We're Having A.....

BABY!

I know, not very funny right.  You already knew that.  When the tech asked this morning if we wanted to know the gender, I confidently said "no".  When she went out to show the results to the Dr., Nate asked me if I was sure.  "Yes".  I'm a little surprised at myself, but I don't regret that decision at all (other than ultrasounds give me this crazy desire to go buy baby items... and that's alot harder to do when you don't have a gender).  Don't worry, I'll come up with something :)

Without furthur ado, here's our bean (aka to me as Baby Sophisticate).  Drinking an Earl Grey Latte as I type ;)

See the little fingers sticking up?

And here is the left hand open and the face :)

She had trouble getting a profile shot as the babe's face was squished up into the placenta.  But you can see it here with both hands over the head.

I also know now why I don't feel much movement.  The placenta is at the front, right under my belly button.  The kicks would have to be substantial at this point to be felt with the placenta in the way.  Might be a "quieter" pregnancy (which is kind of unfortunate as I do love those kicks).  I'm sure I'll feel plenty by the end though.

Mostly, I feel extremely blessed that this baby is healthy.  Healthy heart, kidneys, stomach, bladder, brain, and a three vessel umbilical cord. 

Now another 21 weeks or so until we get to meet "he" or "she" :)

My 20 Year Old Self

At twenty, I was living in Africa.  My hair was bleach blonde and just past my shoulders.  I was friends with Nate but we hadn't started dating.  I had yet to convocate from University.  My cousin posted on Facebook this morning that her 20 year old self, would be surprised that she loves the morning drive to get her kids to school.  It has me reflecting on my own 20 year old self.  Here are things I know would have surprised me, about my 32 year old self.

Living in Calgary in a two storey home - for 9 years
That at 21 I'd meet the love of my life and we'd marry
That together, we would have three kids.  Three.
That before we had kids I'd fall in love with a Red Golden Retriever and would have to find a way to make him ours.
That I can cook a Roast, and that it takes good.
That I would enjoy being a homebody.
That I would work downtown in the corporate world,
but would be happiest being at home.
That being a Mom would be the best thing I've yet to do.
That I'd be thinner in my thirties than in my 20's.
That I would run Boston.
That I'd run a marathon at all, let alone 6.
That I would love chocolate and lattes.
That sometimes eating one piece of chocolate can make the whole day better.
That nothing is as beautiful as the sound of an infants laughter.
That my hair would go more and more brunette with each pregnancy.
That I sometimes have the desire to lock myself in a room just to have five minutes to myself.

The more I think on this, the more things I know my 20 year old self would be surprised about.  What about you?  What would have surprised your 20 year old self?

The Big Room Reveal

Weeks ago, Aidan and I took a trip to the paint store, along with his and Grace's quilts.  I went with a plan to find a teal and a green that would coordinate with both, having noticed that both those colours occured in their quilts.  We landed on Blue Lagoon and Grass Green.

I originally thought that only one wall would be in Blue Lagoon, but with one gallon of each, I had way too much Blue Lagoon, but more than likely would have needed another quart of the green.  On a last minute whim, two walls became blue, and two became green.

The kids went to my parents on Sunday morning so Nate and I could assemble their room.  I wanted to keep the colour a surprise until the room was ready for them to move into.

We've kept knick knacks and decorations to a minimum.  Mostly because Aidan is still learning to be in a bed, and both are learning to share a room.  Less stuff to toss about means less disaster.  But I'm really loving how simple it is.  Less stuff is good.  I'm hoping to keep it this way.  They each have their piggy banks, the cross stitch my Grandmother made of their birth information, and their Winnie the Pooh letter.  Grace also has her angel lovingly given by a friend after her surgery.  And a course, a photo of the two of them :)

Both beds have drawers on them, so most of their clothes are kept there.  They share one dresser, each getting two drawers.  So far, this is ample room for all their stuff.  I have their sweaters, and Grace's dresses hung in the closet. 

The letters I painted for each of them are hung above their beds (other than when Aidan randomly takes them down and hides them... so far three times this week).

There is still one square of pink left in the room though.  And it's my favorite part.  Nate says if we ever move I'll probably make him take down the drywall.

