Guest Blogging at Someday Crafts

Today I am guest blogging at one of my favorite blogs, Someday Crafts. I am sharing how to make these adorable wine glass candle lamps. 

Go check it out! 

Sleeping Angel Choir Boy

If you have been reading this blog for long, you know that Noah has a "pose" that he does that my Mom and I have nicknamed the "angel choir boy." (See post 1 and post 2.) 

Recently my BFF and family came to visit and spent the night. Noah was sleeping in our bed and I went in our room to talk to J and found Noah sleeping in the angel choir boy pose. Of course I had to run get my camera and snap a few shots. (And no, it didn't wake him up either!)

Linked to 5 Minutes for Special Needs

and 5 Minutes for Moms

Quote of the Week: Life is Like a Piano

"Life is like a piano - 

what you get out of it 

depends on how you play it."

- Unknown

Weekend Wonders: The One with Fall Wreaths

Earlier this week, I shared my cute little fall argyle wreath - with an owlie!

While I was looking for inspiration for my own wreath I saw lots of other cute fall wreaths out there and decided to highlight some of them in this week's Weekend Wonders. 

Fall Felt Wreath

I love the colors of this simple fall felt wreath created by Anne at Lady Anne's.

Fall Yarn Wreath

This yarn wreath made in fall colors at Indie Spotting is beautiful. 

Felt Fall Leaves Wreath

I love this simple wreath adorned with felt leaves (look at the stitching on some of them!) from Storehouse Crafts. 

Happy Fall Wreath

I love this classic burplap fall wreath from Story Crafting and the "happy fall" bunting just makes it cuter!

Fall Leaf Initial

Last but not least is this fall leaf initial from The Thrifty Abode. I love the uniqueness of it!

Five Minute Friday: Growing

It’s Friday – the day where I join other bloggers and take five short minutes to just write from the heart. Five Minute Friday is hosted by Gypsy Mama and this week’s prompt is growing.

I can't believe how much my "baby boy" is growing lately! It sounds so weird just calling him a baby because he is so far from it. In fact, next month he will celebrate his 15th birthday. It's different with his special needs though - in some ways he is a typical 14 year old but in other ways he isn't. 

Physically he is on the small side but boy is he growing. I was floored to find out at his Doctor appointment the other day that he is 5 foot 3. I'm only 5 foot 4! He doesn't seem that tall since he is always sitting. He is also 71 pounds! I typically think of myself as kind of a weak (physically) but I have started thinking a little bit differently. I'm lifting a 71 pound child multiple times a day; that definitely doesn't make me weak in my book. 

Not only is he growing physically and developmentally, but I'm growing as a person and a Mother. I am such a different Mom from the one I was when he was born nearly 15 years ago. 

I don't care how much he more grows, how much taller than me he gets, or how much heavier he will become - he will always be my baby boy. 

"I'll love him forever, 

I'll like him for always, 

as long as I'm living, 

my baby he'll be."

- Adapted from Love You Forever by Robert Munsch

Headband Organizer

Lately, I love headbands and am starting to acquire a few so I decided I needed a headband organizer to sit on my dresser instead of just shoving them in a drawer. I'm more likely to wear them if they are out where I can see them versus being in a drawer.

Here's what I came up with......

It was super easy to make and cost me nothing to make since I recycled and used leftovers from other projects and things I already had on hand.

To create one of your very own, you will need:

Some kind of round container (I used an empty bread crumb container. An empty oatmeal container would actually be better because it would be longer thus holding more headbands.)

Fabric

Coordinating Ribbon

Wooden Ball Knobs (found in the wood section at Hobby Lobby)

Paint

Scissors/Pinking Sheers

2 Rubberbands

Hot Glue Gun

Step 1

Paint the wood ball knobs the color of your choice and set aside to dry.

Step 2

Cut your fabric. The size of your fabric will depend on the size of the container you are using. You will want it to be big enough to wrap around your container lieing on its side and then you will want to leave an inch or two on each end. I left my ends on the long side originally just to be sure they were long enough and cut them shorter later.

Step 3

Lay your container on its side and tightly roll the fabric around the container. When you come to the end of the fabric, secure it with a couple of dabs of hot glue. (I actually used a piece of a sheet left over from another project so my fabric already had a seam, but you could always just fold it under if you don't have a seam. Although this will be the bottom of your project so it won't really matter too much.)

Step 4

Gather one side of the fabric and secure with a rubber band. Do the same thing to the other side. Fluff out your ends and determine if you want to cut them or not. I cut mine with the pinking shears hoping that would lessen the chance of fraying.

Step 5

Glue the ball knobs to the bottom of your headband organizer.

Step 6

Tie bows on each side covering up the rubber bands. 

And you are done! It should look something like this....

My favorite part? The little feet!

Then when you put your headbands on it, it will look something like this......

And here it is where it will live on my dresser next to my earring and necklace holder. It fits right in!

