Our God is in Control

I've gotten to the point where I can listen to Steven Curtis Chapman's Beauty Will Rise album without bawling my eyes out.  It's absolutely beautiful and, even if you do cry the whole time, totally worth a listen.  I have it on right now, and I thought I'd post the lyrics to one of the songs.  Really, though, you should listen to it and the rest of the album.

Our God is in Control

This is not how it should be
This is not how it could be
This is how it is
Our God is in control

This is not how it will be
When we finally will see
We’ll see with our own eyes
He was always in control

And we’ll sing
Holy Holy Holy is our God
And we will finally really understand what it means
So we’ll sing
Holy Holy Holy is our God
While we’re waiting for that day

This is not where we planned to be
When we started this journey
This is where we are
And Our God is in control

Though this first taste is bitter
There will be sweetness forever
When we finally taste and see
That Our God is in control

And we’ll sing
Holy Holy Holy is our God
And we will finally really understand what it means
So we’ll sing
Holy Holy Holy is our God
While we’re waiting for that day
We’re waiting for that day
We’ll keep on waiting for that day

And we will know
Our God is in control
Holy Holy Holy
Holy Holy Holy
Our God is in control
Holy Holy Holy
Our God is in control
Holy Holy Holy

I just realized that I didn't post these pics of Riley.  These shorts were super-fun to make, and they're in that same cute fabric from Noelle's bustle dress.  Plus, look at this pose. Ha!  She's turning into a little model, this one.  (Yikes.)

 

I made the shorts from this tutorial from no big dill (amazing, by the way).  I added a slightly longer cuff, but otherwise, I followed her all the way. :)

Then I put a simple applique on this long-sleeved t-shirt.  You can tell; Riley loves it.

On another note, I think I need to get Riley some cute brown (slouchy?) boots.  How adorable is the tights/leggings and boots look on a toddler (as opposed to a 7+ month preggo)?

Bustle and Baloney Face

Riley did not nap today.  Instead, she talked for two hours straight.  Two hours!  I even went into the room, twice, to tell her to be quiet and sleep.  No dice. 

Apparently, she either really was not tired (even though her mom was!), or she's running on adrenaline.  Because something put her into a hilarious mood.  Here was the result.  You'll want to click on this picture to see the full thing, enlarged...

 

Or maybe Riley just thought it was funny that I'm seven months pregnant, was lying on the floor trying to get a good picture of Noelle's new dress, and that I got sneak-attacked by Little Sister, who plopped herself squarely on my tummy.

Whatever it was, even though my dress pictures were less than successful, I LOVE the Riley collage!

Here's the dress.  I love this owl/tree/heart cord fabric.  And I really love that big, cheesy grin on Noelle's face.

 

A little ribbon detail...

Here's the shot I was trying to get.  The bustle in back!  It's so freaking cute, and I swear I'll get a good picture at some point!

What a sweet girl!

Tutorial Sneak Peek

I'm set for my next tutorial!  I've made a couple of... what's coming next... and I think they're pretty cute and pretty easy.  Okay, I'll go ahead and tell you; I'm calling them Bubble Bum Bloomers.  Here's a little look-see.  Riley, by the way, loved modeling them because she got to be half-nakie, apparently a very desirable state for a toddler.   :)

Boy doll??

Both of my girls love babies.  Riley loves them indiscriminately. 

She loves little plastic babies.  She loves baby dolls...

And she loves real life babies...

 

Noelle loves the plastic babies and the baby dolls... (that's a kiss, by the way... with a spoon)

And she does love real babies.  As long as they don't try to monopolize any of her Mommy time.  (Note her look at Aubrey here.  So, Baby, how long are you going to be here?)

And, yes, Noelle is wearing her helmet and a tennis ball costume in that last picture.  She has her own style, I guess. :)

But here's my point: Riley, I think, is going to adjust amazingly well to Baby Boy.  Noelle... well... that might be more of a transition.  So I was thinking I would get them both baby boy dolls.  I know my parents got me a Cabbage Patch Kid when Brandon was born, and I'm pretty sure I loved that little thing.  And I can picture myself encouraging the girls to nurture "their babies" whenever I have to pay attention to Little Man.  

The problem is that boy dolls are definitely harder to come by than girl dolls.  I searched Amazon for "cabbage patch kid boy" and ONE option came up-- a boy with blue and red hair.  What?!  When I searched for just "boy doll", I got a few more options, a couple of them cute.  So, if anyone out there is reading this and has helpful advice or suggestions, I would be so very grateful!  I've just begun the search, so maybe I'll stumble across an amazing little guy, but-- of course-- it doesn't hurt to ask!  

