Musings of a Farmer's Wife

9 Weeks

2012-01-19T11:50:00.000-06:00

How big is baby: The size of a large grape!
Weight gain/loss: –1
Stretch marks: Not unless you count the ones still there from the last 2 babies… ;)
Maternity clothes: I tried getting out my maternity pants. It was a no go. Also, maternity clothes are just pieces of junk/disposable clothes. All the pants have holes at the waistband and look terrible. New jeans? Yes, thank you.
Sleep: Feeling much better in the energy department lately. I actually feel like getting up and doing something rather than trying to sleep every free chance I get!
Food cravings or aversions: Definitely craving sweets. Lots of sweets. And Mexican – as usual.
Gender: Not sure yet, but everyone is calling boy. They have a 50/50 shot of being right!
Movement: I wish! Not yet, though.
Belly button: Positively innie.
Exercise/Diet: See my cravings. That will tell you about diet/exercise.
What I'm loving: Everyone finally knowing! It’s better not having to worry about sucking in all the time.
What I miss: Not looking fat in my clothes. I’m at that “is she fat or pregnant?” stage and it’s not fun.
What's different this time: Honestly, I’ve usually gained some weight by now with my other 2 pregnancies. Not a lot, but some. Actually, with Caroline I had already gained a lot by now…I did better with Amelia. Ha! Also, I’m surviving without caffeine. THAT is different. Very, very different.
Maybe I’ll start pictures next week? We’ll see….

The Power of Prayer

2012-01-18T00:43:00.001-06:00

I usually write my posts in Windows Live Writer then it uploads them into Blogger for me. I found this draft that I had written back in the beginning of August but never published for some reason. I read over it and decided that I would post it now – even though it’s talking about Amelia and her crying issues.

Do you ever underestimate the power of prayer? I know I do. Sometimes I catch myself going through something difficult or worrying about something just to realize that I haven’t really, truly prayed about it. The Lord cares about even our smallest desires! Even things that we think of as “not worth a prayer” are worth something to God. He cares about us!

If you have kids, this is even easier for you to apply. When your children want something small – like a $0.25 piece of gum out of the machine, don’t you usually hand them a quarter to get the gum? You care about even the little things that they want! The Lord cares about you more than you can even fathom! This means that we need to put our trust in Him and KNOW that He is going to take care of us!

We had been having so many problems with my sweet Amelia. There were so many days when I just thought I couldn’t take it anymore and I frequently thought of 1 Corinthians 10:13 – that the Lord wouldn’t give me more than I could handle. She cried so much. So, so, so much. For nearly 7 months we listened to her cry and had no idea how to soothe her. Obviously, I had prayed about it and asked God to help US help HER. One night, after finally getting her to sleep, I cried in my bedroom floor begging and pleading with God to please help my baby. She refused a bottle and I couldn’t even try to offer her anything other than breastmilk to try to help her sensitive tummy. I begged God to please let her take a bottle so I could see if it would help her. The next morning, on a whim, I tried a bottle. She refused like usual but I kept trying. All of sudden, out of nowhere, she started taking that bottle like she’d done it her entire life. I stood there holding her and feeding her that bottle with tears rolling down my face. God heard my prayer! I was so thankful. A week later, we had a new baby. She was happier, calmer, and slept better.

I understand that sometimes God lets us go through trials because they make us stronger. Listening to your baby scream for 7 months is incredibly trying – especially when you have no idea why she’s screaming or hurting. I never doubted that God was hearing my prayers, but I knew in my heart that He would help when the time was right.

I say all of this to say, how wonderful is our God?! That we can call on him for even the most trivial things happening in our lives and know that he cares for us…it’s an amazing feeling. When your heart is troubled, for whatever reason, call on Him. Call on Him and KNOW that He will answer your prayer! I try now to pray for “whatever is best” because in the last several years of my life, I have realized that I really do not know anything and he knows everything. Instead of praying for what I want, I pray for whatever is best. That’s a tough prayer to pray, but I’ve decided that if He feels something is best for me that I don’t, I trust Him. My prayer life has turned from “I need ___” to “Thank you so much for ___” and when I feel like I need something, I simply say, “Lord, whatever is best in this situation, please help me figure out what that is.” It has changed my prayer life and my relationship with Him tremendously. I’ve become so much more thankful for my blessings.

So give it a shot and try praying for whatever is best – and pray continually – then sit back and be patient. God cares about even the birds in the sky! If He cares for them, how much more then, does He care for you?

It’s funny to read this now because I used this same “whatever is best” method when we decided we might want to have another baby. I was worried about the timing, that they might all be too close together. I prayed about it a lot, and finally came to the conclusion that we wouldn’t try or prevent and just let it happen when God knew it was right. Here we are now, expecting #3 and I’m not really nervous at all. I prayed that whenever He felt was the best time for us to get pregnant again, that He would let that happen. So I’m not worried one bit. I know that He is looking out for us and has plans for us!

The Crud.

2012-01-15T22:10:00.001-06:00

Our family – has The Crud. You know exactly what I’m talking about. Someone in our family has been sickly since the beginning of December. It started with Caroline, then moved to Amelia. It seemed to last forever with them. Shortly after they seemed to be on the mend, I got sick, followed promptly by Judd. Somehow, Caroline is sick again. Ha! I’ve also been nauseated to the point of throwing up a few times (I’m guessing it’s pregnancy related?) and that’s on top of being sick. BLAH! We need some general wellness around here. I say all of this with the total realization that your family is probably sick, too. Everyone is sick right now! I think it’s the crazy weather that gets warm then freezing then warm again. I’ll be happy when Spring finally gets here and the weather is juuuust right.

Y’all, the fatigue. The. Fatigue. I keep waiting for the day that I wake up with a little more energy and a little more the day after that. It’s not here yet, but I’m waiting on it! This is such a different tired than I’ve ever experienced. I’m sleepy…so, so, so sleepy. I LONG for naptime and bedtime (for the kids AND myself) because I know I might can close my eyes for just a few seconds. Multiple times in the last week I have gone to bed before 9pm which is unheard of for me. I’m such a night owl! But lately, I’m not a night owl OR an early riser. The more sleep, the better. Anyone want to come keep my kids for a while? No? They’re cute….are you sure? Fine.

So, with all of my complaining aside – I’m super excited about my doctor’s appointment next Wednesday (the 25th) because we should hopefully be able to hear the heartbeat with a doppler! When I was pregnant with the girls, I had a doppler that I borrowed from someone and I literally used it every day. I LOVED finding their heartbeats and it was so amazing to me how quickly they moved from one side to the other and I’d go find their heartbeat again. I don’t have access to one this time so I’ll really be looking forward to my appointments.

I’m totally thinking that the 3rd time around (especially all so close together?) REALLY makes a difference in how quickly things seem to change physically. I definitely have a major bloat all the time, but even when I suck in at an uncomfortable level, there is still a small pooch below my bellybutton. The problem is, I look fat – not pregnant. My clothes make me look like a I have a gut, but my maternity clothes from this season with Amelia are all huge because not only was I in my last trimester, but I also started out almost 10lbs heavier with her than I am this time. So everything I already have swallows me. I say all of that to say, if you see me with a gross looking gut, I promise, if it wasn’t so painful to suck it in, I totally would. Also, BOO for my tailbone pain already being back! I didn’t have it with Caroline and it didn’t start with Amelia until 16 weeks(ish) and I’m almost 9 weeks right now. Whew! I hope I can find ways to curb the pain this time since I know what to expect. So again, if you see me with a donut pillow, just pretend like you didn’t see it. Thanks.

ALL of that being said, I really do enjoy pregnancy. Obviously the first trimester junk isn’t my favorite – but it’s necessary to get to the good parts! I feel guilty because when I was pregnant with Caroline, I constantly thought to myself about how much I was not a fan of pregnancy itself. I didn’t know what to expect, I was impatient, etc. With Amelia it FLEW by and I totally wasn’t ready for it to be over just yet. Granted, she was 5 weeks early, but I really was enjoying it for the most part. This time, I’m going to try to enjoy it as much as possible. As soon as the nausea and fatigue get better, this will be much easier to practice. My absolute favorite part of pregnancy (as is most women’s) is feeling the baby move. I didn’t feel Caroline for a long time (around 21 weeks) but I felt Amelia REALLY early (around 12 weeks) but it was only because I knew what I was looking for and it was very, very faint flutters. They never went away and gradually got stronger and stronger so I have no doubt it was her! I hope I feel this one early, too. It’s such an amazing thing!

I have no idea why I even typed this random post, but I know at least Deda will enjoy reading my nothingness.

Hope you all have a BLESSED week! Count your blessings and remember to thank God specifically for each one!

8 Weeks

2012-01-11T11:48:00.000-06:00

How far along: 8 weeks!
How big is baby: The size of a gummi bear! Awwwww...
Weight gain/loss: 0ish. I say ish because it goes up and down every day.
Stretch marks: Not unless you count the ones still there from the last 2 babies…
Maternity clothes: Pulling out the pants this week. Most of it is bloat, but why be uncomfortable when I already have the clothes?
Sleep: Not so great. Last night I got up 4 times to pee. That is with me restricting my water intake before bed. Ridiculous. I am, however, incredibly sleepy...all the time.
Food cravings or aversions: Still don't want to eat/smell/talk about chili. I have been craving a lot of pizza, but I tend to crave pizza all the time - pregnant or not.
Gender: Not sure yet, but everyone is calling boy. They have a 50/50 shot of being right!
Movement: Not yet!
Belly button: Positively innie.
Exercise/Diet: Pretty much 0 exercise right now! My diet is whatever doesn't make me nauseated.
What I'm loving: Caroline sitting in my lap and saying, "Twoooooo babies!"
What I miss: Feeling like I had even a touch of energy.
What's different this time: Well I have a horrible cold this week. I haven't felt like doing much of anything. First trimester yuckiness + a cold = miserable! Also, maybe it's the insane amount of water I drink nowadays (compared to the last 2 pregnancies) but getting up to pee 4 times in one night is just unacceptable! I kept waking up with a painfully full bladder. Another thing that has been different - I've had some CRAZY nightmares. This whole week I've had terrible dreams involving being chased, having a bomb strapped to me, being raped, being stabbed, having my friends blown up, etc. Last night I actually PRAYED that God would intervene and please let me have a night without nightmares. Thankfully, He took pity on me and I had regular ole dreams. I am thankful!

Still can't believe that we'll be welcoming a 3rd baby in August! It seems unreal...until I remember peeing 4 times in one night. :)

7 Weeks

2012-01-04T18:51:00.004-06:00

How big is baby: The size of a blueberry!
Weight gain/loss: 0ish. I say ish because it goes up and down every day.
Stretch marks: Not unless you count the ones still there from the last 2 babies…
Maternity clothes: Not yet, but I'm totally in my fat jeans.
Sleep: ALL. THE. TIME. Okay, I don't actually get to sleep all the time, but I want to. I'm so sleepy - regardless of how much sleep I've had. I always look napping opportunities!
Food cravings or aversions: Aversion to chili. We made chili the other night and I didn't eat much of mine. When it came time to store the leftovers, I had Judd throw them all away. The smell of chili was making me nauseated. Yuck. It's going to make me gag just writing about it.
Gender: Not sure yet, but everyone is calling boy. They have a 50/50 shot of being right!
Movement: I wish! Not yet, though.
Belly button: Positively innie.
Exercise/Diet: What's a diet? What on earth is exercise?
What I'm loving: Seeing the baby's heartbeat on Monday! It was just fluttering away! I loved it!
What I miss: Not feeling queasy all the time.
What's different this time: The tiredness is very different this time. It blows my mind how sleepy I am after just sleeping 10 straight hours. It's so different. With the last two, I was definitely tired, but I was nothing like this. This is pure exhaustion.
I'll start doing pictures when I look less bloated and it's actually baby and not disgustingness.

Baby #3!

2012-01-02T22:17:00.002-06:00

Well, we made it “official” by announcing it on Facebook, so I figure for those of you that I’m not friends with on FB but still read my blog – WE’RE PREGNANT!

We also had an ultrasound today and got to see baby’s heartbeat!! Seeing the heartbeat made me more excited and definitely made it feel real, finally. The little heart was just beating away and we even got to hear it! Best sound in the world, I tell ya. Love it.
The whole thing really came about in a funny way. Judd and I decided we’d not try, but not prevent for a few months then start trying in Feb or March. Well, that one month of not preventing did the trick!
Two days before I got my positive test (I was pretty sure I was pregnant, but didn’t have the stick to prove it at that point.) my sister and I were chatting on the phone like usual. We hung up and said goodnight. A few minutes later I get a text that says, “Call me for a second.” When I called, all in one breath she said, “I have something to tell you…I’m pregnant.” My mouth hit the floor like a rock. I couldn’t believe she was pregnant! She had just taken a test that night! Obviously my first question was the personal one of “Were you trying?!” and she said, “No!” She blew my mind! That was Friday night.
(Less than) Two days later, on Sunday morning, I got up early that morning to get ready for church and took a test. I stared at it for a while but couldn’t see anything and as I went to throw it away I saw something. There it was. A faint, faint 2nd line. I ran into the bedroom and woke Judd up and told him the news! We were really excited! I called Audra that afternoon and as we talked about Hannah trying to climb the stairs, I said, “Audra, I’m pregnant.” to which she replied, “Shut up. No you’re not.” to which I said, “No, I really am. I’m serious.” Audra said, “Whatever Kacie.” Finally she caught the seriousness in my voice when I said, “No, I really am pregnant! I took a test this morning!” She laughed hysterically! She thought I was making fun of her for blurting it out two nights ago! Neither of us had any idea that the other was pregnant or entertaining the idea of getting pregnant! It really is quite funny!
My due date is August 22, 2012. I’m 6 weeks 5 days today. We’re still really early, so PLEASE pray for a healthy pregnancy and healthy baby with continued growth! I’ve felt pretty good so far. I’m SO, so, so, so, so sleepy. By 5pm, I have a headache because I’m so tired. I’ve had some nausea, but it could definitely be worse. So far everything is really tolerable. I just hope I get some energy soon!
It boggles my mind that God has blessed us with another sweet baby! Being a mom is one of the best things that has ever happened to me and I’m so blessed to be able to stay home with them. I love them all…all three of them! Let’s not even mention my wonderful husband! HOW am I this blessed?!

