Getting crafty again

I just finished creating a bow/clip holder for Livy's numberless bows. It was very simple to make and inexpensive. I purchased a large wooden letter at the local craft store and ribbon that matches the butterfly prints on her wall. Then I glued on an extra butterfly from the mobile I created before she was born. Total cost was $7.64!

Works for Me Wednesday: Mini Bouquets for Memorial Day

For as long as I can remember we have always gone to the cemetery on Memorial Day followed with a picnic lunch in the park. We would meet most of our extended family and have a mini family reunion. Naturally, there have been a few years that the weather simply wouldn't hold out and we would head to a restaurant or some one's house for lunch. This year was no exception with the weather, it rained the entire day.

Memorial is one of my favorite holidays because it is filled with tradition. The only thing that I have changed is not only taking flowers to my grandparents headstone but to all my direct ancestors in the state. We are talking about nearly 30 flower bouquets (that includes single bouquets on double headstones) and flags to veterans. This is no easy task especially when flowers cost so much.

So to make it where I can put flowers on every headstone, without going broke or having to set up a money market account to fund the project, I make mini bouquets.

I purchase 6 Memorial Day mums at the grocery store which were on sale for 3 for $10. During the year we save up jars and this year it happened to be baby food jars. On Memorial Day I will cut the mums and assemble mini bouquets, tie it off with a ribbon (that is the only way that Martha would approve of this project. lol!), fill with water and place into fast food drink holders. The drink holders keep everything from tipping over in the car and I use the same ones every years. I will use the potted mums, now with no blooms, and plant them in my yard for fall color.

For more great tips, head to Rocks in my Dryer.

Getting crafty with the hair

One of the many projects that I have been working on this past week is hair bows for Livy. I think I may have gotten carried away, again. Even with the ones that I have made, I have plans to make more. (Plus a super cute hair bow holder...pictures to come later)

First Art Projects

Olivia's first art project, Friday May 16, 2008



The cable art system hanging in our playroom. (The cable was actually intended to be a curtain rod from IKEA, but I have used it for art work!)

Friends or not?

As I have read through various blogs or talked with different friends, I have come to realized that being sisters (or brother & sister) is far different then I have experienced. I have three sisters and one brother and growing up was hard. My mom raised 5 children on her own (she is super woman for taking on such a task). We kids would fight constantly and in a way there was competition between us (certainly not the healthy kind).

Now as adults, you would think that we would finally get over our childish squabbles and start building a relationship. Instead we are like a piece of driftwood out at sea, hoping that someday you may find land. The only phone calls made to each other is when one wants something from the other. If we are lucky, we get a 30 second phone call on our birthdays and that is only if they didn't have access to email at the moment. We rarely do anything together unless there is a "FFF" (Forced Family Fun) planned. I never hear about recitals, school concerts or fundraisers. I would like to be a part of my nieces lives and I want Livy to know her cousins.

I feel that one of the most important things in a persons life should be their family. We are the ones who should be there for each other. The ones that you can call and know that you will not be judged. The ones who will give you a second opinion. The ones to go out with to get your nails done or invite over for dinner or simply chat with. The ones who would save up to visit you in a different state or country because they miss you and want to see you. Maybe it is my "emotional" feelings towards families that I want Livy to have a great relationship with her future siblings. I want her to have the relationships that I never had.

For those who have that kind of relationship with your siblings, how did your parents do it? How are you helping your children forge a lifetime relationship with each other?

Finding Treasure

Last night for Family Night we went Geocaching. You probably have heard of this treasure hunt that takes place all over the world. It is very similar to Letterboxing in the sense that you are given clues, in this case a GPS coordinate, and once found you get a piece of treasure. (Letterboxing you get a stamp to go into your book)

This was our first attempt and a little harder then what we thought. "Kathy" is our guide on our TomTom and she is only able to take us within a few feet of the given latitude and longitude, the rest was up to us to figure out where the box was stashed. The first box we discovered behind a cement wall and under the thick bushes. Our second attempt was a complete failure and never found the box.

Olivia with the TomTom, waiting for the prompt from "Kathy" our navigational guide.
The treasure!
Olivia and Eduardo with the token that we took from the box.

Bilingual

Some of you may not know that it took us YEARS to get our beautiful Livy. While going through all of the infertility treatments I would often think of all the things that I wanted for my children. I would check out parenting books, read reviews on baby gear and observe what other moms were doing. I was obsessed with parenting!

Of course, every month when I would discover, yet again, that I wasn't pregnant, I would be devastated. This continued on until I did find out that I was pregnant with Livy.

I can say that I have gotten nearly everything that I wanted in her. She was an extremely content baby. In fact I never really heard her cry until she was 6 months or so. If she needed something she would moan and groan. She also has a light complexion, light eyes (they're green!), dark hair even with some curl. She is a quick learner, early talker and has been about 6 months a head of game from the beginning.

The one thing that I have not gotten, was for her to be bilingual. I read several studies on how it would be easier for her to learn another language as a baby, especially during the first 12 months. I wanted for her to have a connection with her grandparents, her heritage, have advantaged over her peers and serve as a huge stepping stone in her learning other languages. (This would be very helpful if Eduardo does work for the US Embassy in the future).

I know that the best way for Livy to learn would be for Eduardo to only speak Spanish to her. He feels awkward speaking Spanish to her. He says that he has forgotten so many words, but I remind him that Livy will not mind or even know that he doesn't remember how to say hedgehog or beaver in Spanish. He does read her books in Spanish often, but that is the extent.

Over the weekend we dropped Livy off at her Abuela and Abuelo's house. It was great to get a away and spend time together but even better for Livy to get to know her grandparents. The plus to it is that they speak only Spanish to her. For this, I wish that we lived closer and we could take Livy to them more often.

I wish that could take over in the language department, but I unfortunately only speak English. I did study German for 3 years in high school and French for a year, but I have forgotten nearly everything that I learned. Although, when we were in Paris a few years ago, some of the French that I learned resurfaced.

I know that it is not too late for Livy to learn Spanish. Do you have any advice on how I can do this?