34 Completed - 2014 List

I actually completed 34 items and have another 4 half finished.  I think that's respectable.  Last year was a pretty amazing year for all sorts of reasons.  It was full of all sorts of adventures likehaving a baby, doing what seems like 1,000 remodeling projects, Kathleen moving away, we traveled to Florida, Portland, Seattle, boston, Milwaukee, and New York, Dustin changed jobs twice, and I transitioned into working from home full time.  We crammed a lot in. It was good times mostly with a touch of sad times.

1. Become a Mom - complete 
2. Bake 25 Breads - In Progress, #2, #3, #4, #5, 
3. Attend Jono and Lo's Wedding - Attended
4. Babymoon trip - Oregon, Portland, Seattle, Gorge, Ocean
5. Improv Quilt with Thea - Sent to Thea, In Progress
6. Add Lo to the photo wall - Done.
7. Start a down payment savings account for a second house - started it only has the initial deposit though.
8. Create a family tradition - we started a few we'll see what takes
9. Service project - my volunteering sucked this year but I did do vacation bible school so considering this done
10. Paint the babies room - Done. 
11. Remove carpet in back bedrooms - Babies Room Done, 
12. Set goals for our marriage - Done
13. Buy 30 $1 things - I actually did this but never blogged about it
14. Dress-up for a date at McDonald’s
15. Build a new kitchen table - Done. 
16. Eat a pomegranate - done
17. Make the baby a quilt - Finished, Quilt 2
18. Paint the Master bedroom
19. Give Kathleen a 25 Party - WWELive and Comedy Club Done. 
20. Take Dustin to Fogo de Chao
21. Make a Scrap Vomit Quilt - Finished and Finished
22. Watch 20 Classic Movies
23. Anne Geddes photo my baby (yes at least once) 
24. Take monthly family photos with the baby and Dustin - done
25. Break from phone 5-10pm for one week
26. 4 Crafty Projects - Sparkle Tights, Lo's Shower Decor, BabyBurf Mobile, 
27. Clean out the Coffee Table - Done
28. Make Pop Tarts
29. Host a trivia night
30. Balloon surprise someone for their birthday
31. Be less critical at work - maybe it's a day to day thing
32. Kathleen's cross-stitch gift 
33. Go to an art museum with Momo - Art Museum Visited
34. Go baby clothes shopping with Momo - we went thrifting twice Done!
35. Play date with baby and JJ - done
36. _______________ with Lita - done Lita babysat
37. _______________ with Jono and Lolo - Picnic Done
38. Finish the sushi quilt - almost!
39. A double date - we did this at least Twice
40. Learn something - only 100 things about being a mother
41. Refinish the babies desk
42. Create a new work from home space for me - done although I want to reorganize it
43. Roadtrip with Kemi
44. Use my SLR camera at least twice monthly - January twice exactly, February also exactly twice, March Done thanks to babymoon, April - done
45. Finish the 52 books - sadly not done.
46. Surprise Dustin - New Bench Press check
47. Summer party - done
48. ____________________ Spring Activity 
49.  Summer Activity - done
50. Cremona Fall Activity - done
51. Christmas tree Winter Activity - done
52. Make a new list - done

December Family Photos

I was much better about getting family photos in December.  I made a special point to request them.  We also had a session with My friend Miranda who's taking our family photos.  She shot a few before it got too dark but we are going to capture more as well.  Anyhow I am glad this month I got more.  I especially love this one of us and our Christmas Tree.  

And for Christmas I got a selfie stick and a remote so I look forward to more of these lovelies (Ps this is all the Jones and Co clan + Jason, Kenny and Jayda who might as well be family).

Family Photos Novemeber

In November I remembered to capture moments of us together a Little more frequently.  Yay!

When we went to west Baden we tested out the timer on my iPhone6.  Worked except we are merely shadows.

Then when in Missouri we had Ginny snap a photo of us.  It's blurry and the baby is looking at the dogs but you get the idea.

I did snap this one with grandma Ginny and grandpa with my timer afterward too.    Again jonesy is looking the wrong way and boy do I need a roots touch up.

Possibly my favorite one was thanksgiving after dinner but before cleanup we captured this shot.  I love dust's cheesy grin and the silver in the foreground couldn't have planned it better.  

16 - Eat a pomegranate

For thanksgiving we had pomegrante instead of cranberries it was my first time ever having them.    The second I sliced into the fruit my husband was snatching up the piece of the fruit to drink the juice he apparently knew of its lovely taste.  Surprisingly I wasn't the only one to try it for the first time most of the family had never had one.  Anyhow it was delicious. I think next year I might do pomegrante again.

Bread #9 - Country Bread

Since I am way behind on those 25 breads (what was I thinking??) we made bread for thanksgiving.  We pulled a recipe from the Betty Crocker cookbook - country bread sorry no link just buy the cookbook it's useful I promise.

Anyhow the bread was served straight from the oven it was a little crusty but you know it doubled in size 4 times not twice ( this is what happens when things are in the oven). But otherwise it was pretty good.  If we made it again I would define you not cook it with a turkey or sweet potatoes.

