I heart pumpkins

Today I decided on a whim to take Tobin to a pumpkin patch in Flower Mound. The weather was just too good to pass up and nothing puts me in a better mood than enjoying some sunshine together...especially fall sunshine. Something about fall just makes me happy. I love the cool mornings, changing leaves, fall festivals, and most of all, pumpkins. Something about them just makes me smile. Maybe because we can turn them into silly faces or, as Tobin and I plan to do this afternoon, make the Smith family out of baby pumpkins. I think this could be the start of a new family tradition! Here's some pictures of our morning at the pumpkin patch:

For anyone that's interested, this pumpkin patch was awesome. It was completely free! Free admission, free hayrides, free bounce houses, and free animal petting. They had snowcones and drinks for sale and, of course, the pumpkins were for sale. They ask that you bring canned goods to donate and that's it! It's the Flower Mound Pumpkin Patch off of 1171. It's especially perfect for toddlers. Happy Fall!!

Baby #2 on the way!

Yes...We are pregnant again!! God has blessed us with another baby on the way! I am eight and a half weeks along with a May 8th due date. I had my first prenatal check-up last week and was able to see and hear the sweet sounds of a strong heartbeat!

Most of you know that we miscarried last February. The baby stopped growing around 6 weeks and I miscarried at 9 weeks. My guess is that a heartbeat was never established since that happens around week 6. So seeing a healthy heartbeat last week was music to my ears!

I'm feeling kind of rotten this time around (I didn't feel bad at all with Tobin) but I keep telling myself that that means the baby is growing and healthy. Other than feeling carsick all day long and like I could fall asleep at any given moment...I feel great! I know this won't last and Tobin will have his playmate/mommy back to normal soon.

It's also fun because 6 out of the 7 moms in our playgroup are pregnant. It will be a busy spring for all of us!

We are thrilled beyond belief and thank God for this precious gift!!

Sleeplessly Strong-Willed

We have had a rough time in the Smith house recently. Last week, Tobin had a hard time falling asleep at nap time. He would lay in his bed for an hour and a half singing, talking, pretending, etc. He only napped two days last week. No matter what I did, he would stay awake. No amount of book reading, singing, or soothing would work.

Then he realized that he could get out of bed. He would either tell me he had to go to the bathroom or just come to me so that I'd put him back to bed and sing to him again. It didn't take long for him to figure out that this worked at night, too. A couple of nights ago, he got up well over twenty times throughout the night! Nothing worked to keep him in bed...rewards, praise, taking things away, spanking...nothing.

After a few nights of this, I pulled out my "Healthy Sleep Habits" book by Dr. Weissbluth. This was very valuable book to me when Tobin wasn't taking good naps when he was one. Anyway, I decided to try the "silent return to bed" method. When Tobin came out of his room, I would pick him up, put him back in bed, give him his stuffed dog, and cover him back up all without eye contact or words.

I started yesterday at nap time and it took 58 return trips to bed before he stayed put and fell asleep!!! He tried tricks such as trying to run away from me, crawling away, crying, and even hiding his dog thinking that I would find it for him and give him more attention. Last night before bed, it only took three return trips for it to stick! Better yet...he slept through the night and woke up at 6something instead of the five o'clock wake ups we have had this week!

Whew! Once again I'm realizing the challenges that come with my very bright, strong-willed little guy.

Knock, Knock

Tobin loves knock, knock jokes these days. He'll make up his own if he can't think of any of his usual material. Here's two I heard the other day, one after the other:

Tobin: Knock, Knock
Me: Who's there?
Tobin: Ketchup
Me: Ketchup who?
Tobin: Ketchup with you later!

Tobin: Knock, Knock
Me: Who's there?
Tobin: Ranch
Me: Ranch who?
Tobin: Ranch with you later!

It gave me a good giggle...

Feeling Crafty

Here's some sewing projects I've been working on this summer. Most have been gifts which made them even more fun to make:

This was my very first attempt at a quilt. It was such a challenge for a perfectionist like me because I had a really hard time with the fact that the squares didn't match up just right! I know I learn as I go but I also need to learn to let go, too!


This was a "gratitude wrap" that I made for my sister's birthday. I thought it was such a creative way to keep note cards together and easy to carry so you can writing notes to friends while at the playground or something like that. I found the idea here.


I made this for Tobin. We take it to restaurants or use it in the car for a quiet and fun way to keep him entertained. He loves to color and likes to practice "writing" his name for long periods of time so it's a perfect way to keep him happy and sitting still.


I made some "beach balls" for my nephew, Beck, who just turned one. My sister has three boys and, like all boys, they love to throw and kick any kind of ball they can get their hands on. I was hopeful that these would be easy on the head bonks in her home! Here's the pattern for theses.

I recently made this baby blanket for my friend, Melissa, who is due to have a baby boy in October. It's rediculously soft and cozy...perfect for a winter newborn!

Alright...back to hunting for more ideas for stuff to make!

Labor Day weekend

Here are some pictures of last weekend in Salado...

Tobin with his cousins...Sloan, Gil, and Beck

Tobin and Sloan pretending to sleep after they re-learned how to climb out of the crib. Tobin was so proud of the fact that he taught Sloan how to break out of bed a couple of weeks before this trip. Sloan learned so well, that he started doing back flips and super jumps INTO bed only to climb out to do it all over again.

Here's Tobin licking his dessert plate at dinner. It was covered in chocolate sauce and he effectively cleaned it spotless.
The boys playing in the fresh spring water creek. They loved throwing the rocks. Tobin was trying so hard to find the biggest rocks he could lay his hands on without getting too dirty.
This is my sister, mom, and I. Beck's first birthday is on the 7th and I was honored to make his first birthday cake to celebrate with in Salado.

I think he enjoyed it!

Okay...I'm back

Sorry for the blog break for those of you who missed us. August was a fun and full month for us and I just haven't been up to blogging. Here's the run-down:

Matt started volleyball two-a-days at the beginning of the month which basically led into the start of school. His first week of classes was last week but his volleyball season has been going strong for about three weeks now. It's been a little tough getting used to life with Coach Smith because I never really feel like I know what his schedule is. We are living day by day right now until we get some sort of routine down. His first home game is tonight so Tobin and I can finally see what all those practices were for!

My sister has been in town from London for a few weeks and we have been trying to be with them when we can. Tobin has LOVED every second with his cousins and we are all sad to see them go home. We had a great time with my family in Salado this last weekend. I will post some pictures when I can.

Tobin has done fantastic with the potty training. Since my last post, we have had zero accidents and he stays dry during nap and bed time! We are very proud of him and I know he is very proud of himself. He is constantly reminding me that he is a great, big boy (as if I need this reminder to know that my little guy is growing up way to quick).

I have been busy learning more about sewing. I am loving this new hobby and have lots of projects to show off. I'll post pictures of those soon, too.

That's it for now. Pictures to come...