Smocking Classes

I finally decided that it was time for me to take a smocking class last month. I have been wanting to for a long time but have been way too busy. Last month I took a stacking class, & tonight I learned how to put a smocked insert into a shirt. I'm so excited! Here are some pictures of my shirt from tonight. This is the first stacking project I have done. It is a little off center, but I think it turned out pretty good for a first try!

Third Birthday!!

This weekend we celebrated Joshua's third birthday! Its hard to believe he isn't a baby anymore! We were so glad to have both sets of his grandparents & his great-grandparents at our house Saturday to celebrate. Here are some pics from his big day:

A rare picture of him actually smiling! He was making a serious face & then smiling after the picture. With 3 cameras flashing, we were able to get one of a smile!

Getting ready for the cake. Unfortunately, Joshua decided he didn't want his cake but ate animal crackers instead....oh well!

This was my attempt at a Clifford cake. My practice cake had actually looked better than the real thing.

With his talking Super Why toy.

A set of Clifford books.

Signing Time DVD.....he recognizes Rachel on the front!

Petting his new moose. When I asked him what it was, he signed "bunny".

Happy Halloween!

John & I each did a pumpkin this year. We just carved them last night, though!


John did a NASCAR theme for his....maybe since Talladega is this weekend?? Anyway, you can tell we love Jimmie Johnson!

I had wanted to find a Clifford pattern to do for Joshua, but Blues Clues was the closest I could find.

60 Minutes Story on Epilepsy

If you happened to catch 60 Minutes this past weekend, then you saw Katie Couric do a story on epilepsy. It really was a great story that I hope will bring more awareness to this issue. John & I know the agony of watching your baby go through multiple seizures in a day, and the helplessness that accompanies the situation. However, there are many whose situations are far worse than Joshua's. We are fortunate that his seizures seem to be controlled through medication. Here is the link if you want to watch.

Growing Up

Joshua will be graduating from his school this year. Its so hard to believe he will be three in a few days! We went to have his graduation pictures taken today. This is a picture of him dressed up before we left the house.

Playgroup Dress-up

This is the third year that the kids in our Sunday school class have gotten together in their costumes. The only way I could get Joshua to sit for pictures was to give him crackers. Joshua was Super Why! this year. He LOVES Super Why!! I was going to order a costume online but it had really bad reviews. So, I bought the dress-up set at Target (cape, mask, & Why Writer). I did an iron on transfer of the Super Why! logo onto a green t-shirt. I managed to find a long-sleeved blue shirt, blue shorts, & green pants. The colors didn't match perfectly, but it turned out cute! He refused to wear the mask....he thinks it is better if John or I wear it.


This is the only group shot I could get with Joshua. He was finished with his crackers when everyone else was ready to try to get in the shot! There were 2 more babies & 2 more toddlers. The other two in this picture are brother & sister. If you go back to our first year of doing this, you will see a picture of Joshua & this same little girl...they have grown up so much!

A view of the cape!

John always thinks it is fun to mess with our poor dog. She was a good sport & even wagged her tail.

Pumpkin Patch

Have I mentioned that it is hard to get good pictures of our child?? We made our annual trip to the pumpkin patch today & out of all of the pictures we attempted, these three were the best! They are cute, but he isn't looking at the camera in two of the three! I may make a second attempt later this week if the weather is nicer.