Happy 2013!!

Happy 2013!!!  We celebrated last night by watching college football and Cora had a sleepover.  It was a great night but we were in bed shortly after midnight! 

This morning was met with some funny conversations so I thought I would share:

As we were watching the Outback Bowl:

Cora: Are the Bengals on today?
Steve: No today is college football
Cora:  Well are the Buckeyes on today?
Steve: (Busts out laughing) No Cora they were bad so they had to stay home.

I quickly reminded Steve that his Illini were a "different kind of bad" and they are home too!  Cora needed to start learning the struggles of college football about now anyway.  How you can have a great season and because of someone's mistake the season will always be a "yeah but...."

Then she asked who we were rooting for in the Outback Bowl ( South Carolina VS Michigan).  Her 2nd college football lesson of the day is the internal struggle that you have when you are a Big 10 fan: You hate to see an SEC team win a bowl game BUT you hate Michigan.  Soon she will learn to pick the lesser of two evils when it comes to bowl games.

And now onto the menu of the day.  Growing up in Ohio we always had pork, sauerkraut and mashed potatoes.  Since we have been in the south we have been incorporating the "lucky" foods of black eyed peas and collard greens.  When I asked who was eating "lucky" foods today, Cora replied that she was eating salad.  So technically salad is green so she may be blessed with a small fortune.  Steve ate the "ceremonial bite" of greens.  So because I can't count on his one bite to fill our pockets for 2013, I ate a bowl of them.  But I like them, when properly seasoned!  But my disclaimer is that I buy them in the can, had a bowl was done with them.  Our black-eyed peas are in with the ham and bean soup.  The timer just went off for the cornbread so I will be signing off.

Our family wishes you a happy and blessed 2013.  Draw near to God, love your friends and family and be nice.

~Cora's Momma

No Hot Glue Here!!

The blog entry is about me.....plan and simple.

Every Christmas I have ordered the Christmas American Girl pajamas for Cora and one of her dolls.  Cora is the owner of Bitty (the American Girl baby) and Kit and Chrissa (American Girls).  Because the pajama set only comes with one set of doll pjs there is a constant struggle every Christmas to decide who will wear the new Christmas pajamas.

This year.....We will have equality for all America Girls.  I decided to make Cora pajama pants and matching pajama pants for all her AG dolls.  And.....I didn't spend the insane amount of money on American Girl pajamas! 

So the weekend after Thanksgiving I bought everything I needed to make all the pajama pants which included an EASY Learn To Sew pattern!  I would venture to say that the last time I actually sewed something that required me to pin a pattern on fabric was in Independant Living (home ec) in high school!  So Learn To Sew patterns are a plus!

Now you must know a little something about me first.....I LOVE HOT GLUE!  I hot glue everything!  I have been known to hot glued patches on girl scout vests and even make halloween costumes!! 

I made this costume entirely with HOT GLUE!  And we still have it in our dress up box!!

 

I have had a sewing machine for awhile.....I asked for it one Christmas.  I just felt like everyone should have a sewing machine right?  So my mom bought me one.  I have used it.....a few times!  But I was positive that I would be able to pull off this pajama idea.  Steve always thinks that all my ideas are great.  At least that is what he says....but in his mind I am sure he was screaming, "JUST BUY THE PAJAMAS!"  He knew what would happen.  I would let the supplies sit in a bag until the week before Christmas (which is too late to actually order pajamas!) and then FREAK OUT when I messed up the pants.

Well....he was right....I did wait until a week before Christmas....and I did freak out a tiny bit when I broke a needle right off the bat.  But 2 days later.......DRUM ROLL PLEASE.....

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WE HAVE CHRISTMAS PAJAMAS......And not a drop of hot glue!

~Cora's Mom.....Bitty, Kit and Chrissa's Grandma

The Little Things......

