others! There was also no sign that they were in the refrigerator itself.

Up to no good.

2009-04-22T21:35:00.001-07:00

I got a wild hair and decided our kitchen needed a little pick me up. I didn't know it was going to turn into a full on face lift.

I love our house, and the lay out. But the kitchen and living room are have been so... what's the word???

BLAH!

We have the standard honey colored cabinets and white tile. On the upside we have cheap, cheap, laminate wood floors. Which, would later prove to be a wonderful disposable "drop cloth" for all the work that would be done in that room.

Did you catch that? I said disposable (we'll be replacing our flooring soon too)!

Exhibit A.

A panoramic photo from the corner of the living room. I took this photo for another purpose a few months ago. Its the closest to a before photo that I have. It is also evidence of a toddler living in the house.

This second photo is a good shot of our kitchen and it was taken after we decided to change up the kitchen. As you can see from the photo, I already had taken down the cabinets. I have some great ideas for the cabinets, btw.

Please disregard the mess. It gets cleaned from time to time but I realized something about myself during this project. It is that when I am excited about something and I have a goal in mind... every thing else just gets pushed to the side. EVERYTHING. I have a serious case of tunnel vision.

I should also mention we have a collection of falling a part, used to be someone else's appliances. All work on a different level of effectiveness... err... I guess I should say ineffectiveness.

I started browsing blog land in search for some inspiration for a kitchen pick me up. Instead, I found this. "This is BRILLIANT", I thought. I was sure it was as easy as it appeared to be.

My Dad has told me over and over how painting your cabinets was "a lot of work". "Poohey"! I thought. I'll show him.

So one day, armed with some TSP, a can of primer, and a can of spray paint I set out to change the look of my kitchen....

Come back and visit us later this week for an update on the cabinet painting!

an impromptu photo shoot...

2009-04-22T20:53:00.000-07:00

in our backyard featuring the Escandon girls... and their Daddy.

Menu Plan Monday

2009-03-09T00:27:00.000-07:00

I'm trying to keep this week's grocery list as short as possible. I have a lot of things that I can either make from scratch or already have in my pantry/fridge/freezer.

Monday: Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, zucchini.

Tuesday: Fideo with drumsticks and homemade flour tortillas

Wednesday: Beefy Ravioli, Salad, Homemade garlic bread.

Thursday: Beef Quesadillas with ground beef, onions, mushrooms, and bell peppers.

Friday: Tofu Fried Rice

Saturday: Pulled Pork Sandwiches. I had some left over meat from a couple weeks ago that I threw into the freezer. We are going to a birthday party this day so I'll pull this out so we can have it when we get home.

Sunday: Roast chicken, broccoli, rice

From the above menu I checked off all the items I already have on hand and my grocery list for this week looks like this:

4lbs ground beef
celery
salad mix (the store I shop at sells these really cheap, IMO $1.98- they usually run over $3)
Fideo or stars (2 pkg @ .30/ea)
1 pkg cheese ravioli
14 oz jar diced tomatoes
14 oz jar spaghetti sauce
4 0z mushrooms
1 bell pepper
bok choy
tofu

I don't think that's too bad at all for an entire week! I should be in and out of that store in a jiffy!

Visit Organizing Junkie for lots and lots more menu ideas!

7 Quick Takes Numero Uno

2009-03-06T14:07:00.000-08:00

Its my first time. I love these blogging themes (or whatever you want to call them). They give me blogging material and I don't have to pretend to be a half decent writer to give our readers here a peak at our world.

*1*

We're transitioning Lucy into her crib. Normally, I would probably wait until she was a tad older but she isn't sleeping well at night next to me at all. She doesn't nap well next to me or in the sling either. Since sleep is such an important part of growth, I have resorted to letting her CIO (cry it out). I usually try a couple times through infancy then give up and try again weeks or months later. So far, I think this is it. At night we put her in there and she sleeps really well for hours at a time. Last night she slept from about 8-1:30am! I couldn't take it anymore and brought her into bed to nurse. She's back in there today for her nap though. Its killing me but it has to be done.

