I sort of forgot I had this.

I didn’t realize how much I had forgotten it until I looked at the date of my last post!  Nearly 2 years ago.

Time flies when…you’re chugging along, doing your best…

It’s sort of crazy comparing life now to that last post.  So much has changed and so much honestly is completely the same.  I’m still in the shop game and I’ve gotten to meet and collaborate with some really amazing people.  There’s even top secret plans for something HUGE!  I can’t even tell you about it…but man…it’s good.

I made a joke to my sister in law the other day, that I’m too old for a quarter life crisis, and no quite at the point where I can claim a mid life on…sooooo…I’m just in crisis.

The truth is, I’m 32…and I have yet to be doing something I completely love.  I do what I can, and I do what works…but I’m never 100% like THIS IS IT!!!

I realize that most people never feel that, or rarely do…but I just can’t accept it.  Anywho, I’m hoping that this next year looks entirely different that the one I’m currently in…and for all the good reasons.

I’m coming off of a really cruddy week so the motivation is definitely there.  Do you ever have those weeks, where your like… “of course, of course that went wrong, because literally everything I touch is crap!”  Well not literally, because that would be gross…but I seriously had a revers Midus touch sitch.  In stead of gold, it all just was terrible.  This isn’t a fully terrible thing, but just to give you an idea…

Penny had a field trip day planned for Thursday and Friday this week.  So we woke up Thursday morning, got her in her required school shirt, packed up her lunch, and sent her on her way.  When my husband got her to school, she was the only kiddo rocking her blue school tee.  Thats because, my friends, it was definitely Wednesday.  Brett called me and told me I had the wrong dates of the field trip…to which I replied…”no, no, no…I knew it was Thursday and Friday…I just DEFINITELY thought it was Thursday”.  This has been my week.  Little screw ups all over the place that add up to one mega irritated mama.

Really I’m just sort of rambling along, because I’m at a coffee shop waiting to deliver an order in person before I can go home.  But I just thought I’d say…”HI!”.  It’s been a while, and I’ll try to visit this space more often, and have more interesting things to say.

I’m out now.  Happy Friday friends!

I had an entire post ranting about my daughters sleep issues, and it definitely got deleted.  Since said deletion I have had bestowed on me a whopping 9 hours of sleep by my toddler.  And also…I feel…Jesus.

So, in a nut shell.  Penny has stopped napping completely.  Its been nearly 3 weeks.  She has a new SUPER early bed time now because of it, which is rad.  But the bad part is…along with early bed time has come a really terrible thing called “Night Terrors”.  If you haven’t experienced these, first hand, you are super lucky.  They suck.  And there is pretty much nothing you can do about it…and all of your parental instincts in this area are actually the WORST possible things you can do.

So last night we tried something different and decided to just let her work it out.  She had a fit for about 8-10 minutes and then it was over.  We did a couple of other things, but we don’t need to go into that.  What works for Penny may not work for your kiddo.  And I also don’t really trust it unless it works for more than one night at a time.  I’ll update with results.

So back to the no napper.  Because I don’t get a 3 hour break in the middle of the day anymore, my work time has been chopped in half and I haven’t had much time for blogging, and keeping up with orders is turning into a tricky sort of thing.  It is also pushing me to try and do more things with Penny.  You gotta fill up that day, right mamas?  So the other day, after a quick trip to targe (naturally), I decided it would be fun to bake some cookies.  They had some little sugar googley eyes and I though little monster cookies would be festive.

After a brief explanation to Penny that these were, in fact, nice monsters…not scary monsters…she was on board.

I love this sugar cookie recipe, because it sort of reminds me of those yummy store bought sugar cookies.  You know…the ones with the pink frosting, that never seem to lose their chewy-ness (which probably isn’t a good sign). If you don’t feel like clicking the link, I’ll include the recipe at the bottom of this post.

It makes me super happy when Penny wants to help.  She gets so excited and shouts an incredibly enthusiastic “OKAY!” when I say things like “do you wanna pour in the flour?” “do you want to mix-a mix-a”

Penny actually decorated these on her own.  Our friend Ruthie (who we LOVE!) frosted them, but she was sole responsible for the sprinkling and eye adding.  I actually think they turned out pretty darn cute.  What are the treats you like to make during this time of year?

Sugar Cookie Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups butter, softened
• 2 cups white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 5 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.

That is what Penny shouted the second she stepped into this Pumpkin Patch.  I found it on a fluke google search for the “nearest pumpkin patch”  and it led me to Banduccis Family Farm, and probably the most magical pumpkin experience there was.  To top it off the pumpkins themselves were SO inexpensive.  We walked away with 2 decently sized picks and spent $6.00.  We were shocked, because at home, it would have cost money to even step foot into the patch, and then pumpkins are like $15 – $25.  The also had animals at Banduccis you could look at for free, and ponies you could ride for $5.  Penny was pleased.  Heres a photo bomb of the entire event.

