Ruff Around the Edges

Paula, a friend and fellow quilter, made this incredible baby quilt for our soon to be arriving (fingers crossed) son.

She's amazingly talented, and we are just in awe of all the work she put into this quilt. I absolutely love it, and I know our son will too. She's a real artist with her quilt designs, and I love the dogs and sayings that she added to her latest masterpiece. The piecing work to add the dogs must have taken forever. Not only do they look absolutely fanastic, but they all have their own unique collars, too!

The back of the quilt really shows all of the work she put into this quilt. I love the dog, bones, hearts, and sun shapes. Paula does all of this quilting herself, and that's just amazing to me. I know we need to use the quilt for wrapping up our bundle of joy, but I really just want to hang it on the wall. Either way, for now, it's hanging in the perfect spot on the front of the crib.

Finished in the Nick of Time

I can now say that I'm officially finished with my list for Christmas 2010. Brad & Candy's quilt was the last item on my list, and it's done!

Jake did his part by laying and sitting on it to add couple dog hairs just for B&C. Good boy, Jake!

Ben gave it a thorough sniff test, and it passed - whew! My dogs make me laugh. Whenever I lay out a quilt on the floor, Jake will sit or lay on it. Then Ben takes over and sniffs every inch.

Then I gave it a big hug, and Darin held it up to get the "white socks and quilt" picture that has become the tradition as the last official step in the quilting process. So a quick note to my family - just know that if we draw your name for Christmas next year, you're more than likely going to get a quilt and it's going to be a few months late...and maybe even a little bit more with a little kid running around this place!

Merry Christmas!

A Baby Quilt in a Day

I'm happy to say that I've finished Brad & Candy's Christmas present quilt, and it's even at the quilter! It will be finished Tuesday, so I decided to hurry and get Captain's quilt done, too. My plan is to have it to the quilt shop Monday, and the quilter will pick it up on Tuesday when she drops off B&C's quilt. I think this turned out pretty good for a baby boy quilt.

I always lay out the blocks exactly how I want to sew them together and then somehow, every single time, I end up mixing it all up and it never ends up how I laid it out.

Luckily, baby quilts don't take too much time, and this pattern in particular was super quick. I just might have this done before Captain arrives!

Baby Shower!

Here are pics from a baby shower a few friends threw for me at work. I had a super fun time! I think I work at the best place on earth and with a tremendous group of people.
It looks like these little pants just might fit..?!

Paige made this really cool diaper cake. I had never even heard of such a thing. That teddy bear is super cuddly!

Bump Update

I am soo excited that we only have six more weeks to go!

And what if I end up being a couple of weeks early, so maybe I only have 3 1/2 weeks left...? Let's not even think about what if I'm a week late!

Final Countdown to Valentine's Day!

This little Fourteen Days of Valentines Day project ended up being a bit of work! It was a whole lot of fun, though, and I think my hubby enjoyed all the extra attention and love. Awww.

These cherry chip, pink frosting cupcakes were sure yummy. Ben agrees - he grabbed one from the counter and ate most of it before I was able to catch him.

Coming up with 14 days of "why I love you..." notes was a good exercise and a good reminder of exactly why I married my hubby. I didn't even have to use the "I love the way you pickup dog poop" or the "I really love how you vacuum" notes I had planned as last resorts. :)

Countdown: Days Nine & Ten

Day Nine: I love to organize!
Day nine present - cable cuffs! All those loosey-goosey, dangley cords will be a thing of the past. The shop vac needs one of these to hold the hose from falling all over the place. I know, I know...it's all romance, baby!

Day Ten: At Least it's not Candy
I don't know if all boys like bungee cords, but Darin sure does - can't get enough of them and never gets rid of one. They're kind of like duct tape without the sicky residue. I'm thinking we should use one of these to hold down the lid on the dog food container, because Ben's developing a habit of running out of his kennel, flipping the lid off the food and hurrying to gulp as much food as he can before we drag him away. He's so proud of himself afterwards that he runs off with his tail high and happy as a hound!