exciting times

new year, new rug? apparently so. phil and isa made an early morning trip to riverton this morning to pick up a new (very large) area rug for the living/dining room. it's been on the list of things to replace since we moved into the house three years ago and we're just now getting around to it. we're also finally replacing the roman shades on the two big side windows in the living room with wooden blinds. so those are our big plans for the new year's holiday... watch out world, exciting times in the schneiderpants household ;)

as they say...

sometimes the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. isa just looked at me (totally serious) and said, "Mommy I can really appreciate a fabric with so many colors." she was referring to the shirt she was wearing, that just happened to match her mardi gras beads.

well, ok then. guess i am not the only one who gets excited about colorful fabric in this family?

all play and no work?

ok, maybe not ALL play... but for the most part, the title sums up my little vacation shop closure. with the exception of a half dozen local orders here and there, i have done almost no work at all since december 21st. and that my friends, has been blissful. it's been really nice to have a vacation at home, where we could actually get things done that we have been meaning to do for too long now. and to lounge around in our pjs and read books and play with new toys and cook nice dinners and not worry too much about how long anyone naps (or doesn't nap in isa's case). this is one of those times that i am quite happy to be my own boss.

but the fun can't last forever of course, so the shop will be open again next Monday. i guess it will be nice to get back to sewing. atleast a little. and there are going to be lots of new things to unveil, so that's exciting too.

in the meantime, i still have a few more days. yes, i am counting.

happy thirteen months sylvi!

sylvi blue eyes is thirteen months old today! yippee! and she is a walking, talking, snuggling little toddler now. how did that happen? i don't know, but it most certainly did and we are loving every minute of it.

so what's new in sylvi's world? she is signing more words now. she can reliably answer more questions with either a sign or her version of the word ("mo" for more, "No, no, no!" for no, etc). for the most part, she is pretty agreeable and other than the predictable late afternoon fussiness, she rarely complains. now that she is fully walking, she can get into anything and everything and follows her sister around for most of the day. just watching isa seems to be enough entertainment in general. she is starting to climb things however, which means that we have to watch her more carefully-- she has yet to take a big enough spill to put her new found freedom in check.

she still has two teeth on the bottom and while she does chew on her fingers regularly, there don't seem to be anymore teeth in the near future. good thing, since she is finally starting to progress in the sleeping arena! now if we can just keep her well long enough to get her consistantly snoozing, we may just get some really good rest around here :)

in the meantime, we have a very sweet thirteen month old to snuggle! we love you sylvi!

this old house: past, present, and future

or maybe i should call this post, "Oh my god, remember when it was green and lush and warm?" or how about, "When are these negative temperatures going to end?" or "Remember when our kid used to be able to run around outside half naked?"

ahem. anyway. i was getting all geared up to do a house post when i stumbled upon these summer pictures-- complete with unfinished fence, no deck, lovely garden, weeds sprouting up everywhere goodness. and it reminded that it's been a cold winter. and that we really love this little house! which brings me back to the original reason for the post: we are starting to look for another house and will soon be entertaining interest in this one. it's actually a little hard to write out, because we have spent so much time and energy on this place and we love it for so many reasons. but we are starting to like the idea of more space and so we are now looking. but being that it's winter and the market is only beginning to dig itself out of the dumps, there isn't a whole lot out there. since we are not in a hurry though, we do have some time on our side... so here's hoping we stumble upon something we like as much as this place... with about 1000 more square feet!

festivities

it's been both a chaotic and restful holiday, all rolled into one! yesterday evening we had a wonderful dinner with our neighbors Sam and Lee, followed by a mostly quiet night. isa was so tired by the end of the night that i don't think she even remembered that today was christmas! this meant that she actually slept in this morning and didn't start asking to open presents until after we had all gotten up and eaten breakfast! once the present opening began though, it was pretty chaotic. sylvi looked a little bewildered at times but had fun ripping into the packages none the less.

we had christmas brunch over at the Schell's house. it's amazing what a house full of new toys can do for little kids-- there was nary a whimper or fuss or complaint and they all entertained themselves for the better part of the morning. this meant that the adults actually got to sit down and eat an entirely peaceful meal. now that is a christmas miracle!

christmas 2009

worth a thousand words, or so they say :)

merry christmas and happy holidays!

