so long snow

so this was the one "big" snow we had this month. seriously if you blinked it was pretty much all gone. with march around the corner it seems kinda pointless to wish for snow. i'm pretty much in spring mode now and ready to be outside enjoying the weather. as i'm sure everyone else is.

the aviator

this will be the first of many posts about our halloween holiday. i thought i'd start with the little man's costume. or i should say one of his three costumes. yes, my parents and aaron's dad both sent costumes for him. and since he had two to choose from i decided there really was no reason for me to worry about making him a costume. both were adorable and warm. (see above photos) but while out searching for bits and pieces for our costumes, i found a little bomber jacket for $2. and *ding, ding* i knew i'd be making him a costume now. especially since it would sorta tie into our costumes.


i was able to find a generic pattern to make an aviator cap. i lined the ear flaps and headband with fleece to make it a little more comfortable for him to wear. i also knew he probably would not wear goggles, so i made a pair using black felt, gold paint and clear plastic all of which i happened to have lying around. i attached them to his hat and used a piece of crepe paper to to make the strap. (i would probably modify this part since it was pretty much shredded after the second wear. but it served its purpose for the most part.) his scarf is actually part of the slip from my costume. the slip was too long for what i wanted to use it for so i cut it down and used the excess to make his scarf. his pants are his normal pants. and the last thing i made were his spats. i found a pattern on the internet to give me a general idea of what i needed to do. of course i had to modify them to fit a much smaller person. i also made these using the fast a furious method meaning i used velcro for the closure and instead of real buttons i used paint. i didn't finish the edges either, i decided painting those would seal them and save me a lot of time.


finally the last thing i made was his candy bag. i knew he'd be using this more than once so i didn't want it to be costume specific. right now i'm all about monsters, the cute and adorable kind, so i just went with it.

ave did great wearing his costume. i was a bit worried he'd refuse to wear the hat since we're just now transitioning from the summer to the winter hat but it wasn't an issue at all. his costume was a big hit and i'm glad i did decide to make it in the end. i'm already thinking about next year...well that is if he lets me pick his costume again. fingers crossed.

ginger kids

if you couldn't tell, one of my resolutions is to keep up with the blog. to at least post a few times a week, if not every day. one of the main things i want to post about is crafting. what's on the agenda, what's in progress, what's completed. i'm hoping it'll motivate me to keep things in motion.

this year my family came to visit for christmas and it's always nice to have activities for everyone to do. and if it's crafty in nature, it's even better. one thing we did was decorate gingerbread houses and cookies. while out shopping before christmas, i found a gingerbread house kit that contained 5 houses. i thought this would be perfect - everyone would get their own house to decorate. little did i know the houses were pretty much the same size as the images on the box. they were TINY. the roofs were the biggest surface to decorate and they were about the size of a credit card. i'm a stickler for detail and it was a challenge to do anything on these houses. i think we're done with kits, next christmas we'll do everything from scratch. that is if i can get my act together in time.

we had better success with decorating the cookies. i found a cookie cutter that's shaped like a house so that made up for the tiny house fiasco. here are a few of my creations. as you can see, my cookies tend to be somewhat non-traditional in nature.

princess me

another found image on the laptop. gonna have to bite the bullet and get a new printer/scanner if i want to continue with these weekly updates. i've pretty much exhausted my online stash of photos.

any suggestions on an all-in-one that's reliable and good for printing pics?

aaron's birthday weekend starts with a 10k in the a.m. for some reason, this is how he wants to start his day. ran a half marathon last weekend and now he's a running machine. somehow i foresee all our future trips/vacations involving some type of race or run. avery and i, a.k.a his travelling cheer section, are along for the ride. go a-wes.

the rest of the day will be spent at the nc zoo with the little man. please make the temps bearable. that's all i'm asking. thank you in advance.

flashback friday

to help me get back into the swing of blogging again, i'm introducing a weekly assignment for myself - flashback friday. i had another picture in mind but it would have involved walking downstairs and scanning the photo. so my lazy butt searched my laptop and found this lovely photo.

so this is a flash"way"back photo. i'm guessing it was taken in 1978. i look 3ish and brian 2ish. it's either seoul or taegu korea and we're with our youngest older cousin. i thought this was an appropriate first photo since my mom is about to head back to her homeland in a few weeks. she's flying solo but we're hoping the next time she goes, i/we can go with.

and so it begins...again.

he likes what he sees

we've had a busy, busy summer. actually that's and understatement, we've had an insane summer of travel and family. although i love seeing everyone, it's so nice to have a weekend or two at home just relaxing. (although ours have been full of playing catchup on house/yard work) things are finally starting to settle down. so here i am, taking a breather, posting a recent photo of the boy.

more posts to come of how we've spent our summer vacation. they'll be short and sweet, but it'll be something.

isabella marie

Born July 18th @ 11:19 pm, Isabella Marie Rich!!! She weighed 7 lb. 11.4 oz. and was 19.5" long, a big baby for 37 weeks!

