Organizing.

We're closing out 2012 by organizing the house. I'm sitting on the floor in the bedroom, sifting through a box and Scott pulls a few bags and boxes from under the bed.

Apparently, I stuffed a few things under the bed, hoping they'd disappear. Sigh. I know there's still boxes and bags waiting to be organized in Maryland. Why do I save everything???

I finally threw out an old Kirsten Dunst issue of Vogue (Marie Antoinette). Progress.

The dollar store...

Sells baby hangers. How did I not know this? I picked up a few packs in pink.

Striking gold on Craigslist!

We weren't planning on having a dresser for Babybug. The layout for the nursery is odd, and our plan was to stick a bookcase in the corner (between the crib and changing table) and use baskets for organization.

Today, during naptime, I sat in the nursery for awhile and looked around. I kept thinking that there had to be another way. I mentally rearranged furniture, thinking about the best use of space. Scott and I were going back and forth on how to organize things. We're coming up close on a deadline here!

On a whim, I checked Craigslist to see how much dressers were going for. Just to see. I saw an ad posted today for an antique white dresser. It looked slim. I quickly looked for measurements and flew into the nursery with the tape measure. If you can believe it, it was the perfect fit for the little "nook" next to the closet. We have an odd section of the wall, where there's a tiny bit of room...enough for a chair or a small bookcase. Our plan was to stick a cheap Target bookcase in there and put a lamp on top. A sturdy dresser seemed much better.

Everything fell into place. Scott liked the idea of the dresser and agreed that it would get years of use. The measurements were perfect, almost as if it had been built for the nursery. The color would match the crib. I also didn't want to miss out, so I called the man on the phone and he was willing to take the ad down if I was serious enough. I quickly got ahold of my friend Erin and she was happy to let us borrow her minivan.

I can't believe it all worked out, especially since this all started just a few hours ago. I couldn't be happier or more relieved. Babybug has a real dresser, the nursery is nearly done, and we managed to find exactly what we needed on a budget! It's really a beautiful piece. The inside of the top drawer says "Virginia House Solid Woods". Wow.

Merry Christmas Eve!

I'm 32 weeks today.

Christmas Eve is probably my favorite day of the year. So much to look forward to. Today, once Scott gets home at noon, the 3 of us will go out to lunch at Chickfila. Then, it's off to Kroger for some groceries. Starbucks for a decaf latte for Mommy. Relaxing at home until church at 5.

Once Jamie goes to bed, then it's [the annual tradition of] Chinese takeout for Mommy and Daddy, and watching "Love, Actually".

Jamie knows that Santa's coming tonight. He's very excited. It's cute.

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Nursery progress

I hope to have the nursery done sometime next month. With 8 weeks to go until my due date, and 5 weeks until I'm full term...wow, that sounds close, doesn't it?

This week, we've assembled the crib and installed wall shelves. Yesterday, I organized the closet and separated all of the baby clothes into sizes (I'll wait to wash everything in January). I pulled the baby blankets out of Jamie's closet and realized that we should be mostly set on blankets, although they're mostly blue (but cute and soft!).

My sewing to-do list...
1. Crib skirt
2. Basket liner
3. Burp rags
4. Bibs
5. 1-2 blankets
6. Cloth wipes

Scott's to-do list....
1. Make name letters to go over crib
2. Take care of any heavy lifting/moving things around/carry things up and down the stairs for me
3. Take baby items out of the attic & set up in the appropriate places

And then there's the task of washing and prepping the cloth diapers, making sure we have the odds and ends good to go on that.....aside from needing some other odds and ends for nursing, pacifiers, toiletries, baskets for the bookcase.....I feel like we're on the right track. I'm also hoping to find the perfect lavender lamp for the nursery. Target seems to be sold out of the one that I fell in love with several months ago. Sigh. What a bummer.

I'd also like to make some baby hair bows. If I have time.

Baby oranges.

Jamie loves clementines. He calls them baby oranges.

I'm dividing up the orange sections, and I feel a few kicks as I'm eating.

Me: Baby sister likes baby oranges, too.
Jamie: Yeah, I know.
Me: You knew that? (he nods) What else does she like?
Jamie: (thinks) Umm...broccoli!

Well, alright, then!

31 weeks tomorrow!

In 2 months, Babybug will be here!

I'm feeling bigger. My small maternity sweatpants are officially too tight as of this morning. So, I pulled out a very comfortable pair of maternity large pants. Bless Old Navy.

