Day 243: The Yoyo Doll

On Sunday I finished the Yoyo Doll, and I'm really pleased with how it came out. I had to have two goes at doing the hair, as my original idea didn't work, but I'm happy with the result. Altogether it took me about a week to make, just working a couple of hours in the evenings, and a few more on Sunday when I made the hands, feet and head, and put it all together. Elizabeth loves it, and has named her 'Susan'. She was so happy when it was finally done, and she gave me a trophy :)

You can see some more pictures of the doll here.

Since I finished it on Sunday, Edward has managed to pull it apart twice already! I think my problem was using elastic to put it all together. I used elastic as that's what I remember my Nannie's one being made with. It adds a little extra bouncy fun to the doll. But apparently the elastic I used wasn't strong enough, or I didn't use a big enough knot. Anyway, after the second break I mended it using several strands of strong thread, so hopefully it will last a bit longer now.

I had a few yoyos left over, so I made a little alien for Edward. I was hoping this would preempt any fights over the doll. However, he hasn't really shown any interest in playing with either of them, he just likes to pull them apart!

It was a fun project, and quite easy to do. I may make another one in the future. I had an idea for an angel, so maybe I'll do that for Christmas.

Day 242: Another tooth gone!

Elizabeth lost her second baby tooth on Saturday morning. This is the first one lost through natural causes. It had been loose for about a month, but got really loose very quickly before finally falling out while she was eating. The other bottom tooth is already wobbly now as well. The tooth fairy left her some coins of course, but she hasn't had a chance to spend them yet.

And the hair? She wanted to dress up as Daphne from Scooby Doo this afternoon. We got this costume cheap last Halloween, and I couldn't resist taking today's picture while she was wearing it :)

Day 241: Family picture for school

This coming Friday we have 'Meet Your Teacher' day at Elizabeth's preschool. We have to take a family picture to it, so today we shot the photo. I'm looking forward to meeting the new teacher and finding out more about the class. Elizabeth is excited too. I made her a countdown chart so she knows how many days left until school starts.

Day 240: Luau photo shoot

This evening I had my second photo shoot for the church, photographing the Knights of Columbus Hawaiian Luau. It went really well. It was originally supposed to be held outside, but it's been a bit chilly today, so I guess they decided to move it indoors. I was still able to get lots of good shots though. I took almost 200 altogether, and I covered all the main events. I haven't gone through them all yet, but I'm happy with what I've seen so far. We also had a good time just enjoying the luau as a family. Both the kids really enjoyed it, and the food and entertainment were great.

Day 239: Nice hat

I got this hat for Elizabeth last year at a charity store. She hardly ever wears it. Edward likes to wear it though! Actually, he likes to pull it down over his face and run around. At least it's getting some use!

Day 238: Lotsa Yoyos

My Yoyo Doll project is progressing well. Last night I finished sewing the last of the circles, and I now have a big pile of yoyos. Now I need to make the hands, feet and head, then put it all together on elastic. I have a pretty good idea how to make the rest of the pieces, and I'm hoping to make a start on them tonight. Needless to say, Elizabeth is still very excited!

Day 237: St Augustine's Catholic Church

I took this picture of our church this evening after I had finished my lector rehearsal. I am reading on Sunday, so I went to the rehearsal this evening. It didn't take long, the Head Liturgical Minister was pleased with my reading, and said I listened well to the guidance he gave me. I need to remember to read slowly, loudly and clearly, and I still need to practice during the week.

The light from the sun was beautiful as I came out of the church, so I wanted to make the most of it. I like this angle, you can see the trees and bushes that surround the church, as well as the cross on top, and I love how it is lit.

Day 236: Everybody needs insurance

Today we got a whole set of new insurance policies. We hardly had any life insurance before, now Dave and I both had two each, and each of the kids has one too. We got it through a guy Dave knows through church. I took this picture with my cell phone, and it looked fine on the phone screen. It wasn't until I downloaded it to my computer however that I realized it was out of focus. This was the only picture I took today though, so I have to use it. I'll be more careful in future!

Day 235: New shoes

Elizabeth was given these shoes as a birthday present. I thought they were too big for her, so I put them away, but she found them and wanted to wear them. They actually fit her quite well, but she had a little trouble walking in the heels. She was happy to pose in them for me though. I wasn't very happy with the lighting in the picture, or the way I edited it, but this was the best pose I caught her in, so I wanted to use this shot.

Day 234: My first official photo shoot

Today I had my first official photo shoot, taking pictures for the church at a farewell reception for two of the staff members. It was quite a small event, which was perfect for my first shoot. It all went very well. I took over a hundred shots, and ended up with a good set of 55 that I posted on the CCOP Facebook page and Shutterfly site. There are a few things I would do differently next time, but overall I was pleased with how it went. My next shoot will also be for the church, at the Hawaiian Luau the Knights of Columbus are holding. That will be an outside event, so it will be interesting to see how that goes.

