The Mortimore Five

We Have Moved (not to Moscow)

2011-12-25T15:04:00.000-08:00

I have been a TERRIBLE blogger since September. Tim got me an Ipad2 for my birthday, which was a wonderful surprise. My ancient laptop had officially died and I was hogging his office computer which wasn't working out well.While the Ipad rocks on so many practical levels I just couldn't figure out how to blog properly from the Ipad2 and just gave up (but I didn't need to tell you that). So I did a little research and found out that wordpress has a nifty app that allows seamless blogging from the Ipad so away we go. I'm giving it a try, but I will say it's a bit more complicated and I'm having to relearn how to blog, but the results are oh so nice. Hope you enjoy... http://mortimorefive.wordpress.com/ Hope on over and leave me a comment :)

Merry Christmas and Cheers~!!
Love, Sarah

The Selway River

2011-09-26T15:53:00.000-07:00

We went camping this past weekend with my dad and the big kids. I haven't slept out in nature for several years simply because I personally don't believe in camping with children under the age of about four. Not that it can't be done and not that people don't enjoy camping with small children. I just think it sounds exhausting. We left Cate at home with Grandma and drove with my dad to the Selway river in Idaho. It's about a three hour drive from where we live and we arrived there late on Thursday evening. We had just enough time to pick a camp spot, set up our beds. make dinner. and head to bed. You can imagine my amazement when on Friday morning I walked across the road and saw this...

THE * MOST* BEAUTIFUL * RIVER * EVER!!!!

I'm going to gush about this river (no pun intended). It had the clearest emerald colored water surrounded by thousands of acres of pristine forest. The water is flanked by long stretches of ivory sand. The pictures don't do it justice. Looking at these photos makes me wish I had a nicer camera and Wendy McGraw's mad skills.

Grace and Eliot spent hours playing in the water and the sand.

We watched an otter catch a huge trout and haul it up onto a rock to devour for breakfast.

He just tore the thing apart with his teeth while it writhed and squirmed around on the rock. Amazing!

We are most definitely heading back there. She who does not camp is now shopping for campers on Craigslist. Hah!

Grace Elizabeth's Birthday ~ Part 2

2011-09-15T13:24:00.000-07:00

Miss Grace with her pile of gifts.

Eliot took this one of Grace and Sydney on her quilt. I've made three quilts in six months and therefore I'm ready for a break from quilting. I'm certainly glad I had those birthdays as deadlines otherwise who knows how long it would have taken me.

Here it is. You can see there's less than half of the binding to sew on and so after I snapped this picture I sat down at the table and finished it off.

Grace's big present was a new doll whom we've named "Emily", a wardrobe of clothing for Emily, and a big pink box to put it all in.

There's that rainbow cake.

It looks like a boring old white cake and then...

SURPRISE! Those colors! If you want to make one for yourself here's how to do it.

Done.

Grace Elizabeth's Birthday ~ Part 1

2011-09-15T12:59:00.000-07:00

We had a little mini party at Starbucks on Saturday for Grace's birthday. The girls had donuts and drinks before heading to Grace's favorite spot in the mall...

Claires!!!

They each picked out a little treat and then sat on the bench to look over their new things.

What a sweet polite delightful group of little ladies!

Afterwards Grace and I came home to start our marathon baking day. We churned out mini apple sugar cookies to take to class on Monday and to share with the family on Sunday.

We also worked on her rainbow birthday cake. Grace loved helping me mix up the batter into six different colors.

Palous Empire Fair 2011

2011-09-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

36 Years

2011-08-31T14:40:00.000-07:00

Today is my birthday. So far I've spent it eating bacon and french toast made by Tim, getting a pedicure with Lauren, treating my children to Happy meals, and scrubbing the entire inside and outside of my stove with a Mr. Clean Magic eraser, all of which were splendid (Except the part where I dumped most of Grace's happy meal onto the pavement outside of McDonald's but let's not talk about that, only happy things today).

That's me in 1983. I got that awesome outfit for my birthday. It was pink and grey knit the top had puffed sleeves and the skirt was made of the same knit with several rows of ruffles. It was rad. I LOVED it. I still love it. If I had it today Grace would be wearing the minute she could fit into it. I wore to the Oregon State Fair on my birthday. I loved it so much.

Okay, now this is ON my 19th birthday in about 1994. That's the worlds greatest roommate ever, Britton with me. I miss you B!!! She is now a mother of four kiddos and lives too far away. Anyhow, Britt threw me a party along with my other girlfriends in our dorm. I think we ate at the Olive Garden and stuffed ourselves with all you can eat salad and bread sticks that night. That's our dorm. Yes, palm trees and a stones throw away from the Pacific. We were so spoiled.

Baby Sarah, 7 months old. Awwwwwwwwww. It's hard to believe how darling and cute we are started out. Have you ever started looking at people on the street and imagining them as a seven month old baby? It's hard to be unkind to people when you do that.

Oh yes, this is at the graduation party my parents hosted in 1993. I'm on my parents porch. I'm still 17. Such a baby. I have to admit I went through my high school photos and they were so atrocious. I think I may toss the whole album. It was bad. BAD. I'm still cringing. Maybe someday I'll work up the courage to show you more of Sarah in the early 90's.

This here was one of the best days of my life. This was eleven years ago and that's my parents beautiful home they sold so that they could come live by us. I feel a little mournful about that house but I'd much rather have them here than have them living in that house.

Okay, that's enough nostalgia. Tim and I are making Pioneer Woman Beef with Snow Peas for dinner (It's amazing by the way) and I've got two tubs of laundry to put away.

We're a little bit famous!

2011-08-22T15:26:00.000-07:00

Here's a link to the Almota Roses photography blog and Wendy's post about our photo shoot. Wendy was spectacular. I highly reccommend her and her prices are incredibly good.

http://almotaroses.com/family-mini-session/

First Day of School 2011

2011-08-22T14:19:00.000-07:00

They were up and ready to go early this morning. They dressed, ate, and had their backpacks on twenty mintues before our early departure time.

I woke and realized that I did not have the first day jitters I had last year, rather we all had last year. Everything was new and Eliot was so nervous. Today there was none of that, just good old fashioned excitement and anticipation.

I might have found myself a bit tearful about dropping off TWO of my babies at school but I still have this one to keep me company. Who can resist her chubby baby body, her "pink beer", and those boots! I vow now that the others are in school I will find the time to buy my baby new boots.

Grace and her teacher who has gained rockstar status. We've been talking about her for weeks.

After getting Eliot settled in with Mrs. Sawyer I checked back on my girl. I got this photo before the other three girls in her class had arrived. It struck me how blessed she is to be surrounded by a bunch of smartly dressed little men.

Not bad for a first day I say!

Warm Lake 2011

2011-08-06T09:06:00.000-07:00

I posted a lot of photos. Couldn't help it. There were over 200 on my camera and these are my favorites.

This photos needs a little explanation I think. We had a bear come into our cabin one afternoon. Tim and the kids went down to the lake and I was out running. I came back to find a bear standing outside the back of the cabin. I've only seen a bear once in 30 some years at the lake so I was pretty surprised. I won't go into a lot of detail but after we scared him off and started investigating we realized he had actually been IN our cabin and snacked on our trash and at up the remaining half of peach pie I had baked the night before. Here's what was left of that. I think he cleaned it up pretty good. He came back twice after that looking for more treats but we were more prepared and had things locked up tight.

On one of his subsequent visits I was able to get some photos of him. He rummaged around on the dock attracted by the smell of fishing bait.

Then he meandered up the lake.

Vulcan Hot Springs

Vulcan Hot Springs up close. This is probably the closest things Eliot will get to a real volcano. He was impressed.

6 Years

2011-07-13T11:01:00.000-07:00

The birthday meal: Dogs, twice baked potatoes, and other fixin's.
Cate with the black eye bestowed upon her by the newel post on our staircase last week.

Eliot and his pile of gifts.

I barely finished this one in time. I pieced it last Saturday, quilted it on Wednesday, and sewed the binding on Thursday and Friday. Now I have two months to finish Grace's but I'll probably be doing the last bits of it the week before. I work best under the pressure of deadlines.

Birthday banana cream pie!

Off Topic Sewing

2011-07-12T17:13:00.001-07:00

I have several post lined up in my head all ready to go and yet I'm posting about a random sewing project I did today. Go figure. My mom has been begging me to blog (and mind you the only blogging that counts to a grandma are entries about her grand kids) and we've have a bevy of blogable events lately. But I feel like sharing photos of my flower crayon holder thingy. So there. It's my blog and I can do what I want.

I promise I will get to 4th of July, Eliot's & Tim's birthdays. For now I must share this great little project Grace and I cooked up today from Sandi Henderson's book which is a must for those fending off the urge to buy more yards of fabric when several tubs of scraps beckon from the hall closet.

