Make a pregnancy ticker

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This is one “bandwagon” I’m thrilled to jump on. You’ve probably seen the baby events going on around the web right now, like here and here. With our own little bundle of joy coming soon, I figured I would contact some companies about being part of our own baby event, planned for about six weeks after E. arrives. I’ve actually got a couple great companies signed up, so I’m very excited!  My blog isn’t huge enough to be contacted a lot about reviews and giveaways, so I’ve been contacting companies I think are interesting or different.   I hope it’ll be a lot of fun, and maybe the start of more baby or non-baby blog events here at All That Blooms

Don’t worry about missing it, though.  I’ll make a huge deal about it and post everywhere, so it’ll be hard to miss If you have any company or product suggestions feel free to leave them in the comments!

The further I go in pregnancy the more I realize I don’t know.  These are things that just pop into my head and make me realize that I have no idea* what I’m doing.  Isn’t that how parenthood is, though?  You’re jumping in head first (or is it feet first? haha) and you’re not sure how it’s going to come out.  It’s hard to shop for certain things because you don’t know what baby will prefer, you don’t know if baby will develop allergies to something you’re using, you go in thinking you’ll breastfeed and it sometimes doesn’t work out.. you just don’t know until the baby is here and then I’m sure it can be overwhelming.  I guess there isn’t a lot we can do about that.

It’s scary and I can’t imagine going through it all alone.  I don’t know how anyone does it.. I know I couldn’t.  I’m blessed to have a husband who has been around babies all his life and has a better idea of what he’s doing than I do, and more than willing to do it!  I know I can depend on him to do everything – good and bad – burping, changing diapers, getting up at night for feedings (which is why I plan to pump at least sometimes) .. and I’m thankful for that.

(* okay, I’m exaggerating.  I not totally clueless but bringing a life into the world can sure make you feel that way!)

Because some people like to know, I’m posting the links to our registries.  The stuff isn’t for me, so I don’t feel bad about it.. well, not as bad as I would if it was for me personally

Target
Wal-Mart
Babies ‘R Us
MyRegistry.com – update: I took the Wal-Mart and Target items off this list and it’s now mostly etsy items and misc. things from other companies that I couldn’t find in/on the other stores.  If you want to buy a gift and are an etsy lover like myself, this is the list to go to.  The only problem is that my address isn’t stored for these items.

Well, after 10 minutes installing the printer we bought on Black Friday (annoying how they never come with the USB cord you need) and another 10 minutes trying to get the cards to print the right way, I made this:

This could go on the back of the card or on the back of the envelope:

I’ll probably mess with the margins a little bit for the front, but I think they came out pretty cute.. even if they’re simple

I read some new mom blogs and think, how in the world is there time to do anything after baby is born?! Some moms still work, though, or attend school.  I’d love to know how they do it!  Not that I work or go to school, but still.. when do you even find time to shower or feed yourself?

As for school, I think an online university would help a lot, like Western Governors University.  WGU is a fully-accredited online education institute, is one that has been featured on NBC’s Nightly News and named “The Best Relatively Cheap University You’ve Never Heard Of” by Time magazine, and I have casually browsed their online degree programs.  They do seem to have a lot to offer, including all kinds of programs and degrees for teaching, business, information technology and health professionals.  WGU is also a non-profit and is “more affordable” than other online universities.

If I was seriously looking to enroll in online degree program, it would be further down the line.  Right now – and for a while – little E. will be the only thing important to us.

I think we may be the only ones that do not have an ipod or whatever-the-heck is popular these days. Hubby and I have a couple small (read: cheap) MP3 players which we rarely use.. and *gasp* we still buy cd’s! I feel so out-of-touch sometimes but what use do we, personally, really have for all these high-tech.. things? We’re rarely anywhere that we can’t just pop a cd into a player and listen to it. We prefer to buy whole albums most of the time than paying for individual songs anyway. I’m sure itunes and ipods and all those have their benefits, but for the moment, we’re happy living in the “past”

Does anyone else not drive because of how much it costs? I actually have never driven and even though I really should try to get my license, I don’t know how we would afford having two drivers in the home. We’d have to buy a car, deal with getting an auto insurance quote, paying insurance, pay for gas, pay for maintenance on the car.. and who knows what else. It just seems so expensive! However, I do realize that with a baby on the way, it would be wise for hubby and myself to be drivers.. just in case. So, cost effective or not, I’ll be forced to try to get a license.. unless after I try driving, I realize that I just can’t do it.. yet.