Amelia's Birth Story - 1 Year Late!

2011-12-15T00:04:00.000-06:00

WARNING: This is long! If you aren't family, you probably won't care about the majority of any of this. Even if you are family, you still may not care to read any of this...but in case you do - here it is! This TOTALLY doesn't seem like a year ago! It was a CRAZY day that *could* have ended in a very different way. :) Enjoy...or don't...

It really all started on Monday, December 13, 2010. I had been having some fairly mild contractions but I was a little worried because they occasionally felt like “real” ones. Monday marked 35 weeks and I really wanted to hold her in just a little longer! My first appointment to have my cervix checked was on Wednesday the 15^th but Judd and I were planning on going to visit family out of town. I called my doctor to see if he could squeeze me in (just to make sure we could travel safely) that afternoon and he said that was fine. I need to point out here that I have the most awesome doctor, ever. He’s a close family friend and I couldn’t be comfortable in his care.

So off to town we went to go to the doctor and then run some errands. I checked in and got in my ~~little~~ big gown and waited. My sweet nurse first said, “Ya know you technically don’t have to get checked this time. You can wait until next time if you want.” And I told her, “I just want to make sure we can travel safely so I’m okay with being checked.” When the doctor came in I told him that I just wanted to make sure that everything was okay before I left since my labor and delivery with Caroline was rather quick and at 35 weeks with her, I was already 3cm, 50%. I was being checked when I saw him glance at the nurse with “something’s up” eyes. Then he asked me, “Have you been having a lot of pains?” I wasn’t really sure how to answer because I had had some contractions, but nothing regular or unbearable or anything. “I’m not sure…I’ve had some, but not a lot. Why?” to which he replied, “No reason…” which was clearly to keep me from panicking. Ha!

When it was over, he had this look on his face like he was trying to decide whether or not I could go out of town. I got a little nervous waiting to hear what he was going to say. He’s the most laid back doctor ever, and if he said I couldn’t go…that definitely meant something was up. He was writing in my chart and not saying anything to me yet (this lasted about 5 seconds but felt like 5 years) so I said, “What am I? 3cm? 4cm? 2cm?” And his reply was, “Oh you’re definitely 3cm. (He said this with a voice almost indicating that I might be more than 3cm..) I don’t normally tell people that they can’t go out of town if they feel up to it, but you REALLY don’t need to go on this trip.” So after talking a few minutes he assured me everything was fine but since my labor with Caroline lasted 5 hours from start to finish, it wouldn’t be wise to make a 2 hour trip away from home. I was 3cm, 50%, -2 station. I knew it felt like she was low...sometimes it felt like she was pushing on my pelvic bones!

I went out and told Judd the news. He was so shocked. We both just knew that I would end up going to 41 weeks this time….just because I was spoiled with delivering Caroline at 37 weeks. That was still possible! Women walk around dilated for weeks before they have their babies! But for some reason, I could tell my doctor didn’t think that was going to be the case with me.

We went to Walmart and bought groceries and let me just tell you…don’t go grocery shopping after getting checked when you’re fairly dilated and effaced. Seriously. I was cramping and totally uncomfortable. I finally couldn’t stand it anymore so Judd finished checking out and I took Caroline and myself to the car. When we got home I took a warm bath trying to get the cramps to stop. Well, these cramps/contractions basically went on for 2 days. All day Tuesday I stayed in the bed and the bathtub, hurting. I kept telling myself that when it got unbearable or the contractions got regular or closer together, I’d call the doctor. That never happened. I think I took 5 baths that day because they made the pain feel better. Thankfully, Judd took care of Caroline for me. That night, I wanted to put her to bed. I had an itching feeling that that might be my last night to have her as my only child. She put her head on my shoulder and I stood there for longer than usual trying to soak it all in. (As a sidenote, when I came out, I told Judd that I wanted him to throw his clothes in a bag just in case this was it. Did he do that? Of course not. Such a man.)

I had contractions all night long, but nothing was ever regular. I timed them over and over and they were all over the place. I’d have 8min, 5min, 10min, 6min, 12min, and so on. They were definitely hurting, but nothing I couldn’t tolerate or made me cry out in pain. I got up around 3:30am and got in the bathtub and ended up falling asleep in there for almost 45 minutes. I woke up with more pains, and more uncomfortable. Well Judd was planning on going duck hunting with my doctor (I told you he’s a family friend!) that morning at 5:45am. I told Judd that after their duck hunt, maybe my doctor could run by and check me. Judd said that was fine and he would tell him for me. Around 4:45am my contractions started hurting a little more and I was feeling some contractions in my back. A few minutes later after another painful contraction, I started grabbing my back (back labor!) and had tears in my eyes. Judd said, “Are you sure you don’t want him to come by first?” and I said, “Maybe so. Yeah, let’s get him to come now.” (In hindsight, I’m SO glad that I changed my mind!) So Judd called him and asked him to stop by and he said that was fine.

When he got there, Judd was getting ready to go hunting and my doctor was decked out in his camo. When he came in, I told him – “If this isn’t it, y’all are going to have to sedate me for the next 2 weeks because I’m exhausted and can’t take any more.” I had been contracting for 3 days and hadn’t slept a total of 7 hours. I was SO TIRED. That was an exhaustion I had never known. He checked me, then the words I’ll never forget came out of his mouth. “Yeah, you’re about 8cm…” to which I said, “That’s not funny.” I thought he was joking and was going to say, “Just kidding – you’re the same…just tough it out.” But no…he said, “I’m not joking – you’re 8cm! Get up and get dressed and let’s go to the hospital! You’re having a baby today!” I started crying out of sheer fear that Amelia wouldn’t be able to breathe on her own (she was only 35wks). He assured me everything was going to be fine…but that I REALLY needed to get up and come on! Judd was in the hallway when my doctor walked out and I heard my doc say, “We gotta go to the hospital!” and Judd’s surprised expression when he said, “REALLY?” So of course he comes in the room throwing stuff in a bag and I’m putting my last minute things in my bag. I stopped by the edge of the bed with a contraction and my doctor was standing in the doorway watching me like a hawk. He said, “You okay?” and I said, “I hope so.” We got my mother in law to come stay with Caroline (thank goodness she only lives a mile away!) and we got in the car. Best part – Judd looked at my doctor and said, “Sooo…are you gonna go hunting or come straight to the hospital?” We still laugh about that one! “Yeah Judd, I’m gonna go see if I can get my limit in, then I’ll be up there!” Ha!

On the way to the hospital, Judd looked over at me and said, “Happy Anniversary!” with a huge smile on his face. Then it hit me that it was our 3 year anniversary and was soon to be our daughter’s birthday! That was a special moment! If we’re being honest, I was terrified I was going to have her in the car. I just knew Judd needed to be putting on flashers and running red lights – however, he felt like he needed to wait for each light to turn green. I may or may not have yelled at him.

When we got to the hospital, they were waiting on me at the front door. My nurse said, “Girl you were trying to wait it out weren’t you?” and I said, “I really wasn’t! I honestly didn’t know I was in labor!” And in all honesty, I would’ve gone in a lot sooner and gotten that epidural had I known!

Judd parked the car while I went up and got situated in the room. I was waiting on my epidural. I can handle the contractions, obviously, but never do I want to feel the baby come out. EVER. So I filled out my paperwork and waited on the anesthesiologist to come in. I was so happy to see him because I was in a good bit of pain. I hugged Judd and they told me to “be still” which was almost laughable. I felt the stick and propped back up in bed. After the epidural, we just kind of sat around for a couple of minutes soaking in what was happening. We had called family, but obviously none of them would make it in time! A few minutes later the nurse said, “I’m going to check you and see where you are.” So she came over and sat down and barely did anything. Then she got up and just walked out without saying a word. I looked at Judd and said, “Did she check me?” “Yeah” he said. I said, “No she didn’t. I didn’t feel anything….hmm…I feel like I might need to push.” Judd got up to tell someone and they met him at the door. A crew of people were already coming in! Judd looked down and said, “Whoa…her head is right there!” Apparently there was no need to check me, she was crowning! (Thank you, epidural!) So we got set up and and my nurse said, “Okay on this next contraction we can push” and my doctor said, “You can push whenever you want, she’s coming out regardless!” Three intense pushes later, Amelia was born at 8:11am. We didn’t get to the hospital until 6:30am! I couldn’t believe she was here! Judd cut the cord, and she let out a big cry! When she cried, I cried! I was never so happy to hear a newborn scream her head off. Her lungs were working perfectly and she was as healthy as possible! She weighed 6lb 8.4oz, that’s just one ounce shy of Caroline’s birth weight at 37 weeks! She made it just in time for Christmas! The Lord has blessed our family with more than we deserve!

Amelia Harper Davis

December 15, 2010

8:11am

6lbs 8.4oz

Minutes after arriving - and MINUTES before delivering!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T08:00:00.001-06:00

From my family to yours – Happy Thanksgiving! Remember that this day is about being thankful for what is most important in your life. Take a few minutes to sit down and pray! Be specific when you thank God for all He has done for you!

Have a wonderful day!

Stupid People Exhaust Me.

2011-11-16T23:40:00.002-06:00

How do ya like that title? It’s a good one, huh? So for several days I planned on posting this story and alas, life got in the way. Or I got lazy. But whatever.
Crazy story.
The other day I’m leaving Walmart. It was just like any other day. I hate Walmart and I was already mad that there were only 3 lanes open and I had to stand in the checkout for 20 minutes with a basket full of groceries. Of course, when I got there the cashier and the previous customer continued their conversation. I wouldn’t have cared about that in the slightest except the previous customer wouldn’t move from in front of the register. I like to see my prices as things are scanned in case something scans incorrectly. At the end of scanning my groceries the total button was pushed and she kept talking. Something about the judge taking her baby from her and how she was fighting it. Whatever. I inched my cart forward and it didn’t phase her. I said “excuse me” with no luck…twice. Finally, I “accidently” bumped her with my cart. She got the hint. Oops.
Derailed from my original tangent. Back to the story. Sorry.
Okay, so I’m on my way home – already unhappy with my experience from before. Here we go down the highway. Stoplights every few feet, right? Busy highway in the middle of the afternoon. Get what I’m sayin’?
The car in front of me is swerving all. over. the. place. I was honestly thinking, “Who is THAT drunk at 3pm?!” So naturally, I decide to go around and pass them. As I’m coming up on the side of them, I see why there is so much swerving goin’ on.
Y’all.
There was a woman and man in the front two seats. They looked….rough, to put it nicely. They were cat fighting. Really, truly, cat fighting. It looked like two pre-teen girls slapping at each other with their hands, pulling hair and whatnot. Except one was a man. And both of them were full grown and definitely not pre-teens. I was stunned.
So here I come to get around them before they hit my car acting like idiots. Due my previous experience at Walmart, I was already not willing to put up with any extra stupidity. As I come up beside them, they come ridiculously close to hitting my vehicle. So I did the natural thing. I honked. Loudly. For a long time.
What I’m about to tell you is somewhat funny, and will definitely enlighten you on the type of people I was dealing with.
So I honked. Instantly, both of them stopped slapping at each other like lunatics, both of them turned my direction, and both of them flipped me the bird at the exact same moment.
Y’all.
I nearly died.
If I did nothing else productive that day, I caused unity in one couple. They banded together and found common ground in their hatred for me at that very moment.
I’m sure they went back to fighting moments after I sped past them. At first I was mad that they flipped me off and I was fighting back my anger. But the more I thought about it, the funnier it became. So I decided to share it with you all.
I guess I’m lucky they didn’t both have guns instead of fingers.

Well Hello, Blog!

2011-11-15T16:25:00.001-06:00

I’ve been really absent in the blogging world lately. I’m still reading blogs, but I don’t have anything to say myself. So in case you’ve been wondering what we’ve been doing – I’ll give you the gist.

I’ve been busy with Squiggle Stitch – really busy actually.
I’ve also been cooking 168,546,516 new recipes from Pinterest – thank heavens for Pinterest because our weekly routined meals were getting pathetic.
I’ve also been stalking Pinterest for the day that we win the lottery (even though we don’t even buy lottery tickets…we’ll just be that lucky.) and we build a house. I have 100’s of organizational ideas that will probably never come to fruition because I’ll forget about them when it’s actually time to put them in place. Not to mention it would probably stay organized for about 0.12 seconds before it went back to mass disarray.

We have an incredibly destructive dog who chews everything in sight. When I say everything, let me explain…she has so far chewed: Judd’s truck’s headlight wires, Judd’s truck’s back wires (I have no idea what they go to, let’s be honest.), My brand spankin’ new car’s back wires, my brand spankin’ new car’s power running board wires, random pipes from the yard beside us, OUR HOUSE (she is literally chewing the side of our house..), Caroline & Amelia’s playset, attempting to chew my wrought iron patio furniture (to no avail, thankfully.), our friend’s vehicles (luckily no damage done), the spray bottle full of bug spray, the spray paint can, the trashcan lid, and any and every thing that you leave outside accidently. Anyone need a new family pet? Y’all. She is incredibly destructive.
Don’t let her face fool you.

