SCRAPS

So heres the thing. If you are loyal to my blog, you read my last post re: my obsession. Well its getting worse as it has begun to cost me more and more to do these little projects of mine. So I am going to try something new. I am looking for fabric scraps. I dont care where they come from, I dont care if I have to pay a small amount for them. I just want scraps. I emailed some friends who I thought may have had some ideas, but nobody really seems to know so I have now opened up my query to the world. I want fabric scraps. Where do I find them? I am not talking about fat quarters, or remnants either. I am talking left over pieces of fabric from someone elses project. Where can I get them? HELP! Candra, you must know. Right?! Also, I ran into a friend at the fabric store today, go figure, and she made the most adorable Happy Birthday banner. When the latest projects are complete, I will move on to that. SO FUN! Should I start a sewing blog?

HE's A MANIAC

Pre-Haircut: Check out how long this guys hair was!!

Braden is officially a kid. I cant deny it anymore. He has lept beyond the newborn days and is now a full fledged child. I can hardly consider him a baby amidst all these gigantic milestones and tricks that he has so fittingly decided to bust out all at the same time so that I can have an emotional crisis in regards to why he has to grow so dang fast. I took him to his four month check-up yesterday and couldnt help but love him when his response to his first shot was a mere look that said "Hey lady that hurt. What the heck is your problem." And yeah he does have that What the heck is your problem look. It wasnt until the second shot that he cried. So brave. So three weeks ago, Braden weighed 15.7lbs and was 26in long. I wasnt the lease bit surprised but yesterday, I was shocked to hear how much he had grown in that time. 16.8lbs, 27in. What the heck. He is now in the 60% for weight and 90% for height. When will this kid slow down. I am counting on the words of the doc telling me that his growth will slow down as his activity level increases and his food intake stays the same. I cant handle him growing the way he does. Not to mention that he doesnt fit into any of his clothes for more than a week. And all these milestones. I cant even keep up in his journal because too much is going on. First it was his first laugh, then his budding teeth. On Sunday he had his first real roll over onto his belly, Monday his first haircut, which made me cry by the way, then Tuesday he rolled from his back to his tummy to his back to his tummy over and over to the wall. What the heck. Cant we take it slow kid? Wait who am I kidding. This is Braden I am talking about. He isnt interested in the slow lane. So goodbye sweet baby. Hello wild child. I love him to pieces, but really have a hard time dealing with how much he changes and grows up every day.

The coveted mullet; long in the back, short in the front.

He was lucky enough even to be blond on top,

and brown on bottom. Oh YEAH!!

Daddy showing Boo how fun clippers are.

And somehow, he did think it was fun.

I was ready for kicking and screaming,

but this was what we got.

Typical Braden. Love this kid.

My Current Obsession

It all began a few weeks ago at Activity Days. We sewed these darling headbands for the girls and talked about what a great talent sewing can be. It got me thinking of all of the fabric I have sitting around just waiting to be used. I realized that sewing is just another one of those things that I know how to do, but I am not great at. I love sewing, I love creating projects, and have recently come up with some pretty big ideas that may or may not turn out fabulously. I have just had the sewing machine sitting out, just ready for my hours of daily sewing. I made a new blanket for Boo with this adorable cowboy fabric, finally started on his Peter Pan halloween costume, which I wish I had a pattern for because the shoes alone took me 3 hours and 5 tries. It was lame, but I am really happy with how they turned out and I cannot wait to see him in his cute little outfit. So basically all this blog post is saying is that I am obsessed with sewing right now. I spend way too much time at the fabric store, and countless hours searching sewing and fabric blogs. Obsessed much?
COMING SOON ON OUR BLOG:
Bradens 4 Month Milestones and his Wild Life

Apples to Apples

We have decided that instead of sitting around on our Saturdays, we would like to take little Saturday field trips. We began at Apple Hill. Devin and Braden have never been and it is such a part of Autumn in Sacramento, that I didn't want them to miss it. We had such a fabulous time enjoying the beautiful weather and the amazing scenery of Placerville. As always, Braden was a gem, minus the drive home, and he loved being outside and amidst the greenery.

We found out that Braden loves grass as much as Dev does!
Braden hardly wanted to look at us. He was so fascinated by all of the GREEN!!

Since Braden has teeth, he has started to gnaw on everything.

We gave him his first taste of an apple and he loved it. He cried when it was all gone.

