this and that.

so i guess it's less than obvious that i have been neglecting the blog a bit.  well, it isn't intentional.  it just happens to be that not much is going on around here lately.  and you know, that's not necessarily a bad thing.  it's been hot.  we've had rain/thunderstorms most afternoons over the last month.  of course, when there is rain there are often rainbows.

we work.  jay is finishing up his spring quarter of school.  (actually right now as i type this.)  and he has been working part-time in retail and is getting back on an ambulance most recently.  i am working weekends at the hospital (yes, more pay, too) and my longest stretch off of work is now only 3 days.  i have had a major knitting project (hannah grace's blanket) and some small ones (sweet baby hats) so my fingers have been busy with those instead of typing out blog posts.  i know.  excuses, excuses.

jay has also been busy (and our garage has been full) restoring a 1975 FJ40 land cruiser.  we've had it about 7 months and it has gone from this

to this

to this

to the finished product.  Are you ready?

yes, he totally "posed" it in the front yard.  looks good though, right?  he's also determined to teach me how to drive a manual transmission vehicle.  let's just say i'm a slow learner.  i blame it on sleep deprivation and being a girl who's used to easy automatic driving.  3 pedals and a shifter is just too much to coordinate.  maybe one day.

and with the car work comes other new skills for jay.  he's learning how to weld a bit, too.  ready to see what he did for practice?  i call it modern art... ha!  i am a proud wife.

my new skills have been in making sweet flowers to adorn sweet baby hats.  i love how this one turned out for baby ava.  she got a newborn size, while sweet hannah grace got herself a preemie size.  ava's doesn't quite fit yet, and hannah's is still a bit big, too, but she looks awfully cute, don't you think?

if you aren't able to tell, sweet hannah grace is home with her mom, dad, and sweet labrador "big sisters" aiko and aggie.  want to see how they're doing?  head to becca's blog for updates!

and what post wouldn't be complete without a picture of sweet cotton and barley?  cotton gets distracted easily now during our fetching games so after 3 years, barley has finally learned how to play fetch.  she is so cute trotting (or racing) back with the tennis ball in her mouth.  maybe if we can have a rainless morning and/or afternoon, i can capture a picture.  until then you can just enjoy a picture of the sweet sisters sharing some sleepy afternoon nap love.