Back to the Quarry

Things I Never Thought I'd Say #2

2012-02-03T10:54:00.000-05:00

"Why are there teethmarks in my chap stick?"

It Makes Sense #2

2012-02-02T09:53:00.000-05:00

(Read about Big Brother's first sensory bin here!)

After a semi-successful run with our first sensory bin (I would have much rather it lasted longer than two weeks) we aimed higher.

A lot higher.

Here is Big Brother with his second sensory bin: colored dry rice. After dying the rice one morning, I set this invitation up for Big Brother during his morning nap. He immediately noticed it and walked straight to it upon exiting his room. If you could hear pictures, this one would say, "Ohhhhhhh!"

We found that he was incredibly interested in the bin, but didn't quite know what to do with it. He would take little handfuls and bring them to us (like he was cleaning!) so we showed him he could use the cups, spoons, and other tools inside the bin.

He quickly learned to fill the cup with rice and dump it back out, which was his favorite activity. A close second was banging in the rice with a wooden spoon which ultimately resulted in airborne rice that landed all over our floor. I think we were finding colored rice in our living room for a few days after this event took place. Worth it? You bet!

It did not last longer than two weeks since Big Brother destroyed it, but this bin was exponentially more exciting for him than his color blue-themed bin.

Directions for Dying Rice
1. Place dry rice in a bowl. Add a teaspoon or two of rubbing alcohol to the rice along with food coloring of your choice. Mix well with a spoon. If the food coloring isn't transferring well amongst all the rice, add more rubbing alcohol, a teaspoon at a time. Mix until you reach desired color.
2. Cover a (preferably paper) plate with a few paper towels and carefully pour on rice. Use a spoon to spread it out into an even layer.
3. Let the rice dry for at least an hour, but longer if necessary. To speed up the process, put the plates outside in the sun on a nice day.

Once the rice is completely dry, it won't transfer any food coloring onto your skin. Place the rice in a bin or bowl and let your tot in on the fun! Spoons for banging or scooping and cups for filling and pouring are a great addition to this activity. Just be sure to monitor your child when playing and never leave him or her unattended.

Have you done any sensory bins with your little ones lately? Which ones are their favorite to play with?

One Year's Time

2012-02-01T17:06:00.000-05:00

January 2, 2011

January 31, 2012

What Do You See?

2012-01-30T09:45:00.000-05:00

Remember the Brown Bear, Brown Bear quilt I posted about on this past weekend's link-up? Well, it turns out I'm actually already working on that one.

Here is as far as I've gotten:

This happens to be my very first quilt. As in...ever. I just had to choose a difficult design, didn't I? The original pattern just so happens to also be out of print, and I couldn't even find it after scouring the internet for it. So, as is customary with the majority of my crafts and projects, I decided to wing it. For winging it, guesstimating on the sizes of the various pieces, and it being my first quilt, I'm actually pretty pleased with how it's turning out so far. I goofed big time on the sizes of the small square pieces, and didn't do a trial run of anything to make sure it would all work and fit together, so I'm losing some fabric here and there to accommodate for my mistake. The mistake is also hindering straight pieces, and it unfortunately isn't fitting together like a puzzle (as I'd assume the pattern would allow it to), but I'm making do in my progress. It may not be perfect, but it will still be special. Big Brother asks to see it every day and wants to carry it around the house and point out the different animals and children. It's melt-your-heart cute.

I'm 2/3 finished with the front pieces, and have taken nearly a week off from working on it, otherwise the front would be completely finished by now. My goal is to have the entire quilt finished by March 7th. Hold me to it! I'll update my progress periodically until then.

Also, please-to-be-excusin' my awful quality phone pictures included in this post. Since this isn't my own design I didn't plan on blogging much about it (read: a tutorial) I haven't documented it much with our camera (read: the only camera picture is the second from the bottom). Thanks!

Weekend Link-Up: Quilts

2012-01-28T10:22:00.001-05:00

My newest crafting obsession: quilts. My goal? Make all five of these quilts in 2012.

(Click picture for original link.)

For Big Brother.

For Gumdrop.

Just because it is so mod.

I'll need to find a baby to make this one for.

And again, might possibly need to find a baby to make this one for.

Do you have any crafts you're planning on making throughout the year?

They're All Natural, to Boot

2012-01-27T10:36:00.000-05:00

What happens when

you turn your back for ten seconds

and you don't know why your toddler is suddenly being so good?

Then you look and find something like this.

It Makes Sense #1

2012-01-26T09:57:00.016-05:00

When Gumdrop was a newborn and Chris went back to work after paternity leave, I was at home with a high needs infant and a busy toddler. I found that high needs tended to trump busy, and really began to struggle early on with managing my time equally - or at least in the most fair manner - between my two babies. I felt as though nearly all of my time was spent nursing, bouncing, shushing, calming, comforting, and holding Gumdrop. It was hard for me to watch Big Brother from a distance most moments throughout the day, so I learned quickly to be intentional with my time spent with him. Once I realized that, I began giving him fun new learning and playing experiences during Gumdrop's naps that not only gave us quality time together but also benefited his brain.

Our first endeavor with sensory learning and fun was a color blue-themed sensory bin.

It turned out to be a bin full of different blue objects, but Big Brother responded well to it. Mostly he enjoyed taking everything out of the bin and placing items back in one-by-one, while placing the lid back "on" in between every item.

Our little organizer!

The bin lasted about 2 weeks before he lost interest in it. He would play with it one or two times a day until he wandered on to something else, but it was good fun and very entertaining for him while it lasted.

What are your favorite sensory bins to do with your little ones?

New to sensory bins? Learn more about them here.

It's Moments Like This

2012-01-25T10:35:00.000-05:00

Yellow lighting and all, it's moments like these that leave me speechless.

Tricks of the Trade #1

2012-01-24T07:58:00.000-05:00

Mothers of boys, this one's for you.

I don't know about the majority of other parenting experiences out there, but it seems as though boys are go-go-go all the time. 'Tis true about our boy wonder. He is 110 miles per hour every waking second of the day. I constantly find myself asking him if he'd like to share some of his energy with me, because Lord knows I need it. And often.

(Know who deserves this picture credit? Tell me! I got it off a friend's Facebook.)

One of the biggest struggles we began having with Big Brother was when he became mobile and realized he could assert his will to not have his diaper or clothes changed. It was a big mess. Especially when I was still hugely pregnant with Gumdrop and wrestling a 1.5-year old on the floor. I would have to hold his arms down with my feet while changing his diaper, and I'd even have races with myself to see how quickly I could get it done. Not to mention the wailing during the entire process. Stressful is an understatement.

Until a month (or more?) ago, when I somehow discovered this fantastic idea:

My one regret is not thinking of it while 8 months pregnant.

When it's time for a diaper or wardrobe change, Big Brother either climbs up on the toilet seat or we put him up there. And he stands there, entertaining himself with a toy, or throwing the things on the counter into the sink, or playing with the shower curtain. He does so while completely cooperating with us during the entire changing ordeal. No screaming, no fighting, and complete patience. Seriously, where was this trick 5 months ago? At any rate, I'm glad we discovered it, however it came about, because diaper and wardrobe changes are a breeze now. We even have his stand there when it's time to brush his teeth and he does wonderful.

*Disclaimer: We are very careful when doing this with Big Brother. We realize how easily he could slip or lose his footing during the changing process, so we watch him intently, hold onto him, and never leave him there alone. We don't want a busted chin or lip out of this, so we do everything we can to make it as safe as possible for the minute or two that he's up there. If you do this with your own children, please take every precaution imaginable to prevent your little one from being injured!

So, moms of boys (or even girls!) do you have any special tricks you do with your kiddos to make life a little easier for you both?

Five Days of Food

2012-01-23T07:12:00.016-05:00

My link-up over the weekend included how to make your kids' food creative and fun. This has nothing to do with that post, really, except this post is also about food for my 20-month old. (Twenty months!) I struggled for a while when we began to transition Big Brother over from baby food to grown-up food. Struggled is really an understatement. After many failed attempts to get him to eat real solid food and him getting through the day mostly on Goldfish crackers, cheese, and smoothies (the only way we could manage to get most fruits and vegetables into him) we stayed consistent and we are finally on the other side of that long road. Now, he's still a pretty picky eater, but we have managed to figure out what works (which is fruit most of the time!) and stick with that. Smart! So here is a peek into Big Brother's weekly lunch menu:

Big Brother is a fan of yogurt. It has always been one of his favorites since the first time he tried it. YoKids squeezable yogurts have been a dream come true for us. He thinks he's big stuff eating them all by himself. This lunch also consists of whole wheat Saltine crackers with white American cheese, raisins, Buddy Fruit snacks, bananas, and a Pocky Stick.

Two of Big Brother's absolute favorite foods (blackberries & pistachios) join together here with whole wheat Saltine crackers, white cheddar cheese, Cheerios, Buddy Fruit snacks, and a Pocky Stick.

Another one of Big Brother's "I'm a big kid" food items is Buddy Fruits pureed fruit blends. We unscrew the top and he sucks the whole pack right down. This lunch also contains a (half) sandwich with chicken breast lunch meat and mustard, bananas, pistachios, Annie's cracker mix, and a Pocky Stick.

Blackberries! Blueberries! Big Brother's two favorite fruits. He would eat cartons of these a day if we'd let him. (Or could afford to let him!) Cucumbers, provolone cheese, pistachios, whole wheat Saltines, and mini chocolate chips complete this meal.

Here we have blackberries, mandarin oranges, white American cheese, Annie's cracker mix, leftover mashed potatoes from dinner the night before, and a treat of half a chocolate chip cookie.

As you can tell, it can be quite redundant some days, but like I said: it works! So that's what we stick with. No, he doesn't usually eat everything on these plates. (Which we transfer to his high chair tray so the plates don't get tossed in the floor and shattered.) Some days he gobbles everything down and most days he'll eat until he's full and periodically he'll be in a mood when he's not very hungry at all and just picks at what we offer. Nine times out of ten he'll eat his berries before even touching the sweets on his tray. He really loves berries.

In addition to his food, he'll get juice (which consists of two ounces of juice mixed with seven to eight ounces of water) to drink. Most often it's apple juice, which is usually Simply Apple Juice. Oftentimes we'll give him Naked drinks (also mixed with water), and sometimes he'll get Simply Lemonade mixed with water.

That's a look at five days of (lunch) food with our toddler. Now it's just time for me to get creative with presentation. Other than the ideas I shared over the weekend, do you have any suggestions for me to get creative with Big Brother's food?

For My Husband

2012-01-22T07:03:00.008-05:00

Beloved husband,

Today is your 26th birthday, and today you are more than just an old geezer. You are also:

My best friend and my soul mate. There is no one else I'd rather spend every waking minute with, laugh with, cry with, joke around with, quote Madagascar with, or get Mellow Mushroom for dinner on a whim with. We fit together like puzzle pieces, you and I. We work well together, parent well together, and have the same desires and dreams for our family. You complete who I am, have all of my heart, and are the absolute perfect match for me. I am grateful to God for bringing you to me, and that you are my life partner and my rock.

Our provider. You understand and take seriously your biblical role to be the head of our home, and you do it for us at any cost, even if that cost is your stress and your sanity most days. You work harder than anyone I know and I am so thankful the Lord has carried you this far. Remember that "...suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." (Romans 5:3b-5) It will be worth it when it's (finally) over.

My cheerleader. Even though you are the biggest skeptic I know, you are always supportive in my endeavors, dreams, and aspirations. Whether it's my decision on a whim to tackle an incredibly difficult pattern on the first quilt I've ever made or my dreams to one day use my talents to "work" from home, you stand by my side, keep me grounded, and believe in me. You also encourage me beyond my own boundaries and nudge my stubborn self to set bigger dreams, and help me also believe I can accomplish the things you say I can. Not to mention you make me feel like I am doing a fantastic job at my most precious and important calling in life: being a mother to our children. Your belief in me and my abilities to fulfill my biblical role are unwavering and your understanding and encouragement for me to be a stay-at-home mom are crucial to the way we function. And you do it so well.

The best Papa. Our babies are incredibly blessed to have you as their father. Your zeal and love for them is insurmountable. The desires you have for them and their lives, the way you want to teach them, and what you want to teach them is priceless. You are fun, playful, and funny, but you are also their rock and protector. They love you with an enormous love, and to watch that grow as they grow into adults is going to be an incredible thing to behold. You are the best fit for their little hearts and they look up to you.

Thank you for being all of these things (and so much more) to me and our precious babies. We couldn't ask for or want anyone other than you as a husband and a father. You are the best. Happy birthday to you, my love. You're everything we could ever dream of and we all love you very much.

Weekend Link-Up: Getting Creative with Food

2012-01-21T10:54:00.000-05:00

We used to have a problem getting Big Brother to eat. (We have me to thank for his childhood pickiness.) Things are getting better, though he's mostly interested in only eating fruit. Which is better than him only wanting to eat junk food, I guess. I've read about being creative with your toddler/child's food and how it works to actually encourage them to eat a variety of items, but I haven't had the time to create anything fun out of food for our little one yet.

But I really want to. I do.

So here are five of the cutest food plates I have come across so far on Pinterest:

(click on photo for original link)

A Rainy Day Lunch

My favorite. Big Brother would love this, I'm sure. Blackberries are one of his favorite fruits, and I think this weather theme is so fitting, seeing as his Papa is a Weather Forecaster and all!

Bird Nest Spaghetti

We don't often have meatballs with our spaghetti (we're talking one time since Chris and I have been married) but this would be a fun twist for spaghetti night for all of us.

Octopus Sausages

How cute are these little fellas? And of course we'd use Boar's Head all natural Frankenfurters instead of hot dogs.

Very Hungry Caterpillar Snack

We are all about some Eric Carle these days which makes this so fitting.

Swimming Fishies Lunch

Another one of Big Brother's favorite fruits = blueberries, so this one would be a huge hit. And come on, folks, those little fish sandwiches are edibly adorable.

One day I will make fun and creative food plates for my babies. I will. And when I do I'll be sure to blog about it. I will.

Have you ever created any fun food for your little ones? What did you make and how did they respond?

Things I Never Thought I'd Say #1

2012-01-20T07:53:00.000-05:00

"Sweetheart, we don't play in the trash can, okay?"

Four More Hours

2012-01-19T10:09:00.000-05:00

That's how many more hours Chris gets to spend at home with us on the days he works, and we couldn't be more thrilled about it if you ask.

It has been 20 (Twenty!) months (Months!) since we have seen the likes of a normal work day. In BMT, he was doing horrendously long days. Unspeakably long days. I-don't-even-know-if-I'm-supposed-to-say-how-long days. For 8.5 weeks he trudged through that insanity. Next came tech school: eight long months of tech school that consisted of 14-16 hour days, Monday through Friday. Eight months of that, folks!

When he finally graduated tech school and we moved to the Hub (for yet more training, nonetheless) he had a slight break where his training was "only" 10-11 hours a day, Monday through Friday. But! Then he graduated that training and went to the floor (where he's still technically "training" and will be until we get orders out of here) and got tossed into 12-hour work days. Initially it was four days of work and two days off until he got certified (meaning he could work on his own) and then it was a wonky schedule that I don't really even remember, but was still bad. Then we thought we saw the light when they got put on what is known as a Panama schedule, which basically meant he only had to work three or four days out of the week, still 12-hour shifts. But we were happy that it was only three or four days.

Unfortunately, he's also on a swing shift, so 12-hour night shifts are hard on our entire household.

And then, another glimmer of hope: Eight! Hour! Shifts! Like normal people do, in normal life. Hallelujah! We still have three separate shifts to deal with, and instead of working three or four days a week, he's now working five. But! They're only 8-hour shifts. Eight! Hours! Essentially he's spending more time at home now, is able to help me with the babies and with grocery shopping (like now, when the babies are napping and I'm getting to sit down and rest!).

Did I mention his shifts are now eight hours? Because they are, and he gets to spend four more hours at home with us on the days that he works. This is big news, people! Huge news.

And now? Now I'm going to enjoy some down time while the wee ones are sleeping, because my husband is more available to us now that he's on eight hour shifts.

Gumdrop the Fun-drop!

2012-01-18T08:02:00.000-05:00

Yesterday our sweet little Gumdrop turned 4 months old. Four! Months! I can hardly believe it myself. Big Brother's first year crept by at a snail's pace. Well, the second half of 2010 and majority of 2011 crept by at a snail's pace in general. But here we are, halfway through the first month of 2012 and we already have a 4-month old wee one in our midst. Our itty bitty Gumdrop is zooming through life and there's nothing we can do about it but relish all the sweet moments with her (and Big Brother of course!).

Gumdrop now weighs in at 13.1 pounds (25th percentile) and measures 24.5'' long (50th percentile). We have yet another long and lean baby on our hands. She is exclusively breastfed, nurses on demand, and more often than not winds up in bed with us at some point during the night. She can roll all the way over, laughs, coos and talks up a storm, and is absolutely enthralled with her Big Brother (who is the absolute sweetest to her, by the way). We are completely smitten with our precious baby girl and are excited to see her grow and develop into a toddler. We stand amazed most days when we see Big Brother and Gumdrop side-by-side. It is utterly incredible to see how quickly babies develop and tear into toddlerhood with both hands outstretched. Only 17 months ago we were going through the same developmental stages and milestones with our firstborn, and now he has calluses on his feet from running and playing so hard and being 110 miles per hour every waking moment of the day.

But I digress, isn't this about Gumdrop?

We're in no rush to start her on solids and I plan to nurse her exclusively until 6 months unless she develops alternative plans.And speaking of alternatives, she is on Dr. Bob's alternative vaccination schedule. We're very thankful for a pediatrician who understands our concerns and respects our decisions as parents and is willing to conform to our desires without making us feel like bad parents like we have experienced in the past with Big Brother's two former pediatricians.

She has also begun to bring her knees under her when she's on her tummy, so we're almost certain she will be trying to get mobile early on - if only to keep up with her Big Brother. We're betting she'll be crawling by 6-7 months and we're anxious to see if we're right.

And the award for the worst sleep-fighter in the history of babies? Goes to our little Gumdrop, I'm sure. Kid hates sleep and I have no idea why since her parents and older brother enjoy it immensely.

Gumdrop at 17 weeks.

Apples & Oranges

2012-01-17T16:00:00.000-05:00

Or in this case, just apples. And "apples," as in singular "apple," as in proper noun "Apple," as in Mac!

All that to say: We! Finally! Got! A! Mac!

It has been a long time coming and it came yesterday and it is everything we knew and expected it to be. Ya'll, Apple really just knows what they're doing.

Now we have a fully functioning computer again (and once we get our HP fixed, we'll have dos) so I have absolutely no reason to not regularly blog. You know, other than having two under two, a house to take care of, and a husband who is about to start working five days a week. Other than that, though, my excuses are quite limited.

And now if you don't mind, as the diapers are being laundered, a chickadee sits next to me sucking on her fingers in her Boppy Lounger, and a husband feeds a hungry toddler in the kitchen, I'm going to enjoy my two more minutes to myself and poke around on our new computer.

Count On It

2012-01-15T16:14:00.000-05:00

15 days into 2012 and I have managed not to blog a single thing. It's sorta crazy how I think I can do everything. But with two babies under 2, a husband with a difficult work schedule, a semi-broken computer, and some big crafts going on, every spare minute of my time seems to be tendered to everything else first before blogging,

But, BUT! I am bound and determined to get this blog back on its feet and up and running this year. I'll update on our two incredible babies, set aside some extra time during the day to blog (on our new computer that will be here tomorrow!) now that Chris' work schedule is finally, finally changing for the better - after nearly two whole years of it being the pits. I'll also update on my big and exciting (to me) crafts.

Right now there's a small Gumdrop calling out for me to bounce her to sleep, so I digress.

And. I. Will. Be. Back.

weekend link-up: living simply

2011-12-31T09:05:00.002-05:00

Thanks to Pinterest, I discovered the blog Simple Mom. It is chock-full of incredibly inspiring posts about simplifying your life. Here are my top five favorite posts that I plan on (and hope to!) implement - or at least try out - in the new year!

