diy(WYM): a baby tie
I was having trouble finding a baby tie for Ivar to wear on Easter. So I found a do-it-yourself tutorial on how to turn a grown man's tie into a baby tie. Now I love a good diy project, but I love a diy(WYM) project even more: Do-It-Yourself With Your Mom. Especially if the instructions include any sort of sewing steps. So yesterday my mom, who can do anything, got crafty with Ivar.I have been hanging onto a tie of my Grandpa Harrington's since he passed away. Not sure what my plans were for the tie, but when I found this tutorial I thought there could be nothing sweeter than my baby boy wearing his great grandpa's tie, whom he never met, for his very first Easter. The symbolism is rich for me. Easter is a day that celebrates new life and resurrection and the eternal home where Ivar will get to meet his Great Grandpa John one day all because of Jesus' victory over death and the grave. Ivar is going to rock this tie. I'll post some pictures next week of the whole outfit.
The tie tutorial is found here. The hardest part was tying the tie backwards...and on the wrong end of the tie. Thanks to our family friend's Betsy and Daron for figuring that one out for us!
you have to admit...
...it is really pretty. I just took these at my next door neighbor's house. So lovely, Alison!
I've got gadgets and gizmos a plenty...
...I've got whosits and whatsits galore.
I love a good kitchen gadget. I am a sucker for a good infomercial. I love watching the vendors at the State Fair make their pitch as to why my life isn't complete until I own their product (Note: That claim was actually true. My life wasn't complete until I got my state fair knives.)
I love a good kitchen gadget. I am a sucker for a good infomercial. I love watching the vendors at the State Fair make their pitch as to why my life isn't complete until I own their product (Note: That claim was actually true. My life wasn't complete until I got my state fair knives.)Turns out my love for kitchen choppers and blenders and citrus squeezers is actually genetic. I get it from my Great Grandpa Anderson. The french fry cutter above is from him. And so is the Food Glamorizer below. What does it do, you ask? It galmorizes.
When I was growing up, my grandparents gave all of their grandkids $25 for Christmas. We would get our check in the mail around Thanksgiving and then it was our job to pick something out, wrap it up and bring it to the family Christmas. We would sit in a circle and open our present in front of Grandma and Grandpa so that they could see what we purchased with their money.
When I was growing up, my grandparents gave all of their grandkids $25 for Christmas. We would get our check in the mail around Thanksgiving and then it was our job to pick something out, wrap it up and bring it to the family Christmas. We would sit in a circle and open our present in front of Grandma and Grandpa so that they could see what we purchased with their money. In seventh grade I spent my $25 on a Braun hand blender. And guess what? I still have it, and I still use it. Best $25 bucks I spent in 7th grade.
So you can only imagine how excited I was when I got a gift card to Williams Sonoma from my brother-in-law Troy for Christmas. Talk about kid in a candy shop. I took my time with the card. I spent a whole lot of time on their website looking through all of my purchase options. As I worked in my own kitchen I wondered what would be the ultimate kitchen gadget to assist in my daily meal prep. I decided that the one thing I hate most in all of food prep is chopping onions. And so there, in the fruit and vegetable tools section I found it. It is the Professional Multi-Chopper. 
It slices. It dices. It is dishwasher safe. It is compact for storing. The only tears you will shed while chopping your onions are tears of joy. It is a bit loud as you slam through your produce, and you have to be a bit aggressive to get your potatoes through, but honestly the time this baby saves is awesome. And I know Great Grandpa Anderson would approve.
