CLMac

Sunday Afternoon...

2011-12-04T19:10:00.001-08:00

Just some fun shots of our park playdate this afternoon...

We had a good time with you ladies and baby Micah.

Park Independence

2011-11-20T14:21:00.000-08:00

It's fun to see how much Payton has developed by going to the park. Today for example we went and she could walk up the steps alone and go down the slides without needing a catcher. It's sad that she's growing so fast but it's a fun adventure all the same.

The stairs are such a big feat for Payton!

Oh and she found her inner drummer today too :) Girl has some rhythm thankfully.

Thankful For: Her Little Hands

2011-11-15T06:27:00.000-08:00

Payton has been waking up almost every night this past week, and the only remedy has been for her to crawl in bed with me and a glass of water. It's tiring, she wakes up at a different time each night, 5am, 2:30am and last night was before I even fell asleep. So I go pick her up, her blanket and Minnie in tow, to comfort her and poor little one was all sorts of congested. I tell her we're going to go get her some medicine and some water and she replies 'okay.' She's never responded like that, I love how her vocabulary is changing into conversational and using it in context. But what was even better was her tone in the reply. The sound of trust and comfort that she was with me and everything was going to be ok, she was going to feel better. We went and got her a little medicine to help her nose and water and proped her up in my bed and we snuggled and chatted. Yes, I chat with my two year old. She finally got settled in and comfy and I asked her if she wanted to hold my hand and we did just that. She held my hand till she fell asleep. Palm to palm and her fingers are just long enough to reach to the other side of my hand. What a difference to just wrapping it around one of my fingers what seems like not too long ago. The same hand she uses to hold mine when she's walking up steps or stairs and squeezes with all her little strength trusting I'm there to help her over those obstacles. Being a mom is tough, being a single mom is even more tough at times, but I wouldn't trade anything for having that little hand to hold when she needs.

A New Top

2011-10-31T10:13:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to share a fun little top I made for Payton a little while ago...

Just a simple long sleeve with an exposed zipper in the back. Still deciding if I like the style but not too shabby.

She Painted Her Nails Red

2011-10-30T16:51:00.000-07:00

I painted Payton's nails for the first time today. I've been wanting to for some time now but nervous if she would hold still enough etc. Well, yesterday I was cleaning out my cosmetic stuff and was testing a polish and Payton walks up to me with her hand out ready to get hers painted. I about died laughing. It was so cute. And she was in her tutu and dress up to boot. :) So, anyways I decided to go for it today and see how she reacted.

Oh yea, I still have my Caboodle from the 90's... it's vintage now right?

She couldn't wait to open it and dig through the goodies.

Maybe she wants a harmonica for Christmas?

She picked out the red over multiple shades of pink.

She inherited someone's (uhem, mother) crazy toes so that was fun trying to work around that and explain to Payton to hold still. But she did really well

She loved her 'pretties'

After the tosies she convinced me to do her fingers too.

How can you say no to that?

I'm not the greatest nail painter but I'm practicing now, along with hair-do's for Miss Payton. We had a fun little beauty day. I love doing girlie things with her. :)

Baking with Payton

2011-10-29T14:39:00.000-07:00

So you saw that we had homemade pumpkin bread for our Alice tea party, well, Payton helped make it last weekend. :)

Yes, she was still in her nightie. Hey, it was before lunch time. Yes, I made the nightie. And no, I did not pick out the boots to go with them. That was all her.

Needless to say it was some yummy pumpkin bread.

Oh yea, she LOVES her camera now.

P & T Photos...

2011-10-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

I was backing up my photos and realized I didn't share these from our trip to California. There's quite a few but they're so cute of Payton and Trent!

Oh yea and Diesel too.

I love, love, love this one!

Payton is 36" tall here, just giving you perspective on how big Diesel is :)

Payton never hides how she feels...

Who can resist Trent's lips? Muah!

Just veggin' out.

This was Payton's birthday outfit. I made a circle skirt with liner and just added tulle to the liner. Of course with matching belt and hair bow. She squealed when she saw it, so worth it!

Halloween: Alice

2011-10-27T13:38:00.000-07:00

So I finally decided Payton was going to be Alice this year. There were several runner ups though. I started out with a Simplicity pattern and we didn't get a long... at all. So I went through my patterns again and went with the pattern I used for Payton's Easter dress and made some modifications. I'm pretty pleased with the result.

I added a secondary skirt underneath, the apron is sewn into the waistband and the pocket.

I did a reverse applique on the pocket, first time. So easy!

We had a little outdoor tea party with homemade pumpkin bread. Yum.

I'm really hoping it fits next time we go to Disneyland... bonus!

Happy Halloween...

Pattern Review: Olivia Pea Coat

2011-10-20T12:00:00.000-07:00

Okay final pattern review for the Olivia Pea Coat from Peek a Boo Pattern Shop. I was really nervous about making a jacket, but it actually wasn't too bad. The annoying part was hand sewing the buttons on but that was my choice of buttons. :p

Sleeves were a little long but not too shabby huh?

Pattern Review: Sea Breeze Dress

2011-10-19T17:18:00.000-07:00

This is actually the first pattern I tested for Amy at the Peek a Boo Pattern Shop and used in the family photos back in Cali. Even though you've already seen the dress, I mostly just wanted to share from the photoshoot before we went on our trip.

She's quacking at the ducks to get them in position for this one:

Don't mind the droopy bow. I need to move the belt loops up and over a little... or maybe droopy bows will just be cool one day :)

But, I really enjoyed sewing this dress. It was pretty easy and really versatile depending on the fabric and how you tie the bow.

Now that you've viewed some of Payton's expressions, lets view her strut. Oh yea, she struts.

The casual strut

The excited strut

I think this one is the best, the determined strut... Another review tomorrow. Ciao

Payton's New Kicks

2011-10-16T17:56:00.000-07:00

So one of my therapists gave me some new shoes. Not those...

These. My ankles aren't straight so I wear these sometimes to help. I don't mind them too much, just glad they're pink.

They make fun sound when I'm on the floor, but they're slippery so mom doesn't let me wear them a lot with out regular shoes.

Thankfully my Gram got me my Chucks to wear with them. They hide the braces pretty well.

I can still play and climb like normal just a little weird.

They're pretty cool though. Till next time. Love, Payton

Family Portraits Take 2

2011-10-14T18:11:00.000-07:00

While we were in California (yes we're STILL recapping :) I tried again at taking some shots of all four grandkids again, at once. Remember last time? Ok so I didn't resort to photoshopping them all into one shot. They're not too shabby, considering two 7 year olds, a 1 and 2 year old were the subjects. :)

Denice came to help wrangle all the kids, and back up camera.

The boys...

Payton and her buddy Chase. She LOVES him... Can't you tell :)

My dad become a regular assistant of mine while I was home. :) Hello Kitty (aka 'hello meow) belongs to Miss P, not my dad. (Just a disclaimer :)

Ok, so what's so bad?... Ha!

Payton's first big knee scrape. From the parking lot before we even got to the park. Then shortly after decided to sit in that big puddle right behind her :/

I think this is my favorite photo of the set. It just shows each of their personalities and stages so well... :)

Chase and Connor were bribing the babes with goldfish to look at the camera. They knew better.

So all in all not too bad... each time is a learning experience and story.

Sleeping Beauty

2011-10-01T08:00:00.000-07:00

While we were staying with my brother, Payton was taking a nap and she was so cute :) Anyways, I couldn't help myself.

She always sleeps with her baby doll, Minnie Mouse and glow worm... She kicked off her blanket already, it was a little toasty...

Just lovely... I'll miss these moments one day.

Adventures: Balboa Park

2011-09-30T09:00:00.000-07:00

We got to go to Cali to see family at the last minute which was really nice. It was either that or try to hold down the fort for Hurricane Irene. Um, I'll go to Cali thank you! So anyways, (everything was okay when we got back) we spent the first few days in San Diego and got to go to Balboa Park. We did a lot of strolling around and just enjoying the day but found a fountain that the Payton and Trent enjoyed.

Payton liked modeling...

And Trent wanted to go for a swim...

Gram with two of her grandbabies. Mom had to hold Trent's leg because he kept dunking his foot in the water. His shoe was soaked!

She looks miserable but she's really just people watching, she wasn't tortured. Promise.

We found the playground there and they went down the slide together :)

This shot and the next two were by my cousin, she took over my camera from me :)

We had a great time at Balboa and can't wait to take Miss P to the museums there!

