24on48off: January 2011

January 26, 2011

Last Baby Appointment

Yesterday and into last night I was having a crazy amount of Braxton Hicks contractions. A couple of them actually caused me to wake up. I was nervous they were going to progress into the real thing while Chad was at work. The first thing my OB said when she saw my stomach was, "you've gotten smaller!" At my last appointment I was measuring 38 inches and today I measured 36, which means he has dropped even lower. I am also about 1-2 cm dilated so at least the B. Hicks were doing something other than making me uncomfortable. Right now our plan is to go in the night of the 3rd to start inducing and have him on the 4th, unless of course he decides to come sooner, which I would welcome at this point. So it's official, we will be a family of four in 9 days or less!

January 25, 2011

Valentine's Frame

I have a few Michael's craft frames left over from awhile back and I thought of a cute, Valentine's Day-appropriate project after seeing the pretty foil on these bad boys:

(Hey, I'm allowed to indulge a little bit since I won't be pregnant for much longer! Don't judge me..)

Anyway, I started off by using Mod Podge to attach some pink cardstock to the frame.

Using my exacto knife, I cut around the sides.

Then I sanded the edges. (By the way, the cardstock ended up being an unnecessary step because the foil covered the entire front of the frame.. but I'm including it in this tutorial anyway.)

Using a hot glue gun, I glued the foil over the entire frame then folded down the sides accordingly.

Then I embellished!

And just for fun, here are some similar projects I've made in the past:

I made these two for my sister-in-law and gave them to her at her baby shower:

January 24, 2011

Little Girl's Room

Ally transitioned surprisingly well when we moved into our new house. Prior to moving she was still sleeping in a crib (she had just turned two), but we thought it would be the perfect time to upgrade her to a big girl bed. For the first couple of weeks she actually slept on a mattress on the floor in the baby's room while we got her room set up. Chad and I picked out the color of her room together, which is a very soft pinkish-purple. (He was sick of pink everywhere he turned so we tried to tone it down a bit.) I'm sure sometime in the future I might play around with new decorations and maybe even try to do something different with the furniture, but we worked with what he had and this is how it is for the time being:

BEFORE

AFTER

I'd like to find or make some art to put on the wall around her bed, figure out something to hide the clutter in her closet, and maybe someday in the distant future I'll paint her furniture and replace the knobs just to update the look a little more. I can't complain too much because we got all the furniture for free. I gave the bookcase a couple fresh coats of the same white we used on the trim. The curtains were in our living room at our old house and they were meant to be temporary, but I think I like them.

January 22, 2011

Flirtini Fridays!

My friend Sarah has decided to start "Flirtini Fridays," which are held every third Friday of the month. It's basically a bunch of girls getting together for the evening (kids are welcome) and just enjoying some drinks, snacks, and adult time (with someone other than our husbands). Yesterday was the first official Flirtini Friday and I took Ally with me. Chad went out with a couple of the other husbands and ended up stopping by at the end of the night. Not only did I get my adult time, but Ally got some much needed kid time. I love seeing her interacting with kids her age. I wish I would have gotten some more pictures (the only one from the get-together is the one with Tweety). The next one is on the 18th of February so I'll get to show off both of my babies and enjoy a drink or two.. or at least a sip (ah, breastfeeding).

Daddy was showing Ally how to pose

37 Weeks

1. How far along? 37 weeks and officially full term. According to our ultrasound (yesterday), baby is approximately 7 pounds, give or take a pound, and good to go!

2. Weight gain? Right around 32 pounds.

3. Signs of labor? Braxton Hicks and that's about it.

4. Sleep? Could be better. I wake up every hour or so to flip sides because my butt, hips, and legs cramp easily these days. Also doesn't help having a husband who sleeps like this:

5. Best moment this week? Seeing my baby one last time on the big screen and hearing that he's healthy and ready to come whenever.

6. Food cravings? SUGARRR :/

7. Food aversions? Not so much...

8. Looking forward to? Labor being over and seeing him for the first time.

9. Milestones? Full term and told by my OB to pick his birthday.. Ahh!

10. Pregnancy thoughts this week? This could very well be our last week as a family of 3.. Ally's last week as an only child. Soon the house will be filled with baby cries, I'll constantly have my Pam Anderson boobs out, and sleep will be a thing of the past once again. I just pray that as parents and partners, Chad and I can keep it together this time, be patient with one another, and smile more than fight. I can't help but be as anxious as I am excited and have I mentioned that I am so not looking forward to labor?!