Crochet Baby Dress for Isabella

Crochet Baby Dress

Crochet is another crafty endeavor that I enjoy when I sit and relax at the end of the day.  Recently I started making a dress for the newest grand girlie, and finished it just in time for her to wear to a wedding this past weekend.

I found this pattern on You Tube, written by Oana in Italy.  I am graciously thankful that she is willing to share her skills and video tutorials with the world, and that she took the time to make an English version of her video tutorials.

Our Selfie

Isabella is now 7 months old, and the pattern was written for 6 months.  When I started the project last month, the dress was more of a shirt so I had to add more rows of cascade stitch to get the length long enough to be a dress on her.  The top of the dress fit her just perfectly, so unfortunately wearing the dress was a one time deal, unless another special occasion pops up in the next couple weeks before she outgrows the top.

Isabella is a techy baby and is fascinated with cell phones.  She loves to take selfies and.the fact that the child knows what buttons to push amazes me.  The lighting was poor, but I had to capture the moment with her wearing the dress.  She wanted to hold my cell phone but Grammy said no.  She didn't give me a smile for the selfie in return.

My Newest Love

Isabella found her thumb!

My husband mentioned the other day that I need to update my "Grandma Times 2" picture on the right side of my blog since we've had the addition of two step grandgirlies last summer and a new grandgirlie in November.  Next time we have them all together we'll be sure to get a photo of all 5 grandgirlies together so I can update my photo.

Isabella...ah, what a cutie.  She has red hair, which I'm happy about.  I had high hopes that one of my children would end up with red hair like their father, but looks like it skipped a generation.  She had the strong genetics of being gifted with red hair due to the fact that the grandfathers on both sides were blessed with red hair.

Now three months old, she's discovered her thumb, much to her mother's dismay.  (LOL)  She's also trying to mimic what we do.  If we stick our tongue out, she does.  If we make a noise, she attempts to do the same.  Very much aware of her surroundings, and extremely easy to startle.  There has been many a moment of laughter over her ear piercing screams of fright over much of nothing.  We're starting to experience the attempts to giggle, as she's found my squeaky voice since Friday night to be amusing.  I look like Grammy but I don't sound like Grammy and so she grins, squiggles and squirms around as the beginnings of a laugh start to emerge.

It's amazing how quickly one small human being can win over ones heart.

Curing the Winter Blues

Smile!

It is hard to believe that it has already been five years since my first Grandbaby was born.  How did time fly by so fast?  Stop the clock, already!!!  We went for a visit and to celebrate the momentous occasion. I also snagged some cute T-shirts for the girlies while I was in Washington, DC which required a photo session, of course.  This is one proud Grammy, grinning from ear to ear, because we learned earlier this week that Grandbaby #3 will join our happy, growing family in October and these two precious girlies will have a new cousin to grow up with!

Watermelon Soap

Midweek we were inundated with yet another major winter storm that delivered 2 feet of snow followed by yet another deep arctic freeze.  I am so done with winter, and yearn for warm sunshine, flip flops, and summer fun.  I'm ready to retire the coats, boots, and scarves for a while.  Alas, winter is holding a tight grip and not relinquishing its hold quite yet.  In the soaping room I created Watermelon Soap that not only looks fun, it smells amazing!  A fragrance that cures the winter blues, for sure.

In other news, phase one of our new website design is now complete.  A real website that connects to our blog feed, and for now, to our Etsy shop.  In time products will migrate over to the new website.  At least for now I am please to have everything somewhat tidy and connected from the domain to make finding the online shop and blog/news updates easier.  And now it is time for me to head back into the soap room and create.  :)

Greening Up Bit by Bit

I see some green!

It doesn't take much to get me excited except when I am anxious for winter to finish melting away and discover a small patch of green slowly making its appearance. 

I have been itching all winter to go sit on the bench under the pergola we built last summer and this afternoon I trudged my way through the snow to enjoy a moment of tranquility when I discovered a small patch of green grass poking its way around the snow melting away. 

The driveway and yard is rapidly turning into a lake and mud bog.  For the first time this winter I had to lug out my boots so I can get in and out of the car without ending up with water logged feet and/or shoes being sucked off my feet by the mud.

Lilac soap cut into bars

I was so thrilled with the results of the soap I made last weekend and wanted to share how the Lilac soap turned out.   The swirls look like whispers of purple in the base of the bar and the piping adds a fancy touch befitting of the delicate lilac fragrance.  I can't wait until it warms up enough for my lilac bush to bloom.  Until then, I will be enjoying the fragrance of this soap as it finishes curing. 

Hailley and Christina saying "cheese and macaroni"

Last Sunday my oldest Grand Girlie turned four.  Seems like just yesterday that she was born, the time has flown by so quickly.  We took a road trip to celebrate the occasion, and went from needing jackets to no jackets back to needing jackets in the time we were there.  We played in the snow and mud, blew bubbles, dumped some bubble water on accident (actually a lot), and took a nice walk on the muddy back roads.  One thing for certain, I was glad I wasn't the one having to wash the multiple jackets, boots, and clothes the girls got covered in mud.