Showing posts with label new things. Show all posts
Showing posts with label new things. Show all posts

Saturday, December 20, 2014

We’ve moved!

Well, our life has been on a little roller coaster ride and it’s been going in circles so fast I haven’t had time to update my blog!

As the title suggests, we have packed up our belongings from our beloved little house in Seward, Nebraska, and moved west to Colorado. This wasn’t an easy decision, but we are following our hearts and where God is leading our little family-of-three’s (or four, I guess we need to include Hank the cow dog as he is along for the ride!) life.

It all started back in the end of May when we found out that my parent’s neighbors were going to be moving and wanted to offer their house before they put it on the market. We went to look at it in June and did a lot of praying and number crunching to see if we could make this work and if this is what God had in mind for us.

After coming up with every reason not to, God kept opening doors, including making our finances work out, selling of our Seward house in 23 days (even doing so for sale by owner, thanks Zillow!), and providing jobs for both Ronny and I.

While it was bittersweet to leave our dear friends and great jobs in Nebraska, we are so thankful for the opportunity to be closer to family and be involved in the family ranch.

We still have boxes to unpack, things to organize, a little painting to do and furniture to buy, but we are loving life in the country, close to Nana and Papa and spending more, precious time with our little boy. We love visitors so let us know if you’re ever in the area!
DSC05760
All thanks be to God for His Blessings!

Monday, June 2, 2014

Captain Chisum’s Chariot

Chisum has earned the nickname, “Captain” from his Nana and Papa Joe. Thus, the grandparents thought the little Captain needed a chariot!DSC05668

I had talked about how a bike trailer would be a lot of fun, and when mom found one at a consignment store, I told her to grab it. On Memorial Day, Ronny got the chariot all hooked up to my bike and we took it for a spin around the cemetery to see all of the flags.
DSC05675

Hank was just as (or more!) excited than Captain!DSC05670

DSC05674

It was fun and Hank was tired! We will be trying the trail, next!
DSC05677

Friday, February 21, 2014

Beauty Swap

I had fun participating in an ag-gal beauty swap through my friend Crystal, over on Crystal Cattle’s blog. Crystal paired me with Jamie (@jamielmay on Instagram and Twitter). Jamie is going to be a new mommy soon, so we had fun swapping pregnancy stories and talking about beauty items that are good for a quick fix. We also decided we are soul sisters when it comes to sewing, quilting and crafting!

And she sent me a rockin’ beauty box.
IMG_20140214_163357

She totally encapsulated my fast-paced, working-mom lifestyle with these products. In it was: Oscar Blandi hair texture spray (love. – great for 2nd day hair), YES cucumber wipes (again, great for tired nights to wash my face fast – and very refreshing), Insta-Dri (dry painted nails in 30-seconds!), E.L.F. Brush, L’Bri products and Fake-Up (perfect for my tired eyes).

Last night I braved painting my nails (with the polish I got myself when I was shopping for Jamie’s beauty box :) ) after putting Chisum to bed, hoping that he wouldn’t wakeup mid-paint. I heard him stirring some while I was finishing up, and I used the Sally Hansen Insta-Dri. I check my phone for a text message and by the time I got to my text, my nails were dry. Ah-mazing. No more smudges or worrying about getting my nails dry before I have to pick up the baby.

20140221_151520 (1)

It was so much fun to get to know Jamie through this exchange and I’m glad I have a new friend. So excited to celebrate with her when Baby P arrives soon!

Saturday, September 7, 2013

The 41 week club

Well, we officially made it to the 41 week club! Not sure to be whether to be excited or frustrated, but God has been granting me patience and we’re so thankful to Him for a healthy baby. A healthy baby that just happens to be too comfy!

38 weeks :: 39 weeks
(We didn’t get a 40 week pic and I need to take one today of 41)
39 weeks-4

Ronny and I decided to go do something fun yesterday together to get our minds off of things and hopefully convince baby to join us. And we didn’t want to leave Hank at home, so we went to Branched Oak Lake and had a picnic then went hiking.

Hank was probably the most excited of all of us.
DSC04437
DSC04439

We had a nice view for our picnic. It was a hot day, but the breeze in the shade kept us cool.
imageimage_1

The hike was nice to get out and walk, and tire Hank (and me!) out.
image_2

In the evening we went to dinner with Shelley and Katelin, then to the high school football game. It was still a warm evening, but nice to be out and about.

The other good thing about having extra time at home is to finish projects that have been sitting around for a while! I finally “finished” my purple, K-State guest room. Ronny and my diplomas have been sitting framed on the floor for a while – ok a couple of years.

And once I got this awesome custom canvas from my friend, Alicia from our baby shower, I decided it would be perfect in this room. She free-handed this! I also want to give her a shout-out for her photography business – if you’re in the Topeka/Manhattan area she has awesome skills!
Purple guest room (3)
Purple guest roomPurple guest room (4)

Ok, we are really ready for you now, Baby Pope!