Day 233: The next Masterchef

Elizabeth was helping Dave make some lunch today, and wanted to wear his Steelers chef hat and apron. I don't actually think she'll become a chef though, she seems to be more artistic at the moment, and is really into painting, especially pictures of people.

Day 232: Making a Yo-Yo Doll

In a catalog recently I saw Yoyo Dolls for sale. I remember my Nannie having one of these that she let me play with when I was a little girl, so I decided to make one myself for Elizabeth. I was pretty sure it would be fairly straightforward, and when I looked up some directions online I found I was correct. I couldn't do anything until I got some old clothes from Goodwill though. We did that at the weekend, so after I washed them I started cutting out the circles tonight. The basic steps are:

1 - cut out lots of big circles from scraps of fabric.
2 - sew all around the edge of each circle in a running stitch, then pull the thread to gather up the edge. This makes the 'yoyo'.
3 - string lots of yoyos together on elastic to make arms, legs and body.
4 - attach hands, feet and a head.

I haven't quite figured out how I'm going to do the head yet, but it shouldn't be too hard. I'm really looking forward to seeing how it comes out. Elizabeth asks me every five minutes if it's finished yet!! I'll post some more pictures as the project progresses.

Day 231: Ladybug ladybug, fly away home. Your house is on fire and your children are gone.

Elizabeth spotted this yellow ladybug in the backyard today. I wish I'd had my macro lens on the camera, but I had to do the best I could with my normal lens. This one came out quite well though. The title of this post is an old rhyme I remember from my childhood. When you think about it, it's not very pleasant!

Day 230: Ganglion. Pain.

About 6 years ago I developed a painful lump on my left wrist, just below the thumb. I went to the doctor and was told it is a ganglion cyst. Eventually it became less painful, and most of the time I forget I even have it. Last night though it flared up again, and today has been very painful. I can hardly use my left hand at all, I have no strength in it. I'm not sure why it's suddenly flared up again now. I do remember hitting it on something, but I think that was at the weekend. I just hope it dies down again soon. The only treatment is to have it drained or surgically removed, and neither of those sound particularly appealing!

Day 229: The next Van Gogh hard at work

Following on from her masterpieces yesterday, Elizabeth wanted to paint again today. I only let her do it when Edward's napping, I couldn't deal with the mess if he got hold of the paint! Today she painted the whole family, one person on each sheet of paper.

Day 228: Elizabeth art

Elizabeth painted these two pictures today. On the right is The Grinch and his dog Max, and on the left is Cindy Lou Who. I love the way she has given the Grinch a spine and a heart. She's getting so much more creative with her drawings now, it's such a change from just six months ago.

Day 227: Fixing the sprinkler

Our backyard sprinkler has had a leak for some time now, and today Dave finally had time to fix it. It turned out to be quite a simple job. One of the pipes had become disconnected, so he simply reconnected it and glued the join. We'll find out tomorrow whether it worked or not.

Day 226: Sunset seen from I-680

This weekend is the first one we've had for a while with nothing planned. So we decided to drive to the Valley to do some Goodwill shopping. As usual we managed to get lots of bargains. We stopped at Denny's again for some dinner before driving home. The sun was just setting, and I managed to get this picture as we drove along I-680.

Day 225: Perseid meteor

Last night I stayed up late watching for meteors. August 12th is the annual Perseid Meteor Shower. Although this is usually the biggest and brightest meteor shower each year, I've never had much luck with it. This year was different though. Almost as soon as I went outside I saw a really bright fireball. I had the kids with me and didn't have my camera set up, so I didn't catch it on camera. I went out again later when they were supposed to be getting more frequent. I set the camera up and settled into a chair next to it, taking 30 second shots continuously. I sat there for about 20 minutes, and although I did see a couple of faint meteors, I wasn't sure if I had caught them on camera. My backyard is surrounded by a lot of trees, so I decided to change position. I saw a few more, but by 1.30 am I was cold and tired and had had enough, so I went back inside to see what I'd got. I was delighted to find this shot among the 100+ pictures I took! Since it was taken after midnight, it can still count as today's picture :)

Day 224: Happy Hollow Park & Zoo

Today the kids and I went to Happy Hollow Park & Zoo with Elizabeth's friend Lindsay and her mom Liz. It's in the middle of San Jose, and they don't have any really big animals, but it's still a lot of fun. We checked out all the animals (Edward LOVED the spider monkeys), then went on some of the attractions. The kids tried out a roller coaster for the first time. Elizabeth was pretty scared and didn't like it, and Edward buried his head in me the whole time but seemed to enjoy it. When we went on the carousel later though, Elizabeth was fine (although she wouldn't ride on anything moving), but Edward refused to get on at all. It was a fun day, and I'm planning on going back again next time my parents visit.