"How to Clean Your Face Naturally" by Tsh - If you've been around
my blog long enough, you're possibly aware that I have done this before. I think I just got lazy and quit, but I absolutely can vouch for how amazing this process is and how incredible it makes your skin feel. I can't wait to start it back up again, thanks to a little inspiration by this blog.)
"How to Clean Your Hair Without Shampoo" by Tsh - I'll admit that I'm as nervous (but not skeptical) as I am excited about trying this one out and then transferring it to our sweet babies assuming it works out.
"Your Local CSA: 3 Reasons to Join" guest post by Emily Carter - I am the most stoked about this one. We have a CSA in our area, and even if we can't afford to do the full seasons in the new year, I'm at the very least excited about taking our kids out to the farm to learn where food comes from.
"How to Travel Long Distances with Little Ones (and not go insane)" by Tsh - Because I need a bit of encouragement for our upcoming trip home, even though we aren't flying.
"My Top 11 Blogging Tips" by Tsh - Because we all need a reminder once in a while.

I feel as if I can't comb through Simple Mom enough. If you read these posts, which do you find most helpful or inspiring? If you hop around and read other posts on her blog, which were they and what did you get out of them?

Happy simple and intentional living for the New Year weekend!

weekend link-up: Christmas

2011-12-24T08:40:00.010-05:00

Picture credit

"How We See Christmas Symbols" by John and Noel Piper
"Thinking About Santa" by Noel Piper
"What did Christmas Day look like in your home as your kids grew up?" by John Piper
"Christmas Messages" a Teaching Series by Dr. R.C. Sproul

"The Christmas Conundrum" by Jen Hatmaker

In our home, we do a Jesse Tree instead of a Christmas tree. I also like the gift-giving idea in Jen Hatmaker's post of "something you want, something you need, something to wear, something to read" and we'll most likely pick up that tradition next year.

Do you have any traditions in your home that are not mainstream Christmas celebrations that focus on Christ?

Video Tutorials - Rolled Fabric Flowers

2011-12-19T20:51:00.003-05:00

Here. It. Is. At last! If I told you I've spent the last week attempting to upload this video to 3 different sites 387 different times for approximately 89 hours, would you believe me? No? Good. Because it really wasn't 387 times and most likely not 89 hours, but I did lose count at some point.

The good news is that I was, in fact, able to upload it finally over the course of the past 2 days. I signed up for a free month of Vimeo Plus subscription and wound up splitting the video into two parts, because that's the only way it would work for me. But. They're. Here!

I don't have a tri-pod so I had to shoot the video through our clear desk chair (props for being creative, no?). Hopefully it is sufficient enough for your viewing pleasure! If you have any questions or need any clarification, let me know in the comments.

weekend link-up: Pinspiration

2011-12-16T21:26:00.000-05:00

Follow me on Pinterest!

This weekend's link-up is my top five favorite craft pins. (That I'm eventually going to do!)

A Little "Ruler" Project by Dear Lillie - Because my parents measured me and my siblings growing up and I always enjoyed seeing my growth, especially the spurts! The mobile idea is perfect for our military family.
"A Dad is..." Picture Frame - Since we have a son and a daughter now, this would be a perfect Father's Day gift for my wonderful husband!
Puff Quilt Tutorial for Beginners by The Olsen Family - Because really, don't we all need a puffy quilt to snuggle up with?
DIY: The Perfect Maternity Dress Revamped by The DIY Divas - For when I'm pregnant again!
Gradient Painted Drawers - Already planning on doing this to Gumdrop's dresser when she gets her own room.

I'm looking forward to attempting these projects in the future and sharing them with you. If you're on Pinterest, what are some of your favorite craft pins that you can't wait to do?

I'm...

2011-12-11T21:46:00.001-05:00

Busy.

Tired.

Annoyed that a few letters are not working on my keyboard.
But I'm also
inspired
and ready to re-enter blogging with a bang. Or something.
Trust me, I have a ton of fun ideas to reinvent my little space of interweb, and I am ready to finally get to it.
(Really folks - if there are any of you left out there hanging on with a thread of hope that I'd come back - this blog has been haunting me since I posted Gumdrop's birth story. Not a day has passed that I haven't thought about returning or picking up that draft I started writing two months ago.)
So here's to the return of BTTQ. Reinvented and renewed.
Now I just need a facelift for this place. Preferably for free, and by someone else so I don't have the to sit here and do it myself.
[cricket]

Anyone?

Gumdrop's Birth Story

2011-09-23T20:55:00.001-04:00

16 September 2011

I had my weekly check-up scheduled for 11:30 and saw an OB I hadn't seen before. (My practice has seven doctors, out of which only six deliver.) She was an older woman and extremely nice. She asked me if I would be interested in induction and I asked where to sign up. (Okay, not really. But I did tell her I was very interested without trying to sound too desperate.) After all of her exam duties she handed my chart off to a nurse who scheduled my induction for the 22nd - only six days away! Less than a week! I was incredibly excited that the end was within reach - I really could practically grab it with my hands and put it in my pocket. (Which I did, because the date was written down on a piece of paper.)

I was 2-3 cm dilated at this appointment.

We went home to let Big Brother take a nap before going back out for some errands later that afternoon. When we got back out I was feeling completely awful - sick and exhausted. Walking was a chore and I was having a lot of Braxton Hicks contractions. I may or may not have joked with Chris about feeling so crappy because labor was near. I had a chocolate milkshake and fries from Zaxby's for dinner.

I thought at one point about calling my mom to see if she would prefer to come down that night instead of waiting until the next day, like she originally planned. It was late, though, and I had six days until my scheduled induction and eight days until my due date so I quickly packed that thought away - we had plenty of time. Instead, after Big Brother was in bed, I "cleaned out my system" because, you know, pregnancy causes certain side effects to go on with your body and I was beginning to get to the point of being in pain from it. I'd never had an issue before with the method I decided to use, but it was pretty rough on me this time and I wound up taking some pain medication in order to get some rest. Once my pain meds kicked in, I slept very well.

17 September 2011

I got up to go to the bathroom and when I started walking away from the toilet a gush of fluid came out. I froze. I didn't have my glasses on so I couldn't check to see if it was clear or just more urine, but it didn't feel the same as peeing. I called for Chris. I wasn't moving from where I was standing and didn't plan on moving, and I was afraid he wouldn't hear me since it was early in the morning and he was still in bed. He did hear me, though, and when he opened the bathroom door, I told him: "Either I just peed on myself or my water just broke." As soon as I said it, more came out, and we concurred it was, indeed, my water.

It was 5 o'clock in the morning.

I called my mom to let her know she'd be leaving a few hours sooner than she had initially planned on heading our way and Chris woke up Big Brother and got him ready to leave while I got myself ready in between eating a small bowl of cereal. (And let me just say: it is kind of hard to get ready when you have amniotic fluid leaking out of your lady parts every few minutes.) I contemplated taking a shower but decided against it. I noticed that I began having contractions about 10 minutes after my water broke. Once Chris had Big Brother and himself ready, he finished packing our hospital bag(s) while I had a huge gush of fluid come out. It made me have to change the bottom half of my outfit. We captured our last few minutes at home by taking a self-portrait of just the three of us and we piled into the car.

It was around 5:45 AM.

The drive to the hospital was dark and it was misty out. Since it was so early in the morning there was barely any traffic which was a relief. I could tell my contractions had intensified and it hurt to go over bumps and potholes in the road. I noticed I was feeling them more in my front lower abdomen this time as opposed to all in my back with Big Brother's labor. On the way we talked about if I could walk all the way to L&D and we were happy to see a rogue wheelchair someone had left in the parking garage when we pulled in. Chris ran to get it and I sat down in it with Big Brother in my lap and Chris wheeled us off to the birthing floor.

It was a little after 6 AM.

I arrived to L&D and informed the nurses I was there because my water had broken. They took me (or rather asked if I could walk instead of being wheeled) to a triage room where I changed into the hospital gown. One of the nurses took all my vitals and made sure my information was correct in the computer and asked me about my contractions, and all that other technical stuff. Another nurse came in to do a swab (which was extremely painful - and she had to do it twice because she had a hard time getting around Gumdrop's head for the test) to make sure my water really had broken (it had) and start my IV. They knew I wanted an epidural and when they checked me I was 4 cm dilated and about 80% effaced, so they started "pushing" the fluids into me so I could get the epidural as soon as my OB got to the hospital. By this time I was not able to talk (and later discovered I couldn't walk) through my contractions.

The two nurses who were actually going to be taking care of me that day came to transport me from the triage room to the birthing suite. This time they wheeled me instead of making me walk. I got settled down in the suite and requested some nubain for my contractions right before Chris and Big Brother left. (It was time for a nap since he had been woken up early and we didn't have anyone lined up to watch him since we figured I'd be in labor at least 12 hours - Big Brother's was 25 hours.) The nubain did nothing to touch my contractions, which started to get worse. I asked my nurse if I could have anything else and she said no, that we were just waiting on my OB to show up before they could request my epidural. She was scheduled to be at the hospital by 7:30 AM.

This is where time blurs for me. My contractions got increasingly more painful. I was in tears with contractions that seemed to not take any breaks, and waiting on my OB seemed like it took ages. I could tell my nurse felt really horrible that it was taking so long because of how much pain I was in. I think my doctor finally showed up at 8 AM, checked me and I was 7 cm. She asked me where my husband was which made me get even more upset, since I was already dealing with this awful and horrible pain without him. She told me to tell him to get back to the hospital. Thankfully, before my contractions had gotten too bad after Chris and Big Brother left, my step mom and dad offered to drive over to help with Big Brother until my mom arrived (they live only 4 hours away, as opposed to 8.5 for my mom) and I gratefully accepted - you know, just in case. I had also gotten in touch with a sweet friend I met here at church about possibly watching Big Brother for us in case the opportunity arose. I had to eventually tell her to call Chris because I could no longer talk/text through my contractions - which, like I said, felt like they were literally coming back-to-back without any breaks or relief. I was able to (barely) text Chris letting him know I was 7 cm and that my OB told me to tell him to get back to the hospital. I believe at this time he was on his way to drop Big Brother off.

Looking back, the anesthesiologist - Dr. Gandhi, I believe was his name - arrived remarkably fast after my OB left, although it didn't seem like it in the moment. Waiting for pain relief through seemingly constant contractions was unbearable. My two nurses were there trying to coach me through them, telling me to breathe because my baby needed oxygen, and one of them let me hold and squeeze her hand as hard as I needed to. When the anesthesiologist arrived, they had me sit up and on the edge of the bed so I could get my epidural. For some reason it was easier for me to control my breathing and get through the contractions better at this point - perhaps because I knew relief from the pain was only minutes away. I think I had two or three contractions while the anesthesiologist was working, and I remember him asking the nurse to ask me at least three times if I had any tingling, funny tastes in my mouth and if I could still move my legs. It kind of worried me because I thought I was making it hard for him to do his job on my spine since I was having to breathe heavy through my contractions and they were making me tremble the whole time he was back there. He gave me an initial dosage before he put the catheter in, maybe to try to make his job a bit easier if it would take some of my pain away. It didn't really do anything and I was beginning to feel rectal pressure while I was still sitting up getting the rest of the epidural finished. When he was done, the lower abdominal contraction pain was relieved but the pressure I was feeling was incredibly intense and I knew that could only mean one thing: pushing was in my near future. I told my nurses I was feeling pressure and one of them checked me and I had progressed to 8 cm. One of the nurses asked me where my husband was again, which made me cry again. I sent him this text:

I'm 8 cm. GET HERE NOW.

I think at this point he had already dropped Big Brother off and he sent me a text back letting me know he was on his way. (Later he told me as soon as he got that, he put his emergency flashers on, knocked the car to sport mode, "slightly" sped - I won't say how much - and sprinted through the hospital to get to my room on time.) While he was doing that, everyone else cleared out of my room and it was just me and one of my nurses who had to stay there for a certain amount of time monitoring me after my epidural. The pressure I was feeling just kept getting worse and worse and I could feel my body "pushing" her down with every contraction, but I forced myself to make it through them because I knew at this point I was ready to push for real - but Chris wasn't there yet. Finally after 4 or 6 contractions like that I couldn't take it any more and told my nurse I was feeling a lot of rectal pressure. She checked me and confirmed that I was "complete" and ready to push, so she pressed the call button and asked the desk to prep her room for delivery. She also commented in a rather surprised way that my body was "doing this without pitocin."

Minutes later a swarm of people were in my room getting everything ready, and my other nurse asked again where my husband was. Thankfully he walked through the door a few seconds later and I felt the biggest rush of relief. I wanted to bawl because of just how much I went through without being able to have him there. (Though looking back, we have decided it was absolutely God-ordained that he wasn't there and we are fine with that.) At some point one of our nurses took a picture of Chris and I together, I think it was while the room was still being prepped. Once everything was ready - within 10 minutes of Chris arriving - the nurses let me do a few "practice" pushes. Well, my practice pushes were, uh, really effective and I'm not sure if they immediately called my OB or what all went on, but they told me to quit pushing because I had to wait on her (again) to be able to deliver. While waiting for her, my contractions obviously didn't stop, and the nurses kept telling me: "Little pushes are okay, little pushes are okay." I was actually trying not to push, but my body was doing it on it's own. I was saying things like, "She's hurting me!" and "Ow, ow, ow!" and "Oh my gosh, it hurts so bad!" The nurses started telling me to just "pant" through the contractions and not push (which does not work, people!) and Chris told me (later) they actually had their hands on Gumdrop's head to try to keep her from coming out! Chris also told me (later) that she was out to practically her eyebrows and he started asking the nurses if they were going to deliver because she and I were obviously not waiting. The next thing I know they were telling me to push and I opened my eyes and looked down and saw that they had pulled someone who wasn't my OB into my room to deliver. (We think she was a Lead/Head nurse who was on the floor at the time.) I was relieved I was able to push for real, but I also didn't want to push because it really, really hurt and I knew pushing would make it hurt worse! But I obviously didn't have a choice, so I bared down and pushed our sweet baby girl out. I pushed maybe 10 times total, including the practice pushes.

She was born 8 pounds 5 ounces and 19 3/4'' long at 10:49 AM - less than 6 hours after my water broke.

38 weeks

2011-09-11T19:34:00.000-04:00

This is me, 9 months pregnant with broken A/C in our house. Yup, that's fun stuff there.

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 38 weeks.

Total weight gain: 34 pounds.

Sleep: Fair.
Maternity clothes? Sort of. I'm actually growing out of them now. I only have a few tops that still fit me and am squeezing into bottoms. Thankfully I only have 2ish more weeks.

Best moment this week: I guess my appointment. It's always good hearing her little heart beat.

Movement: Lots!

Cravings: Pizza!

Labor signs: Braxton Hicks.

What do you miss? Everything.
Looking forward to: Getting our A/C fixed. Because, you know, it's pretty unbearable to have broken A/C at the end of summer when you're 9 months pregnant.

Weekly wisdom: I'm too hot and uncomfortable to think of anything.

Milestones: Being 2 weeks away from my due date.

Baby updates:
Gumdrop weighs about 6.8 pounds and is about 19 1/2 inches long. She has a firm grasp, her organs have matured, and she is ready for life outside the womb. (Baby Center)

I'm to that point again

2011-09-10T20:49:00.000-04:00

Some things I can't wait to do when I'm no longer pregnant:

Eat pizza, pasta, chocolate, drink water...heck, consume anything without getting heart burn.
Sleep flat on my back if I want to...without getting heart burn.
Utilize my full lung capacity and not feel like a sack of potatoes is sitting on my chest every minute of the day. (No, Gumdrop has not dropped or "lightened" to allow me to breathe easier these past few weeks. Already one thing she has in common with her big brother.)
Eat at any time of the day I want, and especially past 5 PM if I get hungry.
Not spend a ton of money each month on Tums.
Feel like "myself" again.
Fit into my clothes again. I'm at that I'm-so-pregnant point that even my maternity clothing is getting too small.
Put my wedding and engagement rings back on.
Not be in constant pain of some type throughout the day, or wonder if tonight will be another night of throwing up.
Hold, love, cuddle and get to know our sweet baby girl!

Sometimes being happy

2011-09-07T18:46:00.000-04:00

requires nothing more than staying in your pajamas all day and climbing on a giant box.

(He really is happy. He's just concentrating in this picture.)

What do these items have in common?

2011-09-06T19:54:00.000-04:00

+

Well, probably nothing unless you come to our house. You see, Big Brother has become an extremely picky eater. As an infant, he'd eat any baby food you offered him. Seriously. He had no bias when it came to food. That is, until we began introducing solids. I am unsure if he has a texture issue (like his Mama) or is just exerting his will because he can do it in that area, but the kid just plain refuses to eat sometimes. He even refuses foods he likes. He used to favor bananas and peas, and now he'll toss them in the floor. Some days he'll gobble up blueberries and some days he'll just squish them onto his high chair tray. It's hit or miss, really, and I get extremely excited on the inside when he actually eats for me. (There's nothing like getting him to eat a little bit of meat at lunch by sneaking it onto a grilled cheese sandwich.)

He's doing great for his height and weight at his current age. Or, at least at his last check-up he was in the 50th percentile for both, so his pediatrician wasn't worried about him being picky at this point. But, you know as a mom, I tend to worry about getting him to eat nutritious foods like yogurt, fruits and vegetables. He absolutely loves milk, so we have no issues getting him to meet his daily dairy requirements. Everything else is questionable, but we add a scoop or a scoop and a half of toddler formula to his morning and evening milk to get some extra nutrients into him. Just in case.

Now, what does all this have to do with yogurt, blended fruit, toddler formula and whole milk?

We used to purchase Stonyfield's drinkable YoBaby yogurt but realized it was cheaper and lasted longer to purchase their regular YoBaby cups and thin it out to a drinkable consistency with whole milk. Genius, I know! We hadn't done it in a while until one day when Big Brother was fussy from being hungry because he refused to eat the lunch I gave him. So I decided it would be a good afternoon snack. Not long after we began this, we discovered Buddy Fruits Pure Blended Fruits in the produce section. We thought maybe we could get Big Brother to eat them straight out of the pouch, but he really wanted absolutely nothing to do with it. We had purchased a few pouches initially and of course Chris and I could have eaten them so they wouldn't go to waste, but then I got the brilliant idea of adding them to his drinkable yogurt to sneak a little fruit into his day. I wasn't sure if it was going to work out since he's one smart cookie, but I mixed the yogurt, fruit and milk together in a sippy cup and he gobbled it right up! I like to think he just assumes it is flavored yogurt, but whatever his little mind thinks doesn't really matter since he obviously thinks it's awesome! I also started adding a little bit of formula to the mix just to sneak in a few more nutrients throughout the day.

Needless to say, it has been a huge hit. And since the Buddy Fruit blends come in different flavors we are able to mix the taste up daily so he doesn't get burnt out since it has become a daily afternoon snack.

To make your own Big Brother tested and approved smoothie: combine 1/2 of a YoBaby yogurt cup (we use vanilla flavor), 1/2 of a pack of Buddy blended fruit, 1/2 of a scoop of toddler formula and a few ounces of whole milk (just enough to make it drinkable) in a sippy cup. Shake well (covering the sippy cup holes, of course!) and serve to your very thankful toddler.

I have no clue what the nutritional value of this is, but I do know that the yogurt and milk go toward his daily dairy requirement, and that half a pack of the blended fruit is equivalent to one daily serving of fruit. Add to that whatever the half scoop of formula adds, and we think it is a pretty healthy and fulfilling snack for him to have that we're happy he enjoys!

37 weeks - Full Term!

2011-09-03T10:46:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 37 weeks. AKA full term! Yay!

Total weight gain: 33 pounds. Finally started gaining again after about 3 weeks of nothing.

Sleep: Actually pretty decent the past few nights. I think my body is just finally over exhausted.
Maternity clothes? Yup.

Best moment this week: Hearing at my appointment that my body is making progress.

Movement: She's a feisty one.

Cravings: Brownies. Yum!

Labor signs: Still having lots of Braxton Hicks. I don't mind, though!

What do you miss? Not feeling tired during the day. Oh, and also being able to keep up with Big Brother.
Looking forward to: Having our baby girl with us soon.

Weekly wisdom: Don't forget to take off your wedding rings before your fingers get too swollen. Oops.
Milestones: Being full term.

Baby updates:
Gumdrop is now considered "full term," even though my due date is still 3 weeks away. She weighs about 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches. (Baby Center)

36 weeks

2011-08-28T18:15:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 36 weeks.

Total weight gain: 31 pounds. Haven't gained anything for a few weeks now.

Sleep: Awful, awful, awful.
Maternity clothes? Sure thing.