My large (Scott's) tshirts are getting tight. Socks are leaving lines on my ankles, which is exactly what happened with Jamie. It's also getting harder to bend over. Now I really have a free pass to let the floors go.

I've recently developed an aversion to hot dogs. This includes corn dogs. No matter the brand, they all taste awful to me. I'm drinking plenty of milk, though, which is good...but I still find strange, because I've always hated milk.

Time for a list update.

Food Aversions.
-chicken
-hot dogs and corn dogs
-homemade pizza (sorry, Scott)

Cravings.
-tacos
-milk
-sugar cookies
-cereal
-cheeseburgers
-soup
-peanut butter and jelly
-apples

Christmas cookies!

This is the result of our very first Christmas cookie bake. I've made my fair share of chocolate chip cookies (from scratch, thank you very much!), but I've never attempted sugar cookies...and I've never, ever decorated cookies. Thanks to recommendations of Martha Stewart's sugar cookie recipe, and to googling a simple icing recipe from allrecipes.com, we were set.

10:30 A.M. Jamie gladly wore an apron and helped me push a chair to the counter, so he could properly help out. The kitchenaid mixer provided some entertainment.

This is his "cheese" face. Funnily enough, he claimed that we were making cheese. I suppose it looked like a big bowl of cream cheese in the mixer. Jamie helped with the measuring spoons and cups. Not too much flour ended up the floor. This was a big success. We made the dough and according to the directions, I put it in the fridge for an hour.

We took a break for a Cookie Monster dvd (appropriate, huh?) and before we knew it...

11:30/12:00 P.M. We rolled out the dough, cut circles with our cups, and waited patiently for our cookies to bake. As soon as the first tray was set out to cool on the table, Jamie wasted no time. He hurried to scoot down from his chair, claiming that he was done and was going to eat cookies. I reminded him that we still had work to do, and did my best to keep him from eating up all of our hard work, especially before they had a chance to be iced.

After the cookies were baked, we took a break for lunch and Jamie went down for his nap. In the meantime, I made the icing. This involved food coloring, so it was probably best that I took care of this part by myself. The icing wasn't difficult, thanks to my mixer. Whenever I try out different recipes, I'm always very thankful to have the mixer do the work for me. Very thankful.

5:00 P.M. It ended up taking awhile to get to decorating, as we had to leave for my 30 week prenatal checkup. Once we got home, I washed Jamie up, put another apron on him and let him loose with the cookies. I made his own personal cup of sprinkles, which mostly ended up in his mouth, on the way to the cookies.

All in all, our project turned out quite well. We were pleased with the end result, and we "cheers-ed" with cookies. As soon as Scott walked in the door, Jamie was excited to show him our cookies.

I think we'll have to do this every year. Or possibly again in a week, when we eat up our cookie stash.

Baby mail!

My newborn/small baby diaper stash arrived in the mail. Exciting stuff. Don't be fooled by the size of that prefold - it will shrink once washed.

My in laws are contributing to our diapering supply, so that's what's in the box. My parents are helping us get a Jenny Lind crib, which should arrive within the week.

That leaves....more sewing for me, crib assembling for Scott, shelf shopping, and the little things - the smaller stuff we'll need to gather before Baby gets here. I'm still not entirely sure of we need elephant pictures for the walls, or if I should just splurge on a framed print of "You Are My Sunshine".

By the way, this week puts me in the third and final trimester! I'm going to try and savor every last bit. With Jamie, I was so ready to deliver and be done, but this time...appreciating the kicks, the quiet...it's truly a special time.

Prayers.

Every night, after we read a book, we tell Jamie to put his praying hands together. He smiles and knows what to do.

Here's the super cute, makes your heart melt detail. After we bless everyone in our family, he echoes "and baby sister, amen!" He's so proud that he knows his bedtime prayer.

Diapers!

The cow print is a best bottom cover, the pink is a flip, and the 2 purple diapers are called happy heinys.

The floral bag is called a wetbag and the shiny purple bag is a pail liner.

I have more diapers stashed in the closet and I'm nearly done with collecting everything I need!

Let me just whip up an update!

Here I am, cooking up some pretend food at Ikea this past Saturday. Their staged rooms are so much fun.

I'm currently 26 weeks along, feeling great, but am still dealing with insomnia every other night. I'm also collecting more diapers!

