Hodgepodge

This is going to be a hodgepodge of a post about different events that have been going on in my little part of the world. I want to start by saying I had a wonderful first Mother's Day with my family. My fantastic hubby started the day off by bringing me breakfast in bed. He woke me up (after letting me sleep until 10:00, amazing might I tell you!!) and handed me our little guy already fed and changed. While we cuddled he made cinnamon rolls and coffee and joined me in bed for a wonderful and cozy family breakfast. Wouldn't it be nice to do that every morning? After a relaxing breakfast, my parents and in-laws came over for dinner and to celebrate their day as well. We gave each of them a mom charm for their Pandora bracelets. I was then surprised by a bracelet for myself from my parents, the in-laws, my husband's aunt, and my son. I love the bracelet and have three fabulous charms on it. I can't wait to get more! My husband also got me a mini Keurig coffee machine. Can I just say I was spoiled rotten. It felt like Christmas. The day couldn't of been any better and I am so blessed with a wonderful family and thoroughly enjoyed the day. I am so happy to be a mommy now and love my little monkey to pieces!!
Besides Mother's Day I've been super busy wrapping up the school year. We have two weeks left and my kindergartners are fluttering with excitement and energy. We are preparing for kindergarten graduation and two field trips, all of which will take place in the last two weeks of school. My class has been a joy this year and I can honestly say I have laughed with them every day. They are a group of goofy characters and I am amazed as well as amused of the things they say and think of. It is never a dull day in my kindergarten class! The craziness of the end of the year will be awarded with a wonderful summer ahead. I am looking forward to spending my summer with my little guy and watching him develop and continue to experience new and exciting things. We will be starting food soon, which I will be making, and taking him to our neighborhood pool. I will also be celebrating my five year wedding anniversary in July and preparing for the upcoming school year. It's going to be busy and I'm hoping to get a lot of crafting, blogging, and trying out new recipes in the months to come. All of which I will make sure to post. Have a fantastic rest of May and bring on summer!

Mommies Favorite Tools

My little guy is 14 weeks old now and I can't believe how quickly time has gone so far. He is full of smiles, giggles, and his fists are his favorite things to put in his mouth. Over these past 14 weeks I've come to love several items that have helped me with taking care of my little guy a little easier and smoother.

Vaseline Petroleum Jelly in Baby Scent

This stuff is amazing. It keeps your little ones behind safe from diaper rash and creates a barrier between their cute little bottom and whatever they leave in the diaper. He has not had a diaper rash or any signs ever. I've used this since day one and will continue to use it as long as he is in a diaper. This is the only thing I use. No powder or anything else and I make sure to put it on him every diaper change.  

Summer Infant Cotton SwaddleMe 

My little guy loves to be wrapped up tight at night and this blanket has put me at ease. Before, I would wrap him in a blanket but would find myself getting up to check on him to make sure the blanket hadn't come undone or over his face. The SwaddleMe wraps him tight and is secured by velcro so it won't come undone when your little one moves. I of course got it in the monkey pattern because we have everything monkey for him and his nursery is monkey themed as well. The blanket is light weight and breathable so if your baby gets hot easily or when the weather starts to get warmer, you can still use it without overheating your baby. 

Sassy MOD Pop Bouncer

I love this bouncer and so does my little guy. It has a mild vibration that you can  adjust the intensity of and several songs to choose from. The monkey mobile pops off easily so you can place your baby in the seat without knocking their head. He loves to kick at the monkeys and this has come in handy when the hubby has been away and I've had to use the bathroom or want to take a shower! 

Philips AVENT BPA Free Microwave Steam Sterilizer

This handy tool has made sterilizing the bottles a snap. All it takes is two minutes, a microwave, some water, and you are done. You place your cleaned bottles in the container, add the designated amount of water, click the lid, and place in the microwave for  2 minutes. Your bottles come out sterilized and ready to go for the next feeding. I use this daily and I don't know what I'd do without it for sterilizing. 

These are just a few tidbits of the many tools and items that I love using as a mommy. What have you found that works best for you? 

Bumbo Chair

Can I just say I love the Bumbo Chair for my little guy. Tonight was the first night we put him in it and he loved the little seat. It supports the back of his neck perfectly and he is all snugly in the chair. It really helps him to work his neck muscles to support his head and to help him sit up. He is only 7 weeks and really enjoys his new seat.

Logan's Nursery

I've been meaning to post pics of our little mans nursery and finally got around to it today. We decided to go with a monkey theme because it isn't to "baby" and it still works as he gets older. Plus there are so many cute monkey things out there right now and monkeys seem to be what's popular at the moment.

