33 Weeks

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!! Sorry I haven't posted in quite some time. With preparing for the holidays I have been extremely busy.  I missed taking a picture at 32 weeks but I did take two pictures this week , 33 weeks.  I have grown quite a bit since my last post at 28 weeks.  The baby is moving quite a bit.  It was breeched at 17 weeks and I know it had plenty of time to flip, however for weeks my movement was so low and I couldn't see the baby moving. On December 14th, I had bad painful braxton hicks contractions. I called the Dr and she told me that if its just one not to worry and to relax and get plenty of water.  Later that day I noticed and felt movement in my belly.  It was so amazing to see and feel I burst out in tears.  Glad no one at work saw me.  Any way, I feel the baby turned and the Dr said it was likely the pain was caused by the baby turning. Now, I have no proof of any of this but intuition and just how I felt.  The position of the baby will be checked on Jan 17th at 36 weeks. Here are some belly pics for you to enjoy!!!

I am feeling pretty good. The baby has been on my sciatic nerve but this week I have had some relief.   I have gained about 25-27 lbs so far. It fluctuates.  I have 6 1/2 weeks left until my due date!! I can't believe its getting so close!!!   I hope to have some nursery craft pics and updates for you in the next week or so.

30 Weeks with only 10 more to go!!!!

Well its hard to believe that I have reached the 30 week point!! Its going buy so quickly!! In 10 weeks we will get to meet this little one kicking, turning, and hiccuping inside me daily.  We are looking forward to meeting this miracle.  Things are getting harder and I am more uncomfortable these days.  Sunday I did the outside Christmas light with Kevin's help but he really didn't want me to do them.  I should have listened. My back was so painful I couldn't even walk I was in tears and had to crawl that night. I felt so much better the next day, but now I know that I am very limited as to what I can do.  Over all I am feeling pretty well, my energy has lowered but that is to expected.  Below is a picture of my belly as of today. I really think it looks like I have swallowed a basketball.

Below is a picture of a maternity top I had knitted this summer. It was a regular tank that I made larger to fit for maternity.  I may have shown this earlier in my posts, but it fits much better now!

I hope to have an update on some baby items for you in a few days!!!

A Visit with my Sister and her family

Normally on Thanksgiving we have a big dinner here at our house and Mom and Dad Sours come to visit.  This year with me being pregnant and not wanting to leave all the work to Kevin, we decided to go visit my sister, BIL, niece and nephew for Thanksgiving. The main reason we went is so my sister and I could get some quality time together which was much needed. The past 4 years have been nothing but stress and taking care of some issue either with health of a family member or some item that needed to be cared for.  It was really nice to see her and the family and relax and talk.  We all had a wonderful time. Thanksgiving we went to my sister's IL for dinner.  Then Friday the weather was so gorgeous that we spent the whole day outside. Kevin and Russ raked while Amy put lights on her bushes, and the kids and I played.  Then Saturday was even more gorgeous so we went for a walk on the Ocean City, NJ board walk and played putt putt.  That evening we visited Pat and Amy Costello and met Spencer. Sadly I left my camera at my sister's house and didn't get any of them. Sunday we went to my church then I helped my sister with her tree.  It took us 4 hours to cut lights off her pre-lit Christmas tree. Half of the lights she replaced last year and this year we did the other half.  We had a nice dinner and played games with the kids.  Monday we flew home. Kevin and I had a nice time and I am very thankful  I got to spend the long weekend with them. Below are  a few pictures I took while we were there.

Thanksgiving day

Dance Party and Dress up!

 Gertie

 

 The kids in front of their own special tree

Since we have been back I have been busy trying to get the house decorated for Christmas and doing my Christmas cards.

28 Weeks!!

Well I can't believe I only have 12 weeks left and I will finally get to meet this precious package who keeps kicking me!! Its all going so fast! I am excited but just can't believe it!  We have been to our birth class already and  I have 2 more in January. I had my 28 week appointment today and things seem to be going well.  The heart beat was in the 140s and my belly is measuring where it should be. Haven't gained any weight since I was really sick last week and didn't eat much!  Things seem to be going well so far!! I haven't worked on my baby blanket since I was sick this week.  Below is a picture of my belly at 28 weeks!!