*2*
Next to learn to nap in her own bed is Clare. She's good at nightime but naptime she sleeps in our bed. I want it back! One kid at a time.

*3*
I'm in love with my laundry line. I hang clothes on it almost daily. It dries my clothes, the sun bleaches stains, makes our clothes smell wonderful, and its FREE!

*4*
I am really, really, REALLY ready for Clare to be out of diapers. Unfortunately, she is not. She's getting there but doesn't stay dry for any amount of time. I misplaced (read: lost) half of my diaper stash and since both girls are in the same size now, I don't have enough to diaper them both. For that reason, Clare is now in disposables.

At a whoppin' .30 a piece. That amounts to nearly $1.50 a day. To be honest, even if I had cloth for her, I wouldn't use them. She soaks through them and I'd be changing diapers all darn day. Wait. I already am.

*5*
I'm so proud of Clare. This morning we went to the park. We spent 30 minutes there and I gave her warning we were leaving. She walked away with out a kick, scream, or punch. We even sat and had lunch in my car in the parking lot! I did promise her a visit with her Gram Gram but Gram Gram wasn't home when we drove by. She was OK with that. Thank God.

*6*
I've been trying so hard to make our own tortillas. I've had mixed results. First two times I used a recipe and whole wheat flour. Last night I just eyeballed it and used only unbleached all purpose flour. They came out a little better. My grandmother would be proud. I am attempting to enlist the help of an Aunt to come and show me how its done properly!

*7*
A local family here is in the midst of a whirlwind with their daughter N. She has been experiencing some chronic respiratory problems which in turn caused an enlarged heart. She now has pulmonary hypertension. Doctors are operating on her today to take a biopsy of a mass in her lung. Please keep her in your prayers and thoughts. N is just one year old. I am told the first time she went to the hospital was on her first birthday. I cannot imagine what this family must be going through.

See more quick takes at Conversion Diary.

Let's Get Physical

2009-03-05T21:56:00.000-08:00

Lucy looks like she belongs in an Olivia Newton John Music Video.

Note: I was going to post the "Lets get physical" video from YouTube but I got nauseous watching the first 30 seconds. If you are in need of some raw 80's workout video you can check it out here. Be advised. This is NOT for the faint of heart. Or anyone under the age of 12. Scratch that. Make it 18. Or anyone who has eaten in the past hour or so.

Fat Tuesday!

2009-03-03T21:10:00.000-08:00

OK, I'm a week behind. So what?

Paul was working last Tuesday but I didn't want that to get in the way of the rest of us having a good time! Early in the day we made Mardi Gras masks to celebrate Fat Tuesday (the day before Lent begins). We had a great time putting our masks together its sure to be an annual tradition!

Painting our masks...

Putting on the embellishments...

Here we are modeling our awesome masks!

Clare made two, one for herself and the other for her sister.

We enjoyed a delicious dinner of blueberry pancakes with fresh whipping cream. To get into the spirit of things we put on this CD:

If you haven't heard of the Putumayo Kids music collection, I really recommend them! Not only are the children's albums awesome, the traditional albums have a great assortment of music for everyone! The albums feature great music from all over the globe. It sure beats Barney and Friends and other kids music. This New Orleans Playground really gets us all moving and grooving!

The following photos don't have anything to do with Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras.

I just wanna eat her up! Don't you?

Menu Plan Monday

2009-02-23T09:15:00.000-08:00

I used to participate then got a little distracted. I love sharing my menu and reading what other's have going on in their kitchen so I thought I'd jump right in again!

A bonus! I'm writing this on Saturday and have included tonight's and Sunday's meals as well! I'm going to make an effort this year to incorporate the liturgical year in our home and with our meals so I have been reading and planning meals and menus diligently! Paul is also supper busy lately and isn't home on Monday's or Tuesdays so I like to keep it simple with foods that I can throw in the crock pot in the morning and breads that can be easily made in my bread machine.