I’m considering moving my kids into a room together. That way the playroom/Squiggle Stitch Room can become JUST the Squiggle Stitch Room and mine and the girl’s things will be separate. This business takes up a lot of space.

Judd is about to have an entire month off work. I’m so excited that I can hardly stand it. He’s been getting off work at 5ish and that is just heavenly. I’m so thankful for him!

Black Friday is around the corner, and I’m royally hacked off. People, Black Friday cannot start at midnight. But it does. It’s ridiculous. Midnight?! When do you SLEEP?! That makes for a miserable day, I would think. It was all I could do a few years ago to make it to the Kohl’s parking lot by 3:30am. But 12am? That’s just too early. Boo.

It’s hard to get in the Christmas spirit when the temperature is 84 degrees outside.

Regardless, we’re putting up Christmas decorations tonight. Don’t judge me. I put my Fall stuff out early so they all get their fair share of time.

I’ve lost some weight and I’m really, really proud. I was actually able to pull my dress pants off without unbuttoning them the other day. I also saw a number on the scale that I haven’t seen since before Judd and I got married. Whoop whoop! (I’ve decided though, no matter how much weight you lose after babies, you just still don’t the same.)

I think it finally “clicked” (pun intended) with me on how to use my camera in manual mode. I’m really excited about it and I’m REALLY wanting the Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 G AF-S Lens. It has fantastic bokeh. I actually already have a 50mm lens that I got a long time ago, but stupid me didn’t know what I was ordering and didn’t an autofocus lens. It’s manual focus only. Let’s just say that shooting small toddlers on a swingset is difficult in manual focus.

See how the background is blurry and she’s in focus? See how the lighting is bright and not darkish? I’m proud.

I’m also DESPERATELY, REALLY BADLY wanting my backyard somewhat fenced in. Two reasons. To fence in the children so they can play without me next summer, and to fence in that destructive dog we have. Donations can be made by mailing us a blank check.

My BABY will be a YEAR OLD next month. I may cry. How on EARTH was that a year ago?! Since I never posted her birth story, I’m going to post it the day before her 1 year post for fun. It was a whirlwind and somewhat crazy!

Well, that’s more tidbits (and most of it was more like a novel than a tidbit, sorry) than I planned for. Seems I had more on my mind than I thought. Have a great week!

Happy 10…er, 10 1/2 months, Amelia!

2011-11-01T14:08:00.002-05:00

You’ve changed SO much in the last few weeks that I wanted to write it down before I forgot – thus, a 10 1/2 month post. It wouldn’t be in true Davis Family fashion if I wasn’t 1/2 a month late.

You had lots of first in the past month! You can clap, wave bye bye, crawl on all fours instead of your super fast army crawl, pull up on EVERYTHING, eat several different textures of table food, eat a bottle without rice cereal in it (yay!), feed yourself really well, reach for people that you want to hold you, drink from a sippy cup (although it’s still not your favorite), and take steps if someone holds your hands!

That’s a lot that happened to you in a month! On top of all that, you have 2 teeth FINALLY coming in on the bottom, and possibly 2 more up top. You’re pretty cranky with teething, but you could be worse!

Girl, you are so fun at this age. You smile all the time! You prefer your mommy hold you at all times, but you’re getting better at letting other people try! You’re DEFINITELY a mama’s girl. How on EARTH are you so close to a year old?! It totally blows my mind. Seriously, it seems like yesterday we were flying to the hospital in a frenzy to welcome you! Now here you are way too close to being a year old. My, my. Time does fly.

You love: Caroline playing with you, your pink polka dot blankie, your bottle, standing up, trying to take steps, Puffs, the tv remote control, anything to chew on, seeing yourself in the mirror, eating, being outstide, taking baths, splashing, and mommy holding you.

You dislike: cold drinks, getting dressed, Caroline taking your toys, having to get in your carseat, being taken away from mommy by anyone other than Ms. Lois or Daddy, to be confined (crib!), having your bottle taken out of your mouth (usually it’s someone trying to wipe your mouth – and you scream bloody murder…it’s best to just wait until you’re done eating, then wipe.), and being told you can’t play with something and having it taken away.

You are unsure about: Duke & Sassy. Sometimes you purposely hold your hands out for them to lick you. Other times, if they get too close, you lose your mind. You just can’t decide about them!

You weigh 20lbs even, and it’s ALL in your thighs and cheeks! Adorable!

We love you so much, little girl. I’d be lost without you in my world!

Love,

Mommy

Your first Halloween! You were Toto, and Caroline was Dorothy!

Pre-Made Shirt Sale

2011-10-17T14:41:00.001-05:00

Go to Squiggle Stitch Facebook Page to purchase ready to ship shirts! I had some leftover from a recent craft fair in town and thought I’d sell them on my FB page! Go check it out and see if there’s anything you’d like! There are shirts, keyfobs, hairbows, and a custom dress!

Fabric Giveaway

2011-10-13T00:02:00.001-05:00

Whimsical Fabric is having a giveaway on their blog! It’s valued at $112! That’s a lot of fabric, y’all! Go enter to win! There are several ways to gain multiple entries – so hurry up! Enjoy!

Ribbon Turkey Shirt!

2011-10-09T16:15:00.001-05:00

I just have to share this shirt – it’s so cute! I am so proud of it! I’m totally making Caroline & Amelia one for Thanksgiving. Adorable. Just showing off my handywork.

These are really time-consuming and hard work, but they are so cute! I’m charging $25 for a L/S shirt. Email me at squigglestitch@gmail.com if you’re interested! All Thanksgiving orders must be placed by November 4th, and all Christmas orders must be placed by November 18th.

I’ll be cutting off Christmas orders early because (as most of you know) Judd will have the month of December off – and I am going to spend time with my family while we’re all together. We will be doing a lot of traveling, too. Thanks for understanding! I appreciate my customers!

My Favorite Projects

2011-09-22T14:10:00.004-05:00

I started thinking last night how much I enjoy doing a good project, and the proud feeling that I get afterwards, especially if it’s DIY. I love it. As a friend on Facebook said, “Pinterest makes me want to burn my house down and start over!” HA! While I certainly don’t want to burn my house down, it does make me want to do more little projects that make a big difference in a room! So I decided it would be really fun to share my favorite projects, and see yours, too! Please leave a link to your favorite DIY's in a comment! (We were doing a McLinky, but it wasn't working!) Maybe your projects will be the next thing I decide to do!

Without further adieu, here’s my favorites:

1. I can’t put up favorite projects without talking about our house renovation project. It was not DIY (although I did design everything!) but I have to list it. It was the biggest project we’ve ever done and it definitely took a lot of time and work, and I am SO proud of it!

Living Room Before & Afters

Kitchen Before & Afters

We did a lot more than just that – and you can see the renovation from beginning to end by clicking HERE.

2. My red dresser. My mom bought me a furniture set at a garage sale when I decided to move to Starkville to be close to Judd. It was just regular honey colored wood. The furniture moved with us when we got married and we painted it an onyx color from Benjamin Moore that was supposed to be black, but had a bluish tint to it. Sorry I don’t have any pictures of that color – they’re all on my other computer. When Amelia took over the guest bedroom in our new house, I decided to move it to an empty wall in the living room – and paint it red! I’m in love with it. It’s definitely in my top re-do projects.

We took the mirror that came with it off and got a different one and changed the knobs. I love it. It adds a wonderful pop of color to my living room!

3. Caroline’s Striped Nursery. We worked our tails off. We’ve since moved, but that room will live in infamy.

4. My Earring Organizer. Easy-peasy. Seriously. It’s a decorative bulletin board and some sewing pins. I made it the day I came home from the hospital with Caroline. Yeah, it’s that easy.

Simple, simple. And cheap!

5. My Sewing Room Organization Wall.

Pegboard, peghooks, & dowel rods. I love it. My stuff is so much more organized. My ribbon is where I can see it. My thread is where I can get to it easily. My hoops are all where I can get to them. Everything is within reach. We really just got it finished a couple of weeks ago…that’s why my corkboards are empty. I also LOVE my “Sew much fabric, sew little time” decal.

6. My chalkboard painted jars. I love them. They add some color to the room and they were fun!

Please notice, I still have not purchased chalk. I can never remember chalk.

Find the tutorial for these HERE.

7. My picture gallery wall. If you don’t think this is a project…try doing it! I had to put them all out in the floor and arrange them 5000 times to get them the way I wanted. Then I had to decide which pictures should be b&w and which should be colored. Then we Judd had to hang them all and make them straight. It was a chore, but I love the way it turned out!

8. My closet dividers. They keep my shirts in my sewing room SO much more organized. I love them!

Find the tutorial for these by clicking HERE.

9. My cheapo lamps. I found some lamps in the clearance section at Walmart that I loved, but I hated the color. One can of Krylon Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint later, I had this!

10. My bookcase. My mother-in-law always has whatever you’re looking for in her shed. I asked if she had a bookcase, and I got my choice of three. I am so thankful! I painted it blue (it was hunter green) and promptly took the books from all the random drawers and cubbies in the house and placed them on my bookshelf! Now they’re all nice and neat!

If you think your eyes are playing tricks on you, they’re not. It’s a little crooked…not perfectly level…but it holds the books just fine!

So there are my favorites. I would LOVE to see your favorites. They don’t necessarily have to be DIY but that does make it a little more fun! You can list just one (and it can be a tutorial!) but you must place a link in your new post showing people that you linked up here so they’ll know where to come find more! Just put this link in your post somewhere...

http://juddandkacie.blogspot.com/2011/09/my-favorite-projects.html

So – show me your projects & tutorials!

Book Recommendation

2011-09-17T11:37:00.001-05:00

If you’ve been looking for a good book to read – and you’re married (or soon to be married) I have a fantastic book for you.

It’s called Love & Respect by Emerson Eggerichs. There are DVD’s and Workbooks to accompany the book or you can just read the book alone (or watch the DVD’s alone, I believe.)

I can’t say enough about this book. I have figured out that my husband is physically incapable of reading a book. He just can’t do it. He falls asleep on page 2. If he ever makes it to page 10 he is proud of himself. I had pretty much decided he would never read another book in his life (has he ever finished one, I wonder…?) until I brought myself into the 21st century and realized we have AUDIOBOOKS! Judd rides on a combine for about 8 hours on any given day during harvest and most books are about 6 hours. Although he can’t sit there and listen to the book without stopping, I’m happy that he has the chance now to read what I’m reading!

He gladly said he would “read” Love & Respect if I just put it on the iPod for him. Of course I quickly ran to the computer and put it on there. I had been reading the book at night before bed for several days. I want you to know, in one day of listening he had passed me in the book!

If my husband comes home talking about a book and how “that guy really seems to know what he’s talking about!” then you know it has to be worth reading. The beginning of the book (Part 1) is somewhat redundant, but I understand he needed to make sure he got his point across or Part 2 wouldn’t do anyone any good! Part 2 is fantastic. He writes a section for women (about their husbands) and a section for men (about their wives.) He is dead on. I was reading the part about women, written to the husbands and I kept thinking, “That’s SO true. This man gets it!” Judd said he felt the same way when listening to the part written to women about their husbands.

If you have to ride in the car by yourself at all, have some free moments to read at night, or even some time to watch the DVD’s – I really recommend it. Judd and I have been trying to put everything we were taught into practice – and I promise you – a week in, I can see a difference in the way we treat each other.

Whether you have a rocky marriage that needs major help, or a marriage that seems “perfect” or anything in between – this book is worth reading. Encourage your spouse to read it with you. It could be life changing! All marriages have room for improvement, no matter how good it is! I promise you won’t regret this book!

Love & Respect Website

Love & Respect Book on Amazon.com

And if your husband is like mine, get him the audiobook!

I already have several more books lined up for Judd to “read” on the combine!

It’s Working!

2011-09-15T10:32:00.001-05:00

I just have to say, someone hold me accountable! I’ve lost a couple of inches in my waist and dropped a few pounds. Last night, I tried on a pair of jeans that I couldn’t get to button before Caroline was born. THEY BUTTONED! Not only did they button, but there wasn’t a huge amount of muffin top either. I’ve got to stick with this! I had been feeling discouraged because my actual weight wasn’t moving very far even though I had lost an inch or two. That number on the scale just haunts me! Now I’m totally back and jumping back on the diet bandwagon. I’m so excited! Just had to share! Dieting takes a LOT of work and self control….things that really aren’t my strong points. Ha!

On a TOTALLY different note, head over to Squiggle Stitch’s Facebook page for a giveaway! Just comment on the status and tell me your favorite holiday and why for 1 of 3 chances to win!

Closet Dividers Tutorial

2011-09-12T23:42:00.001-05:00

I am in no way a really crafty person. I want to be. But I really stink at it. Most of the ideas that I get are totally stolen from someone else. So I’ve been redoing my sewing area (it’s not right to call it my sewing room since 3/4 of the room is Caroline’s playroom and I really get one long wall, but I digress) and my awesome mother-in-law just happened to have a round clothing rack from department store that closed. She dug around in an old shed and found it and gifted it to me! It was like Christmastime!

Sorry for the pic quality…phone camera!

My shirts have been a source of discontent for a while. Everytime I think I have a brilliant idea about how to store my shirt inventory, something about it doesn’t work out like I plan. I tried a large cabinet with cubby holes that my super handy hubby built me, but once stacked it was impossible to see what I was running out of. I tried the rubbermaid tub drawers, but I had so many shirts that I needed 4 gabillion tubs…and let’s face it…those things aren’t cheap! Then the shirts just stayed in the bags and sat on the desk until I could figure something out. Hooray for the clothing rack!