So you can only imagine how excited I was when I got a gift card to Williams Sonoma from my brother-in-law Troy for Christmas. Talk about kid in a candy shop. I took my time with the card. I spent a whole lot of time on their website looking through all of my purchase options. As I worked in my own kitchen I wondered what would be the ultimate kitchen gadget to assist in my daily meal prep. I decided that the one thing I hate most in all of food prep is chopping onions. And so there, in the fruit and vegetable tools section I found it. It is the Professional Multi-Chopper. It slices. It dices. It is dishwasher safe. It is compact for storing. The only tears you will shed while chopping your onions are tears of joy. It is a bit loud as you slam through your produce, and you have to be a bit aggressive to get your potatoes through, but honestly the time this baby saves is awesome. And I know Great Grandpa Anderson would approve.is there anything better?
...than a hand-written letter?
I got this letter in the mail last week and I was so excited. I kept it on the coffee table this week and picked it up a few different times to read it all over again, because it is just so rare to get a hand-written, stream-of-consciousness thoughtful piece of mail. My goal for the weekend is to write a letter back to my friend Leslie in Nebraska. And to try to contribute a bit more often to the world of snail mail.
I got this letter in the mail last week and I was so excited. I kept it on the coffee table this week and picked it up a few different times to read it all over again, because it is just so rare to get a hand-written, stream-of-consciousness thoughtful piece of mail. My goal for the weekend is to write a letter back to my friend Leslie in Nebraska. And to try to contribute a bit more often to the world of snail mail.
recent reads
A few recent favorites, from bottom to top: When Elephant Goes to a Party Oh my word, I adore this book. It's all about manners and how to behave at another friend's house. I have a girlfriend who recently told me that she uses the Berenstain Bears all the time to reinforce to her kids how they are to behave/keep their room/tell the truth etc... This book is along those same lines and a great teaching book.
The Crafter's Devotional Delightful and so inspirational. My friend Shannon got me this book for my birthday and it fits me like a glove. Each day is a different creative prompt. Some days it has me writing, others making a simple craft... I will for sure have a bigger blog post about this one in the future.
The Pastor I am a fan of Eugene Peterson as a storyteller and this book showcases his gift through memoir. I loved reading about his childhood and all of the lily pads that led to him becoming a pastor.
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child Lately this has been my baby help book of choice. I like how the book is so easy to use as a resource for each age and stage of Ivar's sleep schedule.
The Power of a Praying Parent Confession: I had judged this book by its 80's looking cover. But a few weeks ago Rory and I opened it up and prayed one of the prayers over Ivar and it was a really beautiful moment. The book covers all sorts of topics to pray over your kids, things that I wouldn't necessarily think of to pray without a bit of prompting. Topics like: attracting Godly friends and role models, following Truth and rejecting lies, developing a hunger for the things of God. It's good stuff.
How about you? Read any good books lately?
hymn cards: springtime
Before Ivar was born, I made hymn cards for his nursery with the hope that having the lyrics of these important songs written in a visible place would help me sing these songs to my son. I use them all the time. So much so that I am ready to retire 'I love to tell the Story' for a long while... For the baby shower on Saturday, I was planning on giving Sarah a copy of each hymn and then decided to double the song choices. I picked eight new songs, taking all of the hymns that were sung at my friend Hildur's funeral and then added a few more of my own favorites. I packaged them with a bow and thought they made for a pretty gift.
a pysanky field trip
Three years ago, Lisa invited me over to her house to decorate easter eggs. It was a brand new art for me, called pysanky or Ukrainian Easter Egg dying. Then, I led an event out at camp for women to come and try using a kiska. And this year, Lisa brought us to the queen of Pysanky herself, Luba of The Ukrainian Gift Shop.
Lisa and her mom Zina brought Sara, Ruby, Josie, me and Ivar to Luba's shop today and it was a feast for the eyes. Her art is stunning and seemingly perfect. I love the bright colors.
And then we went to Kramarczuk's for some traditional Polish food. I saw this restaurant featured on Diners, Drive-in's and Dives and have wanted to go ever since. It was a great day...and if you live in the twin cities, I highly recommend visiting both places.
celebrating babies
My cousin Kathy hosted a baby shower for Ivar and Stella on Saturday. I've said it before, and I'll say it forever...there is nothing like getting a group together to encourage and love on new mama's as we embark and continue to figure out this whole motherhood thing. Kathy threw a classy shower and Ivar and I both felt loved and affirmed.