Our little monkeys nursery :) 

This sign was custom made for the little man by an awesome girl :)

It's a little hard to see but the wall decals say " No more monkeys jumping on the bed" 

Valentine's Onesie

I've been having fun with my new toy, a lovely sewing machine that I got for Christmas. I've never used one before nor did I know how to sew, but with the help of some lessons from my mom, I think I've got the hang of it.

I decided to make a Valentine's onesie for my little guy. There isn't much selection for baby boys when it comes to Valentine's attire so I thought I would make one myself.  It's a little rough around the edges, but for my first official project using my sewing machine I thought it turned out pretty good. 

{Valentine's Onesie}

* baby onesie

* fabric of choice

* heat bond

* iron

* sewing machine

{Directions}

1. Follow the directions on the heat bond package and apply to the back of the fabric using the iron.

2. Draw desired shape on the heat bond paper side and cut out. 

3. Apply to the onesie using the iron. Then sew around the edges using the sewing machine. 

I thought the look of a tie would be cute on the little guy and I couldn't resist the "I woof you" saying on the fabric. I added a little paw print to top it off. I can't wait to put my sweetie in it and celebrate Valentine's day with him and my husband. 

Have fun making a onesie of your own for your little bundle of joy! 

Our Perfect Gift

It has been a long time since my last post and I have a good reason! I am excited to say our precious son was born on December 17, 2010. He is our perfect gift and arrived in time for Christmas. I had to be put on bed rest for a couple of days due to high blood pressure and because my blood pressure did not go down our doctor decided to induce me on December 16. After almost 30 hours of labor and a c-section, Logan was born at 3:21 pm. He weighed 6 pounds 8 ounces and is 20 inches long. I was extremely nervous at first for the prospect of a c-section after such a long labor, but when his heart rate dropped and I had been laboring for so long, I willingly accepted having the c-section. I was not nervous going in and surprisingly was relaxed and ready to meet our little guy. They even had Frosty the Snowman playing in the operating room because I had been listening to Christmas music the whole time I was in labor. The staff at the hospital was amazing and I have quickly recovered from the c-section. The past 3 and half weeks have been a whirlwind of amazingness as well as sleeplessness. I am loving every minute of being a mommy and am excited for all the amazing milestones and characteristics Logan will be meeting in the days to come.

Logan's First Week Photo Book

Go Bananas Shower

My mother-in-law and my husbands aunt threw an adorable baby shower for me. The theme of the nursery is monkeys and they incorporated monkeys into the shower. It was adorable! One of the ladies created a slide show from the shower and graciously shared the link.  Enjoy :)

Go Banana's Shower 

Baby Shower #1

This past weekend was a busy and fun filled weekend. We headed back home to my parents place to have our first baby shower for Logan. My aunt and mom graciously hosted a beautiful shower for me and it felt like Christmas with all of the wonderful gifts Logan received. I couldn't believe all of the amazing gifts we got and I felt so loved and honored by the presence and generosity of family and friends who attended. Logan will be one well dressed little man and have plenty of gadgets and gizmo's to keep him healthy and entertained. You don't realize how many things a new baby needs or all of the endless options and items out there for your baby. It sure has been an eye opening experience and to think that this was the first of three showers! I can only imagine what his closet will look like after the next two showers are done and I'm glad we will have plenty of items to keep him happy and healthy.
Besides the wonderful gifts and amazing food, my mom had some great games to keep everyone entertained. We played a trivia game where she asked me questions about what eye color we wanted Logan to have, what I've been craving, when my due date is and things like that. The guests then answered the questions on what they thought I choose. My favorite game of the day was the baby diaper game. My mom melted candy bars in diapers and we had to guess what it was by smelling or even tasting what was in the diaper. It was hilarious watching everybody either enjoy the game or seem a little grossed out because of the resemblance of "we all know what" in the diaper. I was laughing so hard I started to tear up. The day was amazing and I enjoyed every minute of it. From my favorite funfetti cupcakes, to the food, to the games, to the presents, it was a day I will never forget. I am grateful for my mom and aunt for hosting such a wonderful shower and for everyone who came. I will never forget this shower and am looking forward to what the next two showers will bring!

