Why the Pink?

In honor of Lorelai's upcoming birthday, my blog with transition into a wonderful world of baby pink. I thought it would be a nice flow changer before I break out my Christmas madness :)

M.LEWIS

Gobbling Up Thanksgiving

 Well in case you missed it for some reason, yesterday was Thanksgiving. Lorelai's first Thanksgiving. Yep, this time last year I was counting down the days until I got to go to the hospital. I was h-u-g-e and mighty uncomfortable from all the heartburn and jabby feet moving around in my tummy. This Thanksgiving was a little different. :)

Just being pretty...she's good at it

                             

Showing off her walking "skills" to my youngest cousins

                             

Goofing around with my 2 out of 3 brothers

Exploring through the shoes at the front door

Book time with Daddy

Baby toy + cell phones = entertainment during football

She did try some stuffing, mashed potatoes, jello, and bread. We managed to sneak in a couple of slices of pie before Lorelai needed to go home to nap. (Arriving at her usual nap time threw her off...but's ok, it's a holiday) Later that evening we saw Chris's parents to round off the holiday. Well, that's it, except for her 1st birthday next week, she has covered all her first holidays. Oh, and in case you were wondering, her shirt says "Everyone is thankful for me" and it's true. :)

M.LEWIS 

She's Making a List, and Checking it Twice (at least)!

Time for the holidays...and that means: LISTS!

I am a list-maker. Even when I pack for trips, I make lists so I don't forget anything going into the trip or coming home from one. I make lists every time I go to the grocery store or the hardware store. So now, with Lorelai's birthday, Thanksgiving, and Christmas all coming up I have several different lists going on.

Christmas shopping is the main list, and I can happily say I have made a pretty decent dent in it in the past 2 weeks. :) I have to focus on Thanksgiving first though! I am making a delicious jello salad and a yummy cherry pie for my family's get-together. I am looking forward to seeing everyone and I am also excited for Lorelai's last first holiday! I think she will enjoy trying some new foods and seeing the smiling faces. Some family members haven't seen her in months...or at all!

Then comes her birthday! 11/30! I am setting a new rule this year. No Christmas decorating until after her birthday. Christmas music, sure, but no decorations just yet. I want to make sure Lorelai's birthday doesn't get overshadowed. Don't get me wrong, December 1st is oh-my-goodness-break-out-the-tree-and-lights day, but I want Lorelai's birthday decor to take over the house before the holiday fanciness. ;) Plus, it may make for a nice tradition to break out the Christmas boxes while Lorelai is keeping herself busy with new toys. :D

Anyway, back to my lists: I also have a list for things to buy for the house...Christmas decor-wise. I need a front door wreath and outdoor Christmas lights! My dad said I can raid through his boxes of "non-used lights." That should help the $ cost.

I also have to order Christmas cards and gather addresses before I send them out. Hopefully I will not lose the list this time. The move earlier made for massive paper purge. I plan to save them online this year. ;) So be prepared for an email from me...or maybe you will beat me to it.

I hope you all are in good spirits as we transition into the holiday season. I hope the weather stays cool and crisp and the leaves continue to turn and fall to the ground. I LOVE THIS TIME OF YEAR!

M.LEWIS

It's a Honor to be Nominated

So, I am feeling the love from my readers lately; and honestly, it's an awesome feeling. I think every single blogger thinks "Who reads this? Does anyone read this? Do they care? Am I any good at this?" So it is nice when you receive that small recognition of "Hey, I like to read what you write." Sure, some days I scrape together anything I can blog about. I very much like to write, but don't always have something in my mind worth writing about...but hey, I try, and apparently it's working pretty well. :)

My fellow blogger shone a little spotlight on me lately and I am touched. I would also like to reciprocate the fondness and recommend you follow her eloquent, down-to-earth blog full of relateable topics. She gave me this little gem:

The word “liebster” means favorite or dearest in German, and the Liebster Award is intended to spotlight up and coming blogs with fewer than 200 followers. Upon receiving this Liebster Award, there are a few rules:

1. Copy and paste the award on your blog.

2. Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you.

3. Reveal your top picks for the award.

4. Have faith that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers.

So flattering. Now it is my turn to flatter the writers of the blogs I enjoy following. :)

Deliberations of a Domestic Diva - Abbey, a friend from several years ago back when she lived in TX. She now lives in ABQ with her husband and 2 a-dor-able kiddos. Her blog is well-worth stopping by. Her stories and thoughts always make me smile.

Zana's Ninis - Katie, my sister-in-law, who lives in Kansas with her husband (my husband's brother) their 3 children. My nieces and nephew are always a pleasure to read about but her amazing quilting talent is will also keep you coming back for updates and ideas.

