We spend a lot of our time outside doing this:
July 20, 2009
Memories
I am going to start posting random memories when I remember them, because this blog really is for us and our posterity. The above picture is of Brad and I, sometime during the summer of 2007, I think (either '07 or '06.) We were at the Kennecot Coppermines behind Brian and Tia's house in South Jordan, Utah.
When I was on my live-in during study abroad I stayed in Scotland with a wonderful woman named Pat. I couldn't understand half of what she said because of her accent. I also felt really silly most of the time because of the way she served food. For breakfast one morning she brought me a hard boiled egg on this little egg holder/pedestal. When I looked confused she told me to "bash it with your spoon." That night she told me she was making "pasta with bolognase sauce." I found out that meant spaghetti with meat sauce.
These are the 4 memories I have of my grandma Robertson: When we lived in California, I was about 5, she came to visit us. She took Matthew and I for a walk around the neighborhood, by the public pool. It was fall and she told us to crunch as many leaves as we could. So we jumped on every leaf in our path, it was fun.
When I was about 11, she came to live with us. Her alzheimer's had developed and she couldn't live on her own any more. One morning I went downstairs to see that she had put my clothes on. I was horrified, and remember complaining to my mom that she was going to stretch my t-shirt out. My mom was patient with both of us and fixed the problem. Shortly after then she moved to a home.
I was 12, staying home from school sick. My parent's had been visiting grandma all day so I was alone. The phone rang and I answered it. They asked for my parents, they weren't home. She left the message with me, that grandma had died. I felt strange all day, not knowing how to feel or react. We knew it was coming, but I felt sad and happy at the same time.
About a week later we were in Wyoming for her funeral. I met a whole bunch of people I didn't know, but mom did. We sat in the funeral parlour for a long time. Then we went to look at her. I was scared. I remember my dad's hand on my shoulder the whole time. While she was alive she had looked confused and trapped; now she looked peaceful and happy. I was glad. I cried for a while.
I am really excited to one day be able to meet my grandma and learn all of her quirks...and sewing tricks!
July 19, 2009
More Sewing
Aside from the purple dress and skirt that I posted last weekend, I've also completed three more projects. I made this fun green shirt:
I made this hat for Ruth:
I found the pattern for this here. It was really simple and fun to make. Although you have to sew in a circle, and I HATE sewing in circles, especially for a baby sized hat!
And I made this blue dress (detailed neckline below):
The dress was really fun to make because I started by following the pattern for t
he green shirt. I added length to the bottom of the shirt. Then I modified the how the sleeves attach to the shoulder and instead of putting elastic into the neck line I pulled the extra material into a deep V. It was really fun to redesign this shirt pattern into a unique and interesting dress. I absolutely love the neck line. I also love that no one else has this dress! I am still working on quilting, but it's so fun to sew because I finish the project faster than quilting, and then I get to show it off too. Once again, thanks Paula for the machine.
In other good news, I went shopping on Friday and got a linen pair of shorts for $4.50 and a purple polo for $7. I love Target clearance racks. Oh, and Ruth is officially 8 months old as of yesterday...where did the last 8 months go? Oh, yeah, there was Thanksgiving, Christmas in New Mexico, then we moved twice to two different states, Brad and I got jobs in Portland, we quit our jobs, we went to a family reunion, Brad started his new job as general manager of the hotel and finally settling into and exploring Twin Falls, meanwhile enjoying our growing girl. That's all.
I made this hat for Ruth:
I found the pattern for this here. It was really simple and fun to make. Although you have to sew in a circle, and I HATE sewing in circles, especially for a baby sized hat!
And I made this blue dress (detailed neckline below):
The dress was really fun to make because I started by following the pattern for t
he green shirt. I added length to the bottom of the shirt. Then I modified the how the sleeves attach to the shoulder and instead of putting elastic into the neck line I pulled the extra material into a deep V. It was really fun to redesign this shirt pattern into a unique and interesting dress. I absolutely love the neck line. I also love that no one else has this dress! I am still working on quilting, but it's so fun to sew because I finish the project faster than quilting, and then I get to show it off too. Once again, thanks Paula for the machine.