Book 42 - Landline by Rainbow Rowell

So I actually have two books to blog about among other things but I will start with this one.   Landline by Rainbow Rowell.  While I really enjoyed Elenaor and Park this one was meh.  It was written in sort of the same style but the characters aren't 16, so it didn't have the same effect and well the whole concept of time traveling phone calls - not really my jam.  But it was a quick read and it was available at the local library both wins!  Anyhow I still need 9 more books for my 52 goal who thinks I'll finish that? 

Family Photos October

In October I took lots of photos of Dustin and Baby Burf there are a few of me and him and even some of Dustin and I but I only have this one photo booth strip of all three of us - FAIL!  I guess one is better than none.

My phone has a built in timer now so hopefully in November is better - I already snapped one.  December I am trying to decide if maybe I make an advent calendar or maybe one of those December Daily books so perhaps I will improve then as well.

#37 Picnic with uncle Jono and Aunt Lolo

Uncle Jono and Aunt Lolo finally got to meet #babyburf at the end of September.   They were in town for a wedding and I scheduled a picnic with them before Lolo had to fly back to Omaha.  I decided to make this my fill in the blank #37. It was a beautiful fall day perfect for a picnic too.  We picked up lunch because it was later than anticipated getting home from church. 

Nobody seemed to mind.  

I bought a few quilts and we just hung out in American Legion Park downtown Indy. (Ps my great grandma made this white quilt and the yellow one I made).

This is what jones sees a lot people staring down at him.  

We also went to see the fountains the baby was not as impressed as he is with ceiling fans.

It was a good day.  Too bad Omaha isn't closer so we can have more picnics and stuff.

Zombie/Michael Miller Challenge Quilt

So I finally finished my Michael Miller Quilt only a little bit late (Michael Miller Fabrics sponsored a challenge with the Modern Quilt Guild - which Indy Modern Quilt Guild is a part of).  The rules of the challenge were to use the fabrics they supplied + only solids or other MM prints which I was on the right track with previously.  But I went ahead and broke the rules since I can't win the prize now and I added in a print that is not by Michael Miller but rather by Riley Blake.

Dustin has been wanting me to make him a quilt he seems to think I'm making everyone else a quilt but him, he specifically requested bacon and or zombies.  I pretty much denied booth of these options, but then when I needed backing for this and didn't have something coordinating in my stash that wasn't solid I remembered about Riley Blake's Zombie fabrics and ordered the gray one.   I think it works perfectly with the colors on the front.  I added a block from the front to the back and then quilted this with straight lines up and down and then a 35 degree angle rather than a perpendicular angle to hide any imperfections.  It's quilting with a thread that is probably not really a good option as it kept breaking but I pressed on - I think it's an embroidery thread but it was in my stash of threads.  

From a distance the triangles on the front look great (ps I'm not a fan of paper piecing triangles it's so wasteful of fabric). 

I guess they don't look so bad up close either. My original idea did not include the green or the blocks of prints but when I was running out of blue and the store was out.  I just went ahead and picked a green close to the green in the prints.  To make it less like a frame I added in the strips in the middle of the design.  I like how that turned out. 

A close up of the quilting.  The pucker on this is my favorite part of the quilting it's just enough. 

And the back which is almost entirely zombies.  

But there's that one lone triangle - which by the way for some reason even though I paper pieced these was like 1 inch smaller than the other blocks?  The struggle is real.

And the binding,  it machine stitched (which I prefer) and pieced from two grays in my stash and a small bit of a Michael Miller dot I think.  

Anyhow Dust pretty much loves it he's already using it for watching Netflix on the sofa and then still bringing to bed at night.  Clearly this guy really did want a quilt. 

Family Photos September

In August we barely took and family photos, but September we redeemed ourselves taking many more.  We took some at the vineyard, in DC, in our backyard + extended family! at random bbqs and picnics.   Those taken later in the month jones is much more alert and less woobly. 

#35 Play date with Uncle JJ

Uncle JJ asked to be added to the list as a play date with #babyburf.   So we had several morning while we were visiting where Dustin and I went out and uncle JJ watched the baby.  #babyburf is especially playful in the mornings he's usually all laughing and chatty and will usually play by himself nicely or with someone.   He especially likes his new monkey toy that uncle JJ and I picked up at Target one morning.

I love these photos we captured of them playing.  Too cute.

JJ has also decided that the baby should call him "fun uncle jay". Because doesn't that have a nice tin to it?  
(As I'm looking at the photos I snapped on our trip I'm realizing I really need to make an effort to use our SLR camera more (the quality really is THAT MUCH BETTER).

#50 Fall Activity - Cremona

For the baby's 3 month birthday we took our first flight.  We went East to see Uncle Jay and other family one of the things we got to do was visit Cremona and help make wine.  This was such a treat we had such a nice time and everyone was excited to meet baby's jones.  I am considering this the fall activity even though we may do some other things like pumpkins. 

Here's the baby with Uncle Andrew. 

And Daddy tasting grapes.  

And with Aunt Sara, aunt jo and grandma 

Ila supervises.  I started doing the same when I was itching like crazy.  

Andrew getting juice from the cake.  

Big picnic.

4 generations (jonesy naturally was not looking) - mixed girls and jonesy

And 4 generations on the guys side. 

And I love this one of Andrew and jones on the truck 

After making wine we hit the beach.  I wished I had packed our swimming gear.

And then of course there was the drift inn

It was a good time.