first hair cut

When I was pregnant, I had a very vivid dream that I gave birth to a curly haired little boy. Well, I did have a little boy, but he didn't have much hair and it definitely wasn't curly. Not that it mattered because all of it fell out with cradle cap and never grew back.

This is the best picture I could find to show the craziness
that was his hair before the haircut. And that is chocolate
all over his face.

Fast forward 1 year. My bald headed baby started growing hair!

Fast forward 6 months. My baby has long flowing locks of curly hair! Oh the precious curls! I was in love! They just curled up in the back like he slept in some perm rods. I never wanted to cut them off. EVER.

Well he was starting to get called a girl by complete strangers even though he was clearly dressed in all boy clothing. My only explanation for this had to be the fact that his hair was hippy long. I definitely didn't want my kid to be that kid. So I new a hair cut was in our immediate future.

I took him to Pig Tails and Crew Cuts here in Little Rock because they really cater to small children and specialize in children's hair cuts.

When we showed up the place was packed. There was 3 boys getting their hair cut and all 3 of them were screaming like Freddy Kruger was the one cutting their hair. Bryce just stared. I don't think he too much minded the screaming, he was too focused on getting in one of the cool cars. When it was finally his turn he did so great! He wasn't scared at all! He sat very still and was very cooperative. He was not a fan of the electric clippers she used on his sideburns, but even then he did very good considering.

I told her to the leave it long and I wanted to keep the curls in the back. She told me he would still look like a baby and not a big boy. I said I don't care, I'm fine with him looking like a baby (because he still is a baby) I just want it trimmed and shaped up a bit. She asked me more questions like if I wanted it completely off his ears and if I wanted the bangs straight across and before I knew it, she had chopped off his curls in the back!!!! I was so mad! I didn't stay too mad too long though, its just hair and will grow back. She gave me a lock of curls in a baggie. He did look completely different! He really did look like a big boy with his hair cut!

People have asked me if I liked going there. I really don't think I'll be going back. They were so busy and I really felt like we were rushed. The whole haircut from start to finish probably took 5 mins. And obviously there was a miscommunication at some point about whether the curls in the back should be cut or not. And it was kinda pricey for a kids cut. So if you know of any awesome places that do kids cuts for an affordable price, let me know!

 

 

 

Stop, colloborate, and listen

So I know Im way behind on my posting.

For Halloween Bryce was Vanilla Bryce! It was a huge hit!

Many people have asked where we came up with the idea. Well I have to give all the credit to Scott. He calls Bryce all sorts of nick names like Bryce-a-roni, Bryce-krispy, Vanilla Bryce. So I made up my mind I was going to make some hammer pants and I never looked back. I have gotten a lot of question on how in the world I made the hammer pants. I didn't use any sort of pattern, so I will try to do my very best explaining it to you.

Bryce already had a pair of hammer-ish looking pants. They are pajama bottoms made by Carters. They have an elastic waste, baggy through the but and thigh, then taper tightly around the ankle area with a band of elastic around the bottom. I decided I would use these pants as my template.

 I bought some awesome gold fabric at Hobby Lobby. (I should really get an endorsement from Hobby Lobby). I layed the pajama pants on the gold fabic. I eye balled it. Yes, that's how I do things around this place. Who has time to add and subtract quarter inches and measure a squirming toddler? Not me. So I traced the outline of the pajama pants with a sharpie. When I traced the pants, I stayed at least an inch away from the pants to allow for a seam allowance and to create extra bagginess. I also purposely made the crotch about 2 inches lower than the pajama pants because this is what makes hammer pants hammer pants. When I say I stayed an inch away, again I was eye balling so it was by no means perfect. I cut out 2 of the outlined pajama pants.

I placed the 2 pieces right sides together and stitched up the outside and inside length of the leg. I did not hem them at all. Again, I don't have time for that. Also, he is wearing these pants once and never again, so it really is a waste of time. If you are washing and wearing these pants regularly, you should hem them.

I bought some elastic at Hobby Lobby (I think it was 1/4 inch but it really doesn't matter) to use for the waist and bottom of the legs. Now I use a really janky method to sew in elastic. I basically taught myself to sew in a era when there was no such thing as a you tube tutorial so I actually do a lot of weird things when I sew. What I did was put the elastic around Bryce's waist to see how long of piece I needed. You want it to be tight (but not too tight) I cut the elastic to the correct length and then sewed the ends together. Now you have a circle of elastic ready to be "installed" into the pants. I think the correct term is "sew a casing", but who are we trying to impress?

