Stretchy Play Dough

Another art book activity that we gave a shot on a hot afternoon was one of the many play dough recipes. It was super simple and super quick to make. The dough is oily and felt a lot like soft bread dough. 

Here's what you need:

- 4 cups of flour

-1 cup of oil

- 1 t of food coloring

-1 c of water

-Mixing bowl and spoon

What you do:

-In mixing bowl, mix water, oil, and food coloring

-Slowly, add flour while mixing

It made a big mound for pounding, squeezing, rolling, and poking.

Then you get to PLAY!

I started E out with the paci in the hopes that he wouldn't eat the dough and it worked. He was a bit nervous about the feeling in the beginning but in the end, loved it. I pulled out a few random bits from the kitchen from him to play with.

Definitely an activity we'll do again when it's just too uncomfortable to be outside!!

College Checklist

While shifting through our crap unwanted treasures for our garage sale last week, I stumbled upon a journal page I had ripped out and written on. I remember writing this during my 3rd {and incidentally last year of college} so that makes me...21 or 22?!

One side was titled "Life Goals" and this is what I wrote:

1) Milk a cow

2) Visit all 50 states

3) Get married to my lover & bosom buddy (check..well, I'm checking that one now...it's wasn't checked then...ok, you get it the point.)

4) Live overseas

5) Own a Vespa

6) Learn how to play the Cello (I've always found that instrument to be so sexy for some reason?!)

7) Bike a long distance

8) Go all over the world

9) Always be involved in ministry {college, kids, women, etc.}

10) Make-out with my husband on top of the Eiffel Tower

11) Learn to make wheel pottery (ok, still would be cool but not really on the list anymore)

12) Grow a vegetable garden & eat its produce (check...now if only I can keep the dang thing alive...)

13) Go to Prince Edward Island (Anne of Green Gables, anyone?!)

14) Live with the Amish for a month (yeah, yeah, probably not happening...)

15) Experience one Rainbow Gathering (actually added this one when I lived in Colorado...think the resurrection of Woodstock...also, probably not happening...)

The other side listed all the places I've been thus far...

International:

Canada

Mexico

Chile

Argentina

Tahiti & Moorea

Northern Ireland

Egypt

France

Stateside:

Washington DC

California

Oregon

Washington

Hawaii

Arizona

Utah

Colorado

Wyoming

Montana

Nebraska

Kansas

Iowa

Missouri

Oklahoma

Arkansas

Tennessee

Alabama

North Carolina

South Carolina

Virginia

Maryland

Pennsylvania

Ohio

Delaware

New Jersey

New York

Massachusetts

Connecticut

Rhode Island

Illinois

...can now add...

Texas

Wisconsin

Michigan

...which makes for 34 states! Wowza, only 16 left to go!!

My current list definitely is a bit more family oriented but it's fun to see that most of those things on there, I'd happily do, given the chance. My priorities, passions, and hobbies have changed a bit, but they aren't entirely off from when I was younger.

Have you noticed your priorities have changed in the last 10 or 5 or so years?! What major items have you already checked off??

Garage Sale Tales

Saturday morning rolled around and we were ready to get our garage salesman on. Our fabulous DIY-in-training must have also been excited to get out there because he turned out to be our 6:15 alarm that morning. So early! But we had work to do; setting the rest of our treasures up and out for all the shoppers to see. The only bummer part was we didn't really have any 'big' or 'really desirable' pieces-- most of it was what I would call 'fluff' decor. I honestly think that much of it sold because of the tips we used.

Garage Sale Success... Oh, let me count the ways...

1) Staging-- totally, utterly completely true! We got several comments from our neighbors that they all loved the way it looked. It reminded them of a boutique or antique fair set-up. Success #1!

I rolled out the rug, pulled out an old chair and a few tables to try to get multi-levels going and make things more appealing. I also used baskets to hold books, CDs, and DVDs in. A coat rack held the small number of clothes and jackets we were selling. And I used our backyard chalkboard as a "welcome" sign too. Just small touches.

We also found it helpful to hang up tarps in the back of the staging to cover the rest of our garage...that was not for sale.

2) Free Box

Definitely had people looking in it, until a family took the entire box's contents early on. But I guess that was the point: getting rid of all the stuff in there. I could have put on the sign to only take a few items, but it wasn't that big of a deal. I just had to laugh because I didn't expect one person to take it all at once..and so early on! :) I also put my years collection of Real Simple out for free and a woman took them all but paid me for them. That worked well too! Success #3 & #4

5) Refreshments--My parents stopped by in the morning to take E on a walk and brought us some donuts! We put the extras out for free and then W got the fabulous idea to sell some bottled water and sports drinks. We sold quite a lot of them throughout the morning and got rid of our extra donuts. People seemed to be happy--so were we! Success #5

6) FUN--In addition to getting rid of a good amount of stuff and making some money, we had a great time with our neighbors. We're really lucky: our neighbors are a lot of fun.There were about 8 houses participating.

