Savannah's 1st Day of Kindergarten

Well, it happened. My oldest child, Savannah Rose, started full-day Kindergarten yesterday. Wait, please press the pause button........I was not ready for this one. But even though I wasn't ready, she was MORE than ready to go!

Can you tell she's excited?

Here she is waiting in line with her classmates before heading into school.

Doesn't she look grown up? I can't believe it!

What's the first day of school without a first day of school outfit, right?

Her dress was an adaptation of my Charlotte Apron Dress pattern. I simply shortened the skirt pattern piece and added a knit ruffle. For the apron, I rounded the top of the apron and left off the contrast band. The leggings were just an easy little legging with a circle skirt style ruffle at the bottom. The navy blue polka dot is a spandex knit from Girl Charlee Fabrics, the ruler fabric and red and white polka dots were from Riley Blake Designs and the skirt is from Heather Bailey's line 'Pop Garden'.

Miss Savannah and her brand new backpack.

Someone was ready for Mama to stop taking her picture. But I needed just a few more.......

I am so excited to see what this year has in store for my little Miss Savannah. She absolutely loves school, loves learning and loves her friends. She is going to have a blast!

Happy 2013 / 2014 school year to my sweet girl!

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So Today I'm 32 Years Old

So today I'm apparently 32 years old. I kind of already thought I was 32, so it doesn't really come as much of a surprise. I think somewhere halfway into 31, I decided I was 32. It's hard to keep it straight once you start getting above 21.

The three new photographs of me in this post were taken by my friend and book photographer, Amy Tripple.

I love birthdays. I know some people dread them and don't like to celebrate; however, I definitely feel they are a day to be celebrated no matter your age. I have always felt like I was many, many years older than I really am. And I truly look at age as simply a number. But if I am looking at it in terms of age, I feel quite proud of all that I have achieved at the age of 32. If the next 32 years look anything like the first, I am excited for the ride!

So since I'm writing about my birthday, I thought I would share 32 things about myself. Some are kind of personal, some are things you might already know, but here we go..........

1. My favorite food is shrimp followed closely by pasta and bread.
2. I am very domestic. Would definitely choose spending time indoors rather than out and I feel a sense of pride being able to make our house a home.
3. I am not a night person. I usually head to bed around 10:00PM.
4. I don't do well during the day without coffee. Coffee with just a little bit of milk. No sugar.
5. My toenails are painted fushia-y pink right now.
6. I like reality telelvision. I am fascinated by how some of these people live. Like can't believe that it's even real (and it probably isn't......but I still pretend).
7. I prefer red wine to white wine.
8. We have three children and I truly cannot decide if we should have a fourth. I had a miscarriage in between Savannah and Matilda and it has changed the way I view pregnancy.
9. I had postpartum depression after the birth my oldest and was treated for it through my second and third children's births. The itty bitty baby phase is always a tough one for me. But I am completely fine now. Yay!
10. My parents got divorced when I was 19. My mom is remarried (to Pepo.....who we love) living in Texas and my dad has retired to the tuscany region of Italy. I wish they all lived closer.
11. My mom is my best friend.
12. I need my creative space to be organized before I create. And then it looks like a bomb exploded when I'm finished. It's a vicious cycle. Organize. Clean. Create. Repeat.
13. I love writing my blog, but work very hard to balance at all. I do my best, but it is hard and I do get overwhelmed.
14. I am passionate about most things in my life......family, home, business......pretty much everything.
15. I am Catholic. I believe in God. And He has become more and more my rock as I get older. I find myself communicating with Him often.
16. My brother lives in Boulder, CO and is a professional chef. I miss him.
17. I have short hair, but I used to have really long hair. And I just got highlights for the first time ever a few months ago.
18. As much as we love our cottage home, we are hoping to move in a couple years. The hubby and I are ready for a new adventure!
19. I am very sensitive and get my feelings hurt easily.
20. I am really enjoying my children getting older. The conversations we are able to have are such special moments to me. Although, I still enjoy rocking my baby and singing to him each night before he goes to sleep.
21. My favorite movie is 'You've Got Mail'. No it's nothing super deep or intellectual, but I think it is so sweet and I love Meg Ryan's life during that movie and the love story involved.
22. I married my high school sweetheart and he is pretty darn awesome. We have been together since I was 17.
23. I don't really like baths. I prefer showers.
24. I love spending time with friends. I am definitely a people person.
25. I do not like when people rearrange things in my house. A place for everything and everything in it's place.......that's a good motto.
26. I thought I was going to grow up and be a broadway star. I spent my whole childhood training for it.
27. I went to Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music and majored in Musical Theater. Then reality hit and I moved to Chicago, IL and got a degree from DePaul University in Finance. I decided stability and family life was more important than stardom. But I can still belt out a tune.
28. I used to work in commercial banking and real estate prior to having children.
29. I try my best to have positive energy and encourage others.
30. I love my life. I know people don't always love to hear you say that. It seems as though, they would prefer to hear the negative. But it's true. So there, I said it......I love my life.
31. I am by no means perfect. I just try to do the best that I can every day. And when I mess up, I always say I'm sorry.
32. I work very hard. Every. Single. Day.

