this and that....it's catch up time again!

So here is the most amazing picture I have to share with everyone. I am still amazed that they can actually do this. We went in for our 28 weeks ultrasound (I was having them done every 2 weeks up to this point), and I asked the tech to try to get me a good profile shot because I didn't have one yet. After she had taken a couple of cute little profiles, she looked and the clock and said, "we had some extra time before you see the doctor, let's try this." It isn't something they normally do at my office, you have to schedule a 3D ultrasound appointment separate from anything else. But the tech said that she was glad to have a chance to practice for a minute. Well, I was too. Not only are we past the really scary point in this pregnancy and things are still going well, but now we know what our little girl looks like. AWESOME!!

Bradley was really excited to go back to school this year. He has a great teacher too, she loves science just like Bradley, and she even loves reptiles just like him. I think it's going to be a fun year! He has already been on 2 field trips, one to the state fair, and the other to the symphony, and he still has a long list of more trips throughout the rest of the year. He is going to give the school choir a try too. He wanted to run for school treasurer or historian, but that didn't work out because we have to be out of town the day he would give his speech, so I think he will wait and do that next year. He is growing up so fast. We are so proud of him!

Bradley worked hard in the garden this summer and was over 2 of the 8 grow boxes we have, plus the pumpkin patch. He also grew this cabbage that he was sent home with at the end of 3rd grade. His veggies all did really well as you can see. The carrots are really tasty. I can eat the beets because I know they are so good for you, but they aren't my favorite. Bradley does like them though.

It's hard to believe that it has been 3 years, but Elli just had her 3rd birthday. I had some generous neighbors pass on this fun kitchen, and she was so excited when Wayne and Bradley came around the corner of the house with it in hand. She had a pile of presents in front of her, but we had a hard time getting her away from the kitchen to open them. Actually, the kitchen was a hit for all the cousins we had over that night as well. Elli got some toy food, pots and pans, and dishes. She also got a Strawberry Shortcake video from Sadie and Sawyer, and a Cinderella doll from Noah and Clara. It was a fun night.

Surprise, surprise, Elli wanted a pink birthday party. For those of you who don't know, Elli is rather obsessed with pink. I wasn't sure if I'd be up to decorating a pink princess cake, so Crystal was kind enough to do it for us. She had a Barbie cake pan and worked really hard on it only to have her sweet little Sawyer lick the bottom of the skirt. Needless to say, he ate that piece at the party. The cake was really cute, even with the lick marks. Thanks Crystal for jumping in and helping me out! You are awesome!!!

Okay, so last spring I blogged about all the cute skirts and things I wanted to make for Elli. I had said that I would put pictures on here of the things I did, well, I'm finally getting around to it.

First up is this fun summer skirt. I love the colors, and I was so excited when I realized I had this cute pink shirt that matched perfectly. It was a happy coincidence. It's hard to see, but I made her a super cute pink and green bracelet to match.

Next up is this strip quilt for Elli's toddler bed. I didn't do this alone. I had the help of Wayne's very capable and talented cousin Kara. I'm not sure if I would have dared to try this without her help. The back side is a super soft swirly pink fuzzy fabric. I don't even know what it's called, but it really cute.

For the 4th of July I thought it would be fun to make a denim skirt. Elli had some jeans that had a hole in the knee, so I cut the legs off and added this fabric. It was a learning experience, I know better now what to do the next time. I think it still turned out okay though.

This is the skirt that got the ball rolling. My sister Marianne made this for Elli and made a matching one for Clara. It is so cute! I think Marianne and I have new obsession with fabric now. It is so much fun to go find coordinating fabrics for skirts. I have to ground myself from fabric stores so that I don't go overboard. A little girl can only have so many skirts, and we are probably already past that point as it is.

Crystal made this darling bubble skirt for Elli. She had made one for Sadie and used the left over fabric for Elli. Elli loves matching her cousins!

This last one is the fabric I picked out for Elli's Halloween costume. I got the idea from a friend to make a strip skirt with fun Halloween fabrics and have Elli be a witch, so this is what it will look like. The skirt is all but finished, I just need to add the elastic in the waste. I found a cute black shirt with a cat face on it. I think it's going to be a really cute costume. And not scary at all, which I love too. I'm not really into the ghoulish, scary side of Halloween. I just like the cute, fun side of the the holiday.

Last, but not least, these are pictures of our one camping trip this summer. We weren't able to do as many things as we had hoped for this summer because of our surprise baby #3. But my family had a reunion that we didn't want to miss, and Wayne had some very generous clients who allowed us to stay at their cabin so that I could go. It was a bit of a drive from the cabin to where my family was camping. But the luxury of having a bathroom I could access during the night without needing to hike through the woods was worth every minute of the drive. Besides, as you can see from these photos, it was a lovely cabin. We were so grateful to stay there.

The flowers were so pretty on the way up to the campsite. This is one of my favorite places! If Wayne and I could build our own cabin here we would love it!

Here is our sweet little Elli on the bridge with her daddy. She is a daddy's girl, just like I was. She and Wayne had been throwing rocks into the river.