Well obviously I needed something to divide (if you will) the shirts on the rack. Now, I live in a pretty small place. The nearest Hobby Lobby is 2.5hrs away in either direction. The only place around to shop for things of that nature within my actual town (that is actually 15minutes away…ha) is Walmart. Unfortunately, Walmart around here isn’t really crafty-friendly. Don’t get me wrong, I find lots of things to waste money on in Walmart…but for things like awesome ribbon, fabric, etc. I have to travel well out of the confines of my town. SO…since I am entirely too impatient to order them online and have to wait for 5-7 days for something to arrive because I cannot bear to pay a crazy amount of money for someone to ship something to me quicker, I come up with alternate ways of doing things. Get on with it, Kacie. Sorry.

I scoured the internet for closet divider tutorials. All of which turned up pretty blank. You either needed the plastic dividers already or you needed to use the “door hanger” version, which wasn’t what I was going for.

If you are impatient and have few to no crafting stores around you…or you’re just really cheap…these are for you. Because they are super cheap. I’m talking, I spent $1.88 on these, and really didn’t even need to spend that much.

What you need:

1 cardboard box (Size depends on how many you want to make.)

1 pair of sharp scissors or a box cutter (I already had this.)

1 marker (Obviously, already had this.)

Some pretty scrapbook paper or fabric if you prefer (I already had this.)

Spray adhesive or a glue stick (I already had this.)

Label Maker (I put this because it’s what I used, but you can totally just write it with the above marker I mentioned.)

Two round things, different sizes…one large, one small.

Straight edge.

Time.

That last one might be your hardest thing to come by. They really don’t take too long.

First, take your two round things (I used a pot lid from Caroline’s play kitchen and half of a plastic easter egg. Get creative, folks.) and trace around them on the cardboard, putting the larger thing on the outside and the smaller on the inside. Don’t fully join the circle. Make a “C” shape. If you’re a good freehander, just do that instead…I am not.

Using your box cutter or your scissors, cut the “C” shape out. Use this one as your template for the rest.

Spread them out over the cardboard box.

Stack them up nice and neat…or don’t, it doesn’t matter.

Using a marker or pencil or whatever, place your cardboard “C” on the backside of some cute scrapbook paper or fabric and trace your shape. You need to do this twice, once for the front and once for the back. Since you’re doing this on cheapo cardboard, I suggest you flip your “C” shape over and keep the correct side with the same tracing so it matches better.

Cut out your scrapbook paper “C”

Using your spray adhesive or your glue stick or whatever you chose, spray the “C” cardboard piece and place the paper (or fabric) down on top of it and press it firmly.

Do the other side the same way. Trim up the edges if your paper didn’t fit just perfectly.

Make a pile.

Take your label maker or your marker (if you don’t have a label maker…go get one…it’s so fun to label everything in your house. Oh, that’s not fun to you? Well you’re missing out my friend.) and put your sizes on your divider. Since the cardboard gives a little bit, just give it a slight bend and stick it on your rack.

Since you’re being cheap and using cardboard, know that the cardboard edges will show between the two pieces of paper. But let’s be honest, this is going in your closet only to be seen by your children, your husband, and yourself – so don’t beat yourself up over it. Your husband will thank you for spending less than a Sonic large Diet Coke on the entire project. Mine did!

These are great, especially for new baby closets. Their stuff is so tiny and it’s hard to tell one size from another…not to mention they grow out of their clothes so quickly!

So all of you cheapos with no Joann or Hobby Lobby near you…you’re welcome!

As a sidenote, Squiggle Stitch is going to have a giveaway when our FB page reaches 300 fans! Invite your friends, please!

Coupon Chief

2011-09-09T16:16:00.001-05:00

I’m super pumped because today I’ve been asked to review a super cool website called Coupon Chief! Now, let me tell you what is so cool about it. Ya know those other websites where you can look up coupon codes and printable coupons for retail stores? Well, Coupon Chief is like those, but with a BIG perk! Wait for it….are you on the edge of your seat yet?

You get PAID to submit a coupon! If you just fell out of your chair, ~~you need a life~~ I understand completely. I mean, how many times do you get coupon codes in your email from newsletters that you don’t even bother using? Well, with Coupon Chief you can share the wealth…and get wealthier. The program is called “Pays-2-Share” and it pays you 2% commission. You can get up to $25 from a specific store in a month. There is no limit to how much you can earn per month. Obviously, you’re not going to get rich doing this, but it’s still a cool way to make a few extra bucks here and there. If you’re considering, I suggest you read their faq & terms of use. (Make sure that the coupons you upload are from a store with the little yellow cent symbol. Those are the stores participating in the payback program.) You can be paid via check or Paypal once you’ve reached $25 on your account! You can even get paid for using your OWN coupons! It’s basically cash back on your own transactions. Why not? Seriously!

You can only have one account per household, so don’t try to sign up the whole family!

Don’t really feel like taking ~~2 minutes~~ the time upload coupons? That’s fine! Use them as your personal source for other people’s coupon codes!

They also have a really cool program called Coupons-4-Causes. It’s exactly what it sounds like. You pick a charity, school, church, etc. to donate your money to. Here’s what they say about the donations:

“We partner with thousands of online retailers that pay us a commission when purchases are made through our site. Instead of keeping this all for ourselves, we decided to donate 50% of this revenue to the cause of your choice”

If you would like to add your own “cause,” all you have to do is e-mail them and they’ll get to work on adding it to their site. They’ll even start your new cause off with $25!

I think it’s safe to say that Coupon Chief is going to start catching on! It’s really easy to set up, so what are you waiting for?!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Caroline!

2011-08-31T22:20:00.004-05:00

My sweet girl, HOW are you two years old? This year brought so many changes for you, physically & developmentally! You weigh a solid 33lbs…above average for your age. People always comment when they pick you that you don’t look like you’d be that heavy! Your daddy has always said he has a heavy liver, maybe you take after him.

You got a sister at 15 months old and it rocked your world! You suddenly went from the only attention hog to 1 out of 2 attention hogs! You truly love her, though! Now that she’s sitting up on her own you LOVE to sit down with her and play. You two take baths together and you love teaching her to splash!

You used to eat anything we put in front of you – but now you are the pickiest eater I’ve ever seen. You love: bananas, apples, froot loops, goldfish crackers, gummi snacks, chicken nuggets, french fries (“fwies!”) salmon patties, pancakes, biscuits, pizza, cookies, and sometimes you’ll eat a grilled cheese. That’s about the extent to what you’ll eat. Bread is your favorite…you get that from your mama!

You have really gotten into pretend play and I love watching you! You “cook” on your kitchen and make me meals. You’ll stir a spoon around on an empty plate then feed me (or Amelia!) a bite. You grab my hand at all points in the day and say, “Pway?” and you’ll drag me into the playroom and proceed to cook for me. I love it. Your favorite toys are: Dancing Mickey, fridge alphabet & farm, kitchen, tent, shopping cart, Vtech laptop, bounce house, learning train, balls of any kind, & color wonder.

You know your ABC’s and can count to 10. Not only can you SAY your ABC’s, but you can identify the letters! You know all the uppercase letters and most of the lowercase letters. You’re so smart!

You are talking up a STORM. You always have something to say – and sometimes it’s all jibberish! Your vocabulary has grown exponentially this last month. You know so many sentences! Your most common phrases are: “Hey Mama (or other name!)” “Whatchadoin?” “Let’s read!” “Mia’s crying? (HA!)” “I sowwy Mama” “You okay?” “A drinkawater!” “Some milk, pwease!” & “Where paci?” You love to pretend to talk on the phone. You’ll put my cellphone up to your ear and say, “Hey ___! Whatchadoin? Oh, okay. Bye!” Apparently you’ve heard me talk on the phone a few too many times.

You’re able to understand way more than you can say. You follow commands very well!

Reading is your favorite pastime. You could read for hours! Your favorite books are: Llama Llama Red Pajama, If You Give a Pig a Party (which you call “Pigaparty!”), Silly Sally, Wherever You Are, Goodnight Moon, The Giving Tree (which you call “Tree!”), & On the Night You Were Born.

You do love to watch television! Sometimes I have to cut it off and tell you no more tv for the day because you would sit in front of it all day if we let you. You love to watch: Veggie Tales, Elmo, Olivia, Yo Gabba Gabba (which I can’t stand!), & Ni Hao Kai Lan.

You would LIVE outside if we would let you. You can walk around the yard and play for hours without ever really doing anything. You do love to swing and ride your power Jeep! Playing with rocks from the driveway also keeps you entertained for a long time. You love Duke & Sassy! You crack me up with them. Sometimes you try to make them lick you and other times you can’t stand it if they mess with you!

Every night before bed you say “PRAY!” and fold your hands together and smile so big. It melts my heart. We then pray for everyone you’ve ever met…ha! We thank God for all those people and thank him for Jesus. Then when I say “Amen,” you basically scream, “AYMEEEEN!” You’ve also taken to screaming that out in church when someone leads a prayer. We’ve started covering your mouth at the end of prayers because you scream it so loudly.

You are such a joy in our lives. It blows my mind that you are two years old. It just doesn’t seem right! I love you more than I know how to describe. My heart just swells with pride. You are such a sweet, tender little girl. I can’t wait to see the wonderful young lady you will grow into…but until then…slow down a little and stop getting so big! You’ll always be my baby. I love you.

Love,

Mama

This is Caroline’s 2nd Birthday video! Turn up the volume and enjoy! (If you are viewing this post from an e-mail subscription or through Facebook, you'll probably have to come to the actual blog to view the video!)

Caroline’s 2nd Year Video!

MIA

2011-08-29T14:06:00.001-05:00

I know I’ve been MIA. The truth is, I just don’t have anything interesting to write about. But for my family’s sake, I’ll try to think of random things. Here we go:

1. Judd is hardcore harvesting. It makes me sad and happy at the same time! He’s working late hours and usually only sees the girls for about 30min before they go to bed. Sometimes he doesn’t see Amelia at all! But it makes me happy because a full season is almost over. December will be here and it will be full of family time with Daddy! It makes me want to rush my favorite season (Fall) to get to December!

2. Caroline will be 2 on Wednesday. Be watching for a 2 year post because I am definitely doing one. This is what I looked like 2 years ago today…

3. Amelia is crawling! She’s really starting to get the hang of it and she’s actually starting to get her belly off the ground. I know it won’t be long and she’ll be shooting across the room!

4. We are still dieting and exercising. Yuck. I literally haven’t lost weight – but if my measurements are correct, I am losing some inches. I hope my measurements are correct.

5. I’m desperately wanting my backyard fenced in. I would love to be able to open the back door and just let Caroline & Amelia go outside and play without having to worry. It would also be great to have some places for their outside toys that the dogs can’t totally destroy!

6. The weather is really starting to feel better. It’s not nearly as humid this week as last week. I hope it only gets better from here!

7. My Fall décor will be out on Thursday – Sept. 1st. Kiss my big fat rear end. Fall doesn’t last long enough before you have to take down that décor to put up Christmas décor. I’m getting full use of my pumpkins.

8. Squiggle Stitch is definitely keeping me incredibly busy right now! That’s part of the reason I haven’t blogged in so long!

Well, it’s time for me to allot myself ~~practically zero~~ some calories for lunch. Hopefully I won’t starve.

We have some NEWS!

2011-08-16T12:15:00.001-05:00

HAAAAAAAA! I know what you were thinking when you read that title. That’s a big, fat, emphatic NO.

Our news is really not news at all, and it’s really not exciting. So why am I even bothering? Because we need some accountability!

We’re dieting. We’re not the dieting type of people because we both eat portions that are way too big, I make sweets, and pizza is my favorite food…in large portions. We started last Thursday. We’re using www.myfitnesspal.com to track our calories each day. They have an awesome app on Android (and maybe iPhone too?) phones. You can just scan the barcode of what you’re eating if it has one. If it’s a homemade recipe, you can type your recipe into a little box, tell it how many servings it makes, and voila! It tells you exactly how many calories you’re consuming. I’m really tempted to put my weight on my blog for the entire world to see so that I can be held even more accountable, but I think I’ll have to muster up some more courage before I manage that.

Along with counting calories, we’re working out. I’m doing the 30 Day Shred with Jillian Michaels. She is a beast. I hate her voice by the time the DVD is over – and strangely enough, I look forward to doing it again the next night. I told Judd that if I don’t look somewhat different by the end of 30 days, I am hunting her down. It will not be pleasant.

I’m looking for some low calorie meals that we can make at home. Let me just go ahead and tell you that if it has tons of onions or peppers, I probably won’t ever make it – much to Judd’s dismay. I despise onions. I usually substitute with a mound of onion powder.

We like chicken, an occasional pork chop or pork loin, and lots and lots of beef. Beef is a problem around here.

Anyone have a recipe they’d like to link to or share?

This & That

2011-08-11T20:26:00.001-05:00

1. I finally got Kroger coupons yesterday. After calling and harassing the customer service people 3 times, I finally got them. Persistence pays off.

2. Too many people are mentioning potty training Caroline for it not to worry me that the girl seems no where ready to potty train. However, if she gains much more weight there will no longer be a diaper for her to wear. Yikes.

3. Amelia is now saying “da-da” and it’s seriously adorable.

4. We got Caroline a “mini” bounce house for her birthday. We thought it would fit in a small corner in her playroom and we could blow it up when she wanted to play with it. It. Is. HUGE. It has to go directly in front of the front door in the open space in our kitchen/living room area. Huge.

