Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Observations + discoveries...

It seems like everyday brings something new in Owen's development and learning. Today he was pretending to drive a car and go to Target. He's also been making a lot of cake! He likes to say "be careful mommy". And in a week or so I'm almost certain he'll be able to sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star with all the hand gestures.

He is a fascinating and clever little boy. I'm just amazed at what he knows and what he's learning. He seems to take everything in and stores it until all the sudden he decides he needs it. He started the careful thing while we were camping with friends on Labor Day weekend. He and Morgan went for a hike without me and he was saying "careful Daddy" as Morgan was navigating a steep trail. I say this to him a lot but he'd never repeated it before until that point. It's not amazing that he said it as much as it is he said it in context of a correct situation.

Today we separated for the first time this semester at toddler class. He was fine with it and even talked about it at dinner with daddy saying I went to my classroom and then came back. We also had a fire drill at the end of our class time and I was worried that he was going to get upset by the noise but I think his teacher did a great job preparing them for it. Not a single one of the children cried.

He also likes to say "later" a lot. If he points out somewhere we should go or do and I tell him not today or it's not for us he will say "later". Or "Owen bigger". I've told him he can do certain things when he's bigger. Like today he wanted to drive to class. And I told him when he is 15 he can drive Mommy's car. He said "fifteen". He's pretty good about not throwing fits as long as we explain things to him in a time frame he understands. Today we went to three stores and he really wanted to go to the bookstore. The Barnes & Nobles by us have a Thomas the Train table in them and he loves this. So I told him we were going to three stores before we went to the bookstore. In each store we talked about what we were doing and where we were going next and how many stores were before the bookstore. He did very well. He had a bit of a fit when it was time to leave the bookstore but I told him if he threw a fit then we wouldn't be able to come back to the bookstore. He decided he wanted to walk rather than ride in the stroller and I told him that was fine but he had to stay with me. He did. Until he realized we weren't getting any books. Where this came from I don't know. We hadn't picked out any books! But I again told him he could walk with me or get in the stroller and he straightened out.

Bedtime is our biggest challenge right now. He's going to bed too late and he won't stay in his room. We're taking it day by day but now that we are back in "school" I will have people to discuss this with and hopefully get some tips and advice!

Now to my discovery! I've been working on curtains for our weinermobile bedroom for over 2 years. I started them when I was pregnant with Owen but didn't get them finished because it was hard to big pieces of fabric being 9 months pregnant and then I had some technical difficulties with my sewing machine. Well, I'm no longer pregnant and I have a new sewing machine. This past weekend I decided it was time to drag out the fabric and get them finished up. There are two sets for out room. One single window and one double. I've had the single set 1/2 done for ages so I figured I'd get them finished and put up. One panel went well and I got it hung. The second panel got all puckered and the stitches were coming out tiny. This is the same issue I was having with the old machine! I didn't have this problem with the first panel! And it was the same panel that gave me trouble the first go round. I figured it had to be something with the fabric rather than the machine but I don't know what was wrong with it! The curtains are lined with a light blocking fabric and the front fabric is a heavier decorator fabric. I was talking to my mom about this and she asked me if I had tried the walking foot on the sewing machine. I knew I had one but I'd never used it before. Tonight I decided to give it a try and it worked! I was so excited! I finished up the second panel and the first set is hung up! I ran in to tell Morgan that we may just have curtains hung in our room before Owen turns 3! We've only not had any in there for 6 years! And this is the last time I'm going to make lined curtains!

It's taken me years but gradually I'm getting better and better with my sewing machine. It helps that I've got a nicer machine now too.

And lastly, I finally decided to give up being a consultant for Close to My Heart. I like the products but I'm a horrible sales person. It's been increasinly difficult to meet the minimums each quarter and I'm not willing to put in the time it takes to develop a broader customer base. I enjoy helping people with scrapbooking and sharing my ideas and creativity but I'm just not a pushy salesperson. I'm hoping some other crafty/creative opportunities present themselves or I figure out what to do with my photography but for now I'm just going to enjoy working on my own scrapbooks with my friends!

5 comments:

Lily said...

He sounds like such a neat little guy. I love that age were they make such huge strides in such a short amount of time. Can't wait to see the curtains

Lily said...

i left you a little somethin' on my blog

Janet said...

You're obviously doing a wonderful job teaching Owen, and he's reflecting all of that back to you!

YAY on the curtains! Now, I'm curious...why is your room called a Weinermobile room??

emily said...

I'd love to see the curtains when you are finished. I know nothing about sewing and admire people who can! I enjoy hearing your stories about Owen...kids are so smart! They say just the right thing sometimes...more than adults do I think.

Noelia said...

It's great that you're blogging about Owen's stages and developments. You'll be able to look back and see what he was saying at that time. Very cool.
In regards to your curtains, well I'm so happy for you that you got them done. I must confess that we've had a rod with little circles hanging on our bedroom windows and I have yet to buy curtains that will fit. It's been almost 7 years that we've been in this house...gasp!