Learning Patience as a Mom

In the evenings when I sit in Luke's room in the dark at bedtime, I've been talking to God. It's become a great prayer time. God has really taught me patience and to see where my priorities lie.

Even though my son needs me to sit near him while he falls asleep, I realize it's okay. I'm a mom; it's my job. What other pressing needs are there, other than TV or reading a book in the evenings? (I can make jewelry while the kids are playing or during naptime.) My kids must be the most important focus each day. I've learned to show Luke that I'm there for him to offer the reassurance he needs. He's very clingy right now and I believe it's just a stage and he'll soon grow out of it. I'm trying to remain patient and really listen when he tells me what he needs.

Everyone keeps telling me they're only this young for such a short time and to take the time to really enjoy my kids. So, that's what I'm trying to do. Each evening Marty and I head into Luke's room while both kids jump on his bed and climb on the play structure with the slide. There's a lot of tickling, giggling and laughing going on then; it's been great quality family time. We've learned how much how our kids need this time with us. We've learned to let go of other distractions for a little while, especially the computer.

Last night it took extra long to get Luke to bed. He kept getting up repeatedly for over an hour. But I have to remember that many nights, he goes right to sleep. Even though he's still waking up in the night, I just keeping walking him back to bed. I figure it's only a matter of time before he begins sleeping through the night again. He no longer needs a sippy cup to fall asleep, thank God. He only gets drinks of water if he wakes up, and usually will go right back to sleep. And God is helping me endure on very disrupted sleep, even on those days I don't get a nap.

So, I just wanted to remind everyone that God is good, He is always there for us, and when we keep the focus on Him we can get through anything!

Luke Keeps Waking in the Night

I can't figure it out. Why does Luke keep waking up 2-3 times a night and come to get me? This has been going on for a couple of months now, it seems, since he made the transition to his big boy bed (a twin mattress on the floor). But at first, he'd stay put all night. Then all of a sudden, he just starting waking me up, and mostly asks for milk or juice every night.

I'd chalk it up to thirst, but it happens too often. It's usually around 1 or 1:30, then again at 4 or 4:30, and then he'll climb into bed with me after Marty has left for work, usually around 6:30 or so. Needless to say, my sleep is so disrupted that it feels like I have a newborn in the house again. (Thank God that Lexie is sleeping 12-13 hours a night without waking these days!)

I thought it might be because he's a bit dependent upon drinking a sippy cup of milk while he falls asleep. But I've stopped that, and won't let him have one anymore to go to bed each night. He usually gets his last cup of milk around 9 or 9:30.

Luke doesn't always need a drink to get back to sleep, and sometimes he does need a new diaper. But usually, if I just walk him back and tuck him in, he'll go right back to sleep. Unfortunately, it doesn't last for longer than 3 hours.

He also tends to be a very picky eater who prefers milk or watered-down juice to food. It goes in spurts, which the pediatrician said is normal; he'll have his eating and non-eating days. And he's healthy and certainly has plenty of energy during the day.

Is it insecurity? He won't settle for daddy tucking him back in, or even doing the bedtime routine. It has to be mommy. He's definitely going through separation anxiety from me when I leave him with a sitter or in the nursery at church. So I'm praying it's just a stage he's going through. He gets grumpy from time to time, but that's probably because he's not sleeping well at night.

He'll turn 3 in September, and I have discovered a couple other moms whose kids seemed to wake more frequently around this age. I'm open to suggestions, or discovering what has worked for you.

The one thing that Marty and I agree is not an option for Luke is locking him in his room. I tried that a couple of times and he went ballistic... totally flipped out and hysterical. He was so upset that he started choking. Besides, I really believe this has something to do with needing access to mommy right now.

Please feel free to leave comments here or put them on my Facebook Wall. Thanks so much for listening, and I sure appreciate your prayers! (In the meantime, thank God for naps!)

Helping with Vacation Bible School Next Week

I'm excited to be helping with VBS next week at Mt. Zion Church, which is on the border of Beavercreek and Xenia, just off Indian Ripple Road. It's for ages 3 years through grade 5 and should be tons of fun! It will run from 9 to noon each day.

