Dragging out the Baker in Me...

I sit here with my homemade Banana Chocolate chip muffin and a second cup of coffee taking in a few moments of personal time. My baby is upstairs sleeping in his crib, where he has been for the past 1 1/2 hours. He is officially teething for the first time, but so far hasn't been too bad. He is more sleepy a tad more crabby, but has been such a trouper so far! Can't wait to see those pearly whites start poking through! =)

While enjoying some quiet time, I decided to start posting some new things up on my etsy shop. MyStringofPurls has been on vacation mode for the past 5 months, and I have been anxiously building up stock again so that I could reopen! My latest passion has been cute little amigurumi characters and play food. Liam loves the little toys that I have made him, and that inspired to me continue to branch out and make more! So now my shop is full of crochet donuts, cupcakes, little coffee mugs, little cakes, a mini Baymax, and an 8" tall Minion plush toy. I also have a few signature hats up, with more to come! I'm so excited to have an adorable model to (as of yet) doesn't mind me taking a billion pictures of. As long as he is fed and has a dry diaper on, he loves the attention!

Meet The Sweet Little Crochet Cakes! They stand approximately 3" tall and are stuffed with Poly-fil as well as a little bit of uncooked rice. I find that the rice help with the shape and stability of the cakes. =) And then I couldn't forget the little rose to garnish the top with! ;) These little cake patterns came out of the Amigurumi Toy Box book written by Ana Pula Rimoli. One of my favorite amigurumi authors right now. Her patterns are cute, fun, fast and easy!

There is seriously something undeniably cute about crochet food with faces. I am honestly addicted to the little black safety eyes and embroidered mouth. And the tiny cherry on top? Yeah, almost makes me wish they were real! But how great would these be for your little girl to play "house" or "bake" with? They are fun, versatile, and I take custom orders on size and color! 

The pattern for these cupcakes came off of pinterest, and I really just made it my own by changing up a few details. Pinterest is the most amazing place for amigurumi inspiration! 

And we move onto the pies and coffee mugs. Now for the pies I had to design my own pattern. I saw a picture on pinterest of what I wanted it to look like, but I'm a stickler when it comes to actually "buying" patterns, so I decided to take a swing at designing it myself and putting my own little spin on them. I made a Cherry pie, a Blueberry pie, and then also a Purple Sweet Potato Pie.... Not that I've ever had a sweet potato pie.... but when I googled what a purple pie could be made out of it came up with sweet potato... So I went with that. ;) 

And Now you get to meet my little friends Cup and Joe. ;) Aren't their little faces just darling? Are you beginning to understand my fetish with my crochet food and things having faces?

And here we begin with my favorite amigurumi food item to date. Donuts. Now these puppies go for $9.99 on some etsy shops. For 1 donut. I just about choked. But you know, they do take a bit of work and design, so I have mine listed for $7 per donut right now, but I'm planning on making sets of them. So if you end up wanting more than just 1 you're not paying a fortune. Imagination and play for children should not cost an arm and a leg! I had some serious fun taking pictures of them, I even broke out the cake dish that I got for our wedding... that I hadn't used yet... But hey! The baker came out in me through my crocheting! ;)

And sweet little Baymax. He fits into the palm of your hand and you can take him around with you just about anywhere. I saw him on pinterest and just couldn't pass him up; he was too cute. Here is the free pattern that I found on pinterest if you're interested in making your own... 

And then who could forget Stuart! He stands 8" tall and is the perfect traveling companion. He also makes great gag gifts or child birthday gifts. He is soft and cuddly and stuffed with 100% poly-fil. I'm planning on making Liam one of his own to add to his crochet toy box of stuffed Amigurumi. 

And just because I can't go a whole blog post without sharing something about this cutie. He loves his books! And he's starting to understand that you can flip the pages! =) 

Hope you all have a splendidly sweet day! ;)

Ikea Trip!

Yeah! The day had finally come! We had been wanting to get to Ikea all year, and finally made time and put it on the calendar. We invited family incase they were interested in making the 2ish hour treck to Bolingbrook with us. Mom and Dad Bandy decided to join us with Naomi and Ruth. It was a day bound for great fun and enjoyment! We took off that morning and arrived around 11:00, decided on getting an early lunch at Five Guys before beginning our adventure. I am so glad that Liam is flexible and will take a bottle when we offer it to him!

 It was very nice to easily take the 2 hours drive without having to pull over to feed him! I just jump into the back seat and give him his bottle! This also makes going out for longer shopping trips much easier. <3 I had told Emil when we arrived at Ikea that it was like a museum - one you could buy stuff from! And seriously, its like a museum for houses! SO crazy! And pretty much the optimum place for dreaming up your house. =) Like I shared in the first blog post, Emil and I have plans to remodel the kitchen in the not so distant future, as well as enjoy this great big, new deck he built! So we went into Ikea with a "shopping" list; patio furniture, a living room rug, and look at the kitchen cabinets for the future construction. Ikea gave us some *great* ideas and inspiration for our kitchen. They literally had Kitchens all decked out everywhere! You would turn and see one style you liked, then you'd turn again and see another style, and they were all set up as if they were in real homes - I was in *love*. 

