Monday, February 28, 2011

Maternity Pictures

We had yet another windy day for this photo shoot, but that really was just a minor hiccup. We had a lot of fun working with the photographers, Jessica and Danny, over at DW Photography.

Here are a few of my favorites from the Sunday photo shoot:



  






Thursday, February 24, 2011

33 Week Update

How far along? 33 weeks- 7 left to due date.

Baby's size? Clocking in at about 18 inches long and 5 lbs.

Weight Gain? 23 lbs.

Sleep? This part of pregnancy is most definitely meant for preparing moms for caring for a baby. I wake up every 1-2 hours without fail now. Every single night. I am desperately hoping that at least one night this week I will glance over at the clock and be surprised to learn I made it 3 or 4 hours since my last rendevous with the bathroom or Mason's marathoning.

Foods I am loving/hating? I am a little bit over food at this point. I guess the love part of this relationship has become more hateful. Most meals these days are small and followed shortly by a brief period of bliss and then a long period of discomfort. I am assuming this might be what it feels like to have your stomach stapled. Even though food tastes good, it doesn't make you feel good, which really suppresses your appetite.

Movement? Our little man now has some good solid bones in his body. Combine that with his head down, feet up position and 5 pound body... can we say ouch? What once was subtle is now shocking and a little distracting at times. Okay so it doesn't hurt most of the time, just sometimes, but sitting in a business meeting while your son is kicking your ribs/stomach/tailbone can make things a little less productive at times. And I love every minute of it. It is a constant reminder that he is alive and well. That he is strong and active. That he knows when Mommy needs to be distracted. :) So thoughtful already.

Symptoms? A few slight changes this week. My tailbone is extremely sore. My legs and hips are a little achy. My bladder feels full 24/7. All good signs according to my doctor. My body is preparing for Mason's arrival and Mason is most likely making his way down.

What I miss? Right now I am itching to travel. 5 years of marriage and 8 different vacations was without a doubt a very fun part of Chris and I's relationship. It's about that time of the year again where we would have been traveling or planning to travel to a new exciting location. On a much brighter note, though, we get to meet our son in just 7 short weeks (or less!). If that's not new and exciting, then who knows what is.

What I will miss? Of course the movement. There is just nothing quite like feeling his entire body moving around. It's no longer a random sudden punch or kick, but an entire body movement in there. Such a unique experience.

What I'm looking forward to? Our bedding is in the mail- can't wait to see it. Also super getty about showering Mason with all of our friends and family this weekend and next. A lot of people that I really miss are coming into town in just a couple short days and just getting to spend time with friends and family makes me one happy girl!

Best Moments this week: Making curtains for Mason's room. It was really fun trying something new and being able to create something on my own for our son.

Weekly Wisdom:
This is your brain


This is your brain while pregnant.


Any questions?

The bump:

Next appointment: In 2 weeks, on Monday, March 7th.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

A Simple LiFe (DIY Curtains & Pillow Style)

Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated. ~Confucius

Most of my life I have approached life's challenges with overly-complicated solutions. I often take the long route that involves lots of research, second guessing, and due diligence. I can finally breathe a sigh of relief for taking on a project and for once, not making it complicated AT ALL.

Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex...
It takes a touch of genius - and a lot of courage to move in the
opposite direction. ~Albert Einstein

My home furnishing shopping typically involves weeks of pavement pounding. Once I have exhausted all of the available options at all of the potential retailers, then I decide on the "best" item- completely comforted by the fact that I have seen every possible item for purchase and am therefore making the best informed decision. An intelligent fool, no doubt.

I like to think that I got the courage to take a different approach this time from Mason. Maybe he takes after his dad and did not want to visit all of those stores, hunting for the "perfect" curtains. Or maybe it was a complete lack of time that forced me to spend very little time scouting out the options. Either way, I came to the same happy ending. Cute curtains at a decent price and I only spent one evening after work from start to finish. Are they perfect? Probably not. Could I have found something just as cute at a store somewhere in Houston? Probably so. But I am completely satisfied knowing I created these curtains 100% from scratch and spent less than $50 for custom 96" curtains and a matching pillow. Score. That is perfect enough for me.

Here's how the curtains went down (or I guess I should say up- same difference):

After visiting both Hancock Fabrics and JoAnn's, I came home on Monday evening with this fabric by Dwell Studios. A nice heavy and surprisingly thick textured cotton that was coincidentally 30% off. While I considered going with a colorful and bright curtain, I was trying to look further down the road at being able to use the same curtains when we eventually transform Mason's room to his "big boy theme"- whatever that is...