(Linking to the parties listed in my sidebar)

Noah's Doctor Appointment Recap

A few of you knew that Noah had a Doctor's appointment today with an orthopedic doctor about his feet so I thought I'd update you. This appointment was set up through the school and the Doctor saw multiple children while he was there so that the parents and physical therapists could all discuss the child with the Doctor. (This is not the first appointment we have had this way and I have come to love this format!)

We hadn't checked Noah's height in awhile so I was floored to find out he is 5 foot 3! I am only 5 foot 4ish! He just doesn't seem that tall since he is always sitting! He also ways 71 lbs. I'm lifting a 5 foot 3, 71 lb child on a daily basis! Holy smokes, people!

The Doctor said Noah's feet are pretty flexible but thought he would benefit from the type of AFO's (braces for his feet) that are made from casting. (They make a cast of each foot and then carefully cut it off and they use those to make the braces fit exactly to his foot.) The goal with the AFO's is that it will help Noah be able to at least stand with support while transferring which would be nice since he is getting so heavy and all.

As luck would have it (or good scheduling on the part of the PT dept) the casting guy was at the school too. So we had the casts done and picked out his new braces right then. The kids can choose a "tattoo" that goes on the back of their braces to make them more fun so I handed Noahie the sheet and pointed out a few ones he might like and even suggested the butterfly just to make him laugh. He was having a hard time choosing and then we found out that he could choose two different tattoos - one for each brace. The space shuttle was a close runner up but ultimately he (predictably) chose the tiger head and the tiger paw.

Then it came time to discuss his new wheelchair. For Noah this meant picking out a color. The seat will be black but the frame will be a color. I personally would have liked all black because it would go with everything and look nice in pictures but this is Noah's chair and he spends so much time in it so he needs to choose it and be happy with his choice. I thought he would choose the orange but he chose purple instead.

Getting new equipment is always just a tad bit exciting I think.

Fall Argyle Wreath with an Owlie

I was browsing Pinterest when I fell in love with this fall wreath. I knew I must create something similar and here is what I came up with.....

It really wasn't difficult and aside from the yarn and felt, I already had everything else so it was pretty inexpensive as well. Wrapping the wreath was the most time consuming part - it took about an hour to wrap the whole thing. Instead of telling you how to create the argyle part of the wreath, I'm just going to link you to this awesome tutorial; she has excellent step by step photos.  

The letters are just wooden letters I had in my stash from Hobby Lobby. I painted them an off white/natural wood looking color. 

I created my owl out of felt from this applique pattern. He does have wings, I just think they are a tad hard to see in the pics since they ended up right against the same colored diamonds. In hindsight, I should have positioned them against the gold diamonds. I used black buttons for the center of the owl's eyes. 

Love it! I love fall! 

Linking up to the parties listed in my sidebar
and 

The Best Birthday

This was probably the best birthday ever - I'm telling ya, they seem to get better as you get older! Ha! My hubby started the weekend off with birthday waffles, my BFF surprised me with a visit, my Noah gave me the best gift a Momma could ever receive, I got to craft and shop, I had dinner at one of my favorite restaurants with my parents, and got to spend time with them. My phone was blowing up all weekend with texts, phone calls, voice mails, and emails. I was spoiled with nice thoughtful gifts, cards, and a delicious owl cake. It was just a good weekend - the only thing that could have made it better was if my brother and Holly had been here!

Here's a little birthday collage.....

I am so very blessed!

Quote of the Week: The Gift

"Life is about the gift, not the package it comes in."
- Dennis Costea Jr.

The Best Birthday Gift Ever

Yesterday was my birthday and tonight my sweet Noah gave me the best birthday gift ever!

Let me set the scene for you - we were in my kitchen and my family is singing the standard "Happy Birthday" song to me while Noah is sitting in my lap to help me blow out the candles. All on his own, as they are singing, he starts "singing" Momma when it comes to the part where you'd say my name. (The same way we do when we sing You are My Sunshine/Momma.) He was SO proud of himself and kept signing "more" because he wanted to sing it over and over.

I waited until he was 14 to hear him sing Happy Birthday to me. This was already a great birthday (and I will share pictures after I catch my breath from this busy weekend!) but this precious gift put it over the top!

I made a little video of Noah and my Mom singing it together and had to share it right away......

Weekend Wonders: The One with Lots of Birthday Stuff

In honor of all the birthdays in September, this weekend's Weekend Wonders is full of fun, birthday things! 

Birthday Subway Art Printable

The girls at Eighteen Twenty Five share this adorable subway art printable. There are two different prints - one in a girly color scheme and another in a more boyish color scheme perfect for printing and framing at a birthday party or to resize for a homemade card. 

Birthday Balloon Wreath

Let everyone know there's a birthday to be celebrated at your house with this adorable birthday balloon wreath. The gals at How Does She share a tutorial on to make this fun wreath.

Birthday Banner

Every birthday celebration needs a banner! Check out this cute banner and tutorial by Katydid and Kid. I love those letters!