Sunday, August 25, 2013

Baby Nursery Tour

With a week before Baby Pope is due to be born, we’re happy with the outcome of the room for him/her to come home to. After the sneak peek I posted in July, I’ve completed quite a bit of sewing and Ronny has helped a lot with reorganizing.

I was inspired for the colors of the room from the fabric {Moda’s Baby Jane} that I used to make the crib quilt. I also liked the vintage/antique feel for decorations, so I found a lot of the decorations from antique stores and from Ronny and I’s childhood. DSC04395

My grandparents gave us this beautiful, antique dresser for baby’s room. It is the perfect size for the changing pad and a bin for easy access to diapers, wipes, and creams. DSC04406

The wall collage was a work in progress that I’ve been collecting for some time. I’m thankful for Ronny and his measuring tape/level skills. He made sure it was all even. I would have just eyeballed it. :)DSC04396

I made this small quilt hanging out of scrap fabric from my quilt. It was my first paper-piecing quilting project. I used this cow pattern, and included mini-flying geese as well. When putting on the binding, I included large, white rick-rack and hung the wall hanging inside of a frame I found from Goodwill that I spray painted white.
DSC04398

This year when we were visiting the National Western Stock Show, I came across this poem call, “The Tradition” and I loved the ending paragraph. Frame also found at Goodwill.
DSC04399

I love Golden Books. And since this book had a cow and the perfect colors for the baby’s room, I framed it (in another spray painted frame from Goodwill.)DSC04400

This piece is a yarn art that I found in my grade-school crafts box. I’m not sure when I created it, but I love the colors. It was hung in my office, but I switched frames.
DSC04401

I left one small square frame to put a baby picture in.
DSC04402

I also made the crib mobile. Using this tutorial, I simply printed out the steer and bird silhouettes for the pattern. I made fabric/batting sandwiches, sewed around the steers and birds, then cut them out. I used Fray Check to keep the edges from fraying. Then I used embroidery floss to attach each one and tied to an embroidery hoop. Ronny said baby will get to start their livestock judging skills early with this pen of five. :)
 DSC04419DSC04403

The other side of the room includes our glider chair (that I originally got for my office), book shelf, Ronny’s childhood rocker and bear, pallet shelf and the laundry basket that I scored at a craft show.
DSC04410

This shelf was passed down from Ronny’s family. I found the wood crate and freezer basket at antique stores for books, and my friend, Maggie gave us the FEED wire basket that I’m using for toys. My friend, Georgia’s dad repurposed the lamp and painted it turquoise. I love it!
DSC04411

I think Ronny’s nesting kicked in before mine because he organized the whole closet!DSC04413

We are using this basinet that was my Dad’s, and each one of us kids slept in. The frame above it is from the Colorado Baby Shower where my family and “mom’s” each included a Bible verse.
DSC04414DSC04418

For the sewing projects, I used the sizing for the crib skirt from this tutorial I found on Pinterest, but instead of velcro, I attached ribbons. I liked the idea of using ribbons to tie on the skirt so I can easily move it up as I move the mattress down. I incorporated the flying geese pattern that I used on the quilt as well.
DSC04408
DSC04330

I struggled to find a changing pad cover online to buy, so I used this tutorial to make my own. I had a strip of the turquoise, ABC’s fabric so I put it in there for some fun color.
DSC04332DSC04336

The last thing not in nursery right now, but is a nice addition for Baby Pope coming is this beautiful rocking chair from Grandpa and Grandma Bailey. We picked it out at a local Amish store, and I love that I’ll be able to do lots of rocking and cuddling in it very soon!
DSC04428

Saturday, July 13, 2013

Gone fishin’

Last Sunday afternoon, my nephews and niece begged their uncles to take them fishing. So they did and the grandparents joined us.

It was a warm day and unfortunately all they caught was moss, but fun nonetheless!
DSC04142
DSC04146DSC04149DSC04157

Hank (the non-water dog) wasn’t a fan of fishing or the heat. But he became a fan of water for a little while to cool down!DSC04159DSC04164DSC04184DSC04174

Grandpa and Grandma – there is not much they wouldn’t do for these kids!DSC04176DSC04182

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Nursery sneak-peek

Ronny and I worked on the baby’s room two weekends ago. He was pretty adamant about getting it all ready! And I’m glad he did. I still have a few things I want to put up on the walls, but I’ll give you a sneak-peek to what it looks like.

It’s a little different than my home-office redo. But exciting at the same time. I’ll still be incorporating some of my favorite things from my office.

Ronny is so excited. :)
DSC04100
DSC04102DSC04103

Hank claimed his spot in the room.
DSC04106

New shelves!DSC04110

The final product to come!