Refashioning

I've been sneaking down to my craft room whenever I get a chance lately. I've become obsessed with designing new things and having a project. Here are a few of my latest creations.

Wrangler Rex. I love shirts with the cowboy cut, but all the designer shirts like this are way more than I would ever spend on a shirt. So, I bought this regular polo at Target and sewed on the paisley print and the shoulder strips.

The back is my favorite part.
For Baden I did the same thing, but his was just a t-shirt to start with and he had a big stain on the front top. I sewed on a mock collar and then added the cowboy look.

Once again, my favorite part is the back.

Here's my latest creation. I love all the cute, trendy dresses with the high waist band and belt, but they are all VERY short. I made my own, using an old shirt I had that had become too short. I cut it off and sewed on this fabric as a skirt. I made it long enough to be modest, yet still keeping the trendy, sassy look. The fabric was a remnant at the store, so it was only $1.99. Then I added a chunky belt. Tadaaaaahhh!

Here's a slightly closer look.

I make a billion mistakes as I go along, but I'm having so much fun figuring out how to do new things. I love gaining a new skill.

PS - Can you tell Rex and I have the same olive skin? :) Oh my goodness are we glowing in the dark right now!

Brothers

I am still really lucky that Rex and Baden adore each other. I know they will eventually quarrel, but it sure is fun to see them interact right now. In the clip you will get to see how Bade acts when he's excited. His body mostly freezes except for his hands - which go crazy. It's pretty funny.

Since this video was taken, Baden has crossed two milestones:

1) He can now pick up a piece of food and put it into his own mouth. (He doesn't have to wait for Rex to do it for him.)

2) He is now saying "Dada!" I thought maybe he'd say "mama" first, but no such luck. Rex has been trying to get him to say "Rex," but I think he'll at least say my name before that. It's a bit easier.

Baby Brecken

Guess who I got to hang out with today! This is Kate and Dave's new little one and I got to do her first little photoshoot. It sure doesn't hurt that make the cutest babies.

It wouldn't be a baby photoshoot without a little shot of these tiny toes.

Thanks for letting me come over, Kate. She is so beautiful and you are such a great mom.

Your Dose of Lec

So, many of you may know my sister Aleca. Some of you may not. Well, she's one of the funniest people I happen to know and she's created a new blog for herself. It's called "Leca Unplugged." I'm telling all of you about this so you know that you are officially invited to the party. Leca IS a party. Her new blog will include funny stories, tasty easy recipes, occasional product reviews, and who knows what else. Please check it out and sign up to as a follower. Help her get this off the ground and help yourself laugh at least once a day while you read her stuff. Strangers, fifth cousins, weirdos....you're all invited.

Click on the picture to get there. Yup, that's it. Then...enjoy.

Happy Birthday Babe!

Can you believe this sweet face is 32? I can't. Frankly, he doesn't even look like it.

Today is Jeff's birthday. We celebrated yesterday. We made pancakes with strawberries and whipped cream. We went swimming with the boys. We opened presents and we made a yummy dinner and made a chocolate cake. Tonight Jeff's parents had us over for a fantastic dinner. It was a great weekend celebration.

There's a lot to celebrate. I can't imagine my life without Jeff. He is an amazing husband. He is an outstanding father. He is my best friend. He has exceeded my expectations and wishes. I love you so much Jeff! Thank you for making me SO happy.

My Baby Bade

This bib says it all - "Mommy's Trooper." Baden had his first real cold this week. His nose was running and he couldn't breathe well enough to use his binky much at night. He also spent the week listening to his sick brother WHINE A LOT. However, through it all, he was really good. I love this kid.

On a side note, Baden has taken up singing. When Rex and I sing to him he tries his best to sing along. It's adorable.

Clothing Creations

Well, the boys and I all have a cold, so I thought I'd post some things I was making a few weeks ago. I don't want my blog to bore you all and I don't want to risk a hostile takeover like this one.

So, here are a few recent projects. I sewed on these strips of fabric to look like a scarf and made a snowflake hairclip to go with it. No, I'm not wearing this one. It went to someone much cuter and younger than me.

Here was a bleach pen experiment that I fell in love with. I taped down some paper letter that said, "Skater." Then I bleached a pattern around them including some stitching marks. Let it dry for a day, wash it, and presto! You have a cool Hurley-inspired sweatshirt that only cost $6.
Then I stitched on a letter "e" just to add some more texture.

I'm on to more projects, but they are top secret for now.....oh, the suspense.

Zippy

These pics are especially for Aunt Malinda. This is Kate and Dave's sweet, little nameless baby. Yup, she's home from the hospital and nameless. Everyone keeps referring to her as "Zippy," and I think it's going to stick!

She has cute, redish-colored hair.
She's tiny! Well, not really. She's over 8 pounds, but she just looks so teeny-tiny since she's brand new.

Congrats Kate and Dave. She's perfect! Now we can't wait to find out what we should call her.

Two and a Half

Little Rex is now two and a half! Here he is with his buddy Sophie. She is such a doll and they play together really well.

I wanted to record a couple more funny things Rex has said lately. He's a funny little guy.

Rex: "I don't like Santa Claus!" Me: "Why?" Rex: "He's old." After explaining that Sant brought him presents he was okay with him again, but I thought it was pretty funny.

We took Rex to In and Out for the first time. On our way out the door he said, "That was fun. That was a fun cheeseburger." I have never seen him really eat much of a cheeseburger, but he was all over that one. He's got good taste.

Seven months?

Wow, this little man is already seven months! Yikes! He is still growing fast. I had to snap a quick picture of him today while he still fits into this 12-18 month outfit. Yes, we grow 'em big here.

Baden has been into smacking his lips like crazy. I think it's adorable. He is the happiest little guy ever. I really wish I could freeze him at this age...minus the spitting up.

One of Those Days...

Well, we had our first expense of the year on New Year's Day. Our freezer died. A day after we stocked with food from Costco. Yup. Not so good. At first we thought it was just the freezer, but then the whole unit went through a slow, painful death.

Below: Rex is currently in love with that green colored Odwalla juice. He is not in love with me taking his picture, in case that wasn't clear.

Here was our make-shift freezer. Luckily our neighbor also let us use some fridge space till the new one arrived. And luckily the giant birds in our backyard only ate the waffles.
Our new fridge arrived late last night and the drama is over. Come on over and have some filtered water or ice. Yeah, baby - that's an upgrade.