planning for baby

Some days I feel like this little one is sucking every last drop of energy right out of me. Others, I feel like I'm already into the nesting stage. Crazy to think that we're halfway there. Halfway.

Over the weekend I got out my sewing machine and put it to work. I made a couple dipes for K and then an itty bitty (matching) one for our baby. Complete with umbilical cord snap-down. I tell you, it's pretty tiny. I called my fellow cloth diapering sister and marveled over the cuteness of such a small dipe. Then I promptly found a cabbage patch doll to try it on. It fit! :) It's so adorable!








K is quite enthralled with the idea of having a matching diaper as the baby. I've been letting the girls play with it until we get closer to the time of needing it. Just seeing the baby diaper makes K ask to wear her matching one. So, I've already washed it, what....three times....in 4 days.

Something out of the ordinary

When I decided to make a new bag/purse for myself recently, I wasn't quite sure what I was looking for--other than something "cute." Walking through the discount fabric store with hubby and both girls, I was continually drawn to fabric that I would never have chosen before. The had....flowers?....on them.... I'm mean, really, flowers? SO not me. But, time and again, I was caught looking at this cute fabric.

With hubby's encouragement, I just bit the bullet and bought it. Fabric with flowers on it. Seriously. Odd.

After a wash that changed the colors of the flowers a bit, (because I washed the outer and the liner together...oops) I hacked out a pattern with some newspaper. Then bravely began cutting.

While it didn't turn out perfectly, I'm quite thrilled with the way that this bag turned out. It was the first time that I had attempted anything like it, without a pattern, no less.

So, please, tell me how beautiful it is, k? ;)
















Here it is loaded up with all my gear:

more about me challenge

I'm not sure that I'm getting this whole blogging thing. I'm having a hard time showing very much about who I am and what I enjoy doing or what I'm interested in. It's so very easy to do snippets of life with children/about children. But that's not who I am. That's what this is supposed to be, about pickle Annie, as my dad calls me. No, it's not really that I love pickles, although we did have to purchase some the other day when walking down that aisle in the grocery store. Pregnancy does crazy things to a girl.

Anyway, back to me. Just like most moms, I have a hard time doing things just for me. I tend to make it for my kids, or my family, or including them at least. Well, with baby #3 on the way, I fear that if I don't start taking some things for myself I might not have time for quite a long while.

So, how do you blogger ladies blog about yourselves? How do you put things out there knowing that people will then KNOW that about you? How do you go about finding out what you want to say and where you want to be going with your blog?

That's what I'm going to by trying to do in the future here at pickleannie. I'm so much more than my beautiful children. To start off, I'm going to make a list of things that interest me and I'll be doing some blogging about this list. Maybe that will get me going on the right track. My interests, just like yours, are a fluid thing with interest in different things changing as our lives change. So, here they are in no particular order:

cloth diapering
sewing
all sorts of craft-y-ish-ness
photography
babywearing
gardening
easy-does-it
being a help meet to my husband
making a change in myself from frumpy to foxy
being more frugal
decluttering
pregnancy
natural labor/delivery

I'm sure there are more, but that's what I'll start with.

So, that's my plan, folks, to share more about myself and hopefully get to know you a bit more!

moving right along

Seems this baby is mover and a shaker. I'm getting lots of little kicks and wiggles and loving every minute. Those who've seen me recently have noticed that I have a wee bit of a baby belly. Let me tell you, it feels a bit more than a wee little belly, but I know where I'll have to go, so I'm not complaining...too much. ;)

Fetal development in pregnancy week 18:

fetus in fifth month

We have two more ounces! Your "getting bigger-n-better by the minute baby" is already up to 7 ounces and 6 inches! This is a big week for their baby skin. There are now two distinct layers—the epidermis (or the surface skin) and dermis. Currently, their skin is covered with a greasy, waxy, cheese-like substance, known as vernix caseosa. Sure, it sounds pretty nasty, but this mixture of fatty secretions covering your little swimmer from head to toe is the best way to protect their oh-so-thin skin from bruising and abrasions as well as chapping caused by amniotic fluid exposure (and your little one is swimming in that stuff!).

Oh, and I'm not going to mention that I've already gained 8 lbs.... what in the world? This baby weighs, what? 7 oz? this is ridiculous!

The other day, I pointed to my belly and asked K what that was. Her first answer was belly button, but her second answer was, BABY!! ;) I love it! B likes to give hugs and kisses to "my baby" before snooze and bed, too. This little one sure is loved.

Now, to find out if it's a boy version or a girl version..... (update on that coming in about 3 weeks.)

heard at our house

Eating lunch today, B asks, "Mommy, why are you knocked up?"

hmmm...still not quite sure how to answer that one.