It's a Crab-tastic Day at the Liddles!

Yesterday we went to a friend's house for a playdate.  I wasn't sure how well Ingrid would be since she is getting her two year molars and has been a completely sleep deprived young thing.  Waking every hour or so, going back and forth between our bed and hers, taking lots of ibuprofen and chewing her pacifiers to bits.  It has not been pleasant.  But, she did pretty well.  Anywhere that has new toys is always a good thing. 

She decided she'd like to hang with the babies for awhile:

She even crawled all by herself into the exersaucer! 

Before we left, I had to put this pair of shoes I made onto little Olivia.  She's five months old, so the perfect model for this pair of 6-9 month slippers.  They fit well and looked pretty cute!

We only stayed for an hour, then had to make a quick getaway when I saw Ingrid start to yawn.  We raced home, got ready for a nap, and she fell asleep pretty uneventfully.  She only slept for an hour or so, nothing like the three hour naps she was taking mere weeks ago!!  But it's better than no nap at all...

This morning she was up screaming and crying at 4:30, and by 5:30 Brendan said he'd just get up with her.  Better you than me, buddy!  All of us have been crabby and snippy and it's not a good morning so far.  I'm hoping a nap will cure this (on all our parts!) but Ingrid's not looking like she's going to calm down anytime soon.  Oh, cruel world, why do you make sick/teething kids think they don't need to sleep??? 

Cupcakes, Berets, and Mei Tais

First of all, cupcakes are yum.  Ingrid agrees, although she only really cares about the frosting bit.

Secondly, I got a new beret this morning (clearance at Target--I have a problem with buying things I don't need merely because they are only $1.50)  Ingrid also likes this.  She is obsessed with hats at the moment.  She never says hello to Brendan anymore when he walks in the door, she just runs up "Hat Daddy!  Hat Daddy!"

And lastly, I found a tutorial on how to make a mei tai, gave it a try, and it turned out rather well I think.  I didn't have long enough ties but they still tie so I'm not worried.  Although it said to use a heavy weight fabric and I think it would be fine with regular cotton, maybe doubled?  The stuff I used is really stiff and makes it hard to tie a tight knot.  But it's cute!  I used Amy Butler fabric on one side and a cool orange paisley on the other.  The ties were really hard to sew around, so they are wonky, but nothing I think will endanger my child as I wear her.  Yay for sewing!!

Squeaky Shoes

We got these shoes online, where I failed to read about the fact there are little squeakers in the heels. I just saw red leather mary janes for $10 and thought great! We'll get them in the next size up so Ingrid has shoes for next summer! Then we got them in the mail and she tried them on, and they...squeaked. Like a dog toy. In fact, the dog kept cocking his head and looking around to see where the noise was coming from. Ingrid, of course, thought this was the best invention ever, and had fun running up and down the hallway until I made her take them off. They are really big on her, so I still have time to figure out how to take out the squeakers. Seriously, who thought that was a good idea??? Every single step they take they squeak? No. No. No.

Mama's Little Helper

Our dishwasher is broken, so I had to find another one. She'll do until our new gets here :)

Little Gymnast

This morning we took Ingrid to a gym that has a toddler play program. Our friends had gone there a few weeks ago and let us know they were going again so we joined them. Ingrid had so much fun! They just have all the soft squishy stuff out for the kids to run and jump on, trampolines and jumping boards, cones and hula hoops and exercise balls.

As soon as Ingrid got her shoes off she went full force the entire hour we were there! She ran from one thing to the other, and of course found the bin of chalk for the uneven bars and had a chalk butt the whole time...She loved the little ramp mats and kept going up and down, up and down.



I just love how liberal Ann Arbor is, because whenever I get around a group of moms and their kids I see breastfeeding toddlers and other cloth diaper users. One woman was a nanny but pregnant for twins and was asking me about Ingrid's cloth diapers and where I got them from, which kind were the best and how do I wash them. It's really nice to have a rational conversation about that instead of people asking me how much poop I get on myself and how smelly they are, how crazy it is to be using them in the first place. Ahhh, liberal oases, may I always live in one :)

Anyway, Ingrid ran the whole hour, ate a snack in the car, I blasted Yo Gabba Gabba music to keep her awake, and then she passed out as soon as we got home. I am off to lounge and read the book I got from the library yesterday--Water for Elephants. So far it's gotten me hooked, we'll see how the rest goes.