We of course we carved them way too soon, like always, and they have definitely rotted in 3 days.  Thats okay though, we may just have to take a second trip just for fun!  Penny keeps asking to go back, and I’d be lying if I said I haven’t been asking too.

Oh lordy.  Toddlers.  They sure throw you for a loop.  Once again we are going through a phase where our champion sleeper of a child is not sleeping so well.  Just when you think it’s all over…BAM…sleep regression.  Oh man those two words fill me with such rage.  Sleep regression.  Ugh.

So, after about 3-4 days of little to no naps at all and multiple wakings at night.  There is a level of mom frustration that is seriously off the charts.  I love my kiddo…but man…do I rely on nap time and night night time to relieve me of this full time job called motherhood.  I am tired.  And that 2 1/2 sometimes 3 hours during the middle of the day and the quiet from 730 at night to 730 in the morning is worshipped.  Maybe a little too much.  Because when it’s taken away from me, I can throw a tantrum that rivals my toddler, who is knee deep in those terrible twos.

We had a great day today.  Thursday I attend a bible study in the mornings with free child care from 9-12.  This means…uninterrupted serious play time for Penny, and amazing adult interaction sans a child for mama.  Seriously Thursdays put both Penny in I in the BEST moods!  We got home, we ate lunch, we even snuggled on the couch together and watched an episode of Sophia the first, in between giggles and tickle fights.  I’m high on life at this point.  Great mom achievement unlocked!

Then…nap time.  Here we go.  Screaming.  Asking for more crap to be shoved in her crib with her, and the melt down when I say “no, I’m sorry sweetie, you can’t sleep with a fork.”  (what is your deal toddlers!?).  Brett came home for lunch from work and offered a little try before he headed back to get her to calm down. No dice.   Just when I was feeling like all hope was lost and I was ready to whip her out of her crib and doom her to an afternoon of watching only gilmore girls and her mom sulking around the house exhausted…I tried something else.

Instead of reassuring her through the door that “mama is right here, its okay sweetie”.  I went in.  I sat by her crib.  I held her hand and waited.  I didnt say anything.  Instead of telling her I was there for her, I actually sat and was there.  I watched her eyes get heavy.  She even mustered up a very sleepy, mildly convincing “I want outta the crib” before slowly drifting off to sleep.  I sat for maybe 5 minutes, which honestly felt like forever.  Her little hands and arms flinching occasionally, her lips smacking after a deep sigh.  She released my hand and replaced it with one of her stuffed animals (there are literally 20 in there to choose from at this point).  I didn’t move.  Not for fear of waking her, which is usually the case, but for fear of leaving this moment.  I studied everything about her and I was overwhelmed.  She was tired…which I knew.  She needed a nap…which I also knew.  And this time…she really did need to know that mama was, like actually there in front of her face, there for her and it was okay to go to sleep.

I talk to all of my mom friends constantly about what to do?  How do you know whats the right thing?  How do you cave without starting new habits?  How do you break habits you accidentally set?  Should we do this?  What did you do?  There is so much pressure to ALWAYS do the right thing.  “Don’t cave in too much!” “Don’t be too harsh!”…basically don’t do anything wrong or your child will be messed up forever and it’s all your fault!  That may be extreme, but I feel like there is a very very real pressure to do everything right, always.  That’s impossible!  Having a toddler is HARD.  Every day is a new lesson to teach them.  Like how it is totally not okay to kick someone or hit someone on the head with a wooden hammer  (which is bizzare that you have to teach that!), sharing, listening, being kind, being strong, brave, empathetic.  These are huge heavy things to teach your kid.  But…every now and then something happens, and they teach you a little something about how to be kinder, bolder, braver, and definitely more empathetic.

Penny is totally still sleeping by the way and we may have to do this again later tonight, but honestly, she won’t be 2 forever, and I’m pretty sure when she’s 15…she’ll be like “oh my god mom why are you in my room staring at me and holding my hand!  i’m trying to sleep and you’re weird!!”  So I better soak up these opportunities to love on her a little extra now and it’s probably not too bad of a habit to teach your kiddo, that if she’s afraid, mommy will be there.

Man,  It has been a whirlwind 2 weeks here in the Lemster home.  Between birthdays, our anniversary, and orders I’ve been a little bit thrown off balance.

Last Saturday we threw a birthday party for Penny with some of our close friends and immediate family.  She made faces like this the whole time.

She actually said, “Take a picture by the wall!”.  I converted our chalk board canvas for the occasion and hung little bunting I made out of Pennys MANY finger paintings.  This girl loves arts and crafts (I aint mad at it).  I also put together these tiny little art kits.  God bless the target $1 spot!

We had so much fun having some friends and family in our new home, some for the very first time.  One family, of which, decided to have a little slumber party and continued the party well into Pennys real birthday.  We just hung out, eating treats and talking and laying.  It was just good. I wish I had more photos of her party, but I wasn’t even thinking about it at the time.  7 kiddos at a little birthday party is a lot of kiddos…how people have multiple children is beyond me : ).

