Feelin' foxy on a Friday

Behold, my latest knitting accomplishment:

Fox hat!!  I think the ears are a bit long (don't they seem bunny-ish?) and the knit is a bit tough (babies need soft and stretchy) so I may remake it in a different yarn with slightly bigger needles, but for now, I'm proud.

I decided to make a fox hat because it seems like I'm gravitating towards foxes in the nursery.  Now I'm not talking about full out fox theme, but a fox makes a sporadic appearance in a few places in the plans I have.

First there are the little fox pulls on the top drawers of the dresser that Jeremy refinished.  They are from Anthropologie and were a bit of a splurge, but oh so cute!

Next is the main subject of the mural my mom has so generously offered to paint in the nursery.  He was originally featured on the July 2013 teapot sold exclusively at Crate and Barrel and was designed by Andrew Bannecker.  I've always envisioned a light blue and red nursery, regardless of gender, and thought that this guy was perfect to tie in some other accent colors, and clearly he went well with the blue/red color scheme.  I love his lashes, his striped shirt, and especially his mustache (although I will leave out the white chest hair).  So charming!

I've worked up the following rough sketch of what the mural may end up looking like, with a red cameo oval instead of gold and flags in patterns of red and white:

Finally, I have this cute little plushie from Anthropologie that I would love to have in the glider with me to cuddle.  He seems very snuggly, and I don't know if I can wait until I am at the detail stage of decorating the nursery to nab him!

So that's my nursery fox round-up.  These guys will just be small elements in a hard to name nursery theme.  I think it can best be described as "carnival-esque" or "light and airy whimsy."  We'll see.  I'll keep you updated on all the developments.  First up, new carpeting!

In good company

One of the more fortunate things about the timing of this pregnancy is that a good friend and co-worker, Audrey, is also pregnant right now. She's due in November so we're pretty close and have been able to commiserate and share this crazy process in real time.

Today we had lots of fun maternity clothes shopping.  It was so nice to have a shopping partner that I didn't feel like I was dragging around to stores that were relevant to me, and to share my favorite kids consignment store, which quietly carries clothes for moms to be too.  We both had quite a haul, and it was so great to be able to trade clothes back and forth!

I know someday our little girls will have fun playing together, and maybe they will get to trade clothes as well!

Life is so good right now :-).

To be noted: my 4 month belly is the same size as her 6 month belly, 

and for some reason I cannot look at the camera!!

The big reveal!!

After much speculation and even more anticipation, we are proud to announce that today I am wearing a...

That's right, it's a GIRL!!!!!


We are just beside ourselves with excitement, and so in love with our little girl already.  Just check out how precious she is!

She has her little fist up by her face, and over time she even started to put it in her mouth, see?

What a little sweetheart!  She moved a lot during the sonogram, going from a curled, scrunched position to perfectly positioned to figure out the gender.  Gotta love her.  She is right on track (51st percentile) and is what the doctor called "textbook perfect."  Jeremy and I high fived after that remark.

We are most excited to stop calling her "it," and will now be able to conceptualize her more as a little person than the disembodied movements in my belly and source of the Hunger.  That she is a girl is just icing on the cake :-).

We are just so proud and excited, and now bracing ourselves for a massive landslide of pink/frills/lace (you seriously can't buy anything baby girl that isn't covered in pink, even pacifiers!!), although we will work hard to avoid gender stereotypes as much as we can.  Either way this will be one loved child.

Can't wait to meet you little girl!!

Dressing the bump, Parts I and II

Today is the first day that I have worn a maternity top.  Not because I no longer fit under some of my other options, but because I actually got one over the weekend that I liked enough to wear either way (thanks, Sandi!)  Wearing it didn't quite strike me the way the over-the-top, why-doesn't-everyone-wear-these comfort of wearing well fitting maternity jeans hit me, but it is quite comfy.

One fun fact about me in case you didn't know: I can be quite cheap when it comes to spending money on myself, especially clothes.  I can't remember the last time I paid full retail for something, or spent more than $30 on a single item that wasn't a winter coat.  This certainly didn't change when I realized I would have to dress my body in an entirely new way for at least a few months, so I have had to be creative.  I figured I would share what I have learned from talking to friends, reading books/blogs, and just being my cheap self.  I'm sure I'll break down and buy something at full retail before the end, but for now, here's how I have been surviving.  I am proud to say that I haven't spent more than $10 on any one item so far, and I have quite a selection!