So there's 32 things about me.....good, bad, boring, ect. But I don't always have the opportunity to come on here and talk personally with you, so I thought maybe those things would show you a little bit more about the woman behind this blog.

This past weekend I got to go out to dinner with my husband and kids, got to sleep in a little bit, they brought me some beautiful flowers (that you maybe have seen over on Instagram -@thecottagemama) and take a nap. This mama is pretty happy, so I'll say that having a birthday on a Monday isn't so bad since you have the whole weekend before to celebrate.

Thanks so much for reading and have a great day!

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Happy 4th Birthday, Matilda Jane!

 Dear Matilda,

Today you are four years old.......how is that possible? It seems like only yesterday, your came into our lives to grace us with your beautiful presence. Today on your birthday there are some things I would like to remember about you and some things I think you might want to know about what you were like when you turned four years old.

1. You love mermaids. You had a mermaid birthday party.
2. Your favorite color is still blue, with pink following a close second.
3. You still take a long afternoon nap (thank you for that!).
4. When you wake up from your nap, you give me a big hug and wrap your legs around me. I call you my 'Tilda Monkey'. And you call me your 'Mama Monkey'. It still makes me feel like you are my baby girl.
5. Your favorite foods are hot dogs, french fries and all kinds of berries.
6. You sleep with your 'Geo' (Team Umizoomi) doll.
7. You really wanted a 'Diamond Princess Tiara' for your birthday. It is plastic and sparkly, but you think it is really diamonds. Mommy and Daddy got that for you.
8. You like to play dress up.
9. Your favorite TV shows are Dora, Team Umizoomi, Princess Sofia and Doc McStuffins.
10. You love playing with your brother and sister.
11. You will wear any clothes that mommy makes for you and are SO excited when I sew for you.
12. You love to color and paint.
13. You love your gymnastics class.
14. We saw 'Seussical the Musical' and now you are trying to learn all the words to the songs from the show and love acting out the finale of the show.
15. You are sweet and very kind.
16. You love going canoeing and camping with Daddy.
17. When we go out to restaurants, you love to order chocolate milk.
18. You like ice cream more than cake.
19. You perform 'Mr. Knickerbocker' by singing and doing all the moves and it is truly one of the cutest things I have ever seen.
20. You are a such a bright light in our family and bring joy into every day.

Happy Birthday to my sweet, Matilda Jane!

Love,

Mama

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A Trip to the Strawberry Patch: 2013

It's strawberry season here in Chicago. On Monday I was trying to decide what the kids and were going to do for the day and I thought......'I bet it's strawberry picking time.' I called our local berry farm to see if they had berries this year (since the weather has been so strange) and it turns out Monday was the first day they were open for picking! Well that sealed the deal. The kids and I were going to go strawberry picking and get the first pick of the season!

Miss Savannah was really into making sure she picked the very best strawberries she could find. This girl has high standards when it comes to berries.........she passed over many berries before she picked just the right one. She was our quality control manager.

This is what Mr. Caspian did the entire time. He had a feast and didn't get a single berry in his basket. I tried to look past the fact that the berries weren't washed and just let him have a good time. He really enjoyed himself since he absolutely loves berries. You could just see his eyes light up when he realized what we were doing. He was in hog heaven.

