Backyard Update!

Hooray! No rain, as of yet...

::whew::

They finished pouring and smoothing the concrete this afternoon!

I can't wait to spend time as a family out here!

The guys will be back tomorrow to clean stuff up and I'll be left in charge to re-seed the grass.

::sarcastic 'yayyyy'::

Okay, I need to go to bed...

Backyard Scramble

Along with trying to plan my two kiddos birthday party this weekend, the hubs and I decided that a patio of some sort would be extra nice for the guests...and being able to actually go outside and enjoy our yard. We made the decision the end of last week so I made calls asking if anyone could have it done by the party. They all laughed. I called at least 7 places.

Hubs is a DJ every Thursday night at a local bar (no comment on my annoyance with this) and works with a guy who does things like that. So he asked him if he'd be able to do it by Saturday. He told us no problem. Came over and took a look and started digging within 48 hours. I am so excited. They are getting ready to pour the concrete now, so it has time to dry by Saturday. Only problem is, our forecast is calling for 50% chance of rain.

::concerned face::

I thought I had taken before pictures of our mess of a back yard, but I can't find them so I'm going to give you a mental visual...

Ryan's dad decided to do a gradient with plastic and then river stone ALL THE WAY AROUND THE HOUSE as a housewarming gift to us. Pretty amazing, huh? His awesome wife helped him. She's my hero.  They did an AMAZING job but there were left over supplies including a 4 foot pile of dirt and river rock sitting just off the back steps. We used some of the dirt to fill in around our tree in the back yard, so that took it down a bit, but it was still there. Neither one of us had the time, or the motivation (quite honestly) to move it, so there it's been sitting since October/November. Now? It's gone.

::Ahhh::

They smoothed out the left over stump in the back and then smoothed the rest of the backyard out too. We'll reseed when it's all done and over.

Anyway, here's pictures of where it's at right now!

Excited for it to be done! Now, I need to rope Ryan into coming with me to look at patio furniture.

Side note...is it just my husband or are all men the same when it comes to this scenario - "Wife, go and choose what you think would be best. I will be happy with your selection." After seeing said item(s), "Wife, this looks cheap and not at all what I wanted. Take it back. I'll go by myself and get my own desired selection."

::smirk::

Now, RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY!

Funny Breastfeeding Tidbit

My daughter picks my nose while she nurses.

The end.

Nursing Cover - Operation Undercover Bippy

So this morning the kids and I traveled to Wal-Mart. Ugh. I seriously dislike that place. There's only one in town so it's super packed all the time. Yes, 3 AM it's just as busy as it is at 9 AM or worse, 8 PM. My mission today was to get some supplies for Ryk' and 'Riyah's birthday bash this weekend. I'm usually the kind of person to do everything last minute, but this time, I figured I'd save myself the stress and dabble a little here and a little there of supply gathering/planning. I'm not really sure how that's going for me just yet, I'll get back to you on that one.

To Wally World we went. Came in, wiped the cart down like it was covered in fecal matter, and whisked away to the disposable utensil section. This part made me sad because I've really been striving to live my life a little greener to help out our planet and to reduce the amount of chemicals interfering with my family's health. However, it was either that or buying 40 glass plates, bowls and cups. Not enough money in our budget for that, so plastic it was.

Next stop, material. I made myself a nursing cover when I was pregnant with 'Riyah, but it never got used because she was always pulling it to the side revealing my after-baby muffin top and saggy, stretch-marked glob of a tummy. It only covered my front half, so if I wasn't wearing a nursing tank-top then most of my back was revealed, depending on the type of seating. I did a little search for nursing covers. Lots of cute designs, but nothing that covered me completely front to back. So, I decided to make my own. I scooped up my fabric selection and I couldn't get home fast enough!

'Riyah's been on an amazing sleep schedule lately. Wake up at 6:30. Nap from 10:30 til 1:30. Nap from 5 to 6. Bed at 8. I took advantage of this time today to make me my very own nursing cover. It ended up being a lot longer than what I expected, but I figured that's okay 'cause it's definitely doing it's job of covering my 'bippys' (as Ryk' calls them). =D 

::warning: awkward posing and random yardstick ahead::

 Front - There's elastic lines in the top band of the fabric so that I can easily pull it away from my chest so that I can see 'Riyah or keep it closed snug when I need to. It's over the shoulder as you can see! I also inserted an additional polka dot panel for extra room. You never know, we might just need it as a tent someday. =)

 

Back - LOOK AT THAT COVERAGE! No skin to peek at here!

 Here it is in action! Is it weird that I was pumped to use this in public?

Even though 'Riyah is already a year old, I still plan on nursing for a few months, at least. I know we're going to be doing a lot of outside activities this summer and this will come in handy. Plus, it's 100% cotton so it is super breathable. Ahhh, nursing in public never felt this good.

The Great Cloth Diaper Change 2012

Last year, I was unable to attend The Great Cloth Diaper Change held at Time For Baby because I had recently gotten home from the hospital after delivering Moriyah.

 ::insert sad face::

But this year, Shauna asked for a volunteer to help out with the event. I immediately replied because I LOVE cloth diapers and LOVE converting others. It's kind of an addiction. Okay...it is an addiction.

::wink::

I was stoked to get started even though it was my first attempt at planning anything other than my kiddos birthday party. (I know what you're thinking...and we got married in a courthouse. No planning there.) It took time. But it was worth it! We ended up having 27 register! My SIL came with her daughter and my other SIL came with her's too.

Little Daelynn had never been in a cloth diaper before today...I'm trying to get her mama on the wagon. hehe

My kiddo got changed from a Blissful Booty Perfect Pocket diaper into a Grovia AIO.

You can see more pictures from the event here. I tried really hard to take more pictures but with Moriyah in tow, it just wasn't happening.

::Meh...shrugs shoulders::

It was awesome to see all those babies in their fluff! Note the cute BabyLegs on 'Riyah. =D  Every registrant got a free pair!!! So cute, in fact, that I almost went into a 'too-cute-for-my-sanity' coma. That's right, it took everything I had to keep myself from foaming at the mouth when I saw the basket full of them to choose from. 


::okay, keep it together...breathe::

You see? A real problem. =) After the change, there was a Cloth Diaper Workshop for anyone wanting to learn more about cloth diapering. Those who attended got hands-on with lots of different diapers and answers to their questions. The turnout was nice! After getting some feedback, I think Shauna (owner at Time For Baby) may try to host one of the workshops every month! 

 (I had Shauna hold 'Riyah so I could take the pic, and as you can see...she was not happy about that.)

It was a busy but awesome day and I can't wait for next year! 




Speaking of planning events. Ryker and Moriyah's birthday party is at our house on Saturday. 

Oy Vey.