I'm getting really excited. There are so many cute diapers out there! The pink is a rumparooz, the pink hearts are kawaii baby, and the one underneath is a blueberry. They're all pocket diapers, which means that there's a way to stuff an insert inside the diaper and it goes on like a disposable. They're incredibly soft, which is a bonus. It'll feel like the world's softest pj pants against her bottom.

Jamie's sister.

Yesterday, Jamie noticed a bag of pink baby clothes that I had set aside.

"For baby sister?"
"Yes, these clothes are for your baby sister."
"Yeah. MY sister!" (big smile on his face)

24 weeks and Happy Halloween! And everything in between.

Diapers!

I've been researching cloth diapers for awhile now. I'm still a little confused (I feel like a new mom all over again!), but much closer to figuring out what system will work for us.

We have a local shop, Franklin Goose, that sells cloth diapers and supplies. There's also www.greenmountaindiapers.com, which is highly recommended from my friends.

I really think I've got it narrowed down. Thirsties duo covers and Flip covers for the little baby stage, and Fuzzibunz pocket diapers and BumGenius all-in-one diapers for the older baby stage. The BumGenius diapers are very similar to disposable diapers, but they're also the priciest. Maybe I'll even still use prefolded diapers and covers later on, too. Those are by far the most economical.

As seen in the second picture, you simply fold the cloth diaper (prefold) and lay it in the waterproof cover. Snap on baby. Easy peasy.

I've been watching youtube videos, talking with friends, reading reviews online, checking online forums dedicated to cloth diapering...I'm obviously serious about this. It'll save money in the long run, which is a huge bonus, but from what I've heard...there are fewer diaper rashes, less blowouts, easier transition to potty training, etc. Also...yesterday, Jamie did the unthinkable and bit into his diaper. Little gel balls everywhere, in his mouth, which led to a panicked phone call to poison control. All is well, but what a scare! At least if Babybug decides to chew on her diaper, she'll just be chewing on fabric!

These diapers are also very cute. No need for diaper covers when she wears dresses!

Shoes.

It appears that my feet are getting bigger. Goodbye, flats and heels. It's flip flops and boots (ugg style) from here on out.

Darn. This never happened with Jamie!

New cravings this week. Milk, regular and chocolate. Ordinarily, I hate milk. This child has her father's taste buds.

Jamie's turn.

Jamie felt Babybug kick. He smiled, put his little hand on the side of my belly, and agreed that it was really a kick! Then, he said "hi" and rubbed his nose on my belly...as if he were rubbing noses with his baby sister.

22 weeks.

Feeling more kicks, Scott has felt a few nudges. This baby is much more relaxed than Jamie was.

October 15th is Remembrance Day.

According to Wikipedia... "The Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Movement began in the United States on October 25, 1988 when then-American President Ronald Reagan designated the month of October 1988 as Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month...The October 15th Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day (PAILRD) Campaign began in 2002 as an American movement started by Robyn Bear, Lisa Brown, and Tammy Novak."

I had no idea that there was a day, let alone an entire month, dedicated to remembering and honoring these types of losses. I found out when another mom posted about it on an online forum this morning.

It's a nice idea, that everyone is invited to light a candle at 7pm, for an hour, in memory of these babies. The idea is to create a wave of light all over the world.

Now, I'm sure that there will be candles lit, probably not a lot...but I think this is something that we'll do. Gives us a chance to think about the little life that we briefly shared.

Happy Birthday, Grammy.

We went to New Jersey yesterday, to celebrate my Grammy's birthday. I took a few pictures...

It's a girl!

 

So, we had our anatomy scan on Tuesday. Jamie had been telling us that he was going to have a baby sister, and he was right! Everything looks great, she's measuring a week ahead, and we couldn't be happier.

 

 

 

21 weeks!

I'm officially more than halfway there! Feeling good, hungrier than usual. Nearly every night, I'm up at an odd hour, having a snack. I'm also craving more foods and am experiencing an aversion to chicken. I really don't want to eat chicken if I can help it. Bring on the tofu and beans! And potatoes! Lots and lots of potatoes!

19 weeks, 3 days.

Nearly halfway there!

Cravings.

Jamie made me crave McDonald's. Babybug seems to enjoy Taco Bell. Scott's out right now, picking up tacos and hot sauce. Yes, for the first time in my life, I'm putting hot sauce on my food. Delicious cravings.

On a lighter note, nostalgia.