The fishing pond

Out of the Woods

About three weeks ago, we took a little trip down to Guatemala to visit Devins parents who are serving a mission there. They got to spend an entire week with Grammy and Grandpa, and we all had a great time together full of late night chats, perfect weather, beautiful surroundings, some great classes at the CCM, and delicious Guatemalan black beans, which I became obsessed with, only to later despise and vow to never eat ever again. The thought even makes me cringe. Anyway, getting there was a bit of a nightmare thanks to our flight being cancelled about twelve hours before we were to depart. Luckily Dev was trooper and figured out how to get us from San Fran to Guatemala and arrive at the exact same time we would have, had things not gone south. Unfortunately we had a 7 hour layover in Mexico City, a destination I will never go to ever again, but got to eat at the delicious McDonalds. A real treat. Braden had a little run in with some crazy lady with no teeth who so graciously kissed him and stuck her dirty ol finger in his mouth. I swore to Devin if Braden ended up with hand foot and mouth, someone would pay. Anyway, Mexico City was a horrific experience, but we made it to Guate and had the time of our lives.

SUNDAY

• Grammy came and took Braden, and Devin and I got to sleep in until almost 11 (we had a 20hr travel day on Saturday, so we deserved a little sleep)


• attended church with the missionaries and felt their sweet spirit, even though Devin had a little bit of a hard time with the translating sometimes


• went to Presidents class where they taught the Latins about their family and about being great missionaries

MONDAY

• Drove to Antigua, an old charming little village, complete with a "Wood Factory", Jade Factory, and plenty of Guatemalan natives


• finally got to get my own wooden apples that are a must have, I cant wait to display them in our new house


• had lunch at a beautiful hotel, the restaurant was basically a covered outdoor-ish place and it poured while we were eating which was so neat
  
  
  

  Notice the cobblestone street, and the colorful buildings. Antigua is a very old city in Guatemala, and the cobblestone is almost everywhere.
  

  

  At the fancy hotel where we had lunch

Braden and his Pal

TUESDAY

• drove to Iximche ruins on our way to Lake Atitlan, enjoyed the history there, and thinking about the way life must have been, the landscapers cut the immense lawn with machetes....really!!



• continued on to Lake Antigua, possible location of the Waters of Mormon; gorgeous, humongous lake

• Devin and I did a sweet zip line course and got to see Monkeys in the wild
  
• enjoyed the beautiful gardens at our quaint hotel where I think maybe 5 rooms were being occupied
  
• took Braden for a little dip in the gigantic pool sized jacuzzi
  
• had precious chat time with Mom and Dad, ate delicious food, and just relaxed
  
  
  

  View of the Iximche Ruins
  Braden sporting his sun blocking turbin, and enjoying his favorite color, GREEN and a rendition of the "tree of life" in the background

Us with our gracious tour guides

I took a quick fall into this pool right at the top of a 20ft waterfall. Dev thought I was a goner.

Atop Lake Atitlan

The view of the lake and one volcano from our hotel room

WEDNESDAY

• traveled across the lake to Santiago Atitlan where we got our first true taste of Guatemalan life


• I fell in love with the people and the simple lives they lead. It made me cry to think of how little they have, but how much they love their lives. I think all of the little Guatemalan ladies in the catholic church where we were thought I was feeling the spirit...


• Met Bradens first little buddy in Guatemala, Juan el Bautista


• ventured into the market place complete with a butcher block full of fresh meat... it was very smelly, thank goodness I was not pregnant


• enjoyed more talk time, more great food, and more R&R

Women in traditional dress selling beans and other food

THURSDAY

• one last look at the beautiful lake during our patio breakfast where Grandpa and Devin lured little birds to eat from their hands
• my tragic illness began

• drove to Chichicastananga on our way home and stopped at one of the largest markets in Guate. I spent a little time in an authentic Guatemalan bathroom. One lady asked us to pay, but since someone was in her bathroom and there was no time to waste, we luckily found the next one and it was free of charge, but not of germs.
• traveled back to Guatemala City and just got to rest from our travels

Beautiful flowers on the steps of a "must-see" cathedral

The many different colors in the markets were incredible

FRIDAY

• went to the giant relief map of Guatemala, we got to see basically a 3-D map of Guatemala that had been created by a man 100+yrs ago who traveled around Guate on horseback, Dad showed us where a bunch of BOM sites were on the map


• went to another market, where I took another bathroom trip, which this time I needed a thorough shower after... I was thinking how gross it was that all of the ladies there were wearing flat jelly shoes, until I realized I was wearing flip flops.... so gross


• attended Dads BOM history class; it was a huge overview of the timeline of the BOM. I couldn't believe Dad had 3hrs worth of BOM history memorized. It was awesome!

