Stitch Fix #4 in February

Quick pregnancy update.  I'm 37 weeks +3 days.  Baby could come any day.  Or, more likely, in 2-3 weeks.  We're all itching to meet this little one and since most people don't do that great in times of transition or with big unknowns hanging over them....well, you can imagine how things are going around here. :) 

This was my 4th box from Stitch Fix, and it's my favorite one yet!  I was very intentional about scheduling this fix.  In my "notes" to the stylist I let her know that I wanted clothes that would be great for right after the birth and be nursing friendly.  I wanted items that would help hide my postpartum belly and look "springy" while still warm enough for our cold Colorado weather.  As soon as I opened the box I could tell that she'd listened to me and I was so excited to start trying on clothes!

None of the items are a great fit right now.  They are all intended for after the birth.  I'm pleased that I was able to try them all on and get a good idea for their potential fit. ;)   The first outfit I tried on was not my favorite, but I did still like the items.  The skirt felt so nice on both for the fit and fabric quality; I was sad that the print/color combo were just not quite "me."  I really liked the feel of the grey criss cross top that was chosen for me because it would be nursing friendly.  I wasn't sure if it would help in hiding my belly.  Obviously it's good at showing it off right now. :)

The pink top and cardigan were in colors and styles I'd requested.  The top will be great for spring and summer while the cardigan will keep me warmer while we're still in the cooler temps.  The cardigan will also be great pared with the top for nursing as it will help provide a bit of extra cover and privacy.  Right now I can just get the top over my belly, so I can't wear it, but I know I'm going to love being able to wear it right after baby is born.  It's always nice to have something pretty to wear right away.

This one is my favorite.  I'd requested more of a "romantic" look and this is what was sent to fill that request.  The top is in colors I'd requested and while the cut does accomedate my belly now it'll be perfect all through the spring and summer for hiding my mamma tummy and nursing the baby (while not looking like I'm wearing a maternity top).  I also love that the stylist pointed out that the tops she picked would look good with the pants I'd kept from my last fix.  I'd have figured it out eventually, but I appreciated the thoughtfulness.

I ended up keeping all 5 pieces.  I normally would not have, but I knew I was going to keep the 3 I loved.  The grey top was questionable and at first I'd decided to send it back.   Over the next few hours I keep thinking about it though and pulling it out.  There is a 25% discount for keeping all 5 items, plus I had credits making it cheaper to keep all 5 once I decided to keep the 4th item.  I'm thankful for a husband that is so sweet and encouraged me to keep them all.

Now they are all hanging in my closet waiting to be worn.  Ah, more practice in patience.  You know, 'cause waiting for baby to arrive is not practice enough.

***If you are interested in giving stitch fix a go I'd love it if you'd use my link.  I get credit when your first fix ships.  A big reason I was able to treat myself this time was because some sweet friends have been enjoying Stitch Fix through my link.  A BIG Thank You goes out to them from me. :)

Baby sewing projects

Today was just that kind of day.  Many of us felt the need to be productive, but not so much in the normal everyday things.  I've been wanting to get to a quilt I started quite some time ago for baby.  Miss A had fun watching the embroidery machine do it's thing for a while, then she asked to play with the button jar.

I was able to get all of the embroidery done on the quilt.  I'm now in the process of sewing the front, back and batting together.  I hope to get to the quilting before baby comes.  If not....I'm thankful that
my mom is always up for a bit of sewing when she comes. :)

Miss E thought it would be fun to look for some knitting patterns.  Maybe make something for the baby?  Miss A loves looking at the patterns with her.  I love that Miss E has just taken off with knitting.  Teaching herself how to knit and always challenging herself with new, more difficult projects and techniques.

I did manage to finish a burp rag to match the quilt.

Our newest addition(s)!

TWIN GIRLS!!!!!!


They arrived last night.  Aren't they cute?

What?  You were expecting that I was announcing the birth of Miss A?  I wish!  I figured if I must still be pregnant I may as well have fun with this.  :)

Rob picked them up from a friend last night.  One is quite the cuddly little thing; while the other loves to run and explore.