So I places the circle of elastic in the pants and folded the fabric over the elastic. I stitched the fabric down. This was not perfect at all. It puckered up in places, and the slick gold fabric slid all the over the place. No one is going to notice anyways. His shirt covered up the waste of the pants anyways. Again, he was only going to wear it once, so no need for perfection. I did this same process around the bottom of the legs.

It took 1 hour and about $10 to make.

Around lunch, he sat down and busted the seam in the crotch. This fabric was super stretchy and I probably didn't use a close enough stitch to really hold it. But again, not a big deal at all, it was a one time thing.

I added a gold chain and a t-shirt with gold lettering to the outfit. I simply cut out the letters myself and used fusible Pellon to iron the letters on the shirt.

I actually had a bunch of pictures on my phone at one point to use a demo but I had to delete them because I was out of memory. Story of my life. sigh.

 

Cheers to a new year!

So I havnt blogged in awhile. It's not because I'm busy or unmotivated. It's mostly because every time I read the blogs I like to follow, I start feeling really depressed about my life.  

Take Jessica Garvin for example. You can check her out at http://littlebabygarvin.blogspot.com  

She's got her shit together. Her house looks like a magazine spread, her gorgeous daughter looks like a living breathing Baby Gap advertisement, she has this amazing job where she works from home, she bakes, she crafts, she can throw a birthday party that would make all other parties look like a joke, Hell, she even has an Etsy shop so you can pay her to make all these beautiful things for you. And to top it all off she's skinny and beautiful. 

What the eff. 

She has perfectly edited Instagram pics of her entirely perfect weekend. Sipping mimosas in the hammock in the huge back yard, a family trip to home depo, spending the afternoon redoing the half bath, snuggling in bed watching a movie.

Can one person really have it all? 

Where are her blog posts about listening to her child scream for the entire ride home from work? Or having to spank her child every single day because her child runs through the parking lot and refuses to get in the car? Or how bout when she has to cook dinner and entertain her child at the same time because her husband works nights? Or not being able to pee, change clothes, take a shower, or do anything because her child wants to join right in? Please tell me her child still sleeps in their bed. Please tell me her husband works nights and is still a full time student. Where is the post about the shit storm that is every day life?

And the worst part is I don't even know this girl. Honest. I just stumbled upon her perfectly charming blog by accident via Pinterest And I've been stalking/ living vicariously through her blog for almost 2 years now. I know. I'm so embarrassed to even admit that.

Even more embarrassing than that was when I dreamed the 2 of us were best friends. And our kids were best friends. An we lived this perfect little life where we would hang out together and shop and make chalkboards together. And I secretly hated her. When I woke up that's when I knew I had a problem. I had let someone, who is borderline fictitious, become this idol of perfection and everything I wanted but didn't have. 

It was so bad that I just had to make myself stop reading her blog, and other blogs like hers. It was robbing me of all my happiness. Well, I guess I should say I was robbing myself. Jessica and her blog were the innocent bystanders in this scenario. 

I had spent so much time and energy comparing my life to a complete strangers and focusing on what I didn't have that I missed so much joy and happiness right in front of me. I have no one to blame but myself. 

We've never had that perfect weekend lounging in the hammock, and I've come to terms with the fact that we probably never will. At least in the forseeable future.

 And it would be terrible of me to think I haven't had a wonderful life because of someone else's blog. What a waste to think that I didn't already have it all. Everything I've always wanted. 

I have so much to be happy about. For starters I have a good man who loves me. He is faithful and loyal to me. Our relationship is built on complete faith and trust. He supports me in all my decisions. He endlessly tries to make me happy, and I all to often refuse to let him. I am completely undeserving of his love.  

I have a perfectly healthy and handsome little boy who adores me. He is so smart and funny. He is my everything and I'm pretty sure he is the only thing that keeps me going most days. 

I have a job where I get to use my gifts and talents. I have a job that provides for my family. I get to invest in our futures by investing in changing a childs life. Who else can go to work and say they are changing the world one day at a time? I may not make as much as I would like to have the life I dream of, but I make just enough to have what my family needs. 

I have an endless support system of parents, in laws, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and the best brother anyone could ask for.  

Sometimes I get overwhelmed with the stage of life I'm in. Who doesn't? I bet even good ole Jessica has her moments, she just doesn't blog about it.  

So I've bought a little journal to record these little moments of perfection and happiness so that when it feels like my life is in a blender I can remember every single little reason to be perfectly happy. 

