Better Energy

While I have been enjoying fueling my caffeine addiction with multiple cups of tea a day, I have been putting some thought into creating better energy for myself. Simple things like remembering to drink multiple pints of water (failing miserably today, be right back.) actually making time to eat lunch (sick Asher this week has made this difficult) and eating things other than sugar (I am convinced I need sugar to maintain the sweetness of breastmilk and crave treats like mad).

Today though, I made a great lunch for A and myself. Baby sushi with egg rolls for him and a plate with cabbage, spinach, carrot, egg and scallion for myself. We already had the sushi rice on hand from Mondays dinner as well as all the veggies prepped. I think this would be a great thing to prep an evening when you have more time (when is that with kids again?) or to make for dinner one night and make plenty of extra rice to have throughout the week.

I could eat this everyday and it even tastes better as it sits. I started a roll, nursed River to get him to sleep for his nap. Finished Asher's rolls, fed him while I finished my rolls, cuddled Asher and nursed him for his nap and came downstairs to my plate of rolls and peace!! so delicious and nutritious something this tandem nursing mama needs. Oh that isn't intentional, I only thought I would be nursing one, but with Asher sick he was nursing more the past couple of days and I have been feeling the impact. He is still night weened and most of the day weened, but he nurses in the morning for a minute or two and then for naptime, we will hopefully with the help of a trip alone to grandma's be weening the rest, but will see.

Asher wolfs down sushi, so go make some, if you need my foolproof rice cooking method, without a rice cooker, just ask and I can share.

My Guys

We are still working on a decent whole family photo, but at least I captured all my boys in one frame looking cute the morning of Aryeh's Briss.

We were in St. Louis this weekend, it was a little two whirlwind for the newly two kidded family and we were all pooped Sunday night when we got home. Asher came down with a cold Monday, and had his first officially achy, fevery, can't get comfortable, need to be held at all times illness. He is well on his way to recovery and has had some good morning of playing and loooong afternoon naps. I am enjoying some peace and quiet with both boys asleep, tea and blogging with a side of dishes and laundry.

Chores

We have decided to give Asher a present now that he is two... chores!!! Hip Hip Hooray. He likes sweeping, but not very effectively, is okay at cleaning up spills with a towel (they just aren't absorbing well and we are out of sponges) happily helps pick up his toys on occassion and has been delighted to help set the table. But this chore he chose all by himself.

While he is not strong enough to put the trash out, the clever little boy figured out how to bring the trash can in. It is all his. He may need to be a bit taller to bring in the recycling bin, it's significantly bigger.

Play

We have been focusing a lot on making our house more play oriented for Asher. His new focus is fabulous and I am continually amazed at his creativity and imagination. These are some of the most wonderful things to witness and foster as a parent. The other morning he asked me what animal I was, his indicator to ask him what animal he is. He was being a mouse and so therefore was I. The owls were chasing us and we had to find multiple places to hide in our house. He knows his owls so we hid from great horned, great grey, snowy, barn, screech and saw whets and also the long eared, who he immediately follows with hid in our backyard from a storm (ben saw one and we have pictures that A loves to look at). We hide until the coast is clear and then scamper our way around until another owl is after us. He is also loving his tree house (play house from bubbie and zadie). we made people from some turned forms and he was gifted some homemade fencing and knitted pigs that he loves.

River is working on the smiles. This is the first photographic evidence.
Our little monkeys playing. Asher is a great big brother and gives River plenty of kisses throughout the day.

thanks daniel for the photos.

Yesterday and Today

Yummy soup and rolls were consumed. River was looking a little surly.

Asher doing his cute face, oh you can't be upset that I picked the flower, look how cute we are together.I am pooped, but we have had a couple really good mama/boyo days. Ben has been leaving for work at 7 am and returned last night close to 8 and tonight around 6... long days for mama of two still trying to find her groove. our turn at the milk run for our milk coop. One mama goes every week, and with the rotation I go every five week. Luckily this visit I had another guest (my mother in law went with me when R was a week old) Beth joined me this time with the two boys and let me say I don't know how we would have survived without her and I don't know how I am going to handle the run on my own. Regardless, we stopped by the furniture shop where I am still pondering the piece for the dining room, so many choices and I need to get what I actually would like and what would be most useful. I hope to make some final choices this weekend when Ben and I pass through on the way to St. Louis.

