Thanksgiving

I've been procrastinating about posting pics from Thanksgiving. I took so many that I'm still not sure which ones to post. That and they never seem to get laid out like I want them. (By the way, if anyone knows how to upload and layout pictures on here without all the white gaps PLEASE let me know!) We had a wonderful time visiting Grammie and Gramps (my parents). Uncle Joe, Aunt Cole, Uncle Matt, Papa, and Patrick were also there. Oh, and we can't forget all the dogs (mom and dad's 2, papa's 3 and our 1). Wednesday was pretty relaxing. Joe, Cole and Matt got there that night and we just hung out. Thursday morning, mom, Natalie and I finished preparing lunch.















Natalie helped me make sweet potatoes. Then, she helped Grammie make rolls. She played in the flour and even ate some of the raw dough. Yuck! Uncle Matt carefully snuck in for a picture. I can't imagine why he didn't want flour all over him. She loves to help in the kitchen as you can see.














After lunch, and everyone's naps, we spent some time outside. The weather was beautiful! Nat rode her little four wheeler for a while. She's really getting good at learning how to make it turn. Then, she rode around with Aunt Cole and Uncle Joe on the lawn mower. She waved, blew us kisses and said, "Whee!" while waving her arms in the air. She had so much fun!

Natalie just had to explore what flowers were left in Grammie's flower beds. I think she even picked a few for us. As you can see, she's wearing her favorite outfit-just a diaper. I promise it was warm. I love this picture of her and Cole. She's really warmed up to Cole. She spent pretty much all afternoon with her.


















Natalie also had a great time playing in the dirt pile. She even played "swords" with Uncle Joe. I'm not sure which one of them had more fun.

Uncle Matt, Uncle Joe and Aunt Cole had to leave Thursday night 'cause the guys had to work on Friday. Here's a few snapshots we took.

























On Friday, Grammie and I spent the day shopping. Yes, we are crazy and love to shop on Black Friday! We only get to go every other year, so we love it even more. Grammie and Gramps live about 45 minutes from Waco, so we didn't want to leave too early. There's nothing that we needed that badly. We made our list and started out about 6:45. We got back that evening right before 6. Natalie stayed with daddy and had a a great time, too. She loves to play in the sink at Grammie's. Her favorite food was the German Chocolate cake. She couldn't shovel it in fast enough!












On Friday, Gramps took us behind the school (where he works) to show Nat some piggies. She wasn't sure about them at first, but then we couldn't get her to leave. I think she would have gotten in the pen to play with them!













When we got home on Saturday, daddy put up our tree. We had a great time decorating it. Natalie even put on a few ornaments for the first time. She loves the tree!

I made Nat a couple of Christmas bows yesterday. They turned out really cute! The one on the right is huge, but I love it!

Picture Frames and cupcakes

I found a really cute and easy idea for magnetic fridge frames at http://howaboutorange.blogspot.com/. I even whipped up a few of my own. I added some ribbon decorations, too. I always seem to have ribbon scraps, so they came in handy! This blog also has a tutorial for covers for crates. You know, the square ones with holes in them? Well, I think it'll be another project I try soon!

While I was finishing up my frames, I whipped up some cupcakes. Of course, as soon as Natalie got up from her nap they were the first thing she noticed. They tasted wonderful and we enjoyed a sweet snack.

A Day In Our Lives

After talking to my brothers the other day, I realized every time I talked to them I said I was cleaning house. Well, we actually do more than that around here. So, here are some pictures from the past couple of days.

These two are actually from a week or so ago. Natalie said her monkey was shoo-wee. So, she pulled her changing pad down and proceeded to change his diaper. She even used wipes! She was so cute! I think she'll be a great big sister!












Nat loves to play with her daddy. She was snuggling up to daddy the other night. I just love this picture. She was giggling and having fun as usual.













I have a new hairdresser. Unfortunately, she's still working on her skills. She loves to brush and play with my hair. I think she's the cutest one I've ever seen! (I know the pic on the left is blurry, but it was still so cute!)


Yesterday, I made bread for our youth bake sale. Of course, Nat had to be my helper. She loves to cook and clean! She's my littl helper in just about everything I do. She helped me count the scoops and pour the flour. She's learned where she can touch the mixer so she won't get hurt.











I was planning on taking both loaves to the bake sale, but after smelling fresh break bake, I couldn't bear it! I kept one loaf for us. I did, however, end up making another two loaves last night to take as well. Nat loved the bread! She looks mad, but she's just trying to smile with a mouth full of bread. I think it's one of my favorite smells and things to eat.

This morning while I was getting ready for the bake sale, Nat was watching Hermie. She looked so cute! I just had to snap a quick picture to share!













Natalie is learning so many new things. If you ask her what her name is she will tell you Natalie Tollison. I'm so proud of her! One of her newest things is hopping around like a frog saying ribbit, ribbit. I'm not sure where she learned it from, but I'm so proud of her. She's also learning her colors. Her favorites are pink and purple. She's like a little sponge soaking up everything around her.

So, now you know more about what our days are like. I spend some time cleaning house, but most of it is spend with my wonderful family that God has blessed me with!

Bow Boards

I started and finished my first two bow boards last night. I think it's the easiest project I've done so far. I made one for Nat and one for a Christmas gift. They turned out really cute! If you want to order one for Christmas, just let me know. Also, here's the bow I made to go with Nat's overalls. Enjoy!

Overalls

I know it's been a while since my last post. Michael went to the SBTC conference in Houston Sunday through Wednesday, so we went to visit grandparents. I forgot the camera so there's no pics. Sorry, I can't remember a whole lot these days. We had a great time, but it's always good to be home.

I finished this pair of overalls for Natalie last week. I think they turned out adorable! I'm starting to get the hang of making them. They were much easier than the first pair. They're a little big for her right now, but she'll grow into them in time. I understand why some people charge so much for them. They were easier, but they are still time consuming. They're worth it, though. I also made a bow to match. I'll have to post that pic later. It's in Nat's room and she's asleep. I bought supplies to start on grandparent gifts for Christmas. I probably won't post pics until after Christmas so they can stay a surprise. I'm also working on bow boards for Nat and my cousin's little girl. They should be finished in the next couple of days, so check back for pics of those. Please excuse the messy hair in the pics. Still working on the french braids. Well, my hubby's back with ice cream so I'm gonna go indulge for a bit.

Halloween and French Braids

Instead of going door to door to trick-or-treat, here we can go downtown from shop to shop. I like it much better. Natalie wasn't in the best mood when we started out as you can see. When we got downtown, she wasn't too sure about so many people dressed up. After a while she started saying please for candy. She sure did enjoy the candy when we got home!
I tried to french braid Nat's hair for the first time the other day. It stayed for a while, but the hair on top of her head is too short to stay for any length of time. So, today I braided it in two. I had to do it quickly so it doesn't look the greatest. I think she looks adorable, as always! She seemed so big today. Maybe it's cause she's now 20 months old. :)