Covetting a bit of Love

Yes, it's true. I have been secretly buying the new Love collection by Amy Butler. I have great plans to make something fabulous for me, but right now, it's just too lovely to cut up. And though I got a stack of fat quarters, probably itching to turn into a quilt. They look so lovely stacked up don't they?

I also finally got around to completing a baby present. Long overdue. Just a bit of a blanket and a bit of a quilt at the same time. The easiest for me to do quickly. I also made a kimono set out of soft cozy flannel. I'm happy with how it turned out...and you can see Jemmy loves to blankie too. I think he's my child...a thing for cloth.

And yes, we still have a cat

It's funny. I can remember when we first got our first pet. It was our baby. It felt like we had a child. But now that we have children, Beautie is back to being just a pet and not a baby. Most days, I'm sad to report that she is a third class citizen here. She is not the first to get food, water, cuddles or attention. But, she is a good cat and patient with us and the kids. She also has her oddities curiosities. And, one can never say that she is not good at adapting to change. She's been known to go for a bit of broken cracker or piece of shrimp that has fallen somewhere. She is not entirely invisible either as she adept at placing heself exactly where she might get stepped on, tripped over or petted> ie. she sits right on your hands. She still has a licking fetish, although her latest infactuation is this bookcase that sits in the kitchen. And did I say patient. She hardly ever so rude as to yell out for her food.

I guess we are prety lucky to have her.

Oh, and on the bookcase, she's determined to lick every inch off. She now hops up to the third row of books, balances and licks to her heart content.

A little bit of sewing

Who knew that an entire dress can be made in an afternoon. I've been taking a break from sewing and now it's mid-November and I have to get a mosy on things. My holiday shopping has already started and is almost done. Shhhh. Lots of wrapping and card making still to do.

It's a school break here for us. Courtney is off tomorrow and Monday and it's supposed to be a nice day. Jeremy is out cold after spending the morning with Nana, that's what we call Ja's mom and Grandpa Julian. It's a lot of fun to go there...especially now that he's spotted Simba the cat.

My diet of not eating an wheat or corn this week hasn't been going well. Oh well. I've been feeling tired so I'm not going to get banged up about it.

Turns out this gracie dress pattern by Portobello Pixie is very twirly. Courtney just loves it. It'll make for a great summer time running around dress. I already have ideas on how to make it a bit more dressier with different fabrics. Guess I'll start off my making a few more though. I'm trying to convice myself to stop bying gorgeous fabrics until I use some up. It's hard. It's such pretty stuff that I can't bear to cut into it. Still, I'm running out of room - so I'll have to start to cut soon. I know - perhaps not the most exciting thing to read about. So, here are some pics.



Oh, and in case you are wondering...Jemmy is not wearing a necklace. It's a walkie talkie necklace. He's all about being just like his big sis now. The little copycat is just getting warmed up.

Let the wild rumpus begin

And so on this rainy weekend...we are on the cusp of wild things haunting our streets. From our house, a princess and pig along with another kind of wild thing will be enjoying the sugar high weekend.

I was hoping for another indian summery night like last year. No such luck.

And yes... this peculiar costume was made in-house. It didn't take very long and I have to admit that I gave up on the ears after a couple of tries. I might redo it in the coming months or for next halloween. But for now, it will do.

Has anyone out there see the new Where the Wild Things are movie? We've heard mixed reviews. Any thoughts?

Happy Halloween everyone!

Walking is getting easier now

Well...Jeremy is 15 months now and it is official. He is a toddler...due to the fact that he is toddling. He's picking up some speed and I suspect that he'll be running or walking quickly very soon. He still crawls every so often and does the half crawl had walk with one bent leg trick...and he also likes to crawl/walk on his knees, but most of the time now he is upright.

He's becoming an expert at spotting cars/trucks and dogs. Ja has discovered that the actually has other sounds that he uses for words. There is a b sounding word for bird, there is the chrw sound for trucks/cars, there is the wrrr wrrr for dogs, there is a brblr sound for balloon and corroo for cookie/cracker. His most popular word is mama. Sometimes it does mean me, but mostly it's just what he does, practices his ma ma ma sound.

Today, he had a bit of a running nose, so I hope he's not caught something. He's started to swat and push away when you try to tell him it's time to change his diaper, or time to eat, time to sleep. OK> basically when he doesn't want to do what you are asking him. My favorite is when he signs or babbles something, starts to walk away nodding. It's very cute. On occasion, he will stop and look back at me as if to say, "you coming? I'm heading to the fridge". Very cute times.

Here is the lad, taken over the weekend. He's in 18-24 month tops and bottoms, he's a skinny guy, 6-12 months still with lots of wiggle room. I'm going to recycle some sweatshirts into some cozy pants soon.

Playing along

There is something alluring about a big giant real piano. The kids know now that they have to have clean hands and can't bang around. Don't they look comfy up there playing away. You can't tell, but Courtney is actually partially upset at Jeremy making notes because it prevents her from hearing her own notes. Oh well...they will just have to learn to play with each other.