 I will not likely post anything here until mid next weeks with Thanksgiving and we will be busy over the next few days!! I just want to wish every one a very Happy Thanksgiving!! I hope you enjoy the nice long weekend with friends or family!!!

Nursery Theme and Projects

     Well, I figured it was about time I decide on my nursery theme, colors, and get it together.   After much searching it took me a few months to decide on a theme. Since we do not have a clue on the gender and it has to be neutral, its really hard to find something I liked.  Honestly, I have to say that I am more happy that we are not finding out the gender because I feel it took the nursery to a whole new level.  After much thought I started to wonder why do we have gender specific colors for our babies?  Do women only wear pinks and purples and do men only wear blues and greens?  It just started to make me think of how babies are treated so different and held to a  different color level then we are as adults.  If they could speak what would they say?  Any way, I then started to wonder why I would spend so much on crib bedding when I don't even spend that much on bedding for myself?  Why is it that retailers think the word "Wedding" or "Babies" gives them the right to jack up prices?  Now I am not trying to be cheap, I just don't see the point of spending that much money on something the baby doesn't really care about.  Lets face it, its for the moms, dads, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and everyone else you are going to show the nursery off to.  So after much thought and much consideration I decided to make 80-90% of the nursery decor myself.  I have some fabulous ideas and I am so excited to get started. First the theme.  I decided to do a nursery theme and I was first  inspired by this set which was labeled as gender neutral but looks boyish to me.

I fell in love with the concept of the alphabet theme and how the crib blanket looked.  So I went to Joanns and I bought some fabric. Now I didn't buy fabric for the borders at this point, I just bought the front panel, the colors for the letters, and the backing.  The fabric choices are pictured below.

Once I was finished cutting out the letters and decided to cut the top fabric, I stopped and stared for a minute.  As  I looked at it I noticed how pretty it was and I wondered if I really needed to do a border. So I looked on the internet some more to see if I could find something to inspire my thought. Here is what I found below.

I decided just to make the top one color and place the letters on how I wanted. So I cut my 37" x 61"  ( I had to leave some extra fabric for the binding. The blanket will be 36 x 60 when finished.  After cutting I pinned all the letters on and I am pretty happy so far.  The w is missing since it broke when pinning.  I will make a new one over the weekend.  In addition the yellow letters are hard to see in this picture.

Once the letters are sewn on I will then add some appliques to some of the letters of the alphabet. For example a kite to go with the letter k.  Once the appliques are on, I will sew the backing and attach the binding.  I am really excited to see how it looks when its all finished. I also have many more projects in mind for the nursery and will update you on them as I go. 

26 Weeks

Well, I am 26 weeks this week and this baby is growing like a weed.  From all the baby sites the baby should be about 14 1/2 " long and weigh about 2 lbs as of now.  I can feel it moving more and more. Although, I think the baby is worn out from mommy working out the past two days and is sleeping mostly, with a little movement here and there.  From what I have read the baby should be able to hear the conversation between Kevin and I , so I hope he/she will be able to recognize daddy's voice. Its so amazing how all this goes by so quickly.  It will not be long before I am holding this little blessing in my arms. I am so excited and can't wait to meet him or her!!!!!

A Visit with Mom and Dad Sours

Every year we have Thanksgiving at our house and have loads of  fun.  This year however, no one is in town and I really wanted to go to my sister's and visit with her family.  Usually, Mom and Dad Sours come to celebrate Thanksgiving with us. Since we are not having it this year we decided to head to Smith Mountain Lake and visit with them for a short weekend last month.   Even though it was a short visit it was a nice time had by all.  I got to be lazy and relax a bit which was great since I don't get to do that too much these days.  Kevin and I learned to play Bridge.  I found it interesting, Kevin not so much but maybe in time he will learn to enjoy it. We had a nice lobster dinner at their house for Kev's graduation.  Saturday we all went into Roanoke and went shopping for maternity clothes. I have to I say I got some real nice things from things from a consignment shop and a really nice sweater and cords from motherhood maternity.  I don't know about the guys but I enjoyed it and I think Mom Sours did too, or at least I hope she did. Sunday we went to church. I got some really nice pictures before we went.  The first one is of the lake just after the fog lifted.

 
 Just looks peaceful doesn't it!!!  The next two pictures are right before church. The pictures look hazy due to the position of the sun.  I have to say I am not impressed with the picture of me at all, but I guess these days with being pregnant its hard to find ones you are excited about.