This book is filled with tons of cute stash busting projects and what I love is you can use all of those cherished bits that you can't bear to throw away to make really cute and practical items for the kids and the home.

This "budding treat bag" caught my eye when I first got the book. We are big crayon folks. We have boxes and boxes of them stashed all over the house. Here's the one we made. Grace helped me with the fabric choices. Mine looks a little different because there were some steps that were vague and I improvised. I like how mine turned out though.

And then we colored a dolphin!

So I don't get in trouble with any grandmas here's a photo of the kids with Sydney at the pool this morning. We've been doing swimming lessons in Colfax this week and it's been such a treat for all of us. The kids get a posse of sweet high school girls to frolick with in the pool, Tiffany and I chat in the sun, and Elias and Cate pretty much stare at each other. Pure bliss.

Ice Cream Social

2011-06-28T13:58:00.000-07:00

We took the kids to the Perkins House Ice Cream Social on Sunday for ice cream and music and a vintage fashion show. That cabin behind them is the oldest known structure in Whitman County and the house, which you can see in the link, is a beauty. It was built in 1886 just two years before our own house by Mr. Perkins. We enjoyed walking through the house and the cabin, enjoying the old timey music and visiting with folks we haven't seen in awhile. I came home and told Tim that if we ever moved away from this little town this is one of the things I would certainly miss.

I have not been good at taking photos this summer so Tim was kind and took this little video and the photo. The video is very blurry which I can't seem to change, but you get the idea. Cate is a socially timid child but she can really ham it up when she thinks no one is watching. This little video is proof of that.

Potty Training Distractions

2011-06-01T15:11:00.000-07:00

We are not really gifted at potty training in this family. I swear it's been passed down genetically since there are quite a few potty issues documented on both sides of our families. I won't go there to save the dignity of said persons. Nevertheless I had planned to potty train Cate when she was... oh maybe five. No rush here. I'm happy to clean up diapers. But Cate has older sibs and she thinks she's got this figured out. I've let walk around the house the past couple of days without a diaper and sometimes we have success and sometimes not. I think the best thing for me, a mommy with post-traumatic potty training disorder, it to not be too intense about it especially since I'm trying to get through a sinus infection AND because I'm full bore into Grace's quilt.

Eliot's quilt is nearly done but honestly I'm not that in love with it and I'm really hoping that the quilting and binding will be the thing that endears me to it. I do have to keep telling myself that it is BOY quilt and I am not a boy. Furthermore I let him choose some of the fabric which he's thrilled with, and so it's his quilt not mine. Now Grace's quilt is another story. I love it and she loves it. I highly recommend the log cabin block and I highly recommend this book .

I don't plan to butt the blocks up against each other. I plan to use a creamy sashing in between each block. Since the girls quilts will be in the same room I've used two of the same fabrics and I think the white sashing will pull it together. I'm shooting for a girl room looking something like this one. I was happy to see two different quilts side by side looking like they went together. That's the goal.

Oh!!! I almost forgot, we're potty training and while I was gabbing on about my quilts my baby somehow made it out to the swing set without any pants on.

What a ham!

No Peeking Elias

2011-05-28T07:24:00.000-07:00

I got Weekend Sewing by Heather Ross sometime back and immediately flagged this shirt as one I'd like to try. It really intimidated me with all of it's button holes and crisp lines and honestly it's hard to compete with Old Navy when it comes to boy shirts. But I was intrigued and I had the perfect fabric to use and a two year old nephew with a birthday coming up. So yesterday I was feeling ambitious and crafty and decided to tear into it. I gave myself the reasonable expectation to simply cut it out and maybe sew a little and then finish it the next day, but lo and behold I got the whole thing done in one day!
I'm still admiring it from across the room and in disbelief that I sewed it. The pattern was easy to follow and my newly serviced sewing machine sewed like a hot knife through butter which was nice. The size is 2T but it looks larger than that, well wider. I think it looks short and wide which is not how the birthday boy is built so we'll see if it works out for him.
If it were a girl garment I could easily add a contrasting band or some ruffles along the bottom to lengthen it out but you can't really do that on a big boy shirt.

Sisters

2011-05-28T06:55:00.001-07:00

Cate and Grace have recently become playing buddies. I first began noticing the pair in princess dresses and then there was a tea party or two and yesterday they spent a bit of time in the yard and then up in their rooms just the two of them, happy little clams. Cate is no longer the babbling baby who does as she pleases. She now wants to be involved in the play, beyond throwing a ball for the big kids to retrieve. I was listening to Grace and Cate in the bath last night and realized that the key to this big change must lie in the fact that Cate will actually say and do what Grace asks of her. Cate will dutifully play along by sipping out of a fake tea cup, sitting still for a manicure, meowing like a kitty, or whatever, which has Grace pleased as punch. I have been mulling over the big bedroom switch (girls in one room boy in the other) lately and now, aside from the financial commitment of buying more beds and sheets, I realize that what I was waiting for was this little sisterly connection to occur .
I didn't have a sister. I always thought it would be fun to have one simply because it would double my wardrobe. Other than that I could not see much of an advantage. Of course I had Nick, sweet little guy who let me use him as my student or groom, or daddy, or slave, or whatever I needed in the midst of play. That was until he met Kobe down the street and then I had a hard time nailing him down. But there are certainly times when I see my mom with her sisters or watch Kelly and Paula together and think, that would have been kind of fun to see. Now I see it, right in the midst of my own little family and I'm thoroughly enjoying it.

Camping Adventure

2011-05-26T11:23:00.000-07:00

My dad had the idea to take E & G up for a night in the camper to Couer D'Alene lake. My parents live only about 25 miles from Plummer, Idaho, which is at the southern end of the lake and therefore not too far away from home base.

My dad has been working on this old camper for some time now. He had the cushions reupholstered and I made new curtains for it. It's been scrubbed and rewired and recently he deemed it worthy of the grand kids. Later in the evening my Mom and I drove up to join them for hot dog roasting and to help get the kids all settled in for the night. We're kind of wimps about camping and both of us were happy to be home in our own beds.But not before eating dogs and s'mores, and walking down to the lake.

It's a Vintage Typewriter & Cupcake Kind of Day

2011-05-18T21:03:00.000-07:00

I found this beauty on Palouse Ads last week. I'd actually been eyeing it for quite a few weeks after seeing this typewriter used in a window display. Oh the possibilities. It's provided us hours of entertainment including lots of messy ink fingers.
I purchased a typewriter ribbon at Staples and I wound it wrong so we have this stunning red ink. I may try and hunt down some original ribbons online.

And I made cupcakes today (surprise) for a little girl in Eliot's class who shares his birthday and thus they will be celebrating tomorrow at preschool. I had planned to make them a gender neutral cupcake until he broke my heart and my pride and announced that he'd prefer gingersnaps. So I made him gingersnaps (boooo) for Eliot and sweet pink mini-cupcakes for the girl.

~ Elberton Pond ~

2011-05-17T14:50:00.000-07:00

Cate's Quilt & Other Stuff

2011-05-09T14:39:00.000-07:00

Voila! Cate's birthday quilt. I now see why quilting is addictive. I'm already on to my next projects for Eliot and Grace.

I I now have Eliot's quilt cut out. This one will be something like this eventually.

And these strips will be a log cabin with white sashing for Grace from this book.

But in the mean time my sewing machine is in the shop for its first tune up in ten years. I've been pretty lonely without it but I've been working on this pretty Dutch tablecloth to keep me company.

Catherine Turns Two!

2011-05-09T13:28:00.000-07:00

I'm a little embarrased that I have more photos of baked goods than of my precious little two year old. I would argue that it's much easier to get photos of cupcakes and cookies than a little busy little baby running all over the house. I must also add that cooking a meal for our entire family kept me pretty occupied. Next year I must designate a photographer.

Grace's Photo Essay

2011-05-07T08:39:00.000-07:00

This little string of photos was taken by Grace a few weeks ago. I'm partial to the subject matter, the composition is nice and they are very clear. Not bad for a four year old!

I'm Back!!

2011-05-05T15:08:00.000-07:00

Here's the abridged version - Computer virus, lost software disk ... yada yada.. I'm finally back. Here are some cupcake photos from the birthday party I hosted for Tiffany and Mom back in March. I'll be posting more photos in the next few days. Easter, Cate's birthday, my debut quilt... Glad to be back!

Anthropologie Wannabe

2011-03-15T16:12:00.000-07:00

I was browsing at Anthropologie today ( a girl can dream can't she! ) and saw these lovely tablecloths. My table is so big that I have to custom make all of my linens which up until now have been plain rectangles. I think I need to branch out and try this scalloped edge.Or possibly try this pretty ruffle design which I don't think would be too hard especially if you bought the ruffles ready made at JoAnn Fabrics.