Another Weekend Done

This morning we made cornmeal blueberry pancakes. They were delicious! Anything with blueberries in it is alright by me. And Ingrid.

We had a low key day today. A lot of playing and coloring (as usual) and a walk out in the rain. Ingrid was sopping wet after splashing in the "puddles" which were really small lakes. That girl loves her some puddle splashing!


Dinner was tuna casserole, which Ingrid had fun helping make. She didn't understand the idea of stirring and NOT putting it in her mouth though, so I have a feeling a couple frozen peas managed to find their way into her belly. We also made fried eggplant--YUM! I've never cooked eggplant and I didn't really know what to do with it, but allrecipes.com came in handy once again, and I found a simple bread crumb/milk/fry it up recipe that tasted amazing. I heated up some marinara sauce and dug in. We cut the eggplant in circles, and after they were breaded and cooked Ingrid thought they looked like cookies. She grabbed one and just started scarfing it down. I love that she eats anything and everything!
And one more pair of baby shoes were made last night. I used felt as the bottom, which is both more durable and easier to sew than light cotton. And I have tons of different colors so I should be able to come up with some cute combos.

And now it's night time, Ingrid is passed out in our bed, and I may just go join her soon.

Baby Shoes and Books and Books

Awhile back I got a pattern for kimono baby shoes.  It intimidated me because I don't usually follow patterns.  But I do want to be able to follow a pattern so I can make more interesting things, so I sat down and tried to do it.  The first pair were WAY wonky, and I ended up somehow making two left shoes!  Not sure how that happened, but it was good practice anyway, and showed me what I needed to do better next time.

So, yesterday I sat down again and had two cute fabrics cut out, and in between playing with Ingrid I'd sneak in a seam here and there (there's really only like four seams to sew in each shoe!)  By the afternoon I had finished a whole pair, and here they are:

I think they are so cute!  Others did, too, and I got a custom order for a whole baby shower gift set including the shoes.  Sweet!  Luckily Ingrid was a little less clingy today so she let me sew for two whole hours.  It was great.

Then we went to the thrift store, which we hadn't been to in a long time.  I gave away three huge bags of stuff, and only came home with one, so that's good!  We got the cutest dress for a friend's baby:

And books and books and books.  I found so many books this time!  And I had to buy them all because I'm so sick of the books we have right now.  I like to take half Ingrid's books and stuff them in the closet for a couple months, then rotate them out and it's like we have new books again!  Or, like today, I go wild in the Salvation Army and come home with ten new to us books :)

 













Now it's time to rest, as we were up at 6am...

Play Blocks, Mama? Play Kitchen, Mama? Color, Mama?

That is ALL I've been hearing lately.  Yesterday it was a nonstop barrage of begging me to play with her, but when we'd settle down to one thing, she'd just jump to the next.  It was rather tiring, and by the afternoon I was over it.  I just wanted to sit in one place and zone out--is that bad?  I ended up getting a bit yelly and she cried and whined for the last hour before Brendan got home.  Bed time could not come soon enough...

But after dinner we all sat down to play blocks together and the look of joy on her face was priceless.  Both Brendan and I would build some ridiculous tower and then she'd get to knock it down.  Ingrid was so excited and would clap and smile.  Then she'd try to build a tower and amaze us by balancing some huge block on a tiny one.  Usually we rush her to the bath and bed right after dinner because A) she's tired, and B)we're ready for alone time.  But last night we just played with blocks and had fun together.  It was so nice.

Today I'm going to try to focus on Ingrid more, really get to her level and play with her instead of just having her near me while I try to vacuum or sweep or do laundry or something.  She's pretty good about playing by herself, but her begging and begging for me to play with her yesterday just showed me that she was needing more one on one time.  Instead of getting irritated, I have to give her what she needs, even if that means playing kitchen twenty different times during the day...I'm going to try to see the positive of her play instead of thinking it's so boring and all the other things I'd rather be doing.  Because, man, just look at this face!  How can you say no???

Crabby lady, Baby bibs.