Shockingly we didnt find all of Bradens christmas presents at the markets, but we did pick up this sweet little beanie which he has already worn quite proudly.the relief map... can you sort of picture how big it is?

SATURDAY

• Devin became deathly ill thanks to the coughing and wheezing that was going around at the CCM (MTC) and took an extensive nap on the couch


• spent the majority of the afternoon watching the BYU game with Crappa's 80 yr old temple missionary friends.... man those guys can talk


• walked next door to the temple for some photos


• tried to savour our last hours together

Braden enjoying a good BYU victory.

Its best for everyone when the Cougs win!

We had such a fabulous and uplifting time. We enjoyed so much the spirit of the CCM and seeing Presidente and Hermana Christensen in their element. We told them they should ask to be called to Spain for their next mission so that we can all travel and see Europe next. Thanks for letting us come visit Grammy and Grandpa. We love you!

To My Peops

Braden with Gram and Gramp C in Antigua Guatemala. So CUTE!!

Friends:
I realize I am mega behind on my blogging. It bugs me more than it bugs you. TRUST ME!! I know Devin went on a sweet backpacking trip. I know I went to Utah, said goodbye to my little sister who magically is in college. I know Braden met his fairy Godmother, McCall. I know I took a crazy exotic vacation and havent said a word about it. I know my baby is 4 months old and nobody knows how much he weighs except me and Dr. Delmar. I know we are living with my parents and more than half of you didnt even know that. I know the search is on to find ourselves a humble, but perfect home for our now growing family (and when I say growing, I dont mean that I am pregnant, I simply mean that now that we have one kid in our Caboodle, there are bound to be more hiding up in heaven waiting for Braden to grow up so I will beg Heavenly Father for another rambunctious baby to be sent my way). I know I thought I was going to die when I was sick, Braden was sick and Devin was sick. It wasnt pretty. Believe me. I know Braden is sporting his first two teeth in his itty bitty mouth. And I certainly know that.... well thats about all I know at this point. Basically, I am trying to tell myself that I have to get caught up. If not for you, then for me. I feel like my blogging talents have been lost somewhere between here and Guatemala. Maybe they were stolen on the metro in Mexico City?! Anyway, thats an entirely different post. For now this will have to do because everytime the boy sleeps, I have to take advantage of the nap for me. My tired and sick little head need it. So be patient little ones. The time will come when all of your curiositys regarding the comings and goings in our life will be answered. And in the meantime, pray pray pray that we will get this house we put an offer on. And especially pray if you want us to stay in the ward because we want to stay, but you have to want us to stay too! XOXO.

RE: Babies

I forgot about my friend Jessica who is having a girl at the end of this month. Sorry Jess. Not to mention the fact that she is 9mo prego with a two year old and moving to Colorado next week. Such a trooper!

Braden Loves New Friends

So 2009 is the year of babies I guess. Really I am sure to miss someone, but I cant even count on 1 hand how many new friends Braden has been blessed with this year, or even just since he was born. Honestly. Are we in a baby boom or what? Does a poor economy signal to everyone that its time to have a baby? Who knows, but we sure are greatful for cute friends for our cute boy. So lets just say congrats to all those guys and gals who have come into the world. All of them are darling, although I cant lie, some I haven't met in person yet. Thanks to distance, or this dang cold that has now trapped Braden, Devin and myself in bed for hours on end. Hallelujah for cold and flu season. As soon as we walked out of the car after Guatemala, we were told we had Swine Flu. Really? Swine Flu?! Lame. Thank goodness there is no swine flue hear, but come on! So heres to ALL Bradens new friends; Olivia Wooley, Carter Christensen, Carter Anderson, William Wyeth, Layla Duerden, Corinne Norris, Sydney Abarca, Emilia Lapointe, Marshall Bowden, Rozzi Wellman, Ryder Mckeon, Paxton Baird (who was welcomed into the world on Wednesday), Olivia Clegg (whose arrival I am waiting to hear about), Garrett Wadman, Baby Rogers, Baby White, the baby who cannot be named, plus all the babies of aquaitances, and the gillions of babies throughout the world. If I forgot about your baby, I am sorry. Braden is a lucky boy with lots of friends. 2009 is the year of the BABY! Its either that, or I am just at the right stage in life where everyone that I know is having kids too. I guess its probably the latter.