Best moment this week: My appointment and hearing Gumdrop's heartbeat again.

Movement: Wiggle worm.

Cravings: Egg rolls, chocolate pudding and Eggo waffles. But not together.

Labor signs: Lots of Braxton Hicks. Thankfully they're actually doing something. For now. Even if it is just a teeny tiny bit.

What do you miss? Sleeping without heartburn or pain in my back and hips.
Looking forward to: Bring full-term.

Weekly wisdom: I wish I had some.
Milestones: Almost being full-term.

Baby updates:

Gumdrop is still packing on the pounds at the rate of about an ounce a day, and now weighs about 6 pounds. She's also about 18.5 inches long. She's losing most of that downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her 9 months in amniotic fluid. She swallows both of these substances along with other secretions that results in a blackish mixture - called meconium - that form the contents of her first bowl movement(s). At the end of this week, she will be considered full-term. (Baby Center)

August Series Month: Room Rearranging

2011-08-26T08:00:00.009-04:00

This week's series is "organization to prepare for Gumdrop."

I've been focusing this week on some changes we've had to make to the way our house functions as a home in order to be prepared organizationally when Gumdrop arrives. Mostly I have focused on the master bedroom, since she will be living with us there until we get a bigger place to live. Until then, we've had to make some things just work for the time being.

Today we're going to visit two other rooms in the house (as well as take one last look at how the master bedroom will function) as we wrap up this week's series dedicated to organization.

Our first stop is, naturally, the master bedroom. I only have a "before" photograph of what has been the most crucial part of our bedroom "remodel," but don't fret. The other part of the room (which I have an "after" of) isn't too much different than the before.

Before

After

The only thing left to do is move my end table (the one with the video monitor on it) so the co-sleeper (in the back left corner of the first "after" photo) can go there. Those two items will just switch places, but we probably won't move them until after we get home from the hospital.

The next stop is our living room:

Before

After

Not too much has changed in the living room, but it's enough to merit mention. We used to have Big Brother's exersaucer located on the wall between the fireplace and the sliding doors, but we've retired that toy for now since we just don't have the room. It is in a closet until further notice. We chose to place the pack and play in front of the fireplace (which is gas, has no ventilation and never gets used) which also works as a barricade to keep Big Brother out of it. We have a section of our baby gate leaning up against it, but he could still get behind it. Now the pack and play holds the baby gate section in place and also acts as a natural barrier since Big Brother can't move it.

My dad and stepmom also graciously purchased a swing for us, which we only had room for between the lounge and one of our couches. It can fold up smaller, as well, so if we need to temporarily relocate it for any reason we'll easily be able to.

Our final stop is Big Brother's room:

Before

After

Big Brother's room is the one that went through the most changes and rearranging, and that's mostly because we needed to fit his Ikea chair back in there. If you'll notice in the "before" picture from our master bedroom, hiding in the left side is his chair. We didn't use it in his room and his room is so terribly small that we just kept it in our room once we moved here. However, we didn't use it in our room, either! Once we realized the chair was going to have to go back in his room, we figured out a way to make it (barely!) fit in Big Brother's room. His crib and dresser got switched walls, his bookshelf got flipped upright and put on a narrow wall, and the chair got squeezed into the corner by the window. Although this set-up gives him less space in his room, I actually like it better.

Even though we still don't ever really use his chair!

August Series Month: Master Bedroom Dresser

2011-08-25T08:00:00.000-04:00

This week's series is "organization to prepare for Gumdrop."

On Monday I mentioned the fact that our master bedroom has to function for four separate uses. Today we are looking at how I managed to accommodate our small living space to fit a third human being's needs, which takes us on a journey to the master bedroom dresser.

Chris and I have actually not had a dresser since we've been married. That is, until we moved in March. Thankfully, everywhere we've lived over the past three years has had the closet and storage space to allow us to make it without one. Until we moved here, of course. Finally, after three years of marriage, we invested in a 6-drawer dresser from Ikea. It easily broke down to three drawers each.

Well, since we only have two bedrooms, and they're both being occupied, we needed to figure out a way to accommodate Gumdrop "living" in our master bedroom with us. Since she doesn't have a room of her own, we have no storage for her, and we didn't want to keep her essentials in Big Brother's room for the sake of not having to go in there during naps or night and fear waking him prematurely.

So I decided to do a bit of rearranging to our dresser. I gave up my top dresser drawer to hold some of Gumdrop's essentials, and we also invested in a few canvas cubbies to utilize on top of our dresser.

Here is before:

Top: a mess before I organized my craft table. Bottom: not being used for anything but the display of a few photographs.

And here is how it looks now:

The top of the dresser is where the changing pad is located for all those fun diaper changes we'll be in for. The cubbyto the left of the changing pad is filled with her newborn clothing items so they can be within reach. (The extra items in there will be eventually moved when we finish setting our room up and more storage opens for them. But for now they're just hanging out with the NB clothes until that happens.) The cubby to the right of the changing pad is full of stuffed and ready-to-go cloth diapers and is located behind the wipe warmer that we'll use to warm cloth wipes.

Finally, the top dresser drawer that I gave up is currently home to hair/head accessories, extra changing pad pads, 0-3 month clothing and a few other "odds and ends" that may be needed at any given moment.

I'm guessing that dresser turned out to be a better investment than we first imagined it would be!

August Series Month: Diaper Routine (Part Two)

2011-08-24T08:00:00.000-04:00

This week's series is "organization to prepare for Gumdrop."

Surprise! I know I said yesterday that I didn't have time to do any vlogs for this week, but what I actually meant is that I didn't have time to do as many as I'd have liked to. So today you're getting a special treat - a vlog!

I do apologize in advance for my awkwardness, any low audio, and the poor video quality. But other than that, please enjoy my little attempt at vlogging.

August Series Month: Diaper Routine (Part One)

2011-08-23T08:00:00.015-04:00

This week's series is "organization to prepare for Gumdrop."

I really wanted to be all creative-like and make a few vlogs (read: video blogs) for this week's series. Today's post being one of them. But, who was I kidding? Who has the time to do that (read: shower, get dressed, put make-up on, etc.) when you're chasing around a toddler by yourself all day while in your third trimester? Um, definitely not me. So instead I'm taking the easy way out and quickly blogging with a few pictures to illustrate my post.

Same old, same old. I know, I know. But need I keep reminding you that I'm 35 weeks pregnant? And chasing after a toddler?

I didn't think so.

Now, in this particular post I'm going to talk about Big Brother's diaper routine. It doesn't actually have a whole lot to do with the organization to prepare for Gumdrop, but if you'll notice, I kindly titled this "Part One." Which means there will be another post tomorrow to coincide with this post, which will be about Gumdrop's prospective diaper routine. This post is just a helpful precursor to that, since it's already in full swing and hers is just theory until she arrives.

To get started, we have Big Brother's diaper stash nicely and neatly organized* in the top drawer of his dresser in his room. This is how it has always been, since before he was even born. Since we utilized his dresser top for the changing table, this just made sense and worked well for us. (Kindly note that he no longer stays still enough for us to use his changing pad, so it will get transferred to a spot where we will use it for Gumdrop.) The diapers, however, will remain put.

*Usually.

Now, here is the breakdown of his stash:

Yes, yes, yes. Those are disposables in there. We use them only at night, because Big Brother is a heavy wetter as well as a belly sleeper. Any combination of our current stash has not deterred the multiple changes needed during the night - which sometimes included a change of clothes and crib sheets. We were more concerned that he was over one year old and still waking multiple times a night, and since we've put him in sposies at night, he will sleep through the entire night. $7.29 for a pack of diapers that will last nearly a month is definitely worth it for us all to sleep straight through the night. (Although I have heard that Fuzzi Bunz are great overnight diapers, so we might invest in a few for that purpose alone. We'll see.)

The cloth diaper breakdown is this: 13 Ecobumz (four velcro and nine snaps) and 14 Comfy Rumps (two velcro and twelve snaps). The only Ecobumz we use now are the velcro diapers, and usually only when we want a quick change or on the rare occasion that we've slacked on washing and the Comfy Rumps are all dirty. We just really like and prefer the Comfy Rump diapers, so if there is one clean (and there typically is!) we'll pick that over the Ecobumz. We are also waiting on an order of 10 Sunbaby diapers to try out. (Not all ten are for Big Brother, though.)

I typically try really hard to have all of his clean diapers stuffed and in his drawer ready to go when we need them. Yeah, sometimes that doesn't happen. But thankfully it isn't that hard to pull out the shell and liner and stuff it really quickly if need be.

Once we have a wet or soiled diaper, it's off to the laundry room*! (Well, unless it's a soiled diaper. Then it's to the toilet first to be dumped or dunked.)

Kindly excuse the gigantic pile of clean laundry that needs to be folded. I'm 35 weeks pregnant, remember?

*More like laundry closet.

Our set-up in the laundry room is actually incredibly simple. We use a dry diaper pail, which basically means there's nothing fancy about it. We don't do a single thing to it except toss the diapers in it. We don't add baking soda or anything else to it. Mostly because we're lazy, but it works for us. (And even though it has a slight odor, the lid is always holding it in and it never seeps out into our living area.) The pail sits on top of the dryer and fills up with diapers until they need to be washed. The good thing about having a smaller pail is that we never go more than two days without washing a load of diapers, so we always* have them clean and ready to go.

*You know, except for that rare occasion.

Side note! Our handy-dandy laundry room came with this great storage rack that we use to hang our diapers on. Comfy Rumps recommend air-drying, so that's where we hang them. The Ecobumz are able to go into the dryer. Also, when we get our Sunbaby diapers in, we will hang those to dry. End side note!

When the diaper pail is full and/or we have enough dirty diapers to wash, we begin the washing process.

Our washing process consists of two steps. The first step (after transferring the diapers from the pail to the washer!) is to run a rinse cycle. Our washer has a rinse/drain and spin cycle, which uses cold water to do just that - rinse, drain, and spin! It also automatically does an extra rinse.

Once the rinse cycle is complete, we add a tablespoon or two (depending on the load size) of Rockin' Green detergent to the detergent tray and set the washer to the heavy duty wash cycle. This cycle allows us to use the "sanitary" water temperature setting. This setting also automatically does an extra rinse, so the diapers get nice and clean!

Once they're done in the washer we hang the shells to air dry and dry the inserts in the dryer. I would say that the process starts all over again, but really it never actually ends!

August Series Month: Craft Table

2011-08-22T08:00:00.003-04:00

This week's series is "organization to prepare for Gumdrop."

With our sweet little Gumdrop on the way, something absolutely had to be done about our lack of space. We downgraded nearly 700 square feet when we PCS-ed here. We lost a bedroom and a good amount of extra storage, so we've had a fun (ha!) time trying to figure out where to put things, store things, and make things work.

One of our compromises to losing a bedroom is having Gumdrop share our master bedroom for an undisclosed amount of time. (Well, I guess it isn't really a compromise since we planned on co-sleeping with her anyway. We just don't have an extra room to designate her things like we did when Big Brother was born.) Well, not only is our master bedroom going to turn into a shared room among the three of us, but it is also currently where my craft area is and where Chris' workout bench and weights are. So, one room with four uses? Sounds pretty fun, right?

I had to tackle it without complaint, because there is no other option.

My first project was to organize my craft area. It needed revamping - desperately and immediately. See?

It was nothing but a gigantic mess! I needed some storage for all of my fabric, buttons, tools, etc. I decided to purchase some new fabric storage bins for Big Brother's room and use his "old" bins for my craft table. (The "old" bins we had in his room were small, so I replaced them with some $2.50 back-to-college fabric bins from Target that actually fit in his bookshelf cubbies.) And the result?

A neatly organized craft area that doesn't take up an overload of space in our master bedroom anymore!

The best part is not even that everything is neatly organized and easily findable when I need it n.o.w! But instead, our dresser top is no longer home to a myriad of random craft supplies and/or projects. It is now free to be exactly what we need it to be...which I will reveal toward the end of the week!

35 weeks

2011-08-20T22:13:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 35 weeks.

Total weight gain: 31 pounds. Not so sure why I'm losing weight at this point.

Sleep: Back to being pretty fair. The heartburn keeps me up.
Maternity clothes? Without a doubt.

Best moment this week: Being able to purchase a few more things for Gumdrop and getting more things set up in the house for her arrival.

Movement:Tons.

Cravings: Ice cream, chocolate cookies and red grapes!

Labor signs: Braxton Hicks.

What do you miss? Feeling like "me."
Looking forward to: My appointment next week, and going to weekly appointments after that.

Weekly wisdom: Keeping up with a toddler while 35 weeks pregnant is a serious job. Is that wisdom? Or just general knowledge?
Milestones: 35 weeks.

Baby updates:

Gumdrop doesn't have much room to maneuver around now that she's 18 inches long and weighs around 5 1/4 pounds. Her kidneys are fully developed now, and her liver can process some waste products. Most of her basic physical development is now complete - she'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight. (Baby Center)

August Series Month: Homemade Wooden Name Blocks (Repost)

2011-08-19T08:00:00.000-04:00

This week's series is "crafts."

I know it might be considered cheating for me to be doing a repost during my series month. But I'm doing it for two very good reasons: 1.) I'm 35 weeks pregnant tomorrow. 2.) I'm 35 weeks pregnant tomorrow.

Okay, okay. The second reason is really because this is a popular post. In fact, it is one of the top three most viewed posts on BTTQ. How special! So I figured in honor of craft week, I would repost it since it is all famous and stuff.

Or something.

(And also because: did I mention I'm 35 weeks pregnant tomorrow?)

Ahem.

Homemade Wooden Name Blocks

(click for original post location)

As I inch closer and closer to my due date, I realize I still have four months to go. And then I quickly realize, wow, I only have four months to go! This pregnancy is zooming along, unlike my first pregnancy which crept by at a snail's speed. Thankfully, since we're on our second baby, we don't have nearly as much preparing to do. At least, not in the sense of oh-my-gosh-there's-still-a-thousand-things-we-need-before-the-baby-arrives! Nope, this time around we have all the cloth diapers, all the furniture, all the things we need. (Well, except enough girl clothes and maybe a few girl blankets.) So the good news is I get to enjoy this pregnancy a little more than my first. No rushing, no I-don't-know-what-to-expect's, no is-this-going-to-get-done-in-time's. Which, in all honesty, is such a relief seeing as how quickly my halfway mark has come and gone, and we're actually in the final leg of this pregnancy.

This time around, I'm not in my last semester of college, we're not working on a nursery (and won't be for a while, since Gumdrop will be staying in our room for an unforeseen amount of time after she arrives), we're not preparing for Papa to leave for 8.5 weeks, and we're settled in a home we'll be at for at least another two years. And even though all of that is replaced by a very mobile, fun, demanding one-year old, I still don't have nearly as much on my plate. Which means extra time to rest and extra time to craft! My husband lovingly took the reigns last weekend and let me do nothing but craft to my heart's content. And boy am I excited and happy with the results!

Unfinished wooden blocks and letters from Hobby Lobby along with paint, embellishments, a spare button, and some creativity turned into our sweet little girl's first homemade project:

(And no, her name is not Ayil. But those are all the letters, so have a little fun of your own, play a little word scramble and see if you can figure it out!)

I plan on getting more supplies this weekend to make one for our fun-loving son, because the possibilities are endless with this craft! Of course, since Gumdrop won't have a nursery (or even a room!) for a while, I'm not quite sure where this will go. But I'm still glad I did it. I'm pretty sure this is something she'll treasure for a long time. And even if she doesn't? I know I will!

August Series Month: Patchwork Lovey Blanket

2011-08-18T08:00:00.001-04:00

This week's series is "crafts."

I'm trying to be more of a DIY mama. You know, the type that can whip up anything homemade at the drop of a hat. Or something? In light of this new aspiration, I've been whipping things up for Gumdrop and honing my sewing machine skills all while in my third trimester. (See also: Moses Basket bedding and baby beanie.) I'm living on the edge, dontcha know? Well, seeing as I had all this loverly knit and minky fabric I used to make the aforementioned items, I decided to try my hand at a lovey blanket to match. (Why not, right?) One of those delicious little patchwork ones you see on etsy with those cute sensory ribbons all around the edges. They're all edibly adorable, and I wanted one. (Well, for Gumdrop.) So I ran through a few twenty-something pages on etsy scoping out all the different ways they could look, settled on the nine-squared patchwork design backed with minky, and took off creating a (mini/lovey) blanket for the very first time.

And now, you can, too!

1. Cut out your squares for the patchwork side of your lovey. I used a 5 1/2'' squared picture frame to trace around so that all of my pieces were the same size and actually squares. I kept it simple and only used two different fabrics (mostly because I didn't have any other fabric options to work with) but you can use all different fabric patterns or three or four different ones. It is up to you!

2. Arrange your squares on a flat surface in the pattern you want to make.

3. Going row by row, sew together three pieces of fabric (1/4'' seam allowance). Pin together and sew one square at a time, making sure you're pinning right side to right side. Also be careful during this step to keep your printed fabric patterns facing the correct direction.

At the end of this step, you will have three rows of three squares sewn together.

4. Now sew your rows together length-wise (1/4'' seam allowance). I started with the middle section, "folded" it down on top of the bottom section and pinned it together right side to right side. Be sure to remember to keep checking your printed fabrics to make sure they are facing in the correct direction!

Once the first two rows are sewn together, pin and sew the final row.

5. You now have the patchwork side of your lovey completely assembled. Lay your minky fabric on a flat surface and place your patchwork section on top of it. Cut around the patchwork section on the minky, adding at least 1/2'' to each side, if not more.

6. Make sure your two fabrics are right side to right side. If you want sensory ribbons attached to your lovey, pin them on now. You will want to sandwich them between the two fabrics and face them backwards, so that when you turn the blanket right-side out the ribbons will be facing the correct directions. Once you've pinned the ribbons on, pin the rest of the two fabrics together. Use a lot of pins when working with minky. (I found this tutorial extremely helpful when sewing these two pieces together.)

7. Begin to sew your fabric together with a 1/4'' seam allowance, using your patchwork fabric as the guide since your minky fabric is cut bigger. Be sure to leave a wide enough section of your blanket unsewn so that you can turn it right-side out through that hole. I only placed one ribbon on each outside square, so I left one whole section between two ribbons open. I also stitched over, back stitched, then restitched over every ribbon, resulting in each ribbon being reinforced with a seam three times.

8. Once you have sewn the blanket together (except the opening to turn the fabric with), trim the excess fabric off the edges to reduce bulk. I didn't trim the ribbons with this (first) lovey. (I made another one for Big Brother and did trim them with the fabric, so do whatever you feel more comfortable with.)

9. I left a little extra fabric around the open edge so that I could easily fold it/tuck it inside and still have enough fabric at the opening to top-stitch a seam using a 1/4'' seam allowance so I wouldn't have to sew closer to the edge here to make sure it got closed. So, once you've turned your blanket right-side out, fold in your open edges and create a nice flat edge by pressing down with a hot iron.

The scissors are showing where my open edge is located - between those two ribbons.

Continue to press down all the edges of the entire blanket with the hot iron to make a flat edge.

10. Top stitch a seam around the entire perimeter of the blanket using a 1/4'' seam allowance. I used a straight stitch but you could use a zig-zag to make it look more fancy. Or something. (This also reinforces your ribbons a fourth time.)

Heat seal the ends of your ribbons, and you're done! Your sweet little one now has a special little lovey to cuddle up to. (Or you can make it as a gift to give away!) Big Brother was interested in his little sister's lovey so I made him one of his own, using the same steps above, except I made the patchwork squares bigger and only used four instead of nine. Possibilities are endless with this craft!

August Series Month: Rolled Fabric Flower Accessories

2011-08-17T08:00:00.000-04:00

This week's series is "crafts."

My newest crafting obsession: rolled fabric flower rosettes. They are petite, chic, lovely and dainty all at once. They can be added to hair clips, headbands, high heels, and my personal favorite: necklaces.

I was absolutely certain I could make these lovely little flowers all on my own, so I scoured the internet to try to find a decent tutorial on making them. Even the best one I could find made it seem so easy, and when I tried making them on my own, I just did okay. I'm convinced now that you just have to take in as many tutorials as your mind can handle, grab the fabric and glue gun, and go at it. Your own style will emerge and you'll get better and better at making them, but you will sway from the original instructions and do what is comfortable for you. It took me a few attempts to figure out just how I could personally make the best flowers I could make, and I'm so glad I never gave up. I went from making this:

to this:

Can you see the huge difference in the way they appear? It was just a matter of tweaking and finding my own "style" and I was finally able to fall into a groove to make them my own.