In other good news, I went shopping on Friday and got a linen pair of shorts for $4.50 and a purple polo for $7. I love Target clearance racks. Oh, and Ruth is officially 8 months old as of yesterday...where did the last 8 months go? Oh, yeah, there was Thanksgiving, Christmas in New Mexico, then we moved twice to two different states, Brad and I got jobs in Portland, we quit our jobs, we went to a family reunion, Brad started his new job as general manager of the hotel and finally settling into and exploring Twin Falls, meanwhile enjoying our growing girl. That's all.
July 16, 2009
Wonderful Things
Oh the wonderful things Ms. Ruth E. can do; she can sound like a cow, she can go MOO, MOO! (Dr. Seuss)
(Gotta love her face, right? She's like "What the heck!")
Okay, so she can't moo quite yet, but there are a lot of wonderful things about her...
(That face really is #1)
1. She loves all kinds of food.
2. She is curious about outside things. In the morning we sit on our patio and she watches the wind blow the bushes. She especially loves it when birds fly by.
3. She likes to sit in her own chair. She likes lap time, but after a minute she always wants to sit in her own chair. She grabs onto the arm rests like it's about to take off.
4. She has 4 teeth.
5. She loves to play with the springy door stops. She pulls on them and watches them as they vibrate. The neighbors below us don't like it so much.
6. When she's sick she is very cuddly.
7. She says "Hey Dada!" We think she's starting to understand that dada actually means Brad!
8. She's perfect when you need her to be, i.e. during tutoring she plays for the entire 1 1/2 hours like an angel.
9. She is curious about people and is starting to smile and not just stare!
10. She can crawl. If I leave her in the living room to play while I run to the bathroom, she is sure to be at least half way to me by the time I'm done.
11. She kisses herself in the mirror. I have a lot of slob covered mirrors. She also grabs at her reflection in the PUR water purifier on our sink.
12. When I play with her she plays back. I playfully bite her cheeks and she often tries to bite me back. That's a little more dangerous now with the teeth!
13. When she is excited she flails her arms and legs like she can't get enough.
14. She laughs when we hold her and run around the apartment.
15. She likes being messy. I love that she doesn't mind getting dirty, and that she haves fun getting dirty. It's just too bad that she doesn't enjoy the cleaning up as much.
16. She likes to play with kitchen utensils while I cook.
17. I can tell that she is tanned because when you separate the rolls on her legs it's pasty white in between!
18. She had DARK brown hair when she was born and now it's LIGHT dirty blonde.
19. She screams during sacrament meeting. You've just gotta laugh, there's nothing else to do!
20. She naps enough for me to get sewing done.
21. She licks her lips, for some reason that's so cute.
22. She's cranky when she first wakes up, and it takes her a few minutes to become playful. That's a thing I've just considered a grown-up thing, it's funny that's she's that way too.
23. She likes to go swimming, and LOVES to splash in the water.
24. When she wants to investigate things she slaps her hand on it.
25. When she gets hurt she only cries for a few seconds and then gets over it!
Having Ruth has been the most rewarding thing in my life after a celestial marriage. She is worth giving up a teaching profession. She is worth all the dirty diapers (which really isn't as bad as I thought it would be). She is worth getting up 3 times a night for. She is worth the discomfort of pregnancy and post weight loss battle. She is worth it because I know that she has so much potential and I am the one she is counting on to help her reach it. She is worth it because she is a real human being with her own spirit. She has intelligence and unfathomable potential. She has so many lessons to learn and so many to teach as well. It's funny because people say that everything changes when you have a child. And it's not that I didn't believe them, I just didn't know what it meant. I can't watch old episodes of Gilmore Girls without crying now. I can't substitute in primary without crying because the kids are singing "I Have a Family Here on Earth." I can't clip my nails without wondering if Ruth needs hers clipped too. Everything has changed, and it's so much better because I appreciate things so much more and see God's hand in the little things.