 

 

 Well, I will post an updated picture of my belly tomorrow. I just thought I would post about our visit. I will be posting more soon I promise. I have a lot coming up that I want to share with you!

Is there a contest for the world's largest carrot?

Well In my previous post you saw that we got our first snow storm.  We had heard there was a threat of snow and freezing temperatures so we decided to harvest the last few items in our garden.  The only things we really had left were leeks, carrots, and a few spare onions.  So Kevin went ahead and harvested our Garden.  He came in smiling and laughing at the carrots. So I had to rush over to see what all the fuss was about.  We had 3 really large carrots.  One of them broke as he tried to get it out of the ground, so that one is not in the picture.  How ever, I think we could have entered one carrot in the oddest carrot contest if there were such a thing.  I think the one on his left could have been entered into the largest carrot contest, is there such a contest? Tell me what you think!

 

I have no clue what we did differently this year except we started acupuncture with Chinese herbs. Many of these herbs went into the compost, if not all of them. I wonder if that is  was caused these carrots to look as though they are on steroids?  Last year we grew carrots and most of them were short and fat. We did have a few normal size carrots. So you can imagine how shocked we were to see these large, and Odd carrots.  So far the carrots are very tasty. I have heard people say they are going to be too meaty, but when cooked they are delicious and tender. Very tasty!!!! I would not change a thing, and hey the look on Kev's face is priceless!!!!

24 Weeks and First Snow!

Well, I am 24 weeks this week. I can't believe I am at the 6 month mark already!!! I had an OB appointment this week and unfortunately no ultrasound pictures to share with you this time.  I did have a good appointment though. The baby is doing well with heart beat  of 140 bpm.  My belly and my weight are where they should be so I am very happy with that as well.  Here is an updated picture of my belly this week.

Wow, I am getting bigger and bigger!! This baby is growing so fast!!!  
      In addition to this we had our first snow storm of the season and it came pretty early for us.  The storm started around 9pm on Tuesday evening and ended around 1 pm Wednesday after noon. I would say we got a total of 10-12 inches.  I have to say it is a beautiful sight to see.  Here are some quick pictures I took so I could share them with you!

I love the snow!! Its such a beautiful sight!! I will post more starting next week. I have just been busy with a huge knitting/sewing project and trying to keep up with the house work.

23 Weeks

I know in my last post I said I would wait until 24 weeks to post the next belly picture. However, this morning I was admiring it and decided to go ahead and take a picture. 

I can't believe how many changes I am going through right now. I can feel the baby move like crazy these days, especially when I eat certain foods.  As I type this its bouncing around probably because of the chocolate I just ate!!!  I am so in love with this little person I can't wait to meet it. I can't believe I only have 17 weeks left. I feel like it was 2 months ago they were telling me I was pregnant.  The odd thing is I still can't believe it until I see my belly every morning and feel the baby moving!! I think its getting close to when Kevin will be able to feel the baby move!!!  I can't wait for him to feel our little blessing!!!

What we are up to

Well, I know I haven't posted in a while and I hope to have a fun post soon. Things have been busy and there isn't too much to share at this time. So I thought I would just update you on what we are up to.  Well Kevin has been pretty busy trying to finish his experiments and writing his paper. I in the mean time have been looking at baby stuff.  I would like to start planning as I am getting a little nervous. I will be 23 weeks on Wednesday and we do not have a thing planned or organized. I have it narrowed down to 6 different crib bedding sets. This up coming weekend Kevin and I will sit down and pick on a final theme.  Once this has been decided upon, I will get to work on some crafts I have planned for the babies room.  I would like to make letters, wall art, pillows, and other little accents like blankets and so forth. I need to get busy as I only have 17 weeks and 3 days left.  As for the letters, since we will not find out the sex of the baby until its born, I will just buy the supplies and not the letters.  In the mean time I have been looking at items to register for and narrowing down my choices.  I have also gotten into sewing again ( you can look at my other blog, kellysknitsandotherlittletidbits.blogspot.com) I plan on knitting 12 bibs and 20 burp clothes.  So as you can see I have a lot of projects planned for the baby and the baby's room. This weekend I sewed some burp clothes for a gift.  Here is a picture of what they look like.

As I make things for the nursery I will update you with pictures.  Sorry if these posts become a lot of baby stuff over the next few months.  I will have an update on my belly pics and hopefully an ultrasound picture next week.

