April « 2011 « mayjuneandjuly.com

Archive for April, 2011

happy easter

Sunday, April 24th, 2011

Hope you have a wonderful Easter celebrating with friends and family. Josh hide chocolate eggs for me to find this morning. It was sweet. And A looked pretty adorable in her Easter dress that her Aunt Vyria made. And she got to play with a chocolate bunny. Too bad, Im going to have to help her eat it. Happy Easter.

She has learned how to take her headbands off. Darn.

We are now packing up and getting ready to head to Malta for a week. Im so excited to hang out at the beach, read, relax, and have little access to the internet. So ready for it.

I’ll be searching for this spot. Wish me luck.

Cant wait to share all about our adventures.

Posted in Adelaide, Barcelona, Family, Traveling | 1 Comment »

somebody got their haircut

Saturday, April 23rd, 2011

Little A got her first haircut this week. Its about time something was done with that rattail of hers. Half her hair is really long and the other half is super short. Does all babies hair grow so strangely? People around these parts keep telling me I should trim it so I finally decided it was time. Well, that and mostly because Aunt Dawn was in town and she has haircutting skills. She did an amazing job considering our little lady kept moving the entire time and kept trying to grab the scissors out of her hands. And a big thanks to Aunt Pamela for holding A and doing her best to keep A entertained.

Here, play with a book.

Okay, how about a bowl.

Or a wipe? Apparently Aunt Pamela’s face looked dirty.

All done. So adorable.

No more rat tail!

Posted in Adelaide, Barcelona, Family | No Comments »

quilting

Thursday, April 21st, 2011

I just started a quilting class. And I am so excited about it. I have wanted to learn to quilt and be able to make my own (full of fun colors) quilts for a long time. I love the art and skill behind it and have always admired those that have the patience to produce such beautiful works of art. And I do love patterns and colors and think the creativity and options are endless once the basics are learned. I really had no idea what to expect when I started.

I am beginning with a sampler quilt in which we learn a number of different techniques and designs in the process. The big kicker is that we are learning to do EVERYTHING by hand. The woman teaching the class insists that for our first quilt we are not allowed to use a machine and must sew it all by hand. Although it is a bit of a daunting task I so appreciate being forced to learn the art and craft behind quilting. And I have confidence that once I am finished I will have learned so much and will have a solid foundation for years of quilting to come:)

I have already learned so much in just two classes. Although I hope I am not missing important details as the class is also doubling as my Spanish class. Nothing like being forced to improve your language skills.

We map out every single square. Its defiantly a much more in depth process than I ever imagined.

My first square is finished! Lots more to go….

Posted in Barcelona, Crafts, sewing | 1 Comment »

sleep sac

Tuesday, April 19th, 2011

We use a sleep sac so A can stay warm at night. I also like to think that it keeps her from crawling around too much in her crib and from attempting to climb out. A sweet friend has given us both the ones we currently have. They are gro bags and we love them. The lightweight one is now much too small and the one that fits is thick. It works great but as it is now getting warmer and warmer I have been wanting to find another lightweight one. Then all of a sudden one day I thought I would try and make one. I used the existing sleep sac that I have as a pattern.

And I know this is sad, but its actually the first time I have actually sewn a zipper in anything. I was always so frightened of zippers, but good news, they are actually pretty easy. Especially if you know beforehand to use the zipper foot on your sewing machine (I didn’t realize I had a zipper foot until after I sewed the zipper and I am sure that would have made it even easier). Of course its not perfect but I think it turned out pretty darn well for really having no idea what I was doing.

Most of the fabric that I have here are just small scrap pieces so I ended up using the two biggest pieces I had. Luckily they ended up coordinating pretty well.

I cut out four pieces. Front and back and lining for both.

The final product. Since I lined it, I used bias tape all the way around and it made the sewing alot easier. (I really like bias tape.)

The top snaps. I might have busted the pearls when hammering. Bummer.

Side zipper and snap closure.

Im getting braver. I think getting better at sewing just takes a lot of practice.

Posted in Adelaide, Babies, Crafts, sewing | 3 Comments »

what she wore 4.18

Monday, April 18th, 2011

I did not get many pictures this week. Pamela (Josh’s sister) and Dawn (Josh’s sister-in-law) are in town and we are busy having fun with them! But stay tuned, I have been working on some fun sewing projects and have a headband tutorial coming up. Exciting, I know. And of course there will be pictures to share of our fun time with the Aunts. Now we are off to explore the city with our guests.

tippy toes.

Welcome to Barcelona Aunt Pamela and Dawn!

black polka dot onsie: gap (gift)
white tutu pants: gap (gift)
pink mary jane socks: trumpette (gift)

Posted in Adelaide, Barcelona, What She Wore | No Comments »

pumpkin bread

Friday, April 15th, 2011

I made some pumpkin bread the other day to take to our neighbors. I used this recipe from Allrecipes and I really liked it. I was looking for a recipe that called for less sugar than most. I liked the addition of the cream cheese although I am not sure that helps with the healthier aspect. I added chocolate chips and walnuts and it turned out delicious. Do you know of a “healthier” pumpkin bread recipe? Please share.

