All about the house.

Of course, labor day weekend, becomes all about the house. It's nice to cross items off our master list and start to see our planning and effort come into fruition.

When starting to put together the plan for Blake's room I decided I wanted to add some personal touches. A few items that a princess would love and only she would have. Something I wouldn't have to buy at target.

I came across this mirror at goodwill...


After some paint it became this...



It's placed low enough that Blake can see her entire person. I've already caught her "performing" in front of it with a microphone and a toy guitar in her hand. She painted and glittered the hooks on either side. I'm sure there will be boa's hanging there by tomorrow!

Since we had to downsize when we bought this house, one of the items we had to give away was Blake's easel. I wanted to keep a creative piece in her room that wouldn't take up valuable floor space. So I took this...


...and with a little paint it became this. A cool chalkboard to frame her masterpieces. I just need to find an old fashioned tin cup to place along side to hold her chalk!


I added some wicked cool Ikea night lights and painted some leaves to finish the look. I took some foam and batting and added a seat cushion to a toy box. Overall the three projects cost me around 60 bucks.


This house of ours is starting to feel more like a home every day.

Stitch N Pitch

This weekend the family joined me for Stitch N Pitch at PGE park. That's right...there were chicks with sticks, men with sticks and a hooker (ME!).


I'm at the tail end of my special project and decided to crochet a very sturdy strap (versus knitting one or sewing one!). I am so glad my mom taught me how to crochet at a young age. Though I haven't picked up the hook in quite sometime, it was like second nature when I did!

The kids managed to hang in for the entire game. It helped that PGE park has plenty to keep the wee little folk happy and preoccupied. On the family deck they have a bounce room and a hitting cage (for a small fee).


The kids also found a clown who made for them little animals that entertained them for at least an hour!


The game ended with a grand slam by the beavers (very exciting) but resulted with a rain soaked loss. In the end I call this a family outing success that ended in tired but happy kids!

Another one bites the dust....

Nothing but a cute little kid about to head to bed...right?



Hold on....


...she's lost another tooth! Started to wiggle on Tuesday. Came out on Wednesday.

(tear) My baby girl is growning up!

Tooth Fairy's First Arrival.

This morning I ran out to Fred Meyer for some groceries, and when I came back I was greeted to this smile...


The tooth is gone! I guess the tooth fairy will be making an appearance tonight!

To celebrate, the gang hopped in the car and went to see Fly Me To The Moon. The kids got a kick out of the 3D glasses.

In knitting news, I got super geeked while trolling through Ravelry to find the perfect pattern to match this yarn. So I got started on my first Christmas present and I know it will be received well! Yeah!

Parade. Ice Cream. Fun.

This morning our family was dressed and out the door by 8:20am. Why on earth would we do such a thing on a Saturday? Today was the 100th anniversary of Multnomah Village. We had breakfast at Fat City then claimed our spot along the parade route.

Both Chris and I adore the Village and take any opportunity to travel down there. It's been hard to do so now that we are in North Portland. But how could you not love a place that has Thinker Toys and NW Wools?

The parade was very small town and fun! Hands down the dancing cupcakes were the most enthusiastic.


March Fourth offered the best hip wiggling music...



And the kids were put hard at work picking up candy!




We had a fantastic time!

It's a knit thing.

Only a knitter, so excited to have a finished project, would stand outside in 100+ degree weather full of happiness and joy! So here it is (drum roll please) the completed forecast sweater started in May...in all it's glory.


It's my first adult sized cardigan and although the buttons are avoiding those calls from 1985, it's a must wear for fall. As soon as I can get motivated I'll update those buttons to something less "circus-like" and more funky fresh.



And, in an effort to get some Christmas knitted gifts out this year (by Christmas!), I decided to only knit gifts from this point forward. After finishing this sweater I was itching to start something new so this is what I came up with. It's based, very loosely, off the bainbridge scarf by Minty Fresh. But after ignoring the directions and deciding to do "my thing", this is the result.


A purple something or other. Not too sure what it's trying to be, but perhaps it would look better blocked. Although the rolled brim on the top makes me happy. So although this was meant to be a present I'm thinking it'll end up in the "stuff I made but will most likely only wear once before it's lost" pile. Sigh, at least it only took two days to complete.

I'm dying to cast on something new and I'm waiting patiently for an upcoming knit picks delivery to start my first lace project! I'm super excited, yet scared all at the same time. Good thing I'm starting early!

Teeth! Bark in the Park! and more...

On Tuesday I received a message. It read "Blake has a wiggly tooth." "NO WAY!", I thought. My baby is no way near close to the age to start loosing her baby teeth. Why? Because she is still my baby girl!

But when I got home that night she ran up to me and proceeded to show me how her tooth sways back and forth. I then proceeded to ground her and told her not to grow anymore. Okay, so that didn't happen, but I couldn't help feeling that a chapter in our lives was closing. That Sesame Street and Dora the Explorer were falling to the way side for Hanna Montana and Pokemon. This soon to be five year old is someone I'll need to figure out all over again. It's exciting and frightening all at the same time.



In a few days the tooth fairy will make her first ever Blake visit. How exciting!

And speaking of teeth, in three weeks I'll be getting my wisdom teeth removed...yeah. (note sarcasm).

But on a happier note, last night we attended our first Bark in the Park game at PGE. For those not familiar, the ball park opens it's doors to dogs for one game a year. It was a last minute plan that equaled loads of fun.


It's funny how much attention a 160lb dog gets. People were either cautious and stayed a safe distance away or knew he was a Newfie and came right up to partake in the drool. Noro was VERY well behaved. He didn't bark once (even though we tried countless times to get him to join in the mayhem), was polite to any dog that wanted to sniff his butt and obeyed commands even when hot dogs and popcorn were in vacinity. This dog is so huge he took up three bench seats!



We all had a good time. We only stayed for the first game and the beavers kicked some arse. Blake's favorite part was meeting Lucky the Beaver. She got a free wrist warmer and a hug.


It's nice, that for a few bucks, PGE offers additional entertainment for the kids. They have a bounce room and a mini batting cage. I really wish I had my camera when Blake was trying to hit the waffle ball. She had so much gusto and intensity though she only hit the ball once!


And to end the evening we had to peek through the face sculture in front of the park. Here's Blake and her interpretation of a booger.

the state of my life

Hallucinating on paint fumes isn't as fun as it would seem.

Look at my mismatched hand sewn curtains and there's NO mistaking me for Martha Stewart.

Crap. Money doesn't stretch as much as I would like.

I have so much to say but never the energy or motivation to say it...more blogging coming soon.