Train Cake for Preston

I realized today that I am a full fledged mom. Why? Because I spent 4 hours making this:This was Preston's Train Cake for his 3rd Birthday party with family this afternoon. He has been asking me to make this cake for months and the day finally arrived. Despite how long it took to make the cake, I had a great time and Preston was SO excited. He kept asking if he could have some cake all morning and I had to tell him to wait for his Birthday Party.

Thank you, Grandad & Grandma for hosting the party and giving Preston some super cool trains. Thank you, Grammie and Papa for your lovely gifts and time with you.
Thank you, Sherrie, Mike and Alice for helping prepare for the party and for
the super cool Lego box. We love you all very much.
Here are a few other photos of our time together this afternoon with family.
First, the Lego box, Apple Alphabet and the cool mat.
Here is Preston super excited about his Apple Alphabet. Finally, Preston excited about Duncan the train engine.
Finally, I love you Preston Charles Dalbey. I can't believe you are 3 years old.
I love spending time with you, watching your love for the world and teaching you new things each day. I look forward to many more years to come.

Catching Up

Here are some photos from the past week. First, we have a picture of Peyton in a 'new' outfit that I found in her drawer. I am so thankful it still fits :)
I am not sure who it is from...probably my sister. Next we have a picture of a wall in our Master bedroom that I am re organizing to showcase our family, friends and special items around our house. This is a work in process but I think it already looks pretty good. Here is a sweet picture of Preston giving daddy a big hug.
Here is a picture of Peyton hiding behind her flower rattle. Finally, a pair of shoes that Peyton will hopefully wear sometime in the next year or so. Her feet are so small that she barely fits into a size 1...these are a size 5.
Overall, we have had a pretty good week. Peyton's rash has gone away and we are gearing up for our vacation/family reunion next week. We are also happy to report that Peyton has been sleeping from 8ish to 5:30am every day this week. I really hope this continues or we will have to let her 'cry it out'. Oh yes, this week is Preston's big Birthday - #3. Photos to come :)

Peyton has a rash

Peyton woke up with a rash on her head, neck, back and tummy. She doesn't have a fever, seems to be eating and acting normal,
but I took her to the doctor just to be sure. The doctor doesn't see any signs of
infection and thinks it may be heat related. I hope that rash goes away soon.
Oh yes, I think we could ALL use a break from the heat.

Children and Art Projects

Here is a cute picture of the 2 kiddos that I thought I would share. We have been having fun playing the past few days and Preston is working with Peyton on her tummy time.

I have also turned to photography and art projects lately for a healthy outlet to some stress and grief in my life. I made this letter D out of buttons I have collected over the years. It was a lot of fun. I am also working on creating a collage of pictures, frames and art to display over the bed in the master bedroom. Photos to come.

Happy Wednesday!

For Sale

I am tired of having junk/random stuff around my house that I don't need or use. I have decided to start selling, donating and throwing away this stuff. My goal is simple and three fold: First, I am going to pay down debt with the money I make. Second, I am going to live more simply and Third, I am going to breath and move easier around my house with all the extra stuff gone. Just take a look at this picture of my basement - this is horrible. The only redemptive part of this photo is the bum genius cloth diapers hanging up to dry. My plan is to turn this space into a usable play space for Preston and Peyton! OK, so I began this mission today. I posted some chairs, a couch, and bridesmaid dresses on Craigslist this morning. I also have a 'For Sale' album on my Facebook page that have been going for a few weeks. I have already sold an extra desk and a sewing machine (I just sold 2 chairs on Facebook). I am going to have a garage/yard sale tomorrow and next Saturday. I am also going to take stuff I do not sell to Goodwill before we leave for our family vacation/reunion in early August. As always, I will keep my readers posted on my progress.

Pom Poms and Art

This is a picture of a tissue paper pom pom or what I like to call a flower. I saw this DIY link on Martha Stewarts website and thought I would get creative and give it a try. Here is my creation with blue tissue paper. I really like it.
I am planning on making pink, white and yellow ones for Peyton's Birthday party...in about 7 months :) Oh yes, I also found this picture of the letter A crafted out of buttons. Its interesting that I was thinking about doing something like this not more than a week ago and then found this picture. I'll keep our readers posted on my work. If you haven't already noticed, I am a budding artist. I am really getting into DIY home projects, art projects and other creative adventures. I think I have always had this in me but never allowed myself to explore to the full extent. Now is my time to become an artist :)

Mommy and Peyton

I'm tired, but I thought I would post this sweet picture of Peyton and me that I took the other day. We were just hanging out at home and playing with toys. I love this little girl.

