bits & pieces (with pictures)

i haven't had enough coffee to put together a "real" post, (a poor excuse, since i drink decaf, but i'm sticking to it), so instead here's a collection of odds & ends from my week.

em likes to wake up at oh, say, around 430/5, & then hang out just long enough to prevent me from going back to sleep before she crashes back out. while i don't really mind (as long as it's closer to the 530 end), i DO mind stepping barefoot in cat puke while wandering around the dark house with the baby.
yup, that's how i started my day. at least it can only get better from there, right?

a picture of conrad with his quilt.

val's took me 2 months to finish, & conrad's (despite being slightly harder to piece) took only a month. i realize that seems pretty slow, but i've *just* started this whole quilting gig, & i do sew the entire thing by hand. (piecing, quilting, the whole deal. it's fun, but it takes a minute.) em's quilt is my first attempt to design my own pattern. so far, all i can say about that is that it's been a good learning experience. :P

thursday we tackled easter eggs & challah with the kids. here is another shot of conrad, keeping a close eye on his egg.

val got really into the stickers:

i'm thinking of "hiding" eggs tomorrow for the dudes to find after church. it's supposed to rain here, so i'll have to do it in the house. we'll see how ambitious i get. N is working, so i'll be flying solo (with the grandparents for dinner) tomorrow.

speaking of dinner, i need to make shopping list, as i will be heading out with the kiddos to grab last minute easter dinner stuff. happy easter all!

a fashion show for karianne

yup, more on quilts! (but not mine this time)

i had a kind of quilting revelation yesterday while reading this book:

city quilts


i was totally taken by how modern her designs looked. a picture caught my eye, & the author mentioned that it was inspired by an antique "gee's bend" quilt. i assumed it was a riff on a traditional pattern, i googled gee's bend, & pretty much had my mind blown. the "antiques" were graphic & modern & beautiful, & i spent the rest of the afternoon hunting up images of these totally amazing quilts.
they were made in the mid-20th century in this tiny southern town by descendents of former slaves. they used whatever fabric they had on hand (funky leisure suits, old blue jeans, etc.) & made some of the most amazing folk art i've ever seen. check out some pictures here:

gee's bend quilts

in my former life, i was what you might call "arty". i painted all the time, & spent alot of time thinking about things like color & shading & tonal values. over the years, i got busy, i painted less & spent alot more time thinking about things like milk & diapers & dinner.
i've been quilting for a little while now & i've really enjoyed it as a kind of meditation through needlework, but it didn't occur to me until yesterday that it could be ART as well. it was like rediscovering a first love.

the ugly green monster

once we conquered the infertility giant, i never thought i'd actually get jealous of pregnant friends. i mean, i have THREE kids aged 2 & under. i have been pregnant or breastfeeding for THREE years. & while it's no secret i want another baby, i am also in no rush to have #4, in part bc i know it will be our last & in part bc i have been pregnant or breastfeeding for 3 years. (3 years is a long freaking time to be sharing your body with little people.) plus, (& most importantly), N is not 100% behind the idea of #4 & i need him to be committed to another kid before we go down that path.
why then, on hearing that 3 dear friends are pregnant recently, did this ugly green monster rear up in my gut? i don't begrudge them their happy news, it just made me long for little baby kicks & a sweet squishy newborn.
rationally, i don't want to give up what little sleep i have. i don't want to be sick as a dog every day for 5 months. i don't want to pee every 2 minutes. i don't want to run out of room in my lap for my kids.
i am genuinely happy with our little family. i love the time i have for each child, i love watching them grow, & i love having three kids. i am content. would i still be content if we never had that 4th child? or would it fester, & leave me feeling as though something is missing? i think it would, but i can't honestly answer that right now with any degree of certainty. it is not the right time for another baby, & i KNOW that. so why won't this stupid green monster shut up?

a week of sick

everyone has been sick recently & chores have fallen by the wayside, bc i have been laid up or taking care of sickies. this led to N & i having a minor spat recently about things not getting done around the house. well, less about things not getting done & more about me not letting him help with all the house-related chores. (i know, i know... my husband wants to do laundry. gee, how i suffer!) the thing is, i consider the house my turf, & i *might* be a bit of a control freak. ok, maybe control freak isn't quite the word (or maybe i just don't want to admit it), but i definetly prefer things to be done MY way. if i could issue orders & have him execute them, we'd have no problems, but of course he wants to do things HIS way & that's where the trouble comes in.
i've just got to let go a bit & allow him to play a bigger role in the house. it will be good for all of us in the long run.

in other news, val is finally on the mend. poor kiddo has been so sick this past week, he's still not quite himself yet. tiring out quickly, still a bit off his kibble, etc. but the constant puking/diarrhea is over & he hasn't needed any more IV's. bc he's still on the mend, we've been hanging out at home, watching movies & sesame street, & going stir crazy. we did at least get to make our challah yesterday with my little chefs, so while we haven't been total bums, i am looking forward to a return to our normal, busy days.

the crud

we've spent the whole weekend & beginning of this week sick, sick, sick. at least the boys & i have. today is the first day i feel marginally better, but the dudes (especially val) are still pretty under the weather.

& naptime appears to be ending, so i'm going to go grab some kiddos & get a cuddle pile going on the couch. the blog will have to wait a bit longer.