Ivar and Stella's great grandma Bredberg got to hold each baby. She's well-seasoned at holding babies and two at a time didn't really pose any added challenge for her. In fact she probably could have held both babies and kneaded caramel roll dough without any real problems.
Kathy made Banana Punch, a Bredberg family favorite and absolute favorite for us three girls. I remember many a family function where the three of us would just hang out by the punch bowl and refill our glasses as soon as they were empty. It's a slushy drink and super good. I'll have to put the recipe on the blog someday...
Stella was full of hugs and love for Ivar. She had been waiting for this party for weeks and had a few meltdowns before the party officially began because the suspense was just too much. Then she, too, found the banana punch and seemed to be in a better place.
Kathy assembled these stinkin cute scrapbooks for us and had everyone write a message to Stella and Ivar on the paper circles to put on each page. Adorable and so perfect.
And now here's the blog bummer... I took lots of pictures, but very few have each person in the photo looking blog ready. Somehow in each shot I got someone putting food in their mouth, someone's eyes clothes, someone's backside... so I don't have any more people pics to share! And I love everyone too much than to put an unflattering picture of them up on the internet :) But the food. The food was very photogenic and delish, so I'll share these pics to close this post.
Ivar and Stella's great grandma Bredberg got to hold each baby. She's well-seasoned at holding babies and two at a time didn't really pose any added challenge for her. In fact she probably could have held both babies and kneaded caramel roll dough without any real problems. 
Kathy made Banana Punch, a Bredberg family favorite and absolute favorite for us three girls. I remember many a family function where the three of us would just hang out by the punch bowl and refill our glasses as soon as they were empty. It's a slushy drink and super good. I'll have to put the recipe on the blog someday... 
Stella was full of hugs and love for Ivar. She had been waiting for this party for weeks and had a few meltdowns before the party officially began because the suspense was just too much. Then she, too, found the banana punch and seemed to be in a better place. 
Kathy assembled these stinkin cute scrapbooks for us and had everyone write a message to Stella and Ivar on the paper circles to put on each page. Adorable and so perfect. 
And now here's the blog bummer... I took lots of pictures, but very few have each person in the photo looking blog ready. Somehow in each shot I got someone putting food in their mouth, someone's eyes clothes, someone's backside... so I don't have any more people pics to share! And I love everyone too much than to put an unflattering picture of them up on the internet :) But the food. The food was very photogenic and delish, so I'll share these pics to close this post. 
library favorites
Before I return our library books from our last visit, I wanted to share a new favorite: Sporty Babies Wear Sweats by Michelle Sinclair Coleman. It's silly and the illustrations are adorable. Apparently there are other books in the "babies wear" series and I'm eager to see those too. I'm just happy to have found a new board book to add to my list of favorites. You can only read But not the Hippopotamus so many times. 
30 years later...
This little sweater was made for me 30 years ago by our family friend, Donna Solomonson. We have lots of pictures of me wearing it and now it fits my baby boy. Lately when I pick up Ivar I can't get over the fact that I have a baby that is ready to snuggle and cuddle at all times. I spent a whole lot of my childhood rocking dolls, burping them, changing their clothes, walking them around the house, taking them for walks in the stroller around the block. But now I have the real thing. I have wanted to have a baby my whole life and right this very moment I am living my dreams come true. I think I link to her blog almost every single time she posts a new blog entry, but my friend Meta has written another gem. She also just had a baby boy and her writing always sweeps me off of my feet. Click here to read Meta's latest thoughts on mamahood.