congrats to my brother and sister-in-law and a warm welcome to isabella! we can't wait to meet you!

let's march

watching the Boone parade, if you can call it that. more like the politician parade. we had fun regardless. perfect weather, watermelon and happy baby!

asian baby. anyone? anyone?

seriously, i don't think this kid has an asian trait in him.

bella on board

this past weekend we had irina's baby shower. (she's due august 7th, so baby bella's arrival is just around the corner.) i just wanted to share some of the craftiness i did for the shower.

the invites:
it was decided we'd do a beach-themed shower. (if you couldn't tell by the decor in the first pic.) i was able to find a hibiscus image that sorta seemed girly but not too girly. and since the colors of the invites were brown and pink, my first diaper cake followed suit.

diaper cake:
ideally i would have loved to have used brown hibiscus flowers but i don't think there is such a thing. in the end i had to settle for these gerber daisies. i used about 70 size 2 diapers and one bottle to make the innards of the cake. tissue paper, 2 different ribbons, a feathery boa and gerber daisies contribute to the "icing" on the cake. all in all i was really happy end result of my first diaper cake!

the shower was a great success and my brother and sister-in-law are very well equipped for bella's arrival.

a conversation between two friends

neglected, i know. with the weather being the way it has, (got another 4 inches of snow yesterday.) avery and i have become big-time home bodies. what's the best way to cure cabin fever? fill your days with lots of activities. one of those activities has been our countless photo sessions. although most of the time avery is an indifferent participant.

i've been gravitating towards black and white lately. no particular reason. just love how it captures the moment, particularly the one below. i think if it was in color it'd be a cluttered mess.

"happy chaos"

kate and natie

this weekend we'll be making our way back to illinois to celebrate the nuptials of nate and katie westphal. they were married a little over a month ago in jamaica. unfortunately, with the birth of avery, i was unable to attend. so i'm looking forward to seeing everyone and introducing the little man to friends and family.

if i get a chance tomorrow i'll post some pics of what a cabin-feverish mom does when she's snowed in. yep...still snowing in the mountains.

the photo above was taken by my youngest brother-in-law's talented girlfriend, karla jensen.

serious slacker

here's my 34/35 week progression shot. as you can see, my face is starting to fill out. almost as round as it was in high school. not too much to report on the pregnancy front. next week i'll start my weekly visits to the ob/gyn and before you know it baby westphal will be here. i can't believe i only have 30 days left!!

i do have one complaint...swelling. unfortunately, the swelling is getting worse the bigger i get and thus cutting my time on the computer to a minimum. if i sit/stand too long, my ankles become unrecognizable and my legs are a complete mess. thank goodness it's winter and i can cover up the veiny/bruised goodness. as far as self image goes, it's crazy but my legs bother me more than the baby gut does. hopefully once i'm no longer carrying 45 pounds of extra weight, they'll go back to normal. fingers crossed.

next week i'll post pics of the nursery. it's pretty much complete. all i have left to do is make a robot print to place between the windows and i also have to finish painting a cabinet i decided had to go from brown to white. it wouldn't be such an issue if the primer i bought, that specifically says 'no sanding needed,' actually worked. i gave the whole cabinet a once over with the paint and it pretty much peeled right off. i just finished putting on the second coat and next week i'll hopefully finish the paint job.

right now we're waiting for the arrival of nate, katie and their pooch jet. they'll be spending the thanksgiving holiday with us and it'll probably be the last time i see them before the baby comes and their wedding. aaron's dad, mark, and youngest brother, danny, came down saturday with mark's girlfriend linda. we went down and met them in asheville and no sooner had we walked into aaron's grandma's house, mark made the announcement that he and linda were engaged. it caught us both off guard. actually i think everyone he told was a little surprised. so it made for an interesting visit. i don't think it's quite sunk in. (there's a long history here and i think it's really hard for anyone to be truly happy about this, especially the boys.) hopefully with time the shock will wear off and we'll all come to accept it. we'll just have to wait and see.

i better get back to cleaning, according to their gps, nate and katie should be arriving at 3:47 pm. LOL!

like mother, like daughter?

so my aunt's comment had me ransacking my baby photo album, looking for a pic of my mom during her pregnancy. OMG! she wasn't kidding. i can't even imagine being any bigger than i am now and i've still got 18 weeks to go. i'm hoping it's just a growth spurt and i'll even out. i should be so lucky. i go in tuesday for another ultrasound and we'll see how much weight i've gained. i would not be surprised if it's another 7 pounds. i think i've figured out where i'm packing on those pounds, around my torso and in my thighs. i've gone out for a second time to update my undergarment wardrobe. i've gone from a 34 to a 38 and a small to a medium in about a month. my next pic i'm gonna bust out the skinny jeans cause i think those dresses are making me look bigger than i actually am. i wish! i hope!

