Rerun Flashback

Yesterday after the kiddos got up from their naps I was finishing up some laundry and rounded the corner to the kitchen. I ran smack dab into this: Which made me immediately think of this:

Anyone else ever watch Rerun on What's Happening!?

Funny the things that pop up in your memory at the oddest times!!

In other news: The newest "lovies" in the Puddin Pop Designs family have made their debut on the Puddin Pop Designs facebook page. Hop on over and check them out! I was going to post them here, but duty calls so it will have to wait!

BTW- I will be posting the run down of the "babies" most recent birthday party as soon as I get a chance. Our theme was a "picnic"... it was lots of fun!

The Line Up...

Still here

Chances are, I have used that title once, or twice, maybe more.

But whose counting, anyway?

Yes, life has been busy.

Yes, things are the usual crazy.

I have lots and lots to share, but time is precious.

So while I have all of these things I need to write down, so I will remember them, it's just hard to find time to sit and blog about them.

I'm working on fixing that. The problem is, I don't like to pre-post.

I prefer real time when possible.

Anyway, enough about that.

In today's news:

We managed a trip to Hobby Lobby (me, Bud and Dasiy) and Bud DID NOT throw a screaming tantrum. It was amazing! Sadly, it was also a first for him. Poor guy, he really dislikes crowds and public places.

We also managed to bust our favorite stroller.

So sad.

It was also our last stroller. I previously sold the other 3.

I had thought this one would hold out another 3-6 months for us, but nope.

It is "broke down". So, life will not become a little more complicated, or I will have giant Arnold arms as I'm not going to buy another one.

Source

I stopped this morning to pick up a quick bite to eat for myself, which I rarely do. The trio were at preschool and Daisy was in her dance class so it was just Bud and I . He had a yummy buttery biscuit. I had a raw chicken biscuit. uck!

My new latest obsession... first let me say we just got cable about 2 weeks ago... that being said, have you seen Sister Wives? oh my.

So since real time isn't that exciting, let me share a super exciting moment with you.

A couple of weeks ago we received a call that Puddin got in to the school we were hoping for. We were so excited.

They also asked all of the incoming kindergartners to come and spend a few hours in the classroom for pre-assessment.

It was a really big day!

Here is my little Puddin so excited to go to Kindergarten!

She looks so small as she heads off into the "big school!"

And the last one was taken in the classroom, in the Sea of Kindergarten! Yes, I was THAT mom... taking a picture of her child that was so excited to be there she forgot I existed. I didn't even get a wave goodbye, much less a hug. I might have almost, kindof sortof had a mini anxiety attack. Maybe.

I think that's enough catching up for one day. See you again tomorrow... fingers crossed!

2 precious years

I posted this on FB this morning. I know I've shared it here before. But today is Bud and Daisy's 2nd birthday. Wow- 2 years.

It's really hard to believe sometimes.

So today, just like 2 years ago, it was a day I knew was coming but didn't feel quite prepared for.

How does 2 years fly by so quickly???



So today we are spending some time soaking up our Wonder Twins...aka Sweet n Sassy.

While the trio is at preschool we are going to lunch at one of their favorite spots, and Daddy will join us. We may hit an indoor play area quickly before daddy heads back to work. This evening we will be partying with lots of Spaghetti and birthday cake...quickly followed by a "birthday bath!'

I'll share more pictures later this evening but for now, I'm going to snuggle some sweet 2 year olds!!


birth slideshow

back in the Saddle again!

Hi friends! thanks for the prayers! I am feeling much, much better today! So, before I lay my littles down for a nap I thought I'd share some of the Puddin Pop Kids that went out last week.


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Sick

Sorry peeps! I'm a little under the weather! I think I have what all of my littles had so I'm am moving very slowly. I will be responding to emails and orders as soon as I can. If you have sent me an order- I promise I am not ignoring you... just trying to survive as a sick mommy.