So cheers to a new year! My goal for 2014 is to be happy. It really is that simple. I need to learn to focus on what I already have, which is all ill ever need.

And cheers to Jessica! I don't know you, but I know your awesome! And if by chance you read this, I promise I didn't escape a mental hospital. 

Toddler Gift Guide: Under &10

 

So I've been doing some online pre-shopping for Christmas and I've found some really great deals! Some of this stuff I really couldn't believe how cheap it was. If you are shopping for a toddler or a small child, you should check some of this stuff out! Of course, all of the websites had awesome toys for any price range, but here is the cheapest of the awesomeness.

 

Giant Clipboard

Pottery Barn Kids

$9

http://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/jumbo-clipboard/?pkey=cdecor-organization

What I love: It doesn't take up room like an art easel would. It also doubles as a chalkboard.

 

MULA 24 Building Blocks with Wagon

IKEA

$7

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80028929/

What I love: I love that its only 24 pieces (because lets be honest, who wants to pick up 117 pieces) and I love that it comes in a wagon!

 

LILLABO Toy Vehicles
IKEA

$9.99 (3pack)

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40171472/

What I love: They are made out wood, perfect size for a toddlers hand, and don't make obnoxious noises.

 

 

 

 

Just Like Home Broom Set

Toys R Us

$6.99

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=12918230&cp=2255956.2273442.2256395.4486211.2256451&parentPage=family

What I love: I love that it isn't pink. I could write a whole other blog post on that.

 

Melissa and Doug Puzzle

Anywhere (Walmart, Target, Toys R Us)

$7.99

What I love: I've always been a fan of Melissa and Doug. Durable, simple pattern, promotes fine motor skills and hand eye coordination. They have puzzles for any theme.

 

 

Dirty Cars by ALEX

Really Great Toys

$9.49

http://www.reallygreattoys.com/product/79726/dirty-cars

What I love: I love that the dirt "disappears" when you pour warm water over it! ALEX makes all sorts of bath toys for girls and boys! You should really check them out! They also make really great learning toys as well.

 

 

 

 

Pumpkin Patch

 

 

This year we took Bryce to Motley's Farm. We loved it! There was so much to do! Best of all, it was in town and cost to get in the gate and then you could do as little or as much as you liked.

 

 

 

We started off with a hay ride. He was more interested in the tractor pulling the hay ride than anything else.

They had a petting zoo area with all sorts of farm animals.

This is as close as he was willing to get. I have no idea where he got his scaredy pants genes from, haha!

 

He was so cute pointing to all the animals and making their noises at them.

 

Hay mountain. He was kinda freaked out by the hay. Are you seeing a pattern here? He doesn't like anything new or different.

Once he got to the top, he was so proud.

Scott was an awesome dad and climbed up on the hay and made all the cracked out big kids to quit pushing Bryce out of the way and to let him have a turn on the slide.

Again, he was scared of the slide. He isn't used to one that big.

They had a maze made out of hay bales. He loved running around and around in there. I stood at the exit and Scott at the entrance to make sure he didn't escape unnoticed.

The older kids were playing hide and go seek inside the maze. Bryce didn't understand of course, so he just followed that little cutie there with bow around and would hunker down with her. Then, Bryce and the little girl went into an area of the maze where I couldn't see him. Then, the little girl started screaming something awful. Her dad jumped the bales to her rescue. She was covered in ants! It was a terrifying moment for me because I had just seen Bryce go around the corner with her and now I couldn't see or hear him. He probably was covered in ants too and I couldn't reach him. There was a commotion, as you can imagine, with parents jumping the walls, snatching up their own kids, tearing their clothing off searching for ants. They were pouring bottled water over the screaming girl in an effort to get the ants off.  When I finally saw Bryce, he was panicking. Luckily he didn't have ants on him and he was just freaking out because of the mass hysteria.

Overall, we had a great time!

18 months

So Bryce definitely has his own little personality and opinions on things these days. It's been so much fun watching him grow and turn into a toddler (a little adult) right in front of my eyes. Here are some of the moments I wish to remember from these days. 

1) he is crazy about trucks! In the way to school we ride down the freeway and Bryce has his eye out for trucks. He screams "duck" and points out the window

2) his favorite shape is oval. I don't know why, but he loves to find ovals everywhere we go. The old navy sign, the Ford logo, a number zero, and anything else he can see. I'm curious if he knows his other shapes but oval is just the easiest to say. 