merry christmas and happy holidays from our house to yours! here is this year's christmas card, thanks to Pop Pop for scanning it in for us! we always have aspirations of doing really simple, inexpensive cards and then we get all carried away with the awesome designs out there and the rest is history. but i love this year's card more than any of them i think, though it's hard to choose. this one just seemed to fit us and i got to use my favorite picture for the front. we also liked the little photos and blurbs about the girls-- even if it was hard to limit a year's worth of news into a few sentences!

for those squinting to see the fine print at the bottom, it's a little info about the World Wildlife Fund, which receives a portion of revenue from each card sold.

isa's first ice skating!

we've gotten lucky with some warmer temperatures lately (read: above 20F) so we thought we'd take advantage and hit the ice! the local ice rink, which is normally the little league baseball field, has been up and running for a while now and isa has been chomping at the bit to try skating. so on tuesday we made an impromptu trip and i am happy to report that it was ALOT of fun for all involved. we had no idea what to expect, or if we'd even be able to find skates small enough, but i was really surprised with how fast she caught on. we were able to rent double-blade skates, which are easier to balance on, and had our friends emmie and morgan there to help as well (if for nothing more than motivation and morale). after pretty much insisting on being pushed along by daddy for the first few minutes, isa was able to stand up and move on her own before it was all said and done. the bucket you see in one photo was actually great for letting her practice moving her feet while not having to worry too much about balance. she took her share of spills but was perfectly happy to get up and try again. and again and again.

for her part, sylvi was partly amused and partly annoyed. once she realized that daddy and sister were on the ice, she wanted no part of sitting in the Chariot on the sidelines. she was practically climbing out of my arms and trying to get through the fence! guess that means we should just invest in skates for both of them next year, as i see alot of hang out time at the ice rink in our future.

p.s. i recommend double clicking on the album so you can see the photos enlarged. you get a better glimpse of isa's expressions that way ;)

progress

in our short little time away from the blog, sylvi has made some big progress. as you can see here, she clearly knows her alphabet and has started writing names and words on her own. ok, maybe not... but... she does love to color! it's actually a useful little past time, as it will occupy her for a few minutes when i need to keep her contained and content. contained you may be thinking? yes, as in immobile. she is officially walking now (and still crawls really stinkin' fast when she's on a mission) so if there is ever a need to keep her out of trouble, a good pen and paper will usually do the trick! more on that walking thing soon!

big sigh.

of relief, that is. we made it through the week and everyone seems to be on the mend. bout time! in addition, the christmas shopping is done, the presents are all wrapped, and we're all looking forward to a short week before Christmas. only a few more orders to get out in the shop and i'll be on vacation too!

here in the infirmary...

a week with no posts... that might be a record. but we've had a record season of sickies around here, so that's my excuse. sylvi landed herself in the ER sunday night with a wicked case of croup and an ear infection. she is doing alot better this morning but she's been a sick little cookie. it started with a cold for both of us almost two weeks ago and we're still dealing with it. i am headed to the walk-in clinic myself today for a likely sinus infection. isa started getting sick with it yesterday-- she actually fell asleep during rest time, which almost always means she is getting sick. and sure enough, she woke up with flushed cheeks and a fever. aside from the fever, she is generally pretty happy and has been content to lay in the recliner and watch netflix. that's ok by me!

so, that's the scoop. we're hoping that phil can maintain his daddy superpowers and not get sick! in the meantime, we'll be laying low here until everyone is well. since we've been sick since september (or atleast it feels that way) and it's almost the winter solstice, we're hoping hoping hoping that the second half of the winter will be germ free! here's hoping.

decking the halls

one of two little helpers.

the finished product.

handmade sweater stockings (a la etsy).

we finally got the tree up tonight! isa and daddy picked this one out today at lunch time and i have to say, they picked a mighty nice tree! we weren't entirely sure what it might be like full decked out, as when we brought it inside this evening it was frozen solid. phil cut the string around it, thinking the branches would pop out (remember that scene from National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation?) and nothing happened... not a single needle fell into place. so we had to let it thaw for a while before decorating it, obviously.

aside from the wreath that needs to be hung, we are pretty much ready for Christmas in this house. some of us are more ready than others-- there is a particular three year old that is beside herself with excitement. two mornings ago she stepped out the door for preschool and yelled, "Hooray! It's Christmas time everybody!" and it didn't bother her one bit that there may not have been anyone out there to hear her. this afternoon she asked to come out of her room at naptime because, "it's not naptime mommy, it's Christmas time!" point taken.

