ABC's and Stay My Baby Please.

Amongst all the hub bub of moving and researching what we need to know, somehow it slipped my mind that I needed to think about school. Quite honestly, I only looked into it because I thought to myself....
"Self, that is something you may want to think about for the future when picking a home".

 To my horror, I was smacked right in the face with the age at which children start school. 

The September before their 5th birthday.

WHAT!?!?!?!?!? 

That means my oldest Squidlet will be going to school in just a couple of months! My first reaction was "is she ready?", which was very quickly replaced with "am I ready?" I know my kid is smart and she is prepared and excited for the start of school. 

I think I am the only one in need of some prep for this. I was all jazzed at the thought of having one of my kids in school, but it seems like just yesterday that I brought her home all pink and squiggly, smelling the lovely way that new babies smell.
I digress,

My oldest baby is going to school.

 Get ready world here she comes!

The Express

Our express unaccompanied baggage goes out today. I am super excited, one more thing down. We have quite a bit of stuff since we have been in Texas for almost a year, then add on what the Squid brought with him. It's just a lot of stuff. I am a little concerned about the cost of going over the wieght limit. If we hadn't been here so long what would have been in this shipment?
Probably shoes, some clothes, a box of toys, some curtains, some of our plastic cups/silverware/plates, and a pot or two. 

Right now, there are books, fabric, toys, clothes, electronics, legos, toys, fabric, some dishes, a pot, fabric, books and toys. Yep all that! What have I thought about ditching? Probably the books, and some toys, but I have a death grip on that fabric! What did/do/would you send in your shipment of things to use before your house hold show up? 

 

A Memorable Weekend.

We made a last minute trip to see my grandparents this weekend before we head off across the pond. My sister and brother-in-law brought the kids and my mom and dad came too. It was so much fun, and while I am going to miss them terribly, it was a great way to say goodbye! 

Between a morning trip to the Farmers Market, a loft filled with toys that have been around since before I was born, a frog pond complete with rogue frog in someones britches, some animal feeding, fishing, and a baseball game, we had so much fun! Hope you had a great weekend too!

Travel Re-Vamp Day 4

Up next on my Re-Vamp list was my carry on.
I have a big back pack and I was going to carry on all kinds of good stuff for me to read, do, & enjoy.
Then I thought about all that alone, & quiet time I will have with which to do that stuff ............................

Yeah, I got rid of quite a bit of stuff I won't even get a chance to pull out of the bag. My knitting was the first to go, sad, but it will be checked, as will most of the stuff I 86'd from the bag. Some magazines went, as well as a book, and my computer.
Instead, I will be bringing my wallet/passport holder, my Ipad (complete with engaging apps for the kiddos courtesy of my dear friend AKE ;)), my Nook, a coloring book (yes a coloring book), a couple of magazines, a fresh change of clothes for both the squidlets (just in case), diapers, a snack bag, a "toiletry" bag, and the kids DS that we tweaked to play movies.

In my snack bag I have bribing fruit snacks, Luna Peppermint Stick bars, which are delish and my kids love! Cheddar Bunny Mix, Sticky Bun Granola, drink mix pouches, and Chocolate Milk Straws. 

In our "toiletry" bag, I have diaper wipes, wet wipes, face wipes (for mommy), eye drops (also for mommy), some headache meds (definitely for mommy), waterless toothbrushes, tissues, and a small deodorant. I think this will keep us all as fresh as is possible in this situation,
if being fresh in that situation is possible.
I am feeling much calmer about this trip and in the end I'm pretty proud that
this.....

is all I'll have to deal with.
Well, and the two kids that go with it. :)

I'm off visiting this holiday weekend, so go out and enjoy it too! See you next week.
Happy Memorial Day!

Travel Re-Vamp Day 3.

The backpacks were after that. I know my kids would have LOVED to roam airports across this nation and world with cute backpacks filled to the brim with their stuff, but after about 30 minutes, it would have lost all its novelty and I'd have to carry them. Nuh uh!

