Introducing Kirsten Jael

We proudly introduce the newest addition to our family: Kirsten Jael! She is a healthy, beautiful baby girl who was born at 2:28am on October 29th! She weighed 7lbs 12 oz and is 20 and 1/2 inches long. She is just perfect, of course. I will post a few photos here and later on I will post more of her birth story.

Baby Nursery

Here's some pics of the baby nursery. It's almost done! I just have a few finishing touches to do. Plus it might be nice to have a dresser at some point. For now the wire shelving cubbies will have to do.

My Big Belly Update

Well I officially have 12 days left until my due date. 12 Days!! TWELVE DAYS!?!?!?! Yes, it is really coming to an end. I am actually hoping for this little girl to arrive a little before my due date. Perhaps next week sometime. But God's in control and He'll choose when we get to meet her. I'd like to get through this weekend because we are having a shower for my friend Sarah, and because Scott's parents will be in Mass this weekend.

Here's a couple photos of me on Sunday at 38 weeks at Scott's parent's house:












Some people say I don't look like I'm ready to have this baby, and others say I look ready to pop. Personally, I have been feeling a bit more tired lately and often have a hard time getting comfortable. I also wake up at least 2 times, but usually 3, every night. This usually involves a trip downstairs to go pee, sometimes heating up my rice pad, and often having a small snack.

Other joys of the final weeks are the emotional ups and downs. I am SO excited to meet our little girl, to hold her, to get to know her, and to find out what it's like to be a mom. At the same time, I am totally freaked out about getting through the labor process, as well as the concept of bringing home a totally dependent, helpless little creature that we have to care for. Thankfully, Scott is such a great support and lets me cry or talk or whatever I need to do. Then he tells me that he knows I can do it (the labor thing) and that I'll be a great mom. Boy I hope he's right! And I do know that no matter what happens, everything will be okay. I know that God will give me the strength I need, and that once our baby is here it will all be worth it!

House Projects and Such

I am sitting here on my couch utterly exhausted. Why, you ask? Well, I am exhausted because I spent most of the day painting the trim in my dining room. AND because I'm almost 38 weeks pregnant and getting tireder by the day... But alas, my dining room can finally go back to actually being a place where people can sit down and eat instead of a room full of furniture, boxes, and a bunch of other stuff shoved in the middle of the room. The nice thing about today was that my mom came over and helped me out a lot - she did all of my dishes, cleaned the windows and door in my kitchen, vacuumed upstairs, folded laundry, and more. Plus Scott's mom came and then all 3 of us were painting for a while. Meanwhile, Scott's and his dad worked outside on the front porch and actually finished it! Now I just want to pick up some pumpkins to decorate the front door. It looks much more inviting now and perhaps we'll even have some trick or treaters... that is if we are home at that time : )

Well anyway, we also had a big work day last Saturday with a bunch of people from our church which was so helpful! We definitely would not have everything done that we have now if those people hadn't come last weekend.

The best part is that the baby nursery is finally coming together! I will post some photos soon, but I feel much better now because we have some shelving up as well as some cubbies for all the clothing and such. Plus the crib is all arranged how I want it, and I have my bookshelf with a little library started! The only thing we have to do now is get the mini co-sleeper attached to our bed sometime in the next few days. That way when we bring the baby home, we won't have to fuss with getting that set up.

Another good thing about today was that my step father was able to turn up the heat on our hot water today, so it actually is hot now instead of lukewarm!!! I am soooo excited because at this very moment I am running my bath so that I can soak and relax! Yay!!!!

Entering the World of Cloth Diapers

At the risk of being looked at as if I have 3 heads, I will share with you my plan for my new baby - cloth diapers! I am actually really excited about it, despite the strange looks and remarks I've received so far. I've been researching, reading, and talking to others who have done it, and it's been a lot of fun.