Thoughts on Subbing

2011-03-09T16:17:00.000-08:00

I haven't been in a classroom for nearly five years yet today I subbed for Eliot's preschool teacher and I - had - a - blast! It was so fun and I remember now why I love being around kids in that capacity. Of course I had a pretty sweet little group of exuberant four and five year-olds, I didn't have to write the lesson plans, and there was nothing to take home and grade. They were so fun to be with and so earnest and there were a few of the most classic preschool moments. At one point I had all of the kids stand up and do a few stretches before we moved on to the next activity and one little guy shouted from the back "I know, we should do INSANITY (an intense workout video his mommy is fond of) and began executing these great aerobic moves for us. Later on in the day one curious little girl said, "Mrs.... Um, I can't remember your name... are you a real teacher?" I told her that yes I had indeed been a teacher in my life before kids, but I taught big kids. She immediately seemed impressed with that and said, "oh wow... like first graders?!" I get to do it again tomorrow and this time Eliot with be going with me. :)

Snow Day Happenings

2011-02-25T14:18:00.000-08:00

We are enjoying very cold temps and a few inches of snow and lots and lots of clear skies. I'm still not over the paint on our house. After living with primer on there for so many years I'm tickled to look at my grown-up house looking lovely in the snow.
I tried to dissuade Eliot and Grace from going on in the snow but they were bound and determined. I thought about putting my foot down but decided that a stern warning about hypothermia and frostbite would suffice. They lasted about ten minutes. It was enough to snap some photos while little Cate watched from the safety of the garage.

Grace and Eliot did however get to dig around in their favorite spot by the mailbox and took a few turns on the sled before calling it quits.

This little one watched again from the warm indoors. She felt a little left out but didn't protest much after her three minutes in the frigid garage.

I finished up this bag today in between loads of laundry. It's headed to its new home in Seattle.

Yesterday I whipped up with cheerful little pillow at sewing group. This is the time of year that I start craving color and start contemplating massive redecorating projects that never come to fruition but are still fun to think about.

Cate's Pony

2011-02-09T13:29:00.001-08:00

No we didn't buy her a pony but she tolerated a pony tail for more than five minutes. Now that's something to blog about!

A pony tail AND a photo shoot of the pony tail.

Kisses too? This IS a good day.

Artists

2011-02-08T18:59:00.000-08:00

Sugar Cookie Love

2011-02-05T21:14:00.000-08:00

I'm going to let you in on a little secret. I have the worlds most amazing sugar cookies recipe EVER. My mom found this one in a now out of print Betty Crocker cookie cookbook that she received as a wedding gift in 1969. We love our sugar cookies in this family and one thing my momma taught me early is never, and I mean NEVER, over bake a sugar cookie. If there's any color on them you've ruined them. You want them soft and chewy and melt in your mouth delicious. Let me let you in on another great secret. These cookies are even better with a teaspoon or so of almond flavoring added to the dough and the frosting. Yum.

******************************************************************************************

Ethel's Sugar Cookies

3/4 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. almond extract (optional)

2 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

Mix shortening, eggs, sugar, and flavoring. In a separate bowl mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Blend together. Chill one hour. Roll 'em and cut 'em and bake them for 6-8 minutes in a preheated 400 degree oven. When they come out they shouldn't be brown at all and they should be quite delicate. Let them cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheet. Carefully transfer them to paper towels or a cooling rack. Don't touch them until they are completely cool. Frost, sprinkle, and devour!

More On My Big Project

2011-02-04T21:00:00.000-08:00

The big kids spent the night at Grandma and Papaw's on Thursday which allowed me some time to get Cate's quilt all laid out and organized to stitch together. Although it's for her birthday she has no idea what's going on and so she watched unknowingly.

One of my goals for 2011 is to make each kid a quilt for their birthday however I really want it to be a surprise and so I'm contemplating how that's going to happen. We'll see if I can schedule enough sleepovers at Grandmas and burn enough midnight oil to actually make an entire quilt, uh two entire quilts. I'm not really the midnight oil type. I like my nine hours.
Anyhow, Cate was such a good girl. She just watched from the sidelines and carefully tiptoed around the edges while I organized the blocks.

It was really fun to see it all come together and see how well all of the fabrics look side by side.

If only our kitty Miss Zoey were as well behaved as little Cate.

Big Project, Little Project

2011-02-01T15:37:00.001-08:00

Here's the big project I recently began. It's a quilt for Cate's second birthday which is swiftly approaching (sigh) and yet I was off on another creative tangent today and made this...
a nice little pin cushion for the sewing basket I'm organizing for the Logos silent auction. It was the most satisfying little endeavor. It took me less than thirty minutes, all of the seams matched up, and I got to use some of Nana's vintage buttons. So fun. Now, back to the big project.
(I just went back to look at this post and SHEESH could these photos be any darker and more drab looking?! Only in the winter could you take photos of beautiful fabrics in a "sunny" window and have them turn out so blah! )

Decisions, Decisions

2011-01-22T15:43:00.001-08:00

Our counter tops were installed on Thursday and I've got to say that even a cup of coffee looks prettier sitting on marble than on our old drab counter tops. As much as I'd love to show you the entire expanse of marble in all its glory, there is no back splash installed and there are some little bits of paint and trim that need to be finished. Right now the marble just sort of highlights the bad parts. I'm waiting until it's all done to show the before and after photos.
So now we have to pick our back splash tile and there are so many choices. If I had gotten all of the tiles from Ann Sacks that I had really wanted to see there would have been about ten more. We narrowed it down to these and we'll most likely go with the very light grey, fourth one from the bottom.

Mini Vacation at Grandma's House

2011-01-22T15:27:00.000-08:00

We took a little vacation to my parents house while new countertops (Eeeeeeeeeee!) were installed in our kitchen. My mom ordered a piece of furniture which arrived while we were there and as you can see it caught the attention of the little people. I think they were especially captured by the size of the delivery truck and later on the size of the box the chair came in.
I didn't get a really great shot of the playhouse we fashioned out of the box but you get the idea.
Some of my very favorite winter sunsets have been captured on film from the back doorstep at my parents house.

Those little icicles on the fence lit up like christmas lights and as I was walking across the yard I thought what I was looking at was in fact a string of lights lit up. It wasn't until I got closer that I realized that it was just ice illuminated by the sunset.

Eliot has moved past Uno (which he's been obsessed with since Christmas) and on to Chess thanks to Papaw who spent a good deal of time teaching Eliot how to play.

Pinkie and Brownie

2011-01-20T15:13:00.000-08:00

Cate most recently snatched up not one but TWO bears as her comforts of choice. I foresee many logistical problems with this so I'm trying to contain them to her crib however they seem to sneak out each morning. They are sort of like Velcro. I reach in her crib each morning and haul her into our room for a diaper change and those bears make it every time. This morning however she managed to get Eliot's bulldog as well. I'm really hoping he hasn't been adopted into the clan.

Lovely January

2011-01-13T13:31:00.001-08:00

I love winter. Especially January. It offers such a nice contrast to the structure and hectic schedule of the holidays. It allows time for sewing and organizing, time by the fire with a crochet project, and of course baking cupcakes and dining on an assortment of comfort food.

This bag is for a friend of a friend's sister who is due to have a baby later this month. She chose the dogwood fabric which I loved working with. It's now headed to Seattle. Bye pretty bag. It was nice knowing you.

While I was snapping photos of the bag Grace couldn't resist jumping in and I couldn't resist posting her sweet little expression.

Who says you can't make cupcakes on a Tuesday and frost them with purple buttercream frosting and randomly colored sprinkles?

I just got this lovely book by Alicia Paulson. If you love embroidery (or would like to learn to) you should buy it and you should also read her blog. It's one of my favorites. The book will be fueling my creative endeavors this month. I plan to make that exact skirt on the front even if it takes me a year, which it might.

Here's another project from Hillary Lang's book. It's a topsy turvy doll named Margot which Grace has requested for her birthday.

Snowbaby

2011-01-03T21:04:00.001-08:00

New years day we spent CLEANING (my favorite past time) which involved getting the tree down and out in to yard where Tim eventually stuffed it full of newspaper, dumped gasoline on it, and torched the thing much to the enjoyment of our entire family. Little Cate desperately wanted to join Tim and Grace outside to tend to the tree so Tim bundled her up in Grace's coat and hat and let her stand in the snow for a couple of minutes before she was whisked back inside to the coziness of the fire and the frenzy of my cleaning energies.

Christmas at a Glance

2011-01-01T07:26:00.001-08:00

October at a Glance

2010-11-13T12:11:00.000-08:00

I know, I know, I haven't posted in such a long time! Even my mom who lives right down the road and sees my kids all of the time has been on my case. So here I offer one of those strange mish-mash type posts with a little bit of everything we've been up to from furniture painting projects to park play. I've been so busy around here keeping everything going and still adjusting to the driving to Moscow for school. It's been an adjustment for sure but I am extremely thankful for is as well. So here's our entire month!