(Gotta love her face, right? She's like "What the heck!")
(That face really is #1)2. She is curious about outside things. In the morning we sit on our patio and she watches the wind blow the bushes. She especially loves it when birds fly by.
3. She likes to sit in her own chair. She likes lap time, but after a minute she always wants to sit in her own chair. She grabs onto the arm rests like it's about to take off.
4. She has 4 teeth.
5. She loves to play with the springy door stops. She pulls on them and watches them as they vibrate. The neighbors below us don't like it so much.
6. When she's sick she is very cuddly.
7. She says "Hey Dada!" We think she's starting to understand that dada actually means Brad!
8. She's perfect when you need her to be, i.e. during tutoring she plays for the entire 1 1/2 hours like an angel.
9. She is curious about people and is starting to smile and not just stare!
10. She can crawl. If I leave her in the living room to play while I run to the bathroom, she is sure to be at least half way to me by the time I'm done.
11. She kisses herself in the mirror. I have a lot of slob covered mirrors. She also grabs at her reflection in the PUR water purifier on our sink.
12. When I play with her she plays back. I playfully bite her cheeks and she often tries to bite me back. That's a little more dangerous now with the teeth!
13. When she is excited she flails her arms and legs like she can't get enough.
14. She laughs when we hold her and run around the apartment.
15. She likes being messy. I love that she doesn't mind getting dirty, and that she haves fun getting dirty. It's just too bad that she doesn't enjoy the cleaning up as much.
16. She likes to play with kitchen utensils while I cook.
17. I can tell that she is tanned because when you separate the rolls on her legs it's pasty white in between!
18. She had DARK brown hair when she was born and now it's LIGHT dirty blonde.
19. She screams during sacrament meeting. You've just gotta laugh, there's nothing else to do!
20. She naps enough for me to get sewing done.
21. She licks her lips, for some reason that's so cute.
22. She's cranky when she first wakes up, and it takes her a few minutes to become playful. That's a thing I've just considered a grown-up thing, it's funny that's she's that way too.
23. She likes to go swimming, and LOVES to splash in the water.
24. When she wants to investigate things she slaps her hand on it.
25. When she gets hurt she only cries for a few seconds and then gets over it!
Having Ruth has been the most rewarding thing in my life after a celestial marriage. She is worth giving up a teaching profession. She is worth all the dirty diapers (which really isn't as bad as I thought it would be). She is worth getting up 3 times a night for. She is worth the discomfort of pregnancy and post weight loss battle. She is worth it because I know that she has so much potential and I am the one she is counting on to help her reach it. She is worth it because she is a real human being with her own spirit. She has intelligence and unfathomable potential. She has so many lessons to learn and so many to teach as well. It's funny because people say that everything changes when you have a child. And it's not that I didn't believe them, I just didn't know what it meant. I can't watch old episodes of Gilmore Girls without crying now. I can't substitute in primary without crying because the kids are singing "I Have a Family Here on Earth." I can't clip my nails without wondering if Ruth needs hers clipped too. Everything has changed, and it's so much better because I appreciate things so much more and see God's hand in the little things.
July 13, 2009
July 12, 2009
Sewing
I have taken a brief break from quilting until my next lesson which is this coming Saturday. To fill my time I have been tutoring a 7 year old girl, twice a week for a total of 3 hours (and $45!) a week, to get her ready for 2nd grade. I've also been sewing clothes (as well as the usual taking care of Ruth, cooking and cleaning business).
This is the purple dress I made, and I absolutely love it, love it, love it. I wore it to church today and it's so comfy! Speaking of church, we got to sub in primary today and it was so much fun.
And this is the skirt I made. I combined two patterns to do it, so I felt so clever. One pattern was for the skirt which was suppose to be full length. So, I shortened the skirt length and then added a 4 inch flounce to the bottom from another pattern. And if you will also notice, in the background you can see our bookshelf and my chair where I sat to sew these things. Also, on the wall behind me is our new wonderful poster, a painting by Klimt. (Looking at this picture again, it doesn't really do the skirt justice.)
