Summer Time!

Well, life has been busy to say the least! We've bought a new house in the University Heights area, our house is under contract, and we'll be moving in less than three weeks! Jay and I are very excited about our new house. It was built in 1937 and needs some major updating. It's definitely a project house, but we're looking forward to it. It's one of the few things that Jay and I love to do together as a hobby. So I think it will be fun. We move on July 31...if anyone wants to come help!!! :)

I've been teaching at MSU this summer in the afternoons and doing my online job in the morning and toting Lula to and fro. It's been a bit crazy, but the teaching will be over soon and I'm cutting back on my online job hours. Which will be good since I'll have lots to keep me busy in the new house!

My mom and grandma are also here for the three weeks. My dad will come a little later on. It's been such a blessing to have them here already during this busy time. Lula just loves them and is getting spoiled rotten! She's saying new words now: "apple," "eyes," "ball" and finally getting more interested in walking. She can walk, she just chooses not to! And that's about it for now!

Oh! And I found some fun pillows at Funtiques to put on my snazzy yellow couch (which will go in Lula's new room). Pillows make such a big difference! I'll be blogging a lot once we're in our new house and will "document" our renovations. So stay tuned!

New Couch! ...and Lots of Pillows

Many things have occurred in the last couple of weeks...Lula turned one (I should probably blog about that! My best friend beat me to it TWICE which you can see here: Dear London and here: The Stark Family), my mom came to visit for Lula's birthday, we found a new home for Maggie, I've been working like a mad woman (at my mysterious online job), and we FINALLY got our new couch!

We've been waiting for this couch for at least 4 months...maybe longer. We special ordered it from Tekka Gallery here in town and then waited...and waited...and waited. We suffered through Chinese New Year which set back the arrival date by a month...and so we waited some more. But last week, it finally arrived and we are delighted with it! It is HUGE but fits nicely in our living room.

Lula has discovered that crawling across the couch is a fun past time...not so fun for us since we spend the time making sure she doesn't fall off. She's also taken to mimicking us, which is hilarious, of course. Jay and I must lounge a lot because almost as soon as she started getting on the couch, she started fake lounging on the couch too! She crawls to a spot, sits back against the couch, and slumps down into a lounging position. We crack up, and she proceeds to crawl to a new spot.





After seeing our very neutral couch against our very neutral walls, I realized we needed some color! So I searched for some fun fabrics, found lots of polyester at Thrift Haven, and made a bunch of pillows to brighten up the room. I'm not finished yet, but needed a break after making seven pillow covers in two days. I also used my lovely curtains and an afghan my grandmother knitted. I'm very happy with the results.

Dancing with the Stars

Flipping through the channels tonight, we briefly rested on Dancing with the Stars, which inspired the following conversation:

Sarah: I don't understand this show. I don't want to watch...

Jay: Well, yeah. It's like picking someone off the street and saying "I'm going to teach you to sew in an hour." OK. Great. That's what a community center's for. And there shouldn't be any cameras there.

Sarah: (unresponsive due to peals of laughter...)

Pandora

I always forget about Pandora.com but I LOVE it! It's so easy to use and it's free...the best part of course. When Lula and I are playing downstairs and I don't feel like setting up my ipod speakers, which usually reside in my sewing room, Pandora.com is an easy way to get some great music quickly. Lula also LOVES it! I have a "Laurie Breckner" playlist that plays the least cheesy and horrendously offensive children's music I've heard. It's great. Just type in a band that you like and Pandora gives you music that is in the same genre and style as the band you like. You can even buy individual songs as you listen, and of course you can write down songs/bands you like to add to your ipod/mp3 later on. It's also a great way to hear new music if you don't listen to the radio. Can't quite say enough about it. My favorite part is when Lula bounces up down and taps her leg in an Elvis-style fashion when certain songs come on. I wrote those down of course! Try it out if you haven't already...Pandora.com

OH...and I've discovered that I'm in love with Elizabeth Mitchell for kids' songs. I keep coming over to see who's singing a particular song and it's frequently her. Her songs are folky, easy to sing, fun, and very sweet. Love it!