We have two really sweet eldery neighbors. Our door (our front doors are right next door to each other) neighbor is an elderly woman that is so sweet and we have pretty much the exact same conversation every time I see her. Our balcony neighbors (we share a balcony but our front doors are across the hall from each other) are a sweet couple that we mostly just say hi to when we are both hanging laundry although recently we have talked with them a bit more, thanks to A.

In the hall way of our apartment is a door that leads out to the atrium of the apartment building. There is a railing, like on a balcony, right when you open the door. Our neighbors also have this and when we both have our doors open you can basically see into each others apartments. Well, its been rather warm here lately and in order to get a cross breeze in the apartment, you need that door open. Well, A realized that there were people over there pretty quickly so when both our doors are open she sits at the railing and waits for one of them to walk by and then starts yelling until they stop and talk to her. Thus, we have gotten to know our neighbors a little bit better. They seem to enjoy “chatting” with A. And the wife’s name is Montserrat which is pretty amazing. And so Catalan.

I hope they like our pumpkin bread!

I didn’t think to take a picture until it was almost gone.

And I thought you might need a few pics of our goofy girl:

Showing off her muscles. She likes to grunt when picking it up.

The usual. Making messes.

She must try with all her might to attack the computer when you are using it so sometimes I stick these on her in oder to distract her for .2 seconds. Not that I can actually get anything done in .2 seconds:)

See. Trying so hard to touch those keys. She will stand like this on her tippy toes for so long. Then sit down for about 2 seconds (to rest) then go right back to standing on those tippy toes. This girl has determination.

Posted in Adelaide, Babies, Barcelona, Food, recipes | No Comments »

changing lives

Wednesday, April 13th, 2011

Sometimes I miss working. Sometimes I really miss my job as the Volunteer Coordinator at the International Rescue Committee. I loved that job (even if it wasn’t at the pinnacle of my “career”) . I worked hard and put so much into helping build a volunteer program. It can be tiring, working in the social services, seeing so much need, and wondering if what you are doing is really making any difference at all.

I told Josh the other day that I remember coming home from work (often times not until 7 or 8pm) exhausted but always feeling like I had accomplished so much. Little did I know, I really had no idea what it meant to be exhausted at the end of the day. The “simple” act of being a mother leaves me more exhausted at the end of each day than I ever imagined possible. And some times I dont understand how that is possible when I dont feel as though I have “accomplished” a whole lot. But, I continue to remind myself what a great task it is to love, care, and guide a new life. I think much of the exhaustion comes from how important that becomes and how emotionally invested we are. And these tasks are not easy to check of a list (and really who wants to check laundry, pick up toys, feed the baby, pick up more toys off a list).

Its encouraging to be reminded that as mothers we are making a difference, in the life of one important child (or more). And thats okay if thats the only difference I am making at this moment.

Its also encouraging though for me to see that the work that I have invested in the past is also continuing to make a difference in peoples lives. Or just to know in general that we impact lives all around us continuously. And I dont have to be working at a refugee resettlement agency to do that. There are so many ways great and small all around us.

Recently students at Riverton High School in Salt Lake City raised $81,000 to help refugees in the SLC IRC office. Its beyond incredible. And it was all started by a young girl, that is a student body officer at Riverton High School, and also happens to be a part of a family that I was able to place as mentors with a refugee family. I remember that mentor match so well, lots of young girls becoming friends so quickly. And so much laughter. Im so glad it was a positive experience and is continuing to make a difference.

You can read more here on the IRC blog. It really is a great article.

Posted in Babies | No Comments »

what she wore 4.11

Monday, April 11th, 2011

Hooray for Spring!

white ruffle top: Crazy 8 (gift)
purple capris: Old Navy
black and purple headband: handmade by me

Playing at the park.

grey dog shirt: Zara
blue and white striped shorts: Old Navy
floral sneakers: Target (gift)
colorful headband: handmade by me

Posted in Adelaide, Babies, Fashion, What She Wore | No Comments »

playing walker

Saturday, April 9th, 2011

she still does not move quite as fast as the walker moves and gets a bit upset when she cant keep up. she is on her way….

Posted in Adelaide, Babies, Toys | No Comments »

spring shoe crush

Friday, April 8th, 2011

I would love a pair of oxfords right about now. I think they are so classy and a perfect shoe for spring. I have been spotting them all around Barcelona. You can pair them with a cute dress or a pair of rolled up jeans. Yes please. Here are some of my favorites:

You cannot get any better than these. I love the teal ones. They are all so beautiful and shiny. Dieppa Restrepo is the way to go if you have an extra $200-$300 to drop on a pair of shoes.