Here and Gone.

Yesterday was Adelaide's due date. It was here, and now it's gone. Boohoo.

All along, when people asked when I was due, I would say "December 12" with air quotes, because I KNOW that due dates are so off sometimes. And I know that they are based on the first day of your last period, and on a 28-day cycle. My cycle is wonky, so who knows when I actually ovulated? My due date could actually be a week from now.

(I hope not.)

And up until a few days ago, I was still alright with the thought that I could go over my due date. That I could go a week over my due date. Two weeks. I thought all those women who talked about how crazy they got at the end waiting for their babies were just that: crazy.

And then yesterday happened. Oh, normal day. I putzed around. Watched TV. Cooked. Cleaned. Grocery shopped. Took a late-night trip out to Target just because I wanted a puzzle.

And I wished and hoped and wanted so bad for her to have a cool birthday like 12/12. I thought about it all day. I talked to her, pleaded for her to let me know she was ready to come out. But it didn't happen. Honestly kind of a bummer. At least she spent the day doing acrobatics so I know she's perfectly healthy and fine in there. But just not ready (like I am!).

Who knows when this baby is coming? Apparently everyone and their mother has a December birthday and they think that she's waiting for their birthday. As long as she doesn't wait until Christmas day I'll be happy. Today is her Uncle Jesse's birthday (Kevin's brother). He'd be a great person to share a birthday with, Adelaide. Just sayin'.

I just have to stay busy so I don't go stir-crazy. I need to go get gel capsules so that Kevin can encapsulate my placenta (post on that soon, probably). And taking some laps around the mall might not be a bad idea.

And I do have that new puzzle.

Figuring out insurance (or, pulling my hair out).

With impending baby, I needed to figure out what to do about insurance.

I work for the state as a teacher, so I have a really good plan (Blue Cross Blue Shield standard PPO). The state pays for this plan which is awesome, and they will continue to pay for me until the end of February, at the end of my Family and Medical Leave. I plan on staying out at least another 5 months after that (more if finances allow), and if I wanted to continue my plan, I'd have to start paying over $400/month out of pocket. For myself only.

Um, too much. I wish I could afford it because it's a great plan, but to pay that much for myself isn't feasible with our budget. And besides, I'm a healthy person. I know insurance is just that: insurance... but we can't afford a major plan like that for one out of three people in the family.

Kevin has a HSA plan through his work, where there is a $2500 deductible and then everything is covered 100%. His work pays the monthly fee, and so basically health coverage is free for him unless something happens. Then he pays out of pocket till the deductible is covered.

Here is where it gets tricky. Did you know how difficult it is to have coverage for a newborn? "They" seriously do not make it easy for new parents to insure their new baby. After researching our options, we've chosen to get Adelaide a Blue Cross Blue Shield HSA plan for herself (at least for a while). However, unless she's born by a specific date, we can't start coverage for her.

For instance (and I know this is SOOO interesting to you guys), she had to be born by December 8th to get coverage starting December 15 through the plan we want her to have. Obviously that didn't happen. Now if she were born before December 22nd at midnight, we could have coverage for her on January 1st. Which would be fine if she turns out healthy.

But if there's some unforeseen health problems with her straight away, obviously that wouldn't work. And there's no way to sign her up and start paying for her now, because according to them she's not an actual person yet.

So we have to add her to my existing plan (you know, that expensive one) and pay for the entire month of December (even though it's nearly halfway over already) AND January. Just so she has coverage. Then we can think about moving her to the much cheaper individual HSA. And then figure out something for me, since we won't be keeping me on the state plan.

How confusing and frustrating is all this? I can only imagine how entertaining this post has been for you all, but trust me when I say, I am 100x more bored and perplexed by the whole insurance biz. Trust me when I say, don't wait until a week before your due date to try and figure it out. Not that it will change anything as far as when your baby can get covered (unless you have some magical insurance company), but the stress of figuring out the mumbo-jumbo is not needed in that last week.

But now it's done, will be paid for out of my next check (goodbye extra cash for January), and I can cross that mad sucker off my to-do list. SHEW!

Patience.

The hardest part about waiting for our baby is when everyone else is having their babies.

Out of my birth class of eight couples, I am the last. One of the couples had the same due date as me, tomorrow, but she just posted a beautiful picture of her new family on Facebook (and had the wonderful compassion to post on my wall reassuring me that I can do it when the time comes).

Another friend who was due three days after me has had her baby for a week.

A blog I follow has had her baby nearly 10 days early.