I tried to spruce up our entry with a rug and pumpkins. Tim installed our porch light and doorbell. I'm still waiting for the house numbers.
I've been giving our bedroom a mini makeover. I painted this dresser a tomato red, purchased new blinds and ditched the yard sale chair we'd had for 10 years. I'll give a more complete tour later after I paint the side tables that match the dresser.

So since I ditched the yard sale chair I permanently borrowed the nursing chair from Cate's room since she's been weaned for seven months now and I haven't been in that chair in seven months. Anyhow, that freed up quite a bit of floor space in her room so I moved the play kitchen in there for her to enjoy and boy was she happy.

As you can see she gets all gussied up in her big rings and necklaces and cooks up all kinds of concoctions that often involve hair pretties as the main ingredient.

She's quite the cook.

The weather has been amazing. At least for the first half of the month. So we spent one Sunday afternoon out at my parents house splitting firewood. Well, Tim spent it splitting firewood. I hung out with my mom and the Cate watched from the truck.

Grace watched from the top of the truck.

Eliot and I celebrated his stellar teacher conference with a steamer and a pumpkin scone at Starbucks. He took about five weeks to warm up to the idea of preschool but now he's doing really well.

However he is still adjusting to the rigor of the preschool schedule. This was taken about a month ago and even in the past four weeks he seems less exhausted by school. I haven't seen him crash quite like this in awhile.

Grandma and Grandpa Mortimore came over from Oregon at the end of the month. We took a day trip up to Spokane and went out over the falls on a tram, ate at PF Changs, and rode the carousel.

Gracie with Grandma Mortimore on the ride over Spokane Falls

Eliot on the carousel in Spokane

A visit to the carousel at Riverfront Park in Spokane with Grandma and Grandpa Mortimore

Stroller Cate

For Halloween Elias was a dinosaur, Sydney was Tink, Grace was a fairy princess, Cate was a butterfly, and Eliot was a cowboy!

The girls posed with Ms. Nicole from the library whose house was one of the first houses we trick-or-treated.

These photos were from a spectacular morning we spent at the park. Every single tree in the park had turned a bright yellow and we had arrived at that magical time of day when the sun literally streams down through the canopy of gold. It was breathtaking.

Can't you just feel that warm sun. Those days are over now. We are officially nearing winter, but for much of October we were spoiled with mild weather.

Hullabaloo

2010-10-03T08:58:00.000-07:00

Cate with her cheeks full of pancake.
We always start off the morning at the Firemen Breakfast and tour the fleet of trucks.

This year the firemen parked the trucks outside which was fun.

This is my favorite truck. It's an antique that they keep in the firehouse and pull out for parades and special events.

After breakfast the kids changed into costumes for the Pet Parade, which has a non pet category thankfully. I think Zoey our cat would've had a fit if we had included her.

While most of the parade participants were scrambling to get away from the large library mascot known to all as Library Bear, Grace the extrovert was front and center performing her twirls and showing off her princess costume.

Eventually everyone warmed up to Library Bear.

The parade, as a friend described, was a bit like herding cats down Mill Street. It was pretty cute though and as you can see Grace convinced Library Bear to accompany her.

House Progress

2010-10-01T07:22:00.000-07:00

Do you remember all of the yard craziness of last summer?

Well now we are finally painting our house. We hung the siding in 2004 & 2005, worked on trim in 2006, Tim's dad Mike built the porch in 2007, Mike again helped us finish up trimming out the windows and door this summer (THANK YOU MIKE we wouldn't be painting this summer if it were not for all of your help) and for our grand finale the house is getting a coat of paint. Phew!

It's still looking a little rough, the body color (a charcol grey) is all done and our guys have put one coat of trim paint (antique white) on the front and the south sides. Tim still needs to replace the temporary porch posts.And just when I was feeling like things were looking pretty neat and tidy this shows up at my front door. I guess its to be expected when you leave a five year old boy in a dirt yard with an unattended hose on.

That's the sheepish face a boy who knows he's treading on thin ice. He got a serious scrubbing in the bathtub

Princesses of the Palouse

2010-09-21T16:05:00.000-07:00

On Grace's birthday I took her and her cousin Sydney to the Fall Jolly, a craft fair type event that our church sponsors, to a photo booth put on by LaMoreaux Photography. These have got to be two of the sweetest little princesses on the Palouse. I can't help but feel a swell of pride at what the VanArsdel genes (with help from the Mortimore and Bobst genes of course) have produced!

Eliot Health Update

2010-09-15T20:19:00.000-07:00

We had a rough day on tuesday which began with Eliot waking up very sick and throwing up... a lot. Because of his ITP and the fact that a symptom of internal bleeding is nausea I got him up to the doctor and had him look over Eliot to make sure he was just experiencing a stomach bug. A stomach bug it was indeed (a very nasty angry little bug too) and luckily after a very tough few hours he was feeling better, swearing that soda crackers were his new favorite food, and jumping on the trampoline (a sure sign of wellness). The good news is that the doctor drew blood and his platelet count was 71,000 platelets per micro litre, a huge jump from last time. He's clearly making better progress than I had anticipated. The last few tests had showed only slight increases so I wasn't feeling very optimistic that he was gaining but he WAS gaining. So we are happy and Eliot is proud of himself (we've been telling him that eating all of his dinner would grow platelets) for working so hard at this achievement.

Cleaning Day

2010-09-13T22:17:00.001-07:00

Cate has now mastered climbing up into a chair. She also figured out, quite quickly I might add, that it's really nice to have something to do once you're up there. So she now gathers her little board books then hoists her fat little baby body up into the chair and quietly looks at each book. She stays occupied for long stretches like this and it gives her something to do on cleaning day while I'm scrubbing the bathrooms.

Grace's Birthday Part 2

2010-09-12T21:55:00.000-07:00

In our family it pretty much doesn't matter on what day your actual birthday falls we always have a family party at Grandma and Papa's house on the Sunday following your day of birth. As I always say, the only thing better than a birthday party is TWO birthday parties. So we converged yet again out at the ranch for more sugar, grease, and dirt, the three key ingredients in the recipe for fun.

Grace loved her pink cake with four tiara candles.

This is where the dirt comes in. They had so much fun but got so dirty. Each kid had a turn riding Junior with Papa.

This photo cracks me up because I probably took twenty photos of Elias over the course of the weekend and that kid is so darn squirmy! Pretty much every shot has a tongue hanging out or a crazy leg or arm flailing about and some adult trying to contain him.

Grace sporting her new pink cowgirl boots!

Grace's Birthday Part One

2010-09-11T13:55:00.000-07:00

Several months ago Grace decided that she wanted to celebrate her birthday with her cousin Sydney. We had Sydney spend the night and sent Eliot out to Grandma's so we could focus completely on all things girly and fun. The girls woke up on Saturday and donned their best princess gear.
Tim provided the table decor.

They drank hot chocolate in teacups and ate pinkalicious cinnamon rolls and egg pie.

Two happy little princesses.

We couldn't pass up the opportunity to light candles and sing "Happy Birthday" to Grace.

After our birthday brunch I got the girls dressed up and took them to the mall so they could each pick out a treat from Claire's.

Decisions, decisions ...

The decided on lip gloss and tiaras. Perfect!

We ended the day with Grace's favorite meal "Hangaburs" and turtle cheesecake.

Palouse Empire Fair 2010

2010-09-09T22:23:00.001-07:00

There are few things that appeal to me on as many levels as the fair. Only one event can marry fried food, domestic arts, rural americana, and small town charm together like our little Palouse Empire Fair. It's magical to me and I think a lot of it has to do with my childhood and the time our family spent at the Oregon State Fair and of course in my cowgirl days I spent a lot of time at various rural fairs and small town celebrations. As much as I love the fair I have to admit it became dull when Tim and I were kidless and like most things took on new life with the arrival the little ones. And the best part? It's literally five miles down the road.

Done!

A BIG DAY for Eliot

2010-08-24T20:31:00.000-07:00

Today was Eliot's first day of preschool (I tried to get a smile but got the wierd winky face instead) and while it may seem like we're getting really excited about something really little, for us who can count on one hand the times we left him with a babysitter, it was a milestone to drop him off with strangers for three hours. Today was a milestone for Eliot too who is a very cautious kid and who admittedly has been really nervous about heading off to preschool. We have been talking about what this day would look like and feel like for months and every time he'd cling to my leg at the library or a birthday party I would wonder how this would pan out for us. But he was really excited about going this morning. He had his new backpack and posed for some photos.

He even loved on Grace for the camera.

And then we showed up in the parking lot and the blood drained from his little face and promptly the blood drained from my face as well. When I was taking this photo I really thought maybe there was a smile there.
His kind teacher showed him where his backpack went and where to hang his coat and he's looking at her eagerly like okay teacher I'll do whatever you say you just tell me what you want and I'm on it, like yesterday. I can't even believe I got this photo I was shaking like a leaf and Tim covertly motioned for me to leave before Eliot saw the look on my face which I imagine was a look of motherly panic. Tim said he bent down to say goodbye and Eliot let out a long ragged sigh. The kind that usually means tears are on the way.