After measuring twice and cutting once, I was left with 2 large pieces of fabric measuring 98" by 46" (each to be made into a curtain panel) and another smaller piece left over measuring 20" by 46" (plenty of fabric to make a matching pillow).

Did I mention I wanted to keep things simple?

Okay, well instead of sewing, since I do not have a sewing machine (which I could have temporarily borrowed from my mom but that would have involved a sewing maching tutorial, etc.) and did not feel like hand sewing curtains the same way I had done for the mobile, I decided to use Heat N' Bond- the ultra hold version. That's right. I did not sew. I ironed the hems together with a bonding agent and it was just as easy as it sounds.




When I was finished I had two curtain panels, each measuring 96" by 44". Oh and let me add that it would have been very easy to create a rod pocket style curtain if that is what you are going for, but I decided to use the curtain rings to hang the panels up because of the child safety aspect of them. Should little Mason grab onto the curtains while taking a tumble to the ground, the rings will give way before the rod is forcefully ripped off of the wall and onto his little head. So I stuck with just a simple one inch seam all the way around each panel as opposed to making a pocket for the curtain rod. To each his own.

Once we installed the hardware using Molly bolts (again to address the child safety aspect) and attached the panels to the rod using the rings, here is how the curtains looked in the room:

Dusty always finds the perfect place to lay down...
the curtains were about to be hung when he sat his tush here:



And why not make something out of the left-over fabric? Worst case I could scrap it, nothing lost nothing gained. Best case I could have something fabulous to add to the room to tie the curtains in.

I used the same Heat N' Bond for the pillow. Of course this task required a little more forethought and planning. I had a throw pillow from way back in our college days that was being un-utilized in our linen closet upstairs. A navy blue pillow that I believe originally came from Walmart and as far as I am concerned would not be making an appearance in our house anytime in the future. This pillow measured 18" by 18".

I doubled the width of the pillow (36") and provided for a one inch seam around the entire pillow (add two inches total to the width and length- gets us to 20" by 38") and added another four inches to the width for an envelope style pillow cover which could be removed and washed if needed. This yielded a piece of fabric measuring 20" by 42".  Have I lost anyone yet? Here is the basic layout:
I placed the fabric flat, pattern side up. Then folded the left and right side in as shown above, leaving a 4" section doubled over. Next I placed the bond between the two pieces of fabric along the bottom and top openings and ironed them together. For the 4" flap I ironed the edge back and created a one inch seam on both the left and right sides.




Once all of that was done, I turned the pillow case inside out and slid the old throw pillow inside. Voila!




I am certain I did a horrible job of explaining how I made the pillow. In fact, I might have even left a few steps out. Really I should have taken some better illustrative pictures or maybe even a video. So if anyone wants some better instructions, let me know and I can try to email you a better thought out step-by-step instructional. The pillow construction took about an hour and the curtain construction took about two. All
in a days work.

Anyways, I am super pumped at my new found simple Heat N' Bond creations and the fact that we are one step closer to a finished nursery. The bedding has been shipped and is en route! Wahoo! Stay tuned.

Monday, February 21, 2011

Cora's Story

For all of you parents and future parents, I couldn't not share this information with you. While catching up on my fellow bloggers I came across this story. Although it is never "fun" to share this type of story, I just feel a strong urgency and burden on my heart to spread awareness. Here is the excerpt from her story that first caught my attention:

I read my entire pregnancy. I had stacks of books and belonged to at least three online forums. I memorized a list of things to do to prevent SIDS and even educated my parent friends about infant safety. I never once stumbled across congenital heart defects. I remember the doctors talking to me about screening for things like Down’s Syndrome and other conditions. I remembered Cora’s heel being poked when she was born, full term and weighing almost 9 pounds. The doctor’s listened to her heart, but that was it. I learned from the autopsy report she was born with a murmur. No one told me. The doctor’s probably didn’t think much about it. Murmurs are common. I didn’t think anything could go wrong with her heart.





Dear Cora,


I know you were there with me that day. I took your picture, and I showed them while I spoke. I clasped the locket that contains your ashes as my voice trembled. But, just in case you missed some of it, this is what I told the members of the Indiana Senate Health and Provider's Committee hearing Bill 552.