The first category I will cover is non-maternity tops that I bought in anticipation of needing to hide a bump.  All are flowy or straight from the collar to the hips and can be worn post-partum, which is how I justified buying them from TJ Maxx and Marshall's instead of consignment stores.  The white sparkly one on the bottom left was a Goodwill find.  I wore these on a continuous cycle in the first three months, along with my normal pants, either buttoned up (if they were a six instead of a four, which I bought for the length) or with a rubberband through the button hole (if they were twos or fours and just wouldn't button).  I also employed flowy cardigans to hide my profile if I could justify it in the current weather.

Total money spent: $53

The second category are shirts I already owned, bought before expanding my waist line was even a possibility.  I avoided them in the first trimester because they are form fitting and would have given me away, but now I can be out and proud!  They are all made of a relaxed or stretchy material, and most seem to have a wide band at the hips that keeps them from riding up.  All of the shirts I own are long because of my freakishly long torso, so it just works out that the bump is still small enough that they are the perfect length!

Total money spent: $0 (because they were already in my closet)

The next category is still non-maternity, but bought only because I need the extra room.  Because I am so tall, dresses can work like long tops on me.  For now I can pair these with leggings, but later I think I will have to employ real pants.  Believe it or not I got all of these from consignment stores, mostly Goodwill, but the Bargain Box and My Secret Closet also contributed.  I love using dresses for tops because they have a reasonable chance of being long enough until the end and they are lined more than most blouses.  If you dig you can find good brands too, below I have Banana Republic, Ann Taylor Loft, and Express, along with a couple Forever 21 and Old Navy.  Since they are all non-maternity, there is a good chance I will be able to wear them post baby too!

Total money spent: $8 (!!)

Next I have real maternity clothes bought from consignment stores.  I was shocked to learn that very few of the places I regularly shop have exclusive maternity sections, but luckily Goodwill does, and so do some children's consignment stores.  So far I have only gotten three pairs of pants and one dress, but I will keep searching as we move along.  Still on the hunt for the elusive long sizes ;-).

Total money spent: $23

And finally, the greatest haul of them all, a generous donation from a good friend/new mom!  Sandi was kind enough to gift me with everything you see here (except for the stack of jeans on the top left), including two awesome dresses, two sweaters, leggings, an extra belly band, a skirt, and eight new tops!  All for nothing!  She also contributed the super cute top I am wearing today, and it is just too cute :-).

Total money spent: $0 (yay!)

As a quick sample of my daily choices when it comes to maternity wear, I present today's outfit.  Maternity top free from Sandi and non-maternity pants I already owned.

God bless the belly band, making it possible for me to still wear my favorite pants!

For now, I feel pretty good.  All that's left on my list is a pair of maternity black pants, maternity/nursing pjs, and undergarments (when I need them, so far I'm still rocking what I had).  We'll see if I break down and hit some sales at Motherhood Maternity, but today I feel good about my spending history.

Bargains or Bust!

And Brie is getting LAAARRGERRRR

Ok, time for the requisite post containing belly shots.

I will take one on (or about) the 18th of each month, and I started with my second month shot.  I'll do the classic wear-the-same-clothes-in-the-same-spot shot to make the comparisons easy, and do my best to remember to post it the next day so you guys can stay updated in real time!

Enjoy!

2 months along, and still easy to hide

For some reason I totally popped in the third month!  Much harder to hide...

Out and proud in the fourth month!

Knittin' it up

Knitting is my newest obsession.  Truly.  I knit at least a couple of hours a day, and I have been loving every meditative, quiet, productive minute of it.

It started a couple of years ago when a client of mine expressed an interest in learning, and since I had always thought it would be a fun skill to master, I decided that we would learn together.  I learned the basic stitches, made one terrible slipper, and let it go when she did.

Just look sad and say, "D'oh."