On the hunt for Zhu Zhu hamster pets

So, unless you are my husband, you've probably not heard of the hours of online searching for Zhu Zhu hamster pets. A couple of months ago, I decided to start looking into what neat fun toys Courtney and Jeremy might like for Christmas. This year, I have decided it will be all about toys. So, after finding a few hot toy lists, I came across Zhu Zhu hamster pet toys. They are already sold out in the States and in the UK too...and a new shipment is arriving in the couple of weeks at your friendly local Toys R Us. I don't know about you, but I will try to avoid that store on weekends and during the holidays at all cost. I can still remember probably a good 10 years ago, when I went into Toys R Us by accident a few days before Christmas and feeling the stress of just being in there...and I didn't even have any kids then...I think I was tagging along with a friend. So, what this means is that I have been searching and using my connections to try and source these pets and accessories. It appears that they are still not in Canada yet...and the anticipation must be building as the clerks at Toys R Us now even know what they are....see I call every couple of days to see if they've come in yet.

Luckily, I have sourced 1 fun house and 1 hamster. I had to go across an Ocean to cousins in the UK - thanks Sam! and across the border for the fun house - thanks Christy. But, I'm sure that once I hear they are in at the toy store, I'll be there. They look super cute, and coincidentally, Courtney has been asking for a pet hamster..so what could be better than a hamster without the mess. So...if you are looking for somthing to gift...or happen to come across Jilly the hamster, or any other than Mr. Squizzles - pick up one for your little bundle of joy...or for mine! I'll probably put some of the attachements on Courtney's wish list too, there is supposed to be a ball, surfboard, car, slide...purse...you get the idea.

Oh, if you would like to check them out - they are at...http://www.zhuzhupets.com/

You can also do a search on key words, zhu zhu mom blog, as they've been doing "parties" in the states to work up the hype. I think they are saying it might win Hot Toy 2009.

And since, we are talking about Christmas. I'll be putting up the kids Christmas wish list soon, that way if you want to shop around or even get something on sale...there is plenty of time to do so.

Substitute for salt

Try this if you are cutting out the salt. It adds some nice flavour and taste in lieu of salt. I remember 10 years ago using Mrs. Dash for a period of time, but I didn't go back to it once I started to look for something to cut out the salt. I picked it up at one of those shops that sells organic , healthy type foods and haven't seen it in a Loblaws or Sobeys. It comes in a few flavours too, you can check it out at The one that I have been using is called "Yes, Mommy".

It also markets its seasonings as no sugar, no msg and no salt added. OK. I'm not sure why it's also called Pulitzer Prize, but oh well.

Eating differently

Well, it's been 3 weeks of eating differently. So far so good. A few cheats here and there, but nothing that I am too worried about. After a visit with a naturapath, I am trying to change my diet. Apparantly, cancer runs on my side of the family and so, I am probably more at risk than the guy who doesn't have it in their genes. So, it's more vegetables and fruit and I think it has to do with fibre and cutting out the sugar. So, mom...if you are reading this, you are right. I am doing it now.

What I find the hardest is how to eat all the vegetables in an interesting way. To eat 5 cups a day is hard. And, it gets boring if all you do is...cook the vegetables and pile it on your plate. Never mind that the kids look at it with much distaste. I've also realized that it takes some effort and planning to make it appetizing. The prep of a salad does not involve much, but it does involve prep. So, I have discovered that for me, it helps if you have a lot of it done in advance. I can pretend that I am going to one of those Just add Heat of Supperwork places and just grab and pluck out what I want to cook with and then cook. Too bad the cleanup still exists. Still, when you know it's all washed and cut up and ready to go, it makes it so friendly and eye appealing. Don't you think?



Here's udon noodles with baby boy choy and threey types of mushrooms. Yum!

Thanksgiving weekend

It was just thanksgiving weekend and it was nice to have a long weekend. Courtney was off school on Friday, so as a treat we all went to an indoor playgym. Jeremy loved it there...all that free space and push toys and of course watching his big sister run around the place. Turns out though that it's not as much fun for a 6 year old when it's just little ole herself playing and running around. Even with a kid brother who is starting to totter more and more, she was ready to go after about an hour.

Saturday was ballet class, then a quick play at the park riding in the wagon. Turns out that Jeremy loves riding in his wagon. He doesn't mind the bumps like Courtney did. He didn't even mind the constant shlumping down into the seat. He's getting the hang of it and knows to grip the sides to prevent him from sliding down...but when you've got an apple in your hand, it does make it difficult.




Sunday was our thanksgiving. We started the day by heading over to Chudleighs to pick some apples. Gosh, it was cold and busy there. I think we were only actually at the farm for a little over an hour. There was some apple picking, sliding, pony riding, appple eating ( of course), animal watching and line standing. It was fun to get out and since I popped Jeremy into the backpack sling - it was very easy to not have to worry about him. It was a great time to go pick apples, lots of varieties in season and to chose from. At 99cents a lb - it's not the cheapest, but couldn't be tastier or fresher...just off the tree!





Ja did the cooking this year. He bought a small $8 turkey and it was OK. I don't know about budget meat...maybe we've been spoiled eating healthier and fancy smancy organic meats lately, but this one was good but not great. We decided to get all dressed up and make it a proper dinner. We rarely have the occasion to put our best on as a family that it was nice to make the effort. Courtey had pulled on this fun pink twirly dress at first, but once she saw Ja in a tie and me in a skirt, she decided she wanted to wear her fancy dress too. Jeremy is a messy eater, so he got a fresh clean shirt pulled over his head. Dinner was fun with the kids sitting side by side. Laughing at something silly. I'm sure there will be lots of sibling sillies coming up. It's so cute and endearing to watch.