Now I realize that cloth diapering is not necessarily going to be as "easy" as using disposables. However, I can already see many benefits:

• Saving money. Despite the initial cost of cloth diapers, in the long run it is definitely cheaper than using disposables. With cloth you buy them once, and use them over and over. With disposables you buy them once and then you keep buying them over and over.
• Saving the environment. Disposable diapers take years to break down, and the waste inside of them ends up going into our water sources as well. With cloth, you don't throw them away so there's less waste in the environment. Plus, you dump the waste in the toilet so that it goes to be treated properly and doesn't affect our water sources.
• Fun & cute. The cloth diapers nowadays are much different than years ago. They are fairly simple to use, and they are also very cute - many coming in various colors and prints!

Obviously there are some disadvantages, such as additional laundry. But everyone that I have talked to have said that the pros far outweigh the cons with cloth diapers. So, the next step is just deciding which brand to go with and how many to buy, etc. I'm planning to order from Everyday Diapers, which is run by a stay at home mom in Skowhegan, Maine who I met the other night. She is really nice and very helpful in discussing how cloth diapering works!

Adventures in Pregnancy

I realize it's been a way long time since I have blogged! So I am going to try and catch up on a few things here tonight. I'd like to share a few of the adventures I've had recently related to my pregnancy (or at least I'm blaming it on that).

I recently signed up for a prenatal yoga class because of the recommendation of a high school classmate. Plus I thought it would help me with getting my body prepared for childbirth. So every Monday at 12:10 I head to the YMCA to take my class. On this past Monday, I had met with someone in the morning and then I headed to the Y. I gathered my items to head inside and get changed. I didn't want to take my purse in, but I grabbed my wallet just in case I needed it. Well I got out of my car and it was at that moment that I realized... my KEYS!!! Where are my keys? I searched my bag but to no avail. They were still in my car - I had thrown them in my purse! Oh, the baby is stealing my brain. I don't think I've ever done this before! Thankfully this was before my class, so I was able to use the phone in the Y to call Scott to ask him to come and unlock me. I figured that sometime in the next hour he'd be able to get there and unlock the car. Well, after my class there was no sign of Scott or an unlocked car. I called him again and still couldn't reach him. I then called the church, as well as Shan for moral support. About a half hour went by and I sat there wondering if I would be getting home (or even into my car) in time for my 2:00 phone appointment. I was also starting to think about not being able to reach Scott and how bad it would be if I was actually going into labor or something and he was not reachable! Well, Scott showed up a few minutes later and let me into my car. I was relieved but also frustrated and hungry (hadn't eaten lunch yet)! I had a bit of a meltdown that involved some crying, and then managed to head home and be there in time for my call... By the way, that meltdown was just the first in a series that followed over the next few days.

Well my second adventure was this morning. Scott is away this weekend so I locked the door last night. This morning I was getting ready to go scrapbooking at the church to try and get caught up before the baby arrives. I let Mia out as I was finishing up brushing my teeth, etc. Well she was barking to come inside but I needed to just do a couple more things in the bathroom. When I went into the kitchen, I saw Mia standing there wagging her tail - she managed to push the door open from the outside! Well, I was fine with that, except that by pushing the door open she also managed to let Moxie OUT!!! Not good, especially when I am about 2 minutes from needing to leave my house. So I grabbed the treats and ran outside to find him. I called to him and saw him standing very near the road - but when he saw and heard the box of treats he came bounding towards me, thankfully. I was so glad to have him back and not have to run around the neighborhood to find him. I headed to go back inside and grabbed the door handle, which was not fully closed. It was at that point that I realized the door was still locked - and just as I realized it, the door closed all the way. OH NO!!! I am locked outside of my house with no keys, no phone, a dog, and a husband who is gone for the weekend. AHHHHHH! Baby is stealing my brain again! Before freaking out entirely, I decided to try the kitchen window. I have used this entrance before, but being that it's been so cold lately, I was concerned that the window might be locked. Well, I went over (with Moxie following closely behind watching my every move) to the window and got the screen up, and then I managed to push up the window from the outside. I then proceeded, with my almost 36 week pregnant belly, to climb in through the window! I probably looked really foolish to the cars driving by, but I didn't care. At least I was inside, and could now proceed with the plans for the day.

So, moral of the story - if you want to keep your brain cells, don't get pregnant. I think this will be my method of encouraging the teens not to have sex... Get pregnant and lose your mind!!!