Cupcakes, Baby Curtains and Only 5 Weeks till D-Day!

I know you all must be waiting in suspense for my monthly update :P  Well, here it is!

  

The above photo is my 34 week picture...BUT we are actually just about to start week 35! Can you believe it?!  I sure can't.  35 weeks means baby could be here between 3 and 7 weeks - too crazy.  With this new transition in the time line, it's brought on a mixture of new emotions.  

Most any time I think about having the baby and bringing him home, it's a mixture of excitement and "Oh wait, I'm not ready!"  That was, until this past weekend.  I'm not sure if it was baby dude's position or what, but on Saturday I was cleaning the house and experiencing some intense sciatic nerve pressure.  Yes, pain shooting down the leg, couldn't really walk for more that a few minutes...eventually the house got clean though.  And at that moment I had it, the first-time thought of, "I think I'm about ready to have the baby." Now, on second thought, am I actually feeling ready?  No, haha.  I think it was a fleeting moment in pain that brought it on.  And the idea that after I have the baby and go through a bit of recovery time I'll be able to do everything I want to without feeling physically inhibited.  Granted, I am grateful that I've been as active as I have and continue to be so.  After all, some girls have problems tying their own shoes, rolling over in bed, taking a shower, driving, and so forth.  Thus far my symptoms have thankfully been mild.  And I'm still being told I'm not very big especially for how far along I am.  I still feel big though, haha.  

To make my days more productive, I've continued to prep for baby.  My latest project - BABY CURTAINS!

Originally, I was going for a farm theme.  Stores here decided that that just wasn't going to be.  The baby quilt (which is blue and green squares with baby chicks - shout out to my sister-in-law, Karin, who made it) is just too cute to not be included with the nursery theme so I had to do some tweeking to the first idea.  I decided in the end to go with animals in general (kinda like a zoo :) ) and keep to the color scheme of blue and green with a touch of yellow. 

Here's what they look like when drawn at night.  They darken the room quite a bit, which will be nice for nap times!

The animal faces poking out to say "hi" were too cute to pass up at the valance fabric.  My aunt Patty and cousin Jill helped me to plan these - thank you to their input!  JoAnn's can be a difficult place to make decisions :P

In addition to being crafty I've also enjoyed playing with my Christmas gift from this past year that Jordan bought me - a cake decorating kit!   

 For a friend's baby shower I decided to make strawberry cupcakes with cute, pink flowers on top.

The flower middle is a Reeses Pieces.  That was Jordan's inspiration :)

Overall, the past month seems to have flown by.  People keep telling me time will slow down as the due date draws near, but I'm happy it doesn't seem like it's dragging yet.  That'd be boring, hehe.  We look forward to welcoming our little guy into the world soon!  We'll keep you posted :)

Goodbye 2nd Trimester!

The second trimester is coming to a close and the third trimester is about to begin.  I can't believe how fast time has gone by...already 26 weeks!  And for the first time, just a couple days ago, a stranger asked when I was expecting.  That was an exciting moment - knowing that I've "popped".  

With the end of the 2nd trimester, also comes many new and exciting changes for Jordan and I.  First of all, I quit nannying a week or so prior to our St. Louis trip and am now prepping for our big move into a 2 BR apartment.  House hunting is slow, but keeps me busy.  I even put together a "packing/cleaning plan" so that come the moving date everything is ready to go without rushing to get things done at the last minute.

Granted, life would be pretty tedious and boring if packing and apartment hunting was all I did.  Another pass-time that has brought many hours of entertainment and great deals is freecycle.  This is a website that allows people to post things they're getting rid of for free in the area.  I signed up for the Los Altos group...it's a more established and well-off part of the Bay area.  One of my first finds was a Christmas Advent Calendar.  

This project was started, but never finished by its previous owner.  So I took on the task.  I nailed, sanded, painted and assembled most all parts.  I must say, I was pretty excited with the end result.  

Each day leading up to Christmas the numbered boxes have a new ornament to add to the tree.  By Christmas you have a decked out tree: 

With the stockings I'm making and this new advent calendar, I'm feeling our home will be much more of a Winter Wonderland this year :)

Freecycle has also been the source of many great finds.  This past week, I found a Pali crib being given away for free.  Come to find out, the crib was in practically new condition - barely a scratch or ding to be seen!  (Not viewed below because it's now disassembled for the move).  After packing up the crib, the family also asked if we'd like a portable high chair.  Of course, I said yes.  And after washing it up, it's also proven to be quite a find.  Not only is it in great condition, but I was glad that it has neutral coloring!  

Jordan and I are feeling so blessed right now.  Yes, the expenses of a baby aren't too extreme, but when you think of all the little and big things you absolutely need it's sometimes a bit overwhelming.  The generosity of our friends and family in helping us to prepare for our little guy has meant so much to us.  And receiving the crib and high chair in practically new condition, for free has been the cherry on top...filling us with much gratitude.  

Lastly, I'd like to share my most recent baby project - a swaddling blanket.  Some of you may remember that I made one for my Visiting Teachee.  It turned out so cute I just had to make one for our little guy too.  You can' have too many blankets!

In case you can't tell, the back is checkered yellow and white, the front has little elephants all over that say "stomp".   

I suppose it's no wonder with following freecycle, house hunting, preparing to move, and doing baby crafts that time has flown by.  With each day and each kick from the baby I get a bit more excited for our little guy!

Baby Kicks and Smiling Moments

I am now 22 1/2 weeks pregnant - over the halfway mark and moving forward!  I may not look that big to some, but I feel BIG.  