W did some pre-sale perusing with E and came back with this! Our neighbor didn't get it sold, but E had a blast on his first "Mo-mo" ride. I got a free bulletin board from another neighbor so I can actually do the burlap project now. And another gave us all the newborn boy clothes she had. Success #6

The sale ended with us all hanging out and kids playing before a few of us headed to the pool for a cool down. I think a neighborhood BBQ is officially in the works now!

Now, we still probably have a good truck load of stuff left to haul away, so sadly, our garage isn't completely clean just yet. And by the following day, I was completely exhausted and good for absolutely no activity. But we made enough on fluff for a sweet date night-- as well as covering the dump fee for whatever we can't donate!

Toddler Migration Patterns...

astonishingly unpredictable,

surprisingly unstable, 

and keeps you on your toes...and bending over ALOT!

{Footnote: all migrated items pictured here where placed by 19 month old hands and no adult intervention was taken until after said pictures. None should be considered a dramatization, but pure reality.}

Happy Monday!

34 Weeks & 12 Steps Behind

Yup, that's "large and in charge" for ya!

Cravings: Oh my word, I've re-discovered the deliciousness that are Costco muffins!! They are an amazing afternoon or post-dinner treat. Then it's just the normal: fruit, sweets, smoothies and coffee yogurt...yes!

A lady at church this past weekend asked how far along I was and then said, "But, you're so small?!" Seriously, thank you, kind woman!

Feeling: BIG, EXHAUSTED, and perhaps a bit hormonal. ;) I nap when Ezra does and that seems to help the 3pm wall I hit. And who knew someone could get up more than five times during the night to pee?! Lower back is also acting up again and this baby seriously never.stops.moving.ever. Is it possible to get bruised organs?!

Seriously Behind Life {Biggest Challenge}: Ok, I'm not even juggling two yet and already I'm so behind life. If you're not a tall, balding man or a pint-sized blondie, you've been given shortest stick I can offer. That means but not limited to: dishes, house work, tutoring, dogs, bills, cooking, paperwork, and sadly, friends. I've been horridly awful at getting back to e-mails, messages, texts, phone calls, and even missing planned events. {Ladies, you know who you are and again, I'm terribly sorry!} Between third tri exhaustion, my own laziness, and pregnancy mushy-brain, I'm surprised I haven't lost all friends. And what's worst is that I seriously despise flaky/unreliability...and that's just what I've become lately. Ugh.

So, with just over a month left {due date is 8.31} this Mama Bear is going into hibernation. :) Time to limit commitments and hunker down to the basics! We all cannot wait to meet this new little one and hold him in our arms. I get more and more excited when I wonder what he'll be like, look like and when he'll arrive.

Playing With Mush

One of the recent art activities that I've tried {from this book} with E is called "Clean Mush". The stuff is pretty awesome. Heck, I loved playing with it.

What You Need:

- 3 rolls of toilet paper {we used 1}

-1 bar of soap; shaved {we used 1/2 a bar}

- 1/3 c borax soap {we didn't use it this time}

-warm water

-tin pan to hold mush

Since it was the first time we were trying it, I cut the recipe by about a 3rd. I didn't know what to expect but didn't want to get too involved in case he wasn't for it.

Ezra and I unraveled the roll into the tin, added the shaved soap then mixed in the warm water. Then our hands went to work mushing it all up.

It felt so cool. Complete textile fun!! E tried to eat it a few times {since the absence of Borax} which may have deterred his fun. Seriously, when does the 'tasting' exploration stage stop?! Based on his expressions that stuff must just taste lovely. We mushed some of it into balls and did lots of squishing and squeezing....both hands and feet included.

The clean up wasn't too bad. The ground needed a good hosing off but most was contained in the tin. We'll be keeping this as an outdoor activity. I might add some food coloring next time, and since it's soap, E stayed nice and clean! 

Lazy Summer Days

We haven't been up to much lately. The weekends and week days have been full of walks, books, naps, swimming in the pool, riding bikes, trips to the library, parks, and a few lovely date nights. 

Even though I've been not really looking forward to him going to one nap, I must say that it's nice to have the extra time in the mornings. We've been starting our days with a walk to an errand {library or grocery store} with a trip to a park. 

Ezra has gotten really comfortable going down slides himself. And can do it over and over and over....again.

Such a stud, hanging by his arms.

Afternoons, he's been spending naked in our backyard pool, doing an art activity, and reading.

It's so fun now that he's old enough to really enjoy our park outings. He can spot parks out a distance away and calls out "park!!".

 Such a BIG boy!

 We're truly enjoying these chill summer days! And this pregnant gal is not complaining about the 'mild' summer weather we've had up until now. So wonderful to still be able to sport the sweats. ;)

Silliness is...

...waking up in the middle of the night to W grabbing my face. Apparently, he had a dream about needing to catch a falling object and my face was right in line with his hands!

...Ezra moving down to one nap...that's an hour and a half long?! Definitely silly and definitely not happening...