The top thing in this pictures is the microwave. I know. Seriously? When did microwaves start looking so professional??? And come built in? The bottom piece is a built in oven. *love*

I fell in love with the ikea drawers and organizers the instant I saw them. There are drawers that you open that then have another drawer within it for extra organized space. 

Emil and I are looking for different pantry ideas and ways to maximize our kitchen cabinet space without taking up more room. This *large* cabinet was super exciting to see! 

Ever since we started watching Fixer Upper, I have fallen in love with Farm sinks! I love how there is no counter top behind or infront of them! Also if you look to the way right in this picture, you can see the lazy susan.... talk about some awesome storage space right there. 

Dad and Emil had fun critiquing different things and bouncing ideas off of each other. 

And white, glass cabinets! We are thinking about going with white cabinets for our kitchen (we currently have light colored wood ones). I think having 1 or 2 glass ones would look so pretty! Emil tells me that if we do something like that, that I have to actually keep the cabinets organized... haha... oh yeah. :P 

And then we got to the chair section... 

And the mirror section...

Group shot! Got my sisters-in-love, Naomi and Ruth in there with us!! 

Liam was such a good little boy the whole trip! Hardly fussed a second! He fell asleep on Grandma about half way through. 

Taking a little break... Boy were we worn out! All that walking...

We were very excited to find Patio furniture that we absolutely love - can't wait to set it up and share some pictures! We have been working all weekend on getting the deck all stained, it was a little bit bigger and longer task than we had anticipated! But we're almost finished and then Emil was going to put together a post sharing some pictures of the progress! 

On Sunday we have guests coming over, so its kind of our goal deadline to have the deck all the way complete and the patio table and chair set up. We are hoping for nice weather and for fun to be had by everyone as we grill out! 

And then in other news, I love to see comparison pictures... In the first picture, I am 19 weeks along with Liam's pregnancy, and in the second pictures Liam is 19 weeks old on the outside! 

He is my sweet pea. And as we get closer and closer to Mother's Day, I hold him even closer and snuggle him a little more. This little boy made me a Mommy. <3

Liam is 4 months!

My baby turned 4 months old on Saturday! He is growing up and learning new things so fast! In some ways time has simply flown by, and in other ways its crazy to think that this silly little boy hasn't been in our lives for longer. Was there really life before him? 

Being a Mom has changed me in some pretty major ways. My husband and I like to joke that we thought we were selfish when we got married... and then we had a baby and entered into a whole new category of selfishness. The very first week after Liam was born we were in baby heaven. He was all ours and the love we had for him was something we had never felt before! But then Emil went back to work and I began to figure out a new routine for my new baby and I at home. It was fun and exhausting at the same time. No longer could I do anything I wanted whenever I wanted to do it! Even showering became a juggling event. Thankfully Liam loves the sound of water, so I would make sure he was fed and changed and then I would put him in his reclining bouncy seat, in the bathroom, and enjoy a nice warm shower. I'd like to say that he was perfect every single time and never whined or cried for me to finish up already and get back to him, because it wasn't like that. There were mornings, however, that he would let me soak up the shower and he would sit contently listening to me talk to him and then would give me a great big smile when I finished and would pick him up again. These days made it all worth it.  

Lunch was the hardest there for a while... For some reason whenever I would even start to get my lunch ready he would begin fussing and then by the time I was ready to eat he would be crying for me to feed him too.  No matter what time lunch was. The little stinker... But Mommy obliged, even as I watched my nice warm lunch grow colder by the minute. 

Then there was dinner time. The time Emil and I probably enjoyed the most together before he was born. But now... now there were 3 of us. For about the first 2 months solid we took turns eating. Normally he would eat while I fed Liam, then he would burp Liam while I ate, then I would take Liam again so Emil could possibly get seconds, and then Emil would take a while with him, and so on and so forth. Liam didn't have a solid bed time yet and there were nights that we would be up at 10:00 still trying to keep him happy. And he was such a sweet and easy baby, all things considered. I can't say how many NCIS episodes we watched as we took turns walking back and forth across the living room with Liam.... And then one day, all at once it seemed, we didn't have to pace back and forth with him... We didn't have to stay up till 10:00pm... We didn't even have to take turns eating Every. Single. Night.  Suddenly he was able to sit in his bumbo or high chair during dinner and Emil and I were able to enjoy eating together - at the same time! And we worked on getting him to have a consistent bed time, and were thrilled to work it down to 7:15ish. Now we have personal time together again! All of the sudden we felt alive, vs just surviving. 

