There are too many reasons to list why I LOVE this photo.

So the other day we took Devan to the Zoo. She had a lot of fun looking at all the animals, and we had a lot of fun carrying her and chasing her around when she woudn't sit in her stroller, which was most of the time. We passed one family with a little girl who looked slightly older than Devan, and the little girl was wearing one of these. A kid harness. My first thought was "Wow, we totally need one of those!" and then my second thought was " I don't know if I could actually put my kid on a leash." My third thought was "Where did Devan go?"

So today I was walking around Target and I found this. I thought about it for a while but before I could make up my mind Devan was already attatched to him. I decided to give him a try. It's a harness and a backpack, so when you don't need it, your child can wear it as just a backpack. He was only ten bucks so I figured I couldn't go wrong. We brought him home and Devan already loves him. We named him George, after Curious George. I opted for something unique, but after hearing the list of names I came up with Devan insisted on George. As much as I wish my child would stay right by my side everywhere I go, I know that is unrealistic. So, welcome to the family George!

First things first. We got new new shoes. Here are mine:

Yes, they are cute. Yes, they were inexpensive. No, they are in no way comfortable. My dilemma was that I needed something other than my rainbows (super comfortable) or my crocs, (also super comfortable) to wear when I got to places like parties or out to dinner. Places that require something a little more than flip flops. So here they are.

Here are Devans:

We bought her a pair of new shoes and new sandals right before summer and she ended up wearing the sandals all summer. Well, it's been raining here for the past day or two and guess what I found when I put on her "new" shoes that we bought only months ago? They don't fit. At all. So here are the new ones. I have to say, I really like them and love the fact that they are velcro.

I have a vegetable garden. I love my vegetable garden. My vegetable garden deserves it's own post. I am excited for cold weather crops. Today I bought some Broccoli, Cauliflower and my favorite, Cilantro!

Also, I found a lonely cucumber hanging out today. Thats always a nice surprise.

Some of you have probably heard my recent laments about the sewing machine my Mom bought for me when I was about 16. The Val-u-Sew. The Val-u-Sew and I worked great together for many years but we recently have been having some problems. After consulting with my husband we decided it was time to let her go. I then did some research and found this beauty. She is shiny and new and runs so smoothly I don't know how I ever sewed without her. And the best part? I found her at Target for $40 cheaper than anywhere else I looked. Stay tuned for all of the projects we will create together! Oh, and I still need a name for her. Any ideas are welcomed.

You can check them out here. Thanks Q. Today I was going through all my fabric and my Hubby suggested I open a fabric store. What a comedian. Here is a great shot of my little one playing in the puddle behind the clothesline.
My neighbor has this great big Jacaranda tree that, when in bloom, is covered with hundreds of purple flowers. The flowers are mostly gone now, but, if you look closely you can still find one or two purple patches still blowing in the wind. I love it! I wish it was purple year round.

I've been thinking about making home made jam recently and finally had the time to do it. It was so easy and tastes great. I used this recipe. Devan tried to snatch it before I could get a good pic. I only wish I would have tried this recipe when strawberries were in abundance around here instead of paying more for them at the grocery store.

7. She is a runner. She likes to run a lot.

6. She gives really nice gifts.

5. She will come visit you anywhere in the world and take you out to dinner.

4. She is a great Aunt. She's very hands on and loves to play.

3. If you didn't already know, she lives here. And she takes the 6 train to work every day, which is like, the best train, because she's the best Sister.

2. She totally reads my blog.

1. She gives really great gifts!! Guess who got a gift card to her favorite fabric store? ME! Thanks Quinn, I love you!

I Love reprodepot.com. Remember how I said I didn't love the last quilt I made? Thats because I didn't love the fabric. But, thanks to reprodepot, I now have fabric that I am dying to use! Check out what I got in the mail today:




How beautiful will this quilt be! By the way, if anyone wants to get me a gift certificate to reprodepot, feel free.

A few weeks ago Devan said her first full sentance. She had been catching on the the word "mess"(because I use it so often around her). So one day she was playing and looked down at the floor where her mess of toys were and said "I made a mess!" It was so great everyone was laughing. She said it several more times after because we were all laughing, but has not repeated it since then. She does however have some very cute baby lingo. Here are a few of her favorites:

Have you ever noticed that your friends vacation pictures always look better than yours? When I look at my friends vacation pictures I always think it looks like they are having such a great time in a beautiful place. Although I have fond memories when looking at my own pictures, I don't get that same sense of excitement that I do when I see someone elses pictures. Why? I don't know. I'll just have to keep traveling to new places to find out. Here are some pictures of places I've been. Some are close and some are far. I will let you see if you can guess the location.

I was cleaning out my fabric bins the other day and I came across some old scraps that looked so cute together that I couldn't resist them. So even though I have about five other projects going on, and about twenty other new projects I'd like to try, I had to put it all on pause to make this quilt. Shortly after I began sewing, I realized that this quilt was not only cute, but very, very cute. The only problem was that I didn't have anyone to give it to. But I kept sewing.


So as I was driving to my parents one day, I remembered I needed to make a hair appointment. So I called my stylist. I know. I'm thinking the same thing. Why do I have a hair stylist when I NEVER style my hair? I ask myself that question every time I fork over the hefty check. Anyway- I was talking to the salon receptionist when I remembered that my stylist is pregnant! I asked the receptionist what she is having and got the response I was hoping for: BOY! Alas, finally my quilt has a home!

