He loves them,

and they aren't made with lights, or shiny plastic.

I'm in love with tin toys, and not so much in love with plastic ones. These are so old and classic, but still hold Luke's attention for longer than any other toy. It may be that they are set up high on a shelf, and only played with when he is closely supervised, but either way, they are great. 

Luke first got hooked on this rocket carousel and the spinning top while playing with Eve and Ruth. He needed his own to play with, so Santa brought them to him for Christmas. But sadly, they sat in boxes until he finally got his own room, which was just a few months ago.  I must admit, I love how they look, but even more, I love hearing Luke call out "Rocket Ship" instead of "Baby Show".

Most of these toys are made by Schylling and can be bought here. The truck was a gift from Eve and Ruth, and the top I bought at a toy store in Brooklyn. My plan is to give one to Luke each year for Christmas, although narrowing them down to just one might difficult.

My boy, the pirate

Hallowen came and went this year. It was almost even a blur to me. I procrastinated making Luke's costume, mainly due to the disinterest I have had in sewing lately, but also because I have been very busy. I stayed up way too late the night before, and worked on it up until 10 minutes before we were to leave for stop # 1, 3Form, Tom's  work.

He was the perfect pirate, aside from the fact he was terrified of every other costume out there. He demanded to be held while traveling from office space to office space, not quite how we pictured it. But he mellowed out after he met up with his girlfriend Dotty, the lamb, or bunny, and they had a terrific time playing together. I think Luke might have even forgot it was halloween.

Stop # 2 was down to Orem for a "trunk or treat" extravaganza. Nothing can compete with trick or treating up and down the streets of Brooklyn lined in brownstones, but I have to say, this block knows how to throw a party. There was not a brownstone in sight but there were cars back to back with trunks open and filled with happy costumers and lots of candy. And if that wasn't enough, the end of the street offered music, dancing, and hot apple cider. Luke had a bawl, and so did I.

For Luke's costume, I wasn't impressed with the patterns available, so I improvised a little. For the pants, I did find a pattern for little girls knickers, McCall's # M5457, and used brown cordoroy. For the shirt and vest, I traced one of Luke's dress shirts, and played around with it until it looked piratey, using elastic thread for the hem, adding a collar, and of course, the deep vee. The vest was just a version of the shirt without sleeves, black twill,  and lined in red to to tie in the tights.

He's my boy!

He's 26 months today, and I can't believe my baby is so big. I can still get away with calling him that, after all he's my only one, and he's still in diapers. But I've been a slacker. He has changed, and the progression isn't documented anywhere. I need to be better about it...so here's my starting point.

For starters, he's a total ham. If I ask him to smile, he flashes his teethy grin and yells "cheese".

He still loves to cuddle with anything silk. However he's taken it to a new level, he wears my only slip around his neck. In fact, he is wearing it now.

He has an undying love for the Backyardigans. He asks to watch it at least 25 times a day, only three of which I usually say yes to. He goes to bed with his Pablo and Tyrone figurines and only wants to read his Backyardigan books before nap and bedtime. I understand though, it's a pretty cool show.

He is obsessed with shutting doors. He shuts every door he passes through. It is especially helpful when he gets out of bed 5x's a night. We can always catch him in the act...he hasn't caught on yet.

He's getting pretty good at signing, not so good at talking. He has three responses to my questions: a head nod for  yes, an always loud and dramatic NO, and most often the "I dunno".

His favorite foods are dino nuggets, vegetable soup, pb & honey, and candy. Fortunately he considers fruit leathers candy so I can suffice him half the time with a natural sugar.

He loves birds. He screams "Mommy, Mommy, a bird a bird", over and over again with increasing volume each time he sees a bird outside our window.

I'm afraid I've started something bad, but he loves tattoos and pirates. His favorite word is "arrrgh", and if he's got a tatoo on, chances are you've seen it at least a dozen times within the first 10 minutes of being around him.

He doesn't know how to speak "thank you" but he does sign it, and it is usually accompanied with the smack of his lips and a blown kiss.

He's got rhythm. Besides great dance moves, which he's not afraid to show off, he can also beat a bongo drum like nobody's business. He's always on beat, pauses between phrases, and goes crazy during every chorus.

He is the happiest kid ever when he is doing what he wants. The second he realizes he isn't, look out, he throws a pretty mean tantrum.

But he does shell out kisses and "I love you's" without even being asked.

Calling all Quilters

Or anyone else that might have an opinion on this.

I have been putting off making this quilt for months now, in fact it has been so long, the fabrics I chose aren't even around anymore. I thought I would wait until we either got into a new house that could fit a real crib, or until Luke upgraded to a toddler bed. As I have mentioned before, I have been desperately hanging onto the baby of my baby, but night after night of Luke climbing out of his crib repeatedly and us having to put him back into it repeatedly, we figured it was time to make the switch..  Anyhow, I have finally pieced this thing together, a much more tedious process than I anticipated, but I am really excited about it, and think when Luke has his own room that isn't borrowed from my brother, it will look great.

Now what I need help with...Katie, Brooke, Kelly, Carrie, my experienced quilter friends, and like I said, anyone else that wants to offer an opinion, what color should I chose for the binding and backing?  I have an idea for the back, but I want more feedback, and as for the binding, I'm stumped.

This is the adorable bed and boy to which it will go to:

And the quilt in progress:

In advance, I "thank you" for your suggestions.

Laying Low

A late night doctor visit, pink eyes, ear infection, terrible cough, and a mourning period for the death of Luke's new fish, looks like we will be taking it easy for the next couple of days.

Besides getting this little guy everything he needs I have lots of crafting projects I need to meet deadlines on.  So stay tuned...I might be requesting some help with one of them.