Baby projects

Ok, I wasn't lying when I said I wouldn't post any more baby sewing projects... I didn't sew these ones!

I was so excited to use some of my birthday money to get these make-your-own-board-books from Blank Slate Board Books. I am a firm believer that you can never have too many books (as Chris can attest to...judging from the many, many boxes of books in our storage unit!), but I don't have many board books for Baby Boy to enjoy early on. These books come blank, with labels that you can design and print to stick on the books. I am especially excited about this black and white book, which was designed by one of my favorite bloggers Jill at Homemade by Jill.

Thanks, Jill, for making your design available for download! I can't wait for Baby Boy to explore this book...he's going to be a little reader from day one!

We made a trip to Target the other day to stock up on a few things its good to have on hand before the baby comes - diapers, wipes, infant tylenol, etc. So I've got everything on the changing table and realize that the wipes container is just so ugly! There must be something I can do about that!

Chris just laughed at me for spending time covering a wipes container with scrapbook paper, but doesn't it look much cuter now?

Chloe and the heater

Here's Chloe's favorite spot in the house: right in front of the heater! She hears the heater kick on and right away she's warming her little booty in front of it.I love the look of complete bliss on her face in this one!
This little dog cracks me up every day! (Good thing she's so cute...she's been into eating my shoes lately, which does not make Mama a happy camper).

Can I make a confession?

I have a confession to make. Sometimes I get so excited about feeling the baby kick, I want to share it. Usually it's Chris I frantically drag over to my belly, to watch his face expectantly with his hand on my belly. But sometimes if I'm in public and Chris isn't around, I have a sudden urge to run up to a complete stranger and put their hand on my belly so they can feel too!

Spring has sprung??

Has spring sprung? Ask me yesterday and I would have said yes. This lovely lady was blooming in my front yard, along with daffodils, lilacs, grape hyacinths and all other sorts of sweet flowers:
But then I tried (note the "tried") to drive to Klamath Falls today to work, and this is what met me. Snow. Lots and lots of snow. Picture driving this at 5:30 in the morning, in the dark, with blizzard conditions, up a twisty mountainous pass. Needless to say, I stuck it out for less than five minutes before turning around to head home. I thought it was almost April?!! What's with all this snow?!!!Can someone please send Mother Nature the message that March is supposed to go out like a lamb? Thanks a bunch! :)

Presents!

One of the coolest things about having a baby is the presents. You know it's true. But even cooler than presents is when someone you don't even know gives you a present! We received this awesome, generous gift from one of Chris' coworkers - a coworker I've never met and Chris couldn't even remember her name!

This blanket is amazingly soft and cuddly:

And isn't this outfit the cutest? I love Hawaiian shirts on little boys! And the hat is just the perfect topping - like the cherry on top!Yup, we're getting pretty darn excited around here about this little baby coming!

The Carseat

I think this, more than anything else so far, has really made the whole we're-having-a-baby-thing feel real.

My wonderful friend Christine, who is done having babies, gave me a ton of her old baby stuff, which included this barely-used carseat. I washed the cover, and after a painfully long time, managed to put it back on the carseat. Those suckers are complicated!! All I need to do now is install the bases in our cars and have them checked out by the fire department and we are ready to bring Baby Boy home.

I was sitting here last night, looking at the carseat, picturing our baby in the seat, picturing strapping in his tiny little body for the first time, picturing walking in the door of our house with this amazing new life. I just can't wait! Two short months until he's in our arms!

Packing the Hospital Bag

Every week I get an email in my in box from What to Expect When You're Expecting.com - they give me handy little tips, have a section for new dads, and even give me my weekly to-do list for getting ready for baby.

This week? Packing my hospital bag! Hmm... perhaps you're thinking what I'm thinking... what could be so difficult about packing a hospital bag? I pack overnight bags all the time. What could be different? But as I placed my duffel bag on the bed and stared at its gaping emptiness, I felt completely overwhelmed.

Maybe it's because this is the last bag I will pack as simply a wife/daughter/sister... from every day after I use this bag, I will be known as a mother. An all-encompassing title that is a huge step.

Maybe it's because that, like in every part of my life, I want to do everything right. I want it to be perfect. I want the first minutes, hours, days, weeks of my son's life to be perfect. I just know that I will forget the one thing that will intrude on this perfection.