And the best part? I had enough left over to make a matching onesie!

The even better part? Every time Devan sees this quilt she points to the monkey and says " Money! eee eee eee!"

Today we decided to brave the traffic and crowds to attend the local county fair. The weather was perfect, ( When is it not?) and there was plenty to do to keep my little one entertained. The trip was fun and educational. What do I mean by educational, you ask? Here are only a few of the things we learned today.

Did you know that all of this stuff comes from cows?


We all know that ice cream and hot dogs (gross) come from cows, but I didn't know that we also need cows for things like band aids and crayons. We also found this cool cow-fact sheet:


So if you are a cow, you aren't really a cow until you've had a baby. Well, enough about cows, we also got to see other cool animals like lots and lots of rabbits, goats, lambs, and the Budweiser Clydesdale's.

Every time I go to fairs, or carnivals, or the Santa Monica Pier, I always get sucked into playing the games that no one ever wins. Like this one:

To make a long story short, the next time I pass a game like this I am going to take the cash out of my wallet and drop it in the nearest trash can. So we didn't win one of the cute puppy dog stuffed animals, but we did get funnel cake!

So, after the fair Devan had a baby party to attend. All the neighborhood babies showed up for a fun pool party.

So that was our day, long and busy. It was unfortunately not the "get the work done day" I hoped it would be. Good thing church doesn't start till noon. Oh I also got the cutest hand made toddler bed at a yard sale this morning. I will be posting about that soon, so check back.

Seriously. If you don't have a clothesline it's time to get one. They are so great for so many reasons. And it's great knowing you don't depend on modern technology for everything. If you go out and buy a clothesline I guarantee you will use it way more than you ever thought you might. Below is a picture of my clothesline and hung on the line is my newest batch of fabrics for a quilt I will be making.

Can you spot my baby?
Hurray for clotheslines!

Well, I did it. I finally gave in and decided to purchase the diaper bag of my dreams. As with most of the things I buy, I try to get the best deal possible. I carried around the big bulky diaper bag I bought for $15 bucks when I was pregnant till Devan turned one. After that, I figured I could carry just a purse and throw in a diaper or two if I thought I'd need it. I've been using my purse as a diaper bag now for several months and have not been happy about it. Theres not enough room and whenever I am lifting, holding, buckling, or running after Devan my purse slips right off my shoulder and out come all the contents. So, I have been seriously searching for a diaper bag that does not look like a diaper bag, but functions like one, and one that will not slip off my shoulder constantly. So I finally found it. I went to a couple of stores to see if they had the one I wanted, but I was sad to find only the "diaper dude" bags and not the "diva" option. Then I found the one I wanted on ebay and after some price matching research, I decided to go with ebay. SO- here it is!
I look forward to no longer picking up the contents of my purse off the floor or my car, or the street. Hurray for diaper dudes/divas!

Weekends with a baby are fun, but weekends with a toddler are even more fun! Toddlers can do all sorts of cool things, like play at the park:

Or try and exstinguish candle flames at wedding receptions:

Or, my personal favorite, a time out from running around the fountain to do some quick yoga moves:

Who knows what she'll think of for next weekend, but I bet it will include lots of smiling!

I have been sewing for years. I have been sewing things like quilts and simple tote bags for years. That is why I am happy to say that I can now add "skirts" to my list. I have attempted to use patterns several times in my life but having never taken an actual sewing class I always seemed to be a little lost. Thats why I was so excited to find this cool site. It was so great to have step by step instructions WITH pictures! I tried to get a picture of Devan wearing it but trying to get Devan to hold still long enough to take a photo is asking a lot. Hurray for skirts!

Today is indeed a lucky day. Like most Saturdays, my family and I found ourselves walking around the mall looking for a place to eat lunch when our luck kicked in. We found this. As we approached the entrance we found two men standing looking at us. As we got closer one man handed us some vouchers and said they were good today only because today was their soft opening. He also told us he was whispering because we were the last to be invited and as soon as we entered he quickly closed the door behind us. We got in line behind all of the other invite-only customers and looked at our vouchers. He gave us 30 dollars to spend! So lucky! And our luck kept getting better. As we were waiting in line there were people walking around with hot pizza samples, and after that there were people walking around with lemonade samples! I decided to call my Mom and see if she wanted us to pick her up anything. She wanted to order for herself and my Dad and I was a little worried we might not have enough vouchers. I asked one of the workers if we could pay for anything over our 30 dollar vouchers and she said no. I was a little upset thinking maybe our luck was running out when she said " I'll just give you more money." Then she handed me another voucher worth $20! So now we had a total of $50 to spend on lunch. Well, we almost didn't spend it all, but don't worry, we did. Here is a list of everything we got.

One Sierra Turkey Sandwich.
One Chicken Ceasar Sandwich
Two Tuna Salad Sandwiches
One Loaf Rye bread
One Loaf Asiago Foccacia
Three varieties of pastries
Two sodas
One green tea.
FREE.

And it was all SO delicious! Who said there's no such thing as a free lunch?

P.S. Another great thing about this place is that it has replaced our once beloved local chinese restaurant. We are really glad something equally good has taken it's place.