Enter an old pink computer bag laying about that was about the right size. I really wanted to do something about the outside, it was just so boring. So, I made it look like a messenger bag. The Squid isn't keen on it, but I think it's adorable.

Next, I roamed the internet for cheap, easy, and small travel kits ideas for kids. I have to say I was a bit disappointed with the usual places (Martha, you let me down this time).
 In all fairness though, I have small kids that have no attention span, and that is hard for anyone. Most ideas were good, like magnetic games, road map games and road journals, road bingo, etc. but again, those are for kids slightly older than mine and in a car. I do have a couple of good things going, like making things with pipe cleaners. I hope I can get them past security, because I think they are going to be great. In the envelopes I made for each of them, I packed a couple of activity sets, a few of their current favorite books, colored pencils and my mom is printing off some coloring pages from Nick Jr for us. Thanks mom!
 I have put everything in envelopes for three reasons. One, there will be way less clutter and mess in the bag, two giving children one new thing every couple of hours is a tip I have come across several times. This way, I can just hand out things one at a time. Three, they are just plain adorable!

Last but not least, I have two tray table play mats inspired by Jade, and a craft she made for us before we left Maryland. Unfortunately, I brain farted and packed it up. BOOOO, it's beautiful. I'll put it on here as soon as I can! 
I made the play mats from some of the many fat quarters I have collected over the last three years, fished out some small toys that wouldn't be missed if lost, and am happy that they have something to play with not just color.

They are much brighter in person, and I love them.
 I like how the green behind the castle looks like a maze, and I like all the roads.

Travel Re-Vamp Day 2

I have 2 very nice wallets, but neither one will hold 3 passports plus all that goes with that. I searched for an easy tutorial for a travel organizer, and ended up here at Thimble. I would love to say that it was awesome and for someone, I am sure it is! But, I am really a visual learner and all the written directions just didn't do it for me. (my tutorials aren't any better, so I really can't say anything.) :)  But, I finished it. It isn't perfect, half way through I realized I hadn't sew in the other half of the pockets, so there is a line down the front. Then I went to try it out for the first time I realized that I hadn't closed the bottom of the pockets either that is why there are two random buttons on the cover. I also cut the elastic to long, so it's cut and sewn smaller.
In the end it works, next time I will pick a different tutorial or maybe I'll just slow down. I love the fabric I chose and it holds everything I need. Problem solved.

How I'm Hoping to Keep My Sanity During an Overseas Flight With 2 Squidlets, or Travel Re-Vamp Day 1.

 I have a bad habit of over packing. Like "Oh, I probably won't need this, but I'm going to take it just in case" kind of over packing.  The Squid of course is like most men, "I have boxers, a toothbrush, and my Nook, let's hit it!" A couple of weeks ago I made myself pack like I was going to leave the next day and my biggest disappointment was our carry on baggage. So Much Stuff! Not only was there my carry on, but each of the kids had one and then I needed one that held things for all 3 us.
At one point there was the argument in my head that went, "Should I bring their pillows, check or carry on, what about their blankets? What if they get bored? What if we have more than one layover and are stuck in an airport for hours on end?"  It just went on and on and got out of control. How was I ever going to manage all of this?? AARGH!
Then I thought "I could revamp the whole process."

So, I did. This week is Re-Vamp our Travel week!
*Any and all ideas/tips concerning LONG day(s) of travel with 2 kids would be very welcome!*

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First and most sadly, I ditched the cloth diapers. I am going to check them instead. I really didn't want to but, I just didn't want to add more to my list of "must keep track of". I picked up a package of 7th Generation, ( they are fine as far as throwaways go by the way) and will take those. 

Next I set my sights on the sit and stand. I really wanted to take it. To have my lovelies strapped in with no means of escape sounded mighty appealing, but in the end it's HUGE, and I think that while my kids aren't on a plane they will want to be out and about running around stretching their legs, and maybe I want that too.  Instead, I am going to send it with our unaccompanied baggage. When in comes to bringing one blanket/pillow/stuffed animal/pillow pet per kid fiasco, I took our 2 mini pillow pets that my kids like but don't love and made them into harnessed "backpacks".
They will be strapped in to something, and when they aren't wearing them, they can sleep on them. Not to shabby.

