the.amanda.sewell

Happy Tuesday!  Sorry I have been sort of in hiding lately!  4 kids are SO much work -- who knew?  It is also super fun though.  We are all enjoying having Baby M around.  I think Baby E is finally getting used to her, although he still cries a little if I give her a bottle and not him.   I had so much fun creating the card for this weeks sketch.  The sketch really lends itself to any small image you have.  Hope you have fun playing with it and be sure to stop by and visit some of the other design team gals blogs -- *Oh, and if you haven’t signed up for the Skipping Stones Design newsletter now is the time!!!* This Thursday Heather will be sending out the first newsletter to subscribers.  In this newsletter you can find out how to get BRAS Vol. #2 for free and see a sneak peek of the set.   In the future subscribers will receive information on “Secret sales” and  online “coupon codes” that will not be shown on the blog. As well as news on upcoming stamp sets, lots of sneak peeks

a nd Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays! Soccer all week long! My kids both wanted to play soccer this spring, so we signed them up -- well, since they re-did the age groups, they can no longer be on the same team as E is playing on an older non co-ed team, and J is playing little kiddie hive ball.  Anyway, that said, they both have two practices a week, which happen to fall on different nights luckily, but keep me busy pretty much everyday of the week.  PHEWS!  They are enjoying it for the most part.  The only bummer thing is that because they are both team #4 in their league level, they have the same schedule for games pretty much, but different locations, which means Michael and I have to divide and conquer.  I wish that was different. We will know for next year though! Here are some fun pictures from E's practice and a couple from J's first game!  They are growing up so fast! E running a drill . . . she looks so short compared to everyone! J action shots during th

This weekend I decided to try this recipe out of Taste of Home magazine to make blueberry muffins.  It used pancake mix as the base, and I was a little skeptical, but it turned out well and they were SO yummy!  I have lots of pancake mix around as it is something I can buy at the LDS cannery here, so I was excited to find another use for it!!!  I made a second batch this morning, and added some raspberries too.  I also doubled the batch as the recipe as is only yields about a dozen full size muffins.  Anyway, I thought I would share it!  Give it a try and tell me what you think! Kids' Favorite Blueberry Muffins Ingredients : 2 1/2 cups pancake mix 1/2 cup sugar 1 egg 2/3 cup water 1/4 cup canola oil 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries Directions: In a large bowl, combine pancake mix and sugar.  In another bowl whisk the egg, water (I added about 1/4 cup water in addition to what the recipe calls for here because my batter seemed too thick) and oil.  Stir into dry ingredients jus

I realized I had not posted any new baby pictures since Baby M was born!  EEK!  I have been a slacker on taking them too.  So bad.  She is 2 weeks old already!  Anyway, here are a couple cute ones from her first couple weeks here on earth: The kids holding their sister for the first time!  J held her for a long time, he really likes her! A BIG yawn for a tiny little girl This one was snapped just a couple minutes ago!  Her jaundice is WAY better now!  YAY!

It rained here today, and instead of stamping while both the babies were napping, I just sat staring outside watching the rain.  I just love the sound of the rain.  Everyone else is praying for sunshine right now, but I really enjoyed the change of pace with rain here in the desert today!  Spring is here already! Anyway, I apologize for my lateness in posting!  I can't believe it is Tuesday already again!  YIKES!!!  Today I played with a soon to be released set by Skipping Stones Design called Baby Feet.  As you all know, I have been working on cards to thank some of my friends, and today is another one.  I really like how this one turned out, so I think I might just make a bunch of multiples of it and send them off.  Ooh, and I only cheated on the sketch once *YAY!* -- I used a circle as my main focal point instead of an oval!  Hope Jami will forgive me *lol*  Isn't that gemstones cardstock just so glittery and to die for too!  *squeals* As always, I hope you will take some

FINALLY, my cute little 15 month old decided to walk!  He had been walking along furniture and even taking a step or two here and there for the past few months - but apparently he finally got the confidence and went for it! YAY!  Just had to share . . . 

Welcome Miss M to the world.  Born today at  1:04 pm.  Weighing in at 8 lbs even.  20 inches long.  She has the most hair of any of my babies so far . . . dark brown.  She also has really long fingers and toes.   Induction went smoothly but slowly - her heart rate was normal so they figured she was just not quite positioned right.  Baby was out in only a few pushes.  The cord was wrapped around her neck when she came out, but she quickly pinked up and looked good.  She is a quiet baby.  She took to feeding well.  We're so excited to have this new member of the family!!! The pediatrician said that based on the fact that she was full term and that we both are doing so well, we might be able to go home as early as tomorrow afternoon which would be AWESOME since I miss my cute kiddies already and I know how excited they are to meet their new sister! Must go feed the princess now and put in my order for dinner!  Hope you are having a great day and thanks for taking a moment to share in

I apologize for my late posting today . . . the countdown to being 40 weeks preggo continues.  This week has been crazy out of control already, and it's only Tuesday!  YIKES!   Friday night Baby E was running a fever and really congested.  We gave him tylenol/motrin, but he would not take in fluids, and I was worried about him, so I slept on he floor beside his bed (stupid thing to do at 39 weeks pregnant).  Anyway, I cried a bit, and when I woke up in the morning, I had the most intense pain in my right ear ever!  Seriously OW!   Saturday, Mic took the baby to the pediatrician, where he was diagnosed with double ear infections, and pneumonia -- he had a breathing treatment there, and an antibiotic shot . . . and his lungs were sounding much more clear when he left.  Late Saturday night his fever broke, much to our relief.   Sunday was an okay day, mostly we just all rested -- an interesting thought occurred to me while I was on the couch -- in my kitchen I have block le