Pattern Review: Eveyln Dress

2011-09-29T08:44:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure of testing a couple patterns for Amy at Naptime Crafters and Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop so I'm finally posting them! Here is the Eveyln Dress.

I took her up to a little mountain-ish town by my parents' house (yes I'm THAT far behind, I got back from vacation three weeks ago) and they have a candy shop. So, she got a chocolate covered marshmellow, on a stick. She was telling her Popeye thank you in sign language right after he gave it to her. He was my photo helper that day :)

"Nom Nom"

The dress was fun to make. The only part I didn't like was making the bias tape. We don't get along right now. But other than that part it was fairly simply and I LOVE the corduroy. Until next time...

Um... Hello?

2011-09-22T09:45:00.000-07:00

Dear Mr. Blog,

I know it's been some time but know you have not been forgotten. Slightly neglected, maybe, but not forgotten. Miss P and I have been very busy and have plenty of adventures to share with you, even a last minute extended vaca included. I also have some fun changes coming your way :) Bear with me just another day or so and I'll start filling you in.

And a picture for fun... don't worry, there's a story that goes with this one too.

We'll be talking soon... Pinky promise.

xoxo,

Cassandra & Miss P

I'm Guest Blogging... Whoohoo!

2011-07-26T05:04:00.000-07:00

Today I'm guest blogging over at Me Sew Crazy. It's my first tutorial, for the Mini Maxi Dress I made a couple weeks ago. Jessica is so nice and has some amazing tutorials. Go check it out!!!!

Cowl Scarf

2011-07-24T12:01:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! I just wanted to share a quick little project I whipped up last night. A cowl scarf, tutorial by Lil Blue Boo. This last week I shortened a dress for a friend that she wore to prom this year and I can't just throw out perfectly good fabric! So thus the matching scarf! Payton is so kindly modeling for me :)

She's got the strut...

It's an adult size scarf but P loved it. I think I'll be making another, but I will probably size it down a smidge...

Other news: I am guest blogging on Tuesday over at Me Sew Crazy. My first tutorial, I'm so excited!!

A Mini Maxi Dress

2011-07-03T12:11:00.000-07:00

I am SO excited to share this! It's my first 'original' dress for Payton. I got this skirt off the clearance at Target last week because I liked the fabric and figured I would try and turn it into something for P. From this:

To this:

It came together fairly quickly once I figured out what I wanted. I cut off the elastic waistband and folded the skirt in half and trimmed the edges to fit. The leftover edges created the straps. :)

I added the blue strap covers because the straps were pretty wide. They're not sewn on so they can be adjusted.

A little elastic in the top and bottom of the blue piece... I really didn't sew a lot of sewing on it. Used the original hem :) So amazing!

The best thing, P loves the dress too! How do I know? She let me put it on her for 3 fittings and a photo session... :)

Shhh...

2011-07-02T13:03:00.000-07:00

Is a word Payton doesn't quite know yet. Especially in a library. I learned that the hard way the other day. I took Payton to get her first library card! She LOVES her books, so I figured it was time. Lets just say she got REALLY excited and let the whole place know :)

She drew, and played...

Starred at rows of books in amazement...

And made funny faces at the monkeys in her book. She had a good time, now just to teach her 'indoor voice'

Off to find more...

Summer So Far...

2011-06-28T18:24:00.000-07:00

It's me, Payton again and I wanted to share with everyone my summer so far...

I LOVE to play 'ouside' so mommy got me a pink bouncy ball... It's so much fun!

We went to the zoo again the other day for a birthday party. Mom thought since they had these water fountain things (water shooting from the ground) I would want to play hence the swim suit.

But I wanted to play with the ducks. I kept calling to them in 'quack' but they didn't want to play :(

My first popsicle! It was yummy!!

I was inspecting findings in my backyard...

Really mom? You know I hate getting dirt on my feet!

Till the next adventure.... xoxo, Payton

Vaca Recap (finally)

2011-06-19T19:18:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, I took over the blog from mommy tonight to tell everyone about our trip. It was a lot of fun! It was pretty eventful. We started out by surprising our cousin for her 15th birthday. Apparently that means she's getting old because mom said she used to be her little cousin now she's not. I haven't gone to school yet but I'm starting to figure things out.

Then, I got my first haircut by Miss Pammy. I sat with my Gram while Pam cut that really long random curl on top of my head. The one that was like WAY longer than the rest. And she trimmed up the bangs.

See, so much better.

Even Popeye came to watch. (I don't like the name Grandpa, Popeye fits him so much better)

Here is my certificate mommy designed for my scrapbook.

We went to see my Auntie Christi again and we got to go play at the lake. I didn't mind the water, if she was holding me. :) It was a fun afternoon though. Thank you Auntie Christi.

'Baby burrito' Seriously though, how do people sleep on these weird chairs? I could not do it!

Me with my Auntie, aren't we cool?

For some reason this was a very important time in my life. First time on a sand volleyball court and learning to spike. Something about the start of my career, whatever that is.

And of course, filled with LOTS of playtime.

Peace out Cali, till next time. Love, Payton

No Crop & Histograms

2011-06-18T09:02:00.000-07:00

Well hello! It's been longer than normal, was on a nice little vaca in Cali for a few weeks. I should be able to recap tomorrow. I have to transfer photos I edited on my mom's computer to mine (from CA to VA) thank you iChat and screen share :) Going through the photos from vacation has taken WAY too long. Photography is an art, but like any art there is a technique to it. I've been working on getting more creative in the shot but post production is killing me. I'm not trying to go all pro or anything but I want nice photos, I have a really great camera and I need to figure the darn thing out!

Well, the other day my craft blog addiction came in handy, one of them led me to Digital-photography-school.com :) I've learned a lot so far, now to practice. This morning Payton and I went to our usual park and tinkered around. Today I shot with using the histogram graph and working on 'filling the frame'. The photos I'm posting I haven't cropped. (Okay, a couple were slightly trimmed but just a teeny bit and not the whole shot) But in the past I have cropped all my images proportionately. Saved a lot of time. I think using the histogram really helped as well in the exposures :)

Anyhoo, here we go:

P's 'look':

Sunglasses- Target

Minnie Shirt- Target (from her Popeye)

Shorts- Gap

Shoes- Toms (from her Gram)

Facial Expression- From her mama :)

She wanted to sit up there I promise it wasn't torture for her.

She thought that by sitting on the bottom of the slide in protest, would make me let her go down it. She went down the kiddie ones. Just not the ones she would have needed a harness.

Her trying to run :)

Let me explain this thing: They have normal swings at this park, but she wanted to ride this one. I call it preparation for Disneyland :)

Stay tuned for more photo techniques :)

Rainy Day

2011-05-15T17:24:00.000-07:00

Today was one of those gloomy rainy spring days and I had a little photo idea I wanted to try out with P. It didn't turn out quite like I had imagined it going but, when does it?

This was while I was setting up and checking lighting.

She wasn't always in align with the backdrop, and by the time we got around to taking the photos the sun was halfway down already, but we tried.

I think she's telling me she's bored?

She was pooped out apparently...

Happy Mommies Day!!

2011-05-08T19:30:00.000-07:00

Today was a nice relaxing day with my munchkin. Yesterday the flowers she ordered me came and they were so beautiful :) I posted a little while back about mommy and me photos and today I wanted to try out the timer on my camera. It works, however I didn't get any really good shots of the two of us with it. I'll have to stick with the old fashion holding the camera out in front of us. Anyhoo, here's our 2011 Mother's day photos (I'm posting quite a few, consider yourself warned):

My self portrait skills are improving if I do say so myself :) Especially some of the ones from high school. (Some of you know what I'm talking about)

I just can't get over her scrunchy nose.

She LOVES dress up!! This is only part of it.

Have to make her feet feel pretty too!

Happy mommies day to every lady out there!

Payton is WALKING!!!!

2011-05-07T12:49:00.000-07:00

Yes, that is right, she has finally decided to walk. We all have been waiting for this for so long. I couldn't be more proud of her. She's been taking a couple steps here and there for some time now but yesterday she decided to go full on. Today we went to the park to test out her new skills and get some video for proof. She absolutely LOVED her new found freedom at the park... see:

She's saying "I'm free!!" Okay, probably not but it's possible.

See, proof she can walk! I didn't say well, she's still a little robotic like.