I have a fellow coworker due 2 weeks after me (on Christmas!). If she has her baby first I may just pull my hair out.

I haven't even hit my due date yet, but I'm already anxiously awaiting my little Adelaide. Everything is ready for her. And now we are just waiting. I know she will come when she is ready, and that might be two more weeks from now. In the grand scheme of things, that is not long. But I want to hold my baby. It's like I miss something I haven't even had yet.

{patience}

Adelaide's Room: Finished!

I'm finally done with the little girl's room! I put finishing touches on it this morning, and breathed a sigh of relief knowing that whenever she decides to come, I don't have to worry about working on this room anymore! I am absolutely in love with every bit of it, and now I just wish that all our rooms looked this good! :)

[Entering the room. Rug from IKEA.]

[Bookshelves made from a vinyl gutter. New vibrating seat was a $5 Goodwill find!]

[Bamboo blinds from Lowe's. Curtains from IKEA. Wooden bike from Goodwill.]

[Shelves I've had for years.]

[Dresser from IKEA, with new knobs and changing pad on top. Cloth diapers, covers, handmade wipes, etc. are in the top drawer, while clothes are in the other two drawers. Wet pail to the left of the dresser. Tall mirror hung low so Adelaide can use it when she gets older. Dandelion decals from Target.]

[Mobile I made, inspired by the one found here.]

[This will be Adelaide's view when she's getting her diaper changed.]

[Closet doors, and door into room.]

[Martha Stewart alphabet cards. I love the vintage feel.]

[Knobs on closet doors, found at Hobby Lobby.]

[Gulliver crib from IKEA. $0.99 sheet from Goodwill.]

[Crochet blanket was a gift from a friend. I made the owl years ago, and the kitty is IKEA.]

[I made this bunting that hangs over the crib. If you flip it over, the other side says "I love you".]

[Closeup of the bunting. Both of these fabrics are being used in the quilt I'm making her.]

[Crib/bookcase corner.]

[Frame collage over bookcase. I made the paper collages in the five gray frames using scrapbook paper.]

[Hubby and I made this bookcase out of birch plywood. We put it together using dowel rods and no screws! We are very proud of it. It's very sturdy and stable, and will last years.]

[$5 piggy bank from Target, no longer sold.]

I can't wait to put little Adelaide in her room! I think it's made well enough so that it will grow with her. The crib converts into a toddler bed and will most likely stay where it is. The bookcase of course can hold so much more than it is now (we just don't have many toys yet). Books can be switched out in the gutter bookshelves. The changing pad can be removed and little girly things can be placed on top. And the closet is still practically empty and can hold tons.

I'm so happy with the way this room turned out! Total cost was around $500, but that includes all the big furniture, the wood to make the bookcases, and the tons we spent in paint samples! Not bad for a room that started off beige all over and completely different!

Week 39, Letter to Adelaide

Dear Adelaide,




As your father and I wait for you, we talk about who you will be. We talk about what you will look like, who's nose you will have, how tall you will be. You have half of your father and half of me in your genes, and how exactly we combined to make you is still a mystery. We only have a few days until we find out how much hair you have, how tiny your fingers are, how cute your mouth will be. People always say that waiting to find out if a baby is a boy or girl until birth is the biggest surprise of life, but even knowing that you will be our baby girl, I think that not knowing what you will look like and who you will be is just as great of a surprise.

[Just a teensy bit of space left! If you wait till your due date, I bet I'll touch!]

Yesterday, your dad and I were watching a tv game show, where two sisters were trying to win enough money to pay off their mother's mortgage. They talked about who their mother was, and what she meant to them. They cried when thinking of that love for her, and then I cried thinking that I am a mom to a daughter and we will share that kind of love. I already feel so much for you, and I'm anxious and excited to experience our relationship through the years. I will be your nurturer, your guide to the world and life, your secret-keeper. I can picture us as you grow, but only time will really tell who we will be together.

[Can you see my love for you? It grows every day.]

Your birth is so near. Although I'm not having many contractions throughout the day (and not strong when I do), I can tell. Our midwife says your head has dropped even lower, but that you still have room to grow, if you need to. I want you to stay warm and cozy inside my belly as long as you need, sweet girl. I want you to be nice and strong and healthy and ready for this world. I will be here waiting as long as it takes. When you are ready to come out, you will be welcomed with smiles and kisses. We hope that your father will be the first one to touch you as you come out, and with the midwife's help, he will place you into my arms, where I will hold you and cradle you to my breast. We will stare at each other and instantly that love will connect us for all time.

