Congratulations to A Blonde Blogger! Her comment was randomly chosen by Luke to win the ever so hip and chic Amy Butler apron. Congratulations to her!

If you'd like to check out her blog, you can visit it here:

So a Blonde Walks Into a Blog

Isn't that a clever blog name? What's your favorite blog name out there?

Okay, the linky list for the giveaways is closing in the morning, so I'm going to go ahead and post my giveaway tonight.

Don't forget to check out Shannon's site for all the links to the amazing giveaways (there are a ton)!!! Rocks in My Dryer Dog Days of Summer Giveaway links.

I'm giving away a groovy apron, made from the pattern in Amy Butler's In Stitches sewing book (the same book I got my kimono pattern from). It's made out of a very fun, yet sophisticated, Amy Butler fabric. This apron will make you the hippest cook in the kitchen.



Peyton took the picture real quickly for me, so I'll try to get a better photo up tomorrow. I just wanted to make the deadline tonight.

If you would like to be entered in my giveaway, just leave a simple comment, that's all you have to do!

I'll ship worldwide, too, so Enter, Enter, Enter!

I *will* have my giveaway up on the blog soon! I'm working on it, but truth be told, the sleepiness is catching up with me this week. Romy is only content sleeping plastered against me - which is nice and all, but it keeps me in the netherworld between sleep and awake. I could really use a good night of sprawled out, snoring, deep sleep. I know it will come soon and I'll be so sad these days are gone, so I'm not dwelling on it too much. But my project for the bloggy giveaway, which should have taken an evening to throw together, is now on day four of construction.

And seeing that I've missed a few days of gratuitous Romy photos, here are a few. This first picture is of Romy trying to get her dinner from Leanne's cheek.



I made Bud take a couple of pictures of Romy and me together so when she grows up she will know she did indeed have a mommy when she was a baby. (I'm the picture taker around here.)



Yesterday was a big occasion - Romy's umbilical cord fell off. This of course leads directly to the bathtub, which leads to a contented nap in big brother's arms.



Have a joyous day!

This blog entry is kind of roundabout, but trust me, I'll get to the point.

So, Bud is in San Francisco right now. It's the time of year for his industry's annual show, only Bud wasn't planning on going because Romy was due on 7/23, and he figured we'd be sitting here watching the clock this week. Surprise!

So, Bud got to go to San Francisco. However, there was only one hitch - he didn't have a hotel reservation. There are no hotels available in San Francisco this week. They sell out months ahead of time for this event. But, Bud, laid back though he is, is not one to be deterred when he is on a mission (or when the opportunity to eat and drink a lot and talk about really boring stuff is at stake). So he found a place to stay. This lovely establishment advertised his room as "private, with private bath and no chores." They handed him bedding when he checked in to make his bed. Those of you who know Bud may go ahead and laugh now. I'll wait.

So anyway, I'm on my own here for a day or two with the kiddos, and, for the first time since Romy's birth, had to venture out to the grocery store for fruit and milk today. I, like Bud, was on a mission. You see, I subscribe to House Beautiful (a gift from Bud, sweetheart). The August issue had a little article on the back page about what the hoity-toity types carry in their beach bag. This comment caught my eye: "I do like to pack a whole tomato or two along with Jane's Krazy Mixed-Up Salt and a big hat to hide under..."

Well, if you have been in the blogosphere for more than about two minutes you know about Confessions of a Pioneer Woman. Ree, the proprietor, also has a cooking blog. Well, I know someone through a certain message board who was a guest blogger on Ree's cooking blog, where she taught how to make killer chicken soup. Now, here is where it all comes full circle for you - one of the ingredients in the chicken soup? You guessed it - Jane's Krazy Mixed-Up Salt!

So, back at the grocery store today, I found a shaker of the Krazy Salt and some lovely tomatoes. Once home, I sliced the tomatoes, sprinkled on the salt, closed my eyes, and imagined I was breastfeeding and eating tomatoes in the Hamptons instead of a Dallas suburb. But then I imagined my "loose" tummy, my dimply thighs, and my general post-partum physique, and decided eating tomatoes in the suburbs is okay by me. They were delicious! Thanks to Bud, Cyndi (aka Hyacinth), Ree, Jane and House Beautiful for making them possible.

Please make note of Hyacinth's darling apron - same fabric as my kimono!

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Gratuitous Romy photo for the day. My first thumbsucker.