Asher had a good morning, I think I may have some timing down. Asher plays well for about an hour in the morning with minimal playing from me and this is my chance to get everything done- breakfast, pack up, nurse River... then it is time to get out of the house. First thing Asher picked one of our newly opened tulips and we played with it and talked all about our new flowers, I packed the car snapped some photos and we were actually ready to leave on time. Gas, a latte and we were on the way. A missed exit added 20 minutes onto the drive (yikes) Asher wanted out and we made it in one piece. He got to see all Andy's animals on the farm and was not happy to have to drive back home. We did stop for lunch and I ordered him his own meal in the restaurant, first time ever. He was so happy to get his own plate and thanked the waiter without being prompted and asked a couple of times if that was indeed for him. I had know idea the kids meal quesadilla would make him so happy.

Back home, I thought we would get a nap in but no such luck, River slept thankfully, Asher and i played outside, pretending to be beavers (I have a flat tail, he cries) and making a pond for his frogs on the porch.Virginia, Daniel and Henry joined us for dinner and A was asleep by 8.

Today we headed to Thai's house for playgroup. We were ready super early and with the drizzle at 8:30 I decided to drive to the library, make a stop at V&D's and then we actually walked to playgroup. Asher ran around outside and got to enjoy the newly built treehouse. Lots of friends made for a nap this afternoon... I don't really remember that I might as well have been asleep, because I did nothing.also at playgroup River got to hang out with his best friend Cy who was a few ounces less that River was at 4 weeks being born at 10lbs, 5 oz (or something close), Rachel did a stellar job getting that guy out and here he is with R.

I am hoping to doze off soon, tomorrow is another long day and then we are going away for the weekend. That was really a boring post, sorry.

Just a bit of Quilting

Finally the quilts have made it in the hands of the triplets. A lot later than I had anticipated, but none the less they are out of my hands... This was definitely a nerve wrecking quilting project. I made quilts for my first neice and nephew and when A&R let us know they were having triplets, due essentially when I was due (early, keeping in three babies is hard) I was thrilled to have a project, baby quilts, oh hooray. But then I realized these were first babies, a nursery wasn't going to be already done and my quilts needed to be amazing for three babes coming fast. We didn't have colors or fabric picked out until new years and I was quickly becoming more uncomfortably pregnant, more tired and less inspired. I started dreaming about the quilts and things progressed. I knew they needed to have some simple construction due to time, but they needed to be special enough for the individuals that would be receiving them and united for the nursery theme... Everything was first constructed as strips and blocked together in different ways. This was my first venture into applique, and I am quite pleased with the results.I love trees, they are one of my favorite things. i would hike hours to find spectacular trees, always found peace climbing them as a kid and hope to transcend that magic that I find within their limbs to all the children I encounter. Aryeh's quilt was dreamed up first, simple simple in construction, I ripped the fabric strips and pieced it in one day, Built the appliques and voila, a top was done. This was the first quilt top done, last quilt completed. In the above picture you can see the front (lft), back (right) and a bit of a bigger view of the tree. The bird is detailed below.

R picked out the most beautiful color scheme, and the lightest blue is gorgeous, but holy cow was it ever hard to match... it wasn't baby blue or teal, but a shade in between. Sew Sassy had only two blues that matched relatively well, both a bit bolder but in the same family, this little blue bird is one of those and I adore the way it pops on the tree.Yael's quilt was my second dream. With the simplicity of the strip quilting mojo happening in my brain, I still needed a way to make things unique. R found a beautiful leaf print fabric with all the colors that she liked and I just made those leaves into an applique, stitched them up the way the lines were on the fabric and was very happy with how the quilt took shape. I cut the mass of strips and interspersed them with the leaf fabric and leaf applique to feature that fabric. Above is the front and back with a bit of a zoom and below is a detailed leaf.