To go with the pillows I took some inspiration from Elsie Marley's summer quilt. I had a large piece of blue star cotton that I love and is super soft, so I cut it in half and made a sort of blanket with it. It is the perfect size for 2 snuggley squidlets, and still small enough not to be a problem. They love the pillow harness and the blanket. Problem solved.

A little Puff.

I bought tulle on a roll when it was on sale a couple of weeks ago and when The Squid was out with the guys this week I decided to make something fun for my girly girl.
All I did was stitch an elastic waistband together and then tie each strip of tulle in a knot around it. I am sure there are better tutorials out there than that.
Side note: if you are going to do this make the elastic a little tight...it will stretch. :) 
It's as big as her, but she couldn't love it more. It's all different lengths and wonky, or bunched up, but it's awesome! We played outside in it, and even asked to sleep in it. No Dice. But for super cheap (well, much cheaper than a bought one) she has a great new skirt. 

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Projects, Right Down to the Wire.

I have been spending the last 4 days doing last minute projects and errands before our departure. I have a post planned for all that, but just for fun, here are some cute envelopes I made for the Squidlets.

 

 

 

 They are for all the "important" papers they need for the plane. I'm excited to finish up this last mad dash, put everything away for awhile, and relax. Although, I'll believe the relaxing part when I'm doing it. ;)

Mom's Day By Post........Again.

Last year, used my brain muscles to come up with my Mothers Day Cards. This year we went out to pick some up due to our current home status, but all the cards we picked up was at least 4 dollars. Ouch. I don't know about you, but I send Mothers Day Cards to all my favorite women in my life that are Mothers. That's a lot of cards and a lot of money. So instead I picked up some cute blank cards at Target 12 for 6.00. Then I bought some pastry stickers for 2.50. That is 12 cards for 8.50. Be advised that I bought some stamps, but I don't count that because they will be used for countless other projects.

I thought they turned out really cute! I love the petite size and inside it says...

A mother is a person who, seeing there are only 4 pieces of pie for 5 people, 

promptly announces that she never did care for pie.

I know so many wonderful mothers and I truly hope they had a great Mothers Day!

Hey I'll Trade You! Month Two.

I headed to the post office last week to send off my latest fabric boon to the lovely Jade. I hope she likes my picks for this month. I was having a hard time, and I found some pretty remnants, but I wasn't finding anything that really spoke to me. Then, low and behold help came in the form of a text message. "I am liking yellow and greys. Medium sized print." I found this the next day and I love it! Okay, it is a little bigger than medium print, but I still love it, I bought 2 yards of it.  I hope it is well recieved!

What did I receive in return you ask....well, check out these lovies!
I can't say enough about how much I love all of these! I was even looking longingly at a fabric similar to the lime green one days ago on my computer! Ohhh Jade! Well Done!

Along with the fabric, we got an awesome letter from our pen pan Arielle, a sweet new hairclip and some crafts to do! What could be better?
Eating a great sandwich from Peasant Village Deli whilst admiring my new lovelies. Perfect!
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How was everyone's Mother's Day?
Mine was great. The Squid took our Squidlets to the park for a couple of hours, so that I could get some quality quiet time in and then to Texas Roadhouse for dinner. It was great! I'm so glad I get to be the mommy in this amazing family!

Happy Military Spouse Appreciation Day!

Today is Military Spouse Appreciation Day, and I thought I would participate in a little Blog Hop action that is being Hosted by Ann Marie at Household 6 Diva and Wife at Riding the Roller Coaster. Thanks ladies for hosting!

Before I get to that, I'd just like to say Thanks. 

To all the Military Spouses out there that, day in and day out, make it possible for the men and women of our military to go off and do their jobs with just a little less worry. They know you will be there, and you will do your damnedest to make life bearable for everyone. Your give your time to your children, friends, work, and causes, even when it seems there is no more to give, and save very little to yourself if any. A lot of non-Military spouses do that, just not while their loved one is gone for months at a time.