Saturday: Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, & broccoli
Sunday: Stepmother's Birthday- we're going to celebrate and I offered to make a delicious dinner of Chicken Piccata, Rice, and Asparagus. Home made apple crisp and vanilla ice cream for dessert!

Monday: Crock pot Lasagna, salad, and homemade garlic French bread.
Tuesday (Shrove Tuesday): We'll be having the traditional Mardi Grais feast of Pancakes with fresh fruit and fresh whipped cream
Wednesday (Ash Wednesday): Red Snapper Fillets, served over rice, & traditional homemade pretzels
Thursday: BBQ Pork Sandwiches ala slow cooker, with homemade wheat rolls, & potato wedges
Friday: Fish Fry with cole slaw & french fries
Saturday: Roast Chicken, green bean, & rice
Sunday: Chicken Tortilla Bake & Salad

To see who else is cookin' visit Laura at Organizing Junkie!

Daybook

2009-02-17T00:28:00.000-08:00

Outside my window... it is raining in the dead of night.

I am thinking... about the wonderful weekend I enjoyed with my beautiful daughters and husband...

From the learning rooms... I just ordered Little Saints Preschool program to get a head start on our homeschooling journey.

I am thankful for... God and all He has given us...

From the kitchen... hoping to make some of my signature tortilla soup tomorrow to compliment the rainy day.

I am wearing... Layers. We gave up the heater.

I am reading... Raising your Spirited Child. I'm determined to finish this book! It has helped me tremendously in understanding our own very spirited and lovable Clare.

I am hoping... our bank doesn't charge us too many fees for the stupid mistake I made last week...

I am creating... a list of upcoming projects including some burp cloths for friends/family members and curtains.

I am hearing... raindrops and Lucy breathing.

Around the house... it looks like a large closet that is in desperate need of organizing!

One of my favorite things... Days of fun with my family.

A few plans for the rest of the week... A clean up day, a first time visit to my Grandfathers grave site (I have never been and also missed his funeral), a movie screening with new friends, and a day at the park.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you...

Join in at The Simple Woman's Daybook!

A sale too good to pass up. AKA I love Carter's Clothing. AKA I must be crazy.

2009-01-26T15:10:00.000-08:00

On a total whim last week I packed up the girls for the mall.

I had no idea they were having a "Buy one Get one Free" deal on all clearance items at JCPenny!

Heaven knows how much I just LOVE once piece outfits. Especially Carter's brand. They fit the best with cloth diapers, easy to pack and carry, and easy to store! I never have to worry about pants, matching clothes, and I can easily double up with a onesie underneath if I need to.

I didn't discover these until Clare was 12 months and received an outfit for her birthday. I was hooked and never pass up an opportunity to stock up.

First I bought these little numbers along with 1 other one piece outfit for $24.73. Which, wasn't that big of a deal because these two weren't on sale. What was on sale was a pretty green floral outfit (in second photo). It was $3.97! My receipt tells me I saved $24.73. Not so bad...

When I checked out I quickly ran back to the kids section to look for more. I grabbed everything I could find!

I found 7 more outfits for $23.60! That's less than $3.50/ea! Total savings on this trip to the cashier: $102.10! Here's what I came out with...

Now for the crazy part. I went back to the rack bought every single Carter's outfit left on the rack (there wasn't much). My 3rd receipt? I saved $69.05! I also walked out with these:

In case you haven't noticed- We don't have boys! Nor am I pregnant! I just love them so much that I can't say no! There are also the same designs in different sizes!

Thanks to these cute little suits I now have a rabid case of baby fever.

Punks.

2009-01-22T11:06:00.001-08:00

A couple weeks ago Paul was leaving to work only to find this scene:

Those are not our magazines. After a look in the street we saw there were CD cases all over the street. Which, did not belong to us.