And that's just what I did! One week I just put my head down, made a ton of flowers, and turned them into necklaces:

and hair accessories:

Want to make your own rolled fabric flowers? Click here! (This is the best tutorial I could find, but do tons of research, read/watch as many tutorials as you can stand to find, and then try and try again until you find a method that is fun and easy for you!)

Want to turn your flowers into a necklace? Click here!

August Series Month: Coffee Cozy

2011-08-16T08:00:00.001-04:00

This week's series is "crafts."

I have been wanting to learn how to knit for a while now. So one day I told Chris I wanted to teach myself, we headed to Hobby Lobby and I bought supplies to learn. I thought it would be easy using this mini series, but I was so very wrong. I couldn't follow the photos, instructions or videos she linked to. Instead, I wound up utilizing the online resources from the yarn I bought. Step-by-step instructions with non-real-life illustrations were just what I needed. I was on my way to knitting my very first project - a washcloth. Simple and basic, it got me used to using the needles, casting on, using the knit stitch and binding off. The washcloth now sits in my craft drawer untouched, but it was a good first attempt and I'm actually pleased at how it turned out.

One mistake I made in my zealous effort to learn to knit is that there are so many different things involved when you want to start doing more complex projects. I was under the naive impression that there were only one size and type of needles (you just chose if you wanted to use metal or bamboo) and a lot of choices of yarn. Well, my friends, I was rudely awakened when I finished my washcloth and thought I was ready to move on to making my first knit baby hat. Apparently there are many different sizes, shapes and types of needles used for different projects, and sometimes you even need multiple needles! And the yarn? Oh, the yarn! It has different grades and qualities that work best for some projects and not at all for others! So imagine my surprise when I started researching tutorials and patterns and was left with a very, very limited number of options when it came to my size 8 needles and one type of yarn.

But I wanted to make something with my new found skill. Thankfully I remembered a post on O My Family about a few starter knitting projects - one of which was a coffee cozy. That seemed easy enough, and I had the supplies necessary to give it a shot, so I did!

I was able to research and learn a few new techniques (like slipping the first stitch to make your ends more even and knitting in your cast-on tail so you don't have to weave it in later) which really, really noticeably improved my knitting quality in just one project. Oh, the wonders of the internet!

Unfortunately, I haven't done much more knitting since I finished this project since there is so much more to the knitting world than I first realized. But someday I hope to pick it back up again and learn even more new techniques and expand my new hobby to actually put it to use.

Want to learn how to knit? Click here!

Want to learn how to knit this coffee cozy? Click here!

August Series Month: Baby Beanie

2011-08-15T08:00:00.000-04:00

This week's series is "crafts."

I am super excited about having a little baby girl. I have had so much fun picking out all the little girl clothes and accessories, looking at little shoes, and just anything else you can think of girl-related. One of the really fun girl-related endeavors I have been up to includes making baby items for our little Gumdrop. (True, I can/could have made boy items for Big Brother, but I was in a different place in life - yes, just over a year ago - and didn't see much further beyond designing his nursery.)

One of the fun craft blogs I follow had a tutorial on making baby blankets and beanies out of jersey knit fabric back in February. At the time she published the posts, I was barely pregnant, certainly didn't know whether I would be having a boy or a girl, and had zero confidence that I could pull something that cute off. When we did find out we were having a girl, I wished I could make one of those sweet little beanies for her, but still had zero confidence in my skills.

When I decided to dive in and make new Moses Basket bedding for Gumdrop, I had leftover - you guessed it! - jersey knit fabric. And since I had accomplished something so impressive, I thought I'd go ahead and give the beanie a try. I was - as I always am when it comes to sewing machine-related projects - skeptical at my skill level and the craftsmanship of the project, but I think it turned out fairly decently.

At the very least, I can't wait to see it sitting nice and snugly on her little newborn head when she's born.

Swoon.

Want to make your own baby beanie with jersey knit fabric? Click here!

34 weeks

2011-08-14T22:13:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 34 weeks.

Total weight gain: 32 pounds. Regaining that weight I lost from being sick last week.

Sleep: Actually pretty good lately. But I also have been taking sleeping aides.
Maternity clothes? For sure.

Best moment this week: Finally getting back to my old (pregnant) self after being sick.

Movement: Lots!

Cravings: I'm still craving cookies and junk food. But it isn't good anymore. I have been craving tons of water and grapes lately, though.

Labor signs: Same old Braxton Hicks!

What do you miss? Not having heartburn!!!!
Looking forward to: My 35-week milestone next week.

Weekly wisdom: Rest, rest, rest if you get sick.
Milestones: Being one week away from 35 weeks.

Baby updates:

Gumdrop now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers - which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born - are filling her out and making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system and lungs are continuing to mature. (Baby Center)

August Series Month: Update on Chris' Job

2011-08-12T08:00:00.002-04:00

This week's series is "skribit suggestions."

Well, I have been wondering the past few days why skribit on my sidebar has been down and not working. I decided to click on it to see if there was an explanation and found out that skribit is shutting down! If you still have anything you'd like to suggest now or in the future, just hop on over to our contact page and let us know!

To close out this week's series (and bid skribit fare-thee-well) I'll briefly and vaguely explain a little bit about what Chris is up to at work. (And by briefly and vaguely, I mean that even I don't know the extent of what he does, nor can a lot of it be shared, so I'll do my best.)

As many of you know, Chris has been training for well over a year now. From BMT to tech school to, well, now. He's still technically in OJT (on-the-job training) the whole time we're here, which could be anywhere from 18-24 months. As I explained not too long ago, we're technically not even at our first duty station yet because of the nature of his job and all of the training he has.

I mean, I guess it makes sense when you take people who have never given a second thought to weather forecasting and tell them that's what they'll be doing. It really is a unique and hard job to do. Especially in the military where everything is so scrutinized. I mean, really. Most people's knowledge of weather doesn't go beyond what a cumulus cloud is, which they learned about in science class in middle school. Right? So when Chris talks to me about frontal passages and haboobs, I'm pretty lost. So what he does is important. Like, really important.

Up until his recent graduation at the beginning of July, he was still in "school"-like training. Now, even though he's still technically training (and will be for the next year to year and a half) he's actually forecasting the weather for real places and times. He works shifts, has a certain number of forecasts to write during his shift, then has to watch them the rest of the time he's there to make sure they stay in category. If not, then he has to amend his forecast. That's it. That's what he does.

In addition to his actual job, he has upgrade training to do and is working toward getting his Associate's degree from the Community College of the Air Force so he can start working toward his Bachelor's in the spring.

I don't know much more about his job than that, and I'm not sure if there's much more about it that he can even tell me. But that's what he's doing now. Training, training, training. Even though he's finally doing his job.

And we're looking forward to PCS-ing out of here when the time comes.

August Series Month: A (Not so Usual) Day in the Life

2011-08-11T08:00:00.000-04:00

This week's series is "skribit suggestions."

An early start to the day is when we have to wake him up (the ultimate parent no-no) to be fed and changed.

A not-so-happy toddler after Papa walked away from the car and into work.

Home for a morning nap while Mama gets ready. (Before doing the ultimate no-no again to this poor guy.)

Not very happy with me at the doctor's office.

Passed out from being worn out from being woken up early twice and poked and prodded at the doctor's office. (Note the band-aids on both legs from shots. Poor baby.)

Leftovers and Mama's computer time for lunch while the little one is supposed to be napping. (He didn't.)

Time for our big boy's lunch. (Note the finger pokes in the bread.)

Time to play!

Snack time! (Insert photo before this of the fastest trip we have ever taken to the commissary - the reason I forgot to even photograph it.)

Someone finally went down for a nap and Mama gets to work on the blog.

Woken up from his nap again so we could get ready to go pick up Papa from work.

Had his milk and changed into his pajamas and still had a few minutes to play before we left.

I don't even have any words for this one.

Waiting in the car in the parking lot of Chris' work.

Then it was home and straight to bed for our little guy after his unusually full day, dinner for us, and off to bed we went!

August Series Month: Big Brother's Most Fun Age

2011-08-10T15:07:00.000-04:00

This week's series is "skribit suggestions."

When I first saw the suggestion of the topic "What's your favorite age Big Brother has been and why?" I had no doubt in my mind I would choose his current age. That was a few months ago. Now? I'd still go with his current age.

I have confessed many times before on BTTQ that I absolutely love and adore seeing Big Brother grow. I'm not one to get sad at all when I think about him growing up. I actually look forward to it. That's not to go without saying that, sure, there are times when it just hits me that he has gotten "so big" or that Chris and I reminisce about just how little and helpless he was as a newborn just over a year ago. But get sad about it? Nope, not us. We have children to raise, teach and instruct them for adulthood, and that's how Chris and I view our parenting. We welcome all the changes and milestones and growth and we love to see it take place. We anticipate what's to come because we're doing our duty as parents.

That's why my answer wouldn't have changed (in some respect) from a few months ago to now. I think perhaps I'll always feel that the age Big Brother is, is going to be my favorite age he's been so far. If that makes any sense at all.

Right now he is showing us how smart he is and how quickly he can catch on to new things. He mimics us constantly - whether it's a sigh after we take a drink or a dust of our hands after eating. He knows that the light switches turn on and off the lights and ceiling fans. He can crawl onto the furniture and he enjoys pushing a multitude of musical toys at once to dance to. He's learning to run, enjoys sorting his toys and putting them back where he found them (for now, at least!). He can sign "all done" ("finished") while actually knowing what it means and meaning it when he does it. He answers some of our questions sincerely with a "yeah." He has so much energy and loves to be outside. And he loves to talk! Babble, really, but he will tell us a story about anything. He is a huge daddy's boy, which is so sweet to me. He recently learned to draw/scribble on paper with crayons and markers which is a fun activity for him. He is just all-around a big ball of fun and as he continues to grow and develop and change. I can't see it getting anything but better as he catches on to new things and learns to communicate.

So there's no doubt in my mind that right now is my favorite age Big Brother has ever been. And at 18 months, I'm sure 18 months will be my favorite. And at two years, two years will be my favorite. I just really love watching him grow and experience new things.

August Series Month: Happy Anniversary!

2011-08-09T08:00:00.046-04:00

This week's series is "Skribit suggestions."

Okay, okay.

So our anniversary isn't part of your suggestions. But it happened to fall this month during this week, so I'm taking a break (without taking a break) to acknowledge my husband for the sole fact that he is the best and most incredible husband in the world. True story.

Today we have been married for three years! That may not seem like a lot, but boy have we been through a ton of stuff in the past three years. He has been there for me, provided for me, been my best friend, and continues to go above and beyond to fulfill his Biblical duty as a husband to me.

Here's a little sneak of what our lives have been like the past three years:

August 2008: One of the best and most incredible days of my life! I got married to my best friend and soul mate.

August 2009: We found out we were expecting our first baby!

August 2010: Big Brother and I moved to be with Chris at Tech School for his AF training after being apart for over 10 weeks. (8.5 of BMT and over 1.5 of waiting to get housing so we could move.)

August 2011: We're now at another base where Chris is doing even more training and waiting the arrival of our second baby.

See? A lot has happened in just three years! I wouldn't change any of it for anything. My husband is my best friend and I am so glad and blessed that he is mine. He's the best husband I could have asked for or wanted and he is mine!

I can't wait to see what the next three years brings us, and many, many more after that! I love you, Chris, and I am so thankful to have you as my life mate!

August Series Month: Slight Pause

2011-08-08T08:00:00.000-04:00

This week's series was supposed to be based on skribit suggestions you have so kindly, well, suggested since I added that fun little tool to our sidebar. However, a slight change of plans has occurred due to an incapacitated mama. Incapacitated? But why? Well, I'm here to share.

3 August 2011: I felt a bit weird before bed. I had a headache and felt dizzy and light-headed. Chris took my blood pressure and it was slightly on the lower side of normal. Big Brother had been running a fever and not feeling well over the previous weekend, and Chris had just gotten over a 3-day stint of not feeling well, so we thought perhaps I had caught whatever it was they had passed on. I went to bed.

4 August 2011:

I woke up at 1:55 AM in some serious lower back pain. I couldn't get comfortable and I felt really awful. On top of the back pain, I was having some serious contractions. Chris woke up from me flopping around in bed trying to get comfortable and complaining of pain and got me some Tylenol to take. I headed out to the office area with my yoga ball and bounced for a bit. Once we realized my contractions were coming regularly, Chris decided to time them. They were coming every six minutes and lasting 60 seconds. He researched some preterm labor symptoms online and I read a piece of paper from my OB's office about preterm labor. I had 3 of the 7 listed signs, so we called the on-call doctor.
I spoke with the on-call doctor around 3 AM. He asked me a few questions, told me I was "probably fine" but that I could go in to L&D to be monitored if it would make me feel better. We had no one to watch Big Brother and didn't want to disturb him at such a late hour, and Chris had to be up for work at 5:45, so I heeded my OB's "probably fine" orders and laid back down. I was able to fall back asleep, thankfully.
Big Brother woke up around 5:30 AM for his morning "bottle" (a sippy cup of formula and milk) and I changed him and put him back down to bed and went back to bed myself. Chris left for work and Big Brother woke up for the day around 7 AM. I got up with him, feeling completely exhausted and just plain awful. I was beginning to feel nauseous and I couldn't keep up with the tasks at hand with taking care of Big Brother. I was also still having contractions that had moved to 10 minutes apart and lasting 45 seconds. I called Chris' office early afternoon to let him know I was still feeling pretty bad, and his boss told him if I needed to go in to the doctor or if things got worse that he could come home.
Around 3 PM I called my doctor's office because I had been having contractions for over 12 hours by this point. They wanted me to go to L&D so I let Chris know and he came home to get me and drove me over.
I arrived at L&D around 4 PM and was hooked up to monitors. By this time my contractions were 5 minutes apart and lasting about 45 seconds. I was hooked up to an IV and had a test done for a hormone that is present toward the end of pregnancy to see if I was at risk for going into labor early. (If the hormone is absent, there is a 90% guarantee nothing will happen in the next two weeks, but if it is present then there is a 1 in 6 chance of going into labor in that same time frame.) One of my doctors also came and checked me for dilation (zero, thank goodness!) and I hung out watching TLC while I got my IV fluids, drank some water, and waited for the hormone test results to come back.
I believe around 7:30 PM my results came back - negative! - and I was going to be released, but I was feeling really awful at this point. So my nurse started another bag of fluids and brought me some cups of apple juice and dry Cheerios to get my blood sugar up to see if that helped me at all. It did slightly, and I was discharged around 8:30 PM.

4 August Night/5 August Morning: I don't remember/know what time it was, but I woke up vomiting and really nauseous.

5 August 2011:

I was feeling extremely sick and called my doctor's office when they opened at 8:30 AM to let them know my symptoms and to see if the doctor wanted me to go back to the hospital or prescribe me nausea medication. The nurse let me know around 8:45 that a prescription for phenergen was going to be sent to my pharmacy. It was ready around 10 AM, and Chris went to pick that up for me along with some crackers and 7Up.

5 August to 7 August 2011:

These days are pretty much a blur. I'd say I spent about 90% of the time sleeping (thanks to the phenergen), 5% of the time getting sick and 5% of the time trying to drink my liquids and eat small amounts of food. By the afternoon of the 7th I was feeling a lot better and able to eat more, but I was sore from getting sick, and extremely weak from not being able to eat or keep anything I ate down. At lunch I couldn't even pick up and carry my plate because it felt like it weighed 50 pounds! I spent the rest of the day resting and eating small snacks to try to regain energy.

Thankfully, Chris' bosses have let him stay home with me and Big Brother since I have been so sick. I'm so, so thankful, too, because I really was incapacitated and there was no way I would have been able to take care of Big Brother on my own. I'm slowly but surely fully recovering. It is just taking a bit longer since I'm pregnant and Gumdrop has been sucking all my nutrients from me even though I haven't been able to replace them. I really can't wait to be 100% again, though.

I am hoping to return to August Series Month on Wednesday, but it will depend on my recovery process. so, we'll just see what happens.

33 weeks

2011-08-07T17:47:00.000-04:00

I don't have a picture for this week since I've been sick. More on that later. Like tomorrow, probably.

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 33 weeks.

Total weight gain: 27 pounds. Down 5 pounds from the last time I weighed myself before I got sick.

Sleep: Decent lately with my phenergen prescription.
Maternity clothes? Yup.

Best moment this week: Eh. Is there one when you've been sick?

Movement: Super squirmy lately.

Cravings: Ew. I can't even think about food lately.

Labor signs: Tons of contractions. More on that tomorrow, as well.

What do you miss? Right now? Not being sick.
Looking forward to: Getting over this virus.

Weekly wisdom: I have none.
Milestones: I have no clue.

Baby updates:

This week Gumdrop weighs a little over 4 pounds and has passed the 17-inch mark. She's rapidly losing that wrinkled look and her skeleton is hardening. (Baby Center)

August Series Month: Banana Muffins

2011-08-05T08:00:00.001-04:00

This week's series is "recipes."

I have never been a fan of banana (nut) bread, but my husband really likes it (without the nuts). Big brother also really likes bananas and bread, so I figured he would also like banana bread. Outnumbered, and with a few bananas that were far too ripe, I decided to lovingly make a batch of banana muffins for my boys to enjoy.

This recipe is from the Better Home's and Gardens New Cook Book "Celebrating the Promise" Limited Edition, as well as a tip from my mom.

Banana Muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana (5 medium)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup melted butter
1/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Make a "well" in the center of the mixture and set aside.

2. In a different bowl combine eggs, banana, sugar and butter.

3. Add wet mixture all at once to the well of the dry mixture. Stir just until moistened. (Batter should be lumpy.)

4. At this point, if you wish to, fold in walnuts.

5. Divide batter into greased muffin pans, filling each cup about 2/3 full.

My mom's tip: sprinkle ground cinnamon over the top of the uncooked batter.

5. Bake 15-18 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of muffins comes out clean. (Our oven cooks items really, really fast so it only took about 11 minutes for these to bake. Just keep an eye on your muffins and make sure you adjust the cooking time according to how your oven bakes.)

Cool on a wire rack before serving!

August Series Month: Mini Pizzas

2011-08-04T08:00:00.003-04:00

This week's series is "recipes."

Today's recipe is one of those throw-together-in-ten-minutes meals. It's fast, easy, and usually enjoyed by all family members. (Note: You can easily make this a little more healthy(?) by making your own pizza dough, but we use the pre-made refrigerated junk that makes for a super fast prep.)

Mini Pizzas

Refrigerated (or homemade) pizza dough

Pizza sauce

Pizza toppings

Shredded mozzarella cheese

1.Preheat your oven according to the pizza dough suggestion.

2. Roll out pizza dough onto a flat surface (I use our stoneware) and flatten/spread out with your fingers until it is a decent rectangle that is nearly the same thickness throughout. Using a pizza cutter, slice dough into small sections. (The first time I made this I used a drinking glass to cut out round sections. I tried balling up and re-rolling out the leftover dough to utilize all of it, but the refrigerated dough wasn't very pliable. Since then I have just cut it into rectangles. If you use homemade dough for this recipe, it might be more forgiving and allow you to do circles instead.)

3. You will want to split the pizzas onto two pans or into two batches. We only have one stoneware so I do two batches. Place the second batch of pizzas on a plate to the side. Add pizza sauce, toppings and cheese to pizzas.

4. Place in the oven and bake until dough is cooked through and cheese is melted. (Keep in mind that the individual pizza dough will cook through faster than if it were left whole. Our oven bakes very quickly and I have burnt two batches of these in the past, so I have learned to keep a close eye on them while they're cooking. Our oven cooks them in about 9 minutes.)

While the first batch is baking, add pizza sauce, toppings and cheese to second batch for a quick transition time.

5. Remove pizzas from oven and serve warm!

Big Brother approved:

August Series Month: Hidden Mint Cookies

2011-08-03T08:00:00.000-04:00

This week's series is "recipes."

I'm actually a little disappointed about this recipe. Bummed, really. You see, back in Mississippi when we had cable I would periodically watch the Food Network channel. I liked being able to just turn on that channel and get new ideas and inspirations for dinners. (Especially since we do a weekly menu and sometimes it really is just frustrating to think of seven entire dinner ideas. Really.) One evening I turned it on and Paula Deen was on with an entire episode devoted to cookies. You couldn't have asked me to change the channel if you tried.

