Unfair!

While I'm sure it won't be the last time, let me apologize for being MIA the last few weeks. It was totally unfair to you, my avid readers. Or perhaps I should say reader. (Hi Gramma!)

On to the important and unfair things. This past Saturday my cousin Leah had her baby! The doctors knew Ellie was getting big and had scheduled an induction date but Ellie had plans of her own. Her original due date was April 1 but she arrived on St. Patrick's day. She's a beauty and such a good baby for arriving early.

Another friend of mine from college was due with her first baby April 6. Once again, the sweet little baby girl decided she was ready and arrived on Monday.

Like an idiot I started thinking that maybe my baby would like to make a grand entrance in March instead of April. However, at my OB appointment yesterday I was informed that this is highly unlikely. In fact, we even discussed what date we will induce if the baby doesn't come in a timely fashion. Anyone who knows the baby's maternal grandparents will notice a similar pattern of behavior we will call being "fashionably late."

Other than being quite content in my belly, the baby looks good developmentally but is slightly smaller than your average baby at this stage in the game. He/She is in the 44th percentile for size. My OB assures me that this is fine and that I would much rather have a 44th percentile baby than an 84th percentile baby. I agree.

The doctor also told me to make sure I was eating enough and not overexercising. Hopefully Doug will take this seriously and stop hiding the Girl Scout cookies from me.

Baby Crafts

Whew, January was a busy month and if the first couple days are any indication, February will be even busier. We are headed up to Spartanburg after work tomorrow for our first baby shower! The thing I love most about any type of shower is getting to see friends and family you don't get to see on a regular basis. This shower will mostly be my friends from college so I am looking forward to getting to catch up.

One of my college roommates is due just a few days before me but she will not be able to be at the shower this weekend. Unfortunately, I am also unable to be at her shower but I wanted to come up with a handmade project to include as part of her shower gift. I was inspired by several posts I found online as ways to dress up burp cloths. Inspiration and instructions found here. And here is my first crack at it:

Not too shabby and incredibly fun and easy to make. I have already started several bigger ones using the same fabrics with a bubble fleece as the backing. Similar to the ones found here. I will post more pictures if the end result is worth it!

Snoogle Obsession

At the recommendation of my cousin, Leah, who is due 2 weeks before me, I went to Buy Buy Baby and got myself a Snoogle to help combat my increasing inability to sleep. I have been using a regular pillow between my knees and I wondered if a real maternity pillow could make that much of a difference. Let me just assure you that it can.



















Is it ridiculous looking? Absolutely. But it's also effective. I got into bed just to test it out and woke up three hours later still fully clothed. I am on my way to the lake this weekend and spent a good 15 minutes trying to cram it into my overnight bag. It didn't fit, as you might imagine. I still couldn't bring myself to leave it behind so its just stuffed in my trunk. I believe everyone should invest in a Snoogle. I am wondering how long it will be before Doug tries to steal mine.

Heart Update

Many of you know that I have been having heart palpitations since the beginning of December. It feels like my heart occasionally skips a beat. When it first started happening, I though it was just in my head, but one night, when it was particularly bad, I asked Doug about it and he was able to feel it skipping beats. So, of course, we googled it. Doug's solution for everything. Everything we read said that this is very common during pregnancy so I didn't worry about it but mentioned it to my OB at my next appointment. I thought he would reiterate what we had read--that it was common and nothing to worry about.

Unfortunately, this is not the reaction I got and he referred me to a cardiologist. Long story short, after several tests the cardiologist said everything looks good and that this is probably just another fun side effect I will have with this and subsequent pregnancies.

The most fun part of the process was that I got to wear a holter monitor for 24 hours. A holter monitor is a small piece of equipment that has five electrodes with wires that attaches to several locations on your upper torso. Often, you can strap the actual monitor around your stomach like a belt under your clothes. Not mine. Mine had to be worn like a camera on a strap around my neck. While wearing the monitor you cannot shower. So for 24 hours I looked like an unshowered, eager, picture-taking tourist.

Here it is after I got to remove it. Did I mention I also go to sleep with it around my neck? Just another joy of pregnancy:)

Lucky Baby Belknap

Baby Belknap is not born yet but he/she has already received a number of wonderful items as gifts. We are so grateful to our friends and family who have already started helping us prepare to sustain this tiny child. I want to share a few of the items we have received with you.

Baby B currently possesses three articles of clothing.

Monkey pajamas, a Georgia hoodie and several tiny hats (with ears!) Doug is not pleased with one of these pieces and has already started an online search for a Tennessee hoodie. The big question is which hoodie will Baby B wear for GA/TN next year? Probably the parent who changes the most diapers will get to choose.

Paint and Lighting and Dresser! Oh my!

The nursery is painted! The closet has shelves! The dresser is done!

Sorry for the poor lighting. I've been at work late all week so I haven't had any good natural lighting to get a decent shot. A couple shots of my mom, the master painter:

Now that everything is painted I find myself wandering upstairs to move things around on the closet shelves, rearrange things in drawers, or just lay on the rug and feel giddy about how good it looks.

Here is a look at what we have left to do.

1. Assemble crib--we have the crib but when we opened the box a couple pieces were less than perfect so we are just waiting to get the word that those new parts are in
2. Sew crib skirt--dark grey
3. Hang curtains in the closet--same fabric as crib skirt. They will be mounted on the inside of the closet and can be drawn shut
4. Sand and paint little side table to go beside the glider--glider should be in soon
5. Hang rods in the closet
6. Put up crown molding
7. Hang art

I'm sure there are a few things I am forgetting but I'm sure these will keep us busy for a while!

Closet Updates

I apologize for my long absence. I spent the last two weeks working on the nursery and trying to sleep 12 hours a night. It was wonderful. Now I am back with a few updates for you.

First, the closet. The power team below including my dad, Spuncle, Doug, and his dad spent a Saturday bringing our vision for the closet shelving to life.

Please note how Doug mostly lurks around the background with his hands in his pockets.

Once everything was purchased, measured twice, and cut, the four muskateers moved it up to the nursery and attached it.

And voila! The closet has shelves!

The next step is to remove the shelves and paint them white before we put them back in for good.

While the boys were toiling away on shelving, Nina and I got down to business and finished priming and painting the dresser.

Does that outfit look familiar? I am not sacrificing any of my maternity clothing to these painting projects and this is one of the few things I have that fits. I do my best to make it look good. I should also point out that although it looks like we are inside, we are actually in the doorway of the sunroom so it is well ventilated and we are not breathing any fumes.

Next step for the dresser is buying and attaching the new pulls. They look like this.

Coming soon: pictures of completed closet, dresser and painted walls!