5. My kids are starting to play together and it suddenly makes 2 under 2 totally worth it. They were 15 months apart and it ~~was rough~~ nearly killed me. I’m not kidding. I was heading for the light. And suddenly, there became a glimmer of hope (the bottle) and she’s a new baby. I am thankful for this every single day.

6. I taught Caroline the “Clean up, clean up – everybody do your share” song. Backfire. Now she dumps ALL the toys out ALL the time just to sing the song. What’s the problem, you ask? She picks up about half of the toys before she realizes the song in itself doesn’t necessarily make cleaning up fun.

7. We had a Veggie Tales themed birthday party for Caroline this past weekend. My sister preeeeeeetty much pulled the whole thing together. Without her, it would have looked like a red and green Christmas party in August. Larry & Bob would have barely made their presence known. However, thanks to Audra, Caroline walked around yelling their names everytime she saw them.

8. Judd and I are, together, counting calories. Yep. We’ve decided we’re not in very good shape and we eat awful foods. Today was day 1. I pretty much messed myself over at breakfast. I only have 270 calories left for the entire night and we haven’t eaten dinner. Not looking very successful.

9. I haven’t blogged in nearly 3 weeks. Oops.

Amelia is in need of her mother now. I kind of like ending on number 9 instead of 10. Does that bug you?

Happy 7 Months, Amelia!

2011-07-21T16:16:00.001-05:00

I feel compelled to write a monthly post for my Amelia. Bless her soul. In all honesty, the reason I never did months 1-6 is simple; she never stopped crying. What kind of a monthly post would that be?

“Happy 2 months, Amelia! You cry constantly and can scream louder than any child I’ve ever known…or any human for that matter. You want to nurse 24/7, spit up the majority of what you eat, rarely sleep, and hate everyone except your mother. We love you!”

How unpleasant to go back and read one day. You’re not supposed to remember these extremely tough time with babies – because if you did you wouldn’t have any more. So blogging about it wouldn’t do anything but make it where I couldn’t forget if I wanted to!

All of that being said, Amelia has turned a corner. ~~I’m sure of it.~~ ~~I think.~~ I hope. She is FINALLY accepting a bottle from a few select people, she likes her Daddy a little more these days, and she isn’t screaming at the top of her lungs ~~anymore~~ all the time. She is really a sweet girl!

Amelia,

You are something else, girl. The last 7 months have been challenging, but rewarding. Without a doubt, you love your mommy. You hate for me to be out of your sight, unless Ms. Lois is holding you. She’s my only acceptable substitute! She loves you, though, so that makes me happy. You roll all over the place! You roll your way across a room sometimes! I love to put you down somewhere and come back and find you across the room…so funny!

You are attempting to sit up on your own and getting better at it everyday! You TRY to crawl. You basically can get both legs up under your tush and you try to push off with one foot – it usually involves you accidently rolling yourself back onto your back.

You think your sister is the funniest person alive. You watch every move she makes! She loves to come talk to you and play “gitchu gitchu” (“I’m gonna get you, get you, get you!”) You go to sleep around 6:30pm and sleep until about 6:30am. Sometimes I can pull you into bed with me and nurse you back to sleep for another hour or so.

You’re a tiny little girl. When I weighed you today you were an even 14lbs. You’re only in the 20th percentile for your height so we’re thinking you’re going to be a petite little girl. You might prove us wrong, though! Even though you’re a tiny thing, you have the rolly-est (yes, I made up that word) thighs and poofiest (again, yes.) cheeks. I love them. You’re still in a size 2 diaper – which works out great. We had a diaper shower from the ladies at church in January and got so many diapers that I still haven’t had to buy a single pack yet. How awesome is THAT?!

(Check out those leg rolls for a 14lb baby!)

You have the strongest little legs! You would much rather stand up than sit down. You definitely didn’t get that from your mother. Ha! You chew anything you can get in your mouth, including your fists. You can fit your entire fist in your mouth. It’s quite impressive, really. You slobber everywhere and we keep expecting a tooth or two, but so far you just have a gummy, toothless grin!

You love your playmat, your jumperoo, your crunchy elephant, and your squeaky giraffe.

I think it’s cute that you have favorite toys already. You eat about six 5oz bottles a day and nurse once in the morning and once at night. This just started last week. Before that you nursed every 2 hours all day long until 6:30 rolled around. You like baby food a lot. Anything with bananas! You also LOVE an avocado & banana mixed together. You won’t eat the avocado without the banana, but you love the two together!

You hate to have a dirty diaper. You will scream uncontrollably until it gets changed. Pee is fine, but the other…notsomuch. You expect a fresh diaper within seconds of being finished, which is sometimes difficult – especially if we’re in a store or the car somewhere!

You have a mind of your own, without a doubt. I think you might get that from your mommy. You want what you want! Daddy and I were discussing just last night how you’ve got persistence working for you!

I look at you and think about how tiny you are and how before I blink my eyes we’ll be celebrating 1 year going on 18 years. It kills me. Some part of me wants you to stay my little baby forever, but the other part can’t wait for all the fun times ahead. When Caroline turned about 9 months old, I constantly said (and still continue to say every month) “this is my favorite age!” I have no doubt it will be the same with you! You are a wonderful addition to our little family, and it makes me so excited when you and Caroline interact and smile and play with each other. I hope you always treasure one another!

We love you with all of our hearts, baby girl. I can’t wait to teach you all the wonderful things about Jesus and our purpose on this earth. My hope is that you become a Christian, godly woman who always tries to please the Lord! You are such a joy in our lives. We love you.

Love,

Mommy (& Daddy, of course!)

Pictures & a Car Accident

2011-07-09T23:23:00.001-05:00

I wanted to share my favorites from our picture session with Jessica Rowell Photography in Hernando, MS. If you’re anywhere around that area and want some wonderful pictures done of your family for excellent prices – call her! She’s amazing!

Amelia wasn’t too terribly thrilled to be doing these pictures, but she did better than I expected. Caroline did great as long as we sang Veggie Tales over and over again! I’m really, really happy with how they turned out so I wanted to put them up here to show them off.

In other news, we had a car accident last Sunday but we’re all okay. Someone didn’t see us coming down the highway and crossed the intersection (going straight across.) Thankfully, I did hit my brakes and swerved to try to miss him, so we avoided a total T-bone collision, but I did slam into the very front of his vehicle. I was honking the horn when we hit him and our airbags deployed. When we hit him, it somehow basically knocked our wheel off the car and shot us into a small ditch. Let me just say that wrecking with your whole family in the car is a lot different than wrecking by yourself! Someone who saw the accident said he knew we had babies in the car because our car had not been stopped for 2 seconds and both of our doors flung open to jump in the back and get them. We were so lucky. No one was hurt, including the man we hit. I’m so, so, so thankful for that. I had some cuts and bruises on my arm where the airbag deployed while I was honking, a seatbelt rash on my chest, and some bruised knees – and that was the extent of everyone’s injuries. We were all really sore the next day (and even worse the 2nd and 3rd day) but I’m feeling 100% now. It probably didn’t help that I had done Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred on Saturday night for the first time ever. Yeah. Talk about bad timing.

Look at that dirt that we took with us from the ditch! Crazy! Our car was totalled, and we’re hoping to get a new one this week. I was SO sad about my car! I know that a car is just stuff and is replaceable and I couldn’t have been happier with the outcome of our situation, but I was so proud of my car! Oh well, it did its job and kept us safe!

If you’ve made it through all of my ramblings, thank you.

Couponing Powerpoint

2011-07-01T17:03:00.001-05:00

If you’ve been wanting to learn to coupon but haven’t had time to go to a class – you’re in luck! I recently taught a small class and prepared a powerpoint to go along with it. It doesn’t give you ALL the benefits of an actual class because everything that I said isn’t written down, but it will definitely work to get you started! Just click the “couponing” tab under my big farming picture up there and scroll down a little. You can make it full screen or just zoom in on the pages that aren’t big enough. Hope it helps someone get started!

Amelia Laughing Video

2011-06-17T11:31:00.002-05:00

Please excuse the crazy person that came into my house, grabbed my camera, and videoed my child laughing. It definitely wasn’t me. I don’t sound like this crazy woman in this video.
Also, please excuse my daughter’s avacado face. Apparently that crazy woman didn’t know how to make the spoon actually get into my daughter’s mouth. Once you’ve excused these things, feel free to watch the video!

Blessings

2011-06-15T15:49:00.001-05:00

I have a Christian family!
I have Jesus. I’m learning more and more how much He loves me and cares about even my smallest disappointments.
I have my health and the health of my family.
I have a roof over my head – and a wonderful one, at that!
I have air conditioning. I’m very serious. It’s super hot here.
I have an amazing church family.
I have a patient, humorous, adorable, handsome, hard-working husband!
I have two of the sweetest girls on this planet!
I have the best family (from BOTH sides) that a girl could ask for!
I have a fun hobby that I enjoy.
I have a car to get me from one place to another!
I have a yearning to get closer to the Lord and and study his Word more than I ever have before.
I have had my past and my sins wiped clean through baptism!
I have 5 more months until Judd and I get to spend an entire month together!
I am able to stay home with my children and raise them in a Christian home.
I have many, many blessings.

My sister introduced me to a song – Blessings, by Laura Story.

Listen to it here!

I am in. love. with. this. song.

I’ve been thinking for a few weeks about how truly BLESSED I am. I think it’s finally hitting me. My family and my Jesus are what make this life so great. They’re who I think of first when I think of my blessings. Everything else is just, stuff. And I know, without a doubt, that when my any of my family leaves here they are going somewhere much better than this place…and I know I’ll see them all again!

I AM BLESSED!

Chalkboard Painted Jars

2011-06-02T11:22:00.003-05:00

So I had a few minutes to myself the other day (chime in with the hallelujah chorus!) and decided I wanted to do something crafty. I haven’t made time to do something besides housework, mommywork, and sewing in a long time. I’m redoing my sewing area (I can’t call it a sewing room, it’s overrun with gobs of toys!) to make it a little more functional to hold all of my stuff. I have more fabric than I know what to do with (addiction, maybe?) and all the usual office looking clutter. Anyway, this post isn’t about my redo. It’s about the jars! So in my redo, I decided I wanted some cute little jars to hold things like buttons, pins, safety pins, alligator clips, and the like.
This is a very easy tutorial with lots of pictures. You’ll have to excuse the pictures, though. Go read this post to see why.
Okay, so let’s get started!

I got some half-pint canning jars at Walmart. These are the Better Homes & Garden line. They have a small space on the front to write on.

Then go get some chalkboard paint. It’s not crazy cheap, but the possibilities are endless with this stuff! I have more things I’m planning on doing with mine. There are several different brands.

Tape around the edges of where you’re going to put the chalkboard paint.
Ahem. We did not have any painters tape. I HIGLY recommend painter’s tape. I did, however, have Scotch tape. And because I’m cheap, ~~and lazy,~~ and live 20 miles from town, it’s what I used. Regardless of what you use, if your jar doesn’t have a flat surface for the tape to adhere to, you’ll probably have a little seepage. But never fear! You’re painting on glass so it can easily be scraped off with a knife or razor blade. Carry on.

Take your fingernail (or whatever) and do your best to make the tape stick down around the edges. This is probably where painter’s tape would’ve come in handy.

Get your paint out. Shake the can up a lot!

Smooth some paint onto the surface. Go from side to side (not up/down) and try to do it in one or two strokes. Don’t worry if it looks a little drippy. It gets smoother as it dries.

Paint your jars (I did 6/12) and wait on them to dry. They dry to the touch in 30-60min. The can says not to write on them for about 4 days.

Sit your jars aside. If you want to spruce the lids up, continue on!

You’ll need scrapbook paper (or fabric) glue, a marker, the 2 lid pieces, and some scissors.

Take your jar lid and and marker and trace a circle onto your scrapbook paper. It doesn’t have to be perfect.

The circle will be just a smidge bigger than the inside piece of the lid. Anyone know what that thing is called?

It will fit like this….

Put some glue on your lid. Yeah, it’s clear. Don’t ask why I took a picture. Whatever.

You have two options here. You can glue the excess edges onto the inside piece or you can cut the excess off. I chose to cut it off. Doesn’t have to be perfect, you won’t be able to see the edges.

Here’s the new inside lid piece.

Stick it inside the outside piece.

Screw the lid on your new cute jar! This is post-tape peeling and paint scraping due to the scotch tape incident. USE PAINTER’S TAPE.

With buttons!

This entire project was done during naptime! It doesn’t take very long. I did 6 jars! The package came with 12. Any crafty ideas on what I should do with the other 6?
Enjoy!

I'm linking up to Power of Paint @ Domestically Speaking, Somewhat Simple Link Party Thursday, and Transformation Thursday @ Shabby Chic Cottage!

Old Navy Groupon Deal!

2011-06-01T22:45:00.000-05:00

Groupon has an awesome deal going - but hurry! It ends soon! Click the link below and sign up, then spend $10 to get a $20 gift card to Old Navy! That's 50% savings! Hurry, hurry!

Click Here!

Wherever You Are

2011-05-31T23:38:00.002-05:00

(37wks with Caroline --- 29wks with Amelia)

I wanted you more

than you ever will know,

so I sent love to follow

wherever you go.

(Amelia ------ Caroline)

It’s high as you wish it. It’s quick as an elf. You’ll never outgrow it…it stretches itself!

So climb any mountain…

Climb up to the sky!

My love will find you.

My love can fly!

Make a big splash! Go out on a limb!

My love will find you. My love can swim!

It never gets lost, never fades, never ends…

if you’re working…

or playing…

or sitting with friends.