3) he has taken an interest in watching TV. I still limit his TV watching, but it is a MUST when you are basically a single mom. It's pretty much impossible to get anything done when Scott isn't around to entertain him. 

4) he have pooped in the potty! We haven't don't it again since, but I'm not stressing. I think he'll be more ready around 2

5) he has started to pretend play. He loves to make his toy cow moo and stomp all over me. The pig too. It's a lot of fun. 

6) he does this Tim the Tool Man Taylor grunting for "yes". For example "Bryce, you wanna play outside?" He responds with grunting. It's really cute. 

7) he loves bananas! He goes to the kitchens saying "nana, nana, nana" until he gets what he wants. I'm creating a monster, I know. 

8)he know only cries for 10 secs if he cries at all when I put him in his crib. Some nights he actually points to the crib and throws himself into it. He is so cute when he pulls Curious George up under his arm.  At least a few nights a week he actually sleeps trough the night without waking at all.  

9) he is so independent. He feeds himself and has been for awhile now. He attempts to put on his shoes and socks, but we are a long way from accomplishing that. He can drink from a straw cup with ease and understands not to tip it up or it won't work.

10) he is such a problem solver. The other day he was trying to pick up his paci and his sippy cup at the same time. His sippy cup doesn't have any handles so he had to grip the entire cup. He was trying to grip the cup with one hand while the other hand picked up the paci. This didn't work. He needed both hands to pick up the cup. He tried both hands while the paci was still in his hand. This didn't work either. So he put the paci down and focused on the cup. Once he had it wedged between his arm and body he then went back for the paci.   I'm so excited to see this develop. Dynamic vs static brain development, you know I'm all into that. 

11) he thinks that the longer he holds out the N, the more serious his "no" is. Lets change your diaper. Nnnnnnnnnnno

12) spanking is a waste of time. He is about as hard headed as I am. We have been trying timeout. Surprisingly he actually stays in time out, usually pouting and looking over his shoulder to give us some pathetic heart melting face of repentance. It's like he really understands WHY he is in timeout. Yes I know what all the research says about time out before 3, but I know my child. He knows. 

13) he is terrified of vacuums, hair dryers, animals, and people in wheelchairs. Not sure about the wheelchair thing, he is around them all the time at school. 

DIY Painted Canvas Curtains

So in the 4 years we've been married, we've only had curtains on our windows once. When we lived in the basement apartment in Provo, I bought some $8 valance curtains at Walmart. In all the places we've lived, out windows have always been curtainless. Why? Idk, I guess when getting settled curtains are kinda last on the list I guess. Also, I think they are kinda stupidly priced. By the time you buy 2 panels (presumably for 1 window) and the curtain rod, you've spent $50. I'm cheap, so this doesn't work for me. 

I saw on Pinterest where they made curtains by buying a drop cloth at home depo, cut it up the middle, painted the 2 panels and then hung then up. Sorry I don't remember which blog it came from so sorry I can't give them credit for the idea. 

I bought the drop cloth at home depo for about $11. It just happened to be the perfect size. I have 10ft ceilings and wanted them to hang from really high up.

  I cut it right up the middle. I didn't really measure, just folded in half and cut. It's not a quilt or anything, so being precise doesn't really matter. The great thing about using the drop cloth is that you get a lot of fabric for cheap but also it's already hemmed all the way around! Now that you've cut up the middle you have 2 raw edges. You can fold the raw edge back an hot glue it down. I actually was out of hot glue, so I just decided to see it anyways. Not a big deal, just a straight stitch. So to make the sleeve for the rod, I just folded the top over a few inches and made another straight stitch. Again you can hot glue just as easy. 

For the painting you can use craft paint or fabric paint but for some crazy reason I thought I should use latex paint. I guess bc I had some red left from the cabinet doors I redid. It worked out fine, just smelled up my apartment for days. My original plan was to do something trendy like chevron, thick stripes,maybe even an ombré look. But then after a good look a around my living room I decide I really needed something really simple. There is a lot if busyness in the rug and lots I color  on the walls and the ladder shelf, so I didn't want to make it too crazy. So I decided to just paint the bottom 1/4 red and leave the rest plain. I did measure and tape off where I wanted the paint so it would be straight and even on both panels. 

I know it's hidden behind the TV. My thinking was that we won't be in this apartment forever. The tv isn't always going to be in front of the window. 

I spent about $25 total after I bought the   curtain rod and the paint. So I saved myself about 50%! 

I love how it completely changed the room! It feels so much more homey! I definitely underestimated the value in having curtains!