While watching the episode, I got really excited about one of the cookies she made called Hidden Mint Cookies. They only required a few ingredients and looked extremely simple to make. Plus I really like Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies and I had recently seen similar cookies out by Keebler, so I knew it'd be feasible for me to try them out. For some reason, though, our commissary was always out of sugar cookie dough and we didn't grocery shop anywhere else, so I kind of forgot about them until a few weeks ago. I thought this recipe would be great for August series month, so I decided to give them a try.

I'd been waiting so long to make these that I'm convinced that's the biggest reason why I was disappointed with how they actually turned out. But I decided to make these specifically for this week, which is why I'm still posting it. Plus, maybe one of you will have a better experience with them if you choose to give them a try.

Hidden Mint Cookies

(Click for recipe and directions)

Yep, that's it. They really are simple to make (except I had an extremely hard time working with the sugar cookie dough). I also don't like any variety of nuts with sweets so I opted not to use them.

If you choose to make them, I hope they turn out a whole lot better than mine did!

August Series Month: Sloppy Joe's

2011-08-02T08:00:00.000-04:00

This week's series is "recipes."

If you've been around BTTQ for any decent length of time, you should be very aware by now that I'm not a fan of beef (especially that of the ground variety) and my dear husband is. So we have to find a way to balance our likes & dislikes. One way Chris likes to do this is by finding good recipes that incorporates what he likes in a way that allows me to enjoy it. A special recipe in our house that falls under this category is homemade Sloppy Joe's. It's one that we both really enjoy, and one that I will actually eat leftover. (To me, there's nothing worse than leftover/re-heated meat - of any kind!) So for me to actually be able to eat and enjoy this meal as leftovers really says a lot. Because of that, I highly, highly recommend that you try this recipe at some point. Chris found this recipe on the Whole Foods Market website and can be found in it's entirety here. (Note: we printed this recipe out in 2008, so the one we have - that I'm posting here - differs slightly from the one on the website that I've linked to.)

Sloppy Joe's

1 1/2 pounds 85% lean ground beef (Tip: don't use anything leaner than 85%, otherwise they will be dry!)

1 yellow onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

Salt and ground pepper, to taste

1 cup tomato ketchup

1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar

1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard

Hamburger buns

1. Brown the beef in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Do not drain!

2. Add onions and bell pepper and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the vegetables are tender, about 7 minutes.

3. Add ketchup, vinegar, Worcestershire Sauce, sugar and mustard. Stir to combine. Simmer until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes.

4. Serve over split (toasted if you desire!) hamburger buns.

Enjoy!

August Series Month: Buttermilk Blueberry Pancakes

2011-08-01T08:00:00.070-04:00

To kick off August series month, I'm devoting week one to some very yummy recipes! I hope you enjoy!

This recipe can be found in the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book. Ours is the "Celebrating the Promise" Limited Edition, for breast cancer awareness. My sweet siblings got it for us as a wedding gift, and it has been extremely useful.

Buttermilk Blueberry Pancakes

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 egg, slightly beaten

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

3 tablespoons cooking oil

1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

1. In a large bowl, stir together dry ingredients. Make a "well" in the middle.

Shown without the well.

2. In a separate bowl, combine wet ingredients with a fork. Pour the wet mixture all at once into the well of the dry mixture. Stir just until moistened. (Batter should be slightly lumpy.)

3. Stir in blueberries.

4. For a standard-sized pancake, pour 1/4 cup batter onto a hot, lightly greased griddle or skillet, spreading batter if necessary. Cook over medium heat. Turn pancakes when the batter on top is bubbly and the edges are dry.

Tip: To keep pancakes fluffy, avoid turning them more than once!

This is a great recipe to double (or triple for a bigger family) and use for bulk cooking. Just portion and freeze pancakes, then set them out in the fridge the night before you want to eat them to let them thaw. Pop them in the microwave to heat them up once they're thawed and you have a yummy breakfast in the morning without all the extra work!

A Quick Reminder

2011-07-31T08:00:00.002-04:00

I usually don't/try not to post on many Sundays. But I just wanted to remind you that August Series Month starts up tomorrow so be sure to drop by over the course of the month for my daily posts! I hope you're just as excited as I am!

32 weeks

2011-07-30T20:44:00.000-04:00

Man oh, man. Please forgive me for the worst pregnancy photo in pregnancy update history. Since Chris returned to work this week, our schedule has been a bit off. Once I realized it was Saturday and I needed to take my picture for my update, I had been run ragged from getting out in this unbearable heat, cleaning the house up a bit, chasing after a toddler, doing some organizing in our bedroom and preparing a few things for Gumdrop's arrival (read: nesting). And boy do I ever look like I've been run ragged. Also, please excuse the mirror/bathroom self-portrait. Chris wasn't home to take my picture like he usually is.

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 32 weeks.

Total weight gain: 30ish pounds.

Sleep: Really bad since Chris has gone back to work.
Maternity clothes? No question.

Best moment this week: My almost nightly feet rubs from my incredible husband. Yes, the swelling has begun.

Movement: She definitely lets me know she's in there, although she isn't quite as active as Big Brother was.

Cravings: Cookies. Those dagum cookies.

Labor signs: Braxton Hicks.

What do you miss? Being able to run around and play with Big Brother.
Looking forward to: My next appointment. I was measuring ahead at my last appointment so I want to see how that plays out.

Weekly wisdom: I really am at a loss for the wisdom aspect this time around.
Milestones: I guess just being one week closer to my due date!

Baby updates:

By now, Gumdrop weighs about 3.75 pounds and is around 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in my uterus. I (should be) gaining about one pound a week, and roughly half of that will go to my baby. In fact, she'll gain 1/3 to 1/2 of her birth weight over the next 7 weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb. She now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair. Her skin is also becoming soft and smooth as she plumps up for birth. (Baby Center)

Itty Bitty Update

2011-07-25T19:38:00.000-04:00

So, we did it. We made it through 1+ years of AF training and Chris is finally doing his job. Except the funny thing is, he's still sorta kinda in training. We're not even at our first duty station yet because what he's doing now is still considered training. Yup, that's right. He's been to three different AF bases (in just over a year, mind you) and has still not even gotten his first "real" assignment.

Weather. It's one of those unique job fields.

But like I was saying, we did it. (Sort of?) We're here and Chris is off his 18 days of leave and back to work. Now? We're looking forward to September when Gumdrop arrives and he gets even more time off! We just love his time off and spending it as a family. And we also are really thankful that he has a job where he accumulates leave leave at such a good rate.

The military. It has it's perks.

So I guess (I hope?) you can expect to be seeing more of me around here. Especially in August. I'm really looking forward to spending time with you then.

31 weeks

2011-07-23T20:57:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 31 weeks! We're now into the single-digit weekly countdown!

Total weight gain: I don't know. And I don't feel like getting up to check.

Sleep: Awful unless I take sleeping pills. Then it is just fair.
Maternity clothes? Absolutely.

Best moment this week: Finally getting out to the pool to relieve some of the stress on my body.

Movement: She's a little squirmer.

Cravings: Cookies. They will certainly be the end of me this pregnancy.

Labor signs: Oh, you know, just the occasional Braxton Hicks.

What do you miss? Sleeping without heartburn.
Looking forward to: My next appointment, I guess. I'm in the every-two-weeks appointments now.

Weekly wisdom: Take advantage of swimming pools if you're pregnant over the summer.
Milestones: Being in my every-two-weeks appointments and also hitting the single-digit weekly countdown.

Baby updates:

Gumdrop measures over 16'' long, weighs about 3.3 pounds and is heading into a growth spurt. She can turn her head from side to side, and her arms, legs and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates beneath her skin. (Baby Center)

Moses Basket Bedding: Semi-Tutorial

2011-07-22T08:00:00.000-04:00

When I was pregnant with Big Brother, we weren't quite sure about sleeping arrangements. I don't think we had any clue what we were going to do, except that we were not going to co-sleep. (Oh, how the things you claim you'll never do as a first-time parent go straight out the window when baby arrives.) We had a crib, which we were just certain he was going to use immediately, but I also wanted a Moses Basket. To this day I am unsure of where I saw them or how I found out about them, but I was positive I wanted one of those super cute and mobile baskets that I could put our sweet babe in and tote around the house during naps in the place of a bassinet. (As it turns out, we not only used it for naps, but Big Brother slept next to our bed in it until he was about 4 weeks old, when we began to co-sleep. He continued to take naps in it periodically until he was about 4 months old. We sure do think this is one of the best baby buys we made.) We purchased this one:

The boyish bedding was the closest match to the nursery we had set up, and I didn't think to get anything gender neutral because surely if our next baby was a girl I'd easily be able to find replacement bedding. Right? Right?

Wrong.

When we found out Gumdrop was a girl, we immediately began thinking about all of the fun, cute, sweet and girly things we could invest in. One of those things was, of course, girlish bedding to replace the boyish bedding we had for our Moses Basket. So I began to look online at all of the possibilities I just knew were out there. Quickly I came to realize just how wrong I was. I scoured the internet for just what I was looking for, and I couldn't even find anything remotely close to my expectations. I found only two brands that sold the bedding separately (both of which would not work with the basket we currently own) and was surprised that I could practically buy a brand-new basket set (basket, mattress and all!) for the prices being asked for just the bedding. I then turned to what I thought would be my next-best option: etsy. Surely someone on there makes bedding! Well, yes, someone does. But she also charged enough to make me want to forgo my bedding search and just buy a brand new set that came with everything.

But we already have a basket and mattress, all we needed was the bedding! I couldn't bring myself to fork out the money for an entirely new set just for the bedding when we already had the two component features. I just couldn't do it.

So I began a third search: tutorials on making the bedding. Surprisingly, this also turned up scarce results! I found one blog tutorial, an eHow tutorial and a PDF to purchase from the same etsy seller who sells the bedding by itself. This was hardly encouraging. Possibly discouraging, even. I tossed around the idea of attempting to make the bedding myself with just these tutorials and the bedding we already had. I really wrestled with the idea for at least a month, while at the same time continuing to search for bedding online in the hopes that one day it would just magically appear. Or something. When that didn't happen and I was about to hit the 30-week gestation mark, I at last made the decision to at least attempt to make the bedding for our sweet girl. Granted, I know she wouldn't know the difference if she was using the original boy bedding vs. a new set of girl bedding, but I at least wanted to make the effort for her. So Chris and I set out with a limited plan and a list in my mind of the materials we needed. Here is what we came out with:

3 yards of fabric (You'll actually use way less than that, but I like to have the option of a lot of extra fabric in case I screw up really bad. We chose three different fabrics, two of which are a jersey knit and the other is minky. All super soft choices to use for a baby project! But you can use all of the same fabric, two different fabrics, or whatever you want, really.)
Batting (We got the quilt/crib kind.)
Fabric elastic
An all-purpose thread that matches your fabric choices
Ribbon

In addition to the items purchased, you'll also need:

Sewing machine
Moses basket & mattress pad
Scissors
Measuring tape
Pins
Fabric marker/pencil
Straight edge
A tutorial or bedding for your basket (Or maybe a pattern? I don't know how to use patterns so I never thought to look for one at the store.)

Now it's time to get started! Unfortunately, I don't have a ton of pictures to go with this tutorial. In all honesty, I am a sewing machine novice. I recently taught myself how to use a sewing machine (read: in the last 8 months) and have maybe spent a grand total of 5 hours using it. At the most. So, since we're being honest here, I had absolutely no confidence that this was going to end well, so the thought to take step-by-step pictures was the absolute last thing on my mind. My apologies, but surely you understand! (The pictures that I have included with a few of the steps are taken from my phone, so the quality isn't that great either.)

Okay, now it's really time to get started! First, you're going to want to decide on how exactly you want your bedding to look. We really like the style of the original bedding that came with our basket, how it folds over the top with little slots for the handles and fits snugly around the outside of the basket. (See: picture at the beginning of this post.) But, me being a sewing novice and all, I had zero confidence that I could pull that off. (As opposed to 1.398% confidence I would be pulling this off at all.) So I picked my battles and settled with the less-attractive (in my opinion) bumpers that tie onto the sides. However, one thing that style doesn't have (that I'm aware of) that our over-the-outside style does have, is a piece of fabric attached to the bottom of the bumpers. I decided I wanted this extra piece of fabric attached to the bumpers to line the bottom of the basket for two reasons: 1.) it keeps the mattress pad from sliding down too far under the bumpers/it keeps the bumpers from sliding up over the mattress pad; and 2.) our mattress pad is about an inch too short (length-wise) for the basket itself.

Note the fabric lining the inside bottom of the basket.

1. Pre-wash your fabrics!

Read a great post about pre-washing your fabrics here!

2. Cut out your fabric pieces:

For the mattress pad, trace around the circumference of the oval, adding about an inch to allow for wrapping around to make the sheet. (This tutorial says to add 3 inches, but I found that to be way too much and wound up having to trim more than once. So, an inch should be good. If you're weary, maybe add 1.5'' to give yourself a little leeway.)
For the piece of fabric that will attach to the bottom of your bumpers and line the bottom inside of the basket, trace around the outside circumference of the bottom of the actual basket. I didn't add any extra fabric but you could probably add a small seam allowance if you'd like.
For the bumpers, measure the inside circumference of the basket as well as the inside height. (Thankfully, I have a basket style that is the same size all the way around, but some baskets are higher at one end, so be sure to accommodate for any differences in height if you have a basket that slopes.) I had one yard of fabric for each fabric, which wasn't long enough to allow me to cut out the entire length I needed, so I divided the circumference measurement in half and cut out two pieces of fabric that were exactly the same size in order to get the entire measurement I needed. Do this for the front and back of the bumpers, so you should end up with 4 pieces of fabric that are each half of the inside circumference of the basket as well as the full height of the basket. I also added about 1/2'' additionally on every side for a seam allowance. If you're an advanced sewer you could probably get away with adding less.

These are the 3 fabrics we chose.

3. Make your sheet.

If you have a serger, use that to finish the edge of the sheet. If not, you can use the zig-zag stitch function on your sewing machine. I followed the instructions on this tutorial for the zig-zag stitch and it worked well.
Measure about half the length of the curved side of the sheet for your elastic. Pin the middle of the elastic in the middle of the curve and pull it tight to sew. I found this video to be extremely helpful in how to sew elastic.

4. Make your bumpers. (For distinction's sake, the inside fabric is the fabric that will be seen next to the mattress in the basket and the outside fabric is the fabric that will touch the inside walls of the basket. If you're using the same fabric for both you don't really need to pay attention to this distinction.)

Remember that you have a total of four pieces of fabric for your bumpers: two for the inside and two for the outside. Take the two inside pieces and lay them flat, one on top of the other, right side to right side. pin along one of the short sides and sew together. Now you have one long piece of fabric that should equal the measurement of the inside circumference of your basket. Do the same thing to the two outside pieces of fabric. At the end of this step, you will have two long pieces of fabric that equal the circumference of the inside of your basket.
Lay the outside fabric on a flat surface, right side up, and lay the inside fabric directly on top of it, right side down. Line the edges up and pin along the two shorter ends as well as one of the long ends. (Pin along the long end you'd like to be the top of the bumper.) Sew together the three pinned sides using the seam allowance you gave yourself when you cut the fabric. Trim the excess fabric to eliminate bulk and turn right-side out. You should now have the entirety of your bumper sewn together along 3 sides. You can place the bumper in the basket at this time to make sure it will fit around the inside circumference.

Here is an in-progress photo of this step. (The bumper is folded in half to show both sides. And just ignore those scraps of fabric at the top!)

Divide your bumper into equal sections by stitching a straight seam down the height of the bumper. For example: fold your bumper in half length-wise to find the middle. This first seam should actually be where you have sewn the outside fabric together and the inside fabric together to make two long pieces. Just sew along the seams already in place to attach the inside fabric to the outside fabric. You should now have two equal sections in your bumper. Next, divide those two sections in half and sew a straight seam along the height of the bumper. You should now have four equal sections distinguishable on your bumper. I stopped at four sections, but would actually recommend going one step further and diving the four sections into eight sections. It is a matter of personal preference, really, but I think eight sections would allow the bumper to contour to the curves of the basket in a better manner.
Now that your bumper has four (or eight) sections, it's time to begin stuffing! You will want to begin at one end of your bumper and work your way around to the other end, doing one section at a time. (Unless you're an advanced sewer, you could probably get away with stuffing, pinning, then sewing all at once. But as a novice, I found it easier to go one section at a time.) Take your quilt/crib batting and cut flat pieces that are the same size as the sections in your bumper. I chose to use three flat pieces of batting in each section, but looking back I now wish I had only used two at the most. Again, this is a matter of personal preference. Once your first section is stuffed, you will want to pin along the open edge, pinning also the fabric that will line the bottom inside of your basket. Fold the liner fabric in half to find the middle point, and this is where you want to begin to pin the first edge of the bumper you're working with. Make sure you pin the bumper to the liner correctly. You want the three edges of the three fabrics (two open bumper fabrics and liner fabric) you'll be sewing together to line up. You'll want the inside bumper fabric to be sandwiched between the outside bumper fabric and the liner fabric. Now sew along the pinned edges. You could also use a serger here, but I don't have one and just used a straight stitch and left my edges unfinished since they are on the bottom of the project and basket so they aren't seen. Do this with the other four (or seven) sections of your bumper. Once you get done with this step, your bumper should be completely attached to the liner.

Here is an in-progress look at this step. On the left shows half of the bumper complete & attached to the liner (solid pink fabric on bottom). The right is an image of the half-complete bumper and liner with the mattress pad/sheet inside (on top of the liner).

You now have a bumper that is almost complete! Only the ends of the beginning and ending sections should be unattached. I used an invisible seam (a good tutorial is found here) to sew these two ends together. Yes, it was a little extra work. But like I said, I'm a novice sewer and didn't know how to sew these two ends together sooner in the project to make it an oval before this step. So the invisible seam allowed me to get a completely closed bumper even if it did take a little patience.
Now all that's left is to sew on the ribbons to allow your bumper to attach to the basket and be held in place! Whew! I didn't measure my ribbons, I just cut off what I thought would be a good amount. Just make sure you cut them long enough that they can tie adequately. (This tutorial says 22'' if you'd like to stick with that number.) Like I mentioned earlier, I don't really like the bumper-tie look. But I didn't really have an option. So I chose instead to minimize the number of ties that I had to look at/deal with. I cut only four ribbons, to match the number of sections I made in the bumper. If you choose to make eight sections, then you'll want eight ribbons. Fold the ribbon in half to find the center, then pin it about one inch down from the top of the bumper on the outside fabric directly on top of the seams that divide your bumper into sections. Sew a straight stitch along the height of the ribbon to attach it. (The good thing about this is that you already have a straight seam going down the height of your bumper so the stitch on the ribbon blends right into that seam.) Do this with your remaining three (or seven) ribbons.
Now it's time to assemble your basket! Place the bumper/liner along the inside of the basket, pressing the liner into the bottom and the bumper around the sides. Weave your ribbon through the holes of the basket and tie in a bow. (Sewing the ribbons one inch from the top of the bumper allows your ties to be on the sides of the basket, away from hands, instead of wrapping around the top of the basket.) Put your sheet on your mattress pad and then insert it into the basket, on top of the liner and snugly between the bumpers.

Here is a look inside the basket, showing the liner attached to the bumpers.

Congratulations! You now have your very own, customized, handmade Moses Basket bedding! Even though there were a few things I would have done differently looking back, I'm super pleased (and incredibly impressed) at how this turned out. Like I keep saying (over & over again), I am truly a sewing novice, so for this to turn out as well as it did was pretty darn exciting for us. I'm sure an advanced sewer can take this and make a set of bedding that is perfect and looks ten times better than mine, but you other novices out there take heart and don't be discouraged by big projects! Take the plunge on some things you really want to get done because you just might surprise yourself when you're done.

I (Now) Dub August: Series Month!

2011-07-21T14:26:00.000-04:00

Do you remember last fall when I did October Series Month here at BTTQ? I devoted an entire month of blog posts to specific topics each week and it was a hit! I mostly did it to get back into blogging since I had been a huge slacker from May when Big Brother was born to August when we were finally settled into our new (temporary) home. I really had a blast doing it and I think all my wonderful readers (read: you!) enjoyed seeing me pick back up the, uh, keyboard(?) and really tackle blogging again.