 But have no fears, I'm not naive.  I know that I only have growing and more growing to come...and look forward to the day when strangers can tell I'm pregnant.  With my expanding middle, I have also discovered some discomforts.  For instance, a bit of heartburn, back pain, and hip soreness...all which lead to sleep deprivation.  

However, despite all the not-so-positive aspects of pregnancy, they're all trivial compared to those happy moments.  I'm now feeling the baby move everyday!  And each little squirm from our little guy makes me smile :)  

Another thing that has brought much pleasure to my days of pregnancy: crafts.  This is a swaddling blanket I made for my Visiting-teachee in about an hour.  I also have some cute material to make one for our baby.  

   

One of my more accomplishing activities as of late...is Jordan's applique stocking!

I decided that with us having a baby we needed to have "real" Christmas decorations this year.  Personalized stockings seemed to be the best place to start.  We also thought our stockings should say "mom" and "dad", which was weird to see at first but we quickly took to it.  

Currently, I am working on finishing our wedding scrapbook.  I expect it'll be done in a couple days; a week at most.  Then I look forward to a few months of baby prep crafts, which include: swaddling blanket, carseat cover, and baby book!  

...and eventually (hopefully before Christmas) I'll finish the applique stocking for me and our baby.  Doing these crafts and prepping for our baby boy to come makes me so happy.  Jordan and I are both so excited to welcome our little baby boy into our home!

We're having a BOY!

As many of you have heard, we're having a boy!  And we couldn't be more thrilled!  

I first told Jordan I was pregnant Valentine's Day weekend.  To break the news in a fun way, I decided to buy a cute, color-neutral baby outfit.  And while it was color neutral, I decided to go with pajamas because then if it was a girl I could still dress her in pink and purples in public.  Luckily, we're having a boy - so this outfit is perfect!

 In case you can't read it...the PJs say, "I love Dad" and the bib says, "My 1st BOO".  I love that the pajamas have little teddy bear feet.  And I couldn't pass up the bib, seeing as our little guy is expected to come October 18th.  

This past Thursday, May 26th, Jordan and I had "the big" doctors check-up.  Most exciting part of our day!  We found out that not only are we having a boy, but our baby is super active.  He was wiggling around so much that the ultrasound specialist had to reschedule for a couple measurements he wasn't willing to sit still for.  But, have no fear, although we didn't get a great picture, we got a very good image that the baby's a boy.   The gal helping us said she'd rate it 98% positive.  That's pretty high ratings :)  Here are some of the cute photos we got of our little guy.

His feet measured at 1 inch!  I couldn't believe how ity-bity they are.

His profile shot shows off his cute little nose and mouth.

This one is a bit difficult to make out, but he's waving at us!

Eventually, he started to calm down a bit and settle in.  Still moving, but finding his "comfy" spot.  Oddly enough, for him that's curling up and kind of laying on his head with his chin tucked in.  I don't think it'd be that comfortable, but whatever floats his boat.  

When he's all curled up, he tucks his legs in (shown below).  That's what he did when we tried to get the gender picture...haha.

One of my favorite pictures!  You may ask why, seeing as it just looks like an arm.  And that's what it is, haha.  When he settled down he kind of lays with his arm bent up by his head...and that's how I sleep!  

Well, the doctors appointment has passed and things feel so much more real now that we know to expect a little boy.  We've started wheedling down our name list - which we've discovered can be quite the challenge.  And to celebrate this week's adventures we went baby clothes shopping and picked out a couple outfits.  

The outfit on the left is Jordan's favorite...his Sunday outfit :)

The middle outfit was my favorite.  I love that it says, "Wild about Mommy" and has a tiger bum!

The pajamas on the right were just too cute for either of us to pass up.  

We're now getting ready for week 20 and all the new changes that will come with the second half of pregnancy!

Pregnancy Pics!

Recently I have had a few requests and questions as to what was new and when I'd finally share some pregnancy pictures.  Well, I suppose the truth is, until recently there wasn't too much to tell or show.  Haha.  My nausea died down and I felt mostly back to my normal self. 

We are now 18 1/2 weeks pregnant!  And with the passing time things have slowly started to change. My energy level is higher and my appetite is going through some swings.  In addition, I felt the baby move a couple weeks ago for the first time!!! It was like my tummy had sparkling cider bubbles or something.  Completely amazing :)  And then, last night, Jordan felt the baby for the first time!  (At least I'm pretty sure it was the baby moving - it counts though)  Lastly, I'm starting to look a bit more pregnant.  Yes, I know a stranger wouldn't come up to me in the store and say, "Oh, you're pregnant!", but for Jordan and I we feel that I'm definitely "popping out" a bit.  Let's look at the progression...

Here's me at 10 1/2 weeks: 

Sorry about the fact that it's taken by me in the mirror.  I wasn't too good at that.  Anyhow, thought I'd share the photo anyways.  I also felt that this photo was a bit deceptive because it's an angle shot of me, so I look a bit more pregnant than I really was, haha.  

This is my 14 1/2 week shot:

 Yes, I do wear make-up, but this was taken at the end of a work day (I nanny) so it's fairly faded if present at all.    

18 weeks pregnant!

Now, I know that I'm not really showing much...but you can see the difference, right?  Also, I'm not sure this impacts opinions (or anything for that matter), but I've been told, and kind of agree, that you show more in the evening because of gravity working on you all day.  Both the 10 1/2 and 14 1/2 week photos were taken at night, whereas the 18 week photo was taken Wednesday morning after teaching seminary.  

I'll try to keep you more posted as things change!

PS Watch for a posting in the next week...we find out if the baby is a boy or girl!!!!