Telephone Redo

For Christmas Jack is getting a phone!  I once saw someone using a real phone for their child's play phone and I thought that was a good idea.  So I searched high and low for a good rotary phone.  None of my second hand stores had one but remember last spring when we went to a flea market (no? That's okay!)?  We found one for $2!  It needed a really good scrub and some sprucing up but we are happy with the results.  Check out the transformation...

Boring tan color so we gave it a punch of color!

Seth is the master spray painter so I let him do that part.

I personalized it with stickers and then gave it a clear coat.

I really wanted a cheap black cord but the average cost is $10 for one cord!  Crazy!

Thankfully, my mother-in-law had a white one we could have :-)

Based on his recent love of all things phone, I think he is really going to like it!  He turns just about everything into a phone and says either "hi" or "on" into it!  He uses his hand, my hair, blocks, toys, container lids...not much escapes being an imaginary phone!  Really, I don't even talk on the phone much but when I do he is definitely paying attention.

See what I mean!

And now he is one...

As I reflect upon Jack's 1st birthday, the word that comes to mind is joy!  I am filled with such joy to look back over the past year and see all the progress and milestones.  God truly blessed us with a child that is a perfect fit for our family.  He is spunky, cuddly, expressive, curious and happy!

On his birthday, he was surrounded by all of our local family and he was quite the little party animal :-) He loved making all of us laugh and thoroughly enjoyed his first dessert...cake & ice cream!  Sadly, the cake turned out dry (new recipe next time) but to him it was pure bliss.  We started off using a spoon and that quickly turned into him grabbing the whole slice and gnawing on it until it was completely gone!

He did well with the birthday song and opening his presents (his family really spoiled him!) and true to baby ways he loved the 35 cent book the best!  Having a birthday so close to Christmas is hard when it comes to developmental toys. I have to think about the whole year ahead and what he will be ready for in the future.  He got some great things and it sure will be nice to be able to pull them out through the year as he becomes ready.  Thanks everyone!

Happy 1st Birthday Jack!  We all love you sooo much!

Disclaimer: Very picture heavy!

I had fun making the banner and decorations :-)

Jack loved his balloon!

He stuck his hand on the cake!

 Yum!

"Where have you been hiding this stuff?!"

Super thirsty!

The 35 cent book, Global Babies.

My parents got him wooden nesting cups and 

Melissa & Doug jumbo triangle crayons.

 Seth's parents got him a shape sorter...

"Hey, where did it go?"

 This singing cupcake card was a big hit from Kari's family as well as...

the xylophone which he will grow into!

He loves the blocks that we made for him.

 Seth's Mom (Grammy) made him an adorable hat & mitten set.

He isn't crazy about wearing them inside!

Jack with his Grammy, Grandad, and Great-Grandpa

It will be a birthday to remember!

Catching Up!

Last Thursday,  I came down with a sinus infection and all the symptoms that go with one.  I was pretty miserable and to top it all off Seth was leaving for Sniper School Sunday night through Thursday night.  Thankfully, Monday I was starting to feel more like myself so Jack and I were able to get out of the house to do some errands.

I also was able to make some crafts and finish Jack's wooden blocks.  On Tuesday, Jack and I went to the Farmer's Market to pick out some apples for canning applesauce.  Oh how Jack loved having access to that bushel of apples!  Much to his dismay, they had to be removed due to being thrown and eventually made into a snack, ahem.  We canned them on Thursday with my mother-in-law and had a great time.  We look forward to eating all the fruits of our labor :-)  We were happy to see Seth that evening and now everything is back to normal!  Enjoy the pictures from our week!

Jack didn't understand I wasn't feeling up to such wild play!

Here's the wind up...

and the snack!

Paper strip pumpkins and a set to giveaway.

Here are the blocks we made for Jack's 1st Birthday!

I made a beeswax wood polish to protect them.

I used this recipe.

Here is the finished product. 

It was a very nice polish to rub into the wood.  

A great bonus was that my hands were very soft after doing all 109 blocks!

Here they all are after much (much!) sanding and polishing!

I hope he enjoys the blocks as much as we did making them for him!

I still need to make a drawstring bag to store the blocks in.

Jack gave the crank a try.

Even his foot got involved!

The finished (huge) bowl of sauce!

P.S. In case you didn't know already, you can click on any picture to see it larger.
Have a great weekend!