We called the polics and spoke to a neighbor only to find out that her car was broken into as well.

My brother (who lives with us) is always up at odd hours of the night. At 1:30am that morning he heard noises out front. In an attempt to be heroic, grabbed a baseball bat (one he keeps next to his bed LOL) and went to the front door, turned on the light, saw a bunch of kids, then went back to sleep. Some watch dog he is.

Oh, and our real dog? She didn't make a peep either! Thanks Cleo.

We called the police so they can have a record of whats going on in our neighborhood. Later that evening we got a visit from a neighbor down the street. She said her car was broken into as well! By the time she had called the police, she was the 9th person to file a report!

We figured out that it was those kids that my brother saw. Some inexperienced punks with parents who have no clue where they are at 1:30 am on a Wednesday morning.

They didn't break anything. They targeted cars with unlocked doors. They didn't steal anything of value. They left behind iPods, GPS devices, and the like. They took CDs, toys, and magazines.

But still. I feel so violated and no I no longer feel as safe in my own neighborhood.

I hope it stops with this and these punks don't get brave and turn into criminals. Oh how I wish brother would have woken me and we could have caught them! May have scared them and taught them a lesson!!

I would like to know...

2009-01-12T08:54:00.000-08:00

Who thought it would be funny to change my homepage to the Lyle Lovett Official Website?

Actually, it isn't a bad looking website; clean and refreshing.

I'd be really impressed if Clare could figure it out on her own, but I doubt it. My bet is either on my husband, wanting to get a good laugh at me or my goofball brother. In that order.

A Work in Progress... In Pictures!

2009-01-06T10:04:00.000-08:00

Meet the Newest Member of the Family

2009-01-03T00:35:00.000-08:00

Cleo

She's a beauty. We got her from a family who was moving to an apartment and couldn't take her. She's older, about 4-6 years old. So she well behaved. Cleo does well with both girls and both girls are completely smitten by her. Lucy loves to giggle when the dog licks her face!

Happy Birthday Brother!

2008-12-23T00:49:00.000-08:00

Last week my mom, sister, and her friend Lindsey came over to celebrate Cj's birthday. Some of the photos are smokey. My mashed potatoes had a lot of butter that spilled over in the oven. I didn't burn anything. I swear.

My mom thinks she can play guitar hero; she can't.

Haha! Even Monica and her friend think it's hilarious.

The spread: Top Sirloin Steak, mashed potatoes, broccoli, and sauteed mushrooms & onions. Yum.

Happy Birthday to Uncle Cj.

Tin Roof Sunday. Homemade Ice Cream Cake. It tastes like store bought but saved me almost $30!

Happy Birthday Brother! Its been an exciting year for you! We're proud of you; prayers that your 24th year has more exciting things in store!!!

Anyone remember this song? Makes me want to dance totally 80's. I was a newborn when this song came out... doesn't that make you feel old? Trust me. I can dance totally 80's.

No, I love YOU!

2008-12-15T23:18:00.001-08:00

Watch this. Now.

2008-12-04T10:57:00.000-08:00

Well worth the 20 minutes to watch.

\

Halloween Photos!

2008-11-03T10:29:00.000-08:00

We had a fun filled All Hallow's Eve! I wanted to do something fun with dinner and I invited my Dad, Step Mom, Brother and Sister over for some "Tombstone" Tortilla Soup and Trick or Treating with the girls.

Clare as a lady bug and Lucy in the flower costume. Her tu-tu u is homemade...can you tell?

Here they are with Grandma M...

The whole bunch... that expression defines Clare.

Macy-Mae. Isn't she cute?! I really wish I had a little dog just like her but Clare would crush it.

I look forward to next year. We'll be doing some more traditional All Hallow's Eve/All Saints Traditions and celebrations.

Its here, its here, its finally here!

2008-11-03T07:59:00.000-08:00

Autumn!

Projected forecast today is 65 and maybe some rain tomorrow!