You can dance ‘til you’re dizzy…

paint ‘til you’re blue…

There’s no place, not one,

that my love can’t find you.

And if someday you’re lonely,

or someday you’re sad,

or you strike out at baseball,

or think you’ve been bad…

just lift up your face, feel the wind in your hair.

That’s me my sweet baby, my love is right there.

In the green of the grass…in the smell of the sea…in the clouds floating by…at the top of a tree…in the sound crickets make at the end of the day…

“You are loved. You are loved. You are loved,” they all say.

My love is so high, and so wide, and so deep, it’s always right there, even when you’re asleep.

So hold your head high

and don’t be afraid

to march to the front

of your own parade.

If you’re still my small babe

or you’re all the way grown,

my promise to you

is you’re never alone.

You are my angel, my darling, my star…and my love will find you, wherever you are.

“Wherever You Are – my love will find you” by Nancy Tillman

I read this book to Caroline every night before bed. I rarely ever leave the room without tears in my eyes. I am so blessed to be their mother.

My Big Fat Confession

2011-05-29T21:02:00.001-05:00

I have a confession. I have a serious problem. It’s probably something that everyone has struggled with at some point. I’m rarely ever content. That’s such a difficult confession. There are so many “mom bloggers” that I follow that are just so….content. They’re perfectly happy with every aspect of their lives. Or at least that’s how it seems. I’m sure they have a stretch mark or dimple booty or something small they would change…but overall…they’re content.

I had a meltdown Saturday. My poor husband didn’t know what to do with me. Let me explain how this went. Amelia didn’t sleep well the night before and I was tired. Caroline had a cold was sickly all day Friday. It is no secret in this house that Judd has to work on Saturdays. It’s just how it is. It’s the life of a farmer…and his family. Why I lost my mind over this fact is simple. I woke up tired, and a million “little things” went wrong. I smashed my finger, I stubbed my toe, I was tired, I was hungry, etc. etc. The list could go on for hours. All of this led to me getting on the computer to play on Facebook for a few minutes in silence. My newsfeed was FULL of people talking about their super fun Memorial Day plans, boat rides on the lake, family events, reunions, and 4 days weekends. Memorial Day weekend is like any other weekend to us…the rice and soybeans don’t stop growing just because of a holiday. There were a bajillion pictures of people out at the pool, going on vacation to the beach, going to do this and that. And I got jealous. There, I said it. I was so jealous of their family time and…I’ll say it…their vacations. Their week long vacations away from their houses and familiar towns. I wanted it. I still do, honestly. But we farm, so December is our month for a vacation. Please don’t take this as something you need to say, “Oh I’m so sorry – I can’t imagine…blah blah blah.” It’s okay. I knew that this was what life was going to be like before we got married – I guess I just didn’t realize what an adjustment it would be for ME and NOT for Judd. He grew up with this. His Daddy always worked on Saturdays. Mine didn’t. We took a vacation almost every summer to an amusement park or wherever and just spent time as a family. He did that in December – along with everything else.

I say all of that not so you’ll pity me and my lifestyle. There are definitely perks to my lifestyle – I can’t lie. There are wonderful things about farming. Judd gets the entire month of December off work. But trying to fit an entire year’s worth of events into one jam packed month is difficult. December now holds our anniversary, Amelia’s birthday, other family birthdays, and the obvious one – Christmas. (We won’t even mention the crazy amount of duck hunting Judd does in December!) But either way, we do enjoy our time together in December! One of the real perks of farming is that Judd loves his job. He TRULY loves what he does. I would never want him to dislike the job he had to go to 6-7 days a week!

I’m working really hard on being content. I want to be content with our lifestyle. I want to take the good with the bad and just DEAL with it…but it’s so hard. It’s so hard to hear about all the fun vacations people are taking. It’s hard to read statuses on FB about everyone being excited about it being Saturday. Saturday is just another work day here. I’m praying really hard for the Lord to help me change my heart. I have more blessings than I can count. My kids are healthy. That is such an amazing blessing – and I thank the Lord for that every single day. I have an A-MAZING family – on both sides. I have a husband who does major strenuous manual labor all day long for our family. He works his tush off, folks. Seriously. He shovels, he rides extremely bumpy tractors, he builds things…this list could truly go on forever. I’m so thankful for him. I get to stay home with my babies. That is so important to me. I love being with them and watching them grow. I love seeing each milestone and knowing that I’m the one with them all day. I couldn’t be more appreciative of that fact…or I probably could…and should be. The blessings list could far outweigh the negatives in my life! (Sing it with me folks, “count your blessings, name them one by one…and it will surprise you what the Lord has done!)

Just typing those good things out has made me realize how good I really have it. It stinks that Judd has to work so much the majority of the year – but I truly believe if I’ll change my heart to be more content with my situation, I will be happier with where we are and not constantly wanting.

Someone else HAS to be feeling this way about something (it doesn’t have to be about work!) and I hope that we can pray for each other! I need prayers to change my heart. I want to be one of those bloggers that is so happy with life that it encourages YOU to be more happy with yours. I’d love to pray for you and have your prayers in return! That’s what we’re here for, right? My heart is racing over putting this confession out on the world wide web, but I need to!

I know most of you probably didn’t care to read all of this and probably didn’t make it past the first pity-party-paragraph, and that’s okay. Writing this post was mainly for myself. It’s part of the self-betterment goal I’m going for. I ordered a book recommended by a friend called “Calm my Anxious Heart: A woman’s guide to finding contentment” by Linda Dillow. I’m going to read it and I’ll do my best to let you know how it turns out.

If you’re feeling this way about something (or anything that you’d like prayers for!) leave a comment. We will pray for each other! It takes only a few seconds to leave a comment – and the prayers you will receive could change your heart…and your life if you allow it! Thank you for your prayers!

Yummy Meatloaf Recipe!

2011-05-27T22:44:00.001-05:00

As much as I’d love to take credit for this entire recipe, I cannot. I used The Pioneer Woman’s recipe but just tweaked a couple things.

What you’ll need for the Meatloaf:

6 slices of bread
1 cup milk
2ish lbs of ground beef
1 cup Parmesan Cheese
1/4 tsp Season Salt
3/4 tsp Salt
Black Pepper
1/3 cup minced Parsley
4 eggs
Bacon

She called for white bread, but wheat was all we had, so I went with it! You can also use plain crackers if you’d rather. Pour 1 cup of milk over the 6 slices of bread in a bowl. Yuck. Mushy bread. I know. Leave it to get soggy. Double yuck.

Get your ingredients together to mix with the ground beef.

Take four eggs and beat them.

Mix the dry ingredients (Parmesan, salts, pepper, parsley, etc.) Even though your bread is soggy mush at this point, mix it in, too. Break it into small cubes and mix with your beef.

Pour the eggs over the mixture. Dig your hands in and mix it all up. Really get your hands mushy.

Place the beef mixture into a pan and form into a loaf. Obviously.

*Ahem* PW calls for a broiler pan, which I do not own. We like to soak our food in fat and grease because it makes it taste better and we want to die from heart attacks – but if you’d like the fat to drain off, use a broiler pan lined with aluminum foil. Carry on.

Now take a yummy package of bacon….

And place it in strips over your meatloaf. Tuck the edges in on the sides.

Now for the sauce. You will need:

1 1/2 cups Ketchup
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp dry mustard
Tabasco to taste.

Mix all of this together.

Pour 2/3 of the mixture on top of your meatloaf. Put it in the oven at 350 degrees for 45 min. Then, pour the rest of the sauce over the meatloaf and cook another 15min.

Deliciousness.

I will say – WHEN I make this recipe again, I’m going to try it with a tomato sauce instead of the sauce she suggested. It definitely had more of a ketchup flavor than I would have liked. Overall, it was really good!! My favorite part? It had ingredients in it that I already had in my house. I don’t like recipes that call for 500 ingredients I’ve never heard of!

Giveaway Winner!!

2011-05-27T18:43:00.000-05:00

The winner has been chosen! As explained in the video, there were some people who didn't quite understand how to do multiple entries so instead of using a random number generator, we used the old fashioned method of paper slips and a cup! If you had multiple entries, your name was in the cup multiple times! :)

Congratulations to the winner! We will be emailing you to discuss what you would like! Feel free to take a look at Squiggle Stitch FB page to pick out your applique and decide if you want a jumper or jon jon.

Thank you to EVERYONE for participating! Go to to www.squigglestitch.com and receive 15% off your order using code THANKS15 - Please note, this coupon code only applies to those who entered the contest! It is for Squiggle Stitch items, only. It cannot be used for boutique clothing, blankets, etc.

Be sure to follow the blog for more giveaways!!

Giveaway Time!

2011-05-20T08:00:00.000-05:00

Okay, today’s giveaway is actually a collaboration! I’m teaming up to a super sweet lady named Debbie, who owns Debbie’s Designs. Here are some of the CUTE things she has made…

Boy’s Jon Jon with an applique patch by Squiggle Stitch…

Adorable girl’s jumper with owl applique & monogram by Squiggle Stitch…

SUPER CUTE peasant dress with matching raggy ruffles!

Look at the attention to detail with the perfect covered buttons! I’m telling you – adorable!

Precious ruffle neck dress and a hairbow to match!

She also makes hairbows!! Check out this picture of Caroline in her korker bow from Debbie’s Designs…

Okay – so now you’re ready to find out about the giveaway, huh? Well here it is! The winner will have their choice of one boy’s jon jon or girl’s jumper dress (the first two pictured outfits above) from Debbie’s Designs with their choice of applique & monogram by Squiggle Stitch!

Please make sure you “like” the correct “Debbie’s Designs” on Facebook. There are more than one to choose from! To make it easy, just click the link here or anywhere else that reads “Debbie’s Designs” in this blog post.

Follow my directions very carefully! You can earn extra entries to increase your odds of winning!

First thing is first – you MUST like Debbie’s Designs on Facebook & like Squiggle Stitch on Facebook! This was originally a Facebook giveaway, but due to FB’s rule changes, we’re hosting it on the blog. Like both of our pages for ONE entry. Come back here and leave a comment telling me you’ve done it. You cannot enter the giveaway without liking both pages! C’mon…we’re not asking much!

To earn a 2nd entry – use your blog to make a post about this giveaway! You can grab my blog button on the right hand column and put it in your post if you’d like! Come back here and leave me a comment telling me you’ve done it and put the link to your post in the comment to verify.

To earn a 3rd entry – make a Facebook status about the giveaway and tag Debbie’s Designs & Squiggle Stitch in the post. You do this by adding the ‘@’ symbol before you type out the name. Then, come back here and leave me a comment telling me you’ve done it.

To earn a 4th entry – Make a tweet on Twitter about the giveaway and LINK to this post! Then, come back here and leave me a comment telling me you’ve done it and put a link to your tweet in the comment to verify.

READ THIS PART VERY, VERY CAREFULLY to make sure you get all the entries you deserve:

Put a SEPARATE comment for each thing you do that gets you an entry. For example: if you like the two pages and make a FB status about the giveaway, comment two different times to let me know that you’ve done these things. It’s easier to pick a winner with a number generator when each entry is separated in the comments section. Please do this to make sure you get the credit you deserve!

So there you go! Do all four things to increase your odds! The giveaway winner will be chosen on Friday, May 27, 2011.

Be sure to leave your email address in at least one comment so we can contact you when it’s over if you’re the winner!

Please note: Debbie will give you your fabric choices for your outfit when the winner is chosen!

Smorgasbord of Thoughts

2011-05-19T12:18:00.001-05:00

Do you need a definition of smorgasbord? It’s actually a word for a giant buffet of different types of foods. But we use that word to basically say “a lot of different ____.” So in my case, a lot of different thoughts. Good. Now that we got that out of the way…

I’m super excited about Squiggle Stitch’s new line of boutique clothing! If you haven’t gone already, go check it out! Seriously, you’ll probably see my children dressed in these outfits all summer – because they truly are A-DORABLE. No, I’m not making them. I wish I could! Embroidery is more of my thing – sewing is something I am very limited with. Hopefully someday I’ll actually have time to sit down and try to sew something together.

I’m also super excited about my new curtain. I’m having a roman shade curtain made to go over the door in my living room that leads out to the playroom. The playroom/sunroom/sewing room used to be a patio – so the door is one with the glass windows in it. I love that it lets in so much light from the sunroom, but I don’t love that you can constantly see the MESS of toys when the rest of house looks “put together” and clean. (“Clean” meaning: you aren’t tripping over the piles of junk in the floor and the majority of the dirty dishes are put somewhere other than the counter…even if that place is just the sink. My mother just died reading this knowing that people might actually see my house looking like a war zone.) Anyway – look at this beautiful fabric!

Home Decor Print Fabric-Smc Designs Havlat/Honey (since I know you’re all wanting to go buy several yards for yourself…)

I also got a little extra to make a couple of throw pillows. It’s going to be right beside my red dresser with my gold/red/green mirror. This fabric couldn’t be more perfect! I’m really excited! I got it at Joann’s and used a 40% coupon. WHOOP WHOOP!

Yesterday I went to Kroger to transfer a prescription. I got a flyer in the mail saying they would give me $75 if I transferred a prescription. Um, YES PLEASE. I’ve seen the $25 ones and I’ve always wanted to do it but we don’t get much medication. I transferred Amelia’s medicine over there this time and I’m super pumped. While I was waiting on them to fill the prescription, I walked around the store. I’m usually not there during the day because I have to go grocery shopping at night when someone can stay with my children. Effective, serious couponing is nearly impossible with small children. I’m sure there are saints out there who manage it but I am not one of them. Anyway, I was wandering around and just happened to catch the meat trolley pulling away from the Manager’s Specials section. AWE-SOME. I got 3 hugemongous pork loins that are usually $15-16 a piece for $5, $6, & $6. I also 3 pot roasts, 2 steaks, and several other things. I got several other things and checked out. My total before coupons & prescription transfer money was $93.00. My total after coupons & prescription transfer……..$17.62. I got a TON of meat. I came straight home and it’s now all in the freezer. We’re seriously stocked up on meat. We have tons of ground beef, pork loin, pork chops, steaks, chicken, and roast in the freezer. Catching the manager’s specials is awesome. I plan on going back and getting a few freebies and small things later this week.

