Simplify

Well rounded

Halfway (plus two weeks)

Being well rounded.  It's a tricky thing.  

Before this pregnancy, I felt pretty good about my well-roundedness in general.  I knew that I could give up some sleep in order to get other things done, which would fulfil my creative need, which in turn would make me a nicer/more patient mom, which would mean that I wasn't so exhausted at the end of the day, which meant that I could stay up late to get something done.  See?  Well rounded.  Well, for me at least.  Of course, Dr. Pepper helped.  

Not so much anymore.  For example, right now I'm really very good at hanging out with my kids (thank goodness summer break finally started), eating ice cream, getting kids to swimming lessons, growing a baby, and going to bed early.  

Things I haven't been so great at?  Returning phone calls, getting my actual camera out, blogging, sewing things other than baby bedding, etc, etc, etc.  And cooking, but lets be honest, I'm never good at that.  Also, I miss Dr. Pepper.

Some days I worry about how this third little man is going to fit into this crazy mix. How I'll fit in feeding a baby, sleepless nights, and eventually (yikes) crawling.  If I'll remember how to be a mom to a little tiny baby... But then I look at my other little men, and I know that my life could in no way be well rounded without them in it.  They are what make it full, make it happy.  And you know, crazy.  In a good way.  

Then I pat my well rounded middle and carry on.  

Bagels

This is how my breakfast has gone down the past few weeks since I've been on my blueberry bagel/strawberry cream cheese kick.  

(Note:  This is after my children have had their breakfast, and my morning sickness has subsided somewhat.)

Me:  Anybody want a bagel?  

Boy 1:  "No. Thanks though!"

Boy 2:  "Yuck, I don't like bagels." (He doesn't like anything.)

Me:  "Okay..." I toast myself a bagel, put some cream cheese on it, lift it to my mouth to take a bite and I hear...

Boy 1:  "Um, that looks pretty good.  Maybe I do want a bagel."

I hand him that half.  

Repeat on second half with Boy 2 (who doesn't like bagels).

At this point I am toasting a second bagel.  It pops up and I spread the cream cheese.  Right as I am about to take a bite, Boy 1 is finished.  

Boy 1: "Can I please have some more?"

I hand him this bagel, and toss the other half to Boy 2, since I know he is going to ask for it as soon as he swallows the massive last bite he just took.

By now Max is giving me the look (he's such a beggar) so I get him some food too (but not bagels).

I toast a third bagel, reminding the kids (again) that next time I ask them if they would like a bagel, they need to remember that they do, in fact, enjoy bagels.  

I spread the cream cheese on bagel number 3.

And then I go hide in the bathroom and eat it in peace.  

I'm pretty sure this is exactly the kind of thing makes me a mom. 

And I love it.

Feeling picnicy

It's hot here.

Really, really hot.

It seems especially hot this year, but that could be due to the little person living inside me.  

It doesn't help that I've been extra nostalgic this summer, wishing I was spending the summer in Idaho.  Of course, not with the actual weather Idaho has been having this year (rumor has it my dad mowed the lawn on 3rd of July with his snow coat and hat on) but the perfect Idaho summer I crave every year about this time.  Hot, sticky and miserable here, perfect, cool summer nights, picnics, waterskiing, and raspberries there... a girl can dream.  Or I suppose we could just hop in the minivan and head up north?  (Yes, that's right, I said minivan.  I now own a minivan.  I'm not ready to talk about it yet.) 

Since I can't have an actual picnic today without melting, I thought I would introduce you to Picnic Rollup, one of the new patterns I showed at Quilt Market... (last weekish, right?)  You saw a peek of it here, but here is the rest of it...

This particular quilt was pieced by the extra-talented, impossibly fast quilter Sherri at A Quilting Life.  And had she not offered her superb quilting skills (I'm just not cool enough to spell skills with a z) it probably wouldn't have come to be.  

See, when I was getting ready for Quilt Market, I was in the middle of some unbelievable morning sickness, 2 separate flu viruses and a cold.  It was a really... special time here at the Roskelley household.  She totally saved the day.  (As did a few other wonderful people at Moda, spur of the moment quilters, and a couple of family members... I'm a lucky girl.)

Anyhow, meet Picnic Rollup.  She has fancy rock pockets in case you live somewhere windy (like Idaho) and rollup ties in case you have lots of things rolling around in your minivan (I know nothing about this) and you want something that stays neat and tidy. And also, it uses a Jelly Roll, but you probably already knew that.  

Better scoot, swimming lessons start in 44 minutes and we are all still in our pajamas.  Oh, and if you live somewhere where swimming lessons don't mean sitting outside enjoying all 110 degrees, have a picnic for me today, will you?

Kicking my feet up

photo courtesy of my iPhone  

for exactly 6 minutes to say hello, and to pass on a little bit of advice...

*Do NOT assume that the white trim you are touching up in the front entryway is the same color white as the paint you have under the sink.  It's not.  After you've had to repaint half of your downstairs trim/doors/front door to match you won't feel very cheery.

*It's really expensive to replace glass in windows after your little boys have a book throwing contest (???).

*Do NOT replace the carpet in your entire upstairs at the same time, especially when it is 110 degrees and you are pregnant.  See, you have to move everything.  Everything.

*Do NOT reach up to tuck your hair behind your ear with your hair clipper holding hand while cutting your wiggly 5 year olds hair.  

That last one is particularly important.

Now could someone figure out a way to go back in time 48 hours and tell me all of these things?  Please?  Thank you.

Summer is crazy busy over here.  Not a lot of sewing or creating as of late, but plenty of baby growing, pattern folding, trim painting, window replacing, carpet laying, and an occasional swear word.  

Did I say swear word?  I meant strawberry lemonade.  

Here's hoping your summer involves less hair clipper incidents, and more strawberry lemonade.  

And by strawberry lemonade, I mean strawberry lemonade.  

Happy summer!