Fast forward a year and I was out of house craft projects, but not out of crafty energy.  So, I decided it would be fun to pick up again and actually pushed myself to complete a blanket.  The amount of satisfaction I got from actually finishing it got me hooked in a major way!  The process is so soothing too, the low click of the needles, the swish of the yarn, the soft feel of the fibers, it's awesome.  I highly recommend it to anyone that needs some stress relief or an easy way to pass time in waiting rooms.

Right now I am working on three projects at once, a twin brother to the first blanket (because I remember having a beloved knit blanket as a young child and hating the hour it was in the wash, so maybe my kid will like having a back up), a teal knit pouf for the nursery (ever priced one of those? At least $100!  Craziness!), and a baby hat (since I like to mix in small projects to get the rush of completion in the midst of these weeks -long big ones).

The twin brother to the first blanket

I think I am the most proud of the little toys I have made, which you have seen if you follow me on Instagram.  They are:

This project was my first attempt at knitting in the round, this little guy was my second attempt

These two, along with a skunk and bear (already done) and a bunny (I'll get to it someday) will be made into a mobile for the Bun, if I can figure out how to do that...

An oversized owl I made for Lark, which she loved, thank goodness!

A sheep made according to the pattern but with totally different gauges of yarn and needles, so what was supposed to be a huge pillow came out a teddy bear size.  Oh well, at least I had fun with all the bobbles!

A rattle that was my second attempt at knitting in the round.  I have big plans to try it again in a more traditional red with white dots pattern, but haven't quite gotten to that yet

So that, along with multiple gifts for other mommies-to-be has been my summer vacation.  I'll keep you updated as I churn out more of these things in anxious anticipation of the Bun, but for now, I'll just keep knitting, just keep knitting...

Really starting to feel it now

I was going to hold off on this post until tomorrow, but since things have stepped up a notch, I figure today is the day!

This little Bun is a mover and a shaker.  Before today it didn't really seem to be a kicker though.  It all started on Monday, August 5 with three little taps on the left side of my belly while at a stoplight on my way to work.  At first (like so many other moms) I thought it was a digestive thing, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that a) I never felt anything like that before and b) it was in a place were there is only uterus.  I got tentatively excited, but decided to hold off on certainty until my next doctor's appointment, which was the next day.  When the midwife found the heartbeat, she showed me the Bun's orientation, and sure enough, the feet were right were I felt the taps!  Yay!

Since then I have felt mostly rolls and turns, which felt a little like the sinking feeling you get when you drop too fast, or like knuckles lightly moving under your skin.  I noticed the first clear kick on my birthday when I was searching for a spot for lunch, said out loud "how about Mexican?" and felt a tiny pop right below my belly button.  I figured that was the Bun's way of saying, "yay, tacos!!"  During lunch it moved a whole heck of a lot, bringing to mind a little version of the Mexican Hat Dance we were all forced to do in elementary school.  Perhaps it was the Bun's way of letting me know I made a good choice :-).  On the way to Atlanta over the weekend a song with particularly strong bass came on and it moved in such a way that I swear it was rocking out.  Gotta love a little one with an appreciation for good music.

One not so awesome discovery was on the 6 hour car ride back from Atlanta.  At first, I was worried that I hadn't felt anything in a while, but happened to notice that my need for a rest stop alternated between "eh, I can wait" to "stop NOW" in 1-2 minute increments.  Quite inconvenient for a road trip.  After a few minutes, I began to realize that the reason I hadn't been feeling anything to the front is that the Bun had started kicking towards the back, and decided that my bladder was a particularly fun spot.  Too soon, Bun, too soon!

Today, the kicks started in earnest.  Before today there was always a little doubt in the back of my mind that I was actually feeling movement.  Perhaps it was a combination of wishful thinking and GI activity, I thought tentatively.  Well, no more.  I think this Bun likes to hear a lot of voices because it has become very active during my therapy sessions.  Clear pops in the belly that tell me it is getting much stronger.  It's also getting active for longer periods, so I get to be mindful of this little miracle that goes through my day with me.  I do my best to describe it to Jeremy, but I know there's nothing like feeling it for yourself.  I can't wait for the day when its little legs get strong enough to make themselves known to the outside world, hopefully in a just a few short weeks!

