Due Date

I have reached my Due Date and feel soooo good about where I am at. Mentally and physically I feel like now I am ready to have this baby, but if need be, I can wait a little longer. According to my last period I am due Today, if you go off my ultrasound I am due Monday. Either way I feel like when this baby is done cooking he will let me know. I am dilated to a 3 + and 80% effaced so I know things have been progressing..... when will be the magic day or hour only the baby can decide that.

With my free time, I have been checking off a mental to do list of things I can take care of before the baby arrives:

• I made 4 freezer meals ~ 2 lasagna and 2 chicken pot pie. I am considering more if time allows.
• I have set up payments for all my bills in October ~  preschool, credit cards, car payment etc. Nothing like a late fee or waking up in the middle of the night remembering something important was due.
• My fridge and freezer are stocked with food and snacks so lunches will be easy and no one will be hungry while Dad is in charge.
• I have cleaned and set up all my Halloween decorations. I know once this baby comes I will never get around to it and who doesn't want to start celebrating Halloween a few days early!
• I have re-read a few chapters in some of my favorite childbirth books and am ready to tackle another unmedicated birth!
• I have my bags packed ready to go to the hospital. I bought a couple new shirts and lounge pants to wear at the hospital and when I get home....so while feeling tired, sleepless, overwhelmed and probably more I don't have to feel grungy.

I have been praying this baby gets here with One, Healthy, Happy Delivery! Please keep me in your thoughts.

Baby Dresser

With just a few days before my due date (Next Tuesday!) the nursery is getting some finishing touches. We have opted to use the bassinet for the first few months and not even assemble the crib. The nursery will be too small with crib, dresser, rocking chair and bassinet all fighting for space in the room. When the Baby (yes, we are calling him Baby, because we haven't decided on a name!)  has grown out of the bassinet will set up the crib and make the transfer.

Crib and Bassinet aside, we desperately needed a dresser. I had the perfect corner in the nursery and knew I needed a specific dresser to fit the space. I wanted something tall, 5-6 drawers, all wood and  preferably inexpensive . After searching furniture stores and online unsuccessfully, I turned to the local classified hoping to find something perfect.

Turns out a family living right around the corner from us was selling a dresser with the exact space proportions, 5 drawers, black, all wood and I was able to get it for $40. That is a better deal than Desert Industries!! It had alot of coats of paint and I was planning on a good sanding job as well as new fresh paint., but once we started taking off the layers we loved the shabby look and just went with it. Although I kinda feel like shabby chic is going out, it still looks cute for a baby, and when he gets older and chews the corners no one will know the difference!!

What a relief to have this off my list. It looks great and all the drawers are filled with his adorable must-haves and what-nots!!



Pacing Myself

I thought I had been really pacing myself with projects for the baby this pregnancy but as the end draws near (I am now at 37 weeks) I feel like my "To Do Before the Baby Arrives" list has become a bit daunting. My list looks something like this:

• Paint Crib and dresser
• Bassinet and bumper pads
• Pre-register at hospital
• Buy a car seat and finish car seat cover
• Bind baby quilts and make receiving blankets
• Crib sheets
• Burp clothes
• Wash and organize baby clothes

I understand that a few of these I have waited on because I need my hubby's help: paint crib and dresser, which he does plan to tackle in the very near future. Most items on the list like: receiving blankets and bind quilts, I have almost done, but I just gotten around to finishing. But two things I did accomplish over the holiday were: burp clothes and bassinet bumper pads.

The tutorial I used for the burp clothes are from my amazing creative blogging friend, Amy from
Diary of a Quilter. I love her easy and straightforward Easiest Burp-Cloth Tutorial Ever and I love how my burp clothes turned out. I am planning on making a few more, I just need to get more cloths!!

I felt a great sense of accomplishment about these bumper pads. I didn't know exactly what I was doing and I didn't follow a pattern (typical), but I am really impressed with how they turned out. The flannel is so sweet and I love the stars!! I also love that the flannel is still baby but all boy. I bought the 1/2" thick foam padding at Joann and measured the sides of the bassinet and went to town without too many mistakes. I just need to figure out how to make a crib sheet with elastic thread for his mattress pad. If anyone has any tips, I would love to hear about them!!