Skirt fun

Skirts are pretty much the easiest clothing item to make, I think. I made this pink/green one a few weeks ago, and the jean/print skirt I finished over the weekend. For that one, I cut up an old pair of capris, used the existing waistband and zipper (after cinching the waistband to make it a bit smaller), and cut a few more panels in a fabric I like. I sewed the panels together and finished it off with a bias hem.

A monster named Reflux

Back when Levi was in the hospital at 7 weeks with that virus, they did an upper GI and found he had reflux. He has been on Zantac ever since, with good results. When he was about 6 months, I thought he didn't need the Zantac anymore; he wasn't fussy before the dose was due, and we were about to start solid foods, which sometimes helps naturally. So I stopped the Zantac, but after a month, the symptoms were back with a vengeance. (I figure it took that long for the damage to reoccur.) I started the Zantac again, but I fear it was now too little, too late. That month of no medicine did too much damage, and now he was waking up a ton at night, crying in pain. I tried letting him cry it out for several nights, but he would cry and cry and cry literally for hours, never going back to sleep unless I fed him. (I know--that isn't crying it out! But I think everyone would agree that letting him cry for 3 hours is too much; I only did that once.) This has been going on now for a couple of months, so I asked the doc for a stronger medicine. I started Levi on prevacid last Wednesday with high hopes. The first night was a normal night. The second night was a dream. He woke up crying at a normal time, but I let him cry and he went back to sleep, not waking to eat until 4:45. (This is not good for a normal 9 month old, but considering how things had been going, this was GREAT.) The third night was awful--way worse than even the "normal" way things had been going. I put him to bed at 7:00, and he awoke crying at 9:00, 9:30, 10:00, 10:30, fed him at 11:00, awoke at 1:00 and cried on and off for hours, awoke much more and fed a couple more times but by that time it all just runs together. The fourth night (last night) was the same (awful). When he wakes up at 9:00 p.m. and 9:30 and 10:00, I know it's going to be a bad night--so much so that I just dread even going to bed myself, because I know I won't get any sleep.

The Prevacid was supposed to make things better, not worse. I'll call the doctor tomorrow. So far, what I've seen online is that Prevacid has some milk ingredients in it that might bother some kids, and it also seems to cause gassiness in general. I'm not sure if that's what's going on with Levi, but whatever it is, I just want some sleep!

Bedroom decorating

I've been thinking about making my first quilt. I've been dreaming of different fabric combinations and thinking that the quilt should go on our bed, and I will redo our bedroom around it. (I've never decorated our bedroom in this house; it's the last room to be addressed! But I was inspired recently by friends.) I think the quilt will be quite busy/crazy/happy, and then I'll make the rest of the room soft and calm. Here are the 12 fabrics for the quilt (mostly reds, greens, teals, and blues, with some yellow. Most from Heather Bailey, and one each from Valori Wells, Anna Griffin, and Anna Maria Horner):



And the colors I'm going to sample for the walls:

Glidden's Barely Jade
Behr's April Mist, Tide Pools, or premium plus Frosted Jade

I'm hoping for a muted teal/bluish grey/jade. Those colors might end up being completely not what I want, but that's where I'm starting.

And the different styles of chandeliers/lights I would love to try if Jon can stand to part with the ceiling fan:



I'm also going to try rearranging the furniture and put the bed up against a different wall. I already have 4 panels of white curtains I will put up behind the bed (like Sara and others have done--except there really is an unused window/sliding door where mine will go. Yay--I get to take down those vertical blinds!).

I've ordered some of the fabrics for the quilt. I'm waiting for a bit more Paypal money before I order the rest, and then I will get started!

Pictures

I took the kids to Kiddie Kandids yesterday on a bit of a whim, with no appointment. Lack of appointment has never been a problem for us before, but this time there was an hour-and-a-half wait. I had dressed, matched, brushed, and primped all the kids for this; I wasn't about to turn around and go home, so we had lots of time to kill. We walked through Target, where N and L each got to pick something from the dollar bins. We ate the lunch I had brought in the seating area in Target. We walked through Target some more. We rode the carousel (at the Spectrum). We went into the pet store. Man, an hour and a half is a long time with three kids, especially when you're trying to keep them and their clothes clean! So, we made it to our picture time exactly at the same time everyone's energy was depleted and Levi was ready for his nap... great! Regardless, we ended up with at least a couple of cute pictures (several cute ones of Levi and one picture of all three kids where all three were a) looking at the camera, b) not crying, and c) not scared). Here are the two I bought.

The hair

I love that Levi has the same hair Nate did. It sticks straight up. Here is a side-by-side comparison:






















Nate was 10 and a half months in these pictures. Levi is 9 months now, so he still has time to catch up to the extreme length. :)
















A brother picture from today:

A visit to Daddy

On Friday, the kids and I packed up to visit Jon at work and go out to lunch. Since he's up in Long Beach, it's a bit of a drive, so this was a special occasion.

Packed up and ready to go (with snacks):


This is a typical amount of traffic for mid day. We're almost there!


Finally arrived!



Daddy!

Pants redo

Mama gave me these pants that were too big for her. (I know, skinny lady!)

Here's the before:



And here are the after pictures. I made the new bottom/cuff reversible, and it attaches with buttons.




I wish I knew how to take the pants in a little bit around the top and thigh sections... anyone?

Sitting

Back home

Levi and I had a wonderful few days in Florida. The flights out there and back were just fine; I was able to give Levi my full attention so he did pretty well. The two full days on the beach were heavenly! We didn't do anything but relax, read (I read an entire book for my book club), nap, and eat at the condo. Thank you, Mama and Nannie!!

So much to do

I'm doing laundry, groceries, list-writing, bills, organizing, and packing in preparation for my little trip on Wednesday. Oh, and praying Levi travels well! :)