Isn't it a beautiful sight :)

Best Mother's day present ever!!! (besides the munchkin herself)

Payton's Postponed Easter

2011-04-30T19:42:00.000-07:00

On Easter we went to church and had lunch with friends as planned, but Payton ended up getting her first fever and cut our activities short. We're blessed we've come this far with out one and she got through it pretty quickly too. So because of that, obviously there are no Easter photos, especially of her dress I made. So we made up for it today. We spent the afternoon at the park enjoying the sunshine. But first, the outfit:

I used a Heidi and Finn pattern for the dress, it's one of my favorite pattern shops! The bloomers was from another little pattern from my stash and why the heart on the booty? Why not, it's cute. And I just winged the hair bow and glued to a clippy :)

I had NO idea how much a $2 thing of bubbles could entertain Payton. She loved trying to blow bubbles. And just thought putting the wand in and out of the bottle was amazing.

Yes this is her WALKING towards me. It was only a few steps but I'll still take it. She even took two steps, turned and took a couple more! Woo hoo. We're getting technical now :)

Happy (really late) Easter everyone!!

Zoo Review

2011-04-17T19:22:00.000-07:00

Isn't the title fab? I came up with it myself :) Anyhoo, Payton and I spent a nice relaxing day at the zoo today. I have to say I've been spoiled with the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park. Not that this zoo is bad or anything, San Diego's animals seem a little more lively. Payton seemed to enjoy herself though. She was not fond of any of the farm type animals. Especially this guy, couldn't get past him fast enough.

She was okay with most of the other animals. She wanted to love the bears, see...

Yep, that's her trying to kiss the 'teddy' bears.

Payton liked the giraffe when it came over to visit. Oh and of course the 'kikis' (lions and tigers for those who don't speak Payton)

What is Payton wearing you ask? Well, she's starting into her ballerina phase (highly influenced by muah) so her ballet tee with another circle skirt I made similar to her Christmas one...

Oh and to accessorize is her new toddler backpack I made (I've been on a sewing roll)

Here's some close ups of it. I used a pattern from Made by Rae

The pattern was easy to follow and there are so many different ways you can customize it. I lined it just for stability and for a more finished look.

I was actually surprised Payton liked to wear it, she wears it around the house. I think I created an accessory monster. Oh well :)

I have to leave you with this photo. I was having to hold P up because she was too short on her own, while trying to stay in my little spot... Isn't she a cute little monkey?

P's Pink Shades

2011-04-05T19:09:00.000-07:00

Now that spring has (somewhat) arrived, we've been heading to the park as much as possible. Payton loves going, we do a lap around the playground to practice her walking and her greeting skills. She says hi to just about every person we pass. Even to the pups, but in their language of 'oof'. Of course we don't go without Rosie :)

My little ham

Of course some swinging time

Isn't she so cool in her shades, standing like it's no big deal? :)

Having a staring contest with her friend hehe :)

Later gators!

Mommy and Me Pics

2011-04-03T20:37:00.000-07:00

A few days ago while I was reading my blog roll I ran across this post about moms not getting in the shot with your kiddos. I have thousands (not an exaggeration) of photos of Payton, and only a handful have me in them, and for a variety of reasons. But one day she's going to look back and want to see us together, and I will too. So today we tested out the flip out screen on my camera and took some shots. I need to remember to look at the lens not us in the screen :p.... (Warning, they're some close ups. My arm is only so long)

I love my goofy little munchkin. And I highly recommend you read the post if you're a parent or going to be a parent. It's touching...

One Year Surgery Check Up

2011-04-03T11:53:00.000-07:00

It's me, Payton again. On Friday I had my one year check up for my cranioplasty surgery. It went well, it's always a long appointment and a lot of doctors looking at me. The speech therapist was happy with how many words I have and how well I can understand things. The orthodontist liked my teeth, felt like he was doing a full exam. I let him know I was not happy with that. My plastic surgeon said I am healing really well and my screws and plates should be dissolving soon. He mentioned that sometimes with forehead reconstruction the eyebrow bones can become flat but mine aren't like that and not to worry I'll grow into mine. I wasn't really worried about it till now. Thanks. I get to go see my neurosurgeon in about six months to get another CT or MRI scan done again to check my ventricles. Since I'm catching up on my milestones they're not too worried about hydrocephalus I might just have a big brain, that just means I'm smart right? That's what mommy tells me. I have to go back and see the developmental pediatrician next month so they can see why I'm not walking. He said I can play in the big play room and I'll see an occupational therapist and maybe physical therapist. They're not too worried but they check out all babies who don't walk after 16 months. I consider us smart, I get carried everywhere. Although mom is catching on and making me walk some more. I guess I knew it was going to come at some point. Anyhoo, I'm doing really well from surgery and don't have to go back to see the whole doctor entourage again for a year... woohoo... Thanks again to everyone's support through all this past year. Love, Payton

St Patty's Day '11

2011-03-17T19:56:00.000-07:00

Happy St Patty's Day everyone. Of course my mom made me a festive little outfit, and of course we had to take pictures TODAY. I was not feeling having my photos done today, but mom never listens to me. She thinks even my fussy pics are cute... ugh! Anyways here are some decent ones AKA I put on a happy face so she would leave me be. To give mom some credit, she did try and bribe me with some M&M's. That helped a little bit :)

Before she busted out the M&M's

Here you can see most of my outfit... I LOVE my shoes... the little gem sparkle thing on the toe is fab! Mommy sewed the couple shamrocks on my shirt, you can't see the stem but it's there. She got the idea from one of her little site things.

Isn't my hair bow fun? I guess it was supposed to be a bow tie for boys, but why do boys wear bows? Aren't they just for girls? Anyways, I loved it too.

Okay, time for me to go now. Love, Payton

Payton in Her Shades

2011-03-13T20:02:00.000-07:00

Today was another nice day so Payton and I headed back to the park. Can I just say holy crowded? Anyways, Payton had a good time sporting her new shades and enjoying some sunshine.

She's all about hydrating :)

Family Portrait Attempt

2011-03-10T19:25:00.000-08:00

So here's a fun little story for you. While P and I were in California on vacation, I was determined to get a photo of all four of the grandkids. In the two weeks we were there, there was only one day all of them would be together, in the evening and of course raining. I didn't want it to look too traditional, but nice. So I made my little makeshift studio in my parents' living room, using one of my dad's (I think a halogen lamp, the big yellow hot one) from the garage for lighting. Hey, I was desperate not to use flash. Anyways, by the time we were ready to get everyone together the two little ones were over it. Go figure. Needless to say, photographing a 7 year old, 6 year old, 17 month and 6 month old all at once was more difficult than I planned. So here is what I ended up with... It will have to do for now.

Hey at least all of them are in the photo right? Maybe next time I'll do individual pics and photoshop them together?

Payton and Trent playing (the morning of the attempted shoot, they were so happy then)

Can you tell they were bored waiting on the little ones? Maybe next time... Ciao

Playing in OC

2011-02-28T18:13:00.000-08:00

Here's some more fun shots of Payton playing at the park when we visited my sister in OC.

It was the first time Payton really played in the tunnels and she was having a blast.

Auntie Christi, thank you for taking me to the park and for helping me walk. I'm still a little upset you wouldn't let me walk into the lake. I'll wear floaties next time we go walking. Love ya! Muah. Payton...

Meet Rosie...

2011-02-22T17:32:00.000-08:00

So my Uncle Sam gave me a little moolah last month and I turned it into this:

The Canon Powershot G12... AKA Rosie. So far I love it. I have A LOT to learn about it but I'm getting there. I'm not going to turn into a promo for it, that's what the Canon web site is for but there are some really cool features. Why do I call her Rosie you ask? Well, She needed a name and although my sister's suggestions were good, they didn't quite fit. If you know me, you know I'm OBSESSED with the 1940's/WW2 era and of course that includes Rosie the Riveter. This camera is going to be my little worker bee. She is going to be with us through swimming lessons, trips to the beach, dance recitals, Payton getting her Olympic Gold Medal in beach volleyball... Oh wait, that will be Rosie's great grandaughter :) Anyways, you get the idea. The other reason is instead of telling Payton to say 'cheese' I'll tell her to say hi to Rosie and it will be so cute because she won't be able to say it all the way etc... That's how I came up with 'Rosie.' (And yes, I put three times that much thought into Payton's name)

So now that I've done some babbling, here are some pics (of course of 'lil Miss P) here on vacation in California...