I hope it sticks. Autumn is my favorite season.

Halloween photos coming soon!

More Pumpkins

2008-10-28T17:00:00.000-07:00

The paper mache type of course!

This is a little late but so what? You can always apply this to many different themes! Get creative!

Clare loves crafts. On Tuesday I set out to do something fun that wouldn't include her ripping though our home destructing everything in her path. I found this post on making paper mache Jack 'O Lanterns. The only thing I did differently is instead of using pieces of black paper for the face I thought it would be fun to do "Crazy Face Jack 'O Lanterns" by using pieces cut from magazines. This later turned out to be my biggest mistake.

Kind of creepy; he looks kind of like someone I know but I can't put my finger on it. After he was finished drying off Clare wanted to see him so I handed him over. She turned it around to see the face, took one look, screamed, dropped it, then she cried. I laughed. The rest of the evening he hung out on our counter and Clare would yell "No hold paper" every time she passed.

Pumpkins!

2008-10-27T22:50:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning we all got out of bed and decided at the very last minute possible to go to mass and then to the pumpkin farm to pick out pumpkins and take a family photo. Actually, we were planning on going to mass in the morning and had planned to take the family photos the week before but got busy working on the back yard. So, we got all dolled up and scurried out of the house just in time to make it to mass.

After mass was over at about 9:45 we headed to the pumpkin farm in Wine Country. We quickly found a nice spot to take our photo. Paul took some test shots...

I have no idea what was so interesting over there.

Or what was so disgusting down there.

Whatever it was both girls got a look and didn't like it either.

This is typical. Clare's mischivious grin and Lucy's "What 'cha looking at face". I love test shots, don't you?

This is what we finally came up with.

I am very pleased with the way the photo turned out. I just love the bright blue sky and green grapevines in the background. The colors go well with the brightness of the pumpkins. I had the girls wearing coordinating outfits and they looked adorable. Clare had a great time checking out all the pumpkins and rolling around in the hay. This was her first time to the pumpkin farm. Last year we were out of state visiting friends so we didn't do the whole pumpkin thing. The "farm" also had pig races, a corn maze, petting zoo, pony rides, and a train ride. We decided to forgo all the paid attractions and we were better off. Clare had enough fun watching the pigs and running around the farm and through the corn maze.

Notice the hay on her bum.

She's looking for just the right pumpkin...

Are you in there???

Found it!

Truth be told this isn't the pumpkin she picked out. In fact, she didn't pick out any pumpkins. I had our pumpkins all pick out and ready to go in our wagon. It was already 11:00am and the sun was blazing hot (it was nearly 100 degrees that day). I was ready to GO HOME.

Tonight we got around to carving said pumpkins.

And ta-da! Paul's is on the far left, mine is to the right, Clare's is in the middle with Lucy's righ next to hers.

Burp Cloths

2008-10-26T11:00:00.000-07:00

I made these deliciously adorable burp cloths for my cousin who is due in December. I had seen some with some really hip and trendy designs at a boutique a few months ago at a ridiculous price. I contemplating buying them for Paul's co-worker but there was no way I was paying 30 bucks for a couple of diapers with fabric sewing on them. So, I decided to make them myself.

I have to say they turned out great and I wish I had me a set! Please excuse the poor quality of the photos. Clare broke our camera so these were taken with our video camera and I am still trying to figure out how to use the darned thing.- flash or no flash, white balance, no white balance... etc.

To make your own you will need cloth diapers and fabric. You need as many diapers as you want to make (here I made 6) and enough fabric to cover the center of the diapers (about 1/2 a yard). I recommend using a diaper service quality diaper.

I used some that I already had but they can be purchased online at various diaper retailers. Go with the regular size 4x6x4 thickness. If you go with the 4x8x4 it will have blue stitching and that just ain't pretty. I suppose you could use the popular baby brand "diaper" but they are smaller and not as thick and absorbant as the DSQ diapers. You want these to be soft and fluffy-not cheap-especially if they are a gift.

