feeling Halloween-y

It's not even October yet and already I am so excited for Halloween! I used to not like this holiday very much, in fact as a child it terrified me. But over the years I've come to appreciate the concept of it- good rotten fun :) Who doesn't like candy, jack-o-lanterns, and all things spooky? (not to be confused with "creepy". anything that is "creepy" I still don't like). Plus orange is one of my favorite colors :)

Aside form making delicious chocolate-chip zucchini bread, I've gotten a head start on some Halloween crafts. They aren't fancy, and very low budget. Honestly I probably wouldn't have done any of these if it weren't for my Silhouette! love that beastly machine :)

Halloween Board:

Vinyl Pumpkins:

Just ask my husband, I pretty much spend all my free "crafty time" playing with the many functions and online images that the Silhouette SD has to offer. Sometimes I want to throw it against the wall (not really) because I am so fed up with the program and other times I want to kiss it and pat its top :) I really love that I can help my friends with projects and think of new ones constantly. Before this new baby comes I'm trying to get as many projects done as I can...but I still have a toddler to take care of now so that may or may not happen.

Speaking of our little tot, I've been trying to get him just as excited for Halloween. I can just see him giving me a look of confusion and disgust when I put his costume on him later, so to get him used to the idea we played a little dress-up :)

(This isn't THE costume. It's just for fun!)

Come on, October- get here already!

baby, crafts...the usual :)

In just a few weeks we'll find out what we're having, and I am seriously very excited! Jonathan hopes boy, so that Talmage can have a little brother close in age and they can do boy stuff together :) It would be ideal, because I've always wanted at least two boys. A little girl would be wonderful too, and completely new to me. I would have no idea what to do with a girl, but I'm sure it would be a learning process!

I'm feeling pretty good these days, but still nauseous if I don't eat (which isn't usually a problem...) For some reason I get the most dizzy when I'm grocery shopping, and a few times I've had to find somewhere to sit and put my head down. I don't know why this happens, but it usually passes with a snack. You can bet I always have food in my bag :)

Probably the most exciting news is that I have been feeling little jolts and kicks from peanut for the last few weeks. They get stronger every few days, and now even Jonathan can feel them. I forgot how neat it was to feel those first kicks...unfortunately I do remember how painful they become further on in the pregnancy...

The worst symptoms are by far BACK PAIN like none other and being so tired all the time. I didn't have this kind of back pain with Talmage until the very end...so little peanut must be putting lots of pressure in just the right spot. Thankfully, my sweet husband has been very generous with massages! I love him :)

To pass the time I've been working on a few fall projects. Autumn always inspires me to be crafty because I am in love with the colors, smells, food, and just everything that comes with the season.

"I'm a big boy now"

Even though I had hoped Talmage would stay my baby forever, watching him grow up sure is a hoot. Here are just a few of the things he has been up to lately...

A few days ago Jonathan was watching T while I was at a meeting, and when I came back he said, "Something AMAZING happened." I was like, "OH! What?!" He then told me that while he thought our son was sleeping soundly in his crib, he heard a crashing of toys on the floor in Talmage's bedroom. Sure enough, our little monkey had climbed OUT of his crib unharmed and had begun to wreck havoc with his toys. Once Talmage understood that he could do this, it didn't stop. All night long he was getting out and banging on the door or playing with toys. We weren't sure how he was doing it because the crib mattress was already set at the lowest position...so I went in there while he was awake in the crib, took his favorite giraffe (Spot), put it on the floor and said, "Okay, Talmage, come get Spot." That didn't work, so then I pulled out the blocks and said, "Play with these blocks!" and that did the trick...He pulled himself up using the corner of his crib, suspended his entire body on the top bar, then slid his legs down slowly and gently on the floor. He clapped for himself, then waddled over to the blocks. Ah ha.

So, we knew that the safest option was to convert his crib to a toddler bed. This was not something I anticipated doing at 17 months, but what other choice did we have? One of those times he could very easily "land" wrong and really hurt himself. That night I put pillows all around his crib- just in case.

The next day we took the side down, baby-proofed his room from top to bottom (not an easy task), and prepared ourselves for a long, hard journey. The first time in his big boy bed was a mid-day nap, and after 2 1/2 hours, I walked in to find him standing in front of his bed with his head on the mattress, crying in exhaustion and frustration. He was actually tired enough to let me rock him to sleep. Not what I had imagined, but at least he was in there!

As the days passed each naptime got a little easier, but not by much. It is a really tiring process but well worth it once he finally conks out :) A lot of times we will find him asleep in front of the door (trying to look out through the crack) or in some other strange position...