Well, I want to do it again! Except October is out of the question. Gumdrop is due to arrive on September 24th, which is really close to October, which means I will quite possibly be incapacitated that month by getting to know our newborn, transitioning to a family of four and learning how to take care of a toddler and an infant.

So I thought about doing it during September. But then I realized that since Gumdrop is due to arrive the 24th of that month, I highly doubt I'll have enough time to actually finish what I start. We'll be busy that month preparing for her arrival, I will probably be nesting like a frantic mama bird (did I mention it has already started?) and I just won't have my head on good enough to stick with a series for an entire month. There will just be too much going on.

Naturally, the next best option is August. Which means August Series Month will be beginning in just over a week! (Side note: is August really about to be here? Gumdrop's due date is practically on our doorstep!) August just happens to work perfectly for me, since it is a full month in advance of Gumdrop's prospective arrival, and the dates fall marvelously on the calendar. The 1st is a Monday and will begin the month o' series, and it will continue for four weeks until the 27th. The last week of the month is only a few days and I have something special planned for that, so you'll surely want to stick around!

Much like last year's series month, each week will be divided into a specific topic and each day I will publish a post related to that topic. I won't tell you what exactly I have planned, but I will tell you that I already have a topic for every week and every.single.post idea written down to a corresponding day. It's going to be fun!

Also along the same lines as last year, I won't be posting on Sundays. But I will continue to publish and update you on my pregnancy posts every Saturday. So the schedule will look like this: no post on Sunday, one post a day Monday through Friday that are all related to the same topic and my pregnancy post on Saturday. Rinse and repeat!

I hope you'll join me in the month of fun coming in just a week and a half here at BTTQ! Mark your calendars and don't forget!

Excuses, Excuses

2011-07-19T16:10:00.000-04:00

Chris graduated (yes, again) from (more) training on the 8th of this month. It's been over a year since he left for BMT and now he's finally actually going to be doing his job. Well, next week. After this most recent period of training he was given the option to take leave, so he chose to take two weeks off. Or a little more than two weeks, I think. So he's been home with us since the 9th.

Unfortunately, we have had a ton of things we needed to get done during his time off. So even though it has been nice for him to have a break from work, it has also been a little hectic trying to fit everything into our schedule that needed to get done over these (a little more than) two weeks.

Anyway. All that said, that's the reasoning behind my slight leave of absence here at BTTQ. I didn't give you any warnings and kind of, well, just disappeared. But I do have some posts I'm working on periodically throughout the day which I'm hoping to get up this week. I am also constantly reminding myself to tackle those skribit suggestions you have so kindly added.

It'll be fun when I come back!

30 weeks!

2011-07-17T21:03:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 30 weeks! 3/4 of the way through!

Total weight gain: 27 pounds.

Sleep: Awful. Horrible. Terrible.
Maternity clothes? Yep, even though some are still too big. Sigh.

Best moment this week: Seeing our sweet little Gumdrop at our 3D ultrasound appointment!

Movement: Wiggle wiggle waggle.

Cravings: Doughnuts. Ice cream.

Labor signs: Braxton Hicks throughout the day. Especially when I have a full bladder.

What do you miss? Not having heartburn and being able to sleep flat instead of inclined.
Looking forward to: Not having to take an iron supplement anymore.

Weekly wisdom: Get an elective 3D ultrasound done. It really is worth it!
Milestones: Hitting 30 weeks!

Baby updates:

Gumdrop is about 15.7 inches long now and weighs approximately 3 pounds. A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds her, but that number will decrease as she gets bigger and takes up more room. Her eyesight is continuing to develop, but it is not very keen. Even after she's born she'll have 20/400 vision - which means she will only be able to make out objects a few inches from her face. (Baby Center)

29 weeks

2011-07-11T20:18:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 29 weeks.

Total weight gain: 26 pounds.

Sleep: Fair. I usually only sleep really well when I take sleep aides.
Maternity clothes? No question.

Best moment this week: Getting a package in the mail from my mom with some really precious clothes for our babe(s).

Movement: Mostly at night now.

Cravings: Pizza. Cookies.

Labor signs: Braxton Hicks.

What do you miss? Not having heartburn nearly 24/7.
Looking forward to: Our 3D ultrasound on Friday!

Weekly wisdom: I really don't have any this week.
Milestones: Being one week away from 3/4 done!

Baby updates:

Gumdrop now weighs about 2.5 pounds and is a little over 15 inches long. Her muscles and lungs are continuing to mature and her head is growing bigger to make room for her developing brain. This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited into Gumdrop's developing skeleton every day! (Baby Center)

Update on Big Brother

2011-07-07T14:26:00.000-04:00

Who is, at this very moment, currently fighting his afternoon nap. He's getting pretty darn good at the whole fighting nap time episodes. Thankfully it isn't screaming, but usually just consists of him rolling around, playing with his stuffed animals, holding onto the railing while jumping up & down, biting the crib...you know, typical nap-fighting activities. So while he's in his crib not napping, I figured I could update you blog folk on how he's doing these days. Since I mostly blog about my pregnancy and the grass in our backyard nowadays.

Big Brother is 14 months old now and is completely weaned off pacifiers and bottles. (And by completely weaned I mean if we offered one or the other to him I'm sure he'd snatch it out of our hand in a heartbeat and be completely content and also mad at us for keeping him from them all at the same time.) The pacifiers have been in a baggie in a cabinet in the kitchen since the end of May and the bottles joined the little party a few weeks later. I still feel guilty knowing he would still want them if we offered them, but the benefits of having him weaned this early (read: no hysterics or meltdowns or enraged toddler episodes) outweigh my guilt. Well, it doesn't really, but I do honestly believe it was for the best for a number of reasons. Mostly because his teeth and orthodontist will thank us, but the lack (and complete avoidance) of aforementioned struggles with weaning are a huge plus. Most people we run into in public places are sincerely shocked and impressed that he is weaned of both at 14 months, which - I'll admit - kind of makes me a proud mama. But I don't ever mention to them how I'm worried about his reaction to seeing lil' sis with a pacifier in her mouth come September. Maybe we weaned him early enough to not even remember what it is, but I'm highly doubtful of that.

Speaking of orthodontics, he's been teething something mad for, oh, the past two-ish months. Those little molars of his are giving him heck. He likes to gnaw on straws (which he can drink out of now, by the way) since he can fold them up and really fit them into the sides of his mouth to relieve the pain.

He's getting better when it comes to eating solids. Just yesterday he agreed to eat strawberries and grapes for the first time without spitting them out of his mouth or tossing them onto the floor. He still loves anything dairy and will gobble up a grilled cheese sandwich (especially if it has lunch meat on it) or cheese pizza. He's only a fan of pasta if it has sauce on it, though, and he now prefers blueberries to bananas. We're still working on the whole throwing our food on the floor issue. He does this if he disapproves of a food or when he's done eating, so I've been working with him on the sign for "finished" (read: "all done") when he begins the tossing. He does it back, but I think he just enjoys throwing food on the ground too much to quit.

And since we're talking about being able to sign back to us what we sign to him, let me just say that he absolutely loves to mimic us. I think it is his favorite past time. Because of this, he can catch on to new things we teach him pretty quickly now. He can blow while he puts his pointer finger over his mouth like he's saying, "shh," cover his eyes to play peek-a-boo, shake his head "yes" and "no," blow kisses, wave "hi" and "bye," clap his hands and show us his ears. He also mimics us when we cough, sneeze or clear our throat. He's lost interest (read: gotten bored) with all the words he used to say, but his new favorite to go around the house saying to everything is, "Uhhh, yeah!" He enjoys listening to classical music, dancing and kicking his soccer ball. He also understands the concept of the phone and will hold it up to his own ear or my ear and say, "Hi!"

He's a ball of energy and hasn't stopped walking once he learned how to at 13 months. He is also still awake in his crib fighting his nap. Little booger.

28 weeks (third trimester!)

2011-07-03T17:17:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 28 weeks. Third trimester!

Total weight gain: 26 pounds.

Sleep: Alright. I toss & turn a lot.
Maternity clothes? Yep!

Best moment this week: Making it to my third tri!

Movement: Always wiggling around.

Cravings: Chocolate-covered pretzels. Peanut butter.

Labor signs: Just the occasional Braxton Hicks, as usual.

What do you miss? Not getting cranky when I'm hungry. Ha!
Looking forward to: Being 3/4 of the way done.

Weekly wisdom: Take your prenatals every day.
Milestones: Being in my 3rd trimester!

Baby updates:

Gumdrop now weighs 2.25 pounds and measures about 14.8 inches. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes and with her eyesight developing she may be able to see light filtering in through the womb. She's also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world. (Baby Center)

How We Do Spaghetti

2011-06-30T13:38:00.000-04:00

Spaghetti. It's a staple in every American home. Or something like that. At the very least, it is a common dinnertime meal across the country. And one of the best things about it is that it's fairly cheap. In fact, back when Chris and I were first married (and heck, even before then) we would have pasta and sauce multiple times a week. A week. Yes, we were one of those couples living off Ramen and PB&J. Except our Ramen was pasta and sauce.

I actually never liked spaghetti growing up. In fact, I don't particularly like beef. Especially that of the ground variety. My older sister (hi, Brooke!) told me when I was little that spaghetti noodles were worms. And so for something like 15 years of my life I constantly associated spaghetti noodles with worms, which is not what I want to be thinking about when I'm eating dinner. Mix that together with the fact that I don't really like beef much in the first place and it was a disaster. I always had to choke down dinner on spaghetti night because I just didn't like it.

Well, like I said, enter Chris into my life and he reinvented spaghetti for me. It first started with just having other types of pasta (read: penne, spiral, etc.) with sauce for a while before Chris asked me one day what the difference was between eating spaghetti noodles* and any other type of pasta. Pasta is pasta after all, right? Since I was an adult and rationalized better than when I was a kid, I decided to put my childhood fear of spaghetti behind me and just eat it. It wasn't the end of the world and I'm fine with eating the noodles now.

*We actually only ever buy/consume angel hair pasta because we prefer the thin noodles to the thick spaghetti noodles.

Chris is a man and of course likes meat, so he started to want to have ground beef with his pasta and sauce, which really made it spaghetti. I went along with it because I knew he liked it, but I really couldn't stand it for myself. I was in desperate need of finding some way to make the beef more desirable to me so we could both enjoy dinner when we chose to have spaghetti. And then I saw it: a packet of seasoning for spaghetti sauce. Only I didn't see it as that, I saw it as added flavor and seasoning for the beef. Much like using taco seasoning to make taco meat. I tried it out once and now we never have spaghetti without it.

So, since spaghetti is a household staple across the United States, here is my obligatory spaghetti recipe. Alternatively titled (actually titled?): how we do spaghetti.

In advance, yes I am one of those women who uses a jar of pre-made spaghetti sauce. I didn't like spaghetti growing up, remember? So I don't know of any super-top-secret or this has been passed down for x generations family recipes. At least, not that I'm aware of. (Mom? Kelly?)

Don't judge.

How We Do Spaghetti

Angel hair pasta

1 lb ground beef

1 packet McCormick spaghetti sauce

3/4 cup water

1 jar pre-made spaghetti sauce

Cook pasta according to directions on package.
In a medium frying pan, brown ground beef. Drain off fat and return to pan.
Add 3/4 cup water and McCormick seasoning packet to beef. Mix until well coated, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until thickened.
Add 1 whole jar of spaghetti sauce to ground beef mixture and heat on low until bubbly. (Obviously the type of spaghetti sauce used here will greatly affect the taste. We personally prefer Bertolli or Classico.)
Serve warmed sauce over a pile of pasta and enjoy!

Confession of a 27-Week Preggo

2011-06-28T14:30:00.000-04:00

I am pregnant.

I am 27 weeks pregnant.

Saturday I will be in the final trimester. Aka: the last "leg" of this pregnancy. (Speaking of legs, does someone have an extra set I can borrow for the next 12.5 weeks?) The time really has gone by quickly with Gumdrop. I don't know if it has to do with chasing a toddler around or the fact that I've gone through all of this before, but whatever the reason I'm thankful for it.

Confession: I'm not good at being pregnant. It really whacks me up. My hormones toy with my emotions and I get mean. I also complain. A lot. I'm constantly in pain or uncomfortable in some aspect, and I'll let you know it even if you don't care. I get in funky moods and want to hide in a hole. I'm probably the hardest pregnant woman to live with, but my husband does beautifully in dealing with me in all my craziness.

And although I'm not one of those women who particularly enjoy being pregnant for the sole reason that it is just so hard on my body, I do love the miracle being performed in my body when I am. I am thankful to be able to carry another human life. I love every wiggle, kick, poke and prod, and I even remind myself when I am complaining about the things I don't like that I am so blessed to go through all of this to meet the end result: a beautiful baby.

But I am also thankful that this pregnancy has been zooming by, much unlike my first. Where has the time gone? I'm not sure and, to be quite honest, I don't really care to know. Because the quicker the time passes, the faster we'll have our sweet baby girl with us and I'll have my body back.

And then we'll go through all of this again. You know, at some point.

27 weeks

2011-06-27T10:29:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 27 weeks.

Total weight gain: 24 pounds. Lost a few, which means I'm only up one pound since my last appointment!

Sleep: Great when I take sleep meds! I think I will tonight!
Maternity clothes? Of course. And I'm finally getting to the point where my one-size-up AE shorts are getting a little tight to button.

Best moment this week: All the wiggles and kicks make me smile.

Movement: See above!

Cravings: Chocolate.

Labor signs: Braxton Hicks when I have a full bladder. Fun!

What do you miss? Not always being uncomfortable.
Looking forward to: Being in my 3rd trimester!

Weekly wisdom: Don't let the hormones rule your emotions.
Milestones: One week away from my 3rd trimester!

Baby updates:
This week, Gumdrop weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14.5 inches long with her legs extended. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. With more brain tissue developing, her brain is very active now. While her lungs are still very immature, they would be capable of functioning - with a lot of medical help - if she were to be born now. Hiccups may be common from now on. (Baby Center)

Reasons Why You Don't Forget You're 26 Weeks Pregnant

2011-06-21T15:07:00.000-04:00

You get up 4357 times at night to pee.
Sometimes said bathroom trips result in falling in the floor halfway through your journey because your groin muscles are so stinking sore from stretching to accommodate a baby that they just give out on you and refuse to carry you one step further.
If you have a toddler, the moment s/he goes down for a nap you crash onto the bed or couch and stay there for an hour just to have a break. Even if it means you will no longer write that blueberry pancake recipe post because you forgot the cookbook in the kitchen and that would mean you'd lose 45 seconds of "rest" to go get it.
While making dinner you find yourself pouring salt into your hand to lick it off. (Oh, pica.)
If you drop something on the floor/have to pick something up/need to pick up your toddler's toys/sit down on the floor to play with your toddler/or (insert any other reason you might have to bend over or sit down on a low surface) you can't go through the motions without groaning/whining/whimpering.
You get a glass of ice water just to eat the ice.
The back cushion on the couch right outside your bedroom door mysteriously disappears at bedtime. Instead of acting as a back couch cushion, it serves as a gigantic pillow used to prop you up into a semi-sitting-up position to reduce your heartburn and/or acid reflux.
What was I talking about?
Your belly button practically has it's own zip code and fan club.
Waddling is no longer just what penguins do to get around, it's your lifestyle.

Week 2 Grass Update

2011-06-20T14:24:00.000-04:00

Man, I'm sorry if this is boring to ya'll, but it is seriously exciting times here in our lives.

We. Have. Grass! We're still not using it at the moment, but look at all those luscious green blades in all their sprouty little glory! And, if you're a real rebel, click here to compare to week zero of our grass-growing endeavors. Hello, huge difference!

I also mentioned last week that we planted some other fun items out there, and we were pleasantly surprised when we took a look around the yard over the weekend to find these little babies:

Tomato sprouts!

Pumpkin sprouts!

Sunflower sprouts!

We're just thrilled and giddy with excitement with the progress we've made so far. And those little sproutlets are just too darn cute!

26 weeks

2011-06-19T20:03:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 26 weeks.

Total weight gain: 26 pounds. Still steadily gaining.

Sleep: I only sleep really well when I take sleep meds, which is usually only on the weekends.
Maternity clothes? Yep. But I can still wear some pre-pregnancy tops, as well.

Best moment this week: Chris having a family day on Friday and getting half the day off. We came home and he let me nap while he took care of big brother! First nap in ages and it was so great.

Movement: Sometimes I wonder if she ever sleeps!

Cravings: Cookies. Those darn cookies. Cinnamon rolls. Soft pretzels.

Labor signs: More Braxton Hicks lately.

What do you miss? Not feeling so incredibly exhausted all.the.time.
Looking forward to: Eventually eating a pretzel from Auntie Anne's!

Weekly wisdom: I have none. Sorry!
Milestones: Making it to the double-digit days countdown!

Baby updates:

The network of nerves in Gumdrop's ears are better developed and more sensitive than before. She may be able to hear both mine and Chris' voices as we chat with each other. She's inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of her lungs. These "breathing movements" are also good practice for when she's born and takes that first gulp of air. She's also continuing to put on baby fat. She now weighs about 1 2/3 pounds and measures 14 inches from head to heel. (Baby Center)

Granola Bars

2011-06-15T10:41:00.000-04:00

I'm a huge fan of granola bars. Like, huge. I'd actually pick them as a snack over cookies (you know, when I'm not pregnant with Gumdrop). My personal favorite are the thin, crunchy ones that just taste like oats and honey. Give me a package of those with a glass of milk and I'm set.

But purchasing boxes of pre-made granola bars from the grocery can be a little expensive. (Especially if you want the organic variety.) But they're a healthy snack and a great breakfast item, so I took it upon myself to find a recipe online to try out. And wow, who knew there were so many recipes out there? Honestly, I didn't really know where to begin, and I settled on a recipe featured on Barefoot Contessa from the Food Network that has a 5-star rating with 233 reviews. Plus all the ingredients were familiar to me and I knew once I purchased said ingredients that I could make more than one batch - if I so choose - that would be so much cheaper than purchasing bars out of boxes.

I tweaked the recipe a little bit, and I think they turned out okay. Chris, on the other hand, thinks they're wonderful! They sort of remind me of Kashi TLC bars, and Chris enjoys homemade food better than pre-made food, and made the comment that he thinks they're even better than that. Perhaps if I would have stuck to the original recipe I would have enjoyed them more, but the fact that Chris likes them so much makes all the effort worth it to me. Here I am going to post my altered version of the recipe that Chris likes so much, but if you'd rather use the original recipe, simply click here!

Homemade Granola Bars

2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup shredded coconut, loosely packed
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2/3 cup honey
1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups dried fruit

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. If necessary, toast wheat germ according to package instructions. (We purchased raw wheat germ so I had to toast it myself.) Butter an 8x12'' baking dish and line it with parchment paper. (I didn't understand this at first, but the butter holds the paper in place. Also, I just used wax paper and the outside edges of the granola wanted to stick so maybe butter them to keep that from happening to you.)

2. Toss the oatmeal, almonds and coconut together on a sheet pan and bake for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. (We don't have a sheet pan or a cookie sheet so I just used two glass baking dishes instead, which still worked fine!) Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and stir in the wheat germ.

3. Reduce the oven temperature to 300°F.

4. Place the butter, honey, brown sugar, vanilla and salt in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil then cook and stir for 1 minute. Pour over the toasted oatmeal mixture, add your dried fruit, and stir well.

(Note: I used dark brown sugar instead of light brown and they still turned out fine. Also, I chose to use only 1 cup of dried fruit - pomegranates & blueberries - and 1/2 cup chocolate chips. The chocolate melted when combined and flavored the oatmeal mixture, making it really sweet.)

5. Pour the mixture into prepared pan. Wet the back of a spoon and press the mixture evenly into the bottom of the pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until light golden brown. Cool for 2-3 hours before cutting into squares.

(Note: We don't have an 8x12'' dish so I used a 9x13'' and didn't utilize the entire pan.)

I also had trouble cutting these into squares. Chris did it for me, and some of the mixture wanted to crumble and fall apart, so we got granola chunks instead of squares. But like I said, Chris still really enjoyed them and thinks they're better than anything we could have bought at the store. I still think they're just okay and will probably try out a different recipe next time.