I was looking through an old online journal from my college years. Here's a look into my life at 20. I look back on my involvement with the student newspaper as some of the best times in my life. I'm truly happy when I'm writing. That still hasn't changed.

September 30, 2003.

Today was the best day I think I've had in awhile.

When I woke up this morning, I was actually ready to wake up. I could see the sun coming in through the blinds, and I didn't feel groggy or grumpy. I decided I absolutely had to skip my 11 o' clock class for the George Beall's lecture.

Instead of class, I went to the newspaper office, took the digital camera and went downstairs to the multi-purpose lecture room. Will introduced me to a few University people, and they told me I could sit with the press people. Paul came down and was the only other newspaper person to sit with me. C-Span was there!! Cameras and reporters were there, and so were a good deal of students there for extra-credit and almost all the University people. Beall was interesting to listen to, and I'm still shocked he went to Frostburg. Basically...he was a U.S. Attorney back in '73 and investigated Vice President Spiro Agnew during the Watergate Scandal. What a lecture that was. Afterwards, I went up to try to get a word with him. A bunch of people jumped in front of me and even this photographer got in my way, but finally I was able to say hi and shake his hand. I asked him a quick question for my article and then I told him that I was interested in becoming a journalist. He kind of brightened and recommended I read this book called "A Heartbeat Away." Just then, this University guy came over and slipped me his card. He explained that I could visit his office in a week to pick up a picture he had just taken of me talking with Beall. How cool is that? I walked out of the room with a big smile on my face. I went up to Sub-Connection to get a quick lunch, and then I called my parents to tell them what had happened. They were happy for me because they know how I love working for the newspaper.

I'm serious...since freshman year, I've been given so many opportunities that I wouldn't have had anywhere else. I've traveled to Orlando and Seattle, I met a former Days of Our Lives actor, I met Martin Luther King's daughter...and now a former U.S. Attorney???? And I'm going to Dallas in a month.

It may not sound like much to some people, but it's something I'm really passionate about.

So at 2, I went to take my biology exam. I just got my grade online, and I got a 74. Which is good considering I'm not a Science whiz, and I've been busting my butt basically. I'm gonna pass.

After the exam, I realized what a day I was having. Who was I to end it? Jessica and I went to downtown Cumberland, walked around for the longest time and then went to a little cafe for dinner. Good food and coffee. I just got back awhile ago.

And now...I think I'll go swimming. I'm on such a high right now, I don't ever want to come down from it.

November 13, 2003.

Do you ever not like being the center of attention?

Tuesday night, I went to the Brown vs. Board of Educ lecture at the Lane Center, and I talked to the speaker beforehand to let him know that I was writing a story for the newspaper. During the lecture, he mentions a young lady who wants to be a writer and then turns to the audience and says "where is she sitting? the young lady from the newspaper?"

I raise my hand, and I can literally hear all of the heads turn to look at me. So the guy nods and says something, I can't remember. On Wednesday, a few people in my class were like "oh yeah, we were wondering why you had a notebook with you last night!"

Anyway, this morning in Language Behavior, Routhier was talking about a theory and decided to use me as an example. He points and says "Janet Gooch!" And explains that it's object reference, and then later uses me again to demonstrate reflex awareness. Ha, yeah...so now they all know my full name...

I dunno, it's just weird sometimes, because I'd rather just stand back and chill than being in the center. Is that crazy?

Missing what I never knew.

Let me start by saying that I am grateful to be pregnant right now. I realize that every life is a miracle and I know not to take anything for granted, because nothing is guaranteed. We accept what we're given and we make every day count.

That being said...I think about our angel daily. It's gotten easier as the months have passed, but the pain is still there. I think I'll always think about what happened and he/she will always be in my thoughts. It just doesn't go away.

I've been thinking about it more lately, because my due date was within the last 2 weeks. By now, I would have given birth and I'd be up to my elbows in dirty diapers and sleep deprived. I've seen baby pictures from a few friends who had babies this month and it does tug at my heart a little bit. That should have been us, too.

I'm looking forward to our life with Babybug, who gets bigger everyday and I'm cherishing the movement that I'm starting to feel. I had a scary experience early last week, and that fear brought back all of the horrible feelings from the miscarriage. Everything ended up being fine and it just made me realize again, there are so many unknowns. I just pray that everything stays on course and that Babybug and I remain healthy.

Jamie plays.

I'm sitting at the table, drinking a cup of coffee, and Jamie hurries over with some toys. 2 plastic tunnels and the Sesame Street characters from his play set. He added a toilet paper tube that he politely requested after he followed me into the bathroom.

