Thoughts (mostly Questions) on Motherhood

This morning after leaving Oliver in his classroom at Rosewood, I saw a new mother sitting at the entrance to the daycare with her infant daughter. She was reading through the enrollment materials. Her face was drawn, slightly tired, definitely apprehensive and a little sad. I think I looked exactly the same way the first time I visited Rosewood. The thought of leaving Oliver in someone else's care for most of the day seemed unbearable.

However, my mood that morning was happy- I was bouncing out of the center looking forward to finishing up some things at work. The contrast really struck me.

Then I wondered, how did my feelings change so drastically? Was it seeing Oliver thrive while at daycare? Was it the amount of freedom daycare afforded me? If I say yes to the first question I feel like a good mom. If I say yes to the second, then I feel guilty. Is it okay to enjoy a few hours each day away from our children - even knowing those hours are necessary?

What happened between that first day, dropping him off at daycare and crying on the way to my office, and this morning, looking forward to my day knowing that I would see him at lunch to nurse and then again after work?

Will this process of separation repeat itself for the rest of his life?

Baby Pants

A while back at Torchy's Tacos, I saw the cutest little boy in homemade yellow pants. I decided then that I wanted Oliver to wear homemade pants too. He has been growing out of clothes so quickly, and most baby clothes are cut for disposable diapers, so finding good fitting shorts and pants has been a challenge. Making some especially for him seemed like a great idea.

The ones above are made from a madras fabric I bought at Hancock. But then I decided to just find fabric around the house. Each pair takes about 3/4 of a yard. These are from the bottom of some pajama pants that Jay cut off a few months ago.

These were made from one of Jay's vintage western shirts. They are my favorite so far. I placed the pattern on the shirt so that I could use the chest pockets for back pockets on the pants. (This photo is also the first time Oliver has supported himself on all fours!!)

After making a couple of pair, I got tired of finishing the edges with a zig zag stitch, so these are finished with french seams, except for the crotch. After they were cut, I added a little bit of contrasting fabric along the waistband to lengthen the rise. This made more room for his diaper. The others have been a little tight. (Sorry for the blurry pic)

I found another shirt yesterday that I'll turn into pants this weekend. It has been so much fun to repurpose old clothes for Oliver, and he just looks so cute in them.

TWDB* Girl's Weekend

My coworker Wendy hosted the second annual Girl's Weekend at her family's ranch outside of Llano, near Castell. We spent the entire day Saturday lounging in the river, relaxing, chatting and enjoying the water and sun.

Sharing the river with the cattle (we stayed upstream).

I was one very relaxed momma after that weekend.

*TWDB = Texas Water Development Board

Fun Weekend

Last weekend we had lots of visitors to the house. Friday night Tio Chago and his new wife Ginny came to visit. They are our new awesome future babysitters. Oliver had so much fun playing with them!

I made some homemade french bread for dinner Friday and it turned out pretty well, so I spent some time baking potato bread Saturday afternoon. It actually turned out great! I have made several failed attempts at yeast breads before so it was nice to have two recipes turn out well. My bread baking confidence is bolstered. I finally learned that the trick is to use a thermometer to get the yeast started.

Then Tara, Jerome, Flynn and Francis came to visit on Sunday. Flynn is a few months older and he wanted to play! Oliver will eventually get there...

Madsen Cycles

Speaking of bikes, this one is really cool too!

Hanging Out with the Guys

It is so much fun to watch the babies socialize at school. Today Oliver played with his friends Cooper, Joshua and David. They had a great time sharing toys and posing for pictures. I wonder what it will be like once all these little guys learn to crawl?

Upcycling at Etsy

My grandmother had a complete set of turquoise Samsonite hard sided luggage. The set was given to her as a thank you gift from the parents of a preemie when she was a prenatal nurse in the 1960s. Growing up, whenever one of us needed a suitcase we could borrow a piece of Grandmother's. My favorite piece was always the train case that she would let me take to summer camp. So, when I saw this shop I thought of her. I like how they have updated the luggage with cool graphic details. I want this one, too.