I also learned that this age is a common time to switch to a toddler bed. Lots of people are doing it! Who knew? I would have kept him in the crib forever :D

He is learning to say more words, too: hi, shoes, juice, ee-ee (monkey), and uh-oh. For the longest time he wasn't verbal at all, just signing everything. So its pretty fun to teach him how to sound out real words! He also has some new signs: hurt, sorry, and big fish. He signs to Wheels On The Bus, Head Shoulders Knees & Toes, and Itsy Bitsy Spider. I can't even believe how much of it he absorbs...

And the last big achievement (wish I had a video of this one)..HE CAN EAT WITH UTENSILS! He's not a pro but the food generally ends up in his mouth one way or another...

Each day is something new. It sure is fun to be this boys momma :)


**edit** OH! I almost forgot! Talmage is in nursery now! That really makes him seem older...but he loves it and so do I :)

one sad little sicky

For the last month or so Talmage has been sick. It's been so tough on him AND on us. Here is what happened.

It started out as a simple respiratory infection. Just clear running snot and some trouble sleeping (sorry, but it is what it is). I didn't go to the doctor because I knew he didn't need antibiotics- just home remedies. For the most part I was right, but what I didn't know was that it was soon developing into something worse.

As his symptoms got more intense (fever, wet cough, general misery), we took him to the doc and were told that he had a double ear infection and the beginnings of bronchitis. According to the doctor, this was most likely the aftermath of the infection, and unlike the first stage this part DID need antibiotics- which we were all too grateful for. He drank the pink bubble-gum stuff for 10 days and seemed to be getting much better.

A few days later, his cough came back- this time very hollow and dry. His snot was yellow-green (again, sorry...) and this was worrisome. I decided to drag him back to the doctor and see what was up. That was this morning. Apparently, whatever bug Talmage has is not the typical bug that can be cured with one round of meds. He needs the stronger prescription that most kids at his age never have to take. His ears are still slightly infected, and the rest of the symptoms are in full swing. My poor baby...he has suffered through this for so long now. I just want it to be over.

Thankfully, our prayers have not gone unanswered. Though a speedy recovery hasn't been in the works, Talmage has remained generally happy (at least during the day) and been his normal goofy self. This has taken some of the stress off...and well needless to say he has been spoiled rotten because of how bad I feel for him. He can pretty much have whatever he wants...(except too much sugar of course!)

Mountain Air Vacation: part 2

For the last half our trip we headed 2 hours west to a beautiful little town called Garden Valley. Jonathan spent a lot of his childhood here, learning to fly fish and falling in love with the river. Its also where he took me for our honeymoon in the wintertime, and the snow was completely untouched- sparkling and beautiful. His uncle lives in GV taking ownership to the Merc, cabin company, and most of the town. He is also the owner of the Sawtooth Lodge in Grand Jean- our first destination. He treated us to this entire vacation and we are very grateful!! We are truly blessed to be so spoiled :)

For the last few nights, Jonathan's family came up and stayed with us. The cabin was much too big for us to have all to ourselves! We had such a good time with the clan, just taking it easy.

McBride Creek Cabin, GARDEN VALLEY:

at the cabin
(I didn't get pictures of everything, but these were the exciting features)

hot tub :)

the view from the balcony was gorgeous!

just eating some grapes

the Payette River

see that red roof?^^^ that was our cabin! It was so close to the water!

floating down the Payette...

attempting to pose...not my most flattering pic. haha.

I miss you already, GV...can't wait to go back sometime!

Mountain Air Vacation: part 1

We just got back in Rexburg from our 10 day vacation. It was a blast! But I am glad to be home in my own super comfy bed :)

It was pretty eventful (and relaxing) so instead of going into detail I'll just post the pics from each place we were at. I also have a TON of pics so I broke it up into two parts. These are all from Grand Jean- the first half of our vacation.

warning: did I mention there were lots of pictures? I got a little camera happy...

Sawtooth Lodge, GRAND JEAN:

at the cabin

at the geothermal pool

pretty spot off the nature trail

at the hot springs

at Bull Trout

at Marsh Creek (Jonathan's favorite fishing spot in Idaho)

I didn't get any pictures of Stanley...but its a touristy river town about an hour away. There were some fun shops there and an art festival. Oh, and expensive gas :)

Overall we loved our time in this little mountainous haven. Its in the middle of nowhere but has so much to offer. And we felt like we were camping, because we cooked most of our food on a camp stove, roasted marshmallows under the stars (SO many stars!!), and had to filter all our water. The luxuries we had though were welcomed...beds, a shower & toilet, and wood stove to keep us toasty at night. So basically it was glorified camping. I think we were the only guests too, because everyone was waiting to come down for Labor Day weekend. So we had all the space to ourselves :) There is a diner at the Sawtooth Lodge, too, but to save money we only ate there the last night. Let me tell you, it was DELICIOUS. It's kind of funny because both times I've visited Grand Jean I've been pregnant, and both times I've felt completely at ease about continuing the pregnancy and having a baby. Maybe its the calm quiet of nature?