Happy Birthday, Boo-Boo Chicken!

My daughter Genevieve is 4 years old today! I can't believe it has been 4 years since she was born. Where does the time go? She went off to Preschool today decked out in her High School Musical sweatshirt, with birthday snacks for her friends & an excitement that I LOVE to see. She gets super excited about simple things, so I know today is really extra special for her. After school, I am going to attempt to bake a Barbie cake. I am not a baker whatsoever, so it should be interesting. Hopefully the YouTube video I watched can get me through it. You really can learn anything from YouTube. :)

Genevieve Ann was born October 27, 2007. I had two different due dates: October 31, and November 5. Apparently the first ultrasound determined that I was further along than expected so they moved it to the 31st. On the 26th, we were at home relaxing and I went to bed a little early because I felt like something was going to happen. I told Don to not stay up late playing video games because he would need sleep. Of course he couldn't sleep...so I went to bed alone. I had a stomachache. Turns out I was in labor! Around midnight I had to use the bathroom, and my water broke. I brushed my teeth & put on some makeup (LOL) and we went to the hospital. The drive there was terrifying. It was foggy & raining. It seemed to last a lifetime. Don parked in the lot & was gone! He ran inside to get me a wheelchair. I was in labor for 13 hours and pushed for 3. I didn't get an epidural until I was dilated to 8cm. (I really should have written a complaint letter about that! LOL) She was having a difficult time, so they had to use the vacuum. I knew what this was from watching A Baby Story on TLC, and I also knew this was NOT going to be fun or pretty! Finally, Genevieve Ann came into this world at 2:51 in the afternoon on the 27th. She was sunny side up, they said. I knew something was wrong because she wasn't crying, but of course no one would answer me when I asked. There were nurses all around her and I couldn't get a good look at her face. It took her a full seven minutes before she cried & could breathe on her own. It was the most beautiful & terrifying moment of my entire life, all wrapped into one. She was the spitting image of Don! She was so cute, even all the nurses and doctors said so. :) I won't explain the gory parts, but let's just say that her birth was very traumatic on my body. But I would go through it all again in a heartbeat. 

Another wonderful memory of her birth was that they allowed me to have many family members in the delivery room. My mom, sister-in-law and brother were all present when Genevieve was born. My brother & I are extremely close, and he is always there in the scary moments of my life. I don't care if it's weird, but I wanted him there. It came in handy when Don was rushing on the counting when I was pushing because he didn't want me to be in pain. Good luck with that, buddy! My brother is a musician, so he took over. It sucked for me, but it was very effective. :) When it was over, a nurse said, "That was the most attentive brother I've ever seen in a delivery room. Actually, that was the ONLY brother I've ever seen in a delivery room." 

Genevieve is a very special little girl. She has an old soul. She wants everyone to feel loved & happy. There is just something about her. I know that she was meant to be in my life. The first time I laid eyes on her, it was love at first sight. It really is true that when you have a baby, you made the decision to have your heart go walking around outside your body. She has so many nicknames, too. Boo-Boo Chicken, Princess, Baby Snake, G-Bird, Pickle, Pumpkin, Monkey... almost all of them are animals of course. :) 


Happy 4th Birthday to my little girl! I love you beyond words. To the moon and back.

Etsy Madness!

My little Etsy shop has been SO extremely busy recently! If I didn't have a calendar & had no way to know when the weather cooled off, I would know just by my Etsy sales! Hats & booties galore! I love making & sharing my creations with people from all over the globe. I've shipped things to Australia, Spain, Canada, and all over the US. Even though I am currently feeling like all my spare time has gone to crocheting, I am still so happy that people enjoy my creations. Plus, I can help out with the bills since I am a SAHM.

I wish I would have discovered Etsy earlier. There is something about buying handmade items that is just so wonderful. I know that I am supporting a mom, a family, or even the single people every time I buy something from an Etsy shop. I also love that the things I find are unique & special. I just recently purchased a ring from frecklelips jewelry on Etsy for my brother's birthday gift. He loves to play Bingo (Even though he's in his 30's!) and I-16 is his lucky number. I found an awesome ring made out of an old bingo chip that says I-16! I knew I had to get it. He wore it to Bingo this past weekend and won twice in one night! It was an awesome good luck charm, and not something I could find in a store. I am going to try to buy all my Christmas gifts from Etsy. :)

My most popular item recently is my Pretty Penguin Hat. I have made a bunch of these in the last two weeks. I originally made the hat with Hot Pink trim, but someone ordered it in red so I made this one.

