The other day, when we were moving furniture in the living room, I took the opportunity to rummage through my hope chest. The tv lives on it these days, so I don't get to open it very often, which is ok. It is full of amazing stuff from my childhood, and I wanted to share some of it with Colin.
I took the chance to pull out some stuff for Roland. Namely, a quilt made by my Great-Great-Great Grandmother. It's never been used, never been washed...it's a beautiful handmade quilt. We're not going to use it for him regularly of course, but I want to get some pictures with him on it.
In addition to that, the blanket that my Great-Grandmother Alice made me when I was born, the baptismal blanket I got from my Great Aunt June and Uncle Bob, and the baptismal gown that my dad was baptized in. Even though Roland won't be baptized, I want him to wear the gown for his baby dedication. A lot of very old stuff that I think would be neat to at least get photographs of him in.
I also grabbed Nochi-Nose for him. Nochi-Nose is this book that I've had since I was tiny...he's actually the second copy I've owned. It's a completely soft book with a head and a body. You flip the pages up and the faces change with the pages. On one side is Snow White and on the other side is Pinnochio. I completely destroyed the first copy, so my parents got me another one. He's a little worn and a little dirty, but he's still an amazing toy for a little boy.
I'm really excited that I have so many heirlooms that I can share with my family.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
What a difference a year makes
This time last year, I was in Cancun, Mexico. I was playing on the beach, celebrating my best friends wedding. We played in the ocean and swam with the dolphins and climbed around ancient ruins. We drank constantly (go go all-inclusive resort) and ate as much as we wanted. We laughed and relaxed and just enjoyed ourselves. Hell, we nearly bought into a time share! Colin and I were there for almost a week, a kind of second honeymoon for us and it was amazing.
We were preparing for our move back to Montana. I was in school, furiously working to prove that I could do it. I was packing our apartment and completely overwhelmed. We had found a place to live in Missoula, and I was anxious to get home to the mountains and friends.
Having a baby was the furthest thing from my mind.
Before we even got married, we were talking about children. We had agreed that we were going to wait 5 years or so. We wanted to get to a place where we were financially stable and we wanted to make sure that our relationship was stable. We were both worried that adding a child to our relationship too early on would cause more problems for us.
A year ago, we had life all planned out. We were going to move to Montana and Colin was going to start a church. I'd finish school and become a teacher. We'd live out our lives in the mountains, comfortable and surrounded by friends. We would eventually start trying for a baby and we would take things as they came.
The best laid plans and all that jazz...
Six months ago, I was frantically praying that the test would come back negative. It didn't, obviously, Neither did the subsequent ones. My emotions those first few weeks were all over the board. Horrified and terrified and excited and sad and frustrated and angry. There were a lot of tears and a lot of frustration. We spent hours talking it out, debating how we were going to afford to bring a child into our lives.
It took some time, but many of the emotions faded away. Now, we both look forward to Roland with excitement and love. There is still a fair bit of terror in there, but I don't think that is necessarily a negative emotion.
In 9 weeks, we are going to have a new addition to our family. He is going to be loud and demanding and make horrible smells. He is going to depend on us completely to take care of him. We will have to raise him to be a good person, teach him right from wrong, and show him all of the wonders that the world holds. We often talk about things we are going to do with Roland. Camping next summer, the waterslides the summer after that. Children's museums and aquariums and silly little road side museums (you know, the ones with the 2 headed calves.) Everything that we would do together will be that much more exciting with him.
The past year has been insane and exciting. The next year will be as well. I'm still terrified, but I can't wait to see what the future holds for our little family.
We were preparing for our move back to Montana. I was in school, furiously working to prove that I could do it. I was packing our apartment and completely overwhelmed. We had found a place to live in Missoula, and I was anxious to get home to the mountains and friends.
Having a baby was the furthest thing from my mind.
Before we even got married, we were talking about children. We had agreed that we were going to wait 5 years or so. We wanted to get to a place where we were financially stable and we wanted to make sure that our relationship was stable. We were both worried that adding a child to our relationship too early on would cause more problems for us.
A year ago, we had life all planned out. We were going to move to Montana and Colin was going to start a church. I'd finish school and become a teacher. We'd live out our lives in the mountains, comfortable and surrounded by friends. We would eventually start trying for a baby and we would take things as they came.
The best laid plans and all that jazz...
Six months ago, I was frantically praying that the test would come back negative. It didn't, obviously, Neither did the subsequent ones. My emotions those first few weeks were all over the board. Horrified and terrified and excited and sad and frustrated and angry. There were a lot of tears and a lot of frustration. We spent hours talking it out, debating how we were going to afford to bring a child into our lives.
It took some time, but many of the emotions faded away. Now, we both look forward to Roland with excitement and love. There is still a fair bit of terror in there, but I don't think that is necessarily a negative emotion.