living room remix
Rearranging the furniture is basically what I do when I'm going a bit batty inside and need a change of scenery. If I can't actually get out to change the scenery, then I have to work with what I've got. For this room redo, we took the corner sectional and turned it into two sofas. Is that legal in the world of room design? I don't know. Don't really care either. It works for us. And a special perk? The end cushions on our couch are super saggy and lack in support (read: your butt can get very close to the floor). But the corner cushions that used to be placed together rarely got any use, so now we have two prime sides of two couches that actually support our bodies when we sit down.
around here
Around here we are playing dress up in summertime clothes, just to get us ready for the warm weather just around the corner. Plus, at the rate Ivar is growing, he is not going to fit into this sweet outfit that Mimi and Papa brought back for him from Hawaii! Around here we are having more trouble with our naughty cat than we are with our infant son.
Around here we can't get over how "healthy" our son looks. We laugh at how it looks like he has rubber bands around his wrists.
Around here we are so elated that the snow is melting. Rory was out all weekend working on the yard and added 11 bags of woodchips to our front landscaping.
Around here we are debating if perhaps now would be the right time to take down the artificial Christmas tree we put up on our porch five months ago. It's hard to know...we'll be putting it back up again in only 7 months.
Around here we are living through our baby's first fever, cough and cold. It means that we're snuggling a lot, reading lots of books together and that I am still in my pajamas from Saturday night.
Around here we're low on the staples: milk, bread, eggs and butter. Hard to get by without those ingredients.
Around here we are celebrating the tulip buds that are popping up all over our front garden. I can't wait for spring flowers!
Around here we rearranged the living room furniture. Because that just needs to be done once in a while.
Around here we have added a high chair to our kitchen table set up so that our little man can start eating sweet potatoes and carrots with his mom and dad. It's the best. He's very proud to have joined us.
The last time I posted an around here post was over a year ago! It is so amazing to track the day to day details and to see how hugely our life has changed in one year... You can read that post by clicking here.
time to get your game on!
Family Fun Magazine has some super simple practical jokes that are ready to print and enjoy. My sister emailed this morning and said her 5-year-old, Mara keeps asking, "what are we going to do for April Fool's Day?" as if she believes it is a major holiday. So if you're looking for some fun ideas to get your creative juices flowing, check out this Family Fun April Fools link. My favorites are the easy, printer-ready ideas found here. I can't wait until Ivar is old enough to help me celebrate this very major holiday!
fill-in-the-picture books
This post is another tip of the hat to my mom. Somehow she finds these awesome albums that tell you what pictures to place where. This book is a book about Ivar's baptism that she put together. This is her 7th baptism book as she has made one of these for each of her grandkids. It means that she comes to the service equipped with a list that she usually passes onto my aunt louie with items listed like: exterior of the church, baptismal font, baby with pastor, inside of the church etc. Then those 20 pictures get placed throughout this book that weaves a story around the pictures, explaining what baptism is and then you add the details: 
It's a super cool teaching tool for passing on the faith, so that when Ivar is older we can talk about baptism and what it means to be baptized into the kingdom of God. My niece Sonna was baptized in Flathead Lake and she will "read" this one to us with her own script, "once I was a teeny, tiny baby and there's pastor wayne in his shorts and we all walked into the lake..." the mini album
My mom is the queen of the mini album. For each of her grandchild she has created a "Brown Bear, Brown Bear" book using all of the members of our family for the different pages. My niece, Sonna, once called and told me she could 'read' her book all by herself and then read the thing to me three times in a row. I love these books because they reinforce family no matter how far away the family is. All of Ivar's cousins on the Harrington side live in Montana or Washington, so books like this are really, really important to me.
Mom also makes small albums for each grandchild after she visits them. She takes a ton of pictures on her trips and then comes home to develop and assemble an individual book that will be sent in the mail. She has done this since her grandkids were babies, so when you visit my brother or sister, you will find these 4x6 albums strewn all around the house. Again, it is reinforcing family and all the fun we have together, even when we live an airplane ride apart. To see these simple albums, click here.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)