if you live in the bakersfield area, then you need to check out my new favorite person melissa!! she is an AWESOME photographer and took these pictures of my little nathan last week.
it was such a pleasure working with her! she has a great eye for detail and really captured the essence of nathan. i can't wait for our next session!
jaren and i recently celebrated our 4 yr anniversary! our friends billy and jasmine took us out to dinner and then we got some wonderfully delicious ice cream from rosemarys. we had a great time! as for swapping gifts... i got jaren a new hardrive for our xbox, plus gave him cash for games and an xbox live subscription. what's great about xbox live though is since we have netflix, we can watch any of the "instant" movies on our tv :) i've found it very nice when it comes to kiddie shows for nathan. he hasn't really noticed the tv yet, but i keep it on as background noise.
his gift to me was my new ergo baby carrier. i'm OBSESSED with this thing! so far, since i've had it, i start every morning by putting nathan in it and doing my morning chores around the house with him strapped to me. it has a 40 lb. weight limit, can be a front/side or hip carrier, distributes the weight evenly (no back pain!), and has a nifty sleeping hood that unfolds out of the pocket and attaches to your shoulder straps to hold the babys head so it doesn't wobble around. i recommend it to EVERYONE!! they even have an infant insert that they suggest to use from birth up to 4-6 months. 
speaking of nathan.... here he is...
and silly dad needs to not leave the xbox out ;) i can't tell you how many times he's knocked it over or turned it off while jarens playing, LOL.
i'm decorating the house slowly. my main goal right now is nathans room. i picked up this bookshelf off craigslist and bought all the books at a 2nd hand store.
i also got nathans lightning mcqueen hat last week. he loves it and it looks so cute on him ;)
back to his room decor... i covered the switchplate with car fabric to match his crib bedding.
and made a valance as well :)
i've been loving me some vinyl wall sayings! here's one i got for the bathroom. it reads, splish splash, i was taking a bath.
i picked up this unfinished storage basket thingie at michaels for 75% off! i haven't yet stained it, but did add the grossgrain ribbon and wooden duckie to match the bathroom decor. 
and also added a towel hook to hang nathans bathrobe on.
since birth, nathan has always showered with jaren. but now, this kid is getting BIG and squirmy! so back i went to my favorite 2nd hand children store to pick up this bathtub seat. nathan can sit up on his own, but not for very long. this seat suction cups to the bottom of the tub and keeps him nice and cozy and above water :)
and yes, i do ALWAYS have him in a diaper around the house! when it's 107 degrees outside and i don't turn the a/c on until jaren gets home, you would too ;)
i'm kinda on an online ordering kick right now, lol. darn etsy! check out this crocheted hat i got for nathan this winter! as you know we're big nascar fans and it's only expected that nathan follows in our footsteps of loving any and all cars! (this pic isn't nathan by the way)
also i'm finally putting together his room. i'm hoping to make matching curtains like his crib bedding, coordinating pillowcases, getting a new comforter/sheets, putting up some shelves etc. but thanks to etsy again, i ordered this colorful alphabet vinyl lettering for the wall. i want to be able to take these with me if we ever move, so i'll be putting each individual letter on cardstock, laminating it, and then hanging them somehow.
i finished sewing a giggle gown today for a 2 yr old boy who has leukemia. i'll be making 2 more hopefully by the end of the week.
i ordered sewing labels to sew into each gown :)
i also made a t-shirt and birthday hat for my nephew. i just love the doggy bone print!
and let me tell you something about this little boy...
he's growing up way to fast, cutting teeth, sleeping through the night, loving baby food (ESPECIALLY bananas), loves kisses from his puppy dog and can scoot backwards faster than you can catch him, lol! and just today, he started lifting his whole body up off the floor, onto his tippy toes and kinda sorta moving forward. i better start baby proofing the house SOON!you know those glass rocks you buy at the craft store for floral decor? ever thought of gluing scrapbook paper to the back and turning it into a fridge magnet?
they turn out very nicely! i found my rocks and paper at the dollar store!! you can also use pictures, just shrink them down in size.
we're getting the hang of metal stamping. here are some necklaces jarens made lately. the charms attached are birthstones.
and guess who can now get up on all fours and scoot backwards. he's growing up WAY TOO FAST!
we went to a potluck yesterday for the 4th of july. here's the food i took... and no, they're not jello shots!