In 9 weeks, we are going to have a new addition to our family. He is going to be loud and demanding and make horrible smells. He is going to depend on us completely to take care of him. We will have to raise him to be a good person, teach him right from wrong, and show him all of the wonders that the world holds. We often talk about things we are going to do with Roland. Camping next summer, the waterslides the summer after that. Children's museums and aquariums and silly little road side museums (you know, the ones with the 2 headed calves.) Everything that we would do together will be that much more exciting with him.
The past year has been insane and exciting. The next year will be as well. I'm still terrified, but I can't wait to see what the future holds for our little family.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Pictures
I realize that I completely forgot to put pictures up here!
Here are the pictures from the various ultrasounds we've had!
My favorites are the feet. I'm just in love with his little tiny feet!
Here are the pictures from the various ultrasounds we've had!
My favorites are the feet. I'm just in love with his little tiny feet!
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Nursery, part 1
When Colin and I moved in with my parents, we planned on it being a temporary thing. We were having a really difficult time finding any place to rent in the area. So, after some discussion, we decided we'd stay here until Colin heads off to the Navy. It makes perfect sense - we'll help with groceries and such, but we won't have to pay any bills, and we can start getting some of our old bills caught up. Plus, we'll have the help from my family in taking care of Roland.
My parents house is not overly large. On top of that it is cluttered. Not messy, just cluttered. Upon deciding that we were going to be staying here for the forseeable future, we set about deciding where we were going to keep the baby. The plan? Turn the Office back into a Nursery. Apparently, in the Before Times, in the Long, Long Ago...when Dinosaurs Roamed the Earth...the Office was used as a nursery. Really no reason it couldn't go back to it's original function.
Problem one - The office was filled with a ridiculous amount of stuff. Empty boxes, empty baskets, crafting supplies, school supplies, notebooks, hunting gear, camping gear, papers dating back to the 70's, photo albums...you name it, and it was probably in there. I think we probably got 2 pickup loads of trash out of that room and even more stuff hauled down into the basement. We found many a treasure, and threw out a ton of stuff that we just didn't need any more.
Thursday, they hauled everything left out of the office so that we could start the painting process. You'd think after all that cleaning there wouldn't be much left in there. You'd be terribly wrong! The house right now looks...pretty insane. But it is mostly baby stuff that will be shoved back into that room when we're done.
Winnie the Pooh wall decorations have been ordered and recieved and are ready to be stuck on the walls. We have primed the room (save the closet and the ceiling) and we will hopefully be getting the color on the walls tomorrow.
In the next few days, the nursery will be done, and then we can start focusing on the rest of the house! I think the first order of business will be the utility room.
It's coming together. Slowly but surely...
My parents house is not overly large. On top of that it is cluttered. Not messy, just cluttered. Upon deciding that we were going to be staying here for the forseeable future, we set about deciding where we were going to keep the baby. The plan? Turn the Office back into a Nursery. Apparently, in the Before Times, in the Long, Long Ago...when Dinosaurs Roamed the Earth...the Office was used as a nursery. Really no reason it couldn't go back to it's original function.
Problem one - The office was filled with a ridiculous amount of stuff. Empty boxes, empty baskets, crafting supplies, school supplies, notebooks, hunting gear, camping gear, papers dating back to the 70's, photo albums...you name it, and it was probably in there. I think we probably got 2 pickup loads of trash out of that room and even more stuff hauled down into the basement. We found many a treasure, and threw out a ton of stuff that we just didn't need any more.
Thursday, they hauled everything left out of the office so that we could start the painting process. You'd think after all that cleaning there wouldn't be much left in there. You'd be terribly wrong! The house right now looks...pretty insane. But it is mostly baby stuff that will be shoved back into that room when we're done.
Winnie the Pooh wall decorations have been ordered and recieved and are ready to be stuck on the walls. We have primed the room (save the closet and the ceiling) and we will hopefully be getting the color on the walls tomorrow.
In the next few days, the nursery will be done, and then we can start focusing on the rest of the house! I think the first order of business will be the utility room.
It's coming together. Slowly but surely...
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
To-Do List
Get a new bassinet mattress
Get new wheels for the bassinet
Get the breast pump I'm going to borrow
Get the house cleaned and organized (
Decorate House for Christmas
Get Christmas Cards and Birth announcements ready to send (if you want one, send me your address!)
Make bibs, burp rags, blankets
Left to Buy:
So...I have 11 weeks to finish all of that. I've got a LOT of help getting everything done, so that is a huge blessing. I'm sure I'm missing something on my list of things to buy...because Roland is going to make his Grand Entrance during the worst part of the winter, I really want to get as much done as possible. Midnight runs to the store for something just aren't going to be feasible.
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Busy fall days
I've got to admit - this whole baby thing is incredibly intimidating and more than a little overwhelming...