So with my stomach in knots and the minutes ticking by at a snails pace Grace and I busied ourselves with Starbucks, groceries, and time at the park with friends.

Hey Grace, how many more years until you get to go to Logos?

When we went to pick him up, which I don't have photos of (I think I was too emotionally keyed up to think pictures) Eliot burst into tears because HE DIDN'T WANT TO GO HOME! Okay, I totally did not see that coming. So to celebrate we took the boy to his favorite restaurant and let him gorge on tacos while we gently grilled him about his day.
We got to hear about the whole three hours from Eliot's description of it which was so perfectly funny and engaging and every time he tells it I get more information and better details. But the overwhelming theme is he loved it and he's already bemoaning the fact that preschool is only two days a week instead of five.
And then he crashed. He was out before we were to Pullman and for a brief moment I got all gushy about how big he's gotten and how when he's asleep he still looks like he did when he was a baby (long sigh).
Wait where was I...
Oh yes, and Grace was officially done too.

Eliot Update

2010-08-12T20:09:00.000-07:00

Eliot had a blood draw today and he's at 40,000 platelets per micro litre. I thought he had 39,000 last time and this was a teeny tiny increase but the nurse said he was at 45,000 last time and he's down slightly. So either way there's a slight change. We'll check him again in three weeks. Our doctor is waiting to see him raise to a healthier level and then plateau and there's no telling how long it will take his body to do that. So it looks like we'll being doing these blood draws for quite some time.

Summer Randomness

2010-08-09T20:52:00.000-07:00

I spent a day scrubbing out my kitchen cabinets and lining them with oilcloth. It was so satisfying and I highly recommend lining cupboards and drawers with oilcloth. It's incredibly durable stuff and SO PRETTY.

Cate loves sitting in this unfinished cupboard in our kitchen
and peeking her sweet little face out at us.

Awww, looks like she got the neat gene.

She's negotiating dessert options while I snap photos. "Do we have any coconut cake?"

This is the face of a girl who just found out that the coconut cake we made the evening before was really intended for Jason and Liz and is now in their hands. Don't feel too bad for her she got an ice cream cone heaped with mint and chip.Uncle CJ sent us a butterfly growing kit. We watched ten caterpillars transform to chrysalises and then hatch into butterflies over the course of two weeks. It was very cool and we all got into monitoring their progress (even Zoey our cat) We released them today and this guy hung around our patio all day so I decided to take his picture.

This butterfly hung around all day too and since I'm pretty sure it's not legal in the state of Washington to be this cute we made sure she stuck around.

Eliot with his mint and chip ice cream cone.

My dad asked me the other day what's been going on in my life and for some reason I couldn't come up with anything concrete evidence that we've been doing anything of substance (uh, other than raising three kids of course). Our days are full and busy and I'm exhausted when I climb into bed at night from I don't know what little tasks and adventures. Nothing noteworthy is going on simply trike rides at the ball field, trips to our neighbor's pool, babysitting our new brood of butterflies which we released today (thanks Uncle CJ), preparing meals for postpartum friends, scrubbing out the kitchen cupboards, painting the entryway (a task that I entirely disdained), laundry, cooking, cleaning, etc.

Eliot has a blood draw tomorrow. It's been three weeks since our last test and I'm anxious to see where he is these days. He's bruised up (as you can see in the photo of him) but the bruises look to me to be garden variety shin bruises. What five year old boy has no shin bruises, right? I'll post details when I know more.

Little Senorita

2010-08-02T20:13:00.001-07:00

I am totally smitten with my one year old. She is at that magical age where I have alternate urges to squeeze her and kiss her pretty much all of the time. I cannot resist the weight of her in my arms and needless to say I've been taking a ridiculous amount of photos of her lately. How wonderfully silly is that hair flower?!

Excuse me while I kiss those toes for a minute.

I'm soaking up all of the baby/toddler sweetness because in a very short time she'll be a...

tall spunky independent almost four year old! (Wearing the same dress.)

Summer Sewing

2010-07-26T10:29:00.000-07:00

Warm Lake 2010

2010-07-22T20:24:00.001-07:00

The last afternoon we were at the cabin I deleted an entire weeks for of photos. Arghhh! So what we've got here is my attempts to recover from the trauma of losing ALL OF MY PHOTOS and so I frantically snapped photos of everything we did the last twelve hours we were there. My kids were sweet and posed for these pictures on the dock which shows a lot of sibling love.
So much love.

Okay, so I took a ton of photos of them loving each other to prove that they do in fact LOVE EACH OTHER!

Many of the days we spent a the sandy swim beach at the north end of the lake but on the weekends it tends to get tangled with people and so we opted to stick to our own dock.

Eliot ate his snack in the rafty thingy. His poor little face got so chewed up by mosquitos and our joke was that the Warm Lake mosquitos had a particular affinity for blood with low platelets. It's less bitter I suppose.

If I had time I would dig up the baby photos of Nick and I when we were little and more recently Eliot and Grace getting bathed in this same fashion at the cabin. It's a cabin tradition.

Eliot Update

2010-07-12T12:12:00.000-07:00

Eliot had his fifth blood draw today and we were very encouraged to see that his platelet count went up slightly from 40,000 to 45,000 platelets per micro liter. We had tentatively planned a week at the cabin but Tim and I both felt that if Eliot's numbers went down this time we wouldn't go. I went ahead and bought the groceries, did all of the laundry, and got my lists made so that if we got good news today we could throw everything in the car and make it up to Warm Lake by tonight. So with his numbers up we're packing the coolers and throwing clothes in bags because WE'RE GOING TO THE LAKE!!!!! Whooo hooooooo! See ya'll next week.

Birthday Fishing Trip

2010-07-11T15:17:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning Tim got the kids up fed them a little breakfast and then drove out the Elberton Pond to meet some of Eliot's buddies and their dads for a birthday fishing trip. Eliot gazed at his new legos that he received at his party the night before and I think this picture says it all. We had some trouble convincing him that he wanted to go fishing.
Eliot and Grace with fishing poles in hand, waiting for the guests to arrive.

First catch of the day.

Doughnuts and milk.

Mr. "E" Turns Five!!!!

2010-07-10T07:56:00.000-07:00

The little man of the house turned five today so we celebrated by spending the day at Grandma's house running through the sprinkler and splashing in the baby pool.
Sorry about the big water droplet on my lens. I still had to post this one of the girls.

Eliot kept Elias entertained for awhile on the swing. It was pretty sweet the way they took to each other. Eliot took the big cousin role and Eliot ate up the attention with smiles and giggles.

Eliot's posing with his stash of presents.

Modeling his new hat.

The girls

Cate modeling her swimming suit and pinchable thighs.

Tim's Birthday Breakfast

2010-07-07T17:23:00.000-07:00

The man of the house turned 36 today and we celebrated with a special birthday breakfast of quiche and cinnamon rolls since Tim loves a nice hearty breakfast.

What's not to love about a little boy with tired eyes and bed head.

These is still a half a pan of these cinnamon rolls calling my name.

The Fourth of July

2010-07-07T16:59:00.000-07:00

The fourth of July was freezing cold and windy. We spent most of the day lying around watching movies and snuggled up in fleece blankets. Tim took the kids up to Iron Mountain for a hike and some exploration while I napped and we ate lots and lots of leftovers. This year the fourth had more in common with Thanksgiving that I had hoped for but we did get out into the yard in the evening to enjoy sparklers and get some photos.

The Third of July (weekend with the Godings)

2010-07-07T15:36:00.000-07:00

The kid table
Nick and Tim enjoying Mom's new adirondack chairs.

Sweet little Jack.

I love Grace's fuzzball hair. I had the same thing as a kid and sometimes it's like looking at myself when I look at her like this.

Of course the little boys (and eventually the girls too) found the one spot of dirt and dug there till they were so filthy all of the kids had to get in the tub.

My brood.

Chloe, Jack, Eliot, Cate, and Grace

We basically celebrated the fourth on the third for various reason the main one being that my dear friend Candace and her family came out for the weekend from Montana and had to leave Sunday. We broke out the ribs, beans and potato salad, our traditional 4th of July menu, on Saturday to include them and coincidentally the weather was warmer that day so the whole thing worked out nicely.

Eliot Update

2010-07-06T16:24:00.000-07:00

Tiffany sent me these from our BBQ on Saturday.
Eliot and Sydney.

