canes

Photos from a Carolina Hurricanes game we attended in January 2007:


Supplies: Bazzill cardstock; Scenic Route patterned paper; Cosmo Cricket patterned paper; Archiver's cardstock; black stamp ink; Heidi Swapp chipboard letters; Micron black pen. Design based upon a sketch from the August/September 2008 issue of Scrapbooks, Etc.

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PhotoHunt: Books

Baby's first books:

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Guard Cat

Last month we purchased a child gate for the nursery to keep the cats out. I confess, it was Trent's idea and I was not convinced it would work. However, so far neither has tried to jump it. They have pushed their faces against the bars a few times to peek in. Occasionally, I'll let them in there with me and give them a chance to sniff around which seems to fill their curiosity for the moment.

The cutest part of this change has been watching Chester become the "guard cat." He spends most nights now sleeping in front of the gate. Here he is this morning practicing his "you must pass me to enter" pose:


I'm curious to see if this continues once the baby arrives or if Chester finds a new, quieter place to hang out.

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34 Weeks

How far along? 34 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Baby had a growth spurt - my weight jumped one and a half pounds in the last week

Maternity clothes? Yes, and I've already outgrown 2 pairs of maternity pants. Monday I bought myself one new pair to help me make it all the way to the end.

Stretch marks? Still not seeing any. *knock on wood*

Sleep: Ok. I'm struggling again with side sleeping. My shoulder or hip or both will hurt - I'll flip and a short time later the same scenario will repeat.

Best moment this week: A toss up between 2 special moments. The first was getting to hear the little guy's heartbeat during our check-up on Tuesday - this never gets old. I always love it. The second occurred yesterday morning when I gave Trent a hug & kiss before heading to work. The little guy kicked hard enough as our bellies were touching that Trent felt it on his belly. I told him it must have been the baby's way of saying "I love you." :)

Movement: Baby continues to move a lot. It feels more like stretching and "Mom, I'm out of room in here" than kicking. He also reacts to belly rubs.

Food cravings: Saturday night around 8pm I was hungry and the only food I wanted was a cheese pizza from Papa John's. My dear, sweet husband went out and got exactly that for me while I stayed home and relaxed.

Labor Signs: None.

Belly Button in or out? Barely in.

Milestones: Walking for 30 minutes on Tuesday night. It was a slow pace, but I did ok. Last week we were at 20 when the round ligament pain hit and I had to call it quits.

Energy Level: Pretty high.

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Window Treatments

When we bought our home in 2003, I made the curtains for almost every window in the house including a pair of light yellow panels for the sliding glass doors in our dining room and a matching roman shade for over the sink in the adjoining kitchen.


Fast forward to a few months ago when I took down the panels to wash. They needed a good cleaning between dust, cat fur and general age. I thought I had used fabric that was washer & dryer safe. After cleaning, I ironed the wrinkles out, hung them up and ... oops! They were about 4 inches shorter:


We decided to leave them up for the time being (they still worked - just looked a little funny) while I decided what to do. I considered purchasing new panels and a matching shade, but couldn't find anything that I liked enough and for a price I liked. Instead I thought I might find a coordinating fabric and extend the existing panels.

On Friday while fabric shopping for the ribbon blanket and nursing cover, I came across a striped fabric that I thought would be perfect. On a whim, I went ahead and bought it. I pre-washed all of the fabrics that night to be sure I don't repeat my mistake in the future. Sunday I checked the measurements of the existing panels and created new top sections for each:


Then on Monday I made a matching valance to hang in front of the roman shade in our kitchen:


Altogether I spent about $25 on supplies including the spring rod to hold the valance - a mere fraction of what it would have cost to completely replace them with store bought options. And now we have a look we both like that's unique to our home.

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Nursing Cover

My second project of the weekend was to make my own nursing cover. I had originally planned to purchase one and found a range of prices from $22 to $60. When I came across a free pattern online, I decided to give it a try myself.

I purchased 2 complementary fabrics - the floral pattern for the body of the cover and a teal colored fabric for the straps. On one of the inside lower corners, I sewed in a baby washcloth to create a little pocket for extra nursing pads or for use as a baby facial wipe. The total cost was about $12.

Click on either photo to enlarge.

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Memorial Day

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Ribbon Blanket

On Friday I stopped by the fabric store to pick up supplies for several projects (mostly baby related, of course). The first one I tackled fairly quickly yesterday morning. I made this cute little blanket:


It's approximately 16x16 with a printed flannel front, green minky dot chenille fabric back and colorful ribbons attached to all four sides.

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brothers

My cousin's two boys. :) I took these photos during a visit at Thanksgiving when the youngest was only 7 days old.