Shannon over at Rocks in My Dryer has a great idea for a grand blog giveaway carnival thing. The idea is that everyone will be doing a giveaway on their blogs at the same time. So next Monday, July 23, everyone will announce what they are giving away, then the following Friday the winners will be announced. It sounds like so much fun to me that I am going to make something for the giveaway. Tune in on Monday to find out what it is! In the meantime, head over to Rocks in My Dryer (click the cute doggy picture) for more details.

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My friend Leanne just came back from vacation and unloaded this from the back of her car:



Now, if you haven't met Leanne, all I can say is that it appears that this bike has been custom made for her. It screams, "LEANNE!" It's pretty much the cutest bike you've ever seen isn't it?

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Time for the gratuitous Romy photo of the day. I call it Romy in Repose.



Donna asks how we came up with her name. Well, it was an arduous process. We saw it in a book and liked it. But then, Leanne (see above) mentioned something about a movie I never saw and it almost ruined it for us. We went through a few other names, and about 30 minutes before she was born we decided on Romy. I knew I wanted a one-syllable middle name and had a short list. We thought Joy worked the best, plus Joy just says it all, doesn't it?

I think Romy is a great name because it sounds cute for a little girl. For a grown woman, I think it sounds fun and adventurous. When she is old, I think she will be a little eccentric and wear big garden hats and have outrageous flowers in her garden.

Romy is either Latin, German or Dutch, depending on where you look. It can mean "sea dew", "rosemary", or "from Rome". I'm going with Dutch because of my Dutch heritage. I also lean toward the "sea dew" meaning, so let's go with that, shall we?

Peyton has been feeling the need to spend time with her mom since Romy has been home. Can't say as I blame her, my time has been pretty well consumed.

So yesterday I started working with her on a simple sewing project. She's making a pincushion. She seems excited to learn to sew, and I hope the excitement will stick.

This morning we cooked breakfast together. We made crepes. Peyton's getting more and more comfortable in the kitchen.



Along those lines, I got on Amazon to look and see what I could come up with. I quickly hopped on this bandwagon:



And I found these that look sooooo cute I couldn't resist:






I'll let you know how they are, but if the cover and the reviews are any indication, I'm going to love them.

And, before I go, here is a gratuitous Romy photo. In this shot, Romy is engaged in her favorite pastime.

Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their work:

If one falls down,
his friend can help him up.
But pity the man who falls
and has no one to help him up!

Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?

Ecclesiastes 4:9-11

Romy was born on the 4th of July, and we came home from the hospital on the 6th. That night my lovely neighbor Catherine brought us dinner. My dear friend and neighbor Leanne mentioned that she was going to try to have meals for us every other night for two weeks (which she would be arranging while on her own vacation in Colorado!). So on Sunday, Lori and Brian brought a great lasagna, salad and homemade cookies. Tuesday, Cristina brought bacon-wrapped chicken with an orange marmalade sauce and green beans. Last night Lesley brought over chicken enchiladas, guacamole, fresh berries and limeade. These meals have allowed us to do more of this:



Just as I was thinking it was too bad that this would have to end, because I could really get used to it, Leanne called. She has people lined up to bring us dinner all the way to July 28! My jaw just dropped. I got off the phone and tried to tell Bud through my sobs. What an overwhelming display of friendship from so many women (and a handful of men) that I love. We are truly blessed!

Okay, for all you men or squeamish folks out there, this post will contain words like placenta, bleeding, dilation and pushing. If you can't handle it or would rather not handle it, then stop reading now!




On Wednesday morning we got up and had a big pancake breakfast courtesy of Bud. It was delish. During breakfast we joked that if the baby was born on the 4th we would nickname her Doodle, never thinking that might actually be the case!

Around 1 o'clock we loaded up the car and drove over to my brother's house. He lives about an hour away from us. When we got there, he took us on the grand tour of the house because they had just finished some renovations - including new floors. Just as we went to see the master bathroom's new tile job I coughed and thought I peed a little. Embarrassing, but it's not the first time a pregnant woman couldn't hold her pee after coughing. So we viewed the bathroom, which was beautiful, by the way. As we started to walk out, we noticed a drop of blood on the floor. I had taken my shoes off, and Bud and Gary asked if I cut my foot. There was blood on my foot, but when I wiped it off, no cut. I just assumed that someone else had a small cut they didn't know about. Don't ever let anyone tell you that pregnancy does not affect your brain function, because clearly it does.



Bud and Gary walked into the other room while I cleaned off my foot and then it hit me where the blood was actually coming from. I started yelling for Bud and everyone came running.