Maybe it's simply because I am a chronic overpacker...pair that with my husband (whose Boy Scout training tells him to "Be Prepared"), and we are a couple that always has too much stuff (like a roll of toilet paper in the trunk of the car at all times in case of "emergency"). I have mental images of us walking into the hospital, loaded down with suitcases, duffels, pillows, and bags.

What if I forget something? I mean, we live a whole 3 minutes away from the hospital! It's not like we can just pop home to get something we forgot!!

So, in goes chapstick, hand sanitizer, a swimsuit, and diapers into the bag. But wait! I check online for a checklist, and everyone says not to bring diapers, since the hospital provides those. So out go the diapers. Ok, I consult the checklist - toiletries. But, the only problem is that I kind of NEED my toiletries from here on out, so I can't exatly pack those yet. Ok, next. Camera. Also need that, can't pack that yet. Ok, next. Going-home outfit for baby. Don't have that yet (yes, I am unreasonably picky about this topic).

Now I'm starting to get frantic. The bag is so big and empty! I... must...fill....the...space!!!! So I start scanning the room, looking for items to throw in - a sweatshirt! Sure, I'll need that! Oh, a belt! Of course we'll need that! Dog treats! Why not? Throw 'em in! War and Peace? Yeah, the checklist said a bit of light reading may come in handy!

I stand there glaring my ridiculously overstuffed bag, and I realize something. This baby is coming out whether I bring a Boppy pillow to the hospital or not. Everything will be fine. If I forget something, it will be ok and it will not ruin the baby's life.

So I do what every good mom-to-be would do in this situation. I empty everything out and put the bag away - I'll pack when I'm in labor and ready to go to the hospital! Nothing like a bit of procrastination to make a girl feel better!

So totally worth it!

Some days I am really not a big fan of being pregnant. Like last night, when I sneezed and peed my pants a little. Oops! Or the whole throwing-up-every-single-freaking-day-for-my-entire-freaking-pregnancy thing... yeah, not so great.

Take yesterday, for example. I'm standing in the loooong line at Ross, trying to relieve the pressure on my poor swollen feet, when a teen girl looks at me and announces to her mom, "I don't think I want kids." Yeah... so, just looking at me is enough to make anyone NOT want to be pregnant!

And then last night, when I couldn't find a comfortable position to sleep... and when I finally did, I had to get up to pee.

But then I feel Baby Boy kicking and rolling around in my tummy. And I fold his little onesies and outfits and picture his teeny little feet and toes. And I imagine holding him and nursing him and playing with him and watching Chris become the amazing daddy he will be with him. And I know it's all going to be worth it, a hundred times over.

Are you sick of seeing my sewing projects yet? Last post on baby sewing projects, I promise. Ok, maybe not last, but I'll try to keep them to a minimum.

I've been looking and looking for a baby football. You'd think it wouldn't be hard to find. Yeah, you'd think. IMPOSSIBLE!!! So I made one. I love the taggies. And the plain one has a jingle bell in it.

Can you tell this is an elephant? It's a little bit abstract. So there you have it. The last of my baby sewing projects (for now). This is going to be one spoiled little baby!

Presents!

I had a wonderful surprise on my birthday - my mom sent us a care package! Four new books, a ton of coupons, and various Easter goodies. I love this dish towel she sent!

Mini salt and pepper shakers:And who wouldn't send a pregnant woman CHOCOLATE?!Don't worry, she sent goodies for Chris too - a box of Andes mints. Can't take a picture of them, though - they're already long gone! Andes mints are Chris' favorite.

So now on my to-do list for today? Decorating for Easter! Thanks, Mom!

Baby Shower!!

Got my invitation to my baby shower in the mail this weekend - aren't they adorable? My sister and her friend Robyn made them. Blue and brown with elephants...I am in L-O-V-E!

A Positive Compliment

So I call the WalMart helpline today to see about getting a replacement cord for our laptops - the one we bought two months ago is already broken. After being on hold a ridiculous amount of time, the automated voice begins to go through the options. "To register your product, press one. To speak to a representative, press two. (long pause). We at WalMart have added a new service to better serve our customers. To hear a positive compliment about yourself, please press 3."