Love,


Mom

Chairwoman Miller and ladies and gentlemen of the committee I'm honored to be here today. My name is Kristine McCormick, and I'm an Indianapolis resident.


On November 30, 2009, I gave birth to my daughter Cora. She was a full-term baby weighing 8 pounds and 10 ounces. I'd experienced a completely normal pregnancy and delivery. After delivery, Cora scored a 9 on both her Apgar tests.


One early morning, Cora woke up hungry. I fed her, like usual. I looked up at my husband for a split second and looked back down. Cora was limp, pale and not breathing. Cora was dead. We rushed her to the hospital. But, it was too late. We had no clue what took her life.


Two days later, the coroner called and for the first time in my life I heard the phrase, “Congenital heart defects.”


Sadly, I soon learned Cora wasn't alone. In the United States, 1 in100 babies are born with a congenital heart defect. CHDs are one of the top killers of infants under one, killing more babies than SIDS. It's estimated that less than 25 percent of CHDs are detected prenatally meaning thousands of mothers deliver a child not knowing something is gravely wrong with his or her heart. In fact, CHDs can go undetected until adulthood. Many of the athletes that collapse on the court have an undiagnosed heart defect.


Pulse oximetry screening can detect many of these defects, and generally detects the most lethal. Several research studies have looked at pulse oximetry in the newborn nursery and found a low incidence of false positives. I traveled to Washington D.C. last Spring to meet with the pulse oximetry team at Children's National Hospital, working on implementing pulse oximetry screening programs in nurseries across the country. Some hospitals have started screening every newborn through this program. In fact, every hospital already has the equipment. It's commonly used in NICUs, emergency situations and babies that are symptomatic. Pulse oximetry is a basic piece of equipment. Sometimes pulse oximetry is even referred to as “the fifth vital sign” because it is so standard. I was hooked up to a pulse oximeter the entire time I was in labor with Cora.


Pulse oximetry is cheap and costs less than a diaper change. Little to no training is required because the equipment is already in use. Staff members regularly work with pulse oximeters. Last night, I met with (name omitted) an associate professor of surgery at Indiana University. As a surgeon, he operates on children with congenital heart defects weekly. He explained to me that the earlier a defect is detected, the better the outcome for the child. He regularly sees children with developmental problems and neurological problems associated with late diagnosis. In the long run, pulse oximetry will save money. Early detection of CHDs improves outcomes for patients, saves money in hospitals stays and procedures, decreases developmental delays in children and most importantly saves lives.


CHD is much more common than any of the conditions screened for in currently state-mandated metabolic screening. In fact, CHD is the most common of all birth defects. Pulse oximetry is painless and quick, and even less invasive than current screening for other conditions.


Recently the Secretary's Advisory Committee for Heritable Disorders in Newborns and Children recommended to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that screening for severe CHDs be added to the traditional newborn screening panel nationwide. Other states are currently working on legislation for implementation of pulse oximetry screening this year.


By mandating pulse oximetry screening for every newborn after 24 hours of life, Indiana will take a huge step forward in fighting infant mortality.


No mother should find out about her child's heart defect from the coroner.

Hope this post made at least a few more people aware today. I know it changed me.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Photo Friday

Recap of My Photo Friday Quest

As a learn-as-you-go approach, I have decided to take a picture each week and use Photoshop in some new way each time to enhance that week's photo. My hope is to force myself to learn a little each week about the camera, about the Photoshop software, and at the same time keep up with my blogger goal of documenting my current journey through life. Hopefully this does not completely bore any of you, but if you are anything like me (a little curious) and have some suggestions or questions each Friday, please feel free to help me with this experiment, I would love some fellow photo geeks!

Here are this weeks photos, same concept, two different approaches:

Thursday, February 17, 2011

The never ending week (and post) . . .

This week has been a whirlwind. We spent last weekend on our much anticipated "babymoon." I admit I have no clue who came up with the phrase, but I loved the idea the moment I heard about it. Chris and I got away and just spent time alone. It's amazing how nice just doing a whole lot of nothing can be. Here's a quick pic that I snapped of the B&B that we stayed at:


It was hands down exactly what I needed. The entire weekend was perfect... hence the one lone photo.

Then came a series of exciting events, including a business lunch with customers. Okay I am being a little facetious here... it was not exciting. In fact it was downright stressful trying to find clothing that would fall under the "Business" category as opposed to "Business Casual" which I already struggle with everyday with an evergrowing baby bump. That has got to be one of the hardest things about being pregnant. It was exciting once it was over though.