*Even after he let go of her she stayed and cuddled.

Since the kids have done so well with their school work the last few weeks we took today off and headed to the Children's Museum to hang out.

Pregnancy update 39 weeks

Given the number of people checking in with me in recent days I thought I'd post a pregnancy update.  I'm 39 weeks today and the midwife declared Miss A as "cooked" at yesterday's appointment.  Childcare is lined up and waiting.  Bags are packed.  Cupcakes are in the freezer waiting for a birthday party.   We're all just waiting around for the two of us to get this moving.  If I had the ability to get things moving she would be in my arms by now, but its not up to me.  We will just play the waiting game knowing that God knows the very minute of her birth and His plan is good.

Here is a picture I took yesterday after my appointment.  It looks like I just stuck a basketball in my shirt.  It also gives the appearance that I'm "all baby" but if you knew how much weight I have gained you'd know there is no way that is the case.  I'll have plenty of work ahead of me to get back into my regular clothes in the coming months.

In the mean time we're trying to keep up with some school, keeping a bit of order to our days, finishing a few last projects that were low on the to-do-list, and having fun too.

At this point nearly every move she makes can be seen from the outside.  The kids are having fun watching their baby sister squirm around in my belly and poking her to get a reaction.  Mr. K likes to give her kisses and is often sweetly saying to my belly "come out!"

Moments of rest and peace

We're in the home stretch here as far as this pregnancy goes.  I most likely have about a week and a half left.  That means I'm huge, tired and ready to be done.  On top of that Miss C came down with a mild cold and it seems that she was kind enough to pass it on to me.  We've been pushing forward with our regular school schedule, but it sort of fell apart today.  I think I'm about done and I was feeling bad about that....


Then I looked around.  Mr. K and Mr. S were sitting together on the couch enjoying apples and playing a game together on the iPad.

Miss E was reading books to Miss C.

 

Mr. M had offered to read to Miss J and she was really enjoying that.

I'm so blessed that right when I needed that little break, that little pick-me-up; all was right in our world. God had brought such a peace to our home and gave some sweet moments of rest.  I'm also thankful that as I was planning school for this month and next I planned plenty for the kids to do, but not too much.  We're able to relax a bit in these last weeks.  Then Dad can take over for a couple of weeks!

*Mr. R was in the kitchen working on a science experiment.

Embroidery machine fun and getting ready for baby

I've had quite a few little projects on my mind the past few months.  Little things I wanted to do to get ready for Miss A.  This past week-end we had a "girls week-end" which was the perfect opportunity for getting to some of these projects.  I loved that the girls were able to be involved in some of these projects too.

I made up a couple of burp cloths with our family crest/shield.  The one with the full crest is backed in royal blue minky.

I made some sweet "harvest" burp cloths and backed those in orange minky.

 

A couple of new burp cloths for the diaper bag were needed.  I love these verses!  One is backed in brown minky.  I may or may not back the other in turquoise minky, I have not decided yet.

"eat me" and "drink me" Alice in Wonderland burp cloths were something I just could not pass up.  I still want to make a white rabbit one as well as possibly Mad Hatter and Alice also.

 

After being in use for 3-5 years nearly all of our cloth wipes were about done for.  I made up a large stack of green wipes (with a small dot print) and a smaller stack of girlie colored wipes as well.

I also completed a couple of bibs that were left nearly done.  Miss C was so excited to see them, she still enjoys getting new bibs even though she has mostly grown out of wearing them.

Incase you can't tell, the embroidery is pieces of bread with PB, the backgrounds are "strawberry jelly" and "grape jelly"

Whew!  What a productive day!  I was able to mark quite a few things off of my list.  I feel like anything else I manage to get to at this point (in the way of sewing) will just be a bonus.

*Nearly all of these items have duplicates that are available for purchase.  If you are interested in purchasing any of the above items you can contact me through commenting here or e-mailing me  
gabe @ gabesbabes (dot) com

It's a girl?!?!?

At least Miss C is sure it is.  No, we don't know yet.  The topic comes up nearly every day with her.  She is known to sit down, pat my growing belly and start this conversation (or something like it)...