3D/4D Ultrasound

Last night Chris and I went with my parents and brother and his parents and aunt to have a 3D/4D ultrasound done. I was so excited and could not wait to see what our little man looked like and I wanted to make sure the family got to experience as well. We all piled into a huge room that had a nice bed for me to lay on and a sectional for the family to sit at. The ultrasound was shown on a huge flat screen tv mounted on the wall. I could not believe how amazing the pictures were and we could actually see his adorable face and cute chubby cheeks. I can't wait to meet our little guy and tears come to my eyes when I saw his face for the first time and watch him move around. He is a very active little boy and it was clearly seen during the ultrasound. He loves to have his hands or feet up by his mouth and it was hard to get a picture with them not present. It will be interesting to see if he always has a hand by his mouth after he is born. I think it is a comfort thing for him. The ultrasound was a wonderful heartfelt experience that we enjoyed as a family. I can't wait to meet Logan in 8 weeks and to see him face to face. It's amazing what technology can do these days and amazing how real the photos are. Not only did we get pictures but we also got a dvd of the whole half hour session. I've already watched it once and I did get teary eyed again. He's going to be here before we know it and I'm full of excitement and anticipation.

Here are a few of the pictures. Isn't he cute! 

Curious Sloopy

Lately Sloopy has been very curious about my ever growing belly and is trying to figure out what is going on. Today while I was sitting in the chair watching the Bucks play, he came up and placed his paw on my belly to see if he could feel Logan kick. He sat there for a long time and it was so cute! I think he's going to be a very protective and great "big brother" for Logan :)

Nursery Sneak Peak

Our little guys nursery is coming along. We have to hang a few things on the wall and put the bedding on the crib, but everything else is pretty much done. We picked a monkey theme and there are so many adorable monkey items out there that the options have been endless. Here's a peak of what we have done so far.

We painted the walls yellow and found these decals. It says No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed. It's hung above his crib. 

I took an old end table we had and painted it a fun burnt orange color and then distressed it. When we get the glider it will sit in the corner by the table. 

I love the bedding set we got from JoJo Boutique. I can't wait to get the bedding on his crib. 

That's it for now. A little tidbit of his room. When we get everything put together and it's place I'll post pictures of his whole room. I'm so excited to see it all together and can't wait until our little man will be here. Only 10 more weeks! 

Nesting

I have to admit that the nesting phase has kicked into full swing today. I did laundry, cleaned the house, and got Logan's room and closet organized. I even got all of his clothes washed, folded and put away in the closet. It's crazy to think that no matter how tired or sore you are, you kick into high gear when it comes to cleaning and organizing in preparation for your baby. It felt great to get a lot of things accomplished today and his nursery is almost done. I'll make sure to post pictures when complete. I also need to take a picture of me pregnant because a lot of people have been asking. I just don't think about it to often. With only 11 more weeks to go I better get on it. Our little man will be here before we know it.

Fetal Echo Cardiogram

The other day we went to Children's Hospital to have a fetal echo cardiogram done to take a closer look at Logan's heart.  We wanted to have this done to make sure that the heart defect that Chris was born with wasn't passed down to Logan. It was very surreal to be in the same hospital and the same echo area as we were a year and a couple of months ago for Chris' heart surgery. I have to admit that I was very nervous going in but prayed that everything would be alright. When she turned the sonogram on to do the echo cardiogram I was at ease. I felt peaceful and amazed as I watched our little guy on the screen. It's amazing to see his heart beating and pumping and his arms and legs moving around. When she was done taking all the pictures she needed she zoomed in on his face and we got to see his hand resting on his chin and he looked like he was in deep thought. It was adorable. The doctor told us that Logan's heart looks great and everything is fine. He also said that there is a slim chance that Chris would pass on his heart defect to any of our children. I'm glad we had the test done and I always love any chance I can get to look at Logan in my belly. We have 15 more weeks to go and then I will get to see him face to face.

24 Weeks

I'm 24 weeks now and time is going faster then ever. The baby is kicking up a storm and it's the most amazing feeling in the world. I actually saw my stomach move while sitting in the chair and couldn't believe it. It's wonderful to think that we are going to have a little on in just a few short months and the preparation has kicked into full swing. My parents came into town to paint the nursery and help get some things in order. We picked a soft yellow color for the walls to go along with the monkey theme and to lighten the room because the furniture is dark. Chris put the crib and changing table together today and it was cute to see Sloopy trying to figure out what was going on. He also tried to help with the directions at one point.

The furniture is in place and the end table which we refinished is done the room is coming a long. We have a few more things to do until completion but the majority is done. 

I'm feeling great and not as tired as I use to and I've not felt sick in a long time. (knock on wood) I've not had to many cravings and nothing has been weird or odd which is good. I'm starting to show and I no longer fit into my clothes, so pregnancy clothes it is. I've found some really cute outfits. Logan is suppose to do more growing in the next week and right now he is a pound and the length of an ear of corn. It's going fast and every step of the way has been exciting! 