Here’s a weird fact about me: I randomly check my pulse. Sometimes it just seems like my heart rate is up when I’m sitting still, so I check it. I don’t actually count to find out my heart rate, I just put my fingers against my neck to feel it. I don’t know why.. I’m just weird like that. Maybe I should look into a oximeter so I’ll always know what my heart rate is. Just pull that thing out of my purse and slide it on my finger and ta-da! – heart rate.

I know my baby shower is still a couple months away, but it’s probably good that I’m thinking about thank you cards instead of waiting until then. I’m too picky most of the time to just go buy a pack of “thank you” cards, so I tend to turn to etsy. I found these cards and I love them:

sweetbellacards @ etsy

..but I want to order around 50 to be on the safe side.  You never know how many you’ll need when people love to shop for babies! Even with the quantity discount, it’s a bit much for what I’d like to pay for cards. If I was wanting just the one pack, I’ll be all over those babies.

So, I’ll make my own I ordered 100 fold-cards and envelopes* from Cut Cardstock (the same place I got envelopes for our wedding invites) and then this cute baby-laundry-on-a-clothesline graphic from etsy to print on the cards:

babystardesign @ etsy

Not counting ink and postage, I’ll be able to make 100 for under $40, not to mention using the graphic for return labels, etc.  Although those other cards are so adorable and worth a little extra,  $40 for 100 cards works better for me than $82 for 50. I can’t promise I can resist these gorgeous personalized cards for birth announcements, though..

Click to view listing on etsy

Watch for a post with the finished product after I get the paper and envelopes in

* I got a box of 250 envelopes for pretty cheap because they were listed as “imperfect”.

Update: Wow, I forgot how fast Cut Cardstock; is!  They’re in Indiana so it’s pretty close, but I ordered last night and got them today!  Sweet! I’m glad I found the cord I need for our home printer so I can get started on these

I suppose someday when hubby’s store is huge enough to need a cash register, credit card machine and ls2208 barcode scanner, we’ll have it made, right? Hubby just has a small store in a local mall with an online credit card program that approves or denies right away.. and no need for a barcode scanner because there aren’t so many products that he can’t keep track of costs. Of course, with this additional equipment, the time he spends filling in ledgers and keeping track of every little thing would be shortened. Hmm.. something to think about, I suppose.

I took this picture on Friday because I felt huge (and I love it!) If you’re a friend on Facebook you’ve probably already seen it, but here it is again:

I never though pregnancy would make me love my belly, but it really has.  The shirt I have on in the above picture is one I wouldn’t have worn pre-pregnancy if if clung to my stomach that way.  I could do without this funky belly button thing though, caused by my big ol’ innie which has not come “out”:

Not much has changed since the last post (which I can’t find, sorry! Whoops, I can’t find it because it’s on BabyCenter), but I did forget to mention that I suffer from rare nose “bleeds”, gas pain and occasional pain in/near my tail bone. Thankfully I’ve still had no problems whatsoever with constipation (therefore no need for hemorrhoid creams – haha!) I guess it’s a good thing I have no problem with high-fiber foods & snacks

My ribs hurt sometimes but that’s a problem I’ve had since I started putting on weight a few years ago.. probably because of the way I slouch when I’m sitting. Yes, it’s a very bad habit, but I have yet to get over it. It probably won’t be long before the baby moves up that way and causes my ribs to really hurt.

I have no real complaints so far because everything has been going great!  I feel great and I’ve even manage to get up in the morning (9:30am) without needing a nap a few hours later – lol.  I could work on my eating habits, but I’m not doing too bad.   Oh, I did finally gain back the full 10lbs I lost during the first trimester, but that’s all at this point.

I know I should probably try to post more about non-pregnancy things but it’s hard when this is the most exciting thing in my life

It’s the first day of March and I am counting down the days until the beginning of spring.  Here in northwest Ohio it’s a gorgeous day, even if there is still snow on the ground (we’ve been getting snow off and on for the past week and “lower-than-normal” temps, but that’s Ohio for you!)    hoping it’ll all be gone soon and there will be signs of spring everywhere.  I’m excited already to see our tulips come up this year:

May 2009 - Click to view more

..and maybe see some development on the shrubs we put in last year (assuming I didn’t manage to kill them over the winter).  I also hope to get started on our veggie garden as soon as we can.. and get some plans made for a flower garden (which may or may not happen this year.)

