NeW {news}

Well, a few months have come and gone since I logged in here and updated the ol' blog! Needless to say things have been busy in our household!

Lets back up to the wonderful day of June 30, 2012. We welcomed our sweet Lillian into the world. She came into this world weighing a whopping 8lbs 12oz. She sure wanted to make her sweet presence known, with her precious little {baby rolls.}

My delivery was nothing short of perfect and beautiful. I had my heart set on a natural delivery this time around. We arrived at the hospital a little after 5AM, after a night of constant and steady contractions. I was checked by the nurse, and admitted at 4cm dialated. From then on it was just a waiting game that was full of contractions, waiting for my body to keep progressing into the various stages of labor. And progress it did! ( A little slower than I was hoping for! ) With each new stage of labor I wanted to talk myself out of this natural delivery thing, and get the anesthesiologist in there ASAP to get me out of the misery I had out myself in. B U T I kept trucking right along. And I say "I" very loosely. "We" kept trucking right along. I had the most amazing team standing right by my side the entire time. My husband was right at my head the entire time, counting me through my contractions, while I beared down and squeezed the ever lovin' daylight out of his hand. He never once left my side. I have said it a million times since then, and I will continue to say it, he was the best birthing coach a woman could ask for. He was everything I needed that day, and more.

My amazing sister was on my other side offering the most beautiful words of encouragement, and soaking me down with wet towels as I was sweating my way through my contractions. It was such a beautiful thing to see her serve me in such a way. Once the actual delivery took place, my sister stepped back and put on her photographer hat. She captured the first precious moments of sweet Lillian's life.

My mom had come to my house the night before we went to the hospital, and sat with David and I through all of my contractions,  writing them down to see how far apart they were. At the hospital she sat back and watched the beauty of a grandchild be born, and the pain of seeing one of her children in an intense amount of pain. My mom was a rock the entire time! She knew my hearts desire to have a natural delivery and she kept me focused on the prize.

After many hours of  blood, sweat and tears, it was time to push,......and in  6 pushes, Lillian was born. I will back up for a minute here and say, my dr walked into the room literally 1 min before my first push. I can vividly remember the sound of the nurses and my husband telling me not to push yet. It took every fiber of my being to resist the urge to push.  I could feel her bearing down lower and lower with each contraction. Once she was out, the cord was cut and she was placed directly into my arms. She was perfect and beautiful all 8lbs 12oz of her.  


Fast forward to today....

Here she is at 8 weeks old! Weighing in at 12 lbs 8oz.  She is such a sweet little girl full of lots of baby {grins} and {baby rolls.} Watching our family go from a family of 3, to a family of 4 has been such a sweet blessing to this momma's heart. The way Ava loves her baby sister has been beautiful to watch. I was a bit skeptical of how it would look with my girls being 5 years apart, but it has been wonderful. Having Ava old enough to be a true helper and learn what it means to truly serve someone else has been a great experience.

I can't wait to see what else the Lord has in store for us with this sweet baby. I just can't get enough of her chubby cheeks and her baby blue eyes! 

{sweet grins}

On another exciting note.........it finally happend! 

Ava turned 5. 

and.........

   She started Kindergarten. I told her she was not allowed to do this, but she went ahead and did it anyway. She is in her second week of school and has loved every minute of it. Her teacher is A M A Z I N G!!! I could go on,  and on about her teacher, but I will put it to you this way, the woman is full of spunk and passion at 63 years young, and can stand on her head!! She said she will not retire till she can't stand on her head anymore! See who wouldn't love a kindergarten teacher who can stand on her head!  I am beyond excited to get to watch Ava experience Kindergarten. 

These years with this precious one have flown by! What is it they say...with kids the days are long and the years are so short!! So very true. 

I am learning what is means to be a mother of two. The journey has been a bit challenging, but non the less has been one of the biggest growing experiences of my life. I am thankful that our Savior is full of grace and mercy for me on my journey of motherhood. 

That's it for now! I have some baby rolls to go squeeze!

We have a {Name}

Well I guess it's about time that we make an official "reveal" of this precious baby girls name! We knew early on what the first name was going to be, but we had a tough time nailing down the middle name. ( odd i know!)

This sweet little bundle of joy  will make her appearance in about less than a month. And we are thrilled. ( especially big sister!)

So here it goes......................................

( this was proudly written by big sister, as she has been practicing how to spell "sissy's" name!)

Lillian Brook Aldape

This sweet girl will share a middle name with her momma! Which I happen to think is super {sweet}.