Yesterday, Mom and I took a trip to Havre. We hit some rummage sales and got some AMAZING deals. We came away with two rubbermaid containers filled with 0-6 month clothes, one filled with bigger sizes, a Newborn snowsuit, 3 larger sized snow suits, a ton of baby hats, 10 receiving blankets, a huge Classic Pooh tapestry type blanket, a giant stuffed tigger, some shoes, a pair of cowboy boots, a box full of newborn toys, and a bunch of breastfeeding accessories (breast pads, a few drop-in bottles & more drop-ins, brand new nipples, etc.) We paid about $100 for the whole thing. So we have lots and lots of baby clothes, though there are still a few things we need...burp rags, bibs, socks, wash clothes and towels and more long-sleeved (thermal if I can find 'em) onesies.
Then we got paint for the nursery and stain for the wood furniture and all of the accessories for that.
Then a trip to Ben Franklin for lots of fabric. I've got enough to make 2 fleece tie blankets (one is Navy print, one is this utterly adorable Snoopy Christmas print) and enough fabric to make a crap ton of burp rags and bibs. Next time I get there I'm going to pick up some more yarn so I can make some hats.
I just feel like I have so much I need to accomplish and just not enough time to do it all. We have 11 1/2 weeks. We still need to paint the nursery, lay the carpet, wash ALL the clothes and organize them by size, get a rod to hang clothes up and get everything organized and ready to go. And Colin and I need to find a time to get to some parenting classes. I'm just...overwhelmed. So instead of starting somewhere and just going, I'm kinda doing what I usually do...sitting there and crying internally at how much I still need to accomplish. Ack! It's maddening!
The baby is moving a lot more these days. He's constantly rolling around and wiggling and kicking me. It's awesome that he is so active...though it doesn't help the way I feel. I can definitely feel the energy I had in the second trimester fading. Today? I'm still exhausted from our excursions yesterday. I sleep 8-10 hours a night, and often times feel like I need a nap in the middle of the day. I ache all over and I'm just tired. I'm happy and excited...but so sleepy! My hope is that we can get the majority of the renovations and cleaning in the house done by the end of October...let's see how that goes!
I don't know if I mentioned it, but we're going to be living with my parents for the forseeable future, at least until Colin gets into the Navy. It's actually all working out really well. We're going to move into the old nursery room, the baby is going to be in the old office, and it will be nice to have the help of having my parents right here.
Whew. I'm not sure if I'm ready for this...
Yesterday, Mom and I took a trip to Havre. We hit some rummage sales and got some AMAZING deals. We came away with two rubbermaid containers filled with 0-6 month clothes, one filled with bigger sizes, a Newborn snowsuit, 3 larger sized snow suits, a ton of baby hats, 10 receiving blankets, a huge Classic Pooh tapestry type blanket, a giant stuffed tigger, some shoes, a pair of cowboy boots, a box full of newborn toys, and a bunch of breastfeeding accessories (breast pads, a few drop-in bottles & more drop-ins, brand new nipples, etc.) We paid about $100 for the whole thing. So we have lots and lots of baby clothes, though there are still a few things we need...burp rags, bibs, socks, wash clothes and towels and more long-sleeved (thermal if I can find 'em) onesies.
Then we got paint for the nursery and stain for the wood furniture and all of the accessories for that.
Then a trip to Ben Franklin for lots of fabric. I've got enough to make 2 fleece tie blankets (one is Navy print, one is this utterly adorable Snoopy Christmas print) and enough fabric to make a crap ton of burp rags and bibs. Next time I get there I'm going to pick up some more yarn so I can make some hats.
I just feel like I have so much I need to accomplish and just not enough time to do it all. We have 11 1/2 weeks. We still need to paint the nursery, lay the carpet, wash ALL the clothes and organize them by size, get a rod to hang clothes up and get everything organized and ready to go. And Colin and I need to find a time to get to some parenting classes. I'm just...overwhelmed. So instead of starting somewhere and just going, I'm kinda doing what I usually do...sitting there and crying internally at how much I still need to accomplish. Ack! It's maddening!
The baby is moving a lot more these days. He's constantly rolling around and wiggling and kicking me. It's awesome that he is so active...though it doesn't help the way I feel. I can definitely feel the energy I had in the second trimester fading. Today? I'm still exhausted from our excursions yesterday. I sleep 8-10 hours a night, and often times feel like I need a nap in the middle of the day. I ache all over and I'm just tired. I'm happy and excited...but so sleepy! My hope is that we can get the majority of the renovations and cleaning in the house done by the end of October...let's see how that goes!
I don't know if I mentioned it, but we're going to be living with my parents for the forseeable future, at least until Colin gets into the Navy. It's actually all working out really well. We're going to move into the old nursery room, the baby is going to be in the old office, and it will be nice to have the help of having my parents right here.
Whew. I'm not sure if I'm ready for this...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)