Why I love California, outside in her jammies right after breakfast. In VA we have to get all bundle in way too many layers... blah.

I do post edit my photos and I didn't bring my laptop with my beloved Photoshop so all the photos I shot out here were edited on Picnik.com not too shabby...

"Bye"

K & P's Playdate

2011-01-09T17:50:00.000-08:00

Today Payton and I had Lindsey, Kylie and Micah over for a play date. The plan was to meet at naptime so the girlies could nap while us mommies could make hairbows and chit chat. After we put them down all we heard on the monitor was giggling, laughter and screaming (the happy kind). We figured they would eventually settle down. Nope, about an hour later they were still playing. We go upstairs to get them and Payton is using her crib as a trampoline and Kylie put everyone of P's stuffed animals in the crib. It was pretty funny. I guess it's just a preview of all her future slumber parties...

However, when they were in the room with all the toys, they didn't really play together. Two independent little ladies. It was still a good time... (the photos are super grainy... just warning you... come on tax return so I can get my new camera!)

I had gotten out P's old activity mat for baby Micah and before we could put him on it P was trying to play on it... She would sit in the center and start picking at the bars and the toys like she couldn't figure out why they were in her way. It was pretty hilarious...

And we put our dolls on it....

They finally let Micah play on it... They did share a doll with him but he wasn't too interested lol.

Singing to baby Wendy

Yes her little booty is hanging out a bit... her jeggings ride down a bit when she crawls

Reading time...

Snack time...

We had a great afternoon, thanks ladies and baby Micah for coming to play.

Happy 2011

2011-01-01T14:55:00.000-08:00

Today it FINALLY got up into the 60's! Lately it's either been frigid cold or 10ft of snow on the ground. Okay, I'm exaggerating a little bit on the amount of snow, but it was still a lot, especially for this Cali girl. Anyhoo, so Payton and I went to the park for some good vitamin D.

See all that snow still left over from last week!!! That is NOT okay...

She LOVES to swing... Thanks to Grandpa. She knows that she has to hold on, but only because I tell her to, not because she's scared. She's a little daredevil.

"Look mom, I can swing high!"

We went down the slide. Of course this was after I had to almost pry her little fingers off the swings...

And the monkey bars... The park was PACKED with kids, so Payton really enjoyed watching all the kids run amuck. Oh, and she learned how loud her outside voice could go. :)

And then I let her swing some more. Happy New Years!!!

Ruffled Scarf

2010-12-30T17:29:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to post the ruffle scarf I made for Payton's friend Kylie. I followed an online tutorial. I had some flannel baby blankets on hand to use for quilts or whatever so I made one the center and the ruffle is a knit from a t-shirt. I hope it fits okay.

P's Holiday Outfit

2010-12-26T08:21:00.000-08:00

I wanted to show everyone Payton's 'secret' holiday outfit. :) I only told two people, and that's a big deal for me, I'm not good at keeping secrets. Anyhoo, I used a tutorial for both the shirt and skirt and improvised on the hair clip. Payton was not the cooperative model when I tried to get photos, but oh well.

I did get a few of these mixed with her grumpy face... It's so pitiful but so cute too. She has become her own, stubborn little person.

But after I pulled out some mini chocolate chips, she decided to cooperate a little.

I love the circle skirt, it was very easy to make and Payton liked it too.

The only way I could get her to stand was by putting chocolate chips on the table :)

And yes, I hand-stitched all of those sequins on. Why did I do that on a shirt for a 1 year old? I have no idea. It's what I do I suppose.

Her hair clippy. It has black glittery tulle in it but not showing up :( Anyways, I love how her outfit turned out, yes it's very preppy, but preppy is fun :)

Merry Christmas from Payton...

2010-12-25T19:07:00.000-08:00

Hi, it's me, Payton; I wanted to tell everyone about my Christmas. It was a great day! When I first woke up I saw this:

How fun!!! Mom made chocolate chip pancakes (some were a little toasty, but I won't tell her :) and then I got to open my stocking and presents from mommy...

Lots of fun jewelry, books and puzzles...

I LOVE books!!!!!!!!

I got to video chat with my dad, nana, papa and the rest of my Indiana family and open their gifts. Then more play time and nap time...

Me playing with my new hair salon that Santa brought me. But, I heard mommy say on the phone it took her two nights to build and that I needed to thank Auntie Jessica and Uncle Ryan... Do Auntie Jessica and Uncle Ryan live next to Santa and they'll pass the message along? And why is mommy building things for Santa, isn't that what the elves are for? I've heard about mommy's building skills, well, lack there of so I'm a bit nervous playing on it... After my nap, Santa came AGAIN! (luckily mom didn't have to build anything else :)

Now I'm really confused because mom kept telling me to thank Gram and Grandpa for these gifts that Santa left. Are there two Santas and there was a miscommunication when they divided the nice list and I got put on both? I'm okay with that :)

I love my new Minnie Mouse chair! It's just my size. I got to video chat with Gram and Grandpa too and they got to see me in my chair and open their gifts too. I'm still working on getting out of the chair gracefully... Thank you to everyone who helped make my Christmas special. I love you all!

BYE!!!!

For Trent...

2010-12-16T18:31:00.000-08:00

I just finished making a couple things for my little nephew. A few more things are in the works but I HAVE to get these sent out before Christmas. Anyways...

I made a little reindeer onesie for him using this tutorial. I was going to make P a matching girl one but I'm working on a secret holiday outfit for her. Just need one more naptime and it's done :) Anyways, here is Trent's little shirt:

I also made him a little ribbon blanket similar to the one I made Payton a while back:

Hope he likes them! :)

Dress as a Tunic

2010-12-06T19:18:00.000-08:00

So, my mom finally finished this dress for Payton that she started probably this last spring... It looks great and a lot of attention to detail...

However, Payton has grown since then and it fits like this...

A tunic... but it's great with a tee, skinny jeans and of course a pom-pom hat...

For a Payton update: She is improving immensely in her therapy. She crawls like a pro, stacking blocks and doing three shape puzzles... May seem like nothing for some people, but for P, it's great! Next is trying to get this girl to walk! Ciao...

One Hundred...

2010-11-24T19:29:00.000-08:00

My 100th post, in about four years... Um, yea not exactly a great posting record but eh... I've been playing around with actions in Photoshop lately. I took a couple random shots of P today and here they are all 'done up.' She is currently obsessed with doors. If they're open, she has to close them and she loves standing at our storm door looking to see if the neighbor kids are out. Reminds me of a puppy :)

By no means did I say these were great quality, at all... I did say they were RANDOM, which means, crummy late afternoon light, and had to be oober quick before she tried to eat my camera... BUT, they are pictures of my cute little miss P so they're great :) (I'm not biased)

P @ the Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-25T20:41:00.000-07:00

On Saturday we went to the pumpkin patch with Payton's friend Kylie and her family. Payton got to pet the animals, go on the hayride and play in the haystack...

Lazy Days

2010-10-23T20:53:00.000-07:00

So we've recapped the vacation, now it's back to reality. Reality looks like this around our house...

Payton, in her jammies, with bedhead, at lunchtime... (Yay for PB&J)

Payton, SITTING at her new activity table thats supposed to be a standing table... Grrr to being tall

She doesn't always look at the camera all 'nice and pretty'

But sometimes it's pretty precious like this... I love it...

Oh, and she's been saying 'mama' for a while, but now she actually beckons for me in a cute, yet pitiful tone with 'Mom' :)

Cali Recap Part 3

2010-10-21T20:11:00.000-07:00

Payton's first birthday party!!! Yes, I've been planning this for about six months and no it didn't turn out anything like I originally planned, but that's okay. It was a very nice party though. Unlike her first day at Disneyland, it was not a nice day... it was 106 degrees outside... yea way to go Cassandra. Did I mention that it was an outside party?? So because of the awful heat most of the decorations got nixed and everything went to bare minimum. It was just too hot to mess with. Oh, and while planning this shindig I carefully picked the time, right after her afternoon nap. Perfect right? Considering she's been on a pretty precise schedule for sometime right? NOPE! She wouldn't take an afternoon nap for anything, until we got to the park and her guests started arriving, then she got fussy and took a cat nap... Ugh! Since you read through thus far I'll share some cute photos from her day...

