Just Rambling

Ramblings for the day:

Vintage Suitcase-
A while back I re-lined a vintage suitcase that was my husband's grandmother's, but never posted pics of it.

 my sweet baby at one month in the suitcase

 

it is amazing how fast they grow in 4 months (taken this evening)

 

A close up (sorry it is not rotated) 

 another close up

I tore out the original lining (it was in not great shape). After that I sprinkled baking powder all over the inside and spritzed it with a deodorizing spray... it took about three days and two treatments to get the 'old' smell out.  I used the old liner as a pattern and traced it onto some fusible interfacing. Then I ironed on the interfacing to the fabric and cut out the fabric (leaving an extra quarter inch around the perimeter). I then hemmed down the extra fabric buy folding it back around the interfacing. For the ties I used some bias tape. Then I put it back together piece by piece with a thousand hot glue sticks (it seemed to hold the best and still is working great)

Potty Training-

We had tried on and off since she was two to get Emma (now almost 3) to use the potty. Anyone that has meet Emma knows that she is very strong-willed, bright, and spirited. We always knew that it was going to have to be her decision to be potty trained, because it is not in her nature to do otherwise. Sure enough two Fridays ago she told me she wanted to go diaper free. I literally begged her to "please don't pee on the floor" to which she said "I can't go on the carpet mommy it is not a potty". She also told me "don't worry mommy" and pats me for reassurance. 

She was serious... it has been over two weeks and she has had only one accident at home. I am still too scared to take her out without a pull-up, but I'll have to get over that soon. This is what our bathroom looks like all the time now.  Emma likes to grab the end of the toilet paper and bring it to me in the living room and says "wipe me". The paper in the background is on a sticky hook and is what she can put her stickers on after she goes. Originally I had a beautiful paper with a ruler drawn chart, but Emma didn't like the stickers so organized. She wanted the dogs and cats to play and will give them the bones and toys to eat and play with. The biggest problem now is knowing that she goes, because she will take herself and not tell me.

Dreams-
I know I am not the only one that dreams of what their dream house would look like, I hope I am not the only one. I am sure that people usually think in broad terms 'big kitchens', 'high ceilings'... not me I dream of tile! I love tile... it makes me giddy. The first things I think of in a dream home are tile backslashes in the kitchen, tile around the fireplace, and bathrooms covered in tile.

These are all ann sacks tile mosaics and are drop dead gorgeous. Seriously how can someone's heart not start racing when you see the penny rounds. ::sigh:: Perhaps someday. I also dream of  millwork, but I'll save that for another time.

productive weekend

I have had quite the productive weekend.

We had 2 blank canvases in the playroom that had been bothering me. I knew it had to be something Disney for Emma. I remember something like this on pintrest that someone did with a heart, I think, so I used the concept as inspiration. I used painter's tape too help make the stripes and Emma helped me paint the red. Then I drew and cut out Mickey from black felt. Next I glued the felt on the canvas and covered/glued it with black buttons. To make the name I made a stencil with contact paper then stuck it to the canvas and painted. The best part is I can use it as decoration for Emma's birthday party! Now I need to make the other canvas into Minnie.

I spent most the day on Saturday cleaning/fixing the master bathroom. Let's just say that the previous homeowner's strengths do NOT include attention to detail or being handy. I finally got around to removing the old cracked caulk in the WHOLE bathroom and then caulked it all. The previous homeowners had placed a plastic L stripping around the back of the tub, I had been terrified that it was covering chipped tiles. Nope! Only thing behind it was tons of putty and cracked caulk, Putty was the answer to all fixes indoor and out with the old owners.

I also organized the bathroom and laundry cabinets. So pretty and so clean. The baskets with the handles are my favorite baskets ever (I have them in the girl's bathroom too). I also made some shower cleaner to keep in my shower with my squeegee (hope it works).

I also finished designing some super cute baby shower invitations for a good friend. I want it to be a surprise so I will post it after they get mailed out.

Updates:

-13 lbs to go!

-We have Emma a bed frame waiting to get refinished

I weigh how much?

So here it goes, I am posting about my goal to become fit. Yes, I realize that I haven't been posting about anything I've made or designed, but my sewing machine is on the fritz and I haven't had time to open it up for further examination. So, until further notice I am stuck posting on the other things going on in my life.