I saved Grace's handprint from when she first moved into this room, at about the same age Aidan is now.  Above that in blue, are both their prints.  Grace on the right, Aidan on the left.  Their room :)

This room makes me smile.  They make me smile :)

Thursday already?

We woke up this morning to a steady snowfall.  Not much has accumulated on the ground, you can still see the brown grass underneath.  But it is falling in big thick flakes.  Snow, even in Spring, makes me want to hunker down inside with knitting and a warm drink.

The past few nights have been long, or short.  But I'm not sure where a night where it is past midnight and you are up for at least two hours in a row makes it long or short.  The only night that I can say has gone well since the two have moved into one room together, was the first.  The first night (Sunday) Aidan slept til 6:30 am.  Since then, he's woken up at 3, or 4, and it takes almost an hour and a half to get him to re-settle.  The only one getting better with this adjustment is Grace.  Since having Aidan in her room, she no longer wants to have her door open at night, and if I bring her during one of the awake episodes in to sleep with me, she cries.  She wants her brother.  She has learned not to speak with him when he gets up, and to try and keep sleeping.  I pray Aidan will learn too.  He will.  He has to.  He will.

Ive been trying to think of a clever way to show you the room prep, and the finished result.  But given it is Thursday and the room has been ready since Sunday, I figure I should just show you and forget the clever.

I'm not sure what was more exciting for the kids.  St. Patty's Day and the hope of leprechauns, or their Papa heading our way, with the promise of treats.

For Aidan, definitely the treats.  The boy loves a vanilla steamer.

The last photo in the pink room.  You can see Grace's room here.

Don't panic.  I put alot of thought into whether I should, or shouldn't be painting a room.  We were using a Benjamin Moore VOC compliant.  My Dad did the rolling, I did the trim.  This ensured I got lots of breaks from the room. 

Tomorrow I'll reveal the finished room :)

Today:  Making three dozen muffins for Nate to bring into work tomorrow.  Given my desire to not go into the snow, they will be oatmeal muffins.  Things I have on hand.  I'm going to excite them up a bit with blueberries, some with raisins, and some with cinnamon.

Have a lovely Thursday everyone.

Spring

"Mama" Grace says.  "When is Spring really going to arrive?"

"You know, when it's hot and sunny, and the butterflies are out?"

Then moments later we saw a butterfly emerge from it's cocoon.  I think my girl would have stood there all day watching them. 

Spring is indeed on its way.

Food, Budgeting & Meal Planning

As perhaps some of my posts may have indicated, I'm a coupon user & flyer shopper.  I've been doing both for about a year.  I'm not fanatic though about the couponing.  I do my best to pair coupons up with current deals, and I am getting pretty savvy about what a good deal truly is, but I'm not over the top.  (Over the top are the people in my city who actually take coupons from the store tear pads and SELL them online.  It's true).  Who buys these coupons I do not know, but that is fanatical.  What I fell away from these past couple of months was meal planning.  Couponing & using flyers are great, but when not paired with a meal plan can lead to spending alot more than necessary.  So March my family started again.
First I got an app for my Ipad.  I thought it was going to be genius, but so far it's seeming more like an online calendar.  You can fill in your meals for breakfast, lunch & dinner (I do just dinner for planning, but have been filling in our lunches just out of curiosity).  It has a magic wand that is supposed to fill in meal ideas for you based on previous favorites, but I have yet to make it work.  It either tells me it doesn't have enough data or it has too much.  What I enjoy most about meal planning though, is including new meals.  I try to do two every week.  Also in every week are two meals that I double so that there are some freezer options on days where we have activities, or I need a break from the kitchen.

This past Saturday was a new meal day.  I roasted my first chicken.

Here's what I did.  I seasoned it with salt & pepper, both inside and out.  Then I squeezed some lemon juice over top, and put half a lemon inside.  I also put in a celery stalk cut up, some minced garlic, and a couple tablespoons of butter.  I cooked it at 390 degrees F until it reached 180 degrees.  The biggest fan was Grace.  The girl just couldn't get enough.  Now here is the sneaky part...