Something I’m NOT excited about is the fact that my sweet, gentle, adorable oldest child pulled my expensive Nikon camera off the bar by the strap that was hanging down. The camera body is okay, but the lens is totally broken. This is why most of my pictures will be blurry until we get a new one. I have a 50mm lens for my Nikon but it isn’t AF-S. You have to focus it in manual mode….which is difficult when your child won’t sit still for more than 2 seconds.

Caroline got a haircut yesterday and I really wanted to take her picture and put it on here. This is what she’s giving me….

Sorry that’s slightly out of focus. Please read the above paragraph again. Anyway, her hair isn’t in her eyes – and that’s always a good thing.

Just for good measure.

Another thing I’m excited about…

Meet Sassy. She’s our yellow lab. She’s about 10 weeks old and she’s the sweetest thing ever. I totally love her. Yes, we’re totally insane. We didn’t have enough going on in our lives with a business, 2 kids under 2 years old, and the busiest farming time of the year – so we bought a dog. Regardless of how crazy we are, she’s cute and sweet and Caroline LOVES her. In this picture she is bending down so that Sassy will lick her face.

I also made Pioneer Woman’s Meatloaf, and BOY was it delicious! I took pictures and stuff and I’ll put them up when I have time, which could be never. Anyway – it was delish and Judd said it was a “manly” meal. Whatever that means.

Well, that’s all the news I’ve got and this post is crazy long already. Thanks for making it through all of that.

Princess Kate

2011-05-12T12:45:00.000-05:00

Nuff’ said.

The River’s a Risin’

2011-05-10T23:27:00.001-05:00

Well, things are rather eventful around our neck of the woods. They're even more eventful in other's neck of the woods. Let's just say I wish I didn't have to know (or worry about) what a sand boil is, and why it can be "not a big deal" or "a could-be bad situation." Go ahead and google that one.

*Inside the levee, taken 5/2/2011. The water has risen significantly since these pictures were taken. This house is most likely covered and totally under water by now.

*Inside the levee. Taken 5/2/2011.

The MS River is rising to record levels around here! Judd and I live several miles from the river and the levees, but if a breech were to happen in a number of places, our house would surely be flooded. Let me start out by saying, I have a bit of my Mamaw Jones in me. God bless that woman, she is one of the strongest women I know! She also worries...excessively. That's where I come in. I got that "worry" gene from her. I see it coming out in me all the time. I have worried myself crazy over this house flooding stuff. All of my worrying makes up for how much Judd worries - zilch. I totally agree with what you're thinking right now. Worrying doesn't do any good so why do it? Well, I don't know. I just can't seem to quit coming up with every worst case scenario possible. Here's how my brain is working right now:

"Oh no. The levee is going to break. We'll have a few short hours to throw our most precious belongings into the cars and try to get out before the mass traffic jam happens. Then, anything that we aren't able to take with us will be stolen by some heartless person who makes money off of other's misfortunes. Then, we'll have to live somewhere else while waiting on the water to recede. When it finally does, we'll have to rip out drywall, floors, and replace the furniture. I'll find snakes in the closet. An alligator will probably be living under my bed so when I walk by it will bite my leg off - or even worse - hurt one of my babies."

See? Do you see how far my brain just carried all of that? It's ridiculous. I totally agree. But I can't make it stop. I'm constantly making lists of things that I want to be sure to shove into a vehicle. My Papaw's Bible, the engraved plaque Judd's Papaw made us, my "special" jewelry, my external hard drive that has all of my pictures and home videos on it...the list goes on and on. Just tonight I was reading Caroline a book called "Wherever You Are" that Judd's mom gave him for Christmas last year. It had the sweetest, most heartwarming, motherly note ever written on the inside. She also told him to "read it to your children..." so that's what we're doing. Anyway, I was reading it tonight and thinking, I'd have to grab this book. It was such a sweet message on the inside and I'd hate to lose that. I also want my hugemongous television. Not really sure how that is gonna fit in the car but I'm gonna give it a whirl.

The problem is, my brain goes straight for the worst case scenario. Judd just assumes that nothing tragic and earth-shattering could ever happen to him so he doesn't even blink an eye. We do not mesh in times like these. To say that I worry enough for the both of us is a total understatement.

However, having said all of that - I will say that in the past 24 hours, I developed a strange sense of peace. If my house floods - it is just that. A house. It's material possessions that can be easily replaced. My family will be safe! And that's what really matters. I think I came to that conclusion because again, my brain went in worst-case-scenario mode and if I didn't make myself feel better about it, I was going to have a myocardial infarction right here in my living room floor.

So there ya go. You've just gotten a peek inside my crazy, worry-wart brain. So if you see me biting my nails, looking off into the distance with a worried face, or fretting about uncontrollably - just ignore me. It's my genetics. And I can't help it.

Coupon Code!

2011-05-10T18:43:00.001-05:00

Go like Squiggle Stitch on FB to get the coupon code for 20% off your total purchase*! We all know how I am about coupons…

Squiggle Stitch got a makeover! Honestly, I had issues with my last template and I couldn’t get my designer to email me back. I finally got so fed up with it that I got a totally new design and I have to be honest – I LOVE it! I also got the matching Facebook banner, business card, and the logo that I can use for return address labels, gift certificates, and anything else you can think of! I’m pretty excited about it.

Also – did you read what I just wrote? GIFT CERTIFICATES! Squiggle Stitch is now offering gift certificates!!!! I’m pretty excited about that. It will make it so much easier for customers who want to get something as a baby gift but aren’t sure what size, design, etc. It’s the perfect solution!

*The 20% off discount will apply towards everything EXCEPT gift certificates!

This & That

2011-05-05T00:32:00.001-05:00

So it’s been over two weeks since I did a blog post. We have a lot going on here in Mississippi. We’re watching history happen! I don’t know if you heard about it (if not, you live under a rock!) but the MS river is rising to record levels. Judd and I live miles from the river and several small rivers that run into the Mississippi. We’re blessed to not have any water damage so far. Where we are has a HUGE levee made to hold the water up to 74ft. Thankfully, the water is supposed to crest on May 17th at 65(?)ft. So our only problem is water backing up into other small rivers and lakes around us and causing flooding OR the levee not being able to withstand the water pressure lasting for so long and breaking. Did that all make sense? As of right now, Judd and I are fine and we’ve made plans in case something does happen.

Also, Mississippi (along with several other states) got blasted with tornados last week. Judd called me in a total panic last Wednesday morning telling me to get out of bed and get the girls because clouds were making funnels (or “tails” as we call them around here) all around our house. They were literally hovering over my house and I was sound asleep with no idea. Luckily, none of them touched down and they moved away from here. Sadly, those same storm clouds went on to cause major destruction and damage in other parts of MS & AL. Many people are left homeless with nothing but the clothes they have on. I can’t imagine losing things like my pictures, my home movies, and the things that hold sentimental value to me. Those things are replaceable. My heart goes out to anyone who has been affected by the storms and the MS River flooding. It’s such a sad thing when natural disasters tear people’s homes and lives apart.

I said all of that to say that we’re doing fine…and we feel incredibly blessed to be able to say that! We’re going to continue watching the levees and if one were to break, we would have some time to throw certain things in the car and get out before it was too late.

We had a WONDERFUL Easter at home with my family and we got some wonderful pictures of Caroline hunting eggs, hanging out with the famliy, and Easter Sunday family pictures!

Picture overload, I know. I’m terrible at picking just one picture because I tend to think they’re all wonderful.

I also did a gift set at Squiggle Stitch the other day and I was excited to show it off!

This was the Bib, Burp Cloth, and Onesie baby gift set. I was proud of it!

I have several orders to do and send out! I’ve been SO busy!

I took my big grocery trip today and I’ve switched my coupons into a binder. My mini organizer just wasn’t cutting it anymore. I was standing in the store flipping through my coupons for entirely too long trying to find one that, come to find out, was stuck to another one. It was so time consuming so I decided to try the binder method. I actually went and bought myself…wait for it…a TRAPPER KEEPER. Remember those? It is working great! I can see exactly what I’m looking for without flipping for 10min. everytime I need to find a coupon. Speaking of…check out part of my deal today…

Total cost for everything shown – $1.20. Oh yes, baby. I’ve had some people ask about why you would buy so much soap. Come on folks, soap doesn’t go bad and you’re not going to quit bathing (I hope) so buy it while it’s cheap. I don’t “stock up” on everything, but household items like cleaners, laundry detergent, fabric softener, dishwashing stuff, toothbrushes, toothpastes, deodorant, and soaps are really great things to stock up on. Not to mention, there are a lot of people in MS & AL (and other states) that could really use these items right now so I’m trying to come up with a way to send them toiletry items.

If you’re interested in starting to coupon, please check out my “Couponing” page in my navigation bar under my header or just click here to open it in a new window. It’s still under construction because I’m doing it as I have time – but my two major stores are finished, although I may go back and tweak the Kroger part a little bit to organize the information a little better. Either way, GO to it! I list several helpful sites in there and have even more under the “Helpful Couponing Sites” on the left hand side of my blog. If you’re viewing this from facebook, click “View Original Post” at the bottom of this note and it will take you to my blog.

Last quick thing, if you like to laugh (and who doesn’t?!) you have to check out my awesome sister-in-law’s blog. It’s called “Not That Y’all Care” if that tells you anything about her. She’s absolutely hilarious. I’ve been begging her to start one for nearly 3 years and she finally bit the bullet and did it. You’ll love it, I promise. Be sure to tell her I sent you!

Anyway, this has been a super long post and it’s late so I’m headed off to bed! Goodnight! Have a wonderful week and if you think about it, send a prayer our way that God would protect us and keep us safe during all the flooding and be with the families of those who are already leaving their homes from the devastation last week and currently.

Couponing!

2011-04-16T19:44:00.000-05:00

I added a small Kroger (and soon to be more stores) tutorial to the top of my blog. Just click the button above that says "Couponing" and get started!

If you're viewing this from Facebook, click the small link below that says "View Original Post" and then follow the above directions. :)

Randomosity.

2011-04-14T22:50:00.001-05:00

There just isn’t enough time in the day, I tell ya. I have bookoodles (yes, I made up that word.) of orders to be working on, which is such a blessing! Amelia is still a pretty fussy baby, overall. But I just keep telling myself that this too shall pass! I try to look at the big picture and think about how this stage of her life is SO small compared to the times I’ll have with her in the future! She is such a blessing to me already!

Sweet Caroline blows my mind everyday with the new words that she has learned. She says new things everyday. She’s making small sentences and following 3 step commands really well! My big girl is growing up. She also has suddenly gotten a lot of hair, which is so fun because I love putting bows in!

All that being said, there just isn’t enough time to do everything that needs to get done. I have….wait for it….31 orders for shirts right now. You read that correctly. Thirty-one. I know that when Amelia gets a little older and I get my nights back to myself, things will get somewhat easier. I’ll be able to get more shirts done in the evening instead of trying to do them during the day when everyone is up. Balancing time is a lot harder than I thought it would be. However, I love doing these shirts and having something crafty to do. I’ve been looking for my craft niche and I feel like I may have finally found it!

On a totally separate note, can I just say that breastfeeding is AWESOME. I think that for many reasons, but the main one is that I’m REALLY close to my pre-Caroline weight! That is so exciting. Granted, nothing fits right from pre-Caroline because apparently having a baby somehow destroys the body that you used to have and leaves you with some similar body but with just enough differences that your clothes won’t fit. That’s how it’s been for me anyway. I think I can safely say that I’m packing away my maternity clothes for at least a couple of years…(that’s MY plan, at least. God may have something different in mind!) I’ll be happy to have the closet space back. However, when looking through my summer clothes I noticed something. I have none. Everything is maternity! The last two summers I’ve spent pregnant. I think that warrants a shopping trip.

On April 30th I’m going to teach a small class in Booneville, MS on couponing. As I tell other people, I’m not an extreme couponer. I actually consider myself only mediocre at couponing. But I do know the basics+. I’m a horrible public speaker and laugh nervously when I feel awkward. It’s a terrible trait. I laugh at anything just to laugh. Laughing seems to be my security blanket. So if I ever laugh at a time that seems inappropriate, just know that I’m probably feeling awkward.

This has been the most random jumble of thoughts that has ever been put into a blog post and for that, I apologize. One day, if I ever print my blog out for memory’s sake, I won’t print this page.

I leave you with these pictures of my sweet children. They are both BLESSINGS!

GIVEAWAY!!

2011-04-06T17:44:00.001-05:00

Squiggle Stitch is having a FACEBOOK giveaway! Go over there and like us – then comment on the status and choose which design you’d like if you’re the winner! It’s only lasting 2 days – SO HURRY! A winner will be chosen Friday at 7pm! Good luck!!!

Just Pictures!

2011-04-04T14:08:00.001-05:00

Yeah, we’re getting her started on her chores at an early age.

Please note: my child uses her HAIR as her napkin.

This is what it looks like when banana gets wiped in a kid’s hair…in case you didn’t know.

First pigtails, EVER!

Bonnie came to visit!!!