So, for my first go at sewing clothes I'm really happy. My mom had told me that sewing clothes was more "forgiving" than quilting, and boy was she right. I kept thinking I'd messed things up horribly, but I can't even tell in the finished product; whereas in quilting I know I've messed up and you can totally tell in the finished product! I'm having a grand time. Thank you Paula SOOOO much for my sewing machine. I LOVE IT!
Brad's still doing great and loving his job at the hotel. Going to work in the morning and coming home at night is so nice, for all of us. Ruth is always sad to see him leave and ecstatic when he comes home. In Ruth news she now has 4 teeth! There is no more sticking my fingers in her mouth. We finally got her to the doctor and she is 18.1 pounds and 27 1/2 inches long, which puts her in the 75% for height and weight. Unfortunately she is a pin head like me. Her head is in the 25%. She also now enjoys spaghetti and pears, but not together. However, she does like applesauce and carrots!
By the way, congratulations to Austin on you baptism, we're so happy for you!
This is the purple dress I made, and I absolutely love it, love it, love it. I wore it to church today and it's so comfy! Speaking of church, we got to sub in primary today and it was so much fun.
And this is the skirt I made. I combined two patterns to do it, so I felt so clever. One pattern was for the skirt which was suppose to be full length. So, I shortened the skirt length and then added a 4 inch flounce to the bottom from another pattern. And if you will also notice, in the background you can see our bookshelf and my chair where I sat to sew these things. Also, on the wall behind me is our new wonderful poster, a painting by Klimt. (Looking at this picture again, it doesn't really do the skirt justice.)
So, for my first go at sewing clothes I'm really happy. My mom had told me that sewing clothes was more "forgiving" than quilting, and boy was she right. I kept thinking I'd messed things up horribly, but I can't even tell in the finished product; whereas in quilting I know I've messed up and you can totally tell in the finished product! I'm having a grand time. Thank you Paula SOOOO much for my sewing machine. I LOVE IT!
Brad's still doing great and loving his job at the hotel. Going to work in the morning and coming home at night is so nice, for all of us. Ruth is always sad to see him leave and ecstatic when he comes home. In Ruth news she now has 4 teeth! There is no more sticking my fingers in her mouth. We finally got her to the doctor and she is 18.1 pounds and 27 1/2 inches long, which puts her in the 75% for height and weight. Unfortunately she is a pin head like me. Her head is in the 25%. She also now enjoys spaghetti and pears, but not together. However, she does like applesauce and carrots!
By the way, congratulations to Austin on you baptism, we're so happy for you!
July 5, 2009
4th of July
We had an amazing 4th of July. We drove up to Idaho Falls to spend the d
ay with Brad's wonderful Aunt Brenda and Uncle Val. We had such a great time catching up and hanging out all day. Then at about 9 pm we drove down to the river to watch them shoot off the fireworks. Apparently, this show is the biggest show west of the Mississippi! I was hoping that Ruth would just sleep through the whole thing, but since I had to get her up one hour after put
ting her down to bed, she was wide awake throughout the entire show. The funny thing is that she absolutely love watching the fireworks. She was just enchanted as she watched the different colors bursting in the sky. My favorite part of the
show was that the fireworks were choreographed to patriotic music. If you look in the pictures you can see that we were sitting in the middle of the street (we were sitting on the double yellow lines).I have also been quilting, which is my new favorite thing. This is a picture of my first 4 squares, they look uneven as though they aren't square, that's just because of the angle I took the picture so all 4 squares would fit in the picture. Each square is about 22 inches, and the entire quilt will include 12 squares. I have been learning from some ladies down town at a really cool, locally owned fabric shop.
Ruth has been enjoying new foods, such as: cottage cheese, cucumbers, tomatoes, dill pickles (yes she does ENJOY pickles), scrambled eggs with hot sauce, goldfish crackers, saltines, black beans, and yogurt pretzels (she made a HUGE
mess with the yogurt pretzels). And this is my favorite picture of my favorite people.