There are piles of fourth of July photos trapped on my camera that I will hopefully post later today but I wanted to first post an update on our boy. A week ago he had a blood test and found that Eliot's platelet levels were going back down. They went from 210,000 to 69,000 in a week and today's test revealed they are now down to 40,000. Our doctors aren't surprised by this since the gamma globulin that he was given at Sacred Heart was only supposed to last three weeks. While his platelet levels initially shot up because of the treatment, his body is now struggling to work by itself to grow platelets. Really we're not sure what's going to happen only time and more blood tests will tell. The possibility of another gamma globulin treatment is not far off but he isn't at a seriously low number yet. Our doctor has not given us a clear platelet number at which we'll need to go back to Sacred Heart but my guess is that if over the next few weeks he continues to deplete they'll probably send us back. Again only future blood tests will tell.

As Eliot's mom I have to say that I am supernaturally calm. My heart is not heavy in the least. I find myself simply counting my blessings and rejoicing that he does not have Leukemia or another serious diagnosis. I'm thankful that we don't live in a third world country where malnutrition and infant mortality are common and expected, where treatment for something as specific as ITP is rare or non-existent. We have a hospital a half a mile from our house and one of the best children's hospitals on the west coast an hour away. We are very blessed and by the grace of God we are well cared for. Our main concern is that Eliot is in danger of bleeding if he had even a minor cut or injury so I'm praying overtime that his guardian angels stick close while his body recovers. I'll post again after our blood test next week.

Sunday at the Park

2010-06-30T06:57:00.001-07:00

Visit From Grandpa and Grandma

2010-06-29T21:50:00.000-07:00

Grandma and Grandpa Mortimore came over for a couple of day and spoiled us all with dinner and treats and a day in Spokane. In usual Grandpa form he spent a few moments at the end of a shovel helping me in the yard and the kids got their fill (well not quite) of book reading, airplane playing, and the love and attention that is always showered upon them by these two. While the visit was short it was sweet and we are looking ahead to their next visit.

Eliot Update

2010-06-23T16:08:00.001-07:00

Unfortunately I don't have any fun photos to share but I felt that despite my lack of pictures I needed to write an update on Eliot's progress. He had another blood draw on Monday which was a bit traumatic for him. The nurses had trouble finding a vein and after a few pokes sent him to the hospital next door where they had no trouble. He came home with one very bruised up arm and a huge stack of stickers. I imagine they felt pretty bad and tried to make up for it with stickers. Anyhow, the results were good. His platelet levels are up to 210,000 per micro liter which is great. The number we're shooting for is 250,000. We will be back up at the clinic (or the hospital, I'm not sure yet) for another blood draw on Monday and I'll be making his favorite dinner every Monday he has a blood draw, which I'm pretty sure is still pepperoni pizza.

The Incredible Mr. E (a.k.a Miracle Boy)

2010-06-17T14:15:00.000-07:00

Eliot was completely taken with this Lego dump truck that Uncle Nick picked out for him.
A friend of Aunt Tiffany's sent him some toys and books which kept him busy all afternoon.
I got Grace some "sun catchers" to paint since she's house bound as well (flashy orange fingernails compliments of Grandma).

Grandma stopped by for a short visit and read them a book.

Eliot is recovering from his ITP faster than anyone expected and I believe it's the result of all of the prayers said for our boy over the past few days. His platelet levels were up to 71,000 platelets per micro liter on Monday showing a gain of 40,00 platelets in less than 24 hours. Our doctor told us that he's recovering so quickly it's likely we will be able to skip some of the dreaded blood draws we are anticipating. Thank you for your continued prayers, they are working.

We've all been taking it easy this week. Even though Eliot is out of the danger zone for hemorrhaging he has been complaining that he's still tired and it's taken me a few days to get my bearings after the loss of sleep and the emotional ups and downs of the weekend. People have been so generous bringing activity toys and books to entertain Eliot while he recovers. It's been a really pleasant few days around here.

A Few Photos I Forgot to Add

2010-06-13T22:38:00.001-07:00

Worn out from a long and emotional day.
My hero.

Checking out the views.

A Crazy 24 Hours: Part 2

2010-06-13T21:02:00.001-07:00

This was the outdoor play area where we spent a good part of the day riding cars and checking out the view of Spokane from the telescope.
In the late afternoon Eliot asked if he could put on his regular clothes. Tim and I both noticed how much better he seemed without the hospital gown on and we just prayed he could stay in those clothes and walk out the door.

Even Grace got in on the fun. The hospital had quite a collection of these plastic cars and trikes for the kids to use to ride through the halls.

Mr. Eliot giving his best policeman smile.

We put Grace in bed with Eliot so they could watch a movie together but she got a little freaked out by the up and down movement buttons. Eliot thought that was pretty funny and kept moving the bed around. As you can tell Grace did not think it funny that he kept messing with her.

As many of you know (if you don't the post below should fill you in) we were thrown into a scary situation with Eliot's health yesterday and today. The good news is that he's going to be fine and that he was released from Sacred Heart Children's Hospital this evening. Exactly twenty four hours from the time Tim shuttled Eliot to the ER in Colfax we were all securely packed in the car and swiftly making our way as a family to the comforts of our home and our own beds, a miracle indeed.

On the medical side of things all of the big scary diagnoses were immediately ruled out today and the focus shifted to getting control of the ITP. Eliot's doctor believes that Eliot's immune system began attacking his blood platelets while trying to kill the particularly nasty virus that he'd been fighting for the past week or so. What we learned today is that a normal blood platelet level is between 150,000 and 200,000 platelets per microlitre. Eliot's count last night when he went to the ER was between 2,000 and 3,000.

The medicine which he was given intravenously at Sacred Heart last night will temporarily shut down his immune system in an effort to give his platelets a chance to gain some footing and begin recovering. At 6 pm today Eliot's blood was tested and the results showed that Eliot's blood platelet levels had grown to 30,000 per microlitre. We are rejoicing that his platelet levels, while still pretty low, are slowly recovering. The medicine will be in his body for the next three weeks allowing the platelets to recover and we will be visiting our doctor here in Colfax once a week for the next six weeks for blood draws to check his platelet levels and monitor their recovery.

On the emotional side of things there is a great feeling of relief but I'm still shaken by the sobering affect that sitting in a pediatric oncology unit for the day can have on a mom. It was hauntingly surreal to see my son wearing a hospital gown, his little body covered in bruises and his hand all taped over with gauze and an IV needle. I hadn't been in Eliot's room for five minutes when a little guy maybe two years old toddled by, his head slick from chemo, a huge smile on his face and a truck shaped balloon in his little fist. Or the sweet little toddler not much older than Cate silently being pushed down the hall by a nurse in a large plastic car outfitted with an IV pole. I walked the halls with Cate and saw several rooms with children lying motionless in beds heavy laden with personal items, signs that they had been there quite some time. The walls of their hospital rooms had become their homes. When it became clear that Eliot would be fine it was pictures such as these that set my heart to aching.

Tim and I have been astounded and comforted by all of you. Your e-mails, calls, offers to get on planes, trains and automobiles to be by our sides has left us feeling incredibly loved and blessed to be witness to a living body of saints. Thank you for calling your prayer chains, for asking your pastors and elders to pray in your churches today. Thank you for your offers for food and childcare, for your willingness to do anything we asked if it would somehow relieve the burden we endured. It leaves me nearly speechless. All day today when I closed my eyes I saw a picture of the Father God on his throne and the prayers of the saints stretching from Arizona and California through Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and places unknown reaching his ear, Eliot's name said over and over in the hushed tones of prayer.

We are thankful, we are blessed, and we continue to pray for Eliot's recovery.

Love,

Sarah ~ One incredibly thankful mom

A Crazy 24 Hours: Part 1

2010-06-13T20:59:00.000-07:00

Here's the e-mail I sent out earlier today...

Hi everyone, We had a bit of an emergency with Eliot last night and I am asking you to keep us in your thoughts and prayers today. On friday we began noticing that Eliot was developing large dark bruises all over his body, mainly on his legs. He also had a bloody nose that persisted off and on throughout the day on Friday. On Saturday we started to get legitimately worried when we noticed more of the bruises (larger and in weird places like his chest, back, and ankle) and small red pinpoint type dots on his face and all over his body. He also had a small cut on his lip that wouldn't stop bleeding. By the evening our concern grew as new bruises seem to develop and so Tim took him to the ER at our wonderful hospital here in Colfax. They drew blood and did blood work which determined that Eliot had a dangerously low number of blood platelets (those important guys that help your blot clot) a condition known as ITP which stands for Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura. They immediately sent Tim and Eliot up to Sacred Heart Children's Hospital in Spokane. He was admitted around 10 pm last night where he was immediately given a round of a "treatment" (forgive me I'm not sure on the details here) which took six hours to infuse into Eliot's body. We must now wait 12 hours for the doctors to administer another blood test to see if his platelet count has stabalized. If it has then he can come home late tonight and I believe they will continue to monitor him with regular blood tests. If not, well I don't know what the next step is. I found a very informative website this morning that completely explains ITP in children, why it happens, common treatment, etc. http://childrenscbf.org/medical/whatsitcalled.html#whatITP Eliot recently had a cold and they doctors think that maybe while fighting off the virus the body turned on his blood platelets as well and the treatment will likely correct it. That's our hope and prayer. Of course they are checking for other possible causes as well, Lupus, Hepatitis, Leukemia, etc. Tim spent the night with Eliot in Spokane last night and the girls and I will head up today. Grace was up late due to all of the excitement so I'm letting her sleep in as late as possible. Eliot misses his sisters and his legos so I'm going to make sure he gets both of those today. I have to admit my thoughts have veered from despairing to hopeful and back again over the past twelve hours but we have hope in Jesus who cares for and loves Eliot even more than we do. We gave Eliot to the Father when he was a tiny baby and we are continue to do so in the midst of this uncertinty.