Cora is one that notices things that no one else notices.  She is aware of what people wore: their earrings, purse that matches the outfit or even the shade of lipstick.  When she was younger I would ask about how her day was at school she would give me a run down of her teacher's outfit of that day or what color nailpolish she had on that day.  Cora loves pretty things.  She loves stores like Claires, her favorite lipgloss is Mary Kay Fancy Nancy, and her favorite nailpolish is OPI.  I used to think that because Cora was "aware" of these things that she focused too much on superficial things but this Sunday I realized it was something different.

While at church on Sunday, we were standing in line to receive communion and Cora quickly turns and taps me and points. I was of course getting ready to fuss at her, when she says, "Look at her socks!"  When I looked to my right I see a woman, my age, with a pair of Little Missmatched socks on!  I quickly acknowledged Cora's excitement but immediately focused her on being in line for communion. 

For those that really know Cora you know of her love of Little Missmatched .  The socks that this company sells come in threes.  All 3 socks are designed differently but they all coordinate so you can mix and match.  Now this woman's husband heard Cora's gasp and saw her point, but I assure you he had no idea what Cora was looking at because he probably has no idea what Little Missmatched is but to Cora this woman just became the coolest lady in church!

When we left church I thought that I could chalk that up to one more things that only Cora notices.  But then I realized....anyone can say, "You look nice today."  But Cora can say, "You had the most amazing socks on today."  Which one sounds more sincere?  I figured out then that Cora doesn't notice superficial things.....she notices details about people that no one else takes the time to appreciate.  We missed seeing that Little Missmatched woman after church.  I am sure that Cora would have made her day! 

Cora in all her Little Missmatched glory!  Even her hat is LMM (a present from JJ!)

 

 

~The Little Missmatched's Momma

In our house.....

In our house.......


Barack Obama is The President of the United States and our Commander-In-Chief. We do not use words like idiot or domestic terrorist....in fact we don't even use words like Democrat or Republican. 

In our house.....

We live respectful of the President of the United States knowing that this is the first Presidancy that our daughter is going to remember.

So today.....I took her out of school and we went to hear him speak at a rally in Virginia Beach.  Watching her.....watch him.....I will never forget it.

And whether she grows up to be a Democrat or Republican I hope that this nine year old will always remember this day.

 

 

 

We almost didn't get one.....but the nice girl in front of us gave Cora hers!

 

 

 

President Barack Obama

It seems like we were really far away but we weren't.  The camera would only zoom so far!

 

 

~Cora's Mom

 



Life is too short for play clothes!

This summer I had the absolute pleasure of going up to Annapolis and taking care of my beautiful niece for a few days before she started at daycare.  Of course I took Cora with me and she had a ball helping out with her (of course until it came time to change diapers)!  But Cora was all about taking her for walks, playing with her and feeding her. 

Best babysitter ever!!

 



Steve came up for the weekend and that gave him and Cora the opportunity to go to a game for a daddy daughter date night.  And since my brother was working at the ballpark that night, it gave me and my sister-in-law Kimberly a chance to sit and talk.  What I found myself doing was living vicariously through her as she discovers all the cute things there are for babies especially when it comes to clothes and shoes and just being a girl!  And loving it that we share somewhat the same taste when it comes to dressing our girls.  We were sharing strategies on taking advantage of sales and coupons at our favorite stores and what size she was getting ready to buy for the next season when I found myself sharing the same advice that my friend gave me when I had Cora.  "Life is too short for play clothes."  And I dressed Cora with that philosophy in mind every day while she was growing up. Because if you wait for the "perfect occassion" to wear that sweet, perfectly pink dress.....she will be grown out of it.  Put it on her.....wear it....got a stain on it??  That is what Oxyclean is for!! 

I would like to tell you we were going somewhere but we probably weren't.  Just have to look fabulous even for a normal day!

