busy, busy, busy

Life around here seems to be neverending busy.  The kids have started into another soccer season, which, makes 3 evenings a week extra busy.  Our lawnmower is FINALLY fixed and we can mow our lawn again...I think our neighbours must be wondering what's going on around here.  The third birthday in our household of spring is complete and now it's trying to find time for the party with his friends.  It's kinda hard to schedule a date and time when all his friends are in different sports of their own....but, I think we've got it figured out. :D

For now, here are a few pics of what's been going on.

Faith's 4th Birthday - March 28

Garrett's 8th Birthday - April 24

Haden's 10th Birthday - May 18

with his new Penguins cap...sadly they got beat out by the Flyers)

My First...

I am so excited.  I made my first Etsy purchase and I cannot wait for it to arrive.

I purchased a DIY Girls Peasant Dress kit from "littlefishbigpond" at Etsy.com.  I have been wanting to try my hand at sewing a dress for Faith for awhile now, but have always felt a bit overwhelmed about the whole thing.  This kit seems like the perfect thing for me to try.  It comes with everything I need...pre-cut fabric, elastic, ribbon, etc.  I'll post pics as soon as it arrives (in about 2 weeks)!!

Pink

Having a girl who loves pink, has really got me liking pink.
A few people I know have had baby girls recently, so that got me to the fabric store (to buy pink) and make a few things:

This little onesie was a gift for a new baby at church.  

I simply zig-zagged around the flower shape and 

straight stitched the centre of the flower.  

I also added a straight stitch of pink around the neck 

to add a bit more pink, although, this may be hard to see on the picture. 

 

I sewed this cute flannette into a good size blanket.  

Will be a great gift for someone I know who had a baby girl!

Bubbling

My creative side has been bubbling inside my brain for the last little while. 
Soooo many ideas, so little time.  I've spent a few mornings with my daughter at the fabric store getting inspired.  I've also spent too much time on other blogs getting many ideas.   

To get myself started, I created a shirt for my nephew who turned one. 

I just pinned the guitar shape onto the t-shirt (lots of pins) and did a zig-zag stitch around the entire shape.  I added straight stitching down the centre to create strings on the guitar.  I liked how it turned out, especially for this being my first try at sewing onto a t-shirt.  The hard part was actually finding a plain white t-shirt. 

I'm getting inspired...stay tuned!

A Few More Camping Pics...

Camping 2009

We had a great camping experience this past week. Not as much rain as they had forecast, so our spirits weren't dampened. This was the first full week of camping we have done since the kids were born. Well, actually, I think it's the first full week of camping for us ever! It helped that we were able to borrow a pop-up trailer that someone so generously offered. It made it a bit easier than a tent. Here are a few pics of our fun week!

Love of a Lifetime

15 years ago today, I married my best friend! WOW!

Here are a few pictures to remember when...

Spring on the Farm

More pictures, as requested! :D

Faith boating...

Little lamb...

And, just a few random photos...

Canoe Trip

This past Sunday afternoon, we spent the afternoon with friends canoeing down the Thames River. The kids loved it and it was so beautiful. The weather was perfect.

Me and Kathy (not very flattering, I know)

Faith sat between me and Kathy.

The Thames River

Tom & Dan (and Haden) in the canoe and Holly being pulled by me & Kathy

Garrett in the other "dingy" being pulled by Tom & Dan (and Haden)

We even managed to see two bald eagles sitting in a tree.

We were moving so quickly at that point I just managed to get a picture of the one.

If you look closely you can see the beak of the other just a bit below the visible eagle.

So cool. First time for all of us seeing a wild bald eagle.

Mud Walk

Today was a great day for a mud walk.

Garrett went thru 2 pairs of boots. They had fun getting their boots stuck in the gushy mud and trying to get them out again.

Hockey

Hockey is a BIG part of our life. One hockey highlight was when Garrett got to have a turn being goalie for his team. He was thrilled and had all the right moves...

Pep talk before the game.

Leading the team to the ice.

Practicing his stance.

Saving a goal.

Just being a goalie.

Happy 2009!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

What are You Eating?!?!

Ever thought you'd eat a tractor?!?!??

Now, I can't take credit for this design. A wife of one of Tom's customer's gave him one for Christmas. So, on the weekend, I braved the Christmas crowd at the Bulk Barn (which wasn't too bad) and found all the chocolates I needed!

Now, if you know your tractors, you are usually a green tractor fan or a red tractor fan. So, to keep everyone happy I made some of each!

Snow Day

Today is a kid's dream come true...a snow day before Christmas holidays start.

While the snow falls and blows and drifts, I've managed to keep my kids busy enough that I don't think they've even whined once!

Here's how we managed to fill half of our snow day...

Christmas Card ball

Candycane cookies (and wreaths and a ladder..not sure why the ladder).