Miss C- Mommy will you read me a book?  Three girls on the couch, you, me and baby ___ (she has the name picked out, you know).

Mommy- You know it may not be a girl, God may give us a boy.

Miss C- (with a "thats crazy talk" look on her face) We can't have two baby boys!  We already have one, we can't have two.

Mommy- Well, you know Mr. K isn't much of a baby anymore.  We wouldn't have two boy babies.  Besides, God sometimes gives families two boy babies.

Miss C- No Mr. K is still a baby.  It will be a girl, named ___.  Here read me this book.

I suppose there really is no point to these conversations until the ultrasound when we have a better idea of "who" is on the way.

Turning!

I'm 39 weeks pregnant, at my appointment today my doctor noticed that Mr. K did not seem to be head down. He identified Mr. K's head somewhere near the top of my belly. An ultrasound was needed to determine his exact position, then we would be calling the hospital to find out when was the soonest I could get in to have him turned....

However there was another patient already waiting for an ultrasound, so I would have to wait a bit. While waiting I sent off a few texts and said some prayers. I could feel Mr. K moving and wiggling around while we (I had the three girls with me, the boys were home with Rob) waited. By the time the doctor got to doing my ultrasound Mr. K was back to head down, leaving the doctor a bit embarrassed thinking maybe he had made a mistake. I assured him that no, this little boy was just being a little stinker!

Speaking of little stinkers.... Mr. K is in good company. Two of his big brothers did just about the same thing to me in the last weeks of their pregnancies. His other brother saved the tricks for delivery! These three boys keep us on our toes, and my guess is that Mr. K will be no different. Life is never dull around here!

An encouraging week!

I've been so blessed this past week to have a friend staying here with me (Miss K). She is a young woman from a church we attend (a couple of hours away). She offered to come help some time around my due date, this was the week that worked for both of us!

*Doesn't she just look like she belongs in our family?

Miss K helped so much with the children, around the house, and in the kitchen. She blessed me so much by helping in these ways, but the fellowship has been just as much of a blessing.

We made several batches of koolaid play-dough one day (the older boys made GAK), which was something I really wanted to get to, but just did not have the energy for.

I had been wanting to make more soap, but just could not see myself taking the two hours needed to make it and then being able to make dinner etc. The only chance I had at making the soap was if Miss K was interested in making soap with me. As it happened, she was hoping that I would be interested in making soap while she was here! We made two batches, one lavender and the other orange!

At the end of the week we took a field trip down to the water. First we went to see the sea lions and got to see pelicans, jelly fish, and plenty of other birds. Then we headed to Fisherman's wharf to try out the clam chowder.

I was able to run some errands on my own a couple of times. The big kids got to go to the park with Miss K during nap time and have more play time outside too. Rob and I even got to go out on a date for our Anniversary!

I had been praying that God would provide the help we would need during this very busy time, trying not to worry and just trust in him. I can't tell you what a blessing it has been to have Miss K here! I was really getting tired and worn down the week before and just ready to have this baby, but knew it just was not likely I would be having him that early. Having Miss K here gave me the physical help I needed, as well as the encouragement and distraction to keep going! She was truly a blessing from God and an answer to my prayers!

*We even went to the Scottish games with her, but thats for another post!

Waiting....

I'm about two weeks from my due date, that means any day now..... OR a few more weeks.

I'm a at that stage where I'm interested in trying some of those interesting foods that have been said to put women into labor.

There's the prego pizza.... while the original is not near here Rob (who is always up for trying an interesting pizza) called a local place to try to duplicate it. It was a GREAT pizza, but obviously it didn't work.

I've been thinking of making the lemon drop cupcakes that are supposed to put women in to labor. The problem.... they are not local, I don't want to put the effort into making them, and that is just too much sugar. Maybe next week I'll be more interested in putting in the effort?

Maybe we will go out for spicy food for our anniversary?

In the mean time I've been so blessed and encouraged this week, but thats for another post....

August move to do list; take it easy!