A POSITIVE COMPLIMENT?!! What the heck????? Apparently they couldn't find anything positive to say about me - when I pressed 3 (after a long pause), they sent me right to a representative. Oh well...not 100% sure I could trust an automated compliment service anyway! :)

Burpy Burperton

I freely admit that I am snob when it comes to baby stuff. I LOVE expensive baby stuff like Pottery Barn Kids and Gap... but since I am fiscally responsible (and often unemployed!) I tend to stalk these website and blatantly copy what ideas I can. Take these, for example.


More adorable burp cloths! These are from Land of Nod... can something for catching and mopping up puke be any cuter?! I am in love. But at $18 for two, they are so cruelly out of my price range. So off I trot to the fabric store and pick up adorable ribbon to make my own:

What do you think? I don't even remember how much they cost... but it was a heck of a lot less than $18 for two!

“The very fact that you worry about being a good mom means that you already are one.”

- From "House Rules" by Jodi Picoult. Here's hoping this is a true statement!

Dear Baby,

Dear Baby,

I'm just lying here on the sofa, feeling you kick and squirm in my belly, and thinking about how I could not have asked for a better birthday. Yup, today's my 25th birthday. What an amazing birthday gift, to be 30 weeks pregnant with a healthy, strong (very strong - you kicked me so hard last night that it took my breath away!) baby. I can't believe in ten short weeks your daddy and I will meet you!

I've been listening to this song over and over again, thinking of you:

Don't know much about you
Don't know who you are
We've been doing fine without you
But we could only go so far
Don't know why you chose us
Were you watching from above?
Is there someone there that knows us
Said we'd give you all our love

Will you laugh just like your mother
Will you sigh like your old man
Will some things skip a generation
Like I've heard they often can
Are you a poet or a dancer
A devil or a clown
Or a strange new combination of
The things we've handed down

I wonder who you'll look like
Will your hair fall down and curl
Will you be a mama's boy
Or daddy's little girl?

I look at random babies and children on the street and wonder if you'll look like them. I see personality traits in my students and wonder what your personality will be. I think about the special talents and gifts you will bring to the world. My son, your daddy and I can't wait to meet you and get to know you! I promise I will sing you this song when I rock you to sleep and I will always remember how blessed we are that we were chosen to be your parents.

Philadelphia!

We took the plunge and did it! We booked our tickets to Philadelphia for a quick trip this summer!

My beautiful cousin is graduating high school and it will be a perfect time to show off the baby (especially to my grandparents!) and still get in some brief vacation time. I've never been to Philly, and Chris has never been to Pennsylvania, so it will be an adventure! Not to mention the whole taking-a-newborn-on-a-plane thing, which will be an adventure in itself - but hey, they're portable at that age, right?!

We can't wait to see all our family!

What?! Another baby sewing project?!

Now, are you really surprised? My "make for baby" to-do list is slowly getting and shorter and I'm loving sewing away for this little guy.

Since I've finally finished washing and sorting and putting away all Baby Boy's clothes, I decided I really needed some way to keep track of his stuff hanging up. I have no idea how fast he'll grow, and since our storage unit is 75 miles away (not exactly convenient), I wanted some stuff out in every size. I've seen some hanger separaters thingys in stores, but they are expensive and the sizes are too general, so I made my own!

Then I decided Baby needed some toys - here's what I came up with:

They have adorable little bells in them, so they jingle! The whole time I sewing them, I was picturing Baby Boy chewing on them...and the whole time I was sewing them, the dogs were eyeing them jealously! Poor pups... it's just too much work to make something they'll destroy in 2.3 seconds!

And a quilt that I've been dying to make for months is all pieced and ready to go - just need to get more minky for the backing, so I'll post pics when it's done.

You can never have enough burp cloths... I've been around enough babies to know how much body fluids seep out of every possible orifice of their bodies. So I've made a ton of adorable burp cloths (and when I say a ton, I really mean A TON!):

Here's what my spool of brown thread looked like when I was all done - told you to get stock in brown thread!!

And last but not least, I made something completely un-baby-related! GASP! Yup, been planning on making these produce bags for a while and finally got around to it - I am really into using reusuable grocery bags, but what to do about those plastic bags to put produce in? I just used white netting (white so the stickers on the fruit are visible for the cashier) and voila! So incredibly easy.And look what came in the mail! A couple weeks ago I found a freebie coupon for free return address labels - all I paid was $3.40 shipping for 280 labels! And look how cute they are!! Perfect for baby announcements and thank-you's (did you really expect any other colors beside blue and brown?)! Things for Baby are starting to come together! The countdown is on...ten weeks to go!