We don’t really have “hard” winters here in Ohio (no Outer Banks rentals; required), but spring always seems like a big sigh of relief to me.  I’m just not a big fan of dreary, cold, snowy days.  Give me a warm, sunny, breezy day everyday and I’ll be happy forever.  I think I may love everything about spring, except the mud and thunderstorms.

March 2009

I can’t wait to start hanging laundry out again too.  I don’t know what it is about it but I just love hanging laundry and watching it blow in the breeze.  It’ll be so cute to see little E.’s things out on the line too.. as if my clothes didn’t fill it up with enough pink as it is!  I love to take a load of laundry out, hang it and then sit on the deck or sidewalk surrounded by our cats.. & they all usually come out of wherever to sit on my lap or near me.  (Though it won’t be the same without my favorite boy, Gandolf)

What are your favorite things about spring?

I wonder if someone is trying to tell me something by assigning me to links like best weight loss pills. I’m not a fan of weight loss pills (or working out, but I’d rather work out than take a pill, honestly) but if you’re looking for info on weight loss pills, try that link. I cannot and will not guarantee what you’ll find there, because I have never taken a weight loss pill.

A couple months back, I posted about how all of the electrical work for our house (a total rewiring, putting in a main breaker box, new outlets and overhead lights) should be done by the end of the year. 2009, that is. Well, it isn’t. Actually, it hasn’t even been started because the guy (a family member of a friend, who supposedly does this stuff for a living) who agreed to do it has been jerking us around since then.  He said in November that he would get started that week.  We haven’t seen him since.  When Hubby calls him, it’s always, “I’ll be over today/tomorrow”.  When he doesn’t show up: “I was sick/I was working on a furnace/I’ll be over today/tomorrow.”  Every. Single. Time.

I am sick of it.  We have a baby on the way and cannot do anything else to the house until that’s done!  I called two companies recognized by the BBB today for estimate.. got one already: $5,800.  That’s over seven times what the other guy was going to charge.  Do we have a choice, though? $800 isn’t really a great deal if you can’t get the guy to show up and get the job done.  Besides, I’m worried that even if he does get started, he’ll stop halfway through and never finish it.. you know, because he’s sick or someone else’s furnace broke. *rolls eyes*

To make the situation even more frustrating, our crawl space is flooded.  No doubt because of the plumbing job a certain relative did and screwed up.  It’s very likely that all the water that was supposed to be going to our toilet (which still isn’t replaced because there’d be no water going to the new one either) for the past year is now in the crawl space.  Obviously nobody can start with the wiring job until that’s pumped out.  It would have already been pumped out if another certain relative didn’t tell us that it’s the melting snow that caused it, and he can’t pump it out until the snow is gone.  We haven’t had that much snow and there’s probably 2-3′ of water in there!

My mother-in-law has time off and wants to start paneling the walls upstairs in two weeks.  The only time she’ll have all year probably.  But we can’t do that until the electrical work is done.  Can’t do that until the crawl space is pumped.  So, looked like somebody will have to come pump out the water. I swear, if he doesn’t do it, we’ll go down and get his pumps and do it ourselves! I’m so sick of waiting on other people who are about as reliable as a flat tire.

Comments are working again!  Thanks to Jessica for letting me know that I forgot to put the math spam protection code in the comments page when I uploaded the new theme.  I do that every time!  It’s fixed now though

You might have noticed that I don’t reply to comments on the blog.  I do read every comment, though.  If there’s a question or something I want to reply to in general, I reply through email.  I was thinking the other day about how I sometimes will go back to a blog I’ve commented on to see if there are any replies, and wondered if any of you do that.  Do you, or have you, come back to see if I or anyone else has replied to your comment?  Do you like it when the “author” replies to your comments or do you not notice either way?  I’d love feedback on this because I will definitely start replying in the comments if that’s what you all prefer.  I’m sure I’ll still sent email replies, but at least this way everybody knows I’m here and reading.

Actually, while I have your attention, are you sick of this theme yet? It’s been up for a while now, but I don’t see it every time I come to the blog, so I still love it. If you’ve been coming here for a while, though, what’s your opinion? Does All That Blooms need a makeover, or do you still love this theme too? Okay, new theme! I don’t know how long I’ll keep this one, but I like it for the moment. (I really had something else in mind but can’t find a good graphic.)