In typical Jamie fashion, he used the toilet paper tube as a tunnel extender, to give rides to Bert, Ernie, and Mr. Hooper.

I've noticed that his favorite things include puzzles, blocks, building just about anything. In fact, rather than race his toy cars, he prefers to line them up like a train. At lunchtime, his cheese cubes become a train.

He likes to figure things out. If there's a zipper, he's fascinated. He likes to count, and will count just about anything!

I always thought that little boys had a destructive behavior, wanting to plan attacks between toys, make explosion sounds, throw toy cars across the room, etc, and maybe that's yet to come. Still, I enjoy watching logical Jamie at play.

What will he build or figure out next?

"Mail!"

See that postcard with Elmo on the front? This kid loves mail, and of course, he's been carrying it around with his favorite toys.

18 weeks.

Feeling good, but tired. Only 3 weeks until the big ultrasound!

I'm also excited because I'm finally feeling flutters. It's hard to describe, but I'll try. It feels like Babybug is stretching out and finding a comfortable position. No kicks yet!

I'm hungrier nowadays and there are more cravings than before. I'm loving croissants, hard boiled eggs/devilled eggs, hot dogs, tacos, soup, subs/hoagies, grapes, salad with thousand island, orange juice...and sometime this week, I'll need a milkshake and cheesecake. Oh, and pickles, of course.

In other news, bathroom visits are no joke. I was driving home today, nearly 2 miles from the house, when I suddenly pulled into a bank. I hurried inside and politely asked where the restroom was. I was moments away from crying if I hadn't found a place to stop, but no matter what, I can't seem to not use manners. Never mind I almost had an accident! Now I'm paranoid that I WILL have an accident. I wonder if other pregnant women wear Depends....

House tour!

Jamie!

Came across this picture, taken back in the spring. This captures Jamie perfectly.

Last day at Romp 'N Roll

Here's Jamie after his last class. Clearly, he's saying "Mom, this is so embarrassing! You've taken so many pictures!"

I'm so proud of him, and how far he's come this summer. He's really done well, listening to directions and learning to take turns with the other children. He's also become more comfortable participating in class, and doesn't even insist on staying glued to my side.

Makes me excited to start preschool next month.

13 weeks.

We heard Babybug's heartbeat on Friday; very healthy at 159 bpm.

As for me, I'm still tired and starting to feel bigger, especially at the end of the day! I'm starting to have occasional insomnia, from 4am-6am. I'll wake up, eat a granola bar and then lay in bed, bored out of my mind! Luckily, Jamie lets me sleep in until 8:30.

As for our golden boy, he's amazing us everyday. He can count to five! He also enjoys naming colors, "reading" books, and matching similar items. If he sees a banana in his book, for example, he immediately searches for one of his toy bananas.

Two weeks to go until we're vacationing at the beach. Can't wait!

Clean house? What's that?

Hopefully, when I hit my second trimester in a few weeks, I'll get my energy back.

It's all I can do somedays just to keep up with Jamie, go to activities and keep us fed. By dinner time, I'm looking forward to bedtime.

Long story short, I'd be embarrassed to have anyone over because I cannot keep up with the housework! I love having a clean house. I'm usually very organized. I don't even do the grocery shopping very often anymore. I'm just too tired.

How do the supermoms do it?

Potty!!!!!!!

Jamie just asked to sit on the potty and in less than 2 minutes, peed.

I'm a pleased Mama!

Gween!

Jamie just held up his crayon and said, "Gween!"

I about fell over. What a smartie.

10 weeks.

I'm so happy that I'm closer to the end of the first trimester!

Here's my bump status -- regular shirts are becoming very tight. I definitely can't wear regular pants or shorts. I've embraced maternity clothes. I'd like to thank Erin and Kelly for helping me feel more fashionable!

I'm feeling good, definitely not sick anymore. I had a string of morning sickness at week 6, but am back to normal now. I'm tired, but that's about it. My hair is thicker, which is a pregnancy bonus. Everyday is a good hair day!

In 2 weeks, I'll hear Baby's heartbeat for the first time. So excited.

Belly progress.

Last night, a complete stranger congratulated me on my pregnancy. I guess I'm really showing!

I don't think these pictures will be in order, so the red dress is 5 weeks, black tank top is 6 weeks, black dress is last night, and I'll be 9 weeks tomorrow.