I think I actually prefer it to the Pink one. The Pink one was first made for my daughter, since she LOVES Penguins & anything Pink. The Red one just seems more Christmas-y to me. :)

Check out my Etsy Shop and get in on all the fun Penguin action!

Crabby Baby Hat

Are you feeling crabby today? :) This little hat is made out of Acrylic yarn in red, has black and white eyes, and his claws are stuffed with cotton balls. I wanted to make something fun and different than the average animal hat. I tried so hard to get a good picture of my son wearing it! He did NOT want to cooperate! That is the problem about creating so many hats...my little model has quit his job! 

I think animal hats make super easy Halloween costumes. I tried so hard to talk my daughter into being a penguin for Halloween, but she wanted to be a baker instead. She has a new obsession with Betty Crocker and anything to do with baking. It all started with one YouTube video of someone making a princess cake, and she was hooked! I can't bake anything unless it comes in a box. :) 

We went to parent teacher conferences this morning for my daughter's Preschool. Her teacher said she is a joy to have in class. When she first saw all her energy she thought, "Oh boy, here we go!" but she said she just loves her. She needs to work on sitting and listening during circle time, but other than that she behaves perfectly well. So apparently my daughter is not a little crab at school!

You can purchase the Crabby Baby Hat from my Etsy shop!

Pop Culture Dolls

I know I've posted these before, but I wanted to post them again for people who may have missed them or don't feel like searching my blog for them.

My most viewed items in my Etsy Shop are my dolls. They've been featured on blogs, in treasuries, etc. I don't follow a pattern for these dolls, I just make them up on the spot. I am always looking at different pictures of celebrities and wondering if I could make a crocheted doll look-a-like. I like the challenge and people seem to respond well to these dolls. 

The single most viewed item in my shop would be my Lady Gaga doll. 

  Lady Gaga is wearing her signature shades, a lovely Black leotard, fish net tights, her hair bow, and extra dark makeup. She is ready to ship if you'd like her to live with you. :)

Second most viewed is Captain Jack Sparrow. 

Mr. Sparrow features his Red bandana, hair beads, dreads, vest, sash, belt, boots, purple bag, and he even wears eyeliner! The original doll sold and went to live in Australia. I hope he's having fun in the land down under.

Shortly following Jack Sparrow in views is Harry Potter.

Harry features his lightning bolt scar, glasses, and is wearing his Hogwarts uniform. The coat is removable. He has Blue eyes like in the movie, but he can also be made with Green eyes like in the book. 

This doll doesn't have as many views, but he needs to be included since he goes with Harry Potter: Lord Voldemort!

Lord Voldemort was very difficult to make out of yarn and have it look kind of cute and not totally creepy. His coat is also removable. He would love to live with Harry so he can terrorize him some more. :) 

Please feel free to stop by my Etsy Shop!

Pretty Penguin Hat

My daughter loves Penguins. It is actually a funny story: we were at our local zoo when she was just a few months old, and we found a little Penguin stuffed animal in the gift shop. We gave it to her and she instantly fell in love with "Pengy." After many snuggles, Pengy started looking a little shabby. Two years ago we visited the Brookfield Zoo and found the exact same Penguin in the gift shop. I knew we needed to buy it to replace Pengy #1. My daughter would NOT let go of him, so she ended up with two pengies. She calls the newer one "Soft Pengy." When she started preschool, she was so worried about what would happen to Pengy when she was gone. I had to promise her that I would take good care of him for her. She told me that he couldn't eat Oreos until he had his lunch. :)  The funniest part is that when we visit the zoo, she is scared of the real Penguins. She doesn't like when they make loud noises, she thinks they smell bad, and she doesn't like when they swim too close to the glass. She warmed up to them a little the last time we went, but she definitely prefers the stuffed version. :)

It has started to get really cold here (hello, it's Michigan!) so I wanted to make her a new winter hat. I decided a Penguin hat was the way to go. This hat is made with soft Acrylic yarn in Black, with White eyes, and a Gold beak. To make it more girly, I added eyelashes, a Hot Pink border, braids, and a bow. This hat could easily be made for a boy- just take away all the girly glamor!