She actually kept her hat on (after her beauty rest though)

Payton making sure Chase isn't going to take her cake

What on earth is Payton wearing while she's eating cake? Um, that was my not so bright idea :) So I told you the party was at park right? EVERY first birthday party the birthday kiddo gets cake all over themselves and then you toss them in the bubble bath... Okay, park = no bubble bath. My solutions, make a little trash bag poncho for her so there would be minimal clean up. Remember where I said it was 106 degrees? Yea I know, worst mom award. Anyways, it didn't work. She was still a mess. So word of advice, don't do it!! It ended up being a really nice party despite my ill planning :)

Cali Recap Part 2

2010-10-19T18:39:00.000-07:00

Okay so here is the Disneyland recap-

It was a beautiful and perfect day. Everything I expected for her first trip. I know, this trip was more for me than her but it's not like she suffered any :) Did she meet all the princesses? Nope. Did she ride all the rides? Nope. Then what did she do? Well nice of you to ask...

I'll start off with some photos to show you she/we did have fun:

Her tour guides, Chase and Connor

With Grandma

With Grandpa on the horse

So where's the party and confetti you ask? Yes, Disneyland is magical and full of adventure, BUT, she's only ONE for goodness sake! :) Payton got to meet her BFF's Mickey and Minnie. Where are those photos? I'm in them so I'm not posting :) She liked meeting them, and did not miss not meeting the princesses. Yes, she told me so.

She rode one of the more important rides, Pirates of the Caribbean and of course most of the 'kiddy' rides. Even 'It's a Small World' even though I tried to avoid it at all costs. Grandpa took her on the carrousel horse where she learned her 'parade wave' which she still does to this day. She had fun with family on her special day at the most magical place on earth!

Oh, and she was only two inches shy of riding real roller coasters... next time kiddo....

Cali Recap Part 1

2010-10-18T18:59:00.000-07:00

I'm FINALLY able to share about my vacation in Cali, I know it was about 6 weeks ago but... anyways, I have a working computer now (thanks Billy!) It was dead and about to be buried, but it's alive and well :) Why is my trip recap in parts? Well, because I don't feel like doing it in one post. We went for Payton's first birthday and had her first birthday party, first trip to disneyland and then just everyday stuff. So thus the reason for parts :)

Part 1: The everyday stuff-

We had some much needed R&R...

Had some play time...

Went for a swim...

And met our newest little guy in the family...

Trent Mitchell...

See you soon, unless my computer relapses...

Checking In & Strap Cover

2010-09-15T14:51:00.000-07:00

I've been on vacation, still am, so thus the reason of falling off the face of this blog. It's been pretty busy so I have plenty of photos to post, but I'm JUST now uploading photos from the past few weeks, so standby for the vacation recap...

This morning while P was taking her morning nap I whipped up a camera strap cover for a friend. I still have fabric stored in my mom's craft room from high school so I used some of that. Hey, there is some cute stuff in there I forgot about. I even found some plaid wool that my grandparents got me when they went to Alaska that, at the time I thought was hideous and now, it's in the middle of becoming a fall dress for P. Anyways... here's the strap... nothing fancy but still pretty proud... hope she likes it.

(tutorial by LBGStudio)

Until I get the photos uploaded, sorted and edited... ciao

Standing & Sippys

2010-08-04T16:52:00.000-07:00

So this past week we've hit a couple little milestones that I thought would never come. Standing and drinking from a sippy cup. She still doesn't give a rip about crawling, I've even tried the whole put a toy out of her reach thing, still nothing. But, she thinks standing is pretty cool.

And of course some fun faces of P...

The chipmunk face, yea she stuffed her mouth with her grilled cheese... classy I know....

Now, sippy cups... have been a pain in my butt. I have been trying for 5 months to get her to drink from one. Trying all different kinds to see which one she likes, but out of all these...

She picks....

The one that's disposable, most inexpensive, and has the worst characters (love Disney, hate princesses sorry) on it... oh and she can take the lid off and to try and drink out of it like a normal cup like mommy, ask me how I know... Ciao

Poolside

2010-07-19T18:07:00.000-07:00

I finally took Payton to a 'real' pool yesterday. We went to the Y and they have a little spray park thing and a baby pool so we hung out in those. She didn't mind the water too much. Wasn't a fan of the spray park but liked the pool. I taught her how to splash, tried teaching her the basics of floating (she didn't like that one too much) We just hung out and had a good afternoon.

They have child size pool chairs too, she liked relaxing there too...

She looks grumpy here, she's just a people watcher.

Onto other Payton news: she is eating people food. No more buying baby food! So far she likes turkey, avocados, whole wheat waffles, green beans, peas, chicken and pretty much anything I've given her. I'm just glad she likes the healthy stuff too :)

You Are What You Keep

2010-07-11T02:57:00.000-07:00

So, it's almost time for me to get off work, so that means I've spent most of the past 12 hours surfing the net. Those who know me really well, that means craft blogs... I get lost in them. I click this link and that takes me to another link yada yada yada. Anyways Cheri at I am momma hear me roar had a link to Tabitha (I really wish I could draw this on a map it would be great) who is 'decluttering' her life. Getting rid of 2010 things in 2010 and she's asking people to join her. She just started last month so I'm not that far behind yet. With moving last week, I realized how much crap I had and it's ridiculous. How much 'stuff' does one adult, one baby and one dog REALLY need? So I'm going to jump on this little wagon, shouldn't be too hard, haven't really started unpacking yet. But, we're starting Monday, afternoon, after I get a nap. Sunday night is my third 12 hour night shift... Well, time for me to go home and snooze... Good night/morning wherever you are in your day!

Piggy Tail

2010-07-09T16:36:00.000-07:00

Payton had a pig tail!!! Her head is pretty much covered in hair now. No more random bald spots, her scar is covered and I think it's all real hair that's going to stay. The hair that I can pull up is baby hair but the rest is the real stuff!!! And the ends have a slight curl to them :)

Here is P's opinion of her new hair...

The outfit my mom made, not sure what pattern she used, but I like it on her. It's a little big but she will be able to wear it for a while. It crosses in the bag and has bloomers but she wasn't feeling the photo shoot (thus more aweful, flash used indoor photos) so we'll have to try again soon.

Have a good weekend! I'll be working so have some fun for me too!... And in case you're wondering a little more about what I do, click here to see what I was involved in Monday night at work. I sit in a room, with no windows and a bunch or radios talking to everyone on the water and in the air. Be careful out there!

The Beach

2010-06-19T04:09:00.000-07:00

On Thursday Payton and I went to the beach with a friend and her daughter. First real time Payton has been. She didn't mind sitting on the beach towel, but she didn't like the sand. She didn't really get mad but she was making her little "eh" sounds. Translation: "Really mom, why are you making me do this?" The water didn't bother her, just the sand, but what girl likes sitting in sand? I learned something: Payton has olive skin tone, olive people don't burn. Mommy does burn when she forgets to put sunscreen on herself.

She's such my little model, and so serious.

Payton and her friend Kylie... Payton: 9 months, Kylie: 2 years old...

I'm putting Payton in Volleyball as soon as she can walk.

Enjoy the weekend!

New Foods

2010-06-14T10:07:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, I convinced mommy to let me blog about this one. She's always talking for me. Anyways, she made me breakfast yesterday, no not the instant baby cereal, actually used the big hot thing in the kitchen, dirtied dishes and everything. I just got scrambled eggs (plain, ugh) and pancakes (plain again!) I know she can add a little seasoning to the eggs and chocolate chips to the pancakes. Something about my tummy not liking it. Whatever.
It wasn't too bad. I inspected it quite a bit before trying it. (don't mind the bedhead. I don't know how to use a comb yet) The eggs were fun to play with, and the pancakes were ok. No syrup :(

(this is soooo unflattering, future boyfriends close your eyes)

I made some cute faces for mom to amuse her. Oh and she tried to get me to drink my formula out of a cup! Um no, I showed her. Bottles are the cool thing duh! Oh and OF COURSE I shared with my BFF Reese.

Love, Payton

9 Months

2010-06-10T12:56:00.000-07:00

Payton is nine months old already! (Okay so like 8 days ago she was, whatever) I realized I haven't taken any photos of her yet this month and decided to fix that. With getting ready to move, trying to find a place to move (which I did last night woo hoo) and all of life's normal craziness... so here we go, in her 23lb, 31 3/4in long wonderfulness:

She kind of looks like a zombie or Old Navy mannequin. I think it's funny.

My fav, it's my desktop pic at work right now.