With the meal planning I've also started purchasing the Good Food Box again.  I love this box as it forces me to use produce I perhaps would not have otherwise purchased.  This chicken was paired with garlic mashed potatoes that were half potatoes, and half cauliflower.  I would love to say that I don't need to sneak veggies into my family, but my hubby would happily do without, my kids I could never see eating cauliflower, so the best way is to hide it.  The best part?  They had no idea.  I happily smiled away while they ate their potatoes knowing there were also getting some veggies :) 

The last part is we are also using cash to buy groceries.  I limit us to $120 a week.  It is just far too easy to overspend when using plastic, plus it teaches our kids the value of money.  When we used credit, Grace honestly thought we could buy anything.  The idea there was a limit to an account she just couldn't grasp.  Now with cash and what I've outlined above, she will say to me "can we buy that?  Is it on sale?"  I will admit the first time I heard that, it was about a box of popsicles.  I felt a sudden rush of guilt & sadness.  What was I doing?  I didn't want it to spin the other way that we couldn't afford things, or that she couldn't have treats.  I remember gently telling her that we could get popsicles, but that yes, we could get them at a better price.  Since then, the guilt has lessened, and my feeling is becoming that I am raising my kids to be conscientious shoppers, and how to be money wise. 

We are now in the middle of March and I happily reported to Nate today that our Visa bill is half of what it normally would have been.  And most of that being purchases for our upcoming trip to the States. 

This system does work for us, but it has been work for me to get back on track.  Seeing the results today I am that much more motivated. 

Leprechauns are Sneaky

A couple weeks ago I came across a bag of chocolate gold coins.  I've never before done much on St. Patty's Day save to wear green.  But the coins looked like too much fun.  Up until moments ago I wasn't sure what I was going to do with them.  I'm happy that my four (ahem nearly five) year old was able to inform me, without even knowing what I was up to.  So, if you are curious, here is a little bit of knowledge about Leprechauns.

1. They come in the Summer.  I told her so does our baby.  Then I told her I hoped our baby wasn't a Leprechaun.  She did not think this was funny.
2. They come after the rain and hide gold under rainbows.
3. There is a rainbow song.  "Red, Orange, Yellow, Green blocked by Blue, Pink and Violet that's a rainbow song for you!" (sung in a cute little sing song voice).
4. Leprechauns are very very little.
5. So little we hung her rainbow picture at the very bottom of the fridge so that he can see it.
6. We have to find shamrocks first before we find the pot of gold.

It says "Gold Please" :)



Got it.  So, tonight I am going to make shamrocks and leave a trail around the house.  But I'm also going to teach her Leprechauns are sneaky.  I'll leave a pile of shamrocks at the bottom of the fridge and take off her picture.  Then, if it is nice out, I'll put the photo outside somewhere with the pot of gold. 

Other non-Leprechauny news for tomorrow is that my Dad and I are painting Grace's room, so that it will be Grace & Aidan's room.  But we will for sure do that while wearing green.  Nate plans on drinking green beer.

How about you?  Are you celebrating at all?

Making me Smile

Her back.  What seemed like such a scary decision this past November, has turned out so remarkably.  Yesterday she wore a halter top swim suit to her swimming lessons.  Something that wasn't possible before.  You can hardly see the scar.

Making birthday invitations with my girl today.  5.  It seems like such a large number.  My girl will soon be 5.

This babe.  I have decided he/she is "baby sophisticate".  It seems to like tomato soup, early grey tea, and spinach salads.  Quite different from my girl who liked pinnaeple, and my boy who liked chocolate bars.  We saw our midwives last week and they agreed with the ultrasound techs.  We jumped ahead in our due date by 8 days.  I skipped week 15, and part of 16.  Tomorrow I'm 17 weeks.  The flutters are starting to feel more like nudges.  It's very exciting :)

My boy.  Gosh raising a boy is HARD work.  He is wild, unpredictable, constant.  But he also freely gives hugs and kisses.  I think he is raising me as much as we are raising him.  Thank you for your words about his move to a bed.  He turned a corner the night after my post.  It has taken him sleeping with a pregnancy pillow and a few other tricks.  But he is night sleeping, and napping, in a bed.

This shawl.  It is coming along faster than I thought.  I think the March deadline will be met!

These eggs!  Aren't they fantastic!  We found them at our local craft store this morning.  They are nesting eggs with two more inside.  They will replace our baskets.  I can't wait to fill and hide them for years to come.

And one last thing making me smile each and every day - the birds singing outside.  Spring is in the air!