It's free and should be a great time for your kids. I'll be helping teach the elementary crafts... right up my alley!

Here's the website; just click on 'Crocodile Dock' for all the details: www.mountzionchurch.org

Hope to see you there!

Americana Festival Booth Assignment

God is so good! We just got our booth assignment and checked out the location and can't believe how blessed we are!

It will be so easy to find us in Centerville on the 4th of July... Just look for the traffic light on St. Rt. 48 at Iron Gate Park Drive. Turn onto that street and we're the 1st booth on your left. We're right next to the BP station directly on the corner. We'll have a lime green banner in front of our canopy, which should help us stand out.

Booths must be set up by 9:30 am, and the parade starts at 10. The parade route will be on Franklin Street, so feel free to come check us out during the parade before the crowd gets too large.

I'm so excited about this opportunity to show my handmade jewelry to the world. I hope you can all come by to visit!

Ceramic Pottery Beaded Jewelry

I found the coolest beads at Hobby Lobby! I discovered that they have a great selection of high quality glass and semiprecious gemstones at really decent prices.

When I saw these gorgeous glazed ceramic pottery beads in shades of blues and greens, I had to have them. I accented them with copper for a truly one-of-a-kind effect!

A Power Struggle with Luke

There's nothing like a power struggle with your two-year-old. It's all about him wanting to sleep wherever he wants: the couch, the floor of the living room, or the floor of his room, but not in his bed.

We had to put him back in there too many times to count tonight, but he has finally stayed put. It actually took an hour and a half! I thank God for giving me the patience to hang in there, be firm with bringing him back every time, and for not losing my cool.

We absolutely cannot lock him in his room. For some reason, that terrifies him. When I just put the baby gate across the bedroom door, he went hysterical. After 10 minutes of being locked in there, he was crying so hard he started choking. Apparently it scares him to death if he realizes he can't get out of his room by himself. So, we'll be passing on the door locks.

The first hour went well... just a lot of putting him back over and over. As soon as I'd get up he'd turn around and walk right back in his room. But then he started getting hysterical when Marty took over. For some reason, it had to be me to take him back... he kept crying for mommy. I had to hold him until he settled down a little bit, tell him I loved him... then when I put him back he finally stayed put.

Unfortunately, Marty goes to bed early since he's up by 5 am, so I'm the one who has to put Luke to bed almost every night. And he's a night owl like be, so bedtime is around 9:30 - 9:45. (What a blessing that Lexie will sleep from 8:30 pm until 9 am most every night now!)

The crazy thing about Luke is that he'll go right to sleep if I let him stay on the couch. Some nights I had reached the limit for my patience and just let him stay... so, I ended up creating a monster!

But after talking to a couple of friends and hearing what they did for bedtime, I realize that I just had to stay firm... I'm the one in charge... not him!

Finally... a Necklace!

I finally finished a necklace and posted it on my Etsy site. I'd love to know what you think!

I'm excited to finally get it finished. It look a long time due to all those tiny seed beads and it being a multi-strand necklace. But I'm really happy with the way it turned out!

I have 2 other necklaces in the works, so more pics to come soon...

A Busy Weekend

We had a really busy, yet great weekend. I spent part of Friday at the parents' house and discovered that the city of Monroe was having a community-wide garage sale weekend. So, we went back on Saturday and must have made it to 12 garage sales, all within walking distance of my parents' house. It was a beautiful day for a neighborhood walk, and we got some great deals, too!

Then it was off to various graduation parties and Sinclair's family picnic today. Lots of fun, but I think we all got too much sun.

Here's hoping that I'll get to bed early!

Sold Another Piece of Jewelry!

I'm super-excited because I just sold another piece of jewelry on my Etsy site! A complete stranger in Massachusetts bought my sterling and lapis earrings... she said they were just what she was looking for. Yay!