So, Bud and I took off for the hospital (45 minutes away!) and Luke and Peyton stayed behind with their aunt, uncle and cousins. Their eyes were so precious when we left - just so wide-eyed. That is a memory I will always treasure!

At the hospital, I continued to have bleeding, but there was no obvious cause for it. Romy was doing great, but the doctor was concerned that the bleeding was from the placenta separating and didn't want to send me home only to have a real emergency. So we opted to go ahead and induce labor.


Bud ran home to get our things, and before he could even get back, two of my sweet friends were in my L&D room with trashy magazines, candy, Sudoku and baby gifts. I am so blessed by these people!

At six o'clock the induction started. My nurse was this sweet, wonderful woman who promised to help me with the pain management as I didn't want an epidural this time. My labors are quick and it's hardly worth it. Unfortunately, the shift changed at 7 o'clock, and the new nurse was on a personal mission to see how fast she could force this baby out. By 8 o'clock I was dying, worse than I ever experienced with the other two, and found I was only 3 cm dilated. I wanted to cry. I reluctantly said I would need to have an epidural if I was only 3 cm, because I couldn't take it for hours. The nurse suggested Nubain since I was still 3cm, then I could rest and decide. Like an idiot I agreed. At 8:10 I had Nubain, and now I was not only in excruciating pain, but I was drunk, too. The contractions weren't ending before the next one started and they had to turn off the pitocin and check me. At 8:25 I was completely dilated. No wonder it hurt.

Because of the Nubain there was a huge crowd for the delivery, which was fine, because, except for my nurse, they were all sweet and excited for me. I was worried about the Nubain's effect on the baby, and had a bit of a tough time getting my bearings to push because I was woozy. BUT, at 8:35, little Romy came right out, breathed, cried and snuggled up right on my chest. Her APGARs were 9 and 10. Apparently, she can hold her liquor.



Bud was wonderful, though I could tell it was really awful for him when I was hurting so much. Watching him look at his baby for the first time was one of the highlights of the day for me.

The placenta did have a clot on the edge, which probably explains the bleeding. I'm glad I didn't have bigger problems as a result of it, and I'm so thankful to God for my sweet girl!

She is a champion nurser and is as beautiful and healthy as one could hope for. Luke and Peyton simply adore her! They really just can't get enough of her - which just makes my mommy heart want to burst.

So that's the story of how Romy came into this world. And she'll always have fireworks to celebrate her birthday!

Well, our Independence Day plans didn't go quite as we thought, but it turned out much better than anything we could have planned ourselves!



Romy Joy was born at about 8:30 on Wednesday night - just in time for all the fireworks! She weighed 6lbs and 7 oz and is 19.5 inches long. She is perfect and beautiful in every way we could imagine and in ways only God could have imagined. We are so blessed!

We had just arrived at my brother's house about an hour away to celebrate the day when all the action started. We are home and fine and healthy. I will post an update and our birth story sometime this weekend, but right now Romy and her mommy both need to eat and sleep.

Love, Amy

We're off to my brother's house to enjoy the day. That sentence was a euphemism for "we are going to go eat until we pass out or explode, whichever comes first." My brother is a good cook, to understate the situation.

No parade in our little 'hood this year, because the organizer is, oh, 8.5 months pregnant, and Texas has become a little rainforest this year. So I just decided to skip it. Yesterday everyone was asking if we were having the parade. Ummm, no, not unless you throw it together dear friend. Nobody did, so off to my brother's we go. (That's okay, by the way, we all have events that we plan, and sometimes we miss one - we all recover and make up for it at the next holiday.)



Enjoy your freedom today!

I am a woman with a mission. In my addled brain, it seems that when you complete your nesting tasks, you will immediately, without pause, go into labor.

Hospital bag packed - check.

Baby bed set up next to our bed - check.

Diapers - check.

Car seat - check.

Nursery and crib painted - check.

No labor. So, I must be meant to make cute handmade items for this baby.

Matching dress for baby and skirt for big sister -



No labor.


Kimono robe for me to wear after baby is born (note the belt is where I imagine it will go when I have a waist again) -



No labor.


Baby quilt -



No labor.

Do you think this means I'm supposed to clean the house? Please, no.




****Credits****

Peyton's skirt from this tutorial, and I adapted the baby's dress from it as well.

Kimono from Amy Butler's book In Stitches.

Quilt adapted from Follow Your Imagination Quilt at Free Spirit Fabrics.