July. Holy mess.

Not sure if anyone else has noticed or not, but it's officially July. Holy mess. I'm sure this is just another month for most people, but for me, it means that it's only 12 (TWELVE!!) days until the boys' first birthday. How has this happened already?! There were so many things I wanted to get done before their first birthday... For example, I wanted to have the boys' first year photo album close to finished. (That's going to be particularly difficult considering the fact that I haven't even STARTED on them yet.) It's baffling how fast 50 weeks have gone by. I can't even explain how stunning it is. It's like I've seen a unicorn dance across a rainbow to steal a Leprechaun's pot of gold. Ridiculous, I know, but it's still happening. 


Am I going to be able to get everything together before the big 1 party? We'll see... I need to order a cake, grocery shop for party food, send invitations, and 100 other things that I've been putting off because it just makes it all too real. Unfortunately, I've learned that time blazes past whether you're ready for it to or not, and I'm trying to enjoy the present rather than be sad that so much has already passed. Although, I would kill for a little time-in-a-bottle right now so I could savor these last few days of baby-hood a little bit longer before they become toddlers. 


And of course, a picture for your viewing pleasure...

L & Little C sporting their Old Navy big-boy polos!

He's a walker!!

Ohhhh goodness. L took his first steps on April 30 when he was only 9 months old, and he's done nothing but improve on those first uncertain, wobbly efforts since then. He's all over the place now, and it's getting difficult to keep up. I think we've officially entered toddler-hood :|

The essence of Bittersweet

The word "bittersweet" was invented by a mother. She looked at her children and thought "my babies are growing up." I know this because it happened to me. L keeps taking steps, and Little C has started standing unassisted. It's incredibly sad and so exciting. I've never felt so torn about anything in my life. 

Yesterday, we were playing in the floor and my step-mom said "do you see him??" which prompted me to move so I could. Much to my dismay, I looked and saw L STANDING on the handle of our recliner. STANDING. He held the armrest for leverage and climbed up until he was standing on the handle and his shoulders were even with the armrest. I was stunned. And of course, mother-of-the-year that I am, I grabbed the camera to catch a picture before I got him down. Can't lose moments like that ;)  


On the way home from church this week, the boys were in the middle of an intense jabbering discussion peppered with high-pitched squeals. I was laughing to myself when it became almost silent in the back seat. I turned back to look, and this is what I saw:

Precious doesn't even begin to cover it. I think I actually felt my heart start melting. They rarely have "time" to be sweet and cuddly lately - there are 500 things they would rather do instead. 

When did my sweet, snuggly infants turn into too-busy-to-be-held almost-toddlers??  And why wasn't there more of a transition stage? I swear just last week they still wanted to be held and loved on, and now, it's a wrestling match just to get to kiss them on their sweet little heads. I feel like I've missed so much of their first 10 months even though I've seen them every day since they were born. Maybe I'm just sentimental today, or maybe I'm finally realizing that their first birthday is coming like a freight-train and I'm powerless to slow it down. 

I guess what I'm trying to say is this: I miss my tiny, 5lb infants and the precious baby snuggles so much, but I wouldn't trade what we have now for anything in the world. It's so very sad to know they've already changed so much yet so exciting to watch them grow and learn. Bittersweet in the truest sense of the word. 

Sew So Fab

Alright.. remember that post a few weeks ago about accepting money from strangers? Well, you guys didn't exactly come through for me, so we proceeded with the small business plan and Sew So Fab was born. We specialize in baby accessories including car seat canopies, crinkle tagalongs, and nursing covers. We have several more items in our inventory, but you get the idea.

I've been working on marketing ideas, but so far I've only had time to create a page on Facebook. I'll get better things in the works soon, but until then, get over there and "like" us. You know your curiosity is killing you. Get over there. Do it. Now.

I'm really hoping this goes well and is as lucrative as I'm expecting. It feels like a good idea, and I have confidence that it could be very successful. It's just a matter of getting publicity and spreading the word that we're open and building a customer base. It sounds so simple when put like that. Unfortunately, it is much easier said than done. If anyone has any great marketing tips (or any other constructive criticism for that matter), I'd love to hear them!

Ryan Gosling

Because my 24-year-old best friend just won her battle with colon cancer. She's my newest hero.

Little C is CRAWLING!!

Little C is officially a CRAWLER!! He tried for weeks and had multiple bruises and one bloody nose to show for his efforts before finally having his first taste of success.

I can't believe my house is no longer home to any immobile babies. Fairly certain they'll be picking out their first vehicles next month. I do have to say though, that as heartbreaking as it is to watch my tiny infants morphing into toddlers, it's probably the sweetest thing in the world when they crawl to me to be held. I'm so very smitten.

Quit your day job??

I'm starting a small business. Actually, small business might be a little ambitious. I'm going to be making baby-related clothes and other accessories for the most part, but I'm also going to have items that I've made as crafts in the past. i.e. padded camera strap covers. I would LOVE to quit my day job and be a stay-at-home-mom, but I don't think we could afford it unless I develop some kind of lucrative hobby. That being said, our top contenders are:


1. Photography

2. Selling baby crap

3. Accepting money from strangers.


While #1 would likely be the most fun, I just don't have the confidence to do it yet. I LOVE to take pictures and have done a couple different shoots for fun, but it's crazy expensive and I would need a couple more items in my photog bag and more pics in my portfolio before being comfortable charging people for it.

Selling baby crap is probably the wisest choice here. Let's face it - Moms are suckers and can't help but buy all of the cutesy, precious baby things they come across. Trust me. I'm guilty of it too. Now, here's the idea - Moms are going to be making these purchases anyway, so I'm going to sell my unique items cheaper than where similar things can be bought other places. They can buy from me, save a little money, make me some money... Everybody wins.

Obviously, option #3 is my preference. I really want to give this idea the consideration it deserves, so if you've got a PayPal account or a credit card, feel free to contact me to help put my kids through college. They will appreciate not having to attend Mom's Makeshift University in 17.5 years (we're still waiting on our accreditation; it seems to be taking longer than expected).

I believe you guys can make it happen; however, I'm not exactly putting all my eggs in the #3 basket, so the plan for now is to give #2 a go and let's just see where we land.

I've got the ball rolling, but I'm not comfortable going all out with PR until I'm ready to actually make some sales and fill orders. I don't want my first few customers to get poor service (or worse, subpar items) because I jumped the gun. I'm waiting until things are 100% ready before I dive in head-first. I want customers to be completely satisfied, and I just don't think I'm in a place where that can happen just yet. I think people would be about 80% satisfied, and well, that's not good enough. I'll be getting back to you on this though; don't worry about that!


In other news, Little C is trying to crawl. If he figures it out, I'm screwed.