21 weeks ( 5 months 1 week)

This will be a short post.  I am 21 weeks now and feeling pretty good.  I still have bouts of nausea but not nearly as bad and as much. It mostly has to do with smells.  My belly hasn't changed too much but I am experiencing round ligament pains. So I have a feeling my bump is going to get bigger soon!!! 

Here is a comparison of 17 weeks and 21 weeks. Its hard to tell. Maybe I should have taken the picture in the same shirt next time. 

At 17 weeks I started to feel the baby move or what I think was baby movement.  At this point it was hard to tell if it was the  baby or gas.  I felt that for about a week and a half. Then felt absolutely nothing.  This weekend I started noticing movement once again, but this time its a little stronger.  So now I know for sure its the baby.  I feel the little peanut moving quite often and this always puts my mind at ease and a smile on my face. I am getting so excited the more and more this pregnancy continues. I truly feel blessed and I am very thankful!!!

Homemade Lotion

After many months of contemplating, I finally built up the confidence and made my own homemade lotion.  Ever since I became pregnant I have been in search of a lotion without a lot of chemicals, preferably no chemicals at all.  Unfortunately, this does not exist, or I haven't found one that does exist.  After much research I decided I wanted to make my own.  When I mentioned my thought to Kevin, he was excited as we have this gigantic aloe plant.  He really wanted to find something to do with it, because it is growing out of control.

 

Finally, on Friday I went to the store and got the ingredients. Now I have to tell you, my first mistake was going to the local vitamin store.  If you want to try making your own lotion I would recommend searching and buying on line.  The amount of supplies you get for the money is so much more economical. Don't get me wrong, when  I use all of the supplies, I will have paid $.50 an ounce of lotion.  So its still a good deal.  Now lets make some lotion!! Please excuse the lack of photos.  I was doing this alone and could only snap a pic here and there and missed a few.
In order to make your own lotion you will need to first understand the different oils.  There are carrier oils and solid oils. A carrier oil is a vegetable oil derived from the fatty portion of a plant, usually from the seeds, kernels or the nuts. Each carrier oil offers a different combination of therapeutic properties and characteristics. The choice of carrier oil can depend on the therapeutic benefit being sought.  Here are just a few to give you an idea of the therapeutic relief these oils offer.

• Peanut - rich, heavy, strong aroma ~ good for dry, malnourished skin.
• Canola - light, not very nourishing ~ good for most skin types.
• Jojoba - protective, lubricating, some UV protection ~ good for dry, damaged skin.
• Olive - stable, heavy, strong aroma, slower to absorb into skin ~ good for dry skin.
• Apricot kernel - light, odorless, somewhat drying ~ good for oily akin.
• Hemp - rich, nutritive, penetration strong aroma ~ good for all skin types.
• Avocado - rich, heavy, penetrating ~ good for dry, damaged skin.
• Grapeseed - light, odorless, drying ~ good for acne-prone skin.
• Rosehip seed - my favorite, good for dry, mature skin.
• Herbal infused oils - usually made with olive oil and herbs such as calendula, St Johns Wort, comfrey.
• Other good oils to include in small amounts are emu and wheat germ

Solid oils act as an emulsifier and are super rich!

Good solid oils are:

• Coconut oil
• Cocoa butter
• Shea butter 

  Now the at you know the oils we will be working with lets get to how to make lotion.  I will list the ingredients needed and tell you what I chose as my ingredients. 

The oils have be be a combination of 2 parts liquid oil to 1 part solid oil.

Homemade Lotion Recipes

• 3 oz rosehip seed oil
• 2 Tablespoons avocado oil
• 1 Tablespoon each hemp seed oil and vitamin E oil
• Add enough jojoba oil to make 6 oz.

OR any combination of the carrier oils to equal 6 oz.

• 3 oz of solid oils( I used 1 oz of coconut oil, 1 oz of shea butter, and 1 oz of cocoa butter)
• 1 oz beeswax
• 9 oz distilled water OR 6 oz distilled water and 3 oz aloe vera gel
• 19 drops grapefruit seed extract (a preservative)
• 40 drops lavender essential oil OR essential oils of choice ( I didn’t use any essential oils.  The scent isn’t bad but if  I had to do it again I would chose rosemary oil).