Miss Matilda was kind of in between girl. She spent a good amount of time eating and a good amount of time picking berries for her basket. When I told her we were going strawberry picking she said 'I know what shirt I'm going to wear!' And it was just perfect.

We spent about an hour picking our berries and then went and had a picnic lunch under a nice shady tree. It was such a gorgeous day out and I just spent the whole time we were out there feeling so incredibly grateful for all these little blessings in my life. Nice weather will do that for you.

We got a really good amount of berries, but I will tell you that a majority of them were gone by the end of the day. I seriously think strawberries are one of the greatest little treasures......so sweet and delicious!

And this is what the kids looked like after our picnic and strawberry eating fest. And this is why we never wear fancy clothes to pick strawberries........it always ends with a strawberry face or strawberry body.

A nice man saw me trying to take pictures of the kids and offered to take a group picture of us. Don't you just love when that happens? So here's our strawberry picking crew.......it's a miracle that everyone's faces are pointing towards the camera......seriously........a miracle.

A couple years ago I made some really delicious Cinnamon Strawberry Muffins (recipe found here) and this year I decided to try something new. If you follow me over on Instagram (@thecottagemama) you might already know what it is..........it turned out so yummy......I can't wait to share!

Strawberry picking has become an annual tradition for us. I took the girls picking when I was pregnant with Cass, we went last year when he was just a baby and I carried him on me in the Ergo carrier and now look at the three of them. It's amazing how time flies!

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Easter 2013

I know it's a little late, but I wanted to share some Easter pictures with you all and fill you in on what we've been up to the last couple weeks.

 The girls in their Easter dresses.

For Spring break / Easter we went to visit my mom (aka Grandma Jane) and Pepo down in Texas. It was just the breath of fresh air that I needed getting away from the cold, dreary Chicago winter. It gave me a glimpse of what's to come in the next few months weather-wise here at home. Oh, how I love warm weather and sunshine! I don't think most of the folks down there thought it was warm, but for us, 70 degrees was just perfect.

 Savannah loved the Easter bunny this year.

I flew down with the three kids by myself (yes, I know, I'm crazy) and then my husband met us down there about four days later. The kids did such a great job on the airplane. I'm not going to lie, I was nervous (I mean very nervous) about how this would go all by myself. It's one thing to travel with three kids, but three kids age five and under is an entirely different beast.

I got some really great advice from a lot of you over on The Cottage Mama fan page, so I really appreciate all your great tips and tricks. I made sure I had all of our electronic devices (LeapPad, iPad, iPhone), some treats the kids don't normally have at home and some board books for the little man. Caspian sat on my lap the whole flight and never tried to get down (thank goodness). I just tried to stay one step ahead of him and what he might need. I knew what trick (or treat) I would be pulling out each time he got a little antsy. And the biggest relief was that no one needed to go potty or needed a diaper change on the plane. Woooohooo!

 Caspian and Pepo (aka Grandpa)

 Caspian's first real egg hunt.

 We tried to get a picture with all the grand-kids, but this is as good as we got.

We had such a lovely trip. We took the kids to the children's museum, the Houston zoo, Chuck E. Cheese (they had never been before), played outside in the yard, played with bubbles and gardening tools. My mom's husband, Pepo, is a top-notch golfer. They had little toy golf sets for the kids and he taught them a thing or too when it came to golf.

 Most pictures of Caspian look like this these days......he's always on the move.

The Easter bunny came to visit us in Houston. We attended my mom and Pepo's church and had a fantastic brunch and Easter egg hunt at their Country Club. It had an incredible spread of food and I love to eat, so I was in total heaven. There was every kind of salad you could think of, tons of boiled shrimp, smoked salmon, an omelet station, pancakes, waffles, biscuits and gravy, fruit, pastries, fancy cheeses, all kinds of fruit, pork loin, crab stuffed fish, roasted lamb, sliced beef, broccoli gratin, wild rice, roasted potatoes, cheese grits, roasted vegetables. Oh and the desserts.......red velvet cupcakes, pecan pie, tres-leche cake, coconut cake, chocolate cake and so on. Did I make you hungry? Can you tell I like food? I'm hungry just thinking about it all!