[Your fluffy brother, Keagan. His winter coat is beautiful!]

I am so, so ready to meet you. Your room is ready, our birth bags are packed, the house is (pretty much) clean. the Christmas tree is up and decorated, food is cooked and in the freezer for those days we can't bear to be in the kitchen. Now I am just waiting for you to come say hello!

I love you, baby!
~Moma


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
P.S. We got our camera back last week! My photos are so much better!

DIY Tutorial: Christmas Stockings!

This year, considering how we're getting an extra-special brand-new addition to our family, I wanted to do something extra-special for our Christmas stockings. (Well, that and because I like to make stuff.)

So I used some materials I had on hand, and whipped up a snazzy tutorial for you all to make this:

{It's SO easy, and it looks SO good!}

Materials:

• Fleece
• Water-soluble marking pen
• Scissors
• Wool felt (acrylic is fine too)
• Sewing pins

Optional: Tissue paper to create a stocking pattern.

Step 1: Lay out your fleece, and double it up so you can cut through two layers at once (makes it quicker). Use your water-soluble pen to draw a stocking shape. (Tip: If you're hesitant to mark directly onto the fleece, draw a pattern onto regular tissue paper, and pin that to your fleece.) Cut out your stocking.

Step 2: Grab your felt, lay it under the stocking, and trace the top of the stocking onto the felt. Before you trace, make sure you like how big the felt piece will be. This will replace that fuzzy white stuff on the traditional stocking. :) Cut out your shape, then trace it onto the remaining felt to make a second piece exactly the same size.

Step 3: Pin the felt pieces to the top of the fleece stockings. Notice I flipped one of my stocking pieces over, so that in the end, the felt will be on the correct outside part of the stocking, front and back. The felt may not fit perfectly, but that doesn't matter as long as it covers the fleece.

Step 4: Sew the top and bottom edge of the felt onto the fleece. Don't worry about the sides.


Step 5: Make snowflakes following this tutorial from The Purl Bee. I used the same felt as for the top of the stocking so the colors would match. I also didn't make mine double-sided since I'd be sewing it directly to to the stocking. Here you see the three snowflakes I made for our three stockings.

Step 6: Find the perfect placement of the snowflake on one of the stocking pieces (whichever you want to be the front) and pin in place.

Step 7: Sew that bad boy on! I just sewed along the 6 branches of the snowflake and didn't worry about all the little bits sticking off. It seemed secure enough with just that.

Step 8: Pin both stocking pieces right-sides together. Sew along all sides except the top, because you want Santa to be able to put in his treats, right? :)

Step 9: Before you flip it right-side out, trim any excess felt off. Otherwise, it'll make your stocking kinda bulky.

Step 10: Cut a long-ish rectangle from your felt. This is for the loop to hang the stocking.

Step 11: Place your rectangle onto the stocking like this, and sew it on, making sure to go over it a couple of times for reinforcement. Now you're done!

Step 12: Iron carefully, and then hang by your tree, fireplace, what-have-you! Here are all three of our stockings, finished and hanging!

Kevin gets the orange one, I get the teal, and our little lady will have the maroon. We each have our own, and they're each slightly different. The snowflakes are all individual and we each get our own color.

Please let me know if you make (or plan to) one of these! It's really not that hard... the most time consuming part is the snowflake, but only if you're obsessive like me and actually use a ruler to make sure each branch is exactly the same (like a true snowflake).

What do you think?

Music for Labor (in which Pandora does it all)

When I got pregnant and started to research all the things I needed to do before going into labor, I kept reading about making playlists for the labor and birth. How it was nice to have a few different playlists depending on what stage of labor I'd be in, or what kind of music I'd want at any given time. You know, fast and upbeat songs for the beginning stages when I'd still be moving around. Slow and calming songs for when I needed to just breathe through the contractions. Maybe something fun for the pushing stage.

I kept putting this task off because it seemed *so* overwhelming. How in the world would I choose the songs to put in these playlists??? How would I even begin to review all the music I like and choose certain music for certain times of labor?

Enter Pandora.

I love Pandora. I've decided that we'll plug in my laptop (or Kevin's phone) to the sound system and let her do all the work. I've got my stations that I've had set up for over a year now. She knows what I like and it's easy to change the stations depending on what I want to be listening to. And it'll be easy to type something new in, should I decide on that.

So whether it be Florence and the Machine, She & Him, The White Stripes, Bob Marley, or Biggie, I'll be set.

Thank you, Pandora, for making this easy on me!