rebirth

okay, a bit on the dramatic side. i finally finished all the twilight books and can now continue on with daily life. my first priority was to upload all the photos from the last 2 weeks, i guess it's almost 3 now. time sure does fly. included but not limited to is our trip back to illinois/missouri, a few pics from the boone derm picnic and adrian and katie's visit to the high country. i have a few pics on a disposable camera i have yet to develop so they should be coming soon as well.

things should be getting back to normal around here. and either later tonight or tomorrow i'll update the baby status.

robots can love

cute video my brother-in-law's girlfriend made for a design class. starring both danny and karla. cute.

welcome to birdland

this past weekend we headed to maryland for a quick visit with the fam. one of the weekend's highlights was our first mlb game of the season. orioles vs. rangers. luckily our seats were in the shade. well, i should say mom and dad's season tickets were in the scorching sun. fortunately after the 5th inning we were all able to sit together in the shade. here's more pics from the game as well as pics from the weekend before when aaron was able to use his new fly-fishing pole for the first time. didn't catch anything but had a fun time trying.

reality check

upon returning home from our san francisco trip life has really hurled one curve ball after another at us. one of the biggest was the loss of my future nephew on wednesday.

last tuesday irina, my sister-in-law, went into the hospital with some heavy spotting, she was about 2.5/3 cm dialated. basically she was in premature labor. luckily they were able to stop the progression and ordered her on strict bed rest for 10 weeks. she was supposed to return home from costa rica on wednesday but that trip was quickly revised with her returning in may.

this tuesday, brian headed down to costa rica to give her a little moral support. he called me on wednesday afternoon and told me that irina's water broke and she lost the baby. she was about 19 weeks which is way too early for the baby to survive. brian said that irina had prayed he would be there if this should happen and he was.

they believe that irina has a weak cervix and the weight of the baby may have caused it to open prematurely. hopefully a cervical cerclage will prevent this from happening in the future. although this has been quite a devastating blow for them, both brian and irina are anxious to get started again. they are very strong-willed people and this doesn't surprise me. sending much love and prayers their way.

while i was in san francisco i did have a scare myself. i felt a huge lump in one of my breasts. aaron was pretty sure it was a cyst but wanted me to get it checked out when we returned. so yesterday i went in for an ultrasound and it indeed was a cyst. it looked like two separate cysts, both measuring about 2 cm each. the doctor suggested we drain it right then and there. turns out it was one huge cyst. so technically i had a 4 cm cyst that practically popped up overnight. they are pretty sure it might be from all the hormones i've been taking for my IVF cycles. some people are prone to getting cysts and i just happen to be one of those people. so i have to keep monitoring myself, hopefully this was a one time occurrence.

luckily this has not interfered with our current IVF cycle. i received all my meds on wednesday and started lupron injections that night. i thought i'd be a pro since we've done this all before. but i did get a little adrenaline rush when i gave myself that first shot. it'll take some getting used to again. so we are officially underway.

nate and fiance

nate and katie came out to see us this past weekend. (hence the lack of posts) the main reason for the visit...to show off katie's new ring! ;)

here are a few pics from their visit. we were able to get some drinking, good food, wii fitting, football, shopping, tubing and basketball in. yep, it was pretty jam packed.

the secrets

finally! i can let the whole world know i'm going to be an aunt! brian and irina are expecting their bundle of joy august 2nd. we learned the news on thanksgiving but i've had to keep it under wraps til today. i'm not that great at keeping secrets so let me tell you this was EXTREMELY hard. congrats to you both!

another secret i had to keep were nate's plans on proposing to katie. i thought i'd share katie's version of the proposal with everyone. i thought it was super sweet on nate's part.

Friday, December 19, 2008

It was 5:30 at night and Nate was leaving work early to go "Christmas shopping". He told me to just lock up and come home after my 6pm appointment. Well, I was cutting Lauren's hair when I got a few text messages from Nate. One said "there's a surprise waiting for you there.." I thought okay... hes home already?!?! (totally thinking he got me a puppy or something) So, I had to stop and put air in my tire on the way home-I'm pulling into Murphysboro, when my phone rings...

Nate: "What are you doing?"
Me: "I had to stop and put air in my tire and now I am creeping through Murphy-I'll be home soon"
Nate: "well stop lollygaggin!"

I get home open the door-look around and don't see a puppy, still wondering what the surprise is. Jason Mraz "I'm Yours" is playing-Nate walks up to me, takes my hand and says "I recorded this song for you-I know how much you like it..." I thought, okay. "So this is my surprise, thanks honey, I love this song!"

He grabs my hand and says "Come here, I bought you a tree topper!!" I look to the top of the tree and see a little sparkle at the top. HOLY CRAP its a ring!! He grabs it, slides in on my finger and gets down on one knee and asks "Katie-will you marry me???" I am bawling outta control and say "YES!!!"

It was super intimate and romantic and shocking! I am still pinching myself to make sure its actually real!!! I am so excited to marry the love of my life!

so not only is the rich family expanding but so are the westphals. and what's good about having two families and two secrets? i can tell the westphals the rich secrets and the richs the westphals secrets. totally a win/win for me! congrats to nate and katie too!!