My dad wanted to make sure she’ll know who she’s rootin’ for from the very beginning:

I got that long dresser in our bedroom cleaned off and made a space, which will now be known as E.’s space. We’ll use the top of the dresser as her changing table (with a changing pad and a cover for the mattress pad I have on the top) and store her clothes, diapers, etc., in the drawers. That space is actually about 5.5ft long, so it should work pretty well   Hubby isn’t against me decorating that wall for E., so I’ll probably do a little of that, until we can get our upstairs finished and give her her own bedroom.

I was over at The Army Wife just now (long overdue visit!) and saw her post about the belly cast they did.  (Want to see some other belly casts? Look here. I’m not sure I would do the boobs like some of the ones in that search, unless we planned to paint it.)  Jess’ looks great and it makes me want one before E. is born.  It’d be an awesome keepsake, don’t you think?  The only problem is that it would be big, and you’d have to find a place to keep it where it wouldn’t get easily broken.

I really love what this woman did with the cast (see picture at right). That’d be a neat thing to hang on the wall in baby’s room. I’m no artist, though, so I’d have to hire someone to paint it.. which might be a little awkward.  I suppose it wouldn’t have to be anything fancy though, just a nice layer of a pretty paint.  Jessica said she would like to have the baby’s hands/footprints casted on it as well (in paint, maybe?)  That would be really neat, and you could even include her birth information.

Would it be tacky to have loved ones write little notes to/wishes for baby on it? (Kind of how people will sign and arm/leg cast – at least this is something you’d keep)

I wonder though, would a parent/child ever get sick of seeing it?  Obviously an older child wouldn’t like it hanging in their room so much, and I wouldn’t want think about the inappropriate things boys would do to make fun of it – lol. What would you do with it then?  It isn’t something you can just tuck away in a baby book.

Would you consider a belly cast?  If yes, what would you do with it or how would you decorate it?

Somebody please yell at me for not working out everyday!  I know that I need to, and I still don’t.  I’m just full of excuses, or I tell myself I’ll do it later, knowing that I won’t.  I have no idea why I do this, but I’m like that with everything.  I’m concerned about a few things health-wish, like gestational diabetes (even though my doctor says I probably won’t develop it), besides I know it’s better for the baby and myself if I stay active.  I’m not concerned a lot about needing a kymaro body shaper after the baby is born.. it’s the *now* I’m thinking about. Or should be, anyway. Experts say that labor can even be easier if you’ve kept active throughout your pregnancy.

So why the heck can I not stay off my butt all day? It isn’t really that hard to pull the treadmill out into the living room and walk while I watch tv, or just get busy doing housework during the day.. so why do I make it so complicated? It’s so selfish of me to sit around all day when the baby would benefit from some activity. Ugh, am I hopeless?

Well, I’ve finally cleaned off one of our long dressers, where we’ll likely make a changing “table” and store all E.’s things. I put away all five of the outfits we bought so far. I’d love to put a rod or something above that space for hanging her clothes eventually. We need to take out tv stands to make a little more room in the bedroom.. but it’s going to be a little crowded either way. We have one teeny-tiny closet downstairs (in our bedroom which is packed with our clothes) and two dressers (one has the smallest drawers I’ve ever seen.. which is why it’ll be used for E’s things instead of mine from now on) to hold what isn’t hanging. It’s still a little frustrating that all these things aren’t done and we won’t have a nursery*.. and that neither of us are willing to give up the waterbed we got last summer to move our bedroom upstairs.. but what can you do? Things could definitely be worse. I’m thankful that we have a home

Anyway, when I get E’s “corner” set up, I’ll take some pictures

* The plan, in case I haven’t mentioned it, is to have E. in our bedroom at first, in a smaller crib or a bassinet. Maybe not long, maybe for a white.. it’s hard to tell. We’ll probably have her crib set up in the dining room/computer room (we’ll take the dining table down) so we can have her in another room when we need to. (That’s assuming we get the electricity done, the new air conditioner in and a new heating system this year.) Eventually, we’ll have the upstairs done and can make her a bedroom up there. I’ll be so relieved when all of that is done. These are just some of the things that were on the list of things to do before we started trying to conceive