I've been working hard for months to get our house and our family ready not just for a new baby, but for our move that is coming up in September. I've had a "to-do-list" for the last few months and have worked through just about everything on those lists! I do need to finish a bit of school planning, but that can be done from the couch or bed resting and/or recovering!

Now is the time to start enjoying the fruits of my labor! Here is my "to-do-list" for August

1. finish move prep- this is here only because this job never seems to end and I figure I'll have some nesting energy to put to good use. I don't have anything specific to do, and if I don't do anythings else that's fine too!

2. have a baby- I can't wait to meet this little guy! I'm actually looking forward to labor/delivery (for the most part), it usually goes fairly quickly and without much pain so for me this is one of the easy parts of pregnancy. The hard part is the waiting and wondering when!

3. recover- I need to have some recovery time, no matter how much we have going on around here if I don't get some good recovery time up front that could lead to bigger problems later. The plan- when I get home from the hospital I'll go to my room for a week and enjoy a bit of bed rest, after that I'll have another down week getting up a bit late and cuddling with my little guy downstairs (all of this will of course include plenty of cuddles and interaction with the rest of the family). We've been blessed with wonderful offers of help from friends and my Mom will be here for a few days too, so even if Rob needs to go into work we should be able to follow through with this plan. I'll be taking it fairly easy for the remainder of our time here in CA as well, we will be in "survival mode" doing the minimum that we need to.

4. Prep graduation stuff- Getting a PhD is a big deal, and my husband has worked hard for this. I want to make sure that between the baby and the move that his accomplishment is not overlooked and that we take the time to celebrate it well! I have some simple but special things in mind for celebrating.

I'm linking to organizing junkie this week.

Colds all around!

Last night I started writing a post about feeling ready to have this baby (even though I'm only at 37 weeks and have never had a baby earlier than 39 weeks), that was until the first report of a runny nose. Then Miss C was up quite a bit during the night, not feeling well (Thanks Rob for taking care of her). By this morning I was feeling stuffed up as well....

Who wants to go into labor sick? Not I! Who wants to bring a newborn home to a house full of sick kids? Not I! So I will wait patiently as this passes through. I hear it only lasts about 3 days (it seems to be the virus going around the area, some friends we have not seen in a while just got over something similar).

Fortunately my right hand (aka Miss E) is not sick right now (but 5 of us are). What a blessing she is to us! We will spend the next few days laying low, and I'll pull out some of my back up plans to keep the kids busy with little effort from me!

My sweet hubby picked up a supply of scones and mascarpone cream for me, so I'll be munching on those and drinking plenty of pregnancy tea while I'm taking it easy. So don't feel too sorry for me!

Sewing fitted diapers!

I recently finished sewing up some fitted diapers for Mr. K. Fitted diapers are cloth diapers that do not need to be folded to be put on baby and usually have some sort of closure (I used snaps), but they need a cover as they are not water proof. I had made a bunch of these when I was pregnant with Miss C, but some were pink and I can't put those on a boy!

While I didn't really need these, I already had all of the fabric and snaps. Having a few more was going to be handy and they really did not take all that long to put together. I loved making the minky ones, Miss J and Miss C often came over to touch and kiss the soft diapers. The yellow "space" one is one I've been wanting to make for a long time. I had the fabric left over from making some PJ's and could just see it as a cute little diaper!

Where did the baby go?

This is my view these days when I look down. No, I can't see my feet! Not only that, should there be any small children lurking around by my feet, I can't see them either!

Yes, she was there when I took the first picture!

Pregnancy update- I'm about 32 weeks pregnant now and into nesting mode big time! Baby K and I are doing well. It seems that he may be on the larger side for one of my babies (mine have ranged from 8 lbs 13 oz. to 7 lbs 2 oz) and I'm carrying him way out in front like I did with Mr. R (the largest baby).

I'm starting to think about pulling out baby things, going home outfits (for me and baby), pulling out the infant car seat, and packing the hospital bag. I'm not quite ready to be done with this pregnancy, but I'm getting there.

