7 Quick Takes (Things That Annoy Me Edition)

Today it's being hosted at Camp Patton!

Sometimes you just gotta get a few things off your chest.  I don't complain too much usually, so today I am going all "kitchen sink" on you with 7 things that annoy me.

— 1 —

The "Happy Birthday To You" song.  The melody of this song is terrible, especially for people who have no musical training.  It has an octave jump that just makes people uncomfortable because it usually requires switching from your chest register to your head if you're female.  It's also really awkward to be the birthday person.  What are you supposed to do?  Sing along?  Smile in silence?

— 2 —

When people on Pinterest don't pin the original recipe/idea and you have to jump through five hoops to get to it.  Or worse, the link is just a generic blog link and not to any post in particular.  Good luck, sucker!

— 3 —

Dresses that tie in the back for no reason.  I have a few of them, and it's usually just a little cotton cord (nothing special).  If it doesn't change the structure of the dress by tying it, then all it's doing is making it uncomfortable for me to sit in a chair (or a wooden church pew, or my car, etc. etc.).  I would just take it out, but often it's sewn in or I would have to cut off those little loops too.

This dress ties in the back, but WHY?  It's probably a conspiracy.

— 4 —

When people write "wa-la" (or some variant) but mean "voilà."  If you're going to use a term, learn how to spell it first, please.  It literally means "see there" in French, so let's keep it French.

— 5 —

Sites that have a "keep me logged in" option, but then don't actually keep me logged in.  Woe is me.

— 6 —

People who want to "eat my baby's face".  Why is this a thing?  I mean, she's cute, but I've never wanted to "eat her up" or "eat her with a spoon" or whatever.  Why do some people feel compelled to eat cute things?  I'm sure Freud has some answer, but please keep your cannibalistic tendencies away from my baby's face!

Please don't eat me!

— 7 —

When people say they are "apart of" something but really mean "a part of" something.  Um, do you realize you just said the opposite of what you meant?  Grumble grumble.

For more of today's Quick Takes, check out Camp Patton.

Yes, I CAN Believe It

I'm starting to get annoyed with people who say things to me like, "She's 7 months already!  Where has the time gone?!"  Or, "Can you believe how big she is now?"

You know what?  I can believe it.  Unlike you, I see my child every single day.  I feel each day of those 7 months in my back, my boobs, my shoulders, and my hips.  I make sure I have at least one picture of her per week (and I've only missed one week since she was born).  I can remember her as a squishy newborn, a tummy-time hating 3-month-old, and when she cut those bottom two teeth simultaneously.  And what I can't remember? I probably have a video or picture that might jog my memory.

Maybe I'm just too practical for the sentimental mom set.  Or maybe it's because I didn't really start enjoying motherhood until three months into it. I know that babies grow. And they do it quickly.  I don't wish her smaller, saying things like "I'm not ready for my baby to grow up!" when she hits a new milestone.  I also don't (usually) wish her older.  I treat her much like I do myself. I've always been content at the age and stage that I'm at, never striving to look older or younger, so why should I treat my baby any differently?

Saying that certain events "feel like just yesterday" doesn't give full respect to everything that has happened since that event.  Sometimes I feel like I'm still 23, but then I remember all the cool stuff I've done in the past 5 years.  There's no way I could still be 23 with all those wonderful adventures underfoot.  The same goes for my baby--if "just yesterday" she was a marathon-nursing 6-week-old, then what about all those "boring" days we've had just reading together, taking her to the pool, singing her new (usually made-up) songs, and listening to her laugh?  That's where our bond has happened in our own unique way, and it would be very regretful to just gloss over those days in favor of milestones that almost every baby hits.

Maybe I'll change my tune in a few years, but I sort of doubt it.  I can believe that my nephew is 8 years old, even though I also remember very clearly the day he was born.  I recall dancing with him to The Wiggles videos in his toddler years, playing in the yard with him as a preschooler, and I remember the phone call I made to him to tell him that B would soon be his uncle.  The time of year has come again for him to solicit his Cub Scout popcorn to me, and that is when nobody can deny that he truly is a third-grader.

 I enjoy each day as it comes.  You may have noticed that on this blog I never say "I can't believe the week/month/year is over!"  That's because I can believe it.

A picture from yesterday, her first Grandparents Day.
She's getting bigger, but it's happening at the perfect pace.

Getting Crafty: Decorated Onesies

In the class I taught to expectant parents, we gave out an awesome gift bag.  In it, there were lots of baby essentials like a hooded towel, little mittens, a crib sheet, and even some Gerber onesies.  Blank, all white onesies in 6-9 month size, to be precise.  Since I forced my husband to come to my class when I was pregnant (yes, he sat there and watched me teach!), we also got a bag.  Now what to do with those boring onesies?  Let's decorate!

I got a set of fabric markers to do some drawing, and I also got some fusible backing for some fabric applique stuff.

I bought 5 yards of the Wonder-Under backing.  I think it was a bit overboard!

Here's what I came up with:

Okay, that's more than 5.  I was having so much fun I went out and bought a pack of 12-month size ones!

I had some fabric scraps around the house, including the Georgia fabirc.  I also checked the remnants and quilter's bundles at the fabric store to add to my stash.

The fusible backing is supposed to "glue" the fabrics together with just an iron, but I soon found out that it depended a lot on the fabric itself.  The UGA fabric was a thicker type and kept peeling up in the corners.  My mom was in town during this, so she hand-sewed around the designs to keep them on.  If anything, the fusible backing kept it in place for that, so it was still worth it.

The "UGA" one was done with template I created in Powerpoint.  I just wrote what I wanted and blew it up to about 150-pt font.  The onesies are about the same width of a piece of paper, so that made it easy to determine sizing.  I printed out the page, then cut out the letters.  I then flipped them over and traced them onto the back side of the fabric that had the backing on it already.

After cutting out the letters from the fabric, you just peel a layer away from the backing and it's ready to iron.

The fabric pens were soooo easy!  And so much better than using puff paint.  I had seen the "I'm acute baby" onesie online at some point and thought, "Why should I pay $15 for that?!"  It was almost too easy.  I used a blue washout marking pencil (an essential in any sewing kit) to sketch the design on and then just traced over it with a piece of cardboard underneath the top layer.  I printed out the other designs and eyeballed them.  (I probably should have traced the ND shamrock, but oh well.)  I think the robot is my favorite; I found it by searching Etsy for "robot" and then finding one I could easily draw.  I'm planning on doing one with momma and baby owls, but this has proved much more challenging due to my lack of drawing skills and the intricacy of owl designs.  It's also insanely easier to draw straight lines on fabric, I've found out.

If I ever have to plan someone's baby shower, we are definitely doing this!  But as I've found out, it's still fun to do even after the baby comes.  Baby can wear it immediately, so you even get instant gratification!

Oh, did I forget to mention that I put something on the back of the UGA bunting one?

My future bulldog!