The Boy & his Bed

Two days ago, when Aidan woke from his nap, he attempted to climb out of his crib.  Thankfully I was already in his room when he fell out head first.  I caught him inches from the floor.

At 2 years and 2 months he is making the move to a big bed.

The bed is so big, and he is so little.  Or so it all appears.

And he is struggling.  This change has not come easily.  In the middle of the night, for hours (yes hours), he will ask "crib please?"  One issue I know is that the crib and his bed are in the same room.  We could dismantle the crib, but it will be he and his bed that will shortly (in a weeks time) be moving over into Grace's room.  So for the next week, he, his big bed, and his crib, all share a room.

This morning I was so tired I was on the brink of tears.  My Mom came and took Grace to school for me, and after a slow period of getting ready, I took the Little Chef outside.  It's amazing what fresh air can do to wake one up and brighten the spirit.

And this afternoon, as I type, I want to cry for a whole other reason.  The little man is asleep in his bed, with not much of a struggle.  And I hope, and pray, that this means that maybe the hardest days of this transition are behind us.

A Brief Break

Nate says I've taken everything pleasurable out of my life!  I see it a little bit differently.  That I'm stepping back, unattaching myself a little bit, and I think that's ok.  What have I done?  I've done this before, which is taking a week (and in some cases) a month break from Facebook.  But I've taken it a bit furthur this time and on Saturday I made the decision to take a weeks break from the internet.  I was feeling like my Ipad was attached to my hip all day. 

From checking e-mail at breakfast, to Facebook, to blogs, to Ravelry, alot of time was being consumed looking at a screen.  I think what caught my attention was the e-mail at breakfast.  We have a few family rules in our home, and one is no reading, tv, or other distractions at the dinner table.  Dinner is meant to re-connect at the end of the day.  Why then was I sitting at the breakfast table with both my kids, disengaged with my attention on the Ipad?  It has been bugging me for awhile so I decided to make a change.  I'm the type of person who when a change is needed, need to do it rather drastically or it just doesn't happen.

It's just a brief break.  I have found that even in a weeks time, when I come back, my priorities are lined up in a much more sensible way.

I'll miss "seeing" you all this week, but I have some great stuff lined up.  Swimming tomorrow, playdates with friends, a midwife appointment on Thursday (yes!) and we have started merging Aidan into Grace's room. 

I'll be back on Monday the 12th with lots to tell you :)

February Knits & March Plans

I've been experiencing 'startitis' lately.  Starting more things than one can possibly finish in a reasonable timeframe.  I think when February began I had about 8 projects on the needles.  I did manage to get two completed which felt SO good. 

 These are the Blathnat socks by Irishgirlieknits on Ravelry.  They were a mystery knit a long for the group Sock Knitters Anonymous. 

 I found the first sock a bit of a challenge with quite a few purl and yo combinations.  But by the second sock, I had the swing of it.

The yarn is Gaia Colours Fine Arts Pale Sock.  SUCH a joy to knit with.  It saddened me to find out (again) that this yarn is no longer available for purchase.  The colourway is Narcissas.

 And aren't they fun with my green Mary Janes?  Now I just need Spring to arrive :)

Alright, now the second knit.  First I'm going to tell you about the yarn.  I purchased it at the Beehive in Victoria, while on a date with Nate in the Fall of 2010.  One of those purchases because you just can't leave the store without it.  I had no idea what I was going to do with such a beautiful skein of yarn.... until we found out about this babe.  And it seemed perfect.  It had the right colours - purple, blue, green, brown.  (I'm determined if it's a boy he too can wear purple).  It was also the right amount of yarn, and the right weight for the Puerperium Cardigan.

Originally meant to be for a newborn (up to 8lbs)  I adjusted it for a 0-3 month.  Grace and Aidan were both in the high 7 pd range and I want to get some wear out of this.  I matched it up against a long sleeve onesie we have to get the measurements just right.   I adore it. 

Now onto March.  There are so many projects I wish to start, but I still have quite a few that are languishing on the needles.  So I'm making a commitment.  To finish this....

It's called Cocoon and it's going to be no small task.  I'm only dipping my toes into starting it.  But it would be so nice to have to wear during the Spring.  I'm going to keep myself accountable, and away from starting another project by posting my progress here weekly.  I'm glad March has 31 days....