Mommy Vaca

2010-05-22T07:39:00.000-07:00

So Thursday I had to let Payton go for a little while. (No I didn't fire her) She went to visit her dad and his family for a little while. I miss her so much already, but the break is really nice. (Am I a bad mom?) I just keep telling myself she'll be back soon enough. So Thursday morning I took her to the park to take some last minute photos. I uploaded them to picnik.com and played around with some of the effects just to change it up a bit. Okay so it really just killed about and hour at work but hey, whatever. So here are just a few, I got several "studio faces" typical baby looks but I like her crazy ones instead. :)

Of course she looks evil here but she's really laughing... promise

How can you not LOVE that face???

Yes, my daughter has a comeover, and no, I will not cut it.

P.S. Her scar is healing wonderfully!!! Most of the stiches have fallen out and her hair is already starting to grow back in. :)

Payton and the Carrot Cake

2010-05-09T17:18:00.000-07:00

Today I decided to make carrot cake. Never made it before but I saw this recipe by Dana at MADE and sounded pretty easy. Well, Payton wanted to help so this is how it went: (Narrated by Payton)

First we got out all the tools:

Then we tested the carrots:

Then mom cut and measured and I checked it:

And then she turned on this noisy thing and mixed a bunch of stuff and made a mess. She poured it all into mini cakes, I think she said they were cup cakes. Something about for work, and made us a one layer round cake. While it was baking I took a nap. That was hard work. When I woke up it was all done. I got a piece after dinner. :) It was yummy.

(Note from mom: I did not use the carrots that Payton and Reese "tested")

Happy Mother's Weekend...

2010-05-09T16:56:00.000-07:00

My first Mother's day was pretty nice. Payton and I celebrated on Wednesday but this weekend I got a few surprises. On Friday my super adorable nephews sent me some beautiful flowers. :) So sweet, only in kindergarten and already working on charming the ladies :) Then Saturday I got two surprises! A delicious fruit arrangement from mom and dad and two books from my sis! Can't wait to start reading. Thank you everyone who thought of us. It meant so much.

Payton and I ran out to the store yesterday and I FINALLY finished her stinkin' cart cover. I was seriously on the brink of tossing it and just buying one. I used Simplicity 3561 and I hate it! I refuse to make another one. But, here it is...

Sparkle Clean

2010-05-05T16:30:00.000-07:00

Today the house cleaner came! It was soooo nice to come into a dust and fur free home. I almost didn't want to let Reese back in :( I used MaidPro and she did a really good job. I'm almost tempted to make this a regular thing. Not that I'm not capable of doing my own cleaning, but when you're a single working mom, I would rather spend my time with Payton. Today we went and did a little thrifting, lunch at the park (see photos below) and a Target run. It was a very nice afternoon. If you haven't had someone come and clean your house, I recommend it if you can, at least once. It's so worth it!

You can finally see her teeth! Well most of them, there are two more on top hiding.

She killed the dandelion :(

One of my favorites!

My Assistant

2010-05-03T15:53:00.000-07:00

So I'm surfing around on the net (of course Facebook and craft blogs) taking a little break from cleaning out cupboards and closets and who comes to lay down on top of me watching over my shoulder... My trusty assistant Reese. She's been getting in my way helping me all day. She loves me and she adores Payton so I can't ask for a better dog but do they teach 'personal space' in doggie training?

And no, this photo was not posed... apparently she wanted to learn easier ways to dye fabric too.

Go Fly a Kite

2010-05-02T18:32:00.000-07:00

Today Payton and I went to the kite festival with some friends and to say the least I was a little more than disappointed. I expected the sky to be filed with colorful kites of all shapes. Nope. There were some professional kite fliers, which I didn't know they existed, doing demonstrations, and a little booth where you could build your own kite. It was quaint, but nothing like you would see on the west coast. But it was nice to get out and get some sun and spend time with some friends. Oh, and Payton got to show off her new skirt I made. I tried to make a paper bag skirt, creating my own pattern. Umm... yea it did not turn out like I wanted to, but it's still pretty cute. I know there has to be an easier way to make one. My stitching isn't the best on this skirt because by the time I got to the hem and waistband I was frustrated and in a hurry to finish... Oh well.

Kylie pointing to the kites and Lindsey helping Payton fly a kite

Tomorrow starts a very long and busy week for us, wish us luck!

Little Fishy...

2010-05-01T19:56:00.000-07:00

Today was kind of an 'eh' day and over 90 degrees out so I figured it would be a good time to get Payton a little pool. There's not much to it, didn't get the one with the slide, not until she can enjoy all the extras. Hey it gave me another opportunity for a photo shoot :)

She's doing really well from surgery, seems to be back to normal minus the incision. And even that is healing pretty well. She keeps itching the incision but she doesn't know how to scratch so it's more like someone massaging their head. It's cute though.

Here is a look at her scar... 8 days post op

I think she likes the pool. When I first put her in it she got mad because it wasn't heated :)

I love how she scrunches her nose!

This is what Reese thinks of the pool.

Day 3...

2010-04-26T07:38:00.000-07:00

Last night Payton's swelling started to go down already!!! First I noticed more of her eyelashes then her eyes were open just a little, and you can tell she was really trying to open them too!!! So sweet. Here is a photo from last night. (sorry, it's a little blurry)

She did well when they came to take the bandage off and drain out this morning. She fussed but I think it was more the fact they were messing with her.

Back to being happy camper!!!

Her incision... Now just waiting for the word to go home. She is still having a little trouble keeping fluids down. Most feedings she can keep down though... I'm just so thankful for everyone who has been there for us and their prayers. They worked!!! She is doing wonderfully!!!!

Day 2...

2010-04-25T09:26:00.000-07:00

Payton is doing well. As well as the Doctor's have expected. She is very swollen, both eyes swollen shut. They are going to take her drain out tomorrow just to make sure it doesn't add to the swelling. She is sleeping well, doesn't seem to be in pain really. I'm able to hold her and she seems comfortable, and able to lay her head on my shoulder now. Just barely but we're making progress. Swelling should noticeably start going down on Tuesday.

She is not holding fluid down too well. Pedialyte is okay but formula is still a no go. How do I know? I'm wearing her lunch. If she can't start to hold down food better soon, we may have to stay longer for them to monitor her. If she can handle formula soon and have more wet diapers then tomorrow afternoon is a real possibility.

Here are a few photos from this morning. She is was wearing her new gown I made her but it's soaked in formula. But when we get home maybe she will be feeling better to model. I have fabric to make a few more anyways. I used another Heidi and Finn pattern.

Her in her crib covering her eyes (I turned the light on so I wouldn't have to use flash, bad mommy)

Close up of her eyes :( You can see the fishy/paisley fabric I used, the lining is just a T-shirt

Rubbing her eyes... You can see the outside tie of the gown and the roll cuff sleeve. I think the way the did the bandage makes her look like a little china doll.

Her new puppy a friend of mine from work brought her :)

Surgery is over...

2010-04-23T13:36:00.000-07:00

Again, arrive at 5am but this time they were able to complete surgery. They took her back to the OR about 7:40 and actually started operating at 9:30, they were done about 1:00. So it wasn't too bad. She is all drugged up on morphine so she's pretty out of it. She will be in the PICU tonight and should be able to move to the Pediatric Ward tomorrow and will be there until Monday or Tuesday. She did have to have a blood transfusion as expected however she did not lose as much as they anticipated :) The surgical team was fantastic and everything is going well so far. Thank you to everyone for your prayers and support, also those who sat with us in the hospital, thank you. We will keep you updated!

Oh and the horizontal bump on her forehead is just a temporary drain...

In Memory Of...

2010-04-22T22:23:00.000-07:00

All of America's fallen Soldiers and Sailors. Dad, Payton and I went up to Arlington National Cemetary today. I was just in awe of all of the Veterans there. There were a few services going on and it just made me so proud to be in the service.

But we didn't go as tourists, we went to see family. I am posting the photos of the sites of our family members and not sure if it's really "proper" to do so on a blog, but I'm proud of them. First, my grandfather, Capt Gordon MacLane or as people knew him back then, Capt Mad Mac. I didn't know him that well, he passed when I was young but his CG stories I hear from my dad and grandma never get old. He had an impact in the CG and I am so proud to be his granddaughter.

Next we visited a brother of a very close family friend. U.S Army SFC Charles Dunson. I didn't know him but he passed while he was serving. His family hasn't been able to see his site yet and I was honored to be able to visit him for them.