Precious Lillian, 

You are already loved by so many! We can't wait to meet you, and see who God created your little being to be. Being a mommy to you while you have grown in my belly has already given me such joy. We love you. 

Love, 

Mommy

 

 

:: Crib Mobile ::

As nesting is in full swing over here, I came up with a solution of what to hang over this precious little girls crib without having to settle for a cheesy store bought mobile!

 I have to admit I did not come up with this idea all on my own. I saw a version of this ( a much more expensive 110.00 version)  while visiting some antique shops last weekend! As soon as I saw it, I thought to myself, " I could totally make that!" .........Don't you just love it when that idea pops into your head, and then really you only end up making about 10% of the stuff you say you are going to make! But I just knew that this was my solution for a crib mobile.

The large one will hang over the crib. The small one was made by Ava! This was by far one of my most favorite craft times that I have had with my little girl. She awoke from her nap to see me working on my creation, and decided that she wanted to make one for her baby sister's room too. I just so happened to have a spare little lamp sitting in the garage that was perfect! ( I actually intend to use the small one that Ava made as a little lamp for the room, that will be perfect for nighttime nursing sessions!)

We sat side by side with praise and worship music playing, crafting our little hearts out. I highly recommend this craft for little ones! She did this completely on her own, with the exception of me cutting the fabric strips. As long as they can tie a knot and thread button on some string they can handle this! 

I know this may not be everyone's style, but I love how they turned out!


....On another note I scored something that I happen to just be smitten over thanks to THIS awesome gal! Thanks Robin!

We are in the process of making a school room/area for Ava as she starts Kindergarten in Aug. No we are not homeschooling, however the school that she will go to is half day, so there is still some school work that we will practice from home.

I can't wait till we get this area done and the chalk board moved into the house, rather than the garage. 

Happy Saturday! We are heading outside to enjoy this beautiful day.

{Milk glass}

I headed out last Saturday morning with  my little chickadee and my mom to hit a few garage sales! And tho it was cold and rainy I managed to find one sale that definitely did not disappoint.

We pulled up and I could just feel it.....this was my type of stuff. Call me old fashioned or what have you, but I love digging through some of "granny's" stuff! If you know what I mean. And dig away I did, through all of the needlepoint and doily cuteness! ( yes those things are precious to me and are a lost art!) I found some precious pieces to use in the girls' rooms! Along with an adorable milk glass lamp!


When I went up to the front to pay for my precious bounty....I began talking to the little lady! I had a set of six milk glass cups that I was going to buy and she began asking me if I was a dealer. Come to find out  this lady and her husband were dealers, and she told me of all their travels and where they would go to find "stuff" .....yada yada yada! I began to tell her that I had hopes and dreams of one day being a "junker" myself and that I am constantly just passing stuff up that would be great stuff to sale, but that I can't possible buy everything that I see because I don't have the room! I explained that I didn't feel this was the right season of life to pursue a career as a "professional junker" mainly because of my young-ens!


This sweet gem of a lady looked at me and said "there is something I want you to have to go along with your cups! "

She got up went in to her kitchen, and came back out with something that made my heart sing! A beautiful milk glass pitcher that went with my cups! She had pulled this out of her kitchen cabinets to give to me. She told me that it belonged to her grandmother, and she just never could part with it, but she insisted that I have it. I was stunned. I mean when someone tells you that something belonged to their grandmother and insists that you have it.....it pretty well leaves you speechless! I insisted on NOT taking it because ....well it was here grandmothers for pete's sake! ........But she wrapped it up and placed it in my box with the rest of my stuff.


The sweet lady encouraged me to chase my dream, and that the right season will come a long for me to pursue it. I have always felt that in my heart, but it was just sweet coming from this sweet little stranger.

I dream of the life of a professional junker! I am a frequent visitor at MANY estate sales and auctions and such. My mom and I just kind of laugh because we are at these sales with the same people week in and week out that have shops and such of their own. And here we are just doing it for the thrill of what we can find!

I know that one day if it is meant to be then my dream will naturally just flourish into something beautiful that fits right into our family life. But until then..... I think I will just wait!

But when sweet Granny gives you something that she insist on you having......just humble yourself and take it! I am thankful for these kind of people that I cross at these sales I go to, because it is just constant reassurance to me that this passion of mine will someday come to life in the right season!

 

We've been {painting}

....painting by numbers that is! I recently re-discovered the beauty of paint by number pictures, not to mention the relaxation in brings to this momma during her "down time!" Ha, but really what is down time when the duties of running a home are ongoing and never ending. There is always a load of laundry to fold, a dishwasher to unload and floor that needs mopped, etc! BUT putting  all of the chores aside, I decided a few weeks ago that I wanted/needed something to do that would bring me relaxation and satisfaction.

