April #2 Baptism Dress and Other Springtime Projects

April is a busy month at least this year it was. It's the beginning of spring and it seems to be when I start to kick off tons of projects as the lazy winter drudge wears off. This year Kiera is turning 8! It's so exciting to think about that. And with all that comes birthday plans AND a baptism! I decided I wanted to make her baptism dress for her special day and it just so happened at about the time I decided that was my plan, my mother-in-law Shellie called up and said she was getting rid of her wedding dress and wanted to know if I'd be interested in it for anything. !!!!Um, YES! So that is how the wedding dress makeover began.

I had made a baby blessing dress before out of my old temple dress, so I figured I could do the same thing but only make a baptism dress this time. But man oh man was that first cut nerve wracking! There was no turning back after that. So I cut the dress up and seam ripped the sleeves off, the zipper and the trim to reuse again. I reused just about EVERYTHING including the lining fabric.

It came together wonderfully and I LOVE it! The skirt is in alternating panels of lace and solid satin, lace and solid satin all the way around with a sheer overlay. It is gorgeous! I then made a white sash and attached a clip on flower for my little girl.

I am looking forward to taking her picture in it and love that its made from her grandma's dress.

We made bunny sack puppets for FHE one night. We love doing craft projects for Family Night!

Our latest venture has been one that Dan actually started. He decided he wanted a hobby that paid for itself so he came up with the idea to make outdoor cedar furniture to sell. This was our first bench. It turned out so great I am sad to know that it will probably have to go as soon as someone buys it. (UPDATE: we've sold 3 of these benches now).

Easter time! Time to color the eggs!

The Eggs after they were done. I think my favorites were the minion and the green Harry Potter eggs that Dan made.

April showers bring May flowers right? Well...they also bring veggies from the garden, and this year I decided I wanted to expand the garden a bit more. So I went to Lowes and got some cedar fencing and pine furring. I found a free plan online at anawhite.com for some garden boxes and ended up making 5 of them. I built them all by myself too! I just built them over a couple days and waited for Dan to come home to move them and fill them with some garden soil I had delivered. 

I added one box next to my already existing garden boxes and the other 4 went on the other side of the house. I stapled some weed barrier to the insides and the guys filled them up (Dan and "uncle" Ben). Now to get planting!

Aren't they lovely?

speaking of lovely....This is another Pinterest project I got us into. We made 3 hanging planters out of vinyl gutters and some cable wires. I can't wait for the flowers to start hanging and cascading over the edges to create a flower wall!

Being pregnant does something to me in that I get bored too easily. This fact was proven the other night while I was talking on the phone with my sister and decided I wanted a haircut. But rather than scheduling a hair appt I decided to do it myself!? This was a picture of my first attempt but about 10 mins later I decided it wasn't short enough so.......

This is the point when I start to panic!!!!!! What am I thinking?

Holy Smokes! Yep being pregnant does something to me. But I love it!

For another FHE I had been collecting #10 cans so the kids could plant their own veggies or flowers. So after some construction paper tulips and some glitter all pasted on we went to work. The kids ended up planting marigolds and carrots. (UPDATE: The kids' little plants have come up and it is so fun to see their excitement as they watch their seedlings grow). Happy Spring!

April Tiptoe Through the Tulips

Alert! Photo Overload! So this post will mostly be photos since there is only so much commentary I can do on a trip to the tulip fields. However, I do want to say that I love living in a place where we have these traditions. And a trip to the Tulip festival is one of my favorites in that it is a great chance for me to get some awesome family pictures taken without a single complaint. Sure it's a fun outing and day trip, but for me it's all about the pictures I can get! Springtime family photo session? CHECK!

 

But no trip to the tulips is complete without a trip to the Snow Goose Farmers Market for some ice cream cones. No matter the weather! We lucked out though and got to see the tulips rain free! And as soon as we were done and on our way home the rain came. Can you say perfect timing?! No muddy boots, no wet soggy hair or cold toes, just happy mom, happy kids, and a good time together as a family.

March #4 Trip to Boise

In March we took a family trip to Boise. We decided it'd be best to go earlier in the year since by summer time I would be too far along in the pregnancy to want to take a 8+ hour road trip. 

I was HORRIBLE at taking pictures on this trip. I guess I just got caught up in the moments instead of trying to document it all. Especially since we were there for almost an entire week. But we had a lot of fun while we were there. We got to see my mom (Grandma Tutu), brother Nathan, and my sister Kayla with her baby Alexis (she flew up from Colorado). We saw my Grandma Thornock, my cousins and my Aunt Melanie and Uncle Greg (they let us stay at their house for the week which was sooo nice too since my mom's house was a bit crowded with Kayla and Alexis staying there). We also paid a visit to a few others while we were there. It was good to be home for a little while.