We spent Sunday…playing with birthday presents, eating del taco, and taking naps.  Pretty much my idea of the perfect day, and so thankful we got to share it with a fam of faves.

These two were just too cute for words!

So, in a nut shell…lots to share!  Lots coming again!  If I can figure out how to manage my time waaaaaay better!  If you want to check out the shop, I’m offering 15% off with the code OHHELLO15 !  Come take a looksy!

You guys.

I’m lonely up here.  Just a month ago, I lived next door to one of my best friends.  If I was bored, or if Penny was driving me crazy…I could literally take 2 steps, knock once, and I either had a place to hang with a mom I loved, or a walking buddy to head to the park with (also, with that same mom I loved).

Don’t let me fool you.  I am painfully introverted.  Moving up here has already really stretched me.  I’ve had a few hang outs with some awesome peeps, but you don’t wanna seem to needy ya know.

So today…TODAY!  I went to the park with my brother-in-law and there were a couple of moms there.  And suddenly…we’re talking…and I find out they’re from LA too!  And they just moved here!  And they come to this park all the time!  Then it happened…one of them said, we should exchange numbers.  BOOM.  I am now a happy owner of two new possible friends sweet sweet digits.  I, of course, do not want to seem to eager so I discussed the rules with my brother.  It’s been a while since I’ve been in the dating scene, so he was great offering up the whole  “Wait a few days maybe then, text”.

The whole time it was happening I definitely thought of THIS hilarious youtube video from WhatUpMoms.

I’m excited.  To add to that excitement I got Penny home and in bed for her nap at noon and she’s still sleeping (at 1:41).  Woot!  I’m killin this Friday!  All my mama’s say “Haaaaaaaaaaay!”.  Hope you all have a great weekend and step out of your comfort zone a little to get yourselves some mom friends!

We are mosly moved in, with the exception of things on the walls, and loose ends here and there.  I still dont really feel like we moved.  It just sort of feels like we’re just staying somewhere for a little bit…but with all of our stuff.  I cannot believe it has already almost been a month.

So far I really love where we live.  We have more space than I know what to do with, but I’m excited to get things organized and make everything feel more and more homey.  Penny is sleeping great, but her naps are TOUGH.  She’s been crashing for about 45 minutes everyday (and thats it!) which is making our days…loooooooong.  I have to admit, I’m a bit out of practice.  I went from spending about 3 – 4 hours a day with pen, to every waking moment with her.  To all my stay at home mamas…this is HARD WORK.  I do feel like everyday we find our groove a little bit more.

I was gifted an old MacBook from a dear friend and now I’m ready to get back to blogging.  I’m trying to sit and see if I can sort of restructure some things, so this space is more organized.  Since gaining my stay at home mama status, I’ve been trying to work hard at several things.  I’m cooking more, working out every day, and trying my best to get some painting in.  Some days its hard to do any of that at all, but I’m trying.  I’d like to share all of these things with you, along with sharing and maybe selling some of my art with you all.  I figure this space will be  a good place to get my feet wet before I post a shop again.

I’m also pretty far behind on my Pen posts, so I’ll make sure to catch up on those soon!

Hooray for blogging again!

I feel like it’s important to document these moments.  As much as I love this little personality that is emerging, this little girl packs a punch.  She has a will.  And she is learning how to exercise it.  Penny is a wee 1 1/2 years old, and we are knee deep in time outs.  For the most part shes pretty obedient, but in rooms with lots of people and lots of distractions its not so great.  Our days of the pacifier actually quieting our little “angel” are gone.  She’ll scream with that thing right in her mouth.  She is also reaching this stage, where she really wants to do something, but isn’t quite capable enough yet.  She gets so frustrated when she cant open something, or play with it correctly.  I sort of feel bad for her, but I’m sure she’ll get it right next week.  She’s learning like CRAZY.  Mockery is her favorite pasttime and we have officially hit the place where we may start have to watching our mouths. What an adventure this parenting thing is.  Woof.

I have seen a lot of mama bloggers, who i really enjoy, do the whole “portrait of my child each week for a year” thing…and I like it.  So i’ve decided to join the fray.  I’ve mentioned before how fast Penny is growing and changing, but I feel like this year between 1 and 2 SO MUCH happens.  I’m watching Penny become Penny, and its amazing!

I wanted to kick off this series with two of Pennys current favorites.  Her chair, and her Froggy.  She’s started saying phrases like “eer ya go” and “wa dada?”  She babbles to herself and it makes her laugh.  She loves books, animals, and is incredibly obsessed with Tinker Bell (“boogabaow”).  If you lay on the ground and say “oh no!” she will run at you and tackle you while going “RAAAAR”.  She’s just…fun.

She has her moments too…but dont we all : ).

Lovin this lady of mine.