 I applaud you and hope that some day I can give back half of what I have been given from all the Military (and once were military) Spouses I know.

I hope you know who you are, there are simply to many to name! 

Seriously, Thank You!

Now, for all of you who don't know me. 

Hi. I'm Katie, someone once compared me to Mrs. Weasley, which was the best compliment a girl could have in my opinion. This somewhat random collection of writings and photos is The Squid's Accomplice. It's called that because my husband is a US Sailor and I am well, his accomplice in all things. I call him the Squid and my children the Squidlets. I started this blog right after my 2nd Squidlet was born and my husband was deployed, so that I could feel somewhat more connected with the world, to have an outlet and to help our family in Texas keep up with what we are doing. 

So far, it's just a crafty blog with a bit of serious and not serious nonsense thrown in. I love it, it's fun. 

A wee bit of history. The Squid and I met about 7 years ago, in a Borders where we both worked. I didn't want to date him for various reasons, nothing serious obviously. 

A year and some serious determination later in July, we started dating, got married New Years Eve, moved to Maine in Feb, came home in April, got pregnant in June, and joined the Navy in November. We've been flying by the seat of our pants ever since, and it's been a great ride so far. 

We share a love of reading and traveling, thrifting, and Star Wars! I love to sew and do all things crafty, and he likes to build things and play Call of Duty. (or Star Wars games)

Our Girl Squidlet is 4 and our boy is 2. They are amazingly smart, imaginative and beautiful children, who have been displaced from their home for about a year now, and occasionally they have hard days like everyone else. 

On those days we have ice cream for breakfast, stay in our pj's and have a movie day complete with icee's and popcorn. 

 Most of the time they are super well behaved and I could ask for better kids!

Currently we are in a little town in Texas, eating amazing sandwiches, living in a hotel, and waiting for The Squid to finish school, so we can be on our way to our next duty station in the UK. We are both super jazzed!!

That's about it, feel free to browse around and thanks for stopping by!

What's your Dill Pickle?

Guys, I am truly heartbroken. Starting May 21st, Katy at No Big Dill, will be starting her series, Once Upon A Thread. I won't be able to participate due to my circumstances and I am so bummed. If you aren't certain what Once Upon A Thread is, let me enlighten. 

It is 3 glorious weeks of sewing up clothes or things, 

based on or inspired by a children's books. 

Oh My Giddy Aunt it is awesome! 

Between the projects she herself makes, the guest bloggers she has lined up, and the Flikr group of amazing "follow along-ers" that share what they have come up with, I spend that time in a state of awe and inspiration overload!  Man, I wish I would have thought of it sooner and pre-made mine. Oh well, I will just rejoice in the knowledge that next year I will be prepared. I am in no way up to par with some of the things these ladies are cranking out, hopefully by then I will be.

I'll make something inspired by.....

The Library

 Like a cute tote for all the books, or a mug rug for tea and snack while reading.

or Boats

 I'm not above a sailor suit for my boy squidlet, 

or a 50's style cruise outfit for the girl. :)

Flotsam

 How beautiful is this book? I love it, and don't even know where to start.

The Sandwich Swap

 Trying foods from all over the world? Yes Please! How about a bento box holder?

So many choices, maybe I am glad I have a year to decide.

Anyone want to fill in for me with some great offerings this time around?? :)

The Cold River

We spent this last weekend with The Squid's family at The Frio River. It has been a tradition in his family for years although, we haven't been able to go since I was pregnant with our first squidlet. That was a long almost 5 years ago and I am so glad we were able to  get our whole family together and make some great memories. It is a truly beautiful place, and we all had so much fun!

We got there a little bit early and decided to test the water.

It was cold, but we got used to it.

The front porch of our cabin had a great view and was so nice to sit on in the chilly morning air.

Walking the dogs with Papa! So fun!
I should have taken more pictures, but I was in the water most of the time (hence the sunburn) having fun with the family. Next time....maybe :)