Jack-o-lantern!

We carved a Jack-o-lantern last night! We had lots of fun with it! I thought it was especially neat because the pumpkin we used came out of Grampa's (my dad) garden! He gave it to us when we were there a few weeks ago, and we've kept it in our fridge since. :)

Diggin out the goo - "ewwww!"



Takin' it outside

Wow - how pretty!

Pregnancy brings crazy dreams!

I had a really weird dream last night. I think it's because the baby was moving so much, my subconscious created something out of it. I don't know. But, for some reason I was asked to participate in a photo shoot (I think that part was from watching "America's Next Top Model" last night). It was taking place at Disneyland in front of the "It's a Small World" clock tower. (Why, I don't know!)
But, they wanted to have the baby in the picture. So, no problem, she just some how wriggled her way out. (That's from all the crazy moving around, I'm sure!) But, I was able to hold my beautiful baby! And she really was beautiful! I got a good look at her and everything. She had a full head of dark, brown hair, and big blue eyes! *sigh* I wonder if that's what she'll really look like. It will be fun to see!
Anyway, in the dream the baby and I were wrapped in nothing but a white sheet for the pictures. Not something I would normally do in real life, but whatever. Then, when it was over, she went back into my belly (weird and kinda gross, I know! But, in the dream it seemed perfectly normal), and I had to leave in, what else... a boat!
Crazy.
I am really starting to FEEL pregnant now. I think I am officially in the 3rd trimester, and starting to get uncomfortable. I'm getting worn out easily. I have no desire to clean my house (even though I need to. BADLY). In fact... my kids are napping right now. I might go take a nap too!

Bloggy Giveaways!

I just found out that the Bloggy Giveaways are going on again! I did this back in January and had a lot of fun with it! So, I thought I'd do it again.
I'm going to give a FREE Zadyball to the winner of my giveaway!

Here's what you need to do to enter:

1. Go to my website and choose your favorite
   
2. Leave a comment here and tell me which one you like best
   
3. Let me know if you would like your prize to be for a boy, girl, or neutral
   
4. Be sure I can contact you! If you email address isn't in your profile, please leave it in the comment!
   
5. HAVE FUN!

Contest ends Saturday, Nov 1. I will select a winner randomly and will notify them via email. The Zadyball selected as a favorite will not necessarily be the one the winner receives.

The Kindness of Strangers

Have I ever mentioned how much I LOVE Etsy? I know that anyone who reads my blog regularly probably gets sick of hearing about it, but it really is a FANTASTIC place, full of AMAZING people!

One of those wonderfully amazing people that I've "met" on Etsy is Toni of TweedleBee. She is a fellow member of EtsyBaby, and we've "known" each for nearly a year. Recently, we were chatting in one of the Etsy chat rooms, and I commented how much I love her quilts. Well, she said that she wanted to send one to me for the baby! I was completely blown away! Here quilts are truly works of art, and are absolutely beautiful! That she would be willing to send one to me, basically a total stranger, just goes to show what a phenomenal person she really is!

Here is a picture of the quilt that she sent me. It doesn't even come close to showing how beautiful it is. The detail is outstanding, and I feel so lucky and very, very blessed to have it in my possession. I was seriously in tears when I opened it - and not just from the pregnancy hormones!


Please check out Toni's shop - her work is incredible!

Craft Fair

I have my first craft fair of the holiday season coming up this Saturday! I'm pretty excited about it. It is at Hissyfits in Phoenix. This was actually the location of the very first fair that I did, and I had so much fun with it that I'm thrilled to be going back!

I've been trying to build up my inventory to the point that I feel like I'm ready... I'm getting there, I hope!

Here's the flyer about the fair. It sounds like they are expecting a great turn out! It should be lots of fun!

The Etsy Baby Shower

A couple times a year, there is a "baby shower" on Etsy for all the expecting moms. Sellers offer to donate gifts, and the moms are lucky enough to get them! I've participated as a giver the last few times, and this time, I got to be one of the moms!

Here's the forum thread about it, and an article that was on Etsy's blog - the Storque.

I've already received two of my gifts. They are SO wonderful that I thought I would share them here!

First, I received these adorable little aprons from Lizzypops. They are like bibs, but BETTER because they cover the baby up more! And they are just oh so cute! I can't wait to use them!


Next, I got one of these beautiful changing mats from Made By Kate. It is really big, and really soft! It will making changing diapers *almost* enjoyable!


Look here to see all the items that were donated (including mine).

And please check out Lizzypops and Made By Kate, they are awesomely, wonderful people with fantastic shops!

Another Pregnancy Update

I am starting to worry about what this baby will be like once she makes her entrance into the world. It seems like she is moving ALL THE TIME! I don't think either of my other kids moved this much when I was pregnant with them. It is starting to get difficult to get any rest!