If your diapers are brand new you want to wash them with HOT water at least 3 times. They will soften and get fluffier every time you wash and dry. You will also want to pre-wash your fabric. Cotton works well for absorbancy but I have seen them with silky satins as well. Choose something cute and funky! Here I chose a boyish dinosaur camo print.

Once your diapers and fabric are washed and dried. Iron out your diaper.

After ironing its going to "grow" about an inch longer on each side.

Sorry I don't have a photo for this part but I am sure you can figure it out. Measure the center rectangle so you can cut your fabric accordingly. Cut your fabric with about an inch allowance on all sides for folding under. Mine measured about 6 inches wide and 20 inches long, with the extra allowance.

Now iron out your fabric

Fold about 1/4-1/2 inch of fabric down on the wrong side of the fabric. I wet my fabric with water so the folds stay down nicely for pinning.

It should look like this when finished.

Lay your fabric on top of the diaper in the center.

I had to make some corrections because I didn't fold down enough.

Much better.

When the fabric is lined up nicely pin down the edges to the diaper like so:

I'm a clutz so I use lots and lots of pins. I went ahead and did all 5 diapers (I had already completed 1) up to this point. Now they are ready to be sewn.

Take them over to your handy dandy sewing machine.

I love this machine. Its a simple machine but it was owned by a wonderful woman before me. I have always had bad experiences with cheap machines. I inherited this one from my late mother in law when she passed. Its great being able to sew with out having to fight with the machine half the time. Bad machines are the exact reason why I have 352 unfinished sewing projects in a Rubbermaid bin in the back of my closet.

Sorry. Back to my wanna-be tutorial.

Sew all 4 sides down. You will want to get as close to the edge as possible. Repeat, repeat, repeat with all your burp cloths.

Your finished product should look something like this:

I really liked the way they turned out and they are re-e-e-a-a-lly easy! Perfect homemade gift for a beginner! Your gift-ee will have a wonderful homemade (with love), personalized, and practical item. I have a 3 month old. Trust me. One can never have too many burp cloths (aka spit up rags)! They are also very cute and fashionable!

These only took me about 5 hours to complete. But unless you also have a hungry husband, screaming toddler, and fussy/sleepy newborn, and dinner burning on the stove... I am sure you'll finish yours in record time!

As Promised.

2008-10-24T21:51:00.000-07:00

July 18th at 6:15 pm Lucy Rose was born right into her Daddy's hands here at home. She was 6lbs 11oz. We had a wonderful, beautiful, and intimate home birth.

It all started earlier that morning at about 2:30 am. I woke up having to use the restroom. When I laid back down in bed I felt a small gush of amniotic fluid. I woke up Paul and told him what was happening. Funny thing is that the night before we got to bed late (well, we always go to bed late). But this time we met some friends at the local amphitheater to see a classic rock cover band preform. I had been pretty much on the go the entire week. Paul said as we were falling asleep "We have to stop doing this, you better get some rest before the baby comes". Little did we know that she would be sleeping there in that very bed less than 24 hours later.

When we woke up we jumped the gun (not knowing what to expect) and called the midwife. She said to try to get some rest, relax, and do whatever made me comfortable. I called my mom to come help with Clare. She came over and crashed on our couch. Paul had the birth pool inflated and we pulled out all of our birth supplies from the closet so we would be sure they were ready and available when we needed them. We all went back to sleep and I got as much rest as possible. I had been practicing Hypnobirthing so I put on my CD and just breathed slowly and relaxed, just as I had prepared.

In the morning we woke up and our pool had a rip... so off I went to the store with my mom to get a new pool. Things were getting stronger but I was still able to walk and talk through the contractions. They were very irregular. We got home and I tried to nap (by this time it was 11am). Things kind of putzed around and the contractions were definitely getting stronger as I had to pause and breath through them. At about 2 I suggested we take a stroll through the neighborhood to see if the contractions would come closer together. That did the trick. We came home and I couldn't find a comfortable spot to relax! I had a bizarre craving for cake and sent my mom out for a white cake with strawberry filling and whipped topping. It hit the spot.