Cankles

Yup, this is about how I feel. No, wait... if this dog had a watermelon strapped to its stomach in addition to the cankles, that would be it. What a perfect photo of the day!

The Guilty Party

I was cooking dinner the other day and noticed that Chloe was being awfully quiet... Here's what I found her munching on under the table:

That's a potato, people... A POTATO!!! This crazy dog LOVES potatoes for some reason. I'm always telling her to get out of the potato bag. I don't know if it's because they look like her kind of toys or what, but she is in love them.

Yeah, she's looking guilty. And awfully cute.

A Story...

I am a planner. I love to plan ahead. Especially for things I'm looking forward to. When I emptied out my hope chest to move it when I graduated from high school, it was full of things I was saving to use for the future: ribbons and bows for a wedding, a dog collar for when I got a dog, and of course TONS of baby items.

Last night, I was going through my last box of baby stuff that has been in storage and I found this:

Oh, just one of her hundreds of baby blankets, you say? Nope...this blanket was made during a production of "Into the Woods", in which I was Snow White (with one line!), out of the yarn that we used for Rapunzel's hair. I clearly remember crocheting it backstage in the dark, amazed at how soft the yarn was and the perfect yellow color.

I made this blanket for my someday-baby-to-be wayyyy back in the year 2000. I was 15. I barely knew the boy who would become my husband and the father of my child someday. I didn't have plans for babies for a looooooooong time. But something inside me knew I was going to be a mama, without doubt, someday. Something inside me knew that being a parent was the only thing that would make my life complete and whole.

My dearest son, I hope you realize how much I love you, how much I have loved you before you were even you. Every time I wrap you in this blanket, I will think about how I crocheted every stitch for you, with love and anticipation, for that far-off someday when you would come to us.

An Ode to My Feet

Feet, I am not sure if I will ever see you again. And if I do, I'm not sure you will ever look the same! You used to be beautiful. You used to be graceful shape, with a nice arch, even-sized toes, and (mostly) clean toenails... But I am sorry to inform you that your reign of beauty is over. You are now swollen and red (from being stuffed into too-small shoes). Instead of your feet beauty ending in slender ankles, you now end in fat, puffy, swollen cankles. And since I cannot even SEE my feet, I don't have a prayer of getting anywhere near you to perform daily maintence.

Maybe I should ask for another pedicure for my birthday next week. But I may be too embarressed to bare these puppies in all their misery for a stranger to massage, clean, and beautify. At least I'm pregnant in the winter, when I can hide my cankles and unshaved legs underneath long pants and thick socks!

Two and half short months until my due date. Until then, dear feet, I bid you adieu, and trust that my wonderful husband will continue to massage and pamper you until the day arrives when we meet again.

Lazy Sunday

Having a beautiful, lazy Sunday... resting on the couch in the sun...

Watching this incredibly tear-jerking movie (still not as good as the book, but pretty good as far as movies go)... Don't tell Chris I told you, but I think he may have even teared up a few times.

I love days when we have no plans, nothing we have to do and no place to go. I just savor the beautiful time with the hubs and the dogs.

Latest Finds

I went yard saleing yesterday with my mother-in-law - as always, found some awesome stuff! And since my mind (what a change) is mostly baby-related right now, here's my baby finds:

Short overalls, still with the tags on, for a dollar!

Can't you just picture this little vest with a collared shirt and little jeans or khakis? Ohmygosh, I can't wait to dress this little man.

Not sure if he'll need this sweater in this size or not, but it was so cute and only a buck, so I got it.

And I am the BIGGEST SUCKER for shoes... and then I saw these crab ones and I about died. My sister HATES crustaceans (did I spell that right?) of any sort, especially crabs and lobsters. I can't wait to put these shoes on Baby Boy when he goes to visit his Auntie Meg! :) She's gonna just LOVE me!!

Holy Enormous Baby, Batman!

Ummm, can we say HOLY COW?!!!! And yes, I still have THREE more months of growing to do!!!!! Are we sure there's not twins in there? I feel HUGE! Third trimester is in full swing!