{Craft Project} Clay Bangles

I found another DIY that I just had to try (sorry for the rhyme).  Again, this was super easy and fun!  Thanks to Delighted Momma for the original posting here.

Max wanted to help.

 Take some polymer clay and kneed it until it's pliable.  Then roll it out into long snakes.

Next take two different colors and twist them together.  Rolling them out to make them smooth again.  You can choose to use as many colors as you like.

Use a bangle to measure out how big to make them and connect the edges.

Place them on a baking sheet and bake at 275 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

I made a bunch because they were so easy! I can't wait to try other colors.

The Ugly Stuff {Roughing It}

Yesterday I discussed the good part of my recent family vacation.  Today, I'm going to tell you why we left a day early.  A few things contributed to this but one of the main culprits was the heat.  It was 90+ degrees and the cabin we rented for the weekend had no AC!  As you know from my post about the Brewers game I don't do well with heat.  I actually attempted to write multiple blog posts over the weekend but every time I would sit down to write my brain would melt and I couldn't even focus.  The only reprieve we had was in the car or in restaurants.  This was NOT the relaxing I was hoping to do.  I had visions of reading, writing and "chilling" in the cabin but instead I just baked.  Even sleeping sucked.

The second reason was bugs.  I HATE bugs.  Any kind of bugs but especially spiders.  I have always had a horrible fear of spiders and this cabin had a plethora of them.  The big fat ones stayed outside on the patio and porch but the daddy long legs made their way into our bedroom and bathroom... YUCK!

Even though the spiders are creepy they make beautiful webs.  This was out on the back porch of the cabin.  I used my super zoom so I didn't have to get close. 

You can see Mr. Spider in this one.  I tried to get a better shot but he was too fast.    He gave me major goosebumps.

The dew that morning made the webs sparkle like rhinestones.

At one point during the weekend I walked into the living room and announced that I had no idea why people would WANT to "rough it" because the term alone sounded horrible.  Why would you want to make things more rough for yourself?   All over the rented cabin where signs about roughing it up north {first of all I have to say that we were in the middle of Minnesota and growing up in Duluth this is NOT considered "up north"... anyways}.  My brother's fiancee tried to explain that it's more about living simple and in one with nature.  I explained that I haven't checked my cell phone all weekend and so can "live simple" but this nature stuff was CRAP!  I think she meant more than just not checking my cell phone.

Now some of you die hard nature people may laugh at this because to me I felt as though I was "roughing it" but honestly I stayed in a two story cabin with three bedrooms two baths on a lake.  We had a full kitchen, a TV and wireless internet.  At one point everyone was on their computers or iPads.

Luke made a good point as we drove home on Tuesday, he said "wow, cabins are a lot of work."  I'm so happy he said that because at one point in the past few months he had thrown out the idea of getting a cabin with another friend of ours.  Of course I shot that idea down ASAP!

There were some beautiful things.

Full moon from our cabin the first night we were there.

Cute horse swing made out of a tire in someone's yard.

Next family gathering I vote for staying in a hotel on an island!

The Good Stuff

This past weekend Luke, Max and myself made the 7 hour trek up to Minnesota for my annual family reunion.  I was so looking forward to a weekend of relaxation and family time.  Max is such a social little boy that I knew he would have a great time with my mom's side of the family.  She has 10 brothers and sisters and so I have a crap load of aunts, uncles, cousins, extended cousins and kids of cousins!

Let's just say that Max did great!  He was actually the easy/relaxing part of the trip.  Everyone gushed over him and he just loved it.

New comfy car seat.

Taking over for dad.

Crawling around the cabin

Playing ball with dad

Lucy and Max playing at the cabin

So worn out he fell asleep with his legs underneath him.  I'm guessing he was sitting up and then simply passed out.

Sippy time!

Center of attention

Watching the annual family baseball game

Uncle Matt up to bat

Dad pitching

Happy family :)

Max and his new buddy Jake

Max and dad out to eat after a cruise on the lake

Me and Max at lunch

Max's New Ride

This weekend Luke, Max and myself are traveling 6.5 hours to Minnesota for my annual family reunion.  This marks the 21st year that all of my amazing family on my mom's side will gather at my aunt and uncles cabin for relaxation and fun.  This also marks Luke's first year in attendance!  This September we will have been together for 7 years and he still has yet to make one.  It will obviously be Max's first time too.

I'm looking forward to reading a book, Max playing in the lake and with all the cousins {he loves people}, drinking wine and celebrating my brother Matt and Erica's recent engagement!!!!!!

Since this is the longest drive we have taken Max on since visiting Minnesota in December I thought it was time to get him his new big boy car seat so yesterday Luke and I went over to Babies R' Us to pick one up.  We were all set on buying a certain one and had even pulled it off the shelf when an employee came over and asked if we needed some help.  He asked us what our main concern was in buy a new car seat and of course we said safety.  He then brought us over to the Britax section and explained how they are the safest car seats he had and why.

