Garden Time

It's the most wonderful time of the year (for Stan).

Stan's hobby since we got married has been gardening. I think he feels lost during the Winter and doesn't know what to do.
This year he's not adding another bed to our garden, so his focus is instead directed to new, more effective and efficient ways to garden. We're attempting some square foot gardening logic in our non-square foot garden.

We planted seeds a few weeks ago and Stan has been diligent about watering them and aerating the soil around them. I am very grateful that he enjoys gardening so much, because I enjoy the fruits of his labors.
Oh I help Stan with the garden on occasion, but it really is his baby. I think after our first summer of gardening, he was a little sad I wasn't as passionate about it as he was.

But alas! Now he has a new opportunity to train his daughter to love the garden. It hasn't taken Miriam much convincing to join in the fun.

Growing Up

It's amazing to me how Miriam has "grown up" the past few months.

She is saying a lot more words, a few of which are please, thank you, shoes, love you, hi, bye (her all-time favorite), ball, mama, daddy and of course, No.
She understands what we tell her and follows instructions (when she feels up to it).
She can help carry in groceries and clean up toys (again, when she feels up to it).
She runs and loves to be chased.
She can climb up on just about everything now.
She can record shows on the DVR without any help.
She's finally gotten more teeth, 9 in total (5 that have come in the last 2 months)
She's given up the pacifier without a fight.
She hasn't drank from a bottle since last August.

My little girl is no longer a baby. She is most definitely a toddler. And she has many ways to show you by her fits and messes and constant curiosity.
But along with the stressful comes the adorable like the hugs and kisses she gives, her smiles and laughs, her songs and her pure joy that comes from something as simple as running around outside.

She loves reading books and I caught her the other day "singing" one to herself.




She loves her best friend Anna and squeals with delight every time she sees her. They are still learning to share and not hit each other, but they really do love each other. Here are a few videos of them playing together.





It's exciting to watch her learn and grow and develop into the wonderful person she is. I am so excited to meet another precious little person and welcome him/her into our family, and go through this whole process again. I think Miriam is going to love being a big sister, as soon as she gets over not getting ALL of the attention from Mom and Dad.

I so love this little girl through all of the ups and the downs, of which there are many each day. I wouldn't trade being a Mom for anything in the world.

Shoes

Miriam LOVES shoes.
It's pretty much the only word that starts with an "S" that she says very clearly and it's quite adorable.
A few weeks ago we were in a department store and they came over the loudspeaker saying, "Shoes please, shoes." Miriam looked up in excitement and said "Shoes? Shoes?"

She's so intrigued by them she's always trying to put them on herself. I find shoes all over the house, hers and ours. She does not discriminate by size.

Here are a few examples:

Here's a video of her stomping around in her new sandals.

I'm grateful that at least she likes wearing them, so it's not hard to get them on her. They also make a great distraction for her to play with while I fix her hair.

Sewing

My mother was an amazing seamstress. She sewed my oldest sister Melissa's wedding dress, many of our prom dresses and of course many of the Sunday and Easter dresses we had when we were little girls. Here are a few examples:

Don't you love our happy faces?

She felt it was important to teach her daughters to sew, so when we were young, we learned. I was probably the worst student as I would get so frustrated trying to figure out what the sewing pattern was saying. I'd come crying and whining to my mom every five minutes for help. I attempted to sew several things, mostly dresses, during this experience and I think I may have actually been able to wear only one of them. I was not a happy sewer.

So you may find it kind of ironic that I actually asked for a sewing machine for Christmas.
I reasoned with myself that I just wanted to sew mainly crafty things, projects that don't involve complicated sewing patterns.

But of course one of the first thing I did was buy several patterns on sale and attempt clothing.

I first made a skirt for myself. No picture, because I only wore it once and wasn't terribly pleased with it.

The second project was a dress for Miriam.
This turned out better than the first project, but don't look too closely at the dress, or you'll see the mistakes.





My sister Jody is an excellent seamstress as well, and she helped me interpret the patterns, but some of the actual sewing skills will only improve with more practice.

I'm glad that I can say that I made my daughter something, but I don't know how often I'll sew clothes anymore. Unless you can get the fabric on clearance, it usually is more expensive to sew clothing versus just buying it already made.

So I will be on the look for simpler projects, maybe some pillows or curtains or something. Hopefully my mom would be proud that I at least tried again, and that I am still using the basic skills she taught me.