day to day

no, don't worry. we haven't forgotten that this is primarily a baby blog ;) not a whole lot going on here in the day to day life. it's really stinkin' cold out lately, so i guess that's noteworthy? the high today was supposed to be zero and the low tonight is -19F... so need less to say, we're not really getting out to play much. just the every day preschool pick up/grocery getting/errand running. it takes alot of time and effort to get both of them ready for sub-zero weather, so there had better be a good reason for all of us getting out of the house!

in the meantime, there is always bathtime! that's a big hit around here these days. they love taking a bath together and would prefer it over anything else. isa has been really gentle and careful with sharing the tub with sylvi, though she occasionally has to be reminded not to pour too much water over her head! and of course sylvi is happy as a clam because not only does she get to play in the water, but she gets to do it with her big sister. it's a win win all the way around.

there you go, your baby blog quota has been filled for the day ;)

the scarves are up!

the Peacock

the Entomology

the Pumpkin Spice

the Bluebird

the scarves are photographed and on their way to the shop-- hopefully they'll all be listed by tonight! in the meantime, you can see them on the Mountain Aven Baby facebook fan page, including details on the fabric, dimensions, price, etc. if you don't want to wait for the etsy listings, send me a note here or on Facebook :)

Art in the Afternoon 2009

here are some pictures from yesterday's Art in the Afternoon! i am pleased to report that it was a great success... woohoo! on top of being a good year for sales, it was also alot of fun. i was really glad to have all that extra inventory left over from billings, because it meant that i had very little work to do in the weeks leading up to this show. given all that has been going on around here, that was a huge relief. that being said, i am still so tired today and glad it's over! there was only one small snaffu with getting things together. you'll notice that i offered some market totes this year. due to an order problem, some of my fabric didn't get here in time so i had less bags than i planned. as predicted, they sold really fast! oh well, will just have to do more for next year... and double check that my fabric order completes in time! i was really pleased with where i was located this year as well. the layout worked well, it was in a really high traffic/visible area and it was right next to the beer and wine... and that never hurts!

out of about 70 scarves, there are about 20 left that will be loaded on to the shop page soon! stay tuned, i'll add a link to them once they're up!

so that's the scoop. now there are just the online holiday orders to charge through before it's time for a little R&R.

Sylvi at Twelve Months...

i've been meaning to get this post together for a week now, and have been thinking about it for alot longer than that! i am still trying to wrap my head around the fact that the smiley, peaceful newborn that was Sylvi is now an (almost) walking, talking one year old! as for temperment, she is just as sweet and gentle as the day she was born. she smiles at anyone and still has no fear of new people or new places. she loves to snuggle and lights up when her favorite people enter the room. play peek-a-boo with her and she thinks it's the funniest game in the world!

she is SO close to walking on her own and will take a few steps at a time before deciding that she'd be better off crawling to get to where she is going! she is pretty cautious about taking steps and would rather drop to her knees and scoot than take more than a step or two and chance at falling. although when she does decide to take off, she is going to be FAST! she's had plenty of practice, so we are bracing ourselves for Nosey Rosie getting into even more once she is walking on her own.

as we suspected, she is already a talker. she says Mama, Dada, Meow, Hi, Bye, Cat, Banana and Baby reliably. and she can sign More, Milk, All Done, Goodnight, Baby and Bath. she is also putting together associations-- she finds socks and shoes on the floor and tries to put them on her feet or picks up washclothes in the bath tub and rubs her face and chest with them. it's amazing to see everything she absorbs without any direction! being that she is so vocal and expressive, she is really good at making herself heard in a crowd. especially in a room full of other kids and (talking) adults, she will crawl out in the open and start jabbering away as loud as she can, as if to say, "Hello! I am here! Don't forget about the baby!"

on a slightly different note, she had her Well Baby Visit last week and is right where she should be in terms of development and growth. she weighed in at 18lbs 13oz. though i didn't get the actual numbers, she is right at the 50th percentile for height and about the 40th for weight.

there you have it, Sylvi at twelve months!

busy little bees

the sparse blogging trend continues, atleast for a few more weeks. it's been super, super busy in the shop (thank goodness) and while that is a good thing, it means there is alot of work to be done before the holidays are over. Art in the Afternoon is this Sunday too! yay! it's one of my favorite days of the year and i am looking forward to it. in the meantime though, we're holding down the fort and hunkering down for winter. it's even snowing outside...