After Yael's leaves came out so well, my mind was swimming with what to put on the final quilt. Amalya's quilt came together in my mind very rapidly and pieced together quickly and I was so pleased with the simple feel of the quilt yet the attention to detail as I topstitched the applique.

Uniting the other two quilts with trees and leaves and birds. I felt that this quilt was the most bold and when I saw the first picture of Amalya getting weighed in on the scale so tiny, there was something in her that seemed bold and that she is going to be a very petite spit fire, I knew this quilt was for her. Detailed zooms below.

I am pretty sure that all the tops were done before River arrived. While in labor I worked further on Yael's quilt, it was my project before my water broke, and the bias tape was on. In the coming weeks, with newbon and toddler in tow the other two were completed, thanks to help from family watching the boys and ironing fabric. And now they have arrived in St. Louis where they can meet their owners who will hopefully love them and wear them out until they are threads full of a life story. Amalya is home today joining her brother and sister and we get to meet all three of them next weekend. I am thrilled to have more nieces and another nephew.

Healthy, happy, babes with tired parents, all is right in the world.

Happy Spring

With the equinox now behind us, I am going to officially declare spring around these parts. I hopefully enjoyed my last needed fire in the woodstove, a late afternoon chill in the house and a babe (and mama) that needed some warming and daffodils should be following the crocuses, snowdrops and cylla that have flowered in the yard. Our wild leeks have poked their heads up and the chickens are laying lots of eggs. Asher is learning all of the birds in the neighborhood by ear which is phenomenal as well as enjoying the new birdy visitors to our yard.Papa dug out his awesome sheleter building skills and made a fun play area for asher outside out of the cedar droppings from a big storm a couple weeks ago. He has a fun balancing on stump area as well as a bird blind. Asher loves balancing. It is perfect for him and just what I had envisioned for a shelter. we can lay on our backs and watch the birds in the big pines and also have picnics. Can't wait to get more use out of it.

Playing hide and seek, he was happy to hide in there from Ben.

Play silks to add some color and welcome Asher to his new secret spot. Nice work Papa.

me

I got my hair cut today. With A I waited until he was 7 months before going short, my mom cut, but it was needed. My hair was getting pretty crappy, breaking and starting to fall out. I am not a fan of the way it was in the picture, curled under and reaking of salon.... this was my first professional cut since moving to illinois, heck since i left wisconsin in 2001, I don't even remember my last professional cut. I don't think in the last decade, so my first professional cut of this century... I really should have gone all out for that. I typically cut my own hair, but my scissors have gone missing and I can't really get the back all that well and wanted layers back there, so I paid for a cut. the lady at the fancy salon did a good job, I was a little nervous with the do that she gave me, a few barettes made me feel a little better, but the was and no styling made me feel much better. It may take a few days to get the stink out, but it is an easy hair cut that lends itself well to having two kids.

I broke out some new wool today and would like to entitle these photos "the impatient knitter" See that hank of wool hanging off the back of my chair (a beautiful new zealand hank from my honeymoon) well I put it there to wind into a ball, but with the limited time around here, who has time to wind a ball when you are set to knit? Not me, so I got right to casting on this little knit sheep for Asher, I am going to work on a whole farm, and I don't need that much yarn so using the chair was a much wiser (and faster) way to go. Now I just need to bind off the little bugger and sew him up (the more time consuming half of the project)

And lastly here is my laundry. With two kiddos in cloth diapers the basket is always full. I seriously cannot believe how many diapers I change on a daily basis... holy cow. R is into his small fuzzi bunz so having to sort sizes now has added a new level of laundry time, yikes

The Boyo's

I always seem to forget the true reason that I fell in love with photography back in middle school... black and white. oh how it just captures things in a wonderful way. With digital it is so easy to always shoot color and think that you will transfer pics to b&w with the computer, but I always forget and fall in love with the color shots. So last night I changed the camera to b&w mode and dis some shooting. Oh how I love my boys and being outside, spring is so magical.

Asher is still in love with his little bro and River is in love with being naked, the boy really does not like having his diaper put back on. And as a side note, River has peed on the toilet a handful of times on cue which has been awesome, I hope we can stick with the elimination communication and get both boys trained this summer!!