Day 223: Hummingbird

We've had this feeder for a couple of years now. Last year I did see a few hummingbirds feeding at it, and the liquid kept going down, but I only managed once to get a few pictures, and they weren't very good. So far this year, until today, I had only seen a bird at the feeder a couple of times, and the liquid didn't seem to be going down as quickly. Nevertheless, when I spotted one today I decided to set my camera up and wait until I got a shot.

I sat in the back yard with my camera all set up on the tripod and the remote shutter release in my hand for about half an hour waiting for a hummingbird to come to the feeder. When I had given up and was just standing near the feeder hand-holding my camera, one finally came! He actually came back several times, so I was able to reposition and try some different settings. He didn't seem wary of me or the kids at all! So in the end I was able to great some great shots, and this is one of my favorites.

Day 222: My bible study group

This is my bible study group. Ashley (second from the right) has been our leader, but she is leaving soon. Her husband just got a job out of state, so they are moving later this month. I thought this was going to be our last meeting with her, which is why I took my camera, but lucky for us she'll still be here next week at least. After that we're going to have to try and struggle on without her! We'll definitely miss her, she has a lot of knowledge in theology and has been great at guiding the group.

Day 221: The biggest caterpillar I have ever seen!

Yesterday, during my MOMS afternoon, I noticed this HUGE caterpillar crawling across the doorstep. I've never seen one this big, and I thought the kids would love to see it, so I captured it and put it in a bucket until they got home. I was right, they were fascinated with it. Elizabeth wanted to keep it, so I let her keep it in the bucket overnight, then today we released it back into the garden. It immediately started trying to burrow into the ground. I believe it is a tobacco hornworm. To be honest, the thing grossed me out quite a bit!

Day 220: MOMS coffee & dessert afternoon

Today I had my MOMS reunion coffee and dessert afternoon. Only three moms were able to make it in the end, but we still had a really nice afternoon chatting and relaxing. And all the desserts were delicious!

Day 219: Love this store

I'm hosting a coffee and dessert afternoon tomorrow for the MOMS ladies, so I went to this store today to pick up a few things. I love this store, I could spend all day browsing through it, and I could spend a lot of money in here!

Day 218: Peek-a-boo!

I went to check on my daughter today, and found her playing in these two toy bins. Of course the toys that should be in them were all over the floor!

Day 217: Happy meals, happy kids :)

My kids love eating at McDonalds. I know it's not the best food for them, but sometimes it's the only place they eat a whole meal, especially Edward. So I just restrict it as much as possible, and don't stress about it.

Day 216: Collecting the fallen apples

The apple tree in our back yard is already dropping its apples. Every evening my husband goes out and picks them up so they don't rot all over the floor. Edward usually helps him. Today when we went outside to play the first thing he did was get his bucket and start picking up the apples! Daddy's little helper :)

Day 215: Shots - they don't hurt!

Today Elizabeth had her annual checkup. I knew she would be worried about shots, so I didn't tell her we were going until about half an hour before we had to leave. As predicted, the first thing she said was "Am I going to get a shot?". When I told her 'yes', she started sobbing, and was really upset. I thought I was going to have a hard time getting her in the car, but although she was so upset, she was very good. The only time she fought me was when I tried to put her shoes on. But she got into the car and actually calmed down a little. Dave met us at the doctor's. During the exam she was calm and well-behaved. When it came time for the shots she got a bit upset again, but didn't struggle as much as she usually does. First she had to get a TB test, then she had to get one shot in the arm. She held on to me, crying and saying "I'm being brave! I'm being brave!". I guess the nurse was a good shot, because as soon as he was done she said "That didn't hurt!". Hopefully that will help to quell her fear of shots in the future.

Day 214: St Elizabeth Seton church fountain

This is the fountain at the sister church in our parish, St Elizabeth Seton. Although we don't go to mass here, I often come here for meetings. Tonight I had a MOMS prayer and meditation meeting. I arrived a few minutes early and the sun was low in the sky and shining beautifully on the fountain. I've photographed it before, but couldn't resist the great lighting.

The meeting itself was good, but quite emotional as we all seem to be having some difficulties at the moment. It was good to talk about it all though, and to have some quiet time.

Day 213: Hair by Mommy

This morning as we were getting ready for church, Elizabeth suddenly announced that she wanted her hair cut! I've been trying to convince her to get it cut for months! I suggested we go to the salon to get it done, but she didn't want to do that. So I agreed to do it. I was a little nervous, as I've only ever cut her bangs before. I washed it first, then sat her on a stool in front of the TV. It actually went better than I thought it would, and turned out okay. Her bangs are a bit crooked, and the back is a little uneven too, but overall I think it looks pretty good! I'm going to try and convince her to go to the salon to get it tidied up before school starts next month.