Liam has always been a relatively good sleeper... In his newborn stage he would be up 4-5 times a night. Then as his he grew a bit more he would only get up 2-3 times a night. I worked with him for a few weeks and now we have worked it down to just 1 feeding a night. There are even nights where he sleeps 12 hours straight! Those are the best. Seriously. I've been asked how I've "trained" him to get down to 1 feeding a night, and I can't really take that much credit. Liam really is just a good night time sleeper. When he would get up at Midnight for his first feeding, and instead of picking him up from his co-sleeper (positioned right next to my side of the bed), I would rub his back and whisper something sweet to him. He would settle down and go back to sleep within 5 minutes normally. This told me that he was waking up for comfort more than because he wanted milk. I did this for maybe 2 weeks before he stopped getting up altogether at midnight. Now we take him upstairs at 7:15pm, get him in his pajamas, change his diaper, feed him, and either Emil or I will read him a book or Emil will do family devotions, if we hadn't done them earlier. Then its into bed for Liam. I don't have to rock him to sleep before I put him in bed anymore, although there are nights where he will fall asleep while I rock him and Emil is reading Bible. Ever since 2 1/2 months, Liam has fallen asleep better and faster on his own in his crib. And now that Liam is in his own bedroom, we will give him kisses and tuck him in with his teddy bear and his little wooden car. Normally we will hear him playing on the baby monitor before he drifts off to sleep. <3 Oh my heart. I dream feed him at 9:15ish before Emil and I head to bed, and then he normally gets up around 3:00am to eat and then not again until 7:00 when Emil and I start moving around. 

I don't want to make it sound like Liam is a perfect sleeper. He still goes through growth spurts, and last week he had a cold, so he did have a few rougher nights. Not Every. Single. Night is exactly like this. But that's the joy of children. When they have bad days or nights, I know that there is always tomorrow for a better day. Liam has taught me Grace for the days I just don't want to deal with anything, patience during the times he doesn't know what he wants and I'm trying everything, perseverance to keep going even when I am exhausted or just mentally worn, humility when I just need to ask for help (something that doesn't come easy for me), he has taught me how to be a Mom and has helped me to put others first. And when I get frustrated or wrapped up in a "hard" moment, he has taught me to just breath and realize that life moves on. 

This little boy has stolen my heart <3 And multiplied my love. 

My baby has been working on his balance while sitting! We're getting there, he still can't do it very long by himself, but its a start! 

I know its not the most amazing picture, but this week I've hit some pretty exciting baby weight weight loss goals! It hasn't been as "easy" as I thought it would be... or maybe just not as "fast" as I had hoped. But I'm almost to my goal and pretty excited!! 

I hope that this little peak into Liam's life so far and my postpartum months has been inspiring for some. I remember being pregnant and feeling like I was going to feel like that forever and never again feel like myself. Its not true! You can feel normal again after having a baby. Your body may never look quite the same, but be forgiving of yourself, I mean you just "grew" a baby inside of you! To every woman out there who has given birth; you rock. 

A Peak into 2015

When Emil and I first bought this house I don't think we could have even imagined everything that was going to take place within just 1 year of owning the home. We had been living in a tiny little apartment centrally located in a small town where we could walk to just about everything; the grocery store, the library, a coffee shop, the post office.... But we wanted our own home. And by God's providence, the perfect house fell right into our laps at just the perfect time. That however doesn't mean that we didn't have to work for this house. For starters, the house was a foreclosure, but a very nice foreclosure and because of that fact, was underpriced and fell right into our budget. We first got in a bidding war with another couple after we made our offer. We were relieved when we received news that we had won the bid and the house was ours. But then the craziness began... We had to fight FEMA and get a grossly overpriced flood insurance (that we didn't need) removed. Also, all the house inspections began and we learned that huge deck off the back of the house was a big hazard and would need to be completely replaced within the first year of living there. No big deal, we were both young and hungry for work. Emil and I were ready to sink our hands into some good physical labor and start turning this house into our home!  We made plans of transforming the dated kitchen, and updating the bathrooms, doing some landscaping...But then the move in week came and God decided to throw us a curve ball; We were pregnant!! Wow. Just wow. *Our* thoughts were maybe to get prego *after* we got a good start on the house, but God had other plans; Amazing and perfect plans. We could not have been happier! But some of those house goals had to be put on the back burner for a little while. 

The Deck however could not wait. So upon weeks after moving in, Emil started the demolition. We were SO thankful for all the help everyone offered us, especially our family! The deck is quite large and was not an easy project! But my amazing husband took the task on bravely and completed it over the course of the next several months. Now we just have the staining left to do this spring, and we are looking forward to working on it next weekend! And now, our next project that we are planning is the kitchen remodel! We have walls we want to take down, appliances to replace, cabinets to purchase, counter tops to choose. I am in *love* with all this house work!                       

 Liam Hunter was born on December 9th, 2015. He was a planned Home birth, and I was so happy with our birth team! <3 Emil actually caught the little guy, which made him super excited.  I had a 24 hour labor, which was not easy at all, but boy was it all worth it when I held my baby boy in my arms. It was so nice to be able to climb into my own bed after giving birth and cuddle with my husband as we took the whole experience and our precious little baby in! My recovery was amazing and postpartum had nothing on me. Liam is such a good little baby and is such a perfect addition to our family. 

We just celebrated our 1 year home owning anniversary on March 28th. And we are super excited with our plans for our lives, this house, and our family in 2016! But if nothing else, we learned last year that our plans are not always God's plans, and He has everything under control. Everything happens for a reason!