We stopped by The Alps candy store just out of Leavenworth on our way. It has become tradition for the kids to get a big lollipop for the car trip. Ethan didn't want his picture taken. He was a bit grumpy but you can see his hand behind Kiera's shoulder in the top picture.

It was soooo good to see family again! I have been wanting to see my cousins and aunts and uncles for some time. But I really wanted to see my Grandma Thornock. Living so far away, I always worry that the last visit I see her may be my last. I love her so much!

Grandma Thornock with Baby Alexis. Isn't she the cutest little chunk you ever did see?!

Grandma and the kids. I hope she gets to meet our little one on the way too!

We were spoiled a bit by some old family friends (Dale and Kathi Lee) who let us come over and go horseback riding. The kids have probably ridden a horse more times in their life than I ever did by now. I wanted to get on for a ride soooo bad but decided it'd probably be best if this pregnant mom stayed on the ground this time. 

Isn't she the cutest! Well...both of them actually. Love you Kayla and Alexis!

  

We took our guns with us this time and took my brother Nathan and my sister Kayla out shotgun shooting in the middle of nowhere. Gotta love Idaho for that! It was fun to watch my lil sister shoot the shotgun. It was as big as she was. But for her first time she did pretty darn good. I really wish I had more pictures. Nathan shot my Grandpa's old gun and Dan and I tried our hand and throwing the skeet/clay targets (lets just say that throwing is NOT my forte). But don't you think we look HOT in our safety gear? That should count for something.

One highlight of the trip for me was our spa day for some pedicures. It was just for the girls! My mom, my sister, my Aunt Beverly, Grandma Thornock, my cousins Autumn, Courtney, Kelsey, and our kids, Kiera, Emma, Riley, and Leighton. It was so fun to see everyone lined up at the spa getting their toes done. It's times like these that make me miss being so close to my family.

It was a good trip and I think the perfect length of time too. My pregnant belly was ready for my own bed again. So until next time...

March #3 Projects and Random Fun Times

Spring is starting to come around! We have been having spurts of warmer weather and we are excited for lots of outdoor fun. Can't wait to get the garden in and enjoy the sunshine! But to keep busy while it is still a bit rainy I decided to get myself into trouble again and start some more big projects that I have been wanting to try. The first one is to create some lighting for our covered deck out back. I saw the idea on Pinterest. I the idea to one of my boards awhile ago and showed Dan one night as we were sitting around bored. And much to my surprise said, "lets do it." ???!!?! What? Really?!

So before he could change his mind we went out to the home depot or lowes and picked up supplies during one of our date nights. We got some brown extention cords, so light bulb assemblies and some short PVC pipe fittings. I had the spray paint, and the jars and lids already. And that weekend we got to work. It took a couple days but it wasn't long til my vision came to be and now we have some awesome lighting out back. They are so pretty all lit up and night and I can't wait to host an evening party out there when it gets warmer!

This month Dan and I started our pinewood derby cars that we'll be using to compete against each other in our wards annual "Hot Rods and Dogs" elders quorum activity. I decided to go with a jungle type theme this year and am calling her "The Hatari" (its from an old John Wayne movie). Dan made a Bad Piggies car from the game that stemmed from the original Angry Birds.  They are pretty awesome. But I know mine is going to win!

One evening for FHE we took the kids down to the end of the street to fly some airplanes we picked up at the Hobby Lobby. It was a little chilly but not bad. And the kids loved it!

This little girl is my little diva! She loves to dress up and pose for the camera. Love her!

Our Friend's Ben and Kara (lovingly referred to and Aunt Kara and Uncle Ben) had their little boy a little bit ago and they came over the other night for some dinner and games. Here's Dan holding the lil guy. Look at how much more weight he has lost too! Go Dan Go! Oh and BTW he won the Biggest Looser competition! Was pretty cool to win $1000 for his efforts! And he's decided to enter the next competition as well to see if he can win another $1000.

Anyone who knows me well, know that I hate brass! I do not like that shiny gold metal at all. So what does one do when her living room light fixture makes her cringe whenever she turns it on but doesn't want to spend a ton of money on a new one? She spray paints it of course! I took it apart and sprayed that brass away with my Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint I had in my garage and wha la! Good as new if not better! And I didn't have to spend a dime!

It has been a LONG time since I have made homemade bread. And with our Hot Rods and Dogs competition coming up where I will also be competing in the chili cook off and bread making contest I decided to brush up on my skills and practice a little. I decided to make my Braided Swiss Bread that I learned how to make in my baking class in college. Lets just say it didn't last long.

Here's a peek at my baby bump. I am officially showing and am getting comments and questions on when I am due when I am out and about.