BTW-in order to create your listing in the etsy shop I will need all of the details of your order so if you are trying to decide on some of the details, that's ok, but I will wait and do the listing when we have everything in order. :)

ok- going back to bed now that all of my littles are sleeping.
:)

In like a LION!

The Lions may grow weak and hungry,

but those who seek the LORD

lack no good thing.

Psalm 34:10

When Puddin was 3 she heard this verse to song in the SEEDS family worship CD, Seeds of Courage. ( AWESOME! I totally reccomend these CD's to everyone and if you have a child who is fearful, SEEDS of Courage will totally help!)

Anyway, after she heard the song, this Scripture became her favorite.

She said it reminded her of Daniel in the Lion's den.

So, since it's March I thought I'd play around with the idea of a lion,

and this verse immediately came to mind.

I think he turned out pretty cute!



And in other news...

The Wonder Twins will be 2 in six days. That's right, SIX days!!!! Crazy! I just don't get how quickly the past 2 years have whizzed by!! As you can see, they are up to their usual tricks... creating mayhem and looking adorable while doing it!

Little stinkers!

Well on her way!

This little girl has been working hard.

She is serious about Wilbert.

She has cleaned the bonus room ( a BIG job for mommy alone!)

and her bedroom for 3 days!!!

(seriously- a HUGE accomplishment!)

Her eye is on the prize!

One down, only $999 more to go!

Puddin's new pet request...

Hold your horses...

The cat's out of the bag,

I hope you can run with the big dogs because something's squirrely around here!

You see, my girl LOVES animals. In fact, she not a doll playing kind of girl, but she will play with her little stuffed animals until the cows come home!

And her love of animals has led her to the decision that she needs a pet. (We already have a dog but I guess since she was here before Puddin, she doesn't count in her book).
So we have spent some time talking about pets and what she might like. At first it was always, "When can I have a kitten?"
My response was always,

"Never."
Harsh?? I don't think so. We had a cat when we were first married.

It didn't go well.

moving on

Then we started to think about another dog. For about a minute, and then decided we had done that before too and again, it didn't go well.

So I started to suggest smaller caged animals. Like, hamsters or guinea pigs. But, she decided that since birds are her most favoritest animal in the whole wide world that a bird would absolutely be the most perfect pet for her. We actually started to lean into this one. Except for the flying bird seed that I keep imagining and the fact that the pet store lady told me most birds live at least 25 years and the adorable finches we looked at needed a flock- they weren't good to have by themselves.

moving on

So, since spring is in the air and we are are starting to see images of bunnies everywhere and the fact that I'm pretty sure there is a nest in our backyard again, we have moved on to the idea of a rabbit.
Sounds sweet, right?

While doing some research it became abundantly clear that a rabbit would not be an ideal pet for us considering the current life stage we are in. Them being so fragile and all. Plus the fact that I have 5 very young children, 3 of which are very rough and tumble boys.

BUT, while I was "researching" on google Puddin came in to look at the bunnies....

aww they are sooo cute!!! As we were dreaming that maybe one day

we could be the proud owners of a little, fuzzy, bunny

we came across this image on google....

YIKES!

Have you ever seen anything like this before?!!

This is a Quality Netherland Dwarf Rabbit.

That's right, DWARF!!

Puddin's face went from that of "Oh it's so cuuute!" to shock and horror.

So, I guess I can thank google for getting me out of the pet rabbit arena.

But she wasn't finished yet.
She then informed me that we should look for pigs becuase she was just like Fern and LOOOOOVVVVVEEEEEDD baby pigs.
(Her favorite toy is a Fur Real friend pig she got from her Aunt Christi for her 4th birthday.)
She is devoted to him. His name is Wilbert.
That's right, Wil-bert.

He has been dearly loved.
He gets dressed up and pushed around in his baby carraige too, just like Wilbur did. She loves him.

So, I googled baby pigs and found there are a lot of different kinds of pigs.
And, yes, people keep some of them as pets.
Predominately,the pot bellied pig.
hmmm.... cute, but,
moving on.