Supplies: Stampin' Up cardstock; Frances Meyer patterned paper; Making Memories journaling paper; Micron black pen; Die Cuts with a View adhesive backed cardstock; QuicKutz Studio font. Inspired by the Two Peas April Super Sketches class.

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33 Weeks

How far along? 33 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Added one pound since last week

Maternity clothes? Absolutely. Although, on Sunday when we went to a Durham Bulls baseball game, the weather was chilly enough to require coats. I don't have any maternity ones since I assumed I be at my biggest during warmer months. What I do have will zip up, but not comfortably so I took a blanket to lay on the front of me.

Stretch marks? Still not seeing any. *knock on wood*

Sleep: Fairly well. I haven't been able to sleep on my right side all week though. Every time I lay on it, I feel as though I strain to breathe. I've been trying to sleep on my left only and find myself waking up on my back - completely comfortable and able to breathe fine.

Best moment this week: My massage last Friday. I always enjoy them, but they have been even better as my pregnancy has progressed - partly just being able to lay on my stomach for a bit and shift all that weight & pressure. Amazing the instant difference that makes in my lower back and hips.

Movement: Very active during the day. This week it's felt as though he trying to break out with all the pushing he's been doing on my belly. I can look down and watch my belly go from a nice circular shape to a weird oblong one and then quickly change again.

Food cravings: I've been on a cheese kick this week.

Labor Signs: None.

Belly Button in or out? Still in, but almost completely flat.

Milestones: I think I learned what the dreaded round ligament pain is. Definitely not fun.

Energy Level: Dropped a little. I noticed that I'm tired more easily. We tried to take a walk on Tuesday evening. I had been able to walk for 30 minutes, but managed just 20 that particular day. Last night I easily completed my 60 minute prenatal water aerobics class though. By bedtime I was exhausted and the little guy was full of energy - kicking like crazy.

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Softball

Last night was a perfect night for softball. I went out to watch and cheer on Trent and his team. Here's one of the shots I captured of Trent at bat:

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Precious

And, the gifts that literally brought tears to my eyes - my Mom hand knitted these hats and booties for her grandson:


And a little sweater, hat and booties set:

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Baby Clothes

I've had a few requests to see some of the cute baby clothes we've received. Here is a small sampling of the many outfits that are filling up the little fellow's closet:

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Happy Birthday, Mom!

Hope you have a wonderful day! :)


Supplies: all Stampin' Up products.

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Wedding Layout

Here's a simple layout I put together using the collage photo I shared a couple weeks ago and from yesterday's sneak peek:


On the back of the page, I adhered a small 3x3 print of the same collage template with the names of everyone in the photos on the appropriate locations:


Supplies: Archiver's cardstock; Making Memories paint, foam stamp & chipboard heart; black stamp ink; Prima flower; Mark Richards crystal stickers; Monotype Corsiva font; Quick Collage template 111 from Scrapbooks Etc

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PhotoHunt: Painted

A sneak peek at a scrapbooking project I started yesterday that fits this week's PhotoHunt theme, painted.


Supplies: Archiver's cardstock; Making Memories paint & foam stamp

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32 Weeks

The weeks are flying by now! Hard to believe that we'll be meeting our little guy so soon. :)

How far along? 32 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Five pounds above my pre-pregnancy weight in October

Maternity clothes? Absolutely.

Stretch marks? Still not seeing any. *knock on wood*

Sleep: Surprisingly better. The last few nights I've only woken and gotten up once or twice. It had been anywhere from every hour to two hours I was waking up.

Best moment this week: Enjoying time over the weekend with family & friends celebrating and sharing in his kicks - this was the first time my parents and sister had felt him move.

Movement: Still plenty of movement. All during the day (or at least he isn't waking me if he's active overnight). He loves to stick his feet straight up to the top of my belly - just below the sternum. At times I can even see a little lump there. I'll push on it and he might retreat, but often he'll push back harder! LOL

Food cravings: No strong cravings at the moment.

Labor Signs: None.

Belly Button in or out? Still in.

Milestones: We're closer to being ready for his arrival. The crib is made up and the car seat is in the car. :)

Energy Level: Still pretty high. I'm keeping up with my regular activities and my weekly prenatal water aerobics classes.

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20 Questions

Here are the pages I created for Monica's circle journal, 20 Questions:


Supplies: Cosmo Cricket patterned paper; Die Cuts with a View adhesive backed cardstock; QuicKutz Metro, Moxie and Sunshine fonts; miscellaneous chipboard; Making Memories paint; EK Success staples; Micron black pen. Inspired by Melissa Inman's "bestest mom" in May/June 2009 issue of Scrapbooks Etc.

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Thanks So Much

Fun little thank you card I made playing with supplies in my stash:


Supplies: Die Cuts with a View card; Archiver's cardstock; Basic Grey patterned paper; Studio G stamp; StazOn black ink; American Crafts ribbon.