Let me know if you decide to make either the original recipe or my altered version (or your own version) and tell me how you like them!

Something I've Never Had to Deal With Before

2011-06-14T16:02:00.000-04:00

As I mentioned in my 25 weeks pregnant update, my doctor was less than pleased with my 11-pound weight gain in 4-5 week's time. I was kind of surprised, though not completely concerned. I am considered underweight for my height when I'm not pregnant, and I'm supposed to gain 28-40 pounds during pregnancy. But I guess the rate at which I gained the last 11 was a bit concerning to my OB, especially since I still have 15 weeks to go (and gain).

With my first pregnancy, I was finishing up my last semester of college and working part-time on campus. So I did a lot of walking the three days I was on campus, since I would park at the beginning of the day before work, walk to all my classes and back to work, then get in the car to drive home. My Alma Mater is known for the gigantic hill it sits on, so I actually got quite a healthy workout with all my pavement pounding. (Until it got too cold and I decided to start riding the bus!) Once I graduated college and it warmed back up in the spring I would drag Chris out to walk around the neighborhood with me. Not so much to keep in better shape but to encourage our precious boy to make his grand appearance. I gained 33 pounds total with my last pregnancy.

I'm not saying that walking kept me in tip-top shape, because I know it didn't. But it helped some, since I wasn't just sitting around doing nothing all day. I'm not a huge exerciser in the first place (read: intentional weight-lifting, aerobics, etc.) because I prefer to run as my means of working out. The best alternative to that during pregnancy is walking, so that's just what I easily fell back on.

So when my doctor made a comment about my recent weight gain, I immediately began to compare this pregnancy with my first. Surely he knows that you get bigger faster in your second (and subsequent) pregnancies than your first, right?! Well, I'm sure he does know that. But as I began to scrutinize my habits this time around versus last time, my eyes were opened to some big differences. First of all, my lack of getting out of the house. We have only one vehicle, so I stay in the house all.day.long. The only time my sweet son and I get out during the week is to walk to the mailbox or for him to play in his pool in the backyard. We're not within walking distance of a playground or a community pool. (And even if we were I most likely wouldn't feel comfortable walking there.) Secondly, my eating habits have been completely awful. Aw.ful. I mean, I didn't have the greatest eating habits with my first pregnancy (since I craved Wendy's, Zaxby's, McDonald's, etc.) but I also craved good foods like salads, vegetables, fruits, etc. This time around? I'm craving everything that isn't healthy, so that's just what I've been eating. The lack of exercise plus unhealthy eating habits mixed in with gaining weight from pregnancy anyway has just caused a disaster in my weight gain. Well, I mean it isn't that bad, but realizing what was going on made me feel really guilty about not really caring about my health with this pregnancy. It kicked my butt into wanting better for myself and for our unborn baby.

And believe me, this is weird and unnatural for me, because I have never had to consciously deal with weight gain before. But I want to be healthy for my babies, especially the one still growing in my womb, so I guess I'm kind of thankful for the smack on the hand from my doctor. It was really a wake-up call.

So, in an effort to change things around here, I have taken up walking around our neighborhood in the morning after breakfast. It gets me moving and baby boy loves to get out of the house. I also made a conscious effort to make a healthier (read: not processed) menu that included breakfast, lunch, a snack and dinner. (To keep me from just eating Pop-Tarts for breakfast every morning or 6 cookies for a snack. Ahem.) To make the weekly menu easier on us, I bulk baked our breakfast items for the week and pre-packaged them so they're all ready to go, for myself as well as Chris. I enjoyed it so much that I plan on doing this weekly so we have better breakfast options in the morning, and also because it gets Chris excited about eating breakfast because he never really does. It also got me excited because I was able to try out new recipes - which I am then able to share with you! So be on the lookout this week for three breakfast recipes: homemade granola bars, banana bread muffins and blueberry pancakes.

And watch out for this mama pounding pavement with a stroller every day of the week!

Week 1 Grass Update

2011-06-13T15:44:00.000-04:00

Last week I dedicated a post to our adventures in attempting to grow grass in our backyard and I promised I would do weekly updates on our progress. Well, a week has passed, and we're very pleased with the current results! I was afraid at first of how we'd keep the grass watered, but thankfully my husband reminded me that there is a built-in sprinkler system where we're living. So I got online and figured out how to work it, tested it and programmed it, and thankfully have not had to give a second thought to watering our yard! Ten points for modern technology!

We weren't really expecting to see much in the first week, but we decided to go on with our green thumbs and plant some sunflowers, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes and pumpkins in the yard as well, and when we were out planting this past weekend we were thrilled to see little sprouts of grass peeping out of the soil. It is supposed to be four to six weeks before we see a full effect, but even one week has shown promise!

Not only do we have some grass growing from our own efforts, but some of the existing grass has flourished with all the water it has been receiving since beginning this task, which is also exciting.

And yeah, we're still working on getting rid of those darn boxes!

25 weeks

2011-06-11T21:22:00.000-04:00

Well rats. I forgot I worse this same shirt for last week's picture. Oh well.

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 25 weeks! (I tend to get excited about hitting weeks of multiples of five.)

Total weight gain: 23 pounds, according to my doctor's office. And lets just say my OB wasn't too thrilled about my 11-pound gain from my last appointment. Ooops.

Sleep: I slept almost great last night thanks to my doctor telling me to take Tylenol PM to sleep better. Oh, and the Zantac actually working this time around.
Maternity clothes? Absolutely. Although I can still fit into my one-size-up (from pre-pregnancy size, thankyouverymuch) AE shorts. 23 pounds, 23 schmounds.

Best moment this week: Hearing her little heart beating 152 bpm at the doctor's office and passing my glucose test!

Movement: When is she not moving?

Cravings: Milk. Rockin' Green Detergent. Mmmm.

Labor signs: Braxton hicks when I have a full bladder. Fun!

What do you miss? Uh, not craving laundry detergent. For sure.
Looking forward to: Eating healthier and exercising more. No, really. I guess I needed the inspiration. (More on that in the next few days!)

Weekly wisdom: Sciatic nerve pain is no joke.
Milestones: Being 15 weeks away from my due date! That's not that far away!

Baby updates:
Gumdrop now measures about 13.5'' head to heels and weighs about 1.5 pounds, and she's beginning to exchange her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more and more like a newborn. She's also growing more hair - and if we could see it, we'd be able to determine it's color and texture. (Baby Center)

Grass Capades

2011-06-06T14:56:00.002-04:00

Yeah, yeah. We know grass is supposed to be planted in the fall. But since we moved to our new home in March, that wasn't really an option for us.

You see, we have about a 500 square-foot fenced-in backyard. Which is great and all (it really is!) but the owner of the house we're renting wasn't here for quite some time before we moved in. Months and months, we've been told. The backyard was like a weedy jungle when we arrived, and - in fact - we haven't even purchased a lawn mower. Instead, Chris just weed-eats the backyard because that's all that really grows: weeds.

(Thankfully our rent includes the front and side yards being mowed by a mowing company, so we don't have to worry about that.)

Well, since we moved in, we've been wanting to do something with the backyard to make it more toddler-friendly. (Because really, lets be honest. Weeds and minimal grass coverage are not toddler-friendly.) What we really want to do (install some type of play-ground like material) isn't cost-effective for a place we're only going to be for two years or less. And the owner probably wouldn't approve of the change, anyway. So we've been tossing around a more cost-effective and temporary solution: grass! That's smart, huh?

Over the weekend (and since our toddler is toddling right along and just about to be walking everywhere) we decided it was time to finally do something about that yard. Chris diligently did a bunch of research about "temporary" grass planting and over seeding, we purchased our supplies, and off we went on our grass capades. Chris weed-eated, raked and slightly tilled up the soil. He threw down fertilizer and my pregnant self did the hard job of watering the yard and taking funny pictures.

Chris then threw down the grass seed and watered a little more.

Easy as pie! At least the actual work part was. The hard part is being diligent in our watering of the yard until germination takes place, and just the waiting in general. Here are the before pictures of our yard:

Yes, those are moving boxes in the bottom corner of our yard. From March. Two months ago. Don't judge.

I plan on taking a weekly photo to see if we can track any progress. At the very least, even if the new seed doesn't take, we're hopeful that the fertilizer will at least aide in the growth of the current grass.

We'll see!

24 weeks

2011-06-04T20:58:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 24 weeks.

Total weight gain: 18 pounds.

Sleep: So-so. I still wake up a lot at night to go to the bathroom and at least once a night with horrible heartburn.
Maternity clothes? For the most part. I still like to wear my one-size-up AE jean shorts, though they're getting a little tight in the waist.

Best moment this week: Chris definitively feeling Gumdrop move around in there!

Movement: Wiggle worm.

Cravings: Cookies. And Rockin' Green Detergent. Dang pica.

Labor signs: Nope.

What do you miss? Not getting in funky moods for no apparent reason.
Looking forward to: Sleeping tonight. Ha!

Weekly wisdom: Oh just be prepared for the horrid heartburn. Or rejoice and be glad if you don't have it.
Milestones: Making it through my first really rough week of waking up with heartburn.

Baby updates:

Gumdrop is growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. She's now just over a pound and almost a foot long (about the length of an ear of corn). She has a pretty lean figure at this point, but her body is filling out proportionally and she'll soon start to plump up. Her brain is also growing quickly now and her taste buds are continuing to develop. Her lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help her air sacs inflate once she hits the outside world. Her skin is still a little thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon. (Baby Center)

Since We're Talking About Differences

2011-06-01T13:57:00.000-04:00

Since yesterday's post was directed toward how things are different with this pregnancy than with my first, I thought it only fitting to address my first skribit-inspired post to answer the question, "How are you preparing differently for baby girl than you did for baby boy? Lessons learned?" This is a really good question. In fact, I sort of want to sit down and answer it so that I can know what we're doing differently. This is sort of forcing me to examine our preparations - are they enough? not enough? soft? not soft enough? etc.

In all honesty, I could probably get away with saying that we're not doing anything different. Mostly because that's just how I feel. And to be even more honest? I could probably get away with saying that we're not really doing anything to prepare at all. But I know that isn't completely true and honest, because - just like this pregnancy is different - so are the ways we're going about dealing with it, which leads to how we're preparing for Gumdrop's arrival.

I think the biggest and most obvious difference in preparations involve material things. Since this is our second baby, we don't lack necessities like we did with our sweet son. We have nearly everything we need this time around, minus a crib or toddler bed (we haven't decided yet when we make the transition to room-sharing - assuming we're still in a two-bedroom - if we're going to get a new crib for Gumdrop and convert the crib Baby Boy has now into a toddler bed, or give Gumdrop Baby Boy's crib and give him a brand-new new toddler bed) and girl clothing/accessories. We have the essentials. We're really thankful for that, too, because it was actually really hectic and a little stressful the first time making sure we had everything we needed in time for baby's arrival. This time, we're a lot more relaxed, less stressed out - if not at all! - and have just been cruising right along. This mindset could be due to a number of factors, like having a stable income and insurance, not worrying about how/if we'll be able to afford _______, not having to put a nursery together (which I have mixed feelings about, but I'll get to that in a minute), knowing my husband isn't going anywhere for a long time, and oh the list goes on. It's freeing to have Gumdrop in such starkly different life situations, because there's a lot less worry and a lot more time to just enjoy our time together as a family of three before everything gets stirred up again.

Now, the nursery subject is - like I said - one I have mixed feelings about. It really is nice to have a sweet little room in your house designated for your new baby. Everything can have it's own place and - ideally - your newborn has a "place" in the house when s/he comes home from the hospital. I am a little sad about not having an individual room for Gumdrop when she gets home from the hospital to call her own, because it would be fun to get a room ready for her. And to have the extra space to get the baby things out of Baby Boy's room since he doesn't use them anymore would be really nice! But the reality is that we live in a two-bedroom house and we can't paint the walls to make it really personal. Besides, we've turned in to a co-sleeping family, although we never thought we would be. So for the first (at least) 3 months (but maybe/possibly longer?) Gumdrop will be sleeping in a co-sleeper next to our bed. If and when the transition takes place to move Gumdrop into Baby Boy's room (pending our still living here) we'll be able to have a little fun and be more creative in the decorating sense, since we'll be splitting a room into something that shares both genders. But that is really far off in the distance, and we may or may not still be living in the same rental. So, in the aspect of nursery planning and preparations, we've absolutely no nursery to work on this time around.

Along the same lines, we're being forced to make a two-bedroom rental work for a four-member family. This is definitely something we weren't doing the first time, so it is a new aspect of preparation that we maybe hadn't expected to encounter. We're having to look ahead to see what we can make work (much like the bedroom sharing that could quite possibly take place next year sometime), and that means creating a system that will work immediately when Gumdrop comes home from the hospital. Like I said, she will be sharing our room for an unforeseen amount of time immediately upon her arrival, so I have been turning over in my head lately ways to make the transition easier. One of the ways is to not have a master bedroom anymore. I plan on shifting some of mine and Chris' things around to incorporate Gumdrop's necessities into our room. For example, our dresser will be rearranged to have space to hold Gumdrop's clothing and diapers. The top of our dresser will be utilized as a changing table, and anything else she might need will be brought in. This is something I don't plan on getting done until we're in the nitty-gritty, bare-minimal time frame right before she arrives, but it is definitely something we're going to eventually have to do to prepare for her arrival. With Baby Boy, we didn't have our own master bedroom, but we did have our own room and Baby Boy had his own nursery. We'll definitely have to get used to sharing the little space we have with another little human being.

I feel like a lot of this pregnancy has zoomed right past us without us even knowing it was happening. We did find out really early - which was the same in both pregnancies. This time we didn't tell anyone until nearly 16 weeks, though, as opposed to telling everyone the first time almost immediately. I'm not sure if that has something to do with this pregnancy going by quicker, but either way, it really has. This pregnancy has been harder on my body and harder on our family unit, which is something we've had to adjust to and work around. Thankfully I have the most incredible and understanding husband in the world, so he does his best to make things easier on me and on us. I honestly feel like this pregnancy has been more about getting to the end result than it has been about preparation. Perhaps it's because we're having a girl and we're so thrilled to meet her, or perhaps it's because we've been through a pregnancy before so we know "what it's like." Either way, a lot of our preparing has been just talking about having a girl. All we know is boy, boy, boy. We have been in boy mode since December of 2009 when we found out we were having a boy. This time, even though we're having a girl, not everything is girl, girl, girl, because we still have our sweet son. Sure, we have a ton of fun going to the store and buying girl clothes, but our money is split between Gumdrop and Baby Boy, because he still needs things, too. We like to have conversations contemplating how having a girl will be different: how she'll have a different personality, how girls are just different in general than boys, how she'll fit into our family. Chris likes to reference her as our little princess, because we're just convinced she's going to be sweet like her big brother. (At least we're hoping and praying she is!) It is just exciting to us to sit down and talk about little sister coming in September and having her here. I think the bulk of our preparation is just talking about her, because sometimes I still can't believe she's a girl.

Since there isn't much materially that we can/need to do to prepare, talking has been our main focus this time around. I guess it is sort of therapeutic in a reassuring way.

Now, as for lessons learned, that's enough for an entirely different post, so I'm going to save that for a later date.

Things are different this time around

2011-05-31T15:23:00.000-04:00

So you know how you always hear (or maybe you don't, but I have) that all pregnancies are different? Yeah? Well, I think some women have similar or the same pregnancies every time they're pregnant, because that just seems logical. And I think I've heard stories. But mostly it is just logical that someone (someones?) somewhere out there on this big ol' planet of ours experiences the same pregnancy symptoms (or lack thereof) each and every time they're pregnant. So they - lucky them! - know what to expect.

As for the rest of us? Oh, well, you know. We just kind of have to take our different pregnancies in stride because we never really know what to expect. I guess if you look on the bright side of things, you could make that into an adventure or something. But let's be honest here: we're talking about pregnancy and not all of them are created equal. Or tolerable, for that matter.

I naturally assumed my pregnancies would differ and vary to some degree, you know, because that's always what I heard. (And was later told by countless nurses.) But I guess I just wasn't prepared for how different they'd really be. You know, in reality. Sure, I "knew" it would happen, but can anything really prepare you for pregnancy? No, not really. I have found that even having been pregnant and experiencing pregnancy before, I was in no way prepared for being pregnant again.

The baby brain. Let's face it: although there is no real scientific data that proves this is a real phenomena, I'd like to propose that it is. Why else would there be a name for it? Why else would masses of pregnant women claim to have it or have experienced it at some point? I didn't have much of an encounter with baby brain the first time around, but this time? Yep, it was really bad. Like throw-away-money-in-the-garbage-can bad. Thankfully I didn't have it bad the first time since I was in my last semester of college.

And don't get me started on the morning sickness. I thought the morning sickness and nausea I had the first time was awful. I really did. But looking back, after having survived the first 16 weeks of this pregnancy still in-tact, the first go-around was a big fat joke. This time around I was mostly incapacitated, had to be prescribed anti-nausea medication, and I couldn't control my urges to vomit. (You know, if those happened to be controllable in the first place.) I don't think I have ever been as happy to not feel nauseous or sick as I was when I finally got far enough into my second trimester this time around.

The cravings. Now, I've heard these can vary by your baby's gender, which might be true. Or it might be just one of those old wives' tales that has absolutely no grounds for evidence. But the first time I was pregnant, I craved sour edibles, like sour candies and fruit. I also craved salads and raw vegetables and Wendy's and Zaxby's. Some of those cravings are similar this time around, like Zaxby's. But this time I've abandoned all hope for anything sour and have had an uncontrollable desire to eat chocolate and cookies. And - what's worse? - the dreaded pica. Yup, I'm one of those pregnant women this time around. It could quite possibly be the worst symptom I've experienced. (Note: that is an overstatement and invalid.) But having a craving that you can't satisfy because, um, you're craving something that isn't meant to be eaten? Pure. Torture. Folks, it's bad. My current non-edible craving is Rockin Green detergent. I could sit around for five minutes just thinking about eating a spoonful of it. Don't judge me. (Especially because I haven't eaten it. I just want to.)

I'm sure the list could go on about the things that are different this time around for me. Sure, lots of things are the same (ie: the killer heartburn, the round ligament pain, other not-so-appropriate symptoms of pregnancy), but mostly I was knocked right off my feet with what to expect during pregnancy. Maybe this will teach me a lesson next time around.

23 weeks

2011-05-28T18:20:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 23 weeks.

Total weight gain: 17 pounds.

Sleep: Still fair. I wake up a lot at night to go to the bathroom.
Maternity clothes? Finally able to fit into one of my tops!

Best moment this week: I guess just all the wiggles and movement I'm feeling! It's so reassuring.

Movement: She's movin' and groovin'.

Cravings: Chocolate chip cookies. And just chocolate in general. Like mad.

Labor signs: None.

What do you miss? No heartburn!
Looking forward to: Starting to go to the pool over the summer to take a break from all my pain.

Weekly wisdom: Eat as many cookies as you want. Or something?
Milestones: Having a belly big enough to fit into one of my maternity tops. Finally!

Baby updates:
With her sense of movement well developed by now, Gumdrop can feel my movements. She's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about the size of a large mango) and her movements are noticeable from the outside now. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare her for breathing and the sounds that her increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now - like the vacuum cleaner or dog barking - most likely won't phase her when she hears them outside the womb. (Baby Center)

My Sweetest New Obsession

2011-05-27T08:00:00.002-04:00

I received a few surprise packages in the mail from my mom this past week. They weren't for me, but for her grand babies. (Thanks again, mom!) One of the packages that arrived was a small manila envelope that contained six different colored crochet headbands. My mom knew I was on an endeavor to make headbands for our sweet little addition (instead of having to buy them all the time!) so she gave me a jump-start when I received that little package in the mail.

I have lately been obsessed with rolled fabric rosettes and just adore them on little girl headbands. I have scoured etsy for countless amounts of hours just drooling over all the pretty, petite and dainty headbands available for me to purchase at the click of a mouse. I'll admit, I have given in and purchased three headbands already.

Adorable, right? I just melt into a puddle when I think of our little girl's head wrapped in one of these sweet headbands. Except they weren't cheap. And I knew quickly that etsy would get me in a world of trouble if I continued at the rate I was going. So it was decided: I would learn how to make headbands on my own! Smart decision, right? Since I am so addicted to rolled fabric rosettes, as I mentioned earlier, my husband lovingly made a trip with me to Jo-Ann's to get some cute fabric for my new hobby. You know, the one I'd never tried before. But I had found this great tutorial online that made the process look just so darn easy and I was convinced and determined that I could do it. And guess what? I did!