I have avoided posting about this because it is hard to say out loud how much you weigh. It hasn't even been till recently that I let Adam, my husband, know what I weigh. I have found it helpful and encouraging to have his support as I've tried to shed the dreaded baby-weight (and then some). Adam receives texts from me any morning the scale gives me a new number and he helps cheer me on.

As most everyone that knows me knows I was always a well... a bigger child. I remember going to a yearly check-up in later elementary school and weighing in at 160 (no joke). Puberty was my friend and I trimmed down a bunch. I could have cared less about my size, I was completely oblivious to it. In highschool I don't even know what size pants I wore, because most of the ones I wore regularly I found at Goodwill. In college, I was super depressed (my first year) and I apparently was the kind of person to not eat when depressed. I had no idea I had loss so much weight until I decided to hop on a scale at the school's gym (I didn't own a scale) and it said 115. I about freaked out 115 at 5'9" is so not healthy (at least it was not for me). Then I went to Texas State, got married, moved to Dallas, and then got pregnant (okay that's like 7 years in a sentence). That whole time I never owned a scale so I am not sure what I weighed until I went to the OB's office and I weighed in at 170 (10 weeks pregnant and very shocked by that number). At the end of the pregnancy I weighed... wait for it... wait for it... 215! I just about passed out on the floor when then numbers popped up for everyone in the little weighing room to see.

So in my adult life I have weighed in from 115 to 215. That is 100 pounds people! That is CRAZY! More perspective, in my adult life I have owned jeans from a size 0 to 20. You can pick your jaw up off the floor now.

That brings me to today. My pregnancy weight, before my second baby Lilian, was 160 I gained 35 pounds so I ended up at 195. I am currently at 154 pounds and very pleased with the progress. I am loosing about 1.5 pounds a week. I had to give you my whole background life story, to put it all in perspective. My goal weight is 140 which for me is a comfortable size 6.

My problem is that I want to be a healthy and fit 140. I have totally changed my eating habits, including giving up my precious Cokes. The thing I struggle with the most is working out. I have a ton of excuses: it is too hot to take the girls out for stroller walks, Adam is studying every evening so I can't go then, I don't want to spend time working out when I could be playing with the girls... Currently my only work outs come from chasing a two year old around and spending hours a day bouncing a 4 month old. Oh, nursing totally counts as a work-out too!

If anyone has work-out suggestions I will take them. I need something for a beginner. 

Parenting Resources

As a parent there are so many websites that I find very helpful. Hopefully someone else might find them helpful too.

Breastfeeding: 

kellymom: the ultimate resource for all things breastfeeding related. The website helped me tremendously when struggling to nurse my first daughter Emma.
La Leche League: the answer page on the LLL website is filled with fabulous information too.
World Health Organization: The WHO uses the updated growth chart that is representative of healthy breastfed babies throughout the world versus previous versions that were based upon the growth of artificially fed babies.
LactMed: Do you want to know if your medication is safe to take while breastfeeding? 
What we do: We breastfeed. How long will depend on the baby. Emma nursed till 21ish months, so I assume Lilian might be similar.

Solid Foods:

kellymom:I am telling you this is the best site. It has great info on introducing solids to a breastfed baby.
Wholesome Baby: Great info on feeding your baby. They have some good nutritional info and some great baby led weaning info. They also have an awesome quick age/food chart.
*When little ones start eating food many will start getting diaper rashes and it almost always seems that citrus is the culprit. This website says it well:

Citrus or Acidic Fruits
Not an allergen but may cause rash & digestive upset due to acidity.  

Using a dash of lemon or pineapple juice in a whole fruit puree 

is NOT the same as giving a baby pureed or sliced oranges, 

pineapple.

Just because a fruit, like tomato, is not in the citrus

 family does not mean that it is not acidic.

(My oldest couldn't eat tomatoes or citrus fruits till  she was 18 months)

What we do: With Emma we bought one of each fruit and veggie puree and used those one at a time (one a week) to test for allergies. After that she just at table foods as she wanted. I didn't realize until recently we kinda followed a baby led weaning system. This time we will probably just skip the purees. Now that I eat healthier we usual have plenty for fresh fruits and veggies around.

