The "QUIET BOOK" Project

So if making 6 aprons during Christmas wasn't enough, I had to make 2 Quiet Books. Over a year ago a good friend of mine made these and introduced me to this great website "How to Make a Quiet Book".

I love this website and all the links she has listed. After going through all the websites, I picked out my favorite designs and ways to do things. My mom was a lifesaver and helped me by contributing felt, ric-rac, and other fun crafty stuff. She also helped me by get everything set up and gave me the courage to get started on it. Another sister in the ward also donated felt and that helped a lot. I made the two books at the same time. First I would do our family's book and then cross my fingers that all the mistakes were out of my system to do my sister-in-law's book. They are most definitely not perfect but turned out well. I am excited to add new pages to it. It was really fun to do and Caleb loves it. It made the 3 days of being locked away well worth it!

Our Family's Front Cover

My Sister-in-Laws Front Cover

Flowers with Buttons and Color Matching

Mail Box and Notepad (A definite favorite)

Shape Matching

Counting Beads

ABC's and Word Making

Number Matching and Addition/Subtraction

Noah's Ark

Ikea Fingerpuppets Inside

My Sister-in-Laws Backcover


So that is all my latest craftiness. I am getting the itch to pull out the sewing machine again, so who knows what I will come up with. I might have to work on my digital scrapbooks first though.

You have got to read this!

I saw this post on some of my friends' facebook pages and I just have to post it on the blog. I really, really like it and it rang so true, especially after some of the trials we have faced as a family the last little while. I truly hope that I can teach my son to be content with life and to always have an eternal perspective. I know that this is something Brydon and I really work for and value in life. Enjoy!

"I Don't Want my Children to Be Happy"

My Crazy Projects

So for Christmas I had come up with this great plan to make all the women in the family aprons. I had decided this last spring but was just waiting for us to get enough income to buy the cloth. Well I was really excited when I got my teaching position because then I could start my sewing projects. Of course at the same time we got the phone call from the Air Force and life got a bit crazy. But since I am often a bit too stubborn for my own good, I decided that the Air Force would not change my Christmas plans and I would make aprons no matter what. Well it turned into quite the adventure but they did get done 3 days before Christmas!

I owe the great pattern and mastering of this project to my friend Brenna. She is an amazing seamstress and actually designed the pattern. I had found an apron online that I loved and she designed it from my online picture (so cool, huh!). Then we put one together for me and I tweaked it a little a bit for the gifts and made the mini version. I am always so grateful for amazing people who share their very amazing talents. Thank you Brenna!!



I love this matching set. I made the top one for my sister-in-law and then a mini matching version for my niece. I think they turned out so cute.



These two were made for my sister and other sister-in-law. The top one turned out really cute, even better than I thought, but I was disappointed with the pink apron. I wanted it to pop more and envisioned something a bit different. I think I should have done the sash a different color. Oh well, she claims she likes it but I was sad it the colors didn't look like I had hoped.



These last two were for the moms. The top one is for my mom and has birds to match her kitchen and the bottom is for my mother-in-law. Red is her color and I think it turned out really sharp.

Overall it was a good experience and I really like the pattern. I want to make myself another one and hope I can make some more in the future.

What is that?!

What is that you may ask! Well that is the product of a very busy 4 year old boy who hates to wear shoes. I couldn't believe it when I saw this sock. It is a perfect imprint of his little foot. Got to love that red, Texas mud. So now I have a great mud imprint of my son's foot. You never know what may come out of letting your kids play in the mud, I guess. I sure love that crazy kid!

Our Texas Home

Wow! I am finally posting again. What a crazy few months. We are all settled here in Texas and loving it. We could not be happier. Brydon loves his job in the Air Force and Abilene is such nice town. I recently uploaded all the pictures off the camera and have been anxious to share our new home with everyone. We feel so blessed to have such a great job and home right now. The Lord has truly looked out for our family. So here is the new house. We LOVE it!