First Easter

Happy Easter! We had a lovely day and the weather couldn't have been more perfect. Yesterday I gave Lula a bath and then attempted to put rollers in her hair! As you can see, she wasn't that happy about it, but left them in long enough to get some cute curls...which didn't last through the night of course!

This morning Jay headed out early to run sound at church while Lula and I got beautified. (Thanks, Aunt Ev for the amazing dress and hat! It's really for her birthday, but we'd thought we'd give it a test run before the big day!) The hat lasted for an even shorter amount of time than the curls! She's at that point where she simply won't keep things in or on her hair.

The service this morning was hopeful and touching, though that sounds superficial and it was anything but. I felt the guilt of blowing off Easter weekend this year and intend to make it more special and important next year. It is the crux of who we are as Christians and should be celebrated in a much more significant and much less commercial way than Christmas. I won't get on my box tonight...but next year, a change is a comin'!

After service Lula and I headed home while Jay stayed for second service. She took a nice long nap after missing her morning one at church. Then we all headed over to Jay's mom's house for lunch and Easter festivities.

We had a delightful and very filling lunch. Lula opened her presents: a bear dressed as a bunny and a sweet egg-gathering bag from Pat; a new book, pajamas, and gift certificate from Nana and Papa Jack.Then we headed outside to gather some eggs. Lula actually tried to get some and we helped her put them in her bag. Then we all just relaxed outside in the grass for a little while. It was such a beautiful day. Lula filled and dumped her little bag. Finally we went inside for cake and ice cream, which Lula loved! Then the three of us headed home and crashed. It was a very nice day.

Almost One

It's hard to believe Lula will be one in two weeks. At the same time it seems like she's always been here and one seems like an insignificant number considering the significance of her little life. She is our joy and sunshine....even though she won't keep clips in her hair and is going through a clingy phase! And that's pretty much the update. This little lamb cracks us up on a regular basis with her constant laughter and funny sounds. She's still crawling and cruising. She LOVES Mollie....(still looking for a home for Maggie) And we love her more than the best cup of coffee on a cold winter morning. Happy almost Birthday, little love.

Lula Update

It's been a while since I've written about Lula. Lots of new things going on...she almost has two more teeth, bringing the total to 4! She looks like a little rabbit and it's adorable. She's also pulling herself up to standing on everything and this morning she walked all the way around the coffee table. This is called "cruising" for all those unfamiliar with all the baby terms! Although it doesn't seem much like cruising cause it's not very smooth! She's been torturing Maggie, which isn't much fun for me...still looking for a home for her...hint, hint!

She's still the greatest thing in the world, but much more active and hands-on. I'm not sure how long I'll be able to keep doing my job with her mobility, but I'll keep going until it's impossible.

My website www.lulainlondon.com is coming along beautifully. Jay and I worked on it last night and it looks amazing! I can't wait to get it up and running. You can see a few of the changes now, but it's not even close to what we've done. So keep checking back! I'll keep this blog for Lula updates, but everything else will be over there.

I've got several new things up on Etsy and there's more to come. My book...well, I'm trying, but all of these other projects are consuming most of my time even though I feel like my book is the most important. BUT, I feel and hope that once my website is up and running I'll be able to focus on the book more. So that's that!

OH...Lu's 1st bday is coming up...April 17... so save the date! That's something else on my to do list: plan the party!

I don't know how these pictures got so screwy! But anyway, here's my little Lu at 10 months old. I just think her little bum is so cute...especially in those jeans. There's also a couple of pictures of her modeling some Etsy items. And one of her in her downstairs "toy box". Best idea ever putting her toys in the bottom of the entertainment center. Makes it very easy to clean up and get back to the "adult look"!