Vaccines: 

Dr. Sears: Can't really talk about vaccines without his name coming up. Great article about Aluminum in vaccines. This is a GREAT page on the understanding of each vaccine.
VICP: When I first learned the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program even existed I was in disbelief. There is money set aside to give to families whose children have been harmed by vaccines. And here is even a nice chart they provide telling you the injury the vaccines may cause (anytime they say 'Encephalopathy' they mean brain disorder).

What we do: We do a selective/delayed schedule with our daughters. I do feel that vaccines are important, but there is not a good understanding of their long term side effects, so why risk it. We have chosen to do one shot at a time starting at 2 months. We choose which shot to give based on what is most beneficial at that time. Emma was born in the winter so her first shot was for Pneumococcal. While Lilian, having been born during a Pertussis outbreak received DTaP first. Every month we go to the doctor, I tell her what we want Lilian to get an she gets it... easy peasy.The government doesn't care about your child, they care about the masses.

Sleeping:

KellyMom: Great info on co-sleeping and its benefits
Dr.Sears: He provides great research and how-tos on co sleeping

BabyCenter: How much sleep does your baby need? Babies (most) tend to follow this naturally, at least mine have so far.
Babywise: if you are considering Babywise or another similar method I would encourage you to checkout this website and read a few articles under the 'primary concerns' tab.
What we do: Seems a little obvious from all the above links posted, but we co-sleep (we go hardcore- bed-rail and everything). We we will let baby Lilian sleep with us until she is ready for her crib. We did the same thing for Emma and she is a fabulous sleeper. We never made going to bed a big deal so it never was.

Other:

Spitting up: again kellymom helped me realize that my happy spitter was just fine. I just do a lot of laundry. This link also explains how rice cereal will not effectively thicken breastmilk due to the amylase (an enzyme that digests carbohydrates).

Products for baby: this cosmetic database will tell you what rating your baby wash has and why. Great resource!

Attachment parenting: Until recently I didn't even know this term existed. I find that it is the way we naturally go about raising our daughters.
Milestones: I do enjoy looking through the Milestone charts on babycenter. It is always fun to get to cross things off.


Apparently there are a bunch of websites that I like. I hope someone finds at least one of them informative. I am excited to have some of my favorite sites all in one place for quick reference.

4 months old

My plan was to keep this blog focused on things I make/design, however I can't help myself. After seeing everyone post such cute things about their babies, I want to join in on the fun. I am totally stealing the format from a friends blog, I hope she doesn't mind.

Lilian turns 4 months old! 

EAT

She nurses whenever she wants. Typically she eats for only about 3-5 minutes at a time as soon as she wakes up and before she sleeps. I would guess she nurses around 10 times a day and once or twice at night. We currently have no plans to give any her any food until 6 months. We are going to put an ounce or so of water in her sippy straw cup to play with while she sits in her highchair during dinner time. It will probably take her a couple months to really figure it out, but it'll be fun watching her try to learn.

SLEEP

Lilian usually goes to bed around 10 pm. I am a little fuzzy on what happens after that. She sleeps with us every night so I am not sure exactly when or how often she wakes. When shes hungry I feed her before she fully wakes and she will drift back to sleep after just a minute of nursing. If the house is quiet she will sleep in till 10, however most days her sister has woken her up by 8.

This is how she has slept since we brought her home from the hospital.

SIZES

I just finished bagging up her newborn, 0-3, and some small running 3-6 month clothes. She is currently wearing mostly 3-6 month clothes and a few 9 month clothes that run small. Lilian is also in cloth diapers so that adds a little extra fluff too. She is now on the medium snap rise on her diapers!

STATS

Weight: 15lbs 14.8oz (93%)
Height: 25.5inches (90%)

LIKES

She adores being worn in the Ergo. She loves jumping around in the jumperoo. Lilian thinks Emma is the best thing ever. She loves grabbing everything within reach... especially hair! Her absolute favorite thing is naked time, whether on a mat or in her bath.

DISLIKES

She doesn't like to wait, but who does. She gets mad if she drops or can't reach a toy that she threw. She does not like teething... it is so sad.

FIRSTS

Some days she has her first tooth and then other days it is so swollen you can't see it anymore. She has started to learn how to sit and can do pretty well on her own using her hands as props. She took her first ride in her stroller this month and loooooved it.

Updates:
-16 lbs to go!
-Dining room light fixture fixed
-Purging of stuff from the house in progress