Alright... begin Operation Boy Doll!

More fun cuteness

This is a little late, but I haven't blogged in a while, and I'm thinking the girls aren't really going to let me write, so I thought I'd add these pictures.  We had another great playdate with the Barnetts (again-- love them!). 

Before we left, I put ALL of Noelle's hair in pigtails.  It may, possibly, have been the best parenting decision I ever made.  I mean, how adorable does she look?!

The girl's on a mission... and looks so old!

Notice the smiley flowers behind Riley.  She was trying to imitate them. :)

Noelle LOVES looking at the fish.  In fact, she's sitting next to me right now and yelling, "FEESH!!"

Oh, and she also really was digging throwing rocks into the water.

Little goofball...

Two adventurers make their way throw the roses. 

(How they didn't get caught by thorns is beyond me!)

And.... step!

Butterflies in the Park

I'm a nerd.  This is a pretty established fact.  And I took it to a new level, making the girls coordinating butterfly tops and then bringing them to the park in those tops.  And I may have brought my camera, too.  But only because they're so darn cute at the park!  (And maybe because they were coordinated... just a little.)

Noelle's been walking for a little while now, and she has truly come alive.  She loves exploring and wandering and running.  And she has a good level of caution, too, so I don't have to live in perpetual fear that she's going to throw herself off the playset.  Riley is opening up, too.  As my super-cautious child, she often refuses to go down the slides-- even the little ones.  But yesterday, she was sliding non-stop.  Even if it was mostly down the baby slides, we'll take it. 

Before we left... I love these girls!!

Look at that amazing double-chin!

Synchronized sliding

Running, running, running!

Swinging is a definite favorite for both girls.

Riley, being SO brave!

Totally worth bringing the camera, don't ya think?

The Bear and the Arepa

The arepas were the highpoint of our first Verde Arepa Bar event yesterday.  The Bears, sadly, weren't even in contention for the top spot.  But as one of the chefs, I'm only semi-disappointed. :) 

Steve, Ryan and Dan came over for the event, and I think it went smashingly.

First, the spread...

We had two items on the menu:

Steak and sofrito arepa

Chicken and chorizo arepa

Then, we had all the necessary accompaniments: avocado, black beans, fried plantains, chimichurri sauce, cotija cheese.

And nothing says arepas and football like pink paisley and Disney princesses.  Can you tell what kind of life we lead, these days?

Here's my first arepa-- steak and sofrito, plantains, black beans, cheese, avocado.  Holy cow, it's so good.  Thank you, whoever came up with the arepa; it's the perfect canvas.

And the enjoyment.  You'll see that everything's better with an arepa; the Bears were even winning at this point in the game.  And the boys were warned that I would (dorkily) take pictures.  They didn't seem to mind. :)

Fall Collection Photoshoot

 We went out to the Arboretum with Stephanie on Friday, so we could grab some new pics of the little ladies.  And while we were doing that, why not get some of the girls in new clothes I made??  Bonus! :)

We didn't get everything in Riley's "fall collection," but here are a few.  And by the way, the girls are at awesome size stages right now.  Riley's about a head taller, but because their body types are so different, they can wear a lot of the same outfits-- things are just shorter on Riley.  Makes it pretty nice for Mom. :)

After Noelle and I got to see a hedgehog, live and in person, at Cosley, this dress was a good starting point for her.  I heart this Michael Miller fabric!

I actually took a 24-month Carter's onesie and refashioned it into this dress for Riley.  She sure is skinny, that one!  Plus, the knit of the onesie stretched when I added the skirt. 

Check out the shoes (waaaaay too small for her) that she put on herself. :)

I know, I know... You were starting to think my kiddos were always perfectly behaved (ha!)... but it wasn't all sunshine.  In Noelle's defense, she was sitting on a pretty cold rock.

This is actually a reversible tunic.  It's a little big, but hey!  Riley can still be wearing it when she's five or so!

And this is my pride and joy, right now. :)  Look at that amazing fabric!  It makes me drool.  And I love how this top turned out-- especially since I made the pattern myself!  

And it even layers... a long-sleeved top could go under it, too.

A little hippie-inspired look for Riley.  The guy at Yogli-Mogli, by the way, called her sleeves "epic."  Agreed, Nate.  Agreed.

We've got to get a little goofy, right?

... and a LOT sweet!

Love how the clothes turned out.  Love the girls more. :)