Lorajean's Magazine, BLOG

 Last week my mom and two of my sisters came to visit me and see the baby. While I was out for lunch with my mom, my sisters set up a lovely surprise shower for me. It was so nice of them! I wasn't expecting them to do anything since it is my fourth baby, so it really meant a lot to me that they did it anyway. I even got all choked up when I turned the corner and they yelled surprise! My living room was transformed into a party room! Everything was neon and craft paper. I love the combo of neutrals with neon and they picked up on it. I was surprised to find out that they purchased a lot of the party stuff at the dollar store. So if you want a neon party for cheap you know where to go! After I opened the wonderful gifts of handmade baby clothes, a handmade quilt and cute matching outfits for my two girls, my sister pulled out a huge box full of hand me downs from her four girls!  I just want to say thanks to my mom and sisters for the super awesome baby shower I reall...

 I have been spoiled lately and have to share the loveliness with you all. My sister Merrilee made me this adorable baby quilt, similar to this one she made last year for our nice, but instead of sewing a herringbone pattern she did a zigzag pattern for the quilting. I love it so much! To me hand made gifts are some of the most touching and memorable. I have received quite a few handmade baby quilts throughout motherhood.  I come from a crafty family so you an imagine how many baby blankets, quilts, and afghans the four of them have all together. I honestly cherish all of them though! As do my children, they sleep with each one.  Another thoughtful gift I received recently was a pretty blue circle skirt made by Dana Willard ! I was so surprised when she sent me an email asking me for my address. I later received a lovely little package with a cute card and everything! She is such a sweet blog friend and I hope to meet her in person some day so I can give ...

It's getting warmer around here and that means it's time for light and airy spring time clothes. I have pinned a lot of really pretty kids clothes ideas lately, (see them here ) and really wanted to make new clothes for lizzy since she is out growing a lot of her clothes. I sewed a super simple but really pretty floral top for Lizzy the other day. I got the fabric for a $1.50 a yard at Walmart. :) I have had some time to sew lately because the kids have been sick these past few days, and homeschooling is on hold while they cuddle on the couch watching movies. Lizzy got hit the hardest with a fever, bad sore throat and a cough. She slept on the couch for practically a week and finally perked up yesterday afternoon. So just us 3 girls went shopping for sandals, it was nice to spend "alone" time with Lizzy and have a little get away. It's so funny that going shopping with only two kids is a relaxing treat now that I have four. I feel a little frazzled at times but ...

Hello! I'm still here. I am recovering and we are all adjusting well over here. I have even found some time for sewing for Evangeline. I made her a kimono onesie with a pretty knit print I had left over from another project. I am editing the pattern a bit and planning on making a tutorial so be sure and check back soon. We all love out newest family member! She gets more beautiful every day.

Baby Evangeline was s 6 pounds 6 ounces and 18 inches long, I did pretty good considering shes only the fourth one I've made. :)  All 4 turned out perfect in my eyes. I went into labor before we could turn her head-down and since my water broke there was no turning back, I had to have a C-section. I'll elaborate on that story in a later post for now I'll be taking  it easy. :)

With my appointment to turn the baby and a very probable induction coming this Thursday, I have been keeping busy trying to get things in order. Its isn't often that you know the real due date a week ahead of time so I am trying to take advantage of it. One of the things on my to do list was to get the baby's quilt made. This is the fastest quilt I have ever made so far. I finished it in two days! I would've liked the top stitching to be a little straighter but I am not a perfect quilter. But I believe when something is made for you by someone you love it is treasured even with all it's flaws. I love that all the patchwork fabric is from the thrift store, most of it vintage, because that makes it a little unique. The color scheme evolved by itself after I saw the fabrics in my craft room unintentionally stacked together. It was super fast to make because of the simple square patchwork pattern. I wanted it to be a soft blanket so I chose this super furry plush stuff...

Today is our 9th anniversary and I wanted to share some old school photos of us as brand spanking newlyweds! Trent looks so young with out a beard. I definitely prefer the beard , I think it makes him look like a mountaineer/lumberjack/pirate/artist/hottie. ;) I can't believe its 9 years today. I am so blessed to have such a loving husband. I really believe there is no one in the world better for me! Here is the quick version of our love story. I was 19 when we met and I invited Trent to join the church choir. We had mutual friends, therefore making it easy to run into each other often. We started hanging out a lot with friends then after two months we noticed our friends asking us where we've been. We thought "What? We've been hanging out with you all this whole time." To our surprise we realized we had really been exclusively hanging out with only each other for a month and a half. (Mostly at the bookstore.) We realized quickly after that that we couldn'...

I have been crocheting up a storm over here, mostly making baby clothes. I am still working on perfecting the patterns and will for sure be letting you know when they are available! :)  Baby Girl's birthday is coming up quickly and we are trying to get all our ducks in a row in preparation. March 11th is the due date, but at my last appointment she was breech. The Dr. said we may induce labor early, after turning baby head down, so we can get her out without resorting to a C-section. A C-section sounds kinda scary since I have never had surgery in my life. Hopefully all will turn out as planned or better! :) Another thing we have been doing over here in preparation for baby's arrival is building a triple bunk bed in the kid's room! Our 2-yr-old is still sleeping in our room in the crib and he needed a new place to sleep. The new bunk bed is pretty much finished except for a few accents and paint. Because the bed is located where the closet was we are in desperate need o...

I have always admired bloggers that share real aspects of life. I guess I feel a connection with them because I can relate to them personally. Here is the real life version of our house right now . Trent just took down a show and we haven't gotten around to putting the paintings in the art shed yet. There are stacks of library books that are probably over due. (I think our family's over due fees provide the majority of the library's revenue. Seriously, almost every time we go we pay $10 in fees!) My craft table is drowning under a pile of baby girl clothes I've accumulated in the last 5 months. ( I can't believe I have three weeks left!) What you don't see pictured is; the huge beyond huge pile of kids clothes that my kids either don't fit or don't wear, that I am donating to the local DI, a cluttered kitchen, a homeschooling desk covered in papers and books, and toys littering almost every room! :)  Real life for us is often messy, cluttered, and dis...

 We had a few friends over for a fun little Valentines party. We made cards, decorated felt flags, ate cookies, and danced to vintage records. :) It was really laid back party. I basically sat and chatted with all the moms while the kids went at it. I loved seeing what the kids made with what I put out, they got really creative! It turned out fun, and the relaxed feel was really nice. You know, with me being eight months pregnant that was all I had energy for anyway. My sis Mer  had come into town for the weekend and helped me get things ready. She was super awesome and made the cookies because I was running behind with party prep. They were so yummy thanks Mer!! Pin It