I have been thinking about that advice alot lately.  Often after I post pictures from the summer I hear "Man you guys are always on the go." or "You guys are always going somewhere."  Often times those words are spoken by people whose family lives here in town.  We are lucky now that we are back in Virginia that we do live near one of my cousin's and his family but if we want to see our family we have to go to them during the summer.  But I am a firm believer in making experiences for your children.  I am not going to sit around and waste a summer with nothing to do.  I am always ready for that next big thing to do or that really cool place to go.  Why??  Because "Life is too short for play clothes"  I never want to say "I wish we would have done that or gone there"  We just GO!

Abraham Lincoln musuem in Springfield, IL

A friend of mine from high school Tom Needham also writes a blog which I love to read and he wrote one over the summer about calling his dad every day.  He goes into realizing that one day he knows that he is going to call and his dad isn't going to answer.  Pretty sure Tom and his dad don't have any "play clothes" either.  For I know that when that time does come that Tom will have no regrets for the time he made for his dad.

I already have another adventure/experience in the works for Cora.  I will know in the next couple of days if it is going to work out.  As her parents I firmly believe that we are charged with raising a completely well-rounded child.  And I think we are doing a pretty good job.....and doing it without "play clothes"

~Cora's Mom
"Washer of the Clothes"

Guest Blog: My first Pinterest Project by: Cora Welsh

I am going to tell you about my Barbie doll house.  My mom found it on Pinterest .  We didn't have room for a big doll house.

We used my 9 squared shelf.  We took out the toys out of 3 squares and used the empty spaces.



We went to Jo Ann fabrics and found fabric remnants.  We went to Michael's and got scrapbook paper for the walls.  We went to Lowe's and got carpet samples for the TV room. 

This room is the kitchen.

This room is the bedroom.

This is the TV room.

We had some Barbie furniture.  Mommy let me use the boxes from her jewelry boxes to make the microwave, stove, dishwasher and couch.  I look in the kitchen to draw the microwave, stove and the dishwasher.  And we put fabric on the couch.

After we did that we put them in their rooms.

I had fun playing with it.  My friend Courtney liked it too.  I put my dogs and cats from Littlest Pet Shop in there too.

Bon Appetite

So I have decided to concentrate this summer on expanding Cora's food choices.  When I make dinner there are 3 things on the plate: protein, starch, veggie/fruit.  I have never been one to make a separate meal for Cora.  When I make dinner I make sure that she will likes at least 2/3 things that are on her plate.  But still at 9 years old Cora has some food texture issues....but my philosophy....just dip it in ketchup and eat it!  I used to be very good about introducing new foods to Cora.  I would start with the tiniest bite.  Then the next night the bite got a little bigger.  The next night a little bigger.  I know I heard somewhere that a new food needs to be tried like 10 times before they like it.  But it wasn't like I was asking her to try liver! 

I used this method to get her to eat potatoes.  She didn't eat potatoes until she was probably 5 but now she could have them at every meal!  My most recent feat was raw carrots.  I slivered them into matchsticks and would start with one.....then the next night two....and so on. 

Most recently I found out Cora was ditching her banana in the trash and telling me that she ate it.  I do respect that Cora has texture issues but throwing away food is not an option.  I mean I got her to eat potatoes right??  (I will confess that getting her to eat applesauce was a huge fail!)  So I told her that it was time to start trying new fruits.

This week we are trying blueberries.  So again we started with one.  Tonight we are one 3. 

Tonight we also started with cantelope. as well.

So Cora is living proof that it is never too late to try new foods.  And I am always proud when Cora tries something new because I know how difficult it is for her.  But this wouldn't be a Chronicles of Cora if there wasn't something funny.  So tonight I tried a new recipe Fajita Burgers.  But I made her burger first before I put in all the spices and peppers in the rest of the meat.  But they were made with ground turkey.  Now I know enough to know that there was no way I could mention this before she started eating the burger because she would have never eaten it.  So after she ate about half her burger I said in conversation that they were turkey burgers and she freaked out.  She exclaims that there was no way she was eating a turkey burger.  I laughed and told her to finish her burger and she takes a bite and mutters "I think I just ate a feather." 

~Cora's Chef