 Savannah's Easter Dress

 Savannah's Easter Dress

(Pattern: Children's Corner 'Mallory')

 Caspian and Daddy 

We really just had such a great time. I felt so happy in Texas. Every time I leave my mom, my heart hurts. Do you know what that feels like? It is my dream to live close to her someday. It just seems like life is so short that it saddens me that we don't get to spend more time together. I don't know if it will ever happen as life has us drawn us in different directions. But maybe it's true, absence makes the heart grow fonder? I'm sure that's true. But I'm sure my heart would be just as fond, if she were right down the street. Who knows? Maybe it will work out someday, but for now I cherish every visit I get to have with her. She is truly the best mom and friend that I could ever imagine.

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter and got the chance to spend some time with loved ones that are near and dear to your heart!

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And in the blink of an eye, she turned 5.

Savannah Rose is 5 years old today. I say it every year, but I just can't believe it. Five is such a big birthday to me. When they are under five, they seem like they are still little babies, but turning five means they are truly a 'kid'. Savannah will start kindergarten in the fall. It's all going by too fast.

I am so proud of my sweet girl and there are some things I would like her to know on her 5th birthday........

1. You maturing into a beautiful little lady, inside and out.
2. You are a wonderful big sister. You walk your little sister, Matilda to her preschool class each morning and give her a big hug before she goes in. Your teachers constantly tell me how wonderful you are to her. Thank you for that. Your little brother adores you.
3. Orange is still your favorite color.
4. Your favorite food is cheeseburgers.
5. You are having a Rainbow Unicorn Party for your birthday.
6. You asked for princesses and unicorns for your birthday presents.
7. You tell me all the time how you are going to live close to me always and are going to buy the house next door when you get older (I will be reminding you of this when you are 15 and want nothing to do with me).
8. You are smart. SO smart.
9. You love to play outside in the snow and go on hikes.
10. You like to ride bikes.
11. You like to help mama cook.
12. You still sleep with your Elmo (even though he is falling apart).
13. You really, really want a sewing machine. It's not time yet, but maybe when you turn six.
14. You say you want to be just like your mama when you grow up and sew beautiful things. Thank you for that........you have know idea how much that means to me.
15. Your best friends are Rory, Paige and Jordyn (and your sister, Matilda).
16. You are very self-sufficient which is very helpful.
17. You love to cuddle.
18. You love to dance ballet and sing songs.
19. You like to tell knock-knock jokes.
20. You are very loved by your mama, daddy, Matilda, Caspian and all your family and friends.

Five years ago you came into this world and changed my life forever, you made me a mother, the very best role I have ever had in my life. Happy Birthday, baby girl. We love you from here to the moon and back again!    

       

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Gingerbread Houses ~ Decorating Fun!

We had so much fun with my mom and Pepo visiting this past weekend. One of the holiday projects we did during their visit was decorating gingerbread houses. The girls had a ball with this holiday activity and I thought I would share some photos of their experience.

First we had to gather up all the candy.......lots and lots of candy.

These red ruby dishes are very special to me. My Grandma Ethel collected a large set of this dishes in all shapes and sizes for me. They are so beautiful and I always pull them out around the holidays. I really should use them more often because they really make me smile when we use them. The little dishes were prefect for all the different types of candy.

I did not make the actual gingerbread for the houses. Maybe someday, but for now, I felt lucky enough to find the time to gather up all the supplies and complete this project. I bought a kit for our houses that had this handy tray to help the house stand up. The houses are held together with a delicious white icing. I mean, what's the fun of a gingerbread house if you can't eat it, right? I know you can purchase these kits at many different big box stores.

Of course, you and I both know that the most fun part of decorating a gingerbread house is sampling all the candy. Miss Matilda certainly was in charge of quality control, but she did manage to get some candy onto her house.

Savannah was very focused on her house decorating and she had some help from Pepo and Grandma Jane.

Here is Matilda's completed gingerbread house.

To be honest, I wasn't sure how this little miss was going to do decorating her house. She has been giving us a run for our money lately, but to my pleasant surprise she was really into the task at hand.

Here is another 'quality control' photo. There were lots of those.

Savannah had to put her final finishing touches on her gingerbread house to make it look just right. And it did. Both of their houses were absolutely beautiful! We really had so much fun with this activity that I definitely think we will do this again next year!

So, do you decorate gingerbread houses with your children or grandchildren?

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

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