Wednesday, however, was beyond exciting! Baby Mason had his very first shower, thrown by a very thoughtful and amazing group of women from Chris's work. I was overwhelmed with the details and contributions from everyone in the office. Chris and I just feel incredibly lucky to have such great people around us who are helping us during this exciting and overwhelming time. Here are a few pics from the shower: (Did I mention how great of a job they did!?!?!?)







Then came a surprise! This huge package was on the front porch when I came home from work on Wednesday. Holy Cow! I was literally jumping out of the car while still driving trying to see what it was. It was our crib! Chris's parents surprised us with it as a gift for Mason. We spent about an hour last night getting it all assembled and setup in the nursery and I am all smiles today thinking about it!






Finally, this coming weekend is a little bit of a mixed bag for me. Maternity photos. On one hand I am excited to be getting some photos to remember the joys of pregnancy and the entry into motherhood. And on the other hand I am just really fearful that every picture, no matter how cute everyone else thinks they are, will be more of a "fat face" memory for me. I know there are MANY women out there that would spend a decade pregnant if they could because they love it that much- and I love it too- but there are certain parts about being pregnant that you never really get used to, like looking in the mirror at yourself in awe when you don't feel nearly that big. So let's hope this photographer can work some magic for me and at least surprise with a few shots so that I can look past my vain and selfish vulnerability and see the mircale of it all- I am giving life to another human being people!

On that note, since I am being way too serious, I thought I would make light of the situation and share some, um, shall we call them awkward maternity photos that I gathered from the internet (let me apologize for posting pictures of random women- it's not fair to them, but I am not at all making fun of them, just the photo and its message). Enjoy:







So wish me luck. I have no clue what I am going to wear or what "poses" I am hoping to get, but at least I have an idea of what I do not want to do.

Meanwhile, here is my updated to-do list (feeling very proud of what is done!):

Take maternity pictures this weekend- booked photographer.
Fill in baby book/ pregnancy journal where possible.
Finish reading pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding, and baby books
Curtains for Nursery
Keep up with thank you notes for shower gifts
Crib & Mattress
Birth plan
Nursing Bras
Write a will
Third (and final) ultrasound
Buy remaining items off of registries
Pack hospital bag
Install car seat
Keep cars gased up and towels on hand at all times
Take newborn pictures- photographer booked.
Clock for Nursery
DIY Mobile
Animal Decals for Nursery
Art for Nursery
Hostess gifts
Maternity outfits for showers and upcoming weddings
Pediatrician
Cord blood banking
Take home outfit for Mason
Birth announcements
Babymoon
Call insurance company with due date
Finalize Maternity Leave with HR
Register at hospital
Birthing Class
Register at BabysRus and Amazon
Gestational Diabetes Test
Schedule Baby Showers
Paint Nursery
Dresser for Nursery
Glider for Nursery
Bedding for Nursery
Bassinet for master bedroom

Wow, that was a lot! Hope everyone else is having a great week. Stay tuned for the final nursery reveal, hoping to have the bedding and curtains in the nursery next week!

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Advice, please.

Attention all moms. You may remember awhile back I cleaned out the future nursery closet. And here is how it looked afterwards (please excuse the poor angles and poor quality):





I know it is hard to tell from these pictures, but this closet is large, I mean 5' x 8' large. The entire left side wall is bare. The back wall has one 6' tall shelf and the right wall has two shelves (the top one being way out of my reach).

My question for all of you moms out there is this: Is there anything you would recommend that I do to this closet before it is filled to the brim? Any organization gurus out there that could see some improvements to be made here?

This may be a dead end road, but I am curious if anyone that already has kids can tell me what would help the functionality of this closet for a growing boy?

Friday, February 11, 2011

Photo Friday

Recap of My Photo Friday Quest
As a learn-as-you-go approach, I have decided to take a picture each week and use Photoshop in some new way each time to enhance that week's photo. My hope is to force myself to learn a little each week about the camera, about the Photoshop software, and at the same time keep up with my blogger goal of documenting my current journey through life. Hopefully this does not completely bore any of you, but if you are anything like me (a little curious) and have some suggestions or questions each Friday, please feel free to help me with this experiment, I would love some fellow photo geeks!

The boys made their third batch of beer this week. They are calling it the "Mason Brew" since it won't be ready for at least 6 more weeks. Sheryl and I helped cap the bottles. Happy Friday everyone!