I have always been drawn to the beauty of paint by number pictures on my treasure hunts at various garage sales and thrift stores. It crossed my mind the other day that painting by numbers could very well bring me the relaxation and satisfaction that I was seeking. I went to good ol' Hobby Lobby and who knew ....they have paint by number kits! I also purchased Ava a children's paint by number so  she could work right alongside momma.

I was very impressed when Ava sat for a very long time concentrating on her little piece of art, making sure she had ever inch of white space filled in with the appropriate color. I am all about finding activities for kiddos that help develop a good attention span! I would HIGHLY recommend this activity for kiddos! I had very low expectations of her completing her painting....but once again she surprised me! ( she has a way of doing this! )

I never want to forget these precious little hands, and how they gripped that paintbrush so tight making sure she didn't mess up.


I will say on the adult paint by number....you will open it up and think "oh my goodness!" I need a magnifying glass to see all of these millions of tiny little numbers! But once you get going, and focus on a little section at a time it's easy peasy!  

This is what I have completed so far! Let me just start by saying I am by no means any type pf artist! That is what is great about paint by numbers. As long as you can follow directions, you can paint a beautiful piece of art. I impressed myself. This is coming from a momma  who draws a dog for her kiddo only for her to ask "what is that?"

I knew whatever I painted, I wanted to incorporate into Ava's new big girl room. ( She is switching rooms, so she can give her room to her baby sister!) When I saw this floral print at HL, I knew it would fit perfectly with the "vintage" girl room I had in mind for her. I am all about finding the sentiment in small things, and I am hopeful that this is something that Ava will treasure.

.......on another note! As a true thrift-er at heart, this is by far one of my favorite times of year. Spring time is when I normally find my best treasures of the year, thanks to the many garage sales, flea markets and antique festivals.

My sister and I ventured out to the quaint little town of Round Top, for a day of city wide garage sales. And they did not disappoint! Is it just me, or is everything that happens in Round Top just the absolute best or what!!! It is such a GEM of a town.

Here is part of my "vintage" bounty for Ava's room! I can't wait till the board and batten, and painting are done in her room, so I can move on with the decorating part. ( I think Ava is a girl after her momma's own heart, because I think she is as excited as me about this!) She loved looking at all of the vintage pretties that I brought home for her new room.

Happy almost Spring to you! ......now go buy you a paint by number, you know you want to! Really I challenge you to find the inner artist in you!

vALenTiNe'S

This year I decided to keep Ava's Valentines for her class more on the "simple" side! Don't get me wrong, I love sitting down and crafting something cute, and perhaps over the top, but this year for the sake of time, we went the simple route! And she is still pleased as punch at the end result. I loved the Valentine's we made last year, but simplicity was my goal this year! And simple it was we had these whipped out in about 5 min for the whole class.

I found some very cute store bought ( shame on me!) Crayola themed Valentines and taped them to a box of Crayons. What kiddo can't use a new box of unbroken and sharp crayons! I didn't want to go  the candy route this year because, let's face it the amount of candy they come home with is insane, and with Ava's sensitivity to red dye there is really not a lot of Valentine candy she can eat.So crayon's it was!

As for me and the hubby's Valentine's, we have also decided low key is our motto. I actually am not a sucker for the marketing hype that Valentine's Day has become in the secular world, HOWEVER I do love to celebrate those that I love and most of all my Savior's love for me on Valentine's Day. David and I picked out a "Labor of  Love" project to do together this year for Valentine's Day. ( thanks to Pinterest I had a lot of help picking out a project) ;) ........that will be revealed at a later date. I am super excited because it is something I have been wanting to make for a LONG time!

I hope your Valentine's Day is filled with lots of  love!


But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,
Psalm 33:18

{It's A........}

Friday we had a fun gender reveal session to reveal the gender of the next baby Aldape!!

We met our talented photographer ( my sis!) at the local carnival to get some fun pics of the BIG reveal! Ava got the privilege of opening the top secret envelope and being the first to know the big secret.

Ava broke the news to us using pink OR blue cotton candy!! She was absolutely precious, and such a big girl. And she is pretty smitten that she will have a little sister to share life with!

I love all of these fun and special pictures we captured to celebrate this sweet baby girl! (Thanks sis) AND we are beyond excited to welcome a new little pink bundle of joy into our family.

 

This picture perfectly captures how big sis feels about having a little sister!