Selling Ties

I had quite a few people ask if I would sell the ties. That wasn't my plan originally, but why not? I'm going to sell them for $6-8 depending on the size (infant/toddler/older boy). If you want to provide the fabric it will be $5 for us to make it. This is great to get matching ties for your boys or I think they make awesome baby shower gifts! Let me know if you're interested ;)

The Best Babysitter

Amy babysits Vance once a week. We live REALLY far apart from each other. For awhile I took him to a babysitter closer to our house, but he LOVES going to Aunt Amy's house. I finally decided it was selfish of me to have him go to the other sitter's house if he really wanted to be at Amy's while I was at work.

The boys play really well together. Sometimes she takes pictures of the boys and sends them to me. It makes me so happy to know he is having so much fun! It does make me a little sad thinking I am not there having fun with him.

I don't love working 4 days a week, but hopefully it won't be too long before I can go down to 2 or 3. 2 or 3 days a week is perfect to me - a little break without feeling like I'm gone all the time. Also now that Chad works weekends it means he spends more time without either of us. Right now Chad is home Mondays, my mom has him Wednesdays, Amy has him Thursdays, and I am home Fridays. I need to figure out what to do with him on Tuesdays still. For the summer time I have benn hiring my nieces, but I'm not sure what I'm going to do when they go back to school.

Sometimes I worry about the effects that me working may have on Vance, but with my AMAZING sister and mom helping out I know he might be having more fun with them when I'm at work than he does when I'm home ;) Plus I like to think I'm a more loving, fun, patient mom when I have a little time to myself - even if that time away means me working. When I get home from work I try my best to be completely devoted to having fun and interacting with Vance. I have 4 or 5 hours before bedtime and I honestly try to spend the majority of that time playing "hands-on" with Vance. The two of us have so much fun together! I hope I'm always the kind of mom who wants to get down on the floor and play with their kids and actually go swimming with them instead of watching from the sidelines.

Don't take this post the wrong way! I absolutely love being a mom and all the joys (and even stresses) that come with it. However I also like the feeling of having an identity outside of being a mom and the feeling of contributing monetarily. I love you Vance and truly cherish all the time we spend together!!!

This post turned into something that I wasn't really planning on writing about, but sometimes rambling is therapeutic so there you go!

Homemade Ties

My sister and I got together to make some ties for our boys (the picture makes them look huge but they are really toddler size). I feel like the only time you can find cute ties for little boys is at Easter (when everything is pastel) or Christmas (when everything is black and red). I think Amy got so sick of me complaining she decided to help me do something about it!

We went to Joanns and got everything we needed and then went to work at her house. I was the designated cutter and ironer. Amy did all the sewing. We made SO many ties. In one evening we finished 15 ties and cut the fabric for another 36! We plan on keeping a lot for ourselves, but we did have some extra fabric which gave us the idea of baby shower presents. If you have a baby boy sometime soon you know what I'll be getting you ;)

Thanks Amy for getting the project started. I LOVE THEM!

Chocolate's Power

My sister Leslie LOVES chocolate ice cream. My mom and dad almost always have some in the freezer. Leslie gets it out every time and has a little. She doesn't need a whole bowl - just a spoonful or two. One of the many things I love about her is what happens when she eats chocolate ice cream. Just getting the ice cream out of the freezer puts a little smile on her face. As soon as she takes that first bite you can literally see the stress and worry leave her body. The ice cream melts her worries away. It is so cute/funny to watch! After the second bite she kind of waves the spoon around almost like she is a choir director. I like to think of it as her "ice cream dance."
Leslie I love you and your obsession with chocolate ice cream!

Sutton Family Party

This month Amy and I were in charge of the Sutton Family Party, so we planned it at the park right by my house. Chad and I LOVE this park. We try to go at least 2 or 3 times a week (weather permitting).

We started off with a BBQ and then turned everyone loose to go play whatever they wanted. The guys played a little horseshoes. Shocking! (sense the sarcasm)The kids went digging in the sand volleyball courts.

Rocky just observed. His rude owners wouldn't let him off the leash.

These are the people who decided to be cheerleaders instead of play. I'm not complaining - more hands to help with Vance ;)

Maddie and me took on Laurie and Laurie in a tennis match.

I'm not going to tell you who won because it's a little embarrassing to lose to your almost 50 year old aunts. Next time we'll get them Maddie!

Of course no trip to the park is complete without a game of dodgeball. Things got a little intense, but I think everyone had fun.

It was fun to play together as a family. Thanks everyone for making the drive out to our neck of the woods!

Aspen

I've been wanting to try taking pictures of somebody. I'm not trying to be a photographer by any means, but I just think it looks like fun. I convinced my nieces to be my subjects. I told them they could spend the night, I would do their hair and make-up, and then I would take pictures of them. The only thing they had to do for me was watch Vance while I took the pictures. They were all really excited. For my first time I think they turned out okay. Remember - I'm not (nor am I trying to be) a professional.

I'm going to do a post for each of the girls separately because I have so many pictures. Here's Aspen -

Kelsie

My photo shoot with Kelsie -

Isn't she beautiful? My nieces are gorgeous!