Ingrid in the midst of a crabby moment:

She really hasn't been too bad lately, but I thought those pictures were funny.  Her nose is dry, she's been sleeping well, and we've been doing a lot of coloring.  I found some free printables and they have all the presidents you can color.  So, the other morning Ingrid was coloring Richard Nixon.  Ha!

And I have been busy making all of these.  I made ten or so bibs yesterday, I was on a roll!  So if you need to get a bib for anyone, visit my shop!

And how funny are these?  I found the iron ons at Joann, I couldn't resist.

Not much else going on in the Liddle house.  A lot of cooking, coloring, sewing, and walking the dog.  Same old same old...

Sorry, Ingrid, I had to!

Oh man, is she going to hate me for this someday...But she was so cute I just couldn't help myself.  Every morning is "nakie-time" and this morning she decided she needed to wear her apron.  Needless to say, a li'l bottom peeking out while she was playing was just too funny!

Still Sick.

Man, whatever cold Ingrid has just won't go away.  I thought she was getting better so we went last week to see our friends, and now they're sick.  Sorry, guys!  I didn't realize it was going to drag on this long!  Poor kid's nose is all red and raw from me trying to wipe it all the time. 

She was SO MUCH FUN today, if by fun you mean whiny and throwing temper tantrums.  All day long.  By the time Brendan came home I was exhuasted.  She just could not be happy with anything.  If she wanted a book and I tried to get it for her, she cried.  But then she'd ask for help.  But then when I'd help she'd throw herself down on the floor and scream.  I actually had to leave the room because I was laughing so hard at just how ridiculous she was being!  Such a drama queen!  My mom called today and said "Ha, paybacks are a bitch, aren't they?"  Whatever could she be talking about?  I'm sure I was never like that!

We have been keeping busy, though, even though we're at home and not feeling good.  Ingrid has been coloring and playing with her kitchen set, reading books and chasing the cats, and I have been posting lots of new items in my etsy shop.  I finished this quilt today, it turned out better than I'd expected.  I think the more I do the easier it gets, which is great since I have two more quilts cut out and fabric set aside for a couple more than that. 

Something that surprised me:  I actually enjoy not having the car!  Brendan is not driving his beat up old thing now that there is snow (and the battery is dead...) so we are sharing the Subaru.  He takes it to work most days, but if there's something I need it for, I take him to the bus station and then pick him up from work at 5pm.  It's been going really well, actually.  At first I couldn't imagine not having my car with me at all times but now I don't know what I ever needed it for all the time anyway. 

We had the car yesterday to run errands and I was realizing how much I hate having to drive everywhere with Ingrid, getting her in and out of the car and having to deal with her yelling for her dropped book or milk cup or whatever.  I love staying home and taking it easy.  We move slowly through our day, play and clean and bake and cook.  We saw a friend yesterday and she asked if I was feeling cooped up and I can honestly say no, I'm not.  Maybe it's because it's winter and I don't want to go out anywhere anyway, but I'm actually enjoying not having a car, not having the option of going anywhere.  It makes me focus on things to do around the house.  Like clean up crayon scribbles that appear on every wall, chair, dresser, and closet door.  Or doing the five loads of laundry that have piled up.  Or getting some sewing done.  It's nice.  It makes me happy. 

I will, however, enjoy it even more when Ingrid's nose stops snotting everywhere. 

Stupid Cats

Here's where I found Fletcher this morning:

And this afternoon when I had FINALLY gotten Ingrid to sleep, I was laying in bed when I hear a crash.  This is what I found:

Stupid cat!  He loves to eat my spider plants, no matter where I put them he finds a way to get into them.  So now I have to go clean up three potted plants worth of soil and all the little pieces of broken pots.  Luckily the vase we got on our honeymoon was not damaged.

On the bright side, Ingrid is cute.  And she is sleeping.  She's still sick, though, so I think we may have to go to the doctor soon to see what's up.  It's been two weeks and now she's coughing a deep chest rumble.  No good. 

Indoor Swimming and lots of Sewing

Brendan found an indoor pool that has open swim on the weekends, so we went today to check it out.  I am so glad we are finding this at the beginning of winter, because I have a feeling we will become regulars during our yuck-o cold snow season.  Which means I have to get a new bathing suit because my old one is not fitting right...