Our Peanut is a Boy

We've made it to the half way point and finally found out today what our little peanut is. I woke up feeling like Christmas morning and full of excitement and anticipation to our appointment today. Our ultrasound went great and the tech told us we are having a boy! Tears came to my eyes as I saw Logan Christopher moving around in my tummy. I was completely off with thinking of a boy. I have thought all along that our baby was going to be a girl and all the old wives tales pointed to girl as well. It was a very pleasant surprise and Chris was very excited.  He has wanted a boy all along. So now it's time to officially prepare the nursery and start decorating and planning. The next half of the pregnancy is going to go quickly!

Pregnancy Craving

I'm 14 and a half weeks along in my pregnancy and I have officially had my first major, got to have now, craving. The other night I woke up at 1:30 in the morning with a major craving for a taco. It was the craziest thing and I'm not usually one to want tacos let alone have a major craving for them in the middle of the night. Now, before you go thinking I ran out to get one, or had Chris get one, I managed to fall back asleep dreaming of when I could have a taco. So, as you can guess, we had tacos for dinner last night. Yummy, homemade, taco-goodness, that felt like heaven in my mouth. I can honestly say that was the best tasting taco I've ever had. I even had the works on it and usually I just have meat and cheese. There could be far worse or unhealthy things to crave and I'm happy to say that mine wasn't so bad. I just hope I don't start wanting pickles and ice cream or some other random, off the wall combination of foods that should never go together.

Our Peanut

We finally got to meet our little peanut today. I was so excited to see and hear our baby for the first time. It makes everything so real and amazing when you see your baby on the monitor moving around and waving their arms and legs. The best sound of my life was when she turned the sound on and we got to hear the heartbeat. It was music to my ears and I immediately began to tear up. It is such a wonderful feeling to know you have a baby growing everyday inside of you and I can't wait until the day we get to meet our peanut.
The heartrate was 164 beats per minute and there is an old wives tale that says if the heartrate is faster then 140 then it will be a girl. We shall see if this is true or not. We go back in four weeks for another checkup and in August we will be able to find out if we are having a boy or girl. I'm taking in every moment of this pregnancy and I can't wait to see what comes next.

Slacking

I've been slacking a bit on the posting and working on my blog. I think a lot has to do with my energy level lately. My little baby growing inside is taking all my extra energy at the moment and when I get done teaching I want to come home and sleep. I've also been feeling nauseous the last couple of days and the little one had me up all night. I've been told that in a couple of weeks it should get better. I hope!
I'm looking forward to summer starting and am excited that I've only got two weeks left of school. 8 days to be exact, but who's counting? It's crazy to think that another school year is about to wrap up and a whole new set of kiddoes will be arriving in the fall. I've enjoyed this bunch and we've had a great year. We are looking forward to the zoo trip this week and kindergarten graduation coming up next week. It's going to be busy but hopefully enjoyable for all.
Chris and I are eagerly anticipating our vacation coming up in a couple of weeks to Myrtle Beach. I've not been to a beach since high school and we've not been on a vacation since our honeymoon which is almost 4 years ago. We are looking forward to a much needed week of relaxing on the beach and getting some refreshing sun. Let's hope that the next couple of weeks don't take to long to get here.

Blueberry

I've been wanting to post for a while but have been super tired lately. The little one takes a lot of energy out of you and it's amazing to think that something the size of a blueberry can make you feel so tired and sick. I have unfortunately been experiencing  morning sickness and unlucky me it doesn't always occur in just the morning. It can be any time of the day and for any reason. I've been learning to work through it and I keep telling myself that the sickness and being tired all the time is all worth it. I can get through this and hopefully in a couple of weeks I will be feeling better. Today the baby is 8 weeks along and so many things have developed in the past week. It's such a miracle to think about what is going on and learning how our child is forming and developing each week. I have an e~mail that I love getting every week that updates me on the baby and  compares the size of the baby to a vegetable or fruit of some sort. Last week it was the size of a blueberry. My dad decided to be silly and send me a hilarious text message. I had to save it and post it. It made me laugh so hard. If he did this with a blueberry I can only imagine what he will do with the other food items that will be coming up the rest of the pregnancy.

April 28, 2010

All of the praying, hoping, and wishing has finally come true. I'm so excited to say that I am pregnant! Chris and I have been trying for so long and were ecstatic to find out on April 28 that we are expecting our first child. It's to fitting that the baby will be due on December 28th. Close to Christmas, which is my favorite holiday and the best time of the year. It seems like December is a million years away, but I've heard that it goes fast. I dream every night of meeting our precious little one and kissing their cute toes and face. Our first ultrasound is June 8 and I can't wait to hear the heart beat. I've been pretty tired and sick lately and am hoping that I feel better soon. I could sleep all day and then get up and sleep some more. I can't wait to experience the next eight months and to meet our bundle of joy!