I know this seems like a sappy post, but I am very proud to be in the military and all those who do serve as well. It's amazing to be a part of something so historic and important.

What's for Dinner?

2010-04-21T09:02:00.000-07:00

I cooked dinner last night and didn't screw it up!!! Dad seemed to like it, although he did eat my pumpkin bread I made with whole cloves and garlic veggie oil. Whoops. Anyhoo... I got the recipe off of fitclick.com. I modified it for two people and actually guesstimated on measurements here and there.

Chicken and Pasta w/ Spinach:

Recipe:
-4 oz Chicken Breast (I used 3 breasts and could have gotten away w/ 2)
-1 oz. Linguine Noodles (I just put how much I thought looked like enough)
-1 tbsp Parm Cheese (grated)
-1 Garlic Clove
-1 cup Spinach (I used a 12oz bag)
-1/4 tsp Oregano
-1/2 cup Tomato Sauce (I used 8oz can)
-1 tsp Olive Oil

Cook Pasta like normal. Microwave spinach about 4-6min (depending on how much you are using) Cut chicken into strips. Chop garlic. In a skillet saute garlic and oil until garlic is soft. Add chicken strips until no longer pink (about 10min) Add cheese, spinach, oregano and tomato sauce and let simmer for about 7-10 min. Serve over noodles...

Um...

2010-04-20T11:47:00.000-07:00

I think I have been letting Payton play with Reese a little too much... she is picking up puppy habits.

Update #2...

2010-04-15T14:47:00.000-07:00

We got up at 3 this morning :( to be at the hospital at 5 to check in and start what we anticipated to be a long day. Check in and vitals go well then the Neurosurgeon pulls us aside to inform us they will not be doing the Cranioplasty procedure today due to the PICU (Pediatrics ICU) being occupied with five infants on ventilators. :( She has to go to the PICU for recovery because of the blood transfusions and she has a good possibility of being on a ventilator even just for a few hours after surgery and needs that special care.

-waiting to go back to the MRI, wondering why we're up so early-

They did proceed with the MRI, and they did not have to do the VP Shunting!!! All four of her ventricles are enlarged, but they are symmetrical and the passageways for her fluid to drain through are open and clear. So her brain isn't under pressure which is good. The Neurosurgeon is going to run some more tests on the ventricles about 4-6 weeks after the Cranioplasty to monitor it so we're not totally home free yet, but possible!

So thank you to everyone's prayers and concerns, they worked and have been such a blessing. Surgery has been rescheduled for next Friday so keep our fingers crossed it is a go this time. The reason for a delay in rescheduling is the amount of people that are involved with this procedure. Neurosurgery, Plastic Surgery, Anesthesiology, Blood Bank, PICU and the OR has to be free and in a military hospital, well, that can become difficult. But, it will get done this month, it has to, plastic surgeon is deploying and she can't get too old before they do it, so hopefully Friday goes well or something opens up sooner... at least I have more time to make some more little kimono dresses for her :) Thanks again to everyone, it means so much to us!!!

Update on Payton...

2010-04-13T12:31:00.000-07:00

So quick recap: about 3 weeks ago Payton was diagnosed with Metopic Craniosynostosis. We did the x-rays, CT scan and Craniofacial board. We met with the Plastic and Neurosurgeons today and surgery is on Thursday at the crack of dawn. The surgery is going to consist of them putting her under then they will be cutting from ear to ear on top of her head and removing the forehead part of her skull. They will reconstruct it and put dissolvable plates and screws then stitch her up. She will require a blood transfusion during surgery and will be in the hospital about two maybe three days.

On the CT scan they found that her lateral ventricles were enlarged and her brain had extra fluid that wasn't draining properly. This can cause extra pressure on the brain and possibly delay her development and may be why she is 7 months old and can't sit up at all. They are going to do an MRI before the surgery and if the extra fluid is causing pressure in the brain and not draining properly, they will have to put Ventriculoperitoneal Shunting in her. This is a tube that will go into her brain, run down her side and into her abdomen and drain excess fluids in there. This will be a permanent thing for her and will have to see a Neurosurgeon yearly until she is done growing. We will not find out about the shunt until Thursday morning after the MRI. They did show us her CT scan and they did a 3D model of her skull, I will say that was pretty interesting, weird, but interesting.

Please keep her in your prayers, we will keep you updated!

'Two'fer...

2010-04-10T18:00:00.000-07:00

A little tid bit of info about me, if I'm not blogging, it means I'm actually motivated doing things. AKA: not procastinating... I have been working on spring cleaning and going to the gym :) 10lbs down won't say how many more to go. I went to a step class today and it was a little interesting, had two things happen that have never happened to me at the gym: instructer had to leave early to what looked like she injured herself and couldn't "march it out" and then the yoga instructer came in to finish the abs and cool down. Ok so what's the big deal about the yoga instructor? She was about 7 or 8 months pregnant. And she was better at ab work and more flexible than I was. Yea that hurt.

Ok so moving on... I made Payton a little "taggie" blanket sometime last week finally. I used leftover fleece from her star blanket and random ribbon I had. I took an M&M wrapper (yummy) and sandwiched it in the middle to make it crinkle.

Note: This photo was taken after I let her play with it thus the chewed on purple ribbon

This project I did last night. I was practically going through sewing withdrawls. I saw this tutorial on how to take a turtleneck and turn it into a spring top. I had gotten Payton a turtleneck onsie a while back that I'm sure I was going to dress up somehow but now it's too warm for T-necks so... we modify. I'm not sure if I like how the neckline turned out. Not sure if it's too promiscuous for a 7 month old. After seeing it on her I have a couple possible ideas on how to 'fix' it but I'm open to ideas too.

Have a good rest of the weekend!!!

Brrr...

2010-03-26T18:13:00.000-07:00

Today was rainy, cold and I am in major pain because my trainer thought it would be fun to use kettlebells yesterday. My lower back feels like I'm nine months pregnant again. I'm even waddling. Hopefully tomorrow will be better. So Payton and I did a bunch of nothing today which was kind of nice, but we did squeeze in a little time for a photo shoot. I cannot wait until she can sit on her own, photo shoots will be a lot more fun.

Ruffle Flower Shirt

2010-03-19T16:24:00.000-07:00

I saw this tutorial a few months back and really liked it, so I went and got the supplies and was going to make it "one day" ... Then one day surfing the net I saw this shirt at JCrew and really liked it too. So they got together and created Payton's new shirt. I wanted to put a little button or bow in the center of the flower but Payton is in that "everything goes in mouth" phase so I was afraid she would have pulled it off and choked... bad juju...

This is what I started with... I shortened the sleeves by cutting the cuff off, then made the sleeve the length I wanted and reattached the cuff. It's finally getting warmer so she didn't need a long sleeve shirt and the sleeves are so skinny it would have been a pain to get on her little arms...

Have a good weekend!

Star Blankie

2010-03-18T18:46:00.000-07:00

I made Payton a fleece star blanket today. I just quilted the two pieces of fleece together and appliqued fleece stars in the corner. It's pretty lightweight and great for spring!

Happy St Patty's

2010-03-17T19:10:00.000-07:00

My Little Chipmunk...

2010-03-13T18:21:00.000-08:00

Puppy Love...

2010-03-11T17:46:00.000-08:00

Tried to take photos of Payton again on Tuesday but the pup decided she needed to be a model too...

"Mom what is she doing? This is my photo shoot." -Payton

"Okay fine here's a kiss." -Payton

"My turn mommy" -Reese

Next American Baby?

2010-03-07T13:14:00.000-08:00

American Baby magazine is having a photo contest for the cutest baby and they get to be on the cover for August 2010. So I submitted Payton. Some people are probably totally against 'exploiting' children like that but hey, formula and diapers are expensive... lol just kidding. Well they really are expensive but I just thought it would be fun. Here are the photos I submitted...

Pleated Skirt

2010-03-06T13:52:00.000-08:00

I made a little tweed pleated skirt for a birthday party we went to today. I bought two of the matching shirt, one to make the little ruffle flower. And of course a matching hair clip. I used this pattern by Heidi and Finn. Can't wait to make Payton one now!

Close up of the flower and hair clip...

Back of the skirt...

6 Months...

2010-03-05T21:13:00.000-08:00

I can't believe my little Payton is already 6 months old!!! It's bittersweet. I miss her being so little and everything newborn, but I look forward to future adventures with her.