My sweet Caroline.

So I realize this post has been all about Caroline…so pictures of Amelia will be coming soon!!

Facebook Giveaway!

2011-03-26T12:39:00.001-05:00

Squiggle Stitch is doing another giveaway! We need to reach 150 fans (only 15 more to go!) and we’ll get started! Go suggest Squiggle Stitch to your friends!!

Tidbits

2011-03-24T11:59:00.002-05:00

So Judd has built me a cabinet to hold all of my blank t-shirts for Squiggle Stitch. Unfortunately, I was outside trying to paint it and the wind was blowing so hard that my paint was drying too quickly and some of it was blowing off my roller and into my face! I’m sure it would have been a funny sight to see…especially when a wasp got after me and I was running around the yard looking totally CRAZY. So needless to say, we put down a tarp in the playroom and it’s being painted in there. The fumes are SO awful that Caroline can’t go in there. So a lot of her toys have been moved to the living room. She is not too thrilled about this arrangement. Honestly, I’m not too thrilled either! I want her to have her room back! Ha! Hopefully tomorrow she can go back in there!

I’ve been getting a lot of shirts done in the last week and I have to say, I’m proud of them! It is so fun putting the fabrics together and coordinating them with the thread. I love doing it! I’m so happy that I’ve found something that I can enjoy doing while making a little extra money for our family. I never dreamed that the idea of Squiggle Stitch would take off like it did! I have a book that I keep all my orders in and I’m constantly amazed at how quickly a page gets filled. It’s certainly a blessing! Thank you to everyone who has ordered something!

Judd has started the long hours. Boo. It hurts me to think this will be our life until November-ish. *sigh* Such is the life of a farmer! My friends Mcleod and Morgan both have farming husbands so hopefully we’ll all spend some time together while they’re out working their tails off. Mcleod and her husband, Jason, just moved back here from Texas with their little girl, Nora. Nora is just a few weeks younger than Amelia! It will be fun to watch them grow up together!

Well – that’s pretty much all I have going on right now! I thought I’d leave with some pictures of new designs that I have to offer! Gotta throw a shamless plug in here somewhere, right? If you'd like to see all of my design options, Click Here!

Aren’t those cute?!

Facebook Etiquette!

2011-03-21T21:52:00.001-05:00

My sister recently posted something on Facebook that really got me thinking. I thought I’d share the link with you all. (Obviously, it’s about Facebook!)

Click Here

I already went a deleted some pictures from Facebook from YEARS ago that I felt were inappropriate. But I’m also thinking of doing a little spring cleaning on my friend list. There are SO many people on my “friend” list that use HORRIBLE language and posts statuses that would make Lady Gaga blush.

Also – while I’m on my soapbox – Let’s discuss having arguments on Facebook. Let’s all just stop doing that. I am SO tired of seeing arguments going on on a Facebook status update or wall post. It’s ridiculous. If you need to talk to someone about something they’ve written please just call them. Hashing things out over Facebook is just not a good idea. Speaking of writing things that make people want to call you – don’t do that either. Don’t complain about our President just to purposely start a debate. It’s pointless. No one’s mind will be changed from a Facebook argument. Kindness goes a long way. Keep Facebook lighthearted, people. It’s fine to post little tidbits about your day, cute quotes, etc. etc. But I am SO tired of reading people talk about how they just went and had sex with their boyfriend on the side of the road (yep…I actually read that...defriend) It’s totally inappropriate.

I’m the world’s worst about complaining on Facebook. I have to admit that I have posted complaints about Amelia’s reflux and constant screaming as status updates. But honestly – no one wants to read about my complaints. Instead, I’m going to try to leave positive comments. If nothing else, I’ll ask for prayers for her while she struggles with this. That will do much more good than simply complaining. Thanks for reading my rant.

Just to keep this post happy --

Finished Shirts!

2011-03-19T21:03:00.001-05:00

(I LOVE these ruffled onesies! So cute!)

All of those shirts led to this pile to go out soon! Yay!! I’ve gotten lots of work done in the last couple of days!

Keep Squiggle Stitch in mind if you’re looking for something special!

Weekend Home!

2011-03-15T14:20:00.001-05:00

We went to visit my family this past weekend and had a blast! Caroline & Drew played all day Saturday together. They’ve been so sweet to each other!

They both really loved this ball….

Then it got kicked into the water and this is the face I got!

So Judd came to the rescue and got it out of the water!

This girl was POOPED! She fell asleep watching Elmo!

Sweet cousins! Only 4 weeks apart!

All in all, we had an excellent weekend! Traveling with 2 babies is VERY different than traveling with 1. There is just SO MUCH STUFF to pack. This weekend was well worth it, though! Hope you enjoyed all the pictures!

Blog Makeover!

2011-03-14T11:42:00.001-05:00

The blog makeover is complete! I sure hope you like the changes…because I do! The Posh Box did an AMAZING job! I have a lot of posts that I need to go label correctly, but you get the idea!

Now, off to make some CUTE shirts for Squiggle Stitch! (On the left column there is a “Squiggle Stitch’s Featured Design” with a picture under it! I’ll be changing it out every so often to show you some of the latest designs!)

Blog Makeover!

2011-03-10T18:38:00.003-06:00

My blog is about to get a makeover from The Posh Box! I HIGHLY recommend her if you’re wanting to redo your blog! She is incredibly sweet and VERY patient. I told her my idea and she ran with it and made it just the way I wanted it. I’ll have a navigation bar at the top (under the header) where you’ll be able to access Squiggle Stitch’s website! It’s still under construction, but it’s coming along!

Please be patient while she’s installing everything. Hope you like the new look!

Swagbucks!

2011-03-10T10:33:00.001-06:00

So, if you’ve been living under a rock (like I was, apparently) and don’t know what Swagbucks is – or if you know what it is but never took the time to signup – let me fill you in!

Swagbucks is a search engine (powered by Google!) that you earn prizes and points just for searching. I search something on Google every single day. So, I downloaded the Swagbucks Toolbar and do most of my searching through there! I earn points JUST for searching. These points can be redeemed for PRIZES like GIFT CARDS! Amazon giftcards, paypal giftcards, etc. There are lots of things you can do with them! It’s definitely no way to get rich – but $5 here and $5 there can really help out for a birthday gift (or save them up for Christmas gifts!)

It’s pretty cool. You can get more swag bucks for doing things like taking surveys, signing up for various sites, finding “swag codes,” etc. I’ve just been sticking with the searching part for now but feel free to do it however you want. You also earn swagbucks for your referrals! And when a person that you referred starts earning bucks, you earn more bucks without it hurting THEIR bucks.

So – obviously if you’re going to signup based off of my recommendation, please use my link! Then go out and refer some people and do the same!

Click Here to sign up. Or there is a box on the right column of my blog. Enjoy your searching!

My Girls!

2011-03-09T11:36:00.001-06:00

Amelia always smiles at Caroline!

“Hey, what’s this thing, Mom?”

Love this one!

It’s exhausting being a kid!

Best Couponing Trip Ever!

2011-03-08T20:58:00.002-06:00

Okay, I know you’re not really interested, but I’m super proud. I’m sure there are people out there who could’ve done way better than this – but I’m happy!

I put the two stores together for this picture!
Walgreens -
2 Jumbo packs of Pampers Baby Dry
2 Nestle Liquid Coffeemate
1 Children’s Zyrtec (Walgreen’s brand)
3 Laffy Taffys (I had more coupons than items! These were 0.10 so they made great fillers.)

Total OOP – $15.58 (-$3.00RR = $12.58 TOTAL!) Yay!

Saved – $23.96

Kroger -
Milk
Mop & Glow
12pk Diet Cokes
8 Bounty Paper Towels

Total OOP – $3.49

Saved - $22.19

I’m proud!

Squiggle Stitch Website!

2011-03-05T15:23:00.002-06:00

I’ve been working on my website and it’s really coming along…finally! Ha! I made several shirts today and can’t wait to put up pictures of them – but I have to wait until the customer gets them and sees them first!
Please go visit and take a look around! Mention that you saw this post and get 15% off your orrrrrddeeerrr!!!
www.SquiggleStitch.com

Winner!

2011-03-03T11:10:00.001-06:00

The winner of the giveaway is Julie R. @ jlcjewels@hotmail.com! I’ve sent you an email!

If you entered the contest but didn’t win, you can take 10% off your first order! Thank you so much for entering! I appreciate each and every one of you!

I’m so excited to start this new adventure!

If you would like to place an order, please email me at

squigglestitch@gmail.com

message me on facebook!

Thank you all!!!

Prayer Warriors

2011-03-01T23:08:00.001-06:00

I’m calling out for a prayer request. Some people very dear to us, Deda and Pop, have a granddaughter, Ashton, in the hospital. She was in a freak 4-wheeler accident a few days ago and is currently unresponsive. Scans all look clean, but she still hasn’t woken up. She is 19 years old and has such a wonderful, caring family. Please take a moment to say a prayer for Ashton. Pray for strength for her family! Thank you, friends!

Giveaway Time!!

2011-02-28T08:00:00.001-06:00

We’re having a giveaway at Squiggle Stitch! Head on over to Little Moments with the Laneys! Become a follower of my blog and “like” Squiggle Stitch on Facebook! Each counts as a separate entry! Let her know in a comment under the giveaway post when you’ve done this! (Be sure to make two separate comments for each thing you do!)

She’ll pick a winner on Thursday using a random number generator!

**Be SURE to leave me an email address so I can contact you if you’re the winner!**

Scroll down for another new post!

Happy Birthday, Judd!

2011-02-28T07:30:00.000-06:00

My sweet husband is turning 26 today. I thought I’d list 26 wonderful things that I love about him.

1. He is SO incredibly patient. This is something that I struggle with!

2. He LOVES his girls unconditionally.

3. He dances really funny to make me laugh when I’m stressed out.

4. He adores cakes. I’m talking, he’ll eat the whole cake in one sitting.

5. He shares his Jell-O pudding with Caroline. That’s true love, folks.

6. He definitely spoils me.

7. He’s supportive no matter what I’m doing.

8. He is the Christian man that I always hoped I’d marry. I can’t stress how much this means to me.

9. He leads songs at church on Sunday morning! That takes guts!

10. He is so caring. He’ll stop and help any stranger on the side of the road, no matter how scary I think they look.

11. He doesn’t steal the covers anymore.

12. He ALWAYS helps get our girls ready on Sunday mornings when I’m least organized and frazzled!

13. He usually lets me sleep in on Saturdays. I LOOOOVE that!

14. He seriously makes me laugh all. the. time. He’s one of the funniest people I know.

*This is Judd trying to use Gibson’s voice changer through the package.*

15. He thinks he’s better than me at Wii Mariokart, but really, I’m way better.

16. He never meets a stranger.

17. He has a story for juuuust about every situation.

18. He is the most laid back person on the planet. Nothing gets him worried, stressed, or angry.

19. He’s getting a soft spot for animals. I may be rubbing off!

20. He works so hard for our family. Can I say that again? He works SO hard for our family!

21. He doesn’t do anything half-way. If he’s going to do something, it’s got to be done correctly – the first time!

22. He puts Tabasco on ev-er-y-thing.

23. He’s makes me try new things!!

24. He can fix anything!

25. He doesn’t care how I decorate and let’s me do it MY WAY!

26. He makes me the luckiest woman in the world every morning that I wake up.

I love you, Judd! You mean the world to me and I don’t know where I’d be without you! Thank you for everything that you do for our family!

Giveaway!

2011-02-25T11:07:00.002-06:00

Squiggle Stitch will be doing a giveaway at Little Moments with the Laneys very soon! You’ll have your choice of

And a monogram of your choice! Make sure you like Squiggle Stitch on FB and follow my blog so you’ll know when the giveaway starts! Surely you at least KNOW a kid you could give it to!

Thank You!

2011-02-24T22:34:00.003-06:00

I just wanted to say an overwhelming THANK YOU to everyone for being so sweet and supportive! Y’all make me so excited!
I’d be happy to take a few orders if any of you have something in mind that you’d like. I have lots of designs to choose from, but the best way to pick is to go to www.appliquecafe.com and look at the choices. Then come e-mail me at kacieadavis@gmail.com and we’ll talk details! Prices will vary depending on the applique/monogram.
Also, if you’d like, you can click the “like” button to the left and join my page!

(If you're reading this from facebook, search "Squiggle Stitch" and you'll find me!

My Exciting (to me) News!

2011-02-23T21:41:00.002-06:00

I guess I feel comfortable enough letting the “news” out now. Although I fear when I let it out, it will all turn in to a big flop! (Maybe that’s why I’ve been hesitant to tell?)
I’m starting a small business! AH! Let me show you….

That big machine is used to make pretty stuff like this:

It didn’t make the cute kid, just the cute “A” onesie…
Needless to say, I’m excited – but nervous! I have some really cute things to start my business off. Cute bags to monogram, lots of shirts to applique, and adorable burp cloths to monogram AND applique!
I’m going to have my own website where items can be purchased and then shipped to you. My website is going to take a while to finish, but I’ll get it going as I do more and more samples and hopefully as I do orders for people.
We’re going to be called Squiggle Stitch (and will eventually be located at www.squigglestitch.com) and will have a Facebook page! I’ve already started the Facebook page but haven’t told anyone about it yet because I’ve barely got 3 pictures uploaded to it. I’m considering having a blog just to showcase my stuff and list upcoming sales, etc. but I’m not sure if I’ll really have time for that!
Well there’s my news! Probably not very exciting to YOU, but very exciting to me!

Smiles! FINALLY!

2011-02-21T13:28:00.001-06:00

I love her sweet smile! So happy to see it!