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Weekend

I had a wonderful weekend spending time with family & friends and celebrating at the baby shower. Many thanks to my sister, mother and aunt who organized and hosted the shower.


Trent and I were overwhelmed with the thoughtful gifts for our son. His room is filling up with all the necessities. He may even have more clothing than the two of us now! He'll be a well dressed little boy for sure.

When I returned home from the shower, I found another surprise waiting for me. My dad had come to visit and, with Trent's help, picked up the travel system we wanted and had it ready & put together for us.

After everyone left, mom and I enjoyed some time alone. She was a huge help in sorting through the gifts with me and helping to put them away.

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Happy Mother's Day

For each of our mothers and for Trent's grandmother, I altered brag books for them to carry photos of the newest family member. :)


Supplies: 4x6 photo brag books; Paper Salon patterned papers; American Crafts ribbon; Martha Stewart Crafts felt stickers.

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Baby Shower & Card

My sister & aunt are hosting a baby shower for me today. I'm looking forward to it and time with family and a few close friends. One of my friends is expecting a little boy just a couple of weeks before us. This is the card I made for her:


Supplies: Die Cuts with a View card; Bazzill cardstock; Heidi Swapp stamp; Marvy LePlume marker; American Crafts ribbon; Autumn Leaves button; Coats & Clark thread; Doodlebug Designs patterned paper.

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Nursery Peek

We're still working on getting the nursery together. Here is a peek of the recent progress:


Credits: Owlet photo by my dear friend, Wanda Hart; Giraffe vinyl decor by Single Stone Studios.

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Thursday Thirteen #4: Scrapbooking Favorites

Thirteen of my scrapbooking favorites right now:

1. Making Memories tiny alpha letter stickers - I seem to use these quite frequently on layouts and cards
   
2. Stampin' Up Whisper White ink pad
3. Sketches & Challenges - excellent for reviving that mojo when I want to scrap, but am struggling with what direction to take.
   
4. StazOn black ink pad
5. We R Memory Keepers 12x12 photo sleeve pages - these are making it so easy for me to quickly add my Project 365 photos to my album.
   
6. Punches - especially corner rounder and border punches
   
7. Adobe Photoshop
   
8. Signo Uniball pens - white & silver
   
9. Chipboard
   
10. Tombow Mono Adhesive - my favorite adhesive for years. I grab a refill every time I'm at a craft store to make sure to have plenty on hand.
    
11. Scallops
    
12. Collages - whether cutting & piecing by hand or arranging on the computer & then printing, I'm loving this quick and easy way to add a lot of photos to a layout without the page seeming too busy.
    
13. American Crafts 3-ring albums - how did I ever survive without these? They make it so easy to add pages and mix & match sizes.
    

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Busy Evening

Last night we made our second trip to Best Buy this week. Our all-in-one printer recently died (amazing how much you realize you need a printer when you don't have one) and we had finally purchased a new one on Sunday. Once we had it hooked up, it was obvious it was a lemon. It sounded as though every internal piece was scraping. The cats both were bug eyed and looking around trying to figure out what thing was causing such a dreadful noise. Then to top it off, there was a spot under the scanner glass so every scan came out with a dot on it. The employees at customer service were easy about the exchange and the new printer works perfectly. On top of that, we were able to leave our old printer for free recycling. If you have any electronics that need recycling, I definitely recommend checking out their program - for us it is far more convenient than driving to the local county recycling center.

After we returned home, I spent some time making Cat Squares for the 2 orders I had yesterday in my Etsy shop. A little shot of the work in progress (that awful checked fabric in the background is the ironing board cover - I hate it, but that $10 board & cover have lasted me 10 years now so I can't complain too much):

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Green/Blue Floral card

Simple card I created last night inspired by the card on the front of the May/June issue of Scrapbooks Etc, Marcie's rounded corner challenge at Scrappin' Mojo and Ter's Card Challenge:


Supplies: Die Cuts with a View card & adhesive backed cardstock; Frances Meyer patterned paper; EK Success corner rounder & scalloped circle punches; black stamp ink; Making Memories epoxy flower.

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Heather's Wedding

We had a busy, fun filled weekend with family celebrating Trent's younger sister's wedding:


Supplies: Quick Collage template 111 from Scrapbooks Etc.

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Hello card

I felt like playing a little in the scrap room last night after my prenatal water aerobics class and put together this fun card inspired by the Two Peas Stamp Camp Week 4 Class to stamp on fabric.


Supplies: Die Cuts with a View card; Bazzill cardstock; miscellaneous fabric & ribbon; Autumn Leaves buttons; Coats & Clark thread; American Crafts rub-on.

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