U2

Steven went to the U2 concert last night with some friends who were given free tickets. While I was slightly bummed not to go to U2 and have my husband leave for the night, I was excited for him to spend time with friends and be encouraged. Thankfully, he took a few photos.

I think he owes me...I would love to see Coldplay in concert :)

Free PBK stuff

They opened a new Pottery Barn Kids/Teen at St. Louis Frontenac Mall this morning. I recieved an email from PBK saying that I should arrive early for some fun giveaways. The store opened at 10am and I arrived with Preston at 9:15am. Wow - arriving early did not dissapoint. When we walked in the door we were greeted with a gift wrapped bag that had a lunch box inside. I also asked if I could have one for my 4month old daughter and they happily gave me another bag - awesome!!! Here is a pic of the kids new lunch bags. The dinosaurs are for Preston and the flowers are for Peyton...in case you were wondering. They also had free food, drinks and plenty of toys to play with. While we didn't stay long (the crowd was growing and the people were, lets just say, full of entitlement) we had a good time and are super thankful for these wonderful gifts. I think I will head back to the store when I can really take a look at the cute stuff.

4 Months

Peyton will be 4 months old on Sunday. Where did the time go?

She continues to be a happy and healthy girl and we are so thankful.

I took her to the doctor this morning and here are her figures:

Weight: 14lbs, 14oz - 84th Percentile

Length: 25inches - 84th Percentile

Head Circumference: 16inches - 42nd Percentile

Here are some things that Peyton is doing or learning:

She grabs at toys

She smiles back at Mommy, Daddy, Preston, etc...

She follows people or objects around a room

She is starting to roll over...only done it once but consistently rolls on to her side.

I often find her doing 180's in her crib.

Continues to nurse well about 5 times a day.

She sleeps about 9 hours at night and wakes up to eat around 4:30am and then goes back to bed until 7:30am. The doctor said she can start solids...I may wait a few more weeks :)

Overall, she is a happy little girl and still loves to cuddle.

Time with Mommy

Many of you know that I am a working mom, so the time I have to be with my children is very special. Some days are long, but most days are sweet. Here is a self portrait from last Thursday when we were out watching the cars drive by from our front porch.

Wedding

Steven and I attended a wedding yesterday for the daughter of some close friends. The wedding was beautiful and it was so nice to get out and be around such loving and supportive friends. My camera battery died...total bummer!! I only took these photos. First, the wedding. Then a picture of the cake - super yummy b/c of the butter cream frosting. This is the dessert station - yummy! Thank you, Pohlman family, for your love.

Potty Training Update

I am happy to announce that Preston is about 95% potty trained. He wears big boy underpants during the day, tells us when he needs to use the potty and stays dry about 5 out of 7 nights a week. Steven and I are thrilled. We have been working with him since Christmas and our goal was try and have him potty trained by his 3rd Birthday. He turns 3 on August 4th.

I think Preston enjoys going to the potty. Can you see the books he is reading?

Sure, we still have an accident every once in a while, but overall he is doing very well. I am amazed and proud of what our son has accomplished.

Catching Up

I think this is the longest I have gone without updating the blog. I thought about it...but didn't get around to posting with the long Holiday weekend and many fun adventures and activities. Here is a brief update. Last week ended well with work and we dove quickly into the weekend. We celebrated our friend Emily's 30th Birthday on Saturday evening. We had a nice time visiting with friends and watching Preston and Emily's son, Micah, play on the slip n slide. I wish I had brought my camera. Steven also worked on painting the trim outside our house this weekend. This is a project that needed to be done and was expedited by the city telling us to paint or pay a fine. We chose to paint. I hope to post a photo when Steven is finished. On Sunday, we spent some time with Grammie and Poppa after Church. Preston loves his time with them and specifically requested to see them. Yesterday, the 4th of July Holiday, we headed downtown for the air show. While Steven and I were very hot, Preston loved watching the airplanes. Here is a pic of the Arch...I just missed the airplane as I was using my camera on my phone. Here is a pic of Preston on daddy's shoulders watching the air show. After the show, we headed to our annual 4th of July party at the Johnson's house. This is a family from our Church and we love being there on the fourth to visit with dear friends and then watch the fireworks in Kirkwood, MO. Here is a pic of Peyton who fell asleep in my Moby Wrap and slept through the entire fireworks display - Nice!! Overall, we had a very nice Holiday weekend and wish it could last all week long :)