We are all itching to meet this little guy! Miss J and Miss C love to give him/my belly kisses. I think Miss C plans to be his mommy when he arrives, Miss J may have similar ideas! The kids all have plans for caring for him and loving on him. I'm thinking I'm glad I'll be nursing; just so I'll get to hold him a bit!

Helping little ones through times of adjustment

In about three months we are having a new baby, just six weeks after that we will be moving to a new state. These are big adjustments for adults and are HUGE for a toddler/preschooler. Over the years we've had 6 (going on 7) babies, and moved 5 (going on 6) times; 4 of those moves have involved little ones. I've learned to recognize the signals that my children give me that just maybe they are struggling with these transitions. They have each reacted differently, but they do act out in some way, even when handled well. *some manifestations we've seen of this have been lack of self-control (temper tantrums/screaming), defiance, sleep problems, clingy, constipation, and increased sicknesses.

While our older kids have a much better idea of what to expect during these transitions, can talk to us about how they are feeling about what is going on, and are VERY excited.... Our little ones just don't quite know what to think of all of this; and so they struggle.

*While we don't like to see our little ones struggle, we also see this as an opportunity to teach self-control and coping skills. The issue is not so much that they are struggling, but are we teaching them and helping them along in the process?

As a family we spend time talking about the new baby and our new home. We talk about past moves, and point out the moving trucks in our neighborhood (living on base means a constant stream of movers!). Some of our school time involves reading about our new state, and reading about new babies/pregnancy. I also spend time with the little ones reading simple "new baby" books and right now those seem to be Miss J and Miss C's favorite books to read. I spend extra time cuddling with them when they need it. Yet even with all of this they can and do struggle, it is all still so foreign to them.

In the last couple of months both Miss J and Miss C have been showing us that they are struggling with these transitions. Not in huge ways, but we can see it. Both are naturally very cuddly and clingy. I like that, I like that my little ones enjoy cuddling and prefer to be with "their people" (this includes siblings). This time passes quickly and all too soon they will be off playing and not needing so much of that cuddle time....but when their needs increase as they have, it shows us that they are struggling.

Miss J has always LOVED mommy's bed. From birth laying in my bed could sooth her when nothing else could (not even being in my arms)! So it has been no surprise to us that in the last two months she has started asking to sleep in bed with me. Now, I'm just not a co-sleeping kind of parent. I just don't sleep well with a baby/child in my bed, and I need my sleep. We've been trying out nap times in bed with me, which has been nice, but just not doing it for her. It is night time that she wants to be with me. Ah, how to balance the needs of this sweet little girl and this pregnant mommy?
We set up a little bed for her in our room last night. We will see how that goes. I imagine she will be spending many nights there. I'm guessing we will also have a little guest IN our bed from time to time over the next few months. She will be fine, she will enjoy her new baby brother (who she is very excited about and talks about all the time) and once we settle into our new home she will see that things really are not that different. In the mean time we will love on her (and the rest of the kids too!) and continue doing what we have been doing, trying to keep things "normal" while still preparing for these transitions trusting that God will give us the wisdom, grace and protection to get through this time and praying that we will glorify him in all that we do.

*I hope I did not paint a bleak picture here. Our little girls (and all of our children) are still cheerfully enjoying life. These issues are coming up and part of life, but they are not overwhelming and taking over our lives.

I'm linking to Raising Homemakers today.

Yellow spots on baby clothes

Once we found out we were having a boy I was excited to start going through the bins of baby clothes to see what we already had. Most of the baby boy clothes have not seen the light of day in about six years....

I was disappointed to find that so many of the outfits I had carefully packed away covered in yellow spots!

Mr. S was a very "spitty" baby until we figured out that the dairy in my diet was causing problems for him, so there we LOTS of spots on my favorite outfits.

I soaked all of the sweet outfits (0-3 month size and 3-6 month size) in a bucket of water and oxyclean for about six hours. Then I put them through the wash on a regular cycle with no added soap.

They were looking better, but still needed help. So, on the line they went to let the sun work on those spots!

I'm very happy with the results. There are a couple that I think I can still see a spot or two on, but I think its a case of "I know its there, so I notice it, no one else will see it"