Semi Quilt

2010-03-03T18:42:00.000-08:00

This is a semi quilt I made for Payton. It's flannel and super soft and I love it! And that's all I have to say about it... :-)

I Heart...

2010-03-01T19:09:00.000-08:00

Target & Mr. Clean... I needed to redecorate my bathroom... aka I needed new towels and tooth brush holder. Target was having a sale and this is what we ended up with:

I want to do a retro (surprise surprise) hawaiian beach theme... eventually... (the brown stripes on the rug look black in the photo) Oh! and Mr. Clean... I HIGHLY recommend the Mr. Clean magic erasers for bathrooms!!! The original ones are great too but wow! I HATE cleaning the shower... hate it! But with the erasers, no fumes, super quick and easy, they're GREAT! Ok going to finishing watching why Jake picked Vienna instead of Tenley, grrr...

Payton's Valentine's Accessories: Quasi Tutorial

2010-02-28T13:46:00.000-08:00

Ok so here is a little explanation and close up look at her accessories I made for her V-day shoot... now these were not made to last longer than her shoot. (We're up to about 20 min of attention, yeah!) so it's mostly hot glue and very little hand sewing on the pearls...

Lets start with the necklace:
~A piece of 5/8" satin ribbon long enough to fit the baby loosely and tie, I just guesstimated.
~Took fake rose petals, cut in halves and hot glued on the under side of the ribbon.
~Cut and glued a piece of lace on top of the ribbon
~Hand sewed a few faux pearls through the lace; hand NO clue what I was doing in this step so again just going with it.
~Took another petal, glued on top and then a felt heart on that and DONE!

Now the Headband:
~On an old adult elastic headband I glued wide sheer ribbon and then the 5/8" satin ribbon from the necklace on that. Leave the ribbon long enough to tie a bow underneath if you want.
~Took the lace from the necklace and glued beside the 5/8" satin ribbon.
~With the fake rose petals, glue and shape into a flower until satisfied with the size, glue another felt heart.

TA-DA now she has pretties for her photo shoot!

Another look at the headband...

CIAO!

Colonial Williamsburg

2010-02-27T05:11:00.000-08:00

Yesterday my BFF Cheryl and I went to Colonial Williamsburg. It was a lot of fun but SUPER windy! Anyways I did a little collage of a few of our photos.

Chop Chop...

2010-02-27T04:17:00.000-08:00

We had lunch at P.F. Changs on Thursday (yummy) and I let Payton play with the chop sticks (have to start them young :) and then she discovered they are great drumsticks too :) I may have influenced that one and will probably regret it later but when they're 5 months old it's SO CUTE!!!

First Day at the Beach....

2010-02-25T20:28:00.000-08:00

for Payton, unfortunately her first beach adventure was in feb and extremely cold so thus short lived but she got to play in the sand for a bit and hey, it's all about the photos anyways right!

New Photos

2010-02-24T11:41:00.000-08:00

Payton let me post these pics from this week :) the middle one is from her valentine photo shoot. I'll post how I made the headband and necklace later on.

We're Back!

2010-02-23T07:45:00.000-08:00

that's right, we're making a comeback. well, actually i'm making the comeback, this is payton's blog premier. the previous posts were to keep everyone updated on my journey in the CG. well, that journey is almost over :( and on to new ones with the baby... when i was blogging before i didn't realize all the different blogs and types of blogs and just all the possiblities. i have become OBSESSED with craft blogs!! total nerd i know... anyways we're going to try again, and be aware payton might hijack the blog every once in a while. but there's a catch :) i don't really want to be just typing into outerspace, i need an audience... i know sad/pathetic/shallow fill in the blank... i have A TON of photos to post on shutterfly and here but payton is feeling shy so if you want to see them leave comments on this post. when payton feels the love she'll let me post them :) yes i am using her as leverage but it's for a good cause :)

Cassandra & Payton

p.s. standby for changes because i'm not sure i love the blog title and layout...

Gobble Gobble...

2010-02-22T14:11:00.000-08:00

Here is the outfit I made Payton for turkey day... I got the tutorial here but didn't do legs... not enough room and did a little bubble skirt from a satin remnant from here not too shabby for last minute huh? Oh! and yes I was able to trace her actual hand... while she was sleeping! :-)

Happy Halloween

2010-02-22T14:00:00.000-08:00

I decided to make Payton's costume this year because I REFUSED to pay the prices out there especially since she doesn't exactly trick or treat or know the difference this year... so I made her a ladybug... just a tutu and antennas.... tutu was tulle and elastic and the antennas was an old elastic headband, black satin ribbon and pipe cleaners! yup that's it!

And she slept through practically the whole photo shoot... she needs modeling practice!

Hair Bow Holder

2010-02-22T13:50:00.000-08:00

Payton's hair bows needed a home other than a basket because they were forgotten in there so I made this one day at work...

An art canvas, left over fabric and LOTS of ribbon... the flower on the left, there was a tutorial, somewhere in blog world and I have NO clue where right now, so if I find it again, I'll post it... it was super easy though.

She has more bows now, and many more to come!

Garage Coveralls

2010-02-22T12:03:00.000-08:00

For Chase's 6th birthday I converted my old ODU's into coveralls he could play in the garage with Grandpa... I cut the bottom of the shirt off and sewed the top and pants together. Hemmed the pants and replaced the CG name tapes with a "garage" name patch. He loves them! He helps grandpa work on the cars with his special tool box grandpa put together for him...

P.S. He forgot to button a button lol

For Payton

2010-02-22T07:03:00.000-08:00

A couple things I made for Payton's room and bathroom using Mod Podge.

For her room on her dresser, using wood blocks from Michael's, some scrapbook paper, acrylic paint and Mod Podge... oh and some scrapbooking stickers and little rhinestones. One of my first little projects for her, idea from good 'ol Martha Stewart

This was for her monkey bathroom. She needed some sort of wall art and this is what I came up with. An art canvas, scrapbook paper, Mod Podge and my stencils for all the little shapes... now that I have my cricuit this would have been SO much easier!

Tooth Fairy Pillows

2010-02-22T06:49:00.000-08:00

Made the boys their tooth fairy pillows for Christmas this last year. Just a simple square pillow, name embroidered and a handle to hang on their door. Made from left over material from their quilts years ago.

Recap...

2008-05-24T18:10:00.000-07:00

Hi... I'm sitting here, in the middle of big blue, waiting to go to next watch. Been an interesting and none the less busy patrol. Thus the reason for no posts since I was on leave in Feb. Been to 3 new countries I've never been to and done several things I've never done before. That's pretty much why I chose this job. (And a few others, but we'll save that for another time) It's definitely has been the better of the three that I've been on. For starters, I have not gotten sea sick (knock on wood and thank you to doc and his little pink pills :) I've gotten to go to San Juan, Rio de Janiro, and Grenada. Played war games with different Navy's and swam on the equator. It's been fun, but don't get me wrong, totally ready to go home for a while. I'll post some pics when internet is a tad faster. Had some rough days as well, port and starboard watches for 3 days get to you. I'm mostly excited about this summer because Dean is coming home for leave!!! I am extatic, can't even begin with that one. It will have been 8 months since we've seen each other, then we will have another 8 months to go. I am very proud of him though, I can't tell him enough. I have so much respect for him for being over there, fighting for me and our families. That's about it for me, just been working like a dog, having a little bit of fun too... Anyways, I'll get those pics up this week... ciao for now!

Aquarium Adventures...

2008-03-21T09:20:00.000-07:00

So last month while in Cali, took Connor to the Long Beach Aquarium. It was pretty awesome, especially with my new awesome Canon Digi Elph.... anyways, take a gander...

Long lost loves...

2007-11-11T18:37:00.000-08:00

I realize it has been an extremely long time since I have shown any trace of life on this page, but I have not forgotten. I am sitting here now, watching the Chargers beat the Colts :) going through my photos on my computer and vowing to start anew with my blogging life. The photos I am posting today are from the gun range a couple weeks ago (eek) I liked shooting the Sig 40, better than the 9mm and dad's 45...

the worst poster...

2007-06-06T12:18:00.000-07:00

yes, it has been an extrememly long time since the last post, i understand. i am working on my juggling life act. the past month i got to go back to northern cali, had a blast, went to flordia and busch gardens in williamsburg. oh and i did work a little in between, but don't worry not too much. hehe...

a couple shots from napa...

still smiling after a 400+ mile motorcycle ride...

@ busch gardens...

flordia...