reflections

This year has been pretty eventful for us...

...We visited New York
visted Louisiana
had a booth at the local farmer's market
got pregnant with our second child
quit smoking
bought a house
watched our son grow
became a sole proprioter
had an enormous birthday party for our son
lost friends
became closer to other friends
made new friends
had friends move away
had friends move closer
had family move closer (1 block away to be exact!)
took birthing class
planned for a home birth
decided I would quit my job and stay home
got a new kittie
lost a young family member
watched my dad transition back into a dad for his grandson
kept in better contact with family in other states
sent out Christmas cards for the first time
watched John's hair and beard grow longer than ever!
buzzed my son's hair
got rid of my locks
gained weight
watched friends join the army
started a blog...

Make a Smilebox slideshow

crumbs on the counter

I'm not sure if this happens to all new moms, but after I had my first son, I turned into a clean freak. I'm not really concerned about germs or any of that, I actually think that the germs are better for the immune system. Anyway, I am obsessed with having things 'just so'. It was close to getting out of hand, then I calmed down, and now at the end of this pregnancy a dirty house drives me crazy! I really wish I could go back to my old ways...I didn't even notice when things weren't cleaned up. Now, if the dishes are dirty in the sink, I can't handle it. And half of the stuff that bothers me, I don't have the energy to take care of. So, my poor husband gets lists of things to do for me.

Maybe this new baby will bring peace to the house, and help me to realize that it really doesn't matter if the bed isn't made.

holy Toledo

I just visited a chiropractor for the first time in my life today, and it was glorious. I have been having back pain for most of the second half of my pregnancy, and just recently found that my baby is in posterior position. So, my midwife recommended a chiropractor. I am ever so thankful to have been lead to this wonderful woman. The pain is in no way gone, but I can definitely feel a difference. And the technique she used was taught to my husband, so I can get this relief back whenever I want!! Not only is it wonderful to feel some relief, but I feel confident that baby will turn to where he's supposed to be once I get a good balance in my back.

home birth? seriously?

So, tonight my husband and I made the decision to birth at home. We've been taking Bradley Method birthing classes, and have wanted a natural birth from the beginning. A hospital has always seemed like the normal and safe place to birth for us. I have been comfortable with the hospital birth for the safety aspect. If anything were to go wrong we would be in the right place with the right people to be able to tell if something were going wrong with either me or the baby. That is the ONLY thing that I like about the idea of a hospital birth. Everything else that happens in the hospital for birthing procedures is against my birthing plan. I want a comfortable place to labor..no medical intervention, unless something is wrong..freedom to move around..no textbook standards for my body to follow to prove to the staff just how far I'm progressing..etc. So, after talking all of this over and looking at our plan, it seems that the minute we walk in the door of the hospital, we are going to have to be fighting these docs. The main problem is that I trust my body to labor and deliver this baby safely. The medical staff seems to be under the assumption that I will need help. And they have a list of guidelines that my labor should be following...well, every labor and every person is unique. It makes no sense to have such strict guidelines for me to follow. And once you've not met one of these rules, they take over. You aren't progressing, so they introduce drugs, or artificially break your water. Your body was not counting on these distractions from it's job to labor, so everything is thrown off. Then you fall into the trap of getting farther and farther into medical intervention. This is what I don't want, so I think I'll pass on that and stay home. We are going to look into the local midwives to see who we should hire, and how the whole midwife deal works.. I really think this is the BEST decision we could make. I want the comfort of home with the comfort of someone with us to know if something is going wrong with me or the baby.

plaid pants

I had a weird day. Around noon I suddenly started getting flu symptoms, we'll not go into the details. It was no fun, so I just went to sleep. Now I'm ok, so it must have been a weird food thing or pregnancy side effects.

This pregnancy is taking it's toll on my energy. I'll try to avoid going on about all the discomforts and just direct the focus on my husband. He is wonderful. He has taken on a lot more responsibilities lately. I feel badly that I am constantly asking him to do something for me. Now, he's doing almost EVERYTHING, and I'm the lazy slob on the couch in her plaid pants, old T-shirt, and dog hair covered robe. He even has started to insist that I take it easy. I love him.

Santa

Yesterday, we went to a Christmas party at the Scottish Rite Cathedral in Indianapolis. The building was amazing, and the Christmas decorations were very nice. My father-in-law is a Mason, so that's how we found ourselves at such an event. This Mason, Scottish Rite, and Shriner deal really confuses me. I'm not sure what these guys do, and what the difference is between the "branches" of this organization. Every time I inquire to my father-in-law about all of this, he ends up not telling me much. The conversation ends in him joking about fish fry's and protecting the Arc of the Covenant.

So, maybe I should take some time to look into this subject. It's all a mystery.

Anyway, the party was very nice. J got to sit and watch a magic show performed by one of Santa's elves, a story read by Mrs. Claus, and a puppet show. After the performance, we went downstairs and visited Santa. J was not very clear on what you say to this Santa character, so he was blabbing away about who knows what, and I think I heard something about birthdays. He was happy to meet Santa, and that's all that matter anyway.

To top off the awkward visit with Mr. Claus, J was able to get his picture taken with him. Check out this kid's wonderful smile!!

triple cheese burger

I am ridiculous. I know that fast food is horrible for me and the baby, but this pregnancy is forcing me to eat it! I've been craving the most unhealthy food ever known to man. It's a huge struggle to ignore these awful cravings.

My last pregnancy was not like this. I ate healthy the whole way through, never had any bad cravings ... except for the week straight of only wanting hot dogs. That passed quickly, though. I wasn't really moody, and I wasn't always asking my husband to help me with projects.

This pregnancy is more like the cliche pregnancy. I crave food that will in no way nourish my baby or me. I crave chocolate quite often ... and in the real world of me with no child growing inside, chocolate and sweets are never on my list of things to eat. I also was previously vegetarian, and reverted back to the dark side of flesh eating right after the first trimester was over.

I can't seem to get through a day without asking my husband to come "assist me" with some average thing like taking the laundry back to the bed room, or to put the pans away in the cabinet. He's been so wonderful about all this, by the way.

And the moods. Yay. I'm normally a pretty level gal, but this baby is making me emotional. I'm taking things the wrong way constantly, and having a really hard time calming down. If I get to an angry or worried state, it's difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

BUT OTHER THAN THAT ... things are great! This new baby has inspired me and driven our family into a new direction. I can't wait to meet him!

J

Thought I should share some photos of my beautiful, wonderful, and amazing boy. He is SUCH a unique little person..

tokens of love

Sooo, it's getting to be way too close to Christmas. I planned on knitting all our gifts for the fam, but it looks like a few are going to be left out of that deal. And maybe that's a good thing. Do people really want my knitted scarves and hats?? I'm just a beginner, so I have nothing impressive to make for them in my bag of knitting tricks. I personally would love a hand-made gift.

I've done the scarf and hat thing .. I think my next venture will be in the world of socks or mittens.

Yay knitting!!

cozy

Laptops rule. We just got a laptop over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, and I am in love. we got if for our Mama Kate's business because John and I were fighting over the desktop way too often. Now, I feel like I can stay even more organized with all the stuff I've to going on. Kids, business, family, personal projects, etc.

My next step to take for Mama Kate is to add some items on Etsy and Ebay while I wait on the website project to get wrapped up. Yay!!