Here's my belly at 25 weeks pregnant:


I had an umm... unusual compliment yesterday. I went to the chiropractor (anyone who is in Phoenix - Dr. Neilson is AWESOME!). After my adjustment, he took me into another room to have heat and electrodes put on my neck (very nice!) I thought it was clear that I am pregnant - the doctor said something about it being okay for my to lay on my belly for another month or so, and another woman in the room said something about it too... Plus, I think I look pregnant.
Anyway, there were a couple of teenage girls there with their mother, and they were leaving as I came in. While the nurse/helper was getting me set up, she said "So, are you in high school too?"
I had to laugh out loud! I told her it has been several years since I've been in high school, but thank you very much for the compliment.
After I thought about it though, I had to wonder what she thought when I came in... if she thought I was in high school.... and pregnant? hm....
I guess I'll just take the compliment and be happy. But still... very odd!

Home Again

After about 3200 total miles, we finally made it home yesterday! We were SO tired of being in the car!
We had a really good time, and I'm very glad we went. But, I don't think we will be making that trip again for quite some time.

Here are some fun pictures from the trip:

Kids at the funeral - all the cousins were having a really good time playing together! I wanted to get a picture of them all sitting together, but they wouldn't slow down long enough! This was the best I could get.

My sister's son, Tate; Zander; my brother's daughter, Dawsey; Ady; my cousin's daughter, Sophie


Boys: my sister's son, Tate; my cousin, Matt; Zander; my sister's son, Canton

Here I am with my sister. People kept calling me her and vice versa. I don't think we look that much alike, but whatever. I guess if you haven't seen us in like 6 years, you might get us confused.



Right after the funeral, we left and drove to Oregon to visit Brandon's grandparents. I am glad that we were able to go and spend time with them. I also was able to go through the stacks of genealogy information that they have. SO awesome!! I learned A LOT about the family that I didn't know before!


After we spent a day with them, we went BACK to Preston and spent a couple days with my family. My brother's kids came over to Grandma and Grampa's house on Monday and the kids played ALL day long! Here they are after a fun day together.


The only girl cousins in the family - Ady and Dawsey

An unplanned trip

In case anyone has been wondering where I've been for the last few days...

Wednesday night, I recieved a phone call from my dad. He was calling to let me know that my sweet grandmother had passed away. She was 98 years old, and had been on hospice for a few weeks, so it was not unexpected, but still a little sad.
They decided to have the funeral on Friday, so we got packed and left first thing Thursday morning to drive the 14 hours to Preston, Idaho. It was a LONG day, but we survived. The funeral was very nice, and I'm very glad we came.

Since we had already come that far, we decided to continue on to Hermiston, OR to visit with Brandon's grandfather. (8 more hours in the car) He had a '48 Indian motorcycle that he wanted Brandon to have, we just needed to pick it up. (I'm sure that means something to someone - I guess that is a really cool bike?) Anyway, we spent a day there and enjoyed visiting with them.
Then we came BACK to Preston so that we could spend a little more time with my family, and be out of the car for a day or two, before we head back home.
I had NO time whatsoever to look at a computer until Sunday night.

The kids are now having lots of fun playing with their cousins. I'm glad that we were able to make the trip, even though it wasn't exactly planned for.

It's been a whole year!

I can't believe it! It has been an entire year as of TODAY since I started selling Zadyball online.
To celebrate - I'm having a little sale in my Etsy Shop.
15% off the entire order (before shipping)! Just include "B-day" in notes to seller.

Here's just a few of the people that have made this year so great!

And here's a few of the wonderful comments I've received over the past year:

"This is a great ball! I love the pattern & the irresistible little knots!"

"ADORABLE! I gave one as a gift, and it was a hit! The baby's first toy she actually "played" with!"

"What a precious stuffed toy, perfect for the baby in your life. It is uber-soft, and incredibly well constructed. Well worth it."

"OMgosh my kids love this ball, they've already spent hours playing with it fresh out of the box."

"This is PERFECT for baby's first toy! It's perfectly soft for little baby hands and easy to grip and teethe on."

"My daughter LOVES her new Zadyball! She has not put it down since we opened the package. She is even asleep with it right now."

"I LOVE THIS!!! We got it yesterday and my son hasn't put it down! He loves playing with it!"

"So CUTE! My son grabbed on to the Zadyball, got this huge smile on his face, and hasn't let go since. He loves it! "

" I LOVE my zadyball! What a wonderful and creative invention. Every baby should have a Zadyball."

"I got this today while my son was crying, and he grabbed it and rubbed it on his face and smiled. Yay!! Thank you, it is cute and he likes it. "

"This is the best toy EVER and my baby LOVES it! SO many fun textures and sounds, and she just loves sucking and holding the little string things."

"I just love this toy! My daughter has fun chewing throwing and generally playing with her new Zadyball!"

"I'm really excited about this little zadyball. My 2 month old is to small to grasp it on his own just yet, but LOVES to just stare at it as I slowly spin it above him. When he does get the whole grasping thing down, I imagine this will be in his hands all the time. And I love the size- fits perfectly into a small diaper bag to take along where ever we need to go."

"The monster Zadyball you created for my three year old son has quickly become my new little guys best friend.... and it's too cute to watch Mason play with his baby brother with it. It's the perfect toy for them to play with together, and they have so much fun with it."


Thank you for making this year fantastic!