Keepin' on the Sunny Side

2010-06-08T16:18:00.000-07:00

My latest sewing project; a bag that is heading to Seattle tomorrow.

The best thing about our sick day last week; strawberry pancakes.

We're trying to keep on the sunny side of life around here but the past few weeks have made it quite challenging. We struggled through a month full of sickness, the loss of Nana, sending my dad off to Alaska, sickness again and untold amounts of rain. This combo has left me a little on the blue side and much in need of exercise, sun, and the joys of summer with its barrage of family celebrations and clear skies. As you can tell I have big plans and high hopes for the rest June and July as we press ahead.

We spent the morning at the park playing with Sydney and just the simple act of chatting with my sister-in-law and sitting in the sun brought home the hopeful realization that summer is coming, that we will indeed be healthy again, that all is well and there are many things to be thankful for even though my head is momentarily stuck in a bit of rain cloud.

Eliot's Driving School

2010-05-31T14:36:00.001-07:00

Cate can take several steps without help these days but who can resist "pushing" your big brother around the dining room on the trike. Now all we need is a bumper sticker for the trike saying "This trike powered by yogurt and rice cereal".

Peace

2010-05-24T07:26:00.001-07:00

There are a handful of faces in our lives that have been there before we had memory. They watched over us in the first hours and days of our lives. They loved us before we knew what love was or had the capacity to understand it and love back. Nana left us on Friday to be with the Father. She flew to his arms and is now free from the burden of her earthly frame. She is now free from pain and misery, free from all sadness and now knows joy as we have never known. In our family there is much to be thankful for, much to celebrate.

Stitching Away

2010-05-13T19:38:00.000-07:00

We've been sick with a cold for nearly a week and it's rolled very slowly over all of us (except Tim of course). My Emergen-C cocktails and Zicam have kept the worst of it from completely overtaking me but we've all been a bit more tired and grumpy than usual and in need of some serious craft therapy. I pulled out some scraps of gingham and a couple of embroidery hoops yesterday and these kids have been cross stitching up a storm. This was exactly what we needed, something that we could do while resting that didn't involve television. And just in case you are wondering we've learned that the cardinal rule of embroidery is "don't lose your needle". So far we haven't lost any needles and no one (but me) has stuck themselves in the finger.

A Birthday, Kite Flying, Fishing Extravaganza!

2010-05-02T21:38:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I actually caught this shot (crystal clear) of little Sydney stealing Cate's birthday candle. Cate was napping so we lit a candle and sang to her with the help of the kiddos and quick as lightning Sydney had that candle in her mouth.

Dad and Nick took the kids outside to fly kites. Whose idea was it to send these girls out into a muddy field with their church dresses on???

She's sure dressed up to be out chasing kites.

These girls were muddy up to their eyeballs but oh so happy and I think the dresses will survive.

Cate having a typical one year old meltdown the result of waking up from a nap to a mountain of presents, a couple of cameras, and a bunch of smiling adults. There are more blogworthy Cate photos on my dad's camera that I'll post later.

Just when I thought our day was complete my dad suggested a side trip to Elberton Pond. Actually two side trips, but that's kind of a long story involving naps and fish and I don't know what else. Anyhow, the highlight was that each kid caught their limit (10 trout total) and Grace wowed us all by snagging the trophy fish which is that monster hanging down in front.

Don't dis the Disney Princess fishing pole!

Grace with her monster trout. Fish fry!!

Is There Such a Thing as a Construction Prodigy?

2010-05-01T21:18:00.000-07:00

I really think that Eliot cannot even comprehend the extraordinary nature of his little four year old world. This kid has spent more time co-piloting heavy equipment (everything from an excavator to a tractor) than most adults I know. He's been watching Tim move dirt, pour concrete, and construct buildings since we was probably two which has left him with a confidence concerning all things construction that I for one do not have. What you or I would consider completely out of our realm of expertise this kid takes on like it's no big deal. Like four year olds always operate equipment that runs on diesel and is as big as they are.

Case in point, the operating of the plate compacter. If Tim had unloaded this thing out of his truck and said, "here you go Sarah, can you just compact the gravel in our driveway". I would have looked at him like he had a third eyeball and gone back in the house to bake something. Eliot however thinks it completely natural for a four year old to start and operate a plate compactor over every square inch of the driveway making sure that it is A completely done (that is every square inch) and B done well (no bumps or lumps). It astounds me. I swear this kid will be running our business by the time he's ten.

The Quintessential Cate

2010-04-30T20:54:00.001-07:00

Today is Cate's birthday and although we have a family party planned for Sunday after church at my mom and dad's house I couldn't resist doing a teeny tiny party for her today. It started innocently with a little cupcake baking and then maybe just a few streamers and then balloons (for the kids of course) and before I knew it we had a full blown celebration without presents, much to Eliot's chagrin .I baked Cate a little baby cake that I'm saving for our Sunday celebration.
I find myself resisting the urge to get gushy and emotional on posts like these. When there's so much to say I find it easier to say nothing at all. So I'll try to find middle ground by saying that there are countless blessings I am thankful for. There is so much I am blessed with. My cup truly and absolutely runneth over. When I look at Cate's sweet face I think about the past year of Cate's life and the day I first became a mom nearly five years ago. I am overwhelmed by God's goodness, by the extravagance of his grace.

I also can't believe the number of teeth this kid has in her little one year old head. Can you see all of those!?
The quintessential Cate.

Grace's First Fish

2010-04-27T16:04:00.000-07:00

Elberton Pond

2010-04-27T15:01:00.001-07:00

Last night my dad called and invited us to meet them at Elberton pond so Grace could finally use her princess fishing pole. Eliot and Tim had plans so I hauled the girls out there.

Thankfully Papaw was there to bait Grace's hook and make sure she didn't fall in the water.

Cate was a bit fussy and finally my mom deduced that she was hungry. We set her on the blanket with a medifast granola bar and boy was she a happy camper.

She just chowed the whole thing down which makes me wonder why I'm spending money on pureed baby food.

Tractor Day

2010-04-27T14:45:00.001-07:00

My dad spent much of last week driving a tractor for a local farmer. Tim took the kids over for what was originally going to be a short ride around the field. For Grace and Tim it was just that. Eliot however made it clear he really wanted to stay so he spent the day helping Papaw drive.

Krispy Kreme Tuesday

2010-04-27T14:33:00.001-07:00

We found ourselves at Krispy Kreme last week.
Grace got the one with loads a sprinkles (her usual).

Sugar and kisses always seem to go together.

Eliot ate two whole doughnuts.

The sugar taking affect on Eliot.

and on Grace.

Cate slept her way through the whole thing.
She has no idea what she missed out on.

For Mara

2010-04-19T12:29:00.000-07:00

My dear friend Brie asked me to sew a diaper bag for her sister Mara. I had intended to get it done straightaway and then got distracted by the task of sewing Easter skirts for the girls (photos coming) and the few cherished days with Mike and Diana. Yesterday feeling energized by a run in the sun and a strong cup of french press coffee I got busy on this bag and shocked myself by finishing it up in one afternoon (a rarity when most sewing happens over the course of several days) Brie picked the main fabric "Anna Maria Small Gathering in Sea", which is all gone from the Dutch Girl Fabrics store (I used it all up on this project) and I added a bit of "Sun Spots" from the Amy Butler Love collection. This project was so fun, so satisfying, and now it makes it's way via USPS to Spokane. Don't worry Mom your bag is next!!

Camera Found!

2010-04-19T11:02:00.000-07:00

Hooray I found my camera last night! (Just in case some of you were out there losing sleeping or fretting needlessly over my loss) After a three week Spring cleaning whirlwind that involved every closet and drawer in my house I found the darn thing in a small decorative box that was sitting on Cate's changing table. I have no idea how it got there (my guess is Grace and/or Eliot was involved) but nevertheless it's safe and intact and now I can get back to taking photos of my kids. Also, I have a whole bunch of photos from our visit from Grandma and Grandpa Mortimore trapped on my mom's camera that I hope to get posted this week.

Stocking Up For Winter

2010-04-07T15:51:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we spent some time out at my parent's house in Farmington. While Grandma, Grace, Cate and I snuggled on the couch and watched a movie Eliot and Papaw braved the thirty mile an hour winds and questionable weather conditions to collect some firewood up at McCroskey State Park.