For now I will savor them all for myself, and do my best to crank good tunes with lots of bass for the Bun.

Milhouse or Lisa?

What will it be?  Either way I know it has a decent chance of being a bit of a nerd, given the history of both Jeremy and I, which I love!

I was considering doing one of those super fun, Pinterest-y gender reveal parties, complete with a giant cardboard box of pink or blue balloons and themed snacks since I am addicted to throwing parties.  However, Jeremy simply can't wait that long to hear the news and is excited to find out at the next appointment, straight from the sonographer.  As a compromise I am organizing a small pool/raffle at work and exercised my crafting skills by adapting some of the cuter ideas on Pinterest.  As symbols of each gender I settled on bowtie for a boy and hair barrette for a girl since I think I would actually dress my future child in those, as opposed to the guns/glitter or mustache/lips themes that seem to be most popular right now.  I was trying to figure out the best way to make a teeny bowtie that actually looked like one instead of a regular hair bow when I got lucky and found some mini ones that are meant to jazz up wine bottles at World Market.  Score!  So now the materials are up in the office, and will be for the next week to give everyone a chance to weigh in before the big reveal on August 27.  I will wear either a mini tie or big flowery hair barrette on my lapel to reveal the news.  This way I can have my crafty fun and Jeremy can know right away.  Compromise!

Feel free to weigh in on the comments, although the raffle is limited to the Family Solutions crew :-).

Quick rundown of the stakes

Official guess log, crafted up Pinterest style

Breakdown of some old wives' tales, an exact even split!

Going public

::Insert Diana Ross' vastly superior voice::  I'm coming out!!  I want the world to know, got to let it show!!

Can I just say, it feels awesome/amazing to finally be able to talk about this pregnancy!  For far too long I have been squishing my belly with my pre-pregnancy pants and wearing super flowy or long, dark tops to conceal the growing bump from clients and coworkers.  Doctors tell you to wait until your second trimester (14 weeks) to share the news, and my parents were coming to visit me in my 17th week, so I figured I could wait to tell them in person and still let them be the first to know.  Little more challenging than I anticipated given my changing shape, but luckily my first trimester nausea was limited to the evenings, and frequent bathroom breaks are not noticeable in a busy office.  I hated lying every time someone caught me surfing craigslist for baby furniture or knowing just a little bit too much about pregnancy symptoms, but luckily I had a solid alibi in my 20+ pregnant friends.  I was so excited to tell my parents on August 9 and to make a big announcement at my birthday party on August 10.

I took a risk in the dress I wore to my birthday party in that it was rather loose and my belly was getting rather noticeable, but only a couple of coworkers later told me that had an inkling.  Right before the announcement my heart was beating incredibly quickly, as it always done in a big moment, but once I was able to say the words, "I think 30 is going to be the biggest year yet!" and smooth my dress down, I immediately calmed and exhaled with relief.  Reactions ranged from subtle "I thought so"s to screams and tears from some of my sweeter coworkers.  It was awesome.  I have been having fun over the past two weeks sharing the news in various ways, taking a bunch of fun pictures for announcements, and calling all my nearest and dearest to share the news.  Among that group of people there is a definite sense of "I knew it!" or "It's about time!" but we got a lot of that after we got engaged after 6 years together, so it's something we're used to.

Expected of us or no, we are just thrilled.  Jeremy is taking very good care of me and the Bun, as I like to call it, and are counting down the days to August 27 when we know if it's a little Lisa or a little Milhouse (no Barts, please!)

Blowing out my candle, right before making the announcement.  If you look for it, you can see the bump!

Right after telling everyone, (finally) letting it show!

Something something, Burt Ward!

That's right, from now on there will be a little more love in the house!  I'm due January 18, 2014, not aware of the gender (yet) and feeling remarkably great!  I was tired and nauseous in the evenings during my first trimester, but now I'm feeling good, except for what Jeremy has dubbed The Hunger.  Seriously, I'm eating everything.  Conversations in our house go a little like this:

Did you eat that big bag of Doritos?  I ate everything.

Did you eat all 8 of those waffles?  I ate EVERYTHING.

And so on.

So excited for January!!