Birthday Countdown

My son loves to count things down so I know he'd love a birthday count down calendar similar to this cute one. Come Together Kids shows you how to make one of your very own.

Perpetual Birthday Calendar

This cute DIY perpetual birthday calendar shared by Nanny Goat will help you keep up to date with all the birthdays in your family so you won't miss them again.

Cupcakes in a Jar

I big puffy heart love these cupcakes in a jar by Running With Glitter.

Cupcake Wrappers

Judy in her Natural Habit shows us how to create these adorable cupcake wrappers - the perfect way to dress up any cupcake!

Miracle League Fall Season

Tonight was the first game of the Miracle League Fall 2011 Season! Noah was SO excited. He usually takes a nap on game days but he was too excited to take one today.

Over the summer, when Noah was watching major league baseball games on TV he became fascinated with their hats and would sign hat. The first season or two, Noah played Miracle League he had a hat but he would never wear it so I stopped ordering it but this year I decided to order it thinking he might wear it since he had seen the baseball players on TV wearing hats and I'm pleased to say that he kept his hat on (almost) the entire game! 

He and Granddad had a great time as always! I always feel so torn over whether or not to shoot still photos or video. I have one camera that does decent videos and another camera I shoot still shots with so I always bring both. And this time I tried shooting with both at the same time and as suspected the result wasn't the greatest, but it was very interesting to give it a try. 

I do have a couple of pics to share with you and a short video of both times Noah and Granddad batted!

Before the first game of every season, I take Noah's picture in front of this wall at Miracle Park. 

Same shot but with angel choir boy pose. 

First time batting during the game

On deck

Batting the second time during the game - first time

ever without a tee! 

Crossing over home plate

And the video - I apologize in advance for the more than usual shakiness. Remember a camera in each hand does not make for a steady video! 

Happy Birthday to my Momma!

Today is my Mom's birthday. I celebrated with her twice today - once at lunch with just us adults and then again tonight with Noah - both times with homemade cupcakes. 

Happy Birthday Momma Bear! 

P is for Paisley

During summer camp Noah seemed to really enjoy painting, so the other day we broke out the water colors and he painted a few pictures. His art is rather "abstract" since he doesn't have the best fine motor skills so he was pointing to one of the paintings and signing "dog" meaning Paisley. I thought he was trying to tell me that the painting was OF Paisley but then I realized he meant it was FOR Paisley. How sweet is that? 

So, he wanted to put it in his room, which is where Paisley's toys and doggie bed are and I came up with an idea that he loved. When his painting was dry, we turned it over and I traced a P on the back of it using a stencil. Then I cut out the P for him. I got a cheap frame and cut a purple (apparently purple is Paisley's favorite color) piece of cardstock to fit the frame then we glued the P in the middle of the cardstock and popped it in the frame. 

This was seriously so simple to do and would be cool to do for Grandparent gifts, teacher gifts, etc. You could cut out any type of shape or letter out of the painting. It took me less than five minutes but Noah thinks it's awesome and adores it because HE made it. 

And now it is hanging above Paisley's doggie bed and toy box in Noah's room. 

Updated on 9/14/11

We also made a birthday card for my Mom using one of Noah's other paintings but I couldn't share it before because we hadn't given it to her! Again, I just flipped the painting over and traced butterflies onto the back of the painting and then cut them out and adhered them to cardstock. Cute, easy, and meaningful! 

Linking up to the parties listed in my sidebar

The Moment We'll Never Forget

Ten years ago today, on a beautiful September morning I was in the last trimester of my pregnancy and on bed rest. I was listening to the radio as I did every morning. Close to nine, I remember hearing two of the DJs talking about a plane hitting the world trade center. I turned on the TV to see if they had more information. I saw Matt Lauer and Katie Couric talking about the plane crash, mentioning the bombing at the World Trade Center from the 90's but acting like this was a possible accident. As they were on the phone live with a witness, out of the corner of my eye I noticed a plane circle the towers and all of the sudden there was a ball of fire and smoke. At that moment, when the second plane hit, that's when it was blatantly obvious that this was not an accident.

I continued to stare at the Television for the rest of the day as I watched both towers fall live intermittently answering the phone, making a phone call, or going to the bathroom a gazillion times. I felt so far away from the people that were affected but watching the coverage made me feel closer. I couldn't tear myself away. I wanted to do something, but there wasn't much I could do. So I watched and I prayed and I cried and I prayed some more.

Growing up, I had often heard my Parents and Grandparents talk about where they were when JFK was assassinated. It was a moment that they would never ever forget. September 11th, 2001 was the big moment of my generation - it's the moment we will never forget where we were when he heard the news, who we were with, and how we felt. It's now written in history books but we will provide the personal connections to that moment for our children and grandchildren and so on.

We won't forget that moment. My thoughts are with all those affected by the events of September 11, 2001.


Linked to Remembering September 11th at 5 Minutes for Moms