Dedication to the Lord

My son, Brantley is 2 months old. We dedicated him to the Lord at church yesterday. What an awesome and powerful day. We just made a huge commitment to raise him in a Christian home. It is our job to be Godly parents and to raise Brantley to love the Lord. We made this same commitment when our daughter, Madison, was about 4 months old.

When my daughter was dedicated, I asked my grandmother and mother to sew a dress for her.  It was beautiful. I wanted Brantley to have a handmade outfit as well, but I didn't want to ask them to sew it since I didn't decide to do it until 2 weeks ago.  So, I chose a simple  dedication bubble.  I used the Creations by Michie pattern #126.

I learned a lot while making this bubble. I had never before sewn tucks or a Madeira trim.  The placket was new, as well as hand embroidery. The cross is hand embroidered using a padded satin stitch.  The small dots are called French knots.  This bubble definitely contains its fair share of flaws, but I am proud of it anyway.

Following church, our family went to lunch. There we were able to meet our niece who was born on the same day as Brantley.

Check out my husband's haircut....I did that!  He trusted ME to cut his hair.  I thought it turned out pretty good!

Happy Birthday, Madison

Happy birthday to my beautiful, sweet daughter, Madison. I love you so much....more than you will understand until you have your own children. Thank you for three fun filled years! I can't wait to see what the next 60 years will bring us.

Sorry for the dark pic. We are at Chick-fil-a and she was too busy to pose in a good spot for lighting.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Circus

We took our 2 (almost 3) year old to the circus for the first time last night. We didn't attempt to take Brantley.  Madison loved it!  I'll have to admit, we enjoyed it too.  She even rode a pony.  I couldn't believe it.  We can't even get her to ride a pony on the carousel at the mall. She always chooses to ride in the carriage....but, hey, the princess belongs in the carriage anyway.  :) When you look at the pic of her on the pony you will see that she wasn't in her comfort zone.

My brother, Josh, and my niece, Sophia, joined us.  Actually, we joined them. It was their idea!  Thanks for the invite.  My sister-in-law, Elizabeth, wasn't able to join us.  We missed you!

The pony ride!

They had so much fun!  I enjoyed watching them watch the performers and the animals.

What am I reading?

I am finally reading, The Power of a Praying Parent by Stormie Omartian. My mother-in-law loaned this book to me YEARS ago (sorry, Ms. Sandra-I will return it soon!). My BF, Kelli, recently reminded me that Omartian's books regarding the power of praying were great books. So, I am finally reading them, starting with The Power of a Praying Parent. I have only read the first chapter at this point, but I have already gotten several valuable reminders. My favorite so far is, "Prayer is much more than just giving a list of desires to God, as if He were the great Sugar Daddy/Santa Claus in the sky...It's seeking the presence of God and releasing the power of God which gives us the means to overcome any problem." I already knew this, but sometimes it is good to be reminded.

Next, I plan to read to read The Power of a Praying Wife.

Have a blessed week!
Caz


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich

I made a roast with potatoes and carrots. It was a simple crockpot recipe that I got from kellyskornerrecipes.blogspot.com

There were plenty of leftovers. I sautéd some onion and green bell pepper strips in a little EVOO. I added some Worcestershire sauce and broth from the roast. Then, I added some of the shredded roast. After the veggies were tender and the meat was hot, I stacked them up and topped it with some cheddar cheese and white American cheese. I placed all of this deliciousness on a hoagie roll. Oh, my, goodness. It was soooooooo good!

I warmed some of the broth for dipping, but it wasn't needed. The sandwich was perfect without it!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

My Sweet Baby Boy

Introducing.... Brantley!!!

Big Sister loves her baby brother!

Orientation Day at Mom's Day Out

Madison will be attending a Mom's Day Out program one day a week this year.  This is her first year.  She is really excited, and so am I! Today she got to meet her teacher, Ms. Stephanie.  It turns out....I know her teacher.  We graduated from college together.  I volunteered to be the room mother, and I am really excited about that!!! I welcome any and all fabulous ideas.

As you can see, Madison took flowers to her teacher. She got to help me with the arrangement, and she was really excited to give them to her.  She walked right in the classroom and said, "Hi, I'm Madison!" The flower idea came from the blog, Little Pumpkin Grace...and Baby Hudson too.

An outfit for Madison

I am so proud of this outfit. I think Madison might wear it to her first day of Mom's Day Out. I hope to get it monogrammed first.

For those interested, I used a pattern by Bonnie Blue called Hallie. It was very simple to make. There are 2 tops to choose from. Plus, you can choose to make knee length pants or ankle length. I chose the knee length. It actually falls just below her knees.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

I've been sewing!

Last week I was able to do some sewing! I finished a John-John for my baby boy, an outfit for my daughter and an a-line dress for a friend's niece. I can't wait to show you the outfit I sewed for Madison. I still want to get it monogrammed. She might wear it to her first day of Mom's Day Out. Here is a pic of the a-line dress with a ruffle. If anyone knows an easy way to a add a ruffle to these boogers...please tell me! It gave me fits! I use the Martha Pullen instructions for a basic a-line dress. The same instructions will not work when you want to add a ruffle. There has to be a simple way.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Perhaps I'm Nesting?...Organizing the Playroom

With only 16 days until my induction, I think the nesting phase has begun!

99% of the time, the playroom looks like a tornado tore through it.  It amazes me that kids will play in a space with little to no walking room......BECAUSE THEY THREW ALL OF THE TOYS ON THE FLOOR!!!  I had a very easy storage system in there at first. There were two huge toy baskets and a book shelf. The playroom has an itty bitty closet, but it hasn't been used because there were no shelves in there.  Well, instead of waiting on someone to build shelves for me, I decided to buy a cheap shelving system that I could install myself.  I went to Big Lots and purchased some toy bins, and I made my own labels.  My daughter is only 2 so I needed labels that she could recognize by sight.  Therefore, I found images that were very recognizable. You are welcome to use them too.

Toy Bin Labels

Here are some pics of the organized playroom.  I wish it could stay like this forever!