It was 4:30 when I called the midwife. I asked her if I could get into the pool because things were getting very intense, but still irregular. She said it might be too early still (I am a GBS + candidate and I opted not to take any precautions- the water can increase infection if your water breaks early in labor as mine had)... but I was having trouble walking and talking through the contractions. I suggested she head on over since the earliest she would arrive would be around 6:00pm with the Friday traffic.

Earlier that day I made Paul cover up all my windows in the bedroom with heavy blanket. It was a nice and quiet birthing cave; complete with candles and Gregorian chant playing in the background.

My mom was keeping Clare occupied and busy making me albondigas soup per my request. At about 5pm. I got in the pool. It was so incredible. Paul and I labored in our dark, peaceful bedroom. Alone. I don't remember my contractions being very consistent at this point either. They were however, very long and very close together. I had probably 10-12 good contractions before I felt a LOT of pressure. Just then, at 6:00pm my midwife arrived. Just as I predicted. The pressure in my bottom was overwhelming. I did not have the pleasure of experiencing a natural childbirth the first time around so I wasn't sure the baby was ready to be born yet... but my midwife assured me otherwise. She felt around and said the baby's head was already down. I hadn't even pushed! I had breathed her down the previous hour or so. I was in hard labor longer than I thought. We quickly called Clare and my mom in. I really wanted Clare to experience this with us. All she waneted to do was get in the "pool wah wah" with mama! Within minutes and a couple of good pushes, Lucy came out and was "caught" by her Daddy. Imediately she was placed on my tummy. Clare was horrified. I wish I could have captured her face on camera. She looked down at the baby then at me. Totally confused as to what just happend!

Baby was healthy and so, so calm. It was amazing. I latched her onto the breast soon after and we was nursing like an old pro. Even though Clare had been weaned a good 3 months, as soon as the baby latched she started yelling "no, no, no, no!" and pointing. I have to take a moment to brag for myself and baby that during the "learning" period that most breastfeeding mama's and babies go through, ours was practically painless. I didn't feel sore for a single day. She really was a nursing champ, I tell ya.

Paul was extremely pleased with the experience as well. We both agreed that we will never go back to birthing in a hospital. Unless (of course) it is medically necessary. He jokes he was able to watch the Dodger game between contractions. Although I don't think he was really joking.

Recovery after a natural childbirth (especially at home) is amazing. I almost felt like wonder woman. It was as if this event was just part of our day. After the shower, clean up, and post delivery exams, we just went about our evening. I had a delicious bowl of soup for dinner while Lucy spent some time in the arms of her grandparents and aunts/uncles. With a home birth you don't go anywhere so you don't come home feeling overwhelmed with the other children, piles of laundry, piles of dishes that accumulated while you were gone, and all the duties of running a home. You just go about your routine as much as you can. It still comes with its challenges that most are faced with having a newborn and healing though. I was on cloud nine. That night I cuddled with my husband and my newborn baby girl. In my own bed. In my own home. In my own pajamas.

In the hours proceeding the birth I remember at one point saying out loud "Lets to that again". Would I? Abso-freaking-lutely.

She always has this "What are YOU looking at?" expression on her face. Don't let it fool you. She's just acting tough. Lucy is one very sweet and tender little baby. She looks just like her Daddy. I love her... and the cleft chin.

3 Years...

2008-10-24T08:32:00.000-07:00

Paul and I celebrated 3 years of marriage last week! Its amazing how fast the time goes. 3 years and we have two lovely beautiful daughters. Thank you sweet husband for being my very best friend. I don't know where I would be without you.

For your amusement... a few photos of us before we got married and our lives were forever changed. Not to mention before I got pregnant and gained 30 lbs, but that's another story.