Of course this made us change our mind as wouldn't we want to have the safest car seat out there for little Max?  The story about the women totalling her Mercedes and being in recovery for 3 weeks while her child who was in the back in her Britax car seat was unharmed didn't help either!  I was happy with the middle priced one {and I thought it was cuter} but Luke wanted the next one up as it had a few more side impact safety features.  Of course I let him get that one {even though I paid} because I felt like a horrible mother saying "no the $$$ one is good enough and looks cuter" in front of the store employee.

Needless to say, he better love this new car seat as it cost as much as one of my monthly car payments!  I'll get you some action shots of him in it this weekend.

Derelict

Every day I check my fellow bloggers post's and every day I'm stumped as to what I should write about.  Therefore, I have been quiet for almost a week!  I'm hoping to get some fun pics from tonight as I'm bringing Max to our hotel social for Caribbean night.  It's more of an after work networking event but Luke is busy so Max is coming with me.

The last two days my mother-in-law has used the word derelict three different times.  I know what the word means but never have I heard it used by her let alone three times in two days so today on the third occasion I couldn't hold back from pointing it out to her. {and making fun of it slightly}  It got me thinking about myself and my blog.  This is the perfect definition of me currently.

So to finish this post I'm going to give you a little treat.  Thanks to baby Cayne's visit Max is now "crawling" or what looks like crawling… he's mobile.  I video taped it for Luke one day and then out of boredom and wanting to play with my new computer I made up a movie trailer for it.  Short and sweet.  {yes, I bribed him with treats in the video.}

der·e·lict

   [der-uh-likt]  Show IPA

–adjective

1.

left or deserted, as by the owner or guardian; abandoned: aderelict ship.

2.

neglectful of duty; delinquent; negligent.

How am I suppose to write a novel if I have undiagnosed ADHD?

So at my writing class last week I had to submit my personal goal for the 6 week class.  All week I had been writing up a storm trying to figure out what I wanted to do.  It wasn't until the night before my class that it struck me.  I started writing and have been on a roll since.  Due to my strike of genius the night before I decided to make myself a pretty lofty goal.  I'm going to write a novel. Ha!  I know it's kinda funny, Luke laughed too.  I think I have a good story in mind and maybe some day you will be able to read it.  They say write what you know and this... I KNOW.  :)

When I submitted my goal the teacher scanned through every one's and stopped at mine.  "Margaret?" he called out.  "Wow you are pretty ambitious." he said.

I was all like... "really?" in my little mouse voice, TERRIFIED.  "I'm just not sure what's feasible I guess."  He told me 50 pages of a novel was feasible in 6 weeks but then laughed a little.  Was that supposed to be encouraging?  I'm not sure.  Hmmm

Anyways... novel gang here I come.  That's what my small group is called.  On Tuesday I submitted my work so far to my small group so they can tell me how much it sucks tonight at class.  Sounds fun!

So far I have been doing a good job with writing when I have free time and sometimes going to the coffee shop during lunch to write but once in a while I get what I like to call "Facebook ADHD" which is when you are doing something productive and a power comes over you so strong that you MUST check facebook.  From their it's a downward spiral of photo viewing, news feed checks and other blogs reading... you might as well give up what you are doing altogether.  With this undiagnosed ADHD I don't know how I'm ever going to complete my 50 pages in 6 weeks.

Wish me luck!... Oh and READ my book.  When it some day, if ever, gets published. :)

Cheap Toys

The other morning Max was obsessed with playing with one of our kitchen chairs.  He seriously rolled around the thing for at least a half hour.  Pulling it this way, pushing it that way, sticking his leg here, sticking his head there.  I looked over at all his toys and his nice play mat and wondered why I even bother.

His favorite toys are the iPhone, iPad, TV remote and now a chair.  With my next kid I'm going to plop them down in front of safe regular household items and say "have at it kid!"

He loves posing for the camera too

Oh How Things Change

This weekend Ashley, Chad and their little boy Cayne came to visit.  Cayne is exactly 1 month older than Max.  He can walk already and so I was hoping that he would teach Max a few things.  It worked!  Max can now somewhat crawl, he tried to pull up on the coffee table last night and is all around just more interested in being mobile.  Yeah!  Thanks Cayne for your help :)

We all had a blast hanging at the pool and the lake.  The boat made Ashley and I reminisce about their trip to visit 2 years ago when Ashley and I drank a lot of beer on the boat and now instead of beer we have babies.  Wow how things can change in just 2 years.

Ash and me with the babies

The two families

Such a cute family!

Future Christmas card?

Cayne and Max having a snack

"Hey, that doesn't go in your nose!"

"Yum, can I have that?"  I love this one

The big boys with the little boys watching some fireworks in the street

"Ooo" Cayne says about the fireworks

Ready to party on the boat!

Cayne loved the lake

Max, not so much

Practicing his floating

Screaming bloody murder

The boys both had fun playing on the boat.  Cayne loved the lake water but Max thought it was a little too cold for his liking.  Maybe next time he will be more used to it.

Such a fun summer weekend.  Love.