The last couple of days were such a blast. We have been wanting to have just one of our grand daughters over for a couple of days. Ray and I thought it would be fun to see what it would be like to have just one all to ourselves. Because H has kindergarten it worked best to have A over. I went and spent a night at their house and then brought her home with me the following day. (H will have her turn over one of the holiday breaks in November or December.)
We weren’t sure how this would go, having A over without big sister or her parents. What a pleasant surprise! She was so happy and content. Slept great, played and played, and enjoyed a few adventures with us.
Before she came over, I made a new quilt for the crib. It is getting colder and the quilt she was using is very lightweight. For this one, I filled it with two layers of 80/20 batting and backed it with flannel. It is super cozy.
I used a Fabric Cafe pattern called Dash for the quilt. It is very simple and requires three, one yard, pieces of fabric. I have a lot of yardage of both of the prints in this quilt and had just enough of the textured blue piece.
For the quilting, I stitched in the ditch around most of the pieces. Also, I tied simple knots in the center of each square with Perle cotton.
The backing isn’t a fantastic match but I had this piece of flannel in my box and it was big enough. In the interest of using up what I have, I called it good enough. The piece is super soft so it feels very cuddly.
While I was at it, I made a matching crib sheet and pillowcase. Like I said, I have a lot of this fabric on the shelf!! But it looks so sweet to have it all coordinated. This girl was very excited to see her bed with the ‘strawberry’ blankets. She thought the little flowers were strawberries and who am I to argue??
A is in the midst of potty training so she spent lots of time in her panties – I thought it was easier to skip the pants over them in case we had to get to the bathroom quickly. She didn’t have any accidents though so I think she is on her way to success! She and her grandpa played with this wooden train set I found at a thrift shop for $5.99. Great deal and she had a lot of fun setting it up and (mostly) crashing the train so it would derail. Hahaha.
I love this picture! We took A to the beach and hunted for shells. She was really immersed in this whole process. When we set the bag down for a bit to climb on some rocks, a couple of seagulls came over and pecked at the corner of the bag, trying to pick it up. Oh my gosh, she went nuts – clapping and shooing the birds away from her bag. It was really funny. Serious stuff for this two year old.
Remember this fabric doll kit I posted about earlier? It was a hit. She understood right away to use the velcro bits to dress her up. It was so sweet – she played with the princess quite a bit.
One afternoon I gave her some flannel pieces I had cut out ahead of time. She made Halloween ghosts and was able to use the little bits to create different faces. It is so satisfying to watch her enjoy these simple games and toys. She made happy ghosts, angry ghosts and spooky ghosts; each one’s mood dictated by the shape of the mouth she gave it.
Our time went by quickly. Both Ray and I were thrilled that she was so content to be here. We look forward to having her back soon – well, maybe after we take a couple of naps to recover!
It has been a while since I shared any updates on Julia. She is doing great at school this year. She works at the swine unit on campus and spends a lot of time helping the sows when they farrow. This photo is from the middle of the night when she spent a long while with a mama sow who was struggling to deliver her piglets because they were so darn big. They kept getting stuck and Julia ended up having to manually help them deliver (by reaching in and pulling the piglet out). These little guys are just enormous compared to the newly birthed piglets she usually sees. It is such a great picture because the piglets look so happy to be out in the world and Julia is clearly happy with the outcome of the experience.
That is it for now. I hope all of you have a lovely weekend!!
Oh my word but your granddaughters are beautiful! And those piglets are HUGE! ROFL here… Julia is one brave girl! Does she have an ultimate goal after graduation? i.e., being a vet, etc?
Hi Carol – Those piglets were amazing! It was the sow’s first litter – Yikes!! Julia is figuring out her plans for work after graduation. She doesn’t want to go to vet school. I am curious to see where she ends up. (Secretly hoping it is somewhere in Washington tho!!)
Love this post! I like having my granddaughters one at a time too, once in a while. They act so differently alone and you really get to know their personalities. Good to see Julia too, and those piglets are the cutest! Thanks for sharing your family.
Kathleen – we thought it was great to get to know A on her own. We spent so much time with (just) H before she became a big sister. It is nice to have the one on one time for sure! We had a great time just the three of us.
It’s fun to hear about your projects, and I love seeing pictures of your girls and even the baby pigs. The flannel quilt and coordinated sheets are completely charming.
Thank you Carol. I love how the crib looks – it is so cute now that it is all put together. Hope you have a nice weekend. 🙂
I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to see you there with the girls, and just enjoying being with them! That is so good for you and for them! The quilt and bedding (you made sheets???) are so nice, and perfect for the coming cold season. Love seeing A playing with the princess project; how cool is that?! Those gulls, always trying to get away with something! I’ll smile whenever I think of A chasing them off! Love that grin on Julia’s face – it’s so fun to see her enjoying her college year!
Crib sheets are so easy to make. Takes two yards of fabric, some hemming and elastic. Easy Peasy!
Have a great weekend Wendy. Bet it is nice to be home after your trip. 🙂
Having a grandchild one at a time is a wonderful time for both of you. Looks like you had a great time and I had to chuckle over those seagulls trying to get her treasures.
I agree with you Cindy. So nice to have the one on one time with a grandchild. Plus the older sister had her parents all to herself for a couple of days – Kids need that as well. It is a win-win! You should have seen her face when those gulls tried to take her shell bag. So determined and fierce. Clapping her hands and shooing them away. it was adorable. 🙂
Hope you are doing well.
Oh, what a fun post! Miss A is so lucky to have you and your hubby close by for these special visits and adventures. The memories are surely being built, along with the strong connections to love.
Those piggies sure do look happy to be out and ready to investigate their world!
Enjoy your naps!
Thanks Kathy – Love living close to two of our four kids – now we need to get Julia up here after she graduates in June. Family is the best. I know you agree. 🙂
What a cozy bed you made for A and what a wonderful time. So sweet seeing her play and her looking for shells. I love the story of the seagull trying to escape with her treasure! Julia looks great and those babies are large! Good thing she was there to help mama pig.
Such fun to spend time with all of the kids and grand kids – all different ages and stages of life.
Enjoy your weekend Kathleen – we are going to try to get a walk in between the rainy spells.
How wonderful that you had your little granddaughter all to yourselves. It looks like she had a wonderful time with you. I love that princess play set. I realy like the idea of playing with felt. Children don’t necessarily need fancy toys, just their imaginations.
I agree Cathie – some of the best times are with imagination or just being outdoors. She was such a sweetheart. My husband and I very much enjoyed spending time with her.
What a fun sleep-over, I’m so glad it went well and you got some quality one-on-one time. I’m impressed she’s already potty training at 2 – I didn’t even try with mine until they were 3 because they just weren’t interested. But honestly, she seems like a delightful little firecracker so it’s no surprise she’s ready for it all!
Love the bed set – you really are clever, Bernie, and you’re creating some wonderful memories.
Hi Kirsty – I hope we are creating lots of memories. I grew up down the street from one grandma and a few miles away from the other. I think it is great to have all generations involved with each other so we are trying to keep a strong presence in the girls’ lives.
As for potty training, she can do it for sure. But if I didn’t remind her to go every couple of hours, I don’t know how much she would do it on her own. But it is easier than changing diapers. 🙂
Take care Kirsty.