The pool has a cool ramp to walk down into the tot pool.  It's really shallow, so Ingrid could walk around in the water.  It took her awhile to get her sea legs, and she fell in a couple times, but she got right back up and kept going.  They have beach balls and water toys to play with so Ingrid was in heaven.  We were in for maybe a half hour and that was enough to completely wear her out!

And, finally, I have finished the felt book.  I think it looks so cute, much better than the one I made Ingrid.  Probably because I know a little better now what I'm doing, and I had to take my time and make it right if I want to charge money for it...So here it is:

Ready for your Close Up?

I found three cute pictures on my camera today, all super close ups of Ingrid.  Snot nose and all...

Working When I Can.

Here is what I have been up to lately:
A felt book for my etsy shop

A few new crowns, also for the shop.

And a new dress for the shop.  I love that bird fabric so much!

Ingrid is only napping 50% of the time now.  She is not ready for that, but feels she is.  When did your kids stop taking naps all the time?  I'm thinking this is just too soon!!

But we manage fine on days she doesn't nap, now that I know there will be some of those days.  Playing, coloring, walking the dog.  Speaking of coloring, I love that you can print color pages on NickJr!  Ingrid has been having fun coloring all the Gabba creatures.  Over and over and over again...

It's snowing today and the fireplace is on and I'm ready to curl up and watch a movie.  I rented Julie and Julia and I'm going to make Ingrid watch it with me this afternoon :)  We'll see how that goes!

Yum--Cookies

We made cookies yesterday.  They turned out pretty great, if I do say so myself.  And the best thing is, they are vegan, whole wheat, and full of real chocolate.  Here's the recipe-I think I put up a similar one sometime but it bears repeating since I think it is the perfect cookie recipe.

1/4 c. oil

1/2 c. brown sugar

1Tb flax seed meal with 3Tb water, mixed and let sit for two minutes

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 c wheat flour (or spelt flour)

1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
chocolate chips or crushed chocolate bar
cherry craisins

I had some crazy good fair trade chocolate that I crushed and added, it made it so smooshy and gooey and got everywhere but it tastes so good!  Even Brendan said the cookies were really good, and he's a hard one to please if it's not a normal recipe...

Ingrid liked them too.  But she likes everything.

Ingrid's First Trip to the ER

It's funny, ever since we moved here I've been thinking I should find out where the hospital is in case we ever needed to go.  I had a vague idea but couldn't tell you how to get there.  Thank god for mapquest, huh?

So today turned out to be a good day--no nap but she did get quiet for about an hour, reading books in bed with her glow worm.  We played outside with the dog, colored a lot, I got to sew some things, we got new squeaky shoes in the mail (more on those in another post...)  Then I went to go make dinner and it all went downhill pretty quickly!

I was making a horrible boxed meal because we haven't gotten groceries yet this week and Brendan had the car today.  So I had to open a can, the cat came up meowing pathetically so I gave her the lid to lick.  As I've done a thousand times.  Ingrid came into the room and I didn't really pay attention to what she was doing until she started whimpering.  Not crying, just a little whine.  Since she hadn't had a nap I, being the sensitive mom I am, told her to quit whining and go color.  Then I looked down and saw all the blood.

She had grabbed the lid of the can and sliced the top of her finger.  I tried to rinse it off and get a band aid, but man did that thing bleed!  As I said, Brendan had the car today, so I called him to see how close to home he was and he was still 20 minutes away.  I hate living here, have I mentioned??  We seem to be 20 minutes away from anything and everything...So Brendan came home, I showed him the finger, it was still bleeding profusely, so we took her to the ER.

Amazingly, she fell asleep in the car and slept on my shoulder all while we checked in.  And once she woke up she was really good, let the nurses look at her finger, they put on a VHS tape that had previews for things coming out "this 1992 holiday season," and then the doctor came in and said she could do stitches or just use some sort of steri-strip thing that holds the wound together.  Ingrid barely made a noise, she was so good!  And I was completely proud of myself for handling things well in an emergency.  Well, maybe it wasn't an emergency but it was a LOT of blood and when it's coming from your child, it seems a lot worse than it is.  And now we know where the hospital is--a 20 minute drive away!