I've been hoping to make a small income from this jewelry business, and so far so good. The Americana Festival on the 4th of July will be very critical in determining if I can earn back all the money I've invested in supplies. I believe it will be a huge success!

Thanks, Lord, for small blessings!

Our Goofy Girl

Lexie is teething big time now. You can feel all along her gums where several teeth are ready to pop through at once. She sure is grumpy, but it's about time. She wants to eat big people food and is tired of eating mushy stuff.

Here's our precious girl being goofy, taking after daddy. She put her sippy cup on her head all by herself!

Selling at my First Craft Festival!

I'm super-excited because I booked a booth to sell my jewelry at the Americana Festival in Centerville, Ohio, on the 4th of July. It should be super-fun, and I'm anxious to show the world a whole lot of unique handmade jewelry.

From now through July 3 I will be making jewelry like crazy to build up my inventory so I'll have a nice variety to offer.

I hope many of you will be able to stop by my booth, see what I have, and let me know what you think.

More details as it gets closer to show time!

A Fun Sunday

Sunday was a lot of fun for our family. We started the day at church... Marty went to the service while I hung out with Luke in his class; he still is insecure without one of us to stay with him.

Then it was home for naptime, and off to Mim's graduation party. Very cool to see friends we haven't seen in a long time!

From there, we headed over to Springboro Baptist Church for their family dinner and festival. We had great food catered by City BBQ, tons of desserts, then rides and games for the kids. Luke was in heaven with the giant inflatable bouncy thing... he patiently waited in line a few times for his turn. Then he jumped like mad and laughed hysterically... such a riot to watch! He was intrigued by the barrel train, but when it gone right down to climbing in, he said he was done. He was a bit afraid of it... kept wanting to go see it, but wouldn't get too close after that. All the way home, he kept saying, "Ride the train. Not scared." Such a big boy, trying to be brave!

Lexie was content to push her walking toy all over the church sidewalk and front drive to practice her walking. So cute to watch her stiff-legged waddling along trying to walk! I'm bummed we forgot the camera. So you won't be able to see a picture of how cute Lexie looked in her pink ruffled top with the khaki skort and her little tiny sandals. She's such an adorable sight to see, especially because she's so tiny and bald!

We got home around 9, and I thought the kids would crash, but no such luck. Luke was up until 10, and Lexie was wide awake until almost 11! Silly girl. She kept pushing her riding toy around the house, practicing her walking, and squealing and laughing. She's such a happy little thing... what a joyful sound!

Luke was up at 7:30 this morning... really not too terribly early. And, it's almost 9 am and Lexie is still sleeping. Yay! So, we're enjoying a nice leisurely holiday morning.

Yay, I sold my first bracelet!

I'm so excited that a friend bought the chunky turquoise bracelet I made! Yay! That brings my grand total to 9 sales among friends, family and co-workers.

I've registered for a booth at the Americana Festival in Centerville, Ohio, on the 4th of July. I'm looking forward to selling a bunch of jewelry and earning back most of my home business start-up costs. I'm praying that selling at this festival will be such a success that I'll be able to book a few more festivals and craft fairs later in the summer and fall. I sure am having fun with this!

Thanks so much everyone for helping me get my business off to a great start!

Added Dainty Earrings

I created another dainty pair of earrings so there could be something for everyone on my website. I call these ones 'Elegant Simplicity'.

Experimenting with Bracelets

I recently created my first bracelet. This is made out of turquoise-dyed jasper and has a really pretty aqua color to it.

A friend recently commented that most of my jewelry looked dainty, so I decided to experiment with some larger stones in my designs. This bracelet is chunky so it has substance to it. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out!

Lexie's Birthday

Here's Lexie being silly and trying to put her hat back on her head. She's a happy girl today!

Lexie and Birthday Cake

Lexie's birthday party was fun. We had some close family over and celebrated in our backyard. The weather was gorgeous! I'm only posting one pic here, but there are lots more to see on my Facebook page.

Here is a funny picture of Lexie from her birthday party. She was so dainty and serious while eating her cake... she didn't like making too much of a mess, so this is her after she decided she was finished: