kid art: paint a skateboard deck

Sometimes a really good idea is right under your nose. Especially when it comes to creative projects for kids. Bo and I were brainstorming ideas for kids' room decor, since we've totally switched up Lo's room recently. With Bo (and now Lotus) being skaters, skateboard decks popped into our heads. I'll be sharing pics soon to show how we used these in the baby's room, too.

Lo is quite the little artist (haha, isn't that such a typical mom thing to say?) so we figured she could really work some magic with a blank skateboard deck. One cold and snowy afternoon, we hooked her up with the supplies and she went to work.

We thought over some ideas for her painting's subject matter, and she decided that she wanted to paint a bomb pop popsicle. And a bunny. (And a hamster and a duck and about twenty other things, but we stopped there.)

I drew a basic outline for her with a pencil so she had a little something to start with, and then she painted away.

In no time, she had finished painting in the outlines, and we took a much-deserved bomb pop break.

 (Brrr!)

We let the background colors dry for the afternoon, and then Lo went back over the outlines with a skinny brush and some black paint. When she was done, we asked her to add her autograph to her new 'pro model' deck.

This is how it turned out. So unbelievably fantastic! Just a reminder to myself (and maybe you, too) that it's usually a really good idea to let your kid go crazy with art supplies and materials you might not normally give them. This skateboard deck turned out so much cooler than I ever could have anticipated. Don't fear the paint; kids are washable.

And now, we're going to hang it on the wall in her bedroom. She couldn't be more proud of her new artwork. Want to give this project a try? Find artwork inspiration in coloring books or clip art, or let you kid run free with something totally abstract. We used regular acrylic paint, and you can find blank skateboard decks at blankdecks.com. We haven't sealed this yet, but it might be a good idea to coat your skateboard art with a clear protective coat. Krylon makes a clear spray varnish, and I've personally always liked Liquitex acrylic varnish. Let me know if you give this a try! I highly recommend it.

from here to maternity

Remember these? Little memories, all part of the big picture. Corn dogs, Renegade, pumpkins, NYC ... and getting rounder week by week. A quick look back at the journey. Click here to see all of the maternity posts from 12 weeks on. I have to say that I am surprised that I managed to stick to the weekly photo thing. From the start, I wondered if I could really keep up with it. I worried that it would be redundant and boring and that I'd run out of things to say. Sometimes, I felt like total crap and wasn't exactly thrilled to be taking pictures. At all. But now I am left with this kind of rad history of what this pregnancy was like, and while it may not be perfect or beautiful or super creative, I know it will be cool to look back on someday. Want to see some stellar maternity series pics from some of my favorite bloggers? Check these out: Bleubird. Pacing the Panic Room. Create Loves. Walk to 40 Weeks.

39 weeks

39 weeks: here we go, yo. Little dude, I'm so proud of us for making it this far. Your dad is so excited to have a little boy. I'm pretty thrilled as well. And your big sis is ready to wait on you hand and foot. She has lots of ideas about ways she can help you out. She'll shower you with hugs and kisses and songs and stories and funny faces. Get ready because I'm sure you will love her.

So, this is pretty much it ... right? I'm having lots of strong contractions, but they're all over the place so I know it's not the real deal quite yet. This week? Next week? Any day? A huge thank-you to the blog readers, Twitter pals and most radical friends out there who have followed along and sent sweet wishes our way. I have enjoyed hanging out with you during this fun time of change. You are the coolest. I can't wait to introduce this little guy to you in the very near future. I just can't wait.

baby knits

Just in time, it's a set! I knitted an entire baby set! (Well, no pants. But who really wants hand-knit pants?) You might remember the little gray sweater from a few months ago. I had a bunch of yarn leftover, so yay! More baby knits.

I made a super simple newborn hat. In no time flat.

And even more speedily, I knocked out a pair of these baby mitts. They are too tiny and adorable for words, people.

 

All three pieces were knit with Amy Butler Belle Organic Aran by Rowan (in zinc.) I think I used three skeins, total. You can find all of the other knitterly details here. The patterns I used were: New Babeh by Kayla Dyches, Welcome to the World Newborn Hat by Nona and Baby Mitts by Susan B. Anderson. I love tiny knits, I do.

a cowl for Lo

If you give a girl a cookie, she might agree to let you take one pic of her wearing her new hand-knit cowl.

Just one pic, though.

 (Then, if you're lucky, she starts posing.)

My little beauty. This is the Mallory Cowl by Shannon Cook of luvinthemommyhood. You can snag the kid and adult-sized pattern right here. (e.t.a. I knit this using Mirasol Miski – 100% baby llama – in 'storm.') Here's to cuteness and keeping warm.

38 weeks

38 weeks. Oh gosh. I am so ready now.

My bag is packed, a bag for the baby is packed and a bag for Lo is packed. Bo is on his own but I'm pretty confident he can throw a bag together pretty fast. If we have to go now, I'm ready now. 

We finally have a name picked out, but I think we'll wait to share. I'm exhausted and wide awake and excited and anxious and more than ready to do this. I can barely bend over to put on my shoes. I'm down to about two pairs of maternity jeans that still fit. Yoga pants are awesome. 

Three words: Sonic Cherry Limeade. 

 

My stomach is pulled tight in every direction and I can feel the shape of his little body hanging out in there, ready to push his way out into the universe. I hope he likes his new home with us. We're ready to do this. Waiting patiently.

FIVE

She's five today. My Groundhog Day girl. Last night, we dug up videos from the day she was born. And the three of us sat and watched in disbelief. It was like seeing life in reverse; noticing how her face looked so much like her, even in the very first hours after she was born. That cry and that little face ... it was so her and we didn't even know it yet. It's hard to explain but it's never been so clear how time plays tricks on you and all of a sudden, your baby turns five. We've all come so far since then and I can't believe that in the next week or two, another baby will be joining our little family. Almost exactly five years later. Wow.

So here she is; my five-year-old. She loves drawing and making books, watching Phineas and Ferb, playing drums, dancing to songs from Yo Gabba Gabba, eating grilled cheese sandwiches, and is a fan of anything and everything pink. Happy birthday, my girl. Thanks for being pretty much the coolest kid ever. We didn't make you that way – you just are.

sticks + string

I spent this past weekend with four of my favorite girlfriends at a knitting retreat put together by our local knitting group, Des Moines Metro Knitters. It's called Sticks and String, and we look forward to it all year long. It's basically a whole weekend of uninterrupted knitting + girl time. We're already sad it's over.

We each spent the week prior going through our stashes and Ravelry queues to pick out the perfect projects to work on. 

It's the perfect time to start some of those projects you've been wanting to work on forever but just haven't found the time. And while we always end up a bit more ambitious than time (or human knitting ability) allows with our plans, I think we all accomplished quite a lot. 

It's so refreshing to get away for a weekend, indulge in our favorite snacks, hang out in yoga pants, go out to eat and chat the days away. We do knit, too. Here is our weekend in Instagrams.

Meet my friends. This is Nichole and Melissa hard at work, a most hilarious pair.

Amy, who first taught me how to knit. And managed to complete an indoor Triathalon in the middle of our knitting weekend.

And Sarah, who also taught me how to knit. (Okay, they co-taught.) She's all kinds of incredible.

A few pics from my new most favorite local breakfast/lunch spot, Tartine.

Melissa's fantastic turquoise vintage suitcase, full of knitting supplies. I love this suitcase.

The breakfast of my dreams. I want to go back and order this again immediately.

I hope to share a few finished knitting projects from the weekend soon. (Yes, I actually made some things!) I left totally inspired and wanting to do more. It all ended too quickly ... all five of us girls seem to have a joy hangover today now that it's over. But I am so happy that I got to spend this fantastic weekend doing one of my most-loved hobbies with some of my besties (especially since this was kind of my last big solo outing before the baby is born.) I loved it. Hope you had a great weekend, too.

37 weeks

37 weeks. This is the week where things got big. Legit big. If you can't tell here, I'll assure you ... the kid is big and the belly is round.

According to our doc, the baby boy has dropped, I'm dilated to 3 cm, and things are a bit uncomfortable. Like ... even sitting. Is uncomfortable. But I'm good! Still trying to knock things off the to-do list ... car repairs, dentist appointments for Lo, and teaching my last round of knitting classes. Which I just finished tonight. My appetite hasn't been huge but I've been craving fruit. Berries. Smoothies. Mandarin oranges. Yummy treats for mom. Can't complain. We're almost there.

Mostly, my thoughts revolve around seeing this little boy's sweet little face for the first time. Any mom can relate. That's what gets you through those last weeks and days. Baby day-dreaming. So close now.

Lo's ballerina birthday party

Over the weekend, we celebrated little Lo's 5th birthday with a ballerina party. Looking at these photos, it definitely hits me that she's growing up so fast. I know that everyone says the same thing about their kids; time goes so fast, they grow up so fast. But I cannot wrap my mind around the fact that it has been five whole years since she was just a tiny baby, entering our world. She has grown up so much!

 

In honor of this most special occasion, we had a small group of Lo's girlfriends over for a ballerina party. There was lots and lots of pink, tulle and girly tutus everywhere.

There were pink treats.

And a cake fit for a ballerina.

I made lots and lots of pink tulle puffs to use as garlands and cupcake toppers.

And we had pink ballerina goodie bags.

There were pink cake pops.

Pink number 5 cookies (made by Grandma Carol.)

And my sweet friend, Beth, made these adorable cookies to match our ballerina invites.

Lo's friends arrived wearing their tutus, ready to party.

We started off with a little crafting and made gumball necklaces.

But the party wouldn't have been complete without a little bit of actual dancing.

We asked Lo's sweet ballet teacher, Miss Aubrey, to come over and lead the girls in a little ballet fun.

Everyone loved Miss Aubrey and the girls had a blast!

 And then ... it was cake time!

So sweet to see Lo with her little pals.

Pink sweets! (Sorry for the sugar overload, moms.)

And that pretty much sums up our super sweet pink ballerina birthday party! It was so, so much fun.

We celebrated early, since my due date with baby #2 is incredibly close to Lo's actual birthday, so now I'm left looking at my almost-five-year old and loving each and every moment we spend together before we welcome a brand new baby brother into our household. It's such an exciting time to be a Geigley, let me tell you.  ;)