The Volk's Wagon - Alzbeta, is Katie's sister who lives in Colorado with her Husband and little girl. A preemie, Anni's growth and strength will uplift your spirit. The love in this family is evident and you can't miss it! A photographer, Alzbeta's pictures will capture you (pun intended) just like her narrative of life.

These are my top picks. I have many friends whom I love to read about through their blogs. I look forward to reading about their lives, their thoughts, their courage, their hopes, their online diary.

Thanks for the nod, and I hope my fellow bloggers will carry on this little appreciation!

M.LEWIS  

I Smell Snow...Almost

Why do people hate winter? Hate cold? Hate snow? Seriously, how can you hate snow? How can you not love snow?

These are questions I have asked for years. So many people grumble and groan over cold, crisp weather and curse the presence of snow. Sure, they are mum over the hell that is summer. They don't mind the 110° heat, the blistering sunburns, the drenching sweat, the sky-high electricity bills, and crippling, damaging, long-term effects of droughts. That's all fine with them.
Well, it's not fine with me. I hate summer. I despise it. I hate everything I just listed and more.
I will take fall and winter all year long. I love it when the air turns cool and the winds pick up. I love it when the leaves turn beautiful colors and change the landscape of the earth. I love it when fall eases into winter. The leaves collect on the ground and the sky turns cold and sharp. I love it when we see the first snowflakes fall. Maybe it's because I have Lorelai, maybe it's the fact I refuse to let go of certain childhood pleasures, but either way, I can't get enough of it. How can you not smile at the prospect of snow?! It's magical.

I think my old pal, (original) Lorelai, can explain it the best. This pretty much sums up my feelings about snow and the cold-weather seasons. You all can be "Luke" about it...but you won't bring me down.

I welcome you winter, with open arms. Forget the grumps of the world...they don't know what they're missing!

M.LEWIS

Project Complete!

After a lot of work and creative patience, I have finished my advent calendar...in plenty of time none the less. :)

Once again, this is my grandmother's original advent calendar

This is my updated version

I used a cutting board, craft wood, sculpey, nails, paint, and varnish spray. For the particulars you can read here. I can't wait to hang it up and start counting down the days! I hope Lorelai will enjoy it as much as I have growing up. :)

M.LEWIS

Progression of the Advent

So previously I mentioned recreating a favorite Christmas memory of mine for Lorelai (and future children). Well I am here to update you all on my progress before December 1.

There are several steps to making the calendar.

This is the original. My grandmother made it for my mother and her brothers in 1976. They did not grow up with it like my siblings and I did. This is the memory I would like to make for my family as well.

The board is large, and is solid wood. The tree is a separate cut out of wood with craft texturing. The ornaments are all handmade, sculpted out of sculpey, then handpainted. Every piece is sprayed with a varnish spray for preservation. Small nails are nailed into the board to hold the ornaments. In this particular picture not all the pieces are there, and they are not in the right order...but you get the idea.

So far I found a large piece of wood I can use for the main board. My grandmother special ordered hers...mine is an over-sized cutting board. ;) She also special ordered the tree cut out...I got some craft wood for the tree. Cutting it out was the hard part. Bought a keyhole saw and did it all by hand. That was a work out. But I cut it out successfully! I then put the craft putty on it for that "piney" look.

It needs a second coat and then I will paint once it dries

A week or so ago I started on the ornaments. 25 of them, of course. I used many of the same ideas my grandmother made but I also made a few different to match our family style. I created a few each day out of sculpey and made them all in a week. Once baked, I spent the next several days painting each piece to my high expectations. They are not all exactly what I envisioned, but I am happy with them all.

Which is your favorite?

I sprayed them this morning, front and back, and they are all good to go. Now I will wait for the tree to dry, then I will paint the tree, glue it to my board, paint the board, add some trim to the board, spray the board, hammer in the nails, and install hanging hardware on the back. A lot done so far, but a lot to do. This is my progress thus far! I am getting excited to see it come together more. :) 25 more days until December 1st. (24 until LEL's 1st BIRTHDAY! ♥)

M.LEWIS

Boo-ti-ful Baby Skeleton

Ok, Halloween time!

It was a great first Halloween for Miss Lorelai.

She was a skeleton...the whole day! I purposely picked a non-fussy, easy-to-wear costume that she wouldn't be uncomfortable in. She looked adorable in it, of course. She got to play around in it and show it off not only to Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Hannah, Aunt Caroline, and Noni, but also to her Great Oma.

We had family over before trick-or-treating so they could peek at LEL's cuteness. I also put together some yummy, spooky snacks for feasting on. :)

She had a blast smiling and waving "hi" and "bye" to the neighbors when we went trick-or-treating. She also loved reached for all the pretty, shiny wrapped candy and placing it in her hello kitty bucket.

(Sorry, Blogger is having issues upload pictures right now. For all pictures visit: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.647039597247.2112323.194602998&type=3 )

M.LEWIS