These are my first three attempts at rolled fabric rosettes, and I was (heck, I still am!) so very pleased with them. So when that tiny package arrived in the mail with those sweet little headbands in it, I knew exactly what I'd do for Gumdrop's first homemade headband. I used a hot glue gun to attach little pearl embellishments (I had leftover from this project) to the red rosette, then glued the rosette to the white headband. And this is how it turned out:

I am still so pleased with the result, and I can't believe I was able to make something so darn cute! Well, I can believe it, I just didn't know it'd be as easy as it was. Now I just have 5 more headbands to make and I'm beyond excited about what I could potentially do with them. This one will always be special, though, since it was the first one I ever made. Now to be patient enough for our sweet babe to arrive so I can see my creation on her!

Something Fun For You

2011-05-26T14:16:00.000-04:00

I came across a fun new tool to add to our blog. It's fun because it involves you - our readers! - in somewhat of a co-pilot(ish) seat to Back to the Quarry. Or something like that.

It is called skribit and it is located in the right-hand column of our blog under our picture and reader favorite posts. (Because it only seemed fitting to go there.) Have a suggestion you'd like to make for a topic of discussion (or something you just really want me to blog about)? Now you can make it right there! No need to email us, click on our contact page, or leave an off-topic comment in a random post. You can even leave suggestions anonymously, so if you don't want us (or other people) to know you're the one making the suggestion, you don't have to! (Please note that I do have the ability to control the suggestions that appear in the box, so inappropriate or rude suggestions will be deleted and ignored.) Also note that this suggestion box is only located on the home page of BTTQ, so if you wander off to a different tab, please remember to come back "home" and add your suggestion or topic idea!

And please don't be reminded of those "suggestion boxes" to "tell us what you think!" that you see in your local restaurants and businesses. No, this will be a lot more fun than those! No filling in bubbles like you're back in high school taking standardized tests or dropping that little folded piece of card stock in the slot wondering if "your opinion really does count!" Because here at BTTQ, we value our readers' thoughts, opinions, advice, and anything else they (you!) have to tell us! And believe me, there's nothing more fun than writing a post that is directed toward a topic that we actually know you want to hear/read about. Well, almost.

But really! It is there, I've let you know, so please take advantage of the opportunity you've been given to share in the adventures of BTTQ.

Our One Year Air Force Versary

2011-05-25T13:43:00.003-04:00

Today marks the one-year date of when Chris left for BMT.

I remember the morning and day of May 25, 2010 as if it happened mere weeks ago. In reality, this has been the absolute longest year of my life, and it seems like it was ages ago, not just 365 days.

Chris had to stay in the MEPS hotel in Louisville the night of the 24th, so we actually were apart one night sooner than he left. The morning of the 25th I got up early, packed myself and our three week-old (to the day) newborn up in the car and headed to Louisville MEPS to spend the last hours we could with Chris. There was lots of paperwork, waiting, and quiet, solemn moments. I was able to record Chris' oath of enlistment, and from there they were shuffled off to be bussed to the airport. Thankfully, TSA allows families of service members leaving to go through security and wait with them at their gate (at least in our case), so this bought us a little more time with him before he left. I got lost on the way to the airport (thanks to our terrible GPS) and had to wait around longer than necessary to meet up with Chris on the other side of security. We spent our last moments together in the airport terminal before saying goodbye.

I'll never forget saying goodbye to my husband, best friend, and father of my son that day. Walking away from him in the airport that day was the hardest thing I've ever had to do.

I received two text messages from him that day, the last one letting me know he was on the bus headed toward Lackland. I didn't hear from him for a few days after that, then we were "lucky" to talk to one another once a week, which didn't start until week 4. Letters kept us going through the 8.5 weeks of BMT. It never got any easier.

Graduation at the end of July didn't come quickly enough, but we finally were able to see each other again. When he left for BMT, he didn't know what his job would be or where/how long his tech school would be. He actually didn't find out until the day before graduation, and I'll always remember him telling me "weather" and "Keesler AFB for 7 months" while waiting for the Honor Graduate ceremony to begin. Thankfully, his tech school was long enough for the Air Force to pay to move myself and our son to be with Chris through his training, so we were able to move to Mississippi in the middle of August.

There we stayed for 8 months. Eight very.long.months. I won't go into detail except being there for tech school was a terrible experience. Just awful.

We found out in December where his OJT would be and moved to our new home in March. We've been here for two months now and absolutely adore living here. It has taken one very long and difficult road to get to where we are now, but God has been gracious to us in following and trusting his will for this season in our lives, and we're extremely thankful for that.

Happy one year Air Force versary, Chris, the greatest husband, father, and provider I could have ever asked for. You are a blessing to our family and I'm so thankful that you are my life partner. I love you so much!

It Was Time

2011-05-24T12:50:00.002-04:00

Sunday it was decided.

Sunday was the day we decided to take away all of E's pacifiers. Well, Sunday night rather. Because we made the decision late afternoon. Ish. Not for any particular reason other than, well, we just decided it was time. We didn't want him to get too attached to them and have a battle to fight later on.

Thankfully, for the past few weeks, E has been taking up a new habit of tossing everything from inside his crib to the floor. This included his pacifiers. So during his daytime naps, he'd toss everything out, fuss and cry for a few minutes, and then fall asleep completely on his own - no pacifier or stuffed animal to snuggle.

So when we decided it was time to kick the pacifier habit, I was hopeful these past few weeks of "practice" would resonate with him at bedtime. Well, it did in the sense that he tossed everything out of his crib and into the floor! But there wasn't much fighting, fussing or crying. He did stay awake longer instead of falling asleep a little quicker like he would if he had his pacifier. But his extra time awake didn't consist of much protest! Right before he conked out he fussed and cried for a minute or two, but he wound up curling up and falling asleep quickly after that. He woke up three times during the night - once for his usual bottle around 11 PM, and then two other times in the early morning - but he would fuss for less than a minute before falling asleep on his own.

Last night he woke for his bottle around midnight, then slept the entire night without waking until 6:30 this morning.

Whew!

Now, if only we can get him off his bottle that easily...

22 weeks

2011-05-23T10:04:00.000-04:00

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 22 weeks.

Total weight gain: 17 pounds.

Sleep: Fair.
Maternity clothes? Still waiting to be able to fit into my maternity tops.

Best moment this week: Sales at Kohl's and the clothes we got her.

Movement: Wiggle worm.

Cravings: Cookies.

Labor signs: Nope.

What do you miss? My belly not feeling like I do 387 sit-ups every morning.
Looking forward to: Attempting to make some cute headbands for her this week.

Weekly wisdom: I don't have any this week.
Milestones: Not sure!

Baby updates:

At 11 inches and nearly one pound, Gumdrop is beginning to look like a miniature newborn. Her lips, eyelids and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and she's developing tiny toothbuds beneath her gums. Her eyes have formed but her irises still lack pigment. Inside her belly, her pancreas - essential for the production of some important hormones - is developing steadily. (Baby Center)

Homemade Wooden Name Blocks

2011-05-20T09:17:00.000-04:00

(And no, her name is not Ayil. But those are all the letters, so have a little fun of your own, play a little word scramble and see if you can figure it out!)

When did he get so smart?

2011-05-19T11:08:00.000-04:00

Hi, my name is Brittney and I'm a mama to a 1-year old who seems to have gotten smart overnight.

Okay, I know that's not really true, because his brain has been developing and growing since the womb. But! Really! It almost seems as if he hit one and the light switch turned on for him to start showing us everything he's learned in his first year on this earth. Believe me, it is absolutely one of the most incredible things I have experienced in my life.

I always love to experience and look forward to my son's milestones. I'm not one to get emotional about him growing up, because that's what he's made to do! We're here as parents to guide him, teach him, mold him, and help him grow on his journey to becoming a man - and man of God. So to see him develop from a helpless newborn into a mobile infant and now into a smart toddler is just amazing to me. I love every single second of it, I really do!

Nowadays he is showing us his understanding of the world around him. He sees how things function, is learning how to respond in certain situations, and understands that his actions (or our actions) result in reactions. He loves to mimic us by pointing when we point, clapping when we clap, and he's recently picked up on folding his arms across his chest when we do the same. He's still as sweet as can be, and he really loves to snuggle. Most of the time he just snuggles his stuffed animals during nap time or bed time, but he's starting to snuggle us more often during the day. (Even if it's only for 5 seconds, because he is a boy, and he's always wanting to just go, go, go!) The other day I wasn't feeling well and laid on the floor next to him playing in his room and he brought me one of his pacifiers, like that would help me feel better. He also likes to take the pieces of his puzzles out of their spots and hand them to me one by one. Also, a few months ago, he saw us reaching between the wall and his crib mattress for long-lost pacifiers and began to do that himself when he'd wake up at night in search of one. And the real kicker? He has a My Pal Scout that plays "bedtime" music if you press on one of his bottom paws. At night, if he's still awake and it stops playing music, he'll press the paws until he finds the bedtime one, (it says, "[yawn] 2/5/10 minutes of bedtime music, snuggle up/goodnight!") and he'll press it at least twice to get to 5 minutes, then snuggle up with it.

Smarty pants, eh?

Yes, it is like he has gotten smart overnight and just loves to show off his new skills. And you know what? I love it!

Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas

2011-05-18T11:48:00.000-04:00

If you've been around for a while, and if there's one thing you know about me, it's that I love anything enchilada. Enchiladas truly are my favorite food, and I'm always willing and ready to try out a new recipe. I came across this recipe for Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas (click for original recipe) on the Betty Crocker website. I'll admit that I was a bit skeptical at first about them, but they turned out really great! You should go make these, like, right now. I promise you won't be disappointed!

Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas

1 can Progresso Traditional Chicken and Cheese Enchilada Soup

1 can red enchilada sauce

2 cups shredded cooked chicken

2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese

13 corn tortillas

2 medium green onions, thinly sliced

Don't do this. Instead, heat oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, stir together soup and enchilada sauce.

Spread 1 cup mixture in an ungreased 11x7 baking dish.

That pot on the stove? I boil my chicken for chicken enchilada dishes. We buy big bags of frozen chicken tenders because they last longer and save us money. I boiled 7 tenders for this recipe, which was just barely shy of a full 2 cups, but still enough for this recipe. So, once your chicken is cooked and shredded, mix it with 1 cup of the soup mixture and 1 cup of the shredded cheese. Reserve remaining soup mixture and cheese.

Prepare your tortillas for stuffing. The traditional way is to heat oil in a skillet and dunk the tortillas in the hot oil to soften them so they don't crack and break when you roll them. This is the best method, in my opinion. But to save time (especially when you have a toddler!) you can stack tortillas on a microwavable plate between two damp paper towels and heat in the microwave on high for 1 minute. It works, but not as well. Once your tortillas are softened, begin to stuff them with the chicken mixture, roll, and place seam-side down into the baking dish. (This recipe calls for 10 tortillas, but I used 13 because that's how many I could fit into my baking dish. I had the perfect amount of mixture to fill all 13.)

Pour remaining soup mixture over enchiladas, sprinkle with remaining 1 cup of cheese and top with green onions. Bake about 30 minutes, or until cheese on top is melted and sauce is bubbly.

I didn't take a finished picture, but they basically look like the picture at the top of the recipe from the Betty Crocker website, except we smeared sour cream on top of ours.

My husband's rating? He thinks they're the best enchiladas I've ever made. Hands down. Baby boy liked them a lot, as well. But unfortunately I didn't get a picture of that, either. Slacker blogger right here!

Also, as a side note, the Progresso Soup has big chunks of chicken and celery in it, which I picked out. In case you'd like to do the same! Now, go, enjoy!

In Case You Really Wanted to Hear It

2011-05-17T10:47:00.000-04:00

I now present to you: that disgusting story I mentioned yesterday about how baby boy got a splinter in his knee that has absolutely nothing to do with the splinter in his knee. This is, in fact, an email narrative I sent to my husband after the events took place. (Edited, of course, so as to not be directed toward him.)

Please feel free to enjoy, laugh at me, or shudder in disgust.

Baby boy and I went outside yesterday to bring the trash can up, check the mail, play with the neighborhood cat, and practice walking. Everything was going fine & dandy. Really! We walked down to the curb together, then I picked him up and held him while I wheeled the can back up. We walked back down to the mailbox and by this time, the cat was running over to us, so baby boy was enthralled as usual. We walked back up to the porch and looked at the bushes and walked back and forth to the chair and played with the cat some more. Then we walked around the grass a little, and came back to the porch.

At some point while we were on the porch, our son got interested in the water spicket and wanted to look at it. So we walked over to it and when he reached his hand out to hold onto the wall, a GIGANTIC SPIDER fell to the ground. So I swooped him up away from it and watched as it scurried toward our door. I was hoping it'd scurry right along to the other side of our door, and down the porch toward the garbage can. But nope. It stopped under our door on top of the metal "step" as far in toward the weather stripping under the door as it could get. And it stayed there. At this point, it was about 6 inches inside the left hand side of the door. Since it looked too big to fit under the weather stripping (it tried) I wasn't too worried. I figured it would eventually keep going along it's way so I kept an eye on it while baby boy played with the cat, walked up and down the driveway again, and did some more porch exploring. Well, that seemed to be doing the trick, because the spider started moving along, like I thought it would to the right side of the door. Now it was about a foot inside the right hand side of the door. I tried to get the cat's attention to go investigate it, but she was too worried about getting attention and rubbing her body all over everything. So I saw two little sticks by one of the bushes. I thought to myself that I could toss them over near the spider and that would make it scurry on it's way. So I did. And what did the spider do? It scurried, alright. Scurried right to about the inches inside the right hand side of the door and forced it's gross body UNDER the weather stripping!!!!! I thought to myself, "Well that's great!" But I still wasn't too worried because it still wasn't all the way under. Three of it's legs were still sticking out, so I thought we still had a chance. (Please keep in mind that in my mind, we are "locked" out of the house. Ever since that spider hit the ground and crawled up to the door, I was determined to stay outside at all costs until it moved away from the door and we could go inside without letting it in.)

Our sweet son is oblivious to the dire situation, of course, and he's enjoying our time outside exploring. But he's started to get restless and is tired of walking with me and holding onto my hands and wants to start crawling around outside. Not a good idea for his little knees. So I'm starting to get desperate. We received one piece of mail today and it was in an envelope that I knew could easily fit under the weather stripping, and I thought maybe I could force the spider OUT of hiding if I just used the envelope to coax it out. Smart, right???

WRONG!

The act of pushing the envelope under the weather stripping actually AIDED in the spider getting it's ENTIRE BODY under the weather stripping. At this point, there was no turning back. It was either wait outside another 1.5 hours until Chris got home, or open the door and trap the spider somewhere in the house. So I scooped up Eyan and slowly opened the door. Thankfully, the spider flew across the floor to the trash can for cover. So I ran Eyan to his crib and then grabbed the vacuum cleaner. I was determined to suck that spider up. So I got it all ready and then chickened out when I saw it. It had crawled out from behind the trash can to the molding on the outside of the cabinet. I feared it would make a break for it at any moment and run under the stove, so I climbed as far around it as I could (which entailed stepping up on a dining room chair, onto the table, then down the other side.) I quickly grabbed a glass bowl from the cabinet and crept back toward where the spider was, making sure to keep my distance. I'm still worried that this thing is going to take cover under the stove, so I knew I had to act! I grabbed the dust cleaner from the cabinet, aimed, and sprayed that sucker!!! It turned and ran the other way, slower (disoriented from the dust cleaner?) and as it was crawling toward the bookshelf I trapped it under the bowl!!! Success!!!!

And then I shuddered because it really is huge and disgusting. So after the booger was trapped, I put the dust back and realized we still have wasp killer up there. I wish I would have used that instead. But at least I knew where the spider was and that Chris would save us from it when he got home.

The end.

Update: he did, in fact, save us from it when he got home. Thankfully! I don't know what I'd do without that man.

21 week update and some extra things

2011-05-16T16:05:00.000-04:00

Right now I'm watching my son on our video monitor. I put him down for a nap about, oh, maybe half an hour ago. Instead of sleeping, he's standing up by the crib rail next to the wall, pointing and looking up toward the ceiling while telling a story. He also has a splinter in his knee. There's a pretty disgusting (and quite possibly entertaining) story to go along with how he got that splinter that has absolutely nothing to do with the splinter if you want me to tell it to you. Just not today. I'm still fighting back the urge to vomit just thinking about it.

No, really.

And you know that big news I mentioned last week? Well, it started over the weekend and I am so. excited. about it. Everything is coming along smoothly and I just need more time to fine-tune some things before I go public with the excitement. Trust me, it will be well, well worth the wait!

In other news, I'm 21 weeks preggo with our sweet little baby girl! So I think it's time to update you on my progress for the week. (Even if it's two days late. Whoops!)

Pregnancy updates:

How far along are you? 21 weeks.

Total weight gain: 16 pounds.

Sleep: Still pretty good, thankfully!
Maternity clothes? For the most part. My shirts are still too big. Which stinks because my pre-preg shirts are too small. But I'm definitely wearing all maternity bottoms, plus the next-size-up shorts I bought from AE.

Best moment this week: Working on a fun and cute project for Gumdrop over the weekend!

Movement: She's dancing around like crazy.

Cravings: Zaxby's and chocolate chip cookies.

Labor signs: None!

What do you miss? Not having heartburn.
Looking forward to: Another headband I ordered for her to arrive in the mail this week!

Weekly wisdom: Zaxby's is so very tasty when you're pregnant.
Milestones: None that I'm aware of.

Baby updates:

Gumdrop now weighs about 3/4 of a pound and is approximately 10.5'' long - the length of a carrot. Her flutters are soon to become full-fledged kicks and nudges and a pattern of her movement may emerge. Her eyebrows and lids are present now. (Baby Center)

Annoyed

2011-05-13T13:35:00.000-04:00

I posted yesterday. And I made some changes to the blog. Really, I did. I actually put some hard work into it, too, and then Blogger crashed. Apparently.

Or something.

Now my post from yesterday is gone completely - it isn't even in my "edit posts" list. And all those changes I made? Gone. Not saved. Nowhere to be found.

SIGH.

Here's to hoping all my changes are still saved - somewhere. And that Blogger is still restoring the posts they took down.

I did have a post in mind for today, but I'm too irritated to mess with it now, for fear of losing something else.

In other news, with the help and encouragement of my wonderful and incredible husband, I'm taking on some new endeavors. Things I've always wanted to do, learn how to do, and get good at. Hopefully it all works out how we're wanting it to, because it maybe/might possibly/could eventually lead to something bigger and better for us. At least, that's what we're hoping.

Pending my abilities, of course. Those will be important.

But until we see how things go, I'll keep those things in the dark for now.

The! Suspense! I! know! You know that's how we roll here at BTTQ.

Confessions

2011-05-12T11:47:00.000-04:00

I have a Type-A personality and am someone who thrives off organization, cleanliness, and order. So the messes my son makes when he eats make me want to shudder.

I miss those soft, gentle, helpless newborn cries that have been replaced in our house with ear-piercing, screaming-at-the-top-of-my-lungs screeching.

Our son won't hold a sippy cup to drink out of by himself unless he's in his bouncer or stroller.

If we have a poopie diaper during the day, I leave it in the bathroom for Chris to dunk in the toilet for me when he gets home from work. (Yes, we're in desperate need of a diaper sprayer.)

I look at etsy constantly for baby items I'd like to purchase for our sweet girl. In fact, I have a saved Word document on our computer filled with links to items and shops I like.

I can't wait to start ordering girl diapers!

I don't change out of my lounge clothes (read: pajamas) 5 days out of the week that Chris works. (That is, unless we're going somewhere when he gets home. And in that case, I usually don't get ready until he tells me he's on his way.)

I just transferred over 6,000 pictures and 50 home videos from our computer to our external hard drive last week. All the pictures were from 2011 alone. It's only May.

I usually don't start housework until an hour before Chris gets home from work. But hey, at least it gets done!

Some of our furniture is still out of place from baby boy's big birthday bash. That was nearly two weeks ago.

We're just now getting baby boy back into a bedtime routine similar to the one he had when Chris was at BMT.

I get headaches every day if I don't have a Coke by lunchtime.