...having the most horrendous, gooey booger hanging from my nose while on a walk and laughing at the fact that this would be awful if we were still dating. Good thing W came to the rescue with a napkin...

...Ezra pointing and yelling "nigh nigh" at a lady who had her eyes closed during worship at church...

...some lady named Mary Lou who must have moved onto our street recently and has her address confused. We're getting ALL of her mail, including the official UPS notification of her change in address. Now, if only we could find this lady, give her all her mail back and tell her to change her information all over again...

...Ezra falling asleep in his car seat with his finger up his nose...hmm, I wonder where he got that from...

Big Boy Reveal {The End, I Promise!}

Oh my word. Are you all secretly thinking, "Finally! If only she would just get on with it and stop posting about this!" Don't worry, I'm sure you are. I would be too. Heh.

I didn't really do proper 'before' pictures {diy fail} since I never really did a nursery reveal, but here are a few that I have {remember, we didn't find out the gender this time...}

A quick reminder of what my vision was for the room, at the very start...way back in like, March:

I'm still quite amazed that we stuck so closely to the inspiration board. I'm a huge fan of these now because as you know, I'm hugely indecisive. Making this really helped set the vision, and gave me the confidence when making hard decisions with so many good choices! Think the only major digression was making navy a more dominate colors.

So, without further ado, here's Ezra's big boy room in all its glory!

We hung his fabric covered letter with Velcro squares. I'm wanting to hang some family and newborn pictures on this wall somewhere, but the stores ran out of white frames so it'll have to wait.

My striped project proved to be the perfect nightstand for Ezra's bedside. For now, the drawer holds some puzzles and musical instruments. I'm sure he'll be storing his little treasures in there in no time.

Still need to hang that airplane above the locker. The top also holds his sound machine that we still use.

 A few prints that I fell in love with and incorporates his current obsession as well as the color scheme.

We hung the 'read' over the gutter shelves and I put his recently acquired fireman hat there for now. Ezra totally fell in love with his little table set the moment we put it up. He actually likes sitting there to flip through books and points to the other chair for us to sit.

Another print by the same artist as well as some mood lighting. When I saw this delightful little orange ball lamp at Ikea, I just couldn't pass it up!

 

And there you have it. A little toddler room that can hopefully spur on the love of reading and a vivid, playful imagination. I seriously love hanging out in his room and playing with him. Can't wait to watch him grow in it!

Sources

Wall Paint: Martha Stewart's Sharky Gray {seriously, want to paint my whole house in this color now.}

Window seat: DIY

Fabric for window pillows: Joanns, Antique thrift store, and Walmart pillow cases

Toddler Bed: DIY, fabric: Joanns

Bedding: DIY; fabric: antique thrift store

Bed pillow fabric: Walmart pillow case, Joanns

Chinese Lantern: CostPlus

Fabric Covered Letters: DIY

Rug: Ikea

Hanging Tent: DIY

Locker: DIY

Airplane on top of locker: Ross

Gutter bookshelves: DIY

Table and chairs: Ikea
Orange Lamp: Ikea

READ sign: DIY

 Book print: Etsy

Bike print: Etsy
Moon, Bee Happy, & Happy Day Prints: Found online for free...still locating link...

Frames: Walmart and Target

Holy Moly, Batman!! That's a heck of a lot of D-I-Y letters. I totally didn't realize all that we have accomplished. No wonder this has been in the works for several months now! But I can say that we are both super proud and astonished by all that we did together. I honestly never knew we had it in us! We really didn't start this whole fun 'doing-it-yourself' hobby until spring last year when W redid a free locker on the side of our road. So, if we can do it, so can YOU!

Making This Possible

iphone text conversation this weekend...

William Swenson to Dave Arterburn--

Thanks for making this possible.

Dave Arterburn to William Swenson--

Thanks for making this possible!!

End of the Trip

Per recommendation, we went down to the river bank and had some lunch at Hofbrauhaus. There was a fountain near there that the kiddos played in before we did some light shopping.

After dinner, W & I went on a little date: Starbucks and drove around looking at the gorgeous brick houses and magical lawn lights {fireflies} around Mt. Lebanon. Seriously wish we could use more of this beautiful building material in earthquake country. Brick sure makes a house more welcoming and quiant!

The churches in the East coast are always so beautiful.

We spent the late evening around an outdoor fire; talking and getting eaten by mosquitoes before heading to bed.

We are so glad we made the trip out here this year. Being 32 weeks pregnant was definitely no walk in the park, but I knew that it would be tough. The humidity and full days were tiring. Going through security was a bear at the airports. They are certainly making it harder for families who like to travel but I'm happy to say we avoided the new 'nakey' x-ray machines. Ezra did fabulously both ways on the flights even though he only got his own seat once-- it was harder on us when we went to Milwaukee when he was 9 months.It took us two full days to recover from our vacation. :) Would we do it all over again?! Heck yeah!

We're really hoping that we can make more East coast adventures happen in the future..so many states, so little time!