Eliot was pretty proud of himself although truth be told he spent much of the time in the truck trying to stay warm. I was telling Eliot last night that I have vivid memories of doing the same thing as a kid at various locations all over Yamhill County. As long as I can remember my dad has always been cutting and hauling wood for us or for someone else. I remember getting up on Saturday mornings in the Spring and crawling into my dad's green Chevy pick-up armed with a thermos of hot chocolate and big wood hauling plans. It's pretty satisfying to watch our little boy doing the same and enjoying time with his Papaw as much as I enjoyed those times with my dad.

Resurrection Day Part One

2010-04-06T15:00:00.000-07:00

Resurrection Day Part Two

2010-04-06T14:26:00.000-07:00

Grace: Future Astronaut

2010-03-23T19:34:00.000-07:00

Grace: Future Rock Climber

2010-03-23T19:32:00.000-07:00

Cate Says "Hi"

2010-03-23T19:22:00.000-07:00

Facebook Dropout

2010-03-23T15:16:00.001-07:00

I officially deactivated my FB account today. Nothing personal folks I was just getting annoyed with it and every time I saw another e-mail pertaining to FB in my e-mail inbox I just got further annoyed. Let's say three cheers for REAL friends and REAL conversations. Adios! Oh, and if you want to get in touch with me simply e-mail me at mortimoresarah@hotmail.com

Signing off!
Sarah

Antiquing With Grace

2010-03-20T15:35:00.000-07:00

Everyone has been pretty patient with me the past few days while I finished up my sewing projects. I was passing out verbal IOUs for everything from playing Memory to trips to the park while crouched over my sewing machine. I felt I owed Grace a fun outing and antiquing sounded like just the thing for us on this sunny warmish Saturday. Grace is a wonderful antiquing partner. She is pretty good about not touching and she gushes with exuberant comments about how "pretty" and "amazing" the wares are. She genuinely enjoys pouring over the contents of a store and shop owners love her. Who wouldn't love those bouncy blond curls and all the gushing?!

There's always something entirely comforting about the dusty corners of an antique shop and the potential in everything that patiently awaits a home. It reminds me of outings with my mom and Aunt Pam, of the contents of my grandmother's china hutch, and the cupboards at the cabin. It just makes me so darn happy and even happier when the drive involves miles of farmland and thin sunshine.

We came away with a few fun yet inexpensive finds. Grace chose a tea cup which had been separated from its saucer therefore making it a resonable purchase for a three year old. This is going to be her new cup for our afternoon tea ritual that has come to replace the afternoon nap ritual that I loved so much. I guess if we can't have naps then it's pretty tea cups instead. I found a Pyrex bowl the perfect shade of aqua, a linen tablecloth, and an old "Authors" game just like the one I grew up playing at my grandma's house.

For Hallie

2010-03-19T23:00:00.001-07:00

A good friend from way back asked me to sew some clothing for her daughter Hallie which got me excited since it's been awhile since I've put in some serious time at my sewing machine. One of the best things about doing this was that she gave me complete creative control to choose the patterns and the fabrics which was SO FUN! I put the final touches on them today and sent them off to Portland for sweet Hallie. Now I'm excited to start on Grace and Cate's summer wardrobe. (Note: the patterns are from Whimsy Couture on Etsy)

Consecutive Park Days

2010-03-17T22:31:00.000-07:00

Sunday afternoon we took the kids to Jennings Elementary for some park time. The big kids were there too but we somehow came away with only Cate photos.

Monday Tim took Eliot to work so I loaded the girls into the stroller and we ended up at Schmuck Park (yep, that's really the name). Grace made me chase her to get photos while Cate slept contentedly in the stroller.

Tuesday we met the Driskill kids at Friendship square in Moscow. The kids ran and played for nearly two hours!

Cutie Patootie

2010-03-10T14:20:00.001-08:00

Birthday Girls

2010-03-10T13:04:00.001-08:00

In our family, birthdays come in clusters. Cate and Elias get their birthdays all to themselves but the rest of us have a birthday buddy with which to celebrate. Mom and Tiffany share March so we partied last night at our house. I've hosted this party twice now and I have to say it's pretty of fun cooking a meal for these two. Happy birthday ladies!

New Buffet

2010-03-10T12:19:00.000-08:00

I'm totally a Design Sponge wannabe. I absolutely love the before and after posts on there and so I gave the whole painted furniture thing a whirl. After my table refinishing adventure from last winter I decided that I do not have the patience nor the time to completely strip and stain a piece of furniture, but PAINTING furniture yields so much instant gratification! Sadly I unintentionally deleted the "before" photos leaving this post less Design Spongish but you can imagine the faded out, scratched, sorry looking buffet that is no more.

Klemgard Park

2010-03-03T10:59:00.000-08:00

We just discovered this neat little park about eight miles out of town and thinking that Spring had arrived (boy were we wrong, 50 degrees on the car thermometer and 50 degrees in the shade with the wind blowing are two entirely different things) headed out there for a little picnic last week. Although we adults froze, Grace and Eliot were too busy climbing and running to even notice.

At Home Days

2010-03-01T10:52:00.000-08:00

We had several back to back "at home" days, which is what we call them around here. We've been plagued with a rotating cold that usually hits either Grace or Eliot first, then Cate, and then me but never Tim (thankfully, since he's the one that actually has to leave the house every day). I struggled with a stubborn sinus infection for nearly two weeks but all is well now.

Flashback

2010-02-17T15:44:00.000-08:00

2010
2008

Wishes Do Come True

2010-02-17T14:59:00.000-08:00

What we really needed and hoped for actually happened. The sun came out, it warmed up to nearly sixty degrees, so we packed up and went to the park! It's the first trip to the park (which usually happens in March) each year that I start to see how much growing my babies have done during the winter months. All of the sudden the seemingly enormous 1950's metal jungle gym is no big deal to Eliot, Grace is hopping up in the big kid swing with no trouble and my little almost ten month old is squealing her head off in the swing. The sweet aftermath is that all three are napping cozily in their beds and this mommy is enjoying a few serene moments by a sunny window with a cup of tea.

Beating Cabin Fever

2010-02-16T15:19:00.000-08:00

What we'd really like to do is all be healthy and have it about 60 degrees and sunny so we can go to the park, but it's not, not even close, so here's what we've been doing to stay happy indoors.

We've been doing the projects out of Highlights magazine. This one involved finger painting with shaving cream.

Then we added food coloring to it and watched the shaving cream turn pink and yellow. You have no idea how thrilling this was for a three and four year old.

We polished off the Valentine's Day cupcakes in record time. Uncle CJ sent us these nifty little cupcake holders that you can actually bake cupcakes in.

There's something wonderful about a good rainbow. The kids and I captured this photo on our way out to Grandma and Papaw's house last week. Eliot actually cried when it disappeared.

Grocery store tulips are my FAVORITE!
Monday at our house is always "cleaning day" and Eliot and Grace took it seriously this week and cleaned the house, the doll house that is. Eliot scrubbed down the house.

Grace (looking very serious here) cleaned every piece of furniture.

We busted out the watercolors.

My little artists went to town and now we have some new masterpieces for the fridge.

I Heart Cherrios

2010-02-16T15:10:00.000-08:00

What do you do with three squirmy babies in the mother's room at church to keep them occupied? Put a bowl of Cheerios on the floor and they are HAAAPY.

Girls Only

2010-02-15T14:51:00.000-08:00

Tim took Eliot to work with him which left me with my girls. It was a decent day weather wise so we decided to head down to the play group at the library in the double stroller which has received little use since the arrival of Cate. I started to imagine this will be what it's like when Eliot starts school next year and it's interesting how the dynamic changes when big brother is gone. For starters Grace takes on the questioning role, which I didn't realize was a role until Eliot was gone. Everything is followed up with a "why" or a "how come" and suddenly Grace becomes my shy child (never the case with Eliot around), and of course we get places a lot quicker. It did start to sink in a bit how he'll be away from us and that it will be different and take some getting used to.

Nothing Says Valentine's Day Like...

2010-02-10T12:03:00.000-08:00

Cupcakes!
Be still my heart.

The aftermath. Grace and I made sure that no chocolate buttercream was wasted.

Chocolate cupcakes filled with fudge (can you see it in there?) frosted with chocolate buttercream. That was lunch.

Red Velvet frosted with pink vanilla cream cheese frosting.

Big Girl Shopper

2010-02-08T12:40:00.000-08:00

The big kids went out to Grandma and Papaw's for the night which gave me the much needed opportunity to head into Moscow to run errands with just ONE baby. Wow, what a treat that was. Cate took over Grace's usual spot in the cart and was such a great little helper. We were able to hit all the major destinations and meet Tim at Red Bento for lunch all before one o'clock!