We live in a duplex on base. We are in the right side. I love having a huge garage and it is such a beautiful neighborhood.



The Master Bedroom is huge and has a great big walk in closet and a master bath. I feel really spoiled having my own bathroom now.



The spare bathroom and bedroom have come in very handy. Caleb wanted a blue bathroom and so I found all this for a steal during Christmas sales.



Caleb's Room. We have had to start decorating it with fighter jets. No more baby's room. Sad but fun to see him begin to display his own personality.


A view from the top of the stairs to the dining room, living room and half bath.


The Kitchen. I love how open and light it is. There are so many drawers and cabinets.


This room is right next to the kitchen and could be a place for the kitchen table but I turned it into a play room. It has been so nice to have the toys in one place and right where I can keep an eye on things easily.


The dining room and a great spot for the piano.


The living room.


Our backyard. It is so big and it is so amazing so have a backyard. We really want to get a big trampoline in the near future. It won't even take up half the yard. Cooper and Caleb love it!

1st Lieutenant Brydon Manning

Feeling very behind on all the changes in our life but wanted to at least get a couple posts recorded before the big move. So right after I got my new teaching job at Agora Cyber Charter School, we received a phone call from the Air Force asking us to accept an offer to begin work on Oct. 18th. Of course we couldn't turn the offer down (part-time UPS package handler or Public Health Officer). So we said yes and have been busy shifting gears ever since. First Brydon had to get Scroll Approval from Congress and then had to be commissioned as an officer so he could then get orders to attend Officer Training. None of these were easy to do in a short amount of time but did happen. So on October 6th, Brydon was commissioned on PCOM's campus in Philadelphia by a new medical student who had recently joined the Air Force.





A week after that, he received orders to attend Commissioned Officer Training School in Montgomery, Alabama beginning October 18th. On the morning of the 18th, Brydon flew out and is currently learning how to be an Officer in the Air Force. So far the experience has been fine. The lack of sleep the first week was tough but they are beginning to loosen up a bit. They no longer have to eat at attention in 10 minutes and can walk around the base and not just march in a group everywhere. He has had two interesting experiences. First a girl in his flight group went CRAZY. She couldn't remember her name and just lost it. It was Brydon's job to oversee her safety and so that made things interesting. He also got in trouble for pulling a prank for their "Spirit Mission". Apparently the prank wasn't taken well and caused a bit of a scandal. I guess that is what happens when a bunch of military folks are told to create covert operations to steal artifacts from other classes. The flight commanders like to give him a hard time about it. He will graduate on November 19th and then head right down to Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene, TX. Caleb and I will join him soon after and then we can begin the search for a home!




I sure think he makes quite a good looking soldier.

Just a Couple Jobs

I wanted to write this post a week ago but life has just been so busy lately. Well Brydon and I were recently able to secure employment that will allow us to stay in Philadelphia while we wait for Brydon to begin work with the Air Force. Brydon works nights (about 11pm-2am) for UPS loading trucks. The pay is ok and there are no benefits but it is very close to our home and the hours work well with my job and his church calling. Last night he actually got asked to be on the UPS safety committee. His supervisor learned about his thesis and so once a week he will attend a committee meeting and do safety inspections. So far the job has been pretty easy. I was recently hired as a Third Grade Math Specialist for the Agora Cyber Charter School. It is a really unique experience to work for a cyber school. I will work from home on a computer, teaching lessons and attending meetings. It is a certified teaching position and the pay and benefits are good. I love the fact that I get to stay home and have lunch with Brydon and Caleb. There is no nasty commute or long hours setting up and cleaning a classroom. The only drawback so far is that I am not used to sitting in front of a computer all day. But it is really a great opportunity for our family right now. I feel so blessed to be able to find employment during this time. Most school districts have few openings and some have been on hiring freezes. It is truly a miracle I was able to secure a position in just a couple months.