Then something caught her eye.

I'm pretty sure it was this....

Is that not the most adorable little piggie you have ever seen?!! It was love at first sight! She was squealing as loud as she could, "That's him, that's my Wilbert!"

My girl is a smitten kitten, with a pig.
A tea cup piggie to be exact.
Oh, the reasearch that I have done....
needless to say, the whole family would love to add little Wilbert to our funny farm
BUT these little piggies carry a very heavy price tag!
I told my precious Puddin- no way, we couldn't afford it.

The next day she informed me that she was getting a job.
But not just any old job, a really good one.
When I asked her why she looked at me like I had 2 heads and said,
"Cause I need some money to get Wilbert."

Smitten, I say.

ch-ch-ch-ch-changes

yuck.

Raise your hand if you like change...

yeah, me neither.

But, I have learned that it often seems to be unavoidable.

You may have noticed some changes going on here at PPD. I have been delaying making them for a while as I have wrestled with even doing so. But these are changes that I had to make for various reasons so I thought it best to lay it all out there.

Since I started making these PPK's almost 4 years ago (sort of by accident), my goal was never to make a million dollars. The premise was simple. Make a cute baby with the Word of God on the front and let it speak not to just those little hearts receiving it, but also those people around the child that might see it. Simple.

Now, I am no math wizard, just ask my mom or my husband or Mrs. Gipson, my high school math teacher, so pricing was a bit of a challenge for me. Once this turned from a "hobby" to a "business" my husband wanted to calculate the time it takes for each baby plus the cost of each one to determine what the profit should be. I felt like I should just keep charging the same for them as I had been before when I was making them for my friends. I didn't have a formula, it started with an offer for $20 to make one. I accepted... thus you have my pricing formula. Genius, I know.

Now, don't get me wrong, I was making a little bit of a profit but when you add 4 more children to my family, and a "business" that is growing, time has become increasingly valuable. No matter how hard I try to stretch the hours out, there are only 24 in a day.

In addition to that, I have listed some other changes to the dolls themselves:

No longer are the scriptures added by heat transfer. They are now printed on fabric and sewn to the doll. ( This is more durable but it is more expensive).

The hair in pig tails is now stitched down so it doesn't become "floppy".

If you are ordering for a toddler or baby I will hand stitch the skirt onto the doll to make sure it doesn't come off.

The PPk's have a label.

There is a hairstyle option.

There are various sizes to choose from.

There have also been some changes on my end as far as ordering product. It's been a bit of a bear. It seems the most popular details have become increasingly more difficult to get my hands on. Things such as yarn textures and stuffing. I can no longer purchase these things in bulk (costs less) but now I have to purchase them in much smaller quantities (cost more). And often times I have have to drive out of town to find a location that is carrying the product that month?! ( Have you seen gas prices?!) Yikes!

I have also had to instill a payment policy. In the past I have allowed local folks to order and pay at pick up. Well, I have had a lot of folks late in picking up their product, which leaves me unpaid until they show up. So, I now have a policy that all orders must be paid for in advance before I begin an order. (I really disliked doing this, but it was unavoidable).

Because of all of this I have made a lot of babies, spent a lot of time away from my family sewing and made not much profit.

So, all of this is to say, that while I have delayed doing this as long as possible, I will have to be increasing the prices of the PPK's if I am going to continue my "business". I hope that doesn't run anyone off, because the ministry is still the same. I have not taken this decision lightly and I have spent much time in prayer over it.

If you ordered before March 1st and you are waiting for me to list your item on ETSY you will still be under the old pricing. :) All orders after March 1st 2011 will be under the new pricing.

That info can be seen in the right hand side bar under faq's.

Thanks for understanding and thanks for being a part of PPD!

(now cross your fingers I can get back to some regular posting! After all everyone in my house has been well, fever free/no sickness of any kind for 1 whole week!!! That must be some kind of record!!)