1. To prep I shredded the beeswax into a bowl, measure the distilled water and squeeze the aloe.  (Sorry I lost the aloe and the water pics by not paying attention when downloading and deleting). 

1. 
2.  Pour your liquid oils into a 16 oz heat proof measuring cup
3. 
4.  Add pieces of solid oils until volume reaches 9 oz mark.
5. Add pieces of beeswax until volume reaches 10 oz mark.
6.  Place measuring cup in a pan of gently simmering water and heat until solid oils are just melted.
7.  
8. 
    
9. Remove measuring cup from water and let sit until oils reach body temperature. Test by placing the measuring cup on wrist. When it feels neither warm nor cold it is body temperature. Stir occasionally as it cools.
10. Make sure distilled water is body temperature. You can simply place the water into another heat proof measuring cup and into the pan of hot water used for heating the oils. 
11.  Pour the water into a blender and add grapefruit seed extract.
12. 
13. They say to Process at high speed. If you have a powerful blender process at low speed. You can use a hand mixer but it will take longer. ( In my experience, the blender didn't work and it was a mess.  So I used the mixer instead and it didn't take long and worked just fine for me.  I think this is a less messier way of mixing it).
14. Slowly add the oil mixture into the water.
15. It will begin to thicken and sputter. In a high powered mixer this can be as quick as 30 seconds. With a hand mixer it will take 15 minutes at highest speed.
     
16. Continue until you have a thick, creamy liquid.
17. Add essential oils and stir in well by hand.

You have lotion.  My quick review,sorry this was a very long post.  In all I am pretty happy with it.  I will tell you that it is very greasy to apply. After a bit it sinks in. Its made out of all edible ( I don't know if aloe is edible).  So there are no chemicals which is a huge plus.  After 2 days of using the lotion it left my skin smooth and moist. Which is a huge plus for Colorado. I apply most lotions and after hours my skin is still dry. I only have to apply it morning and night, regular lotion I have to apply 4 times daily.  I am really happy with how it turned out and will continue to better the recipe.  If I find a non greasy recipe I will post that as well. 

Notes:  Since all ingredients are perishable you must store this in the a cool dark place. By adding grapefruit seed extract it preserves it longer.  If you store in the refrigerator it lasts up to 6 months, in cool dark place 3-4 months, and with out extract take 4-6 weeks off the time.  You have to use distilled water since its purified.  If you use regular water it will not last long as bacteria will cause it to go bad quickly.  It is recommended you use something to scoop the lotion out and not use your fingers will help extend the life of the lotion!

19 weeks

I decided to create yet another blog.  This one however, will be about My life and the many little journeys life gives us.  Of course this will include posts about Kevin as well, since he is a big part of my life.  Well with a new post and new beginnings, I thought I would blog about our special gift we have received from God.  Yes, as many of you know we are expecting are first baby. As of today I am 19 weeks pregnant and feeling pretty good. I feel blessed to have this long awaited opportunity.  Along with this gift I have been fortunate to experience the many blessings that come along with pregnancy.  Its odd what we take for-granted ,things like our energy, and the ability to be very productive each day. These days, I feel productive if I get off the couch and clean something, or if I make a meal.  I am so blessed with a wonderful husband who takes care of me during this time. I wouldn't know what to do without him.  I am sure I would be more productive, but I am going to enjoy being pampered and spoiled while I can.   I don't have any recent baby bump pictures but pictured below is one taken at 17 weeks.   It seem like I went from not showing to this over one weekend.  

 

Since I have taken this picture, I haven't really notice a change in the growth of my belly.  So when I think its time for another picture I will post an update.   Around this same time we had our 17 week check up and our last sonogram.  For those of you who do not know, we are not finding out the sex of our baby.  The OB knows this and avoids taking pictures that will give it away.  Below is a our special gift, we are anxious to meet him/her.

Its so hard to believe how fast this pregnancy is going. I feel like they just told me 2 months ago I was pregnant.  That is all I have for you now. I promise to do a better job keeping up with this blog then the last one.  I hope to post at least 2-3 times a week if possible, so check here often for updates.   I still have my knitting/sewing blog if anyone is interested in checking that out.  I will not be posting most of my knitting or sewing here unless it pertains to something in our life, like the baby.  I hope you visit often and enjoy our life's journey with us!!!! Until next time!!!!