I bought these mitten clasps last summer when we had little Firefly but I never got around to making him a pacifier strap before he left. This was very simple to make. I cut a strip of cotton fabric, folded it in half with right sides together, pressed open a seam allowance on one end, sewed the sides together and cut off the scrap close to my seam. The only difficult part was turning the little thing right side out. Once I did that, I pressed it flat with an iron. I sewed a small piece of elastic into the open end, closing it off. I folded and pressed the other end of the strap and sewed in around the mitten clasp.
Since it was such a pain to turn the strap right side out, I decided to make a second one using ribbon left over from the suspenders of his coming home outfit. This one was even faster but I think it would have been better with wider ribbon.
I could have made a simply bag but I happened to have this cotton pouch saved from a recent purchase of a queen sheet set. It’s a bit bigger than needed for pacifiers and paci clips but that’s fine. All I did was make two equal lengths of brown ribbon and sewed it onto each side of the bag. Pacifiers will be easy to locate at rest times and when baby boy is bigger, he can reach into the bag himself if he needs one at night time.
Door Latch Silencer / Soft Close Cover (inspired by this)
I used hair elastics like the inspiration link above but I found them very difficult to sew through. Next time I think I’ll just use elastic.
Just a short update this week. I’m officially6 months pregnant! Three more months to go. (26 weeks) Baby Boy has been very active with bigger movements (compared to the little kicks and pops of a few weeks ago). Now it feels like barrel rolls and attempts to crawl. Still a very cool feeling, and often I can see the movements too. I was pretty tired this weekend and had a UTI last week but in general still feeling great and happy. God is good.
When does a woman become a mother? Is it when she conceives for the first time? Is it when she becomes aware of her baby? Is it when she first holds her child in her arms?
I pondered those questions as I was decorating a nursery, taking infant CPR classes, buying car seats and driving a minivan. No baby was growing in my womb, known or unbeknownst to me. I had not see my first child’s face, breathed her name or held her in my arms.
Yet, I felt like a mother.
So, I asked God, “When does a woman become a mother?”
That’s lot of words, huh? We had a Christmas baby-gender-reveal surprise baby shower. It was an unforgettable blessing organized by my friend Steph with a part of our foster mom support community from across the country. I had passed Steph the sealed envelope from the ultrasound tech because she offered to give us something more special than a piece of paper to open on Christmas day. (And she’s one of the most creative people I know!) She rallied the troops behind my back and they sent gifts to Steph to wrap and organize into a really unique gender reveal surprise for us. I am still so overwhelmed with gratitude that they would bless our family like this. Most of these women I’ve never even met in person, although we connect daily through social media to encourage, pray for, commiserate with and entertain each other.
The first present to open was this ornament that Steph made. It will be such a special keepsake on our Christmas tree every year.
(Please excuse my Christmas-morning-no-makeup-pajamas family.)
The first baby boy outfit we opened…
Ali got some special gifts, too.
These little knee pads made me swoon.
A teething necklace in one of my favorite colors.
A fellow chicken mama sent this one!
At some point while I was opening gifts and Jason was documenting it, Ali started taking photos with my DSLR.
These are her photos…
I am so thankful! What an amazing surprise for Christmas day, to find out we’re having a son and to be showered with so many thoughtful and adorable gifts for him.
Sunny S.U., Meringue, Custard, Poach, Frittata and Omlet are still doing well. They haven’t slowed down their laying too much, thanks to Nashville’s mild winters. Some days we still get 6 eggs but 4 or 5 is more common. They’ve been getting smart about escaping their enclosure (or dumb, depending on how you look at it and where they end up afterward), and are now spending most of their time in the coop and run until we can patch up some gaps under the fence, clip some wings and/or build a taller partition fence. (Anyone have any experience clipping chicken wing feathers?!) On Christmas day I gave them a little feast of cabbage, cucumbers and spinach.
My chicken chores are made more cheerful this winter thanks to the new boots Jason bought me for Christmas. My old rain boots were so worn out they were hardly repelling water. I love these new bright red ones. Might as well make a statement while you’re tromping around in chicken $&@#, right?
In my excited anticipation of Baby Boy’s arrival in April I decided to start putting together an outfit for him to wear home from the hospital. I bought some black-and-white striped ribbon and sewed it onto a white onesie with faint blue stars to look like suspenders. I paired it with gray paints, no-scratch mittens and a hat that I made last summer for Firefly. I also made the bow tie for Firefly for a photo shoot. The onesie and little blue socks are the only pieces I didn’t make. Nothing inspires me to sew more than a new baby! Next up is a baby blanket.
Last week I crossed the 24-week mark with my pregnancy. Baby Froggie, or BB (for Baby Boy) as I’ve been calling him lately, is busy! He’s moving around so much now. It’s absolutely fascinating and endearing. I love interacting with him. I love to talk to him, speak blessings over him, rub my hand across my growing belly and feeling him move around in response. I just love him so much already! I dealt with a bout of severe back pain for about 2 weeks but I’m happy to say it has resolved now after lots of prayer, chair adjustments, special pillows and (I assume) my back muscles finally catching up after the rapid growth of my front side. All-in-all I’m still feeling great and loving being pregnant. The biggest news since my last update, of course, is that we’re expecting a boy. Jason, Ali and I found out together on Christmas day with a really special reveal. (I’ll post more about that soon.) I’m thrilled to know the little one growing inside my body is a son. Don’t bother asking about names; we’re not telling. 😉 We have a list and a strong top choice but we won’t decide for sure until he is born. Ali thinks his name should be donut so if you ask you might get an answer of Duncan Donut! (Not on the list.)
I love New Years. Out with the old, in with the new. Christmas is packed up and stored away. I’m looking forward to so much in 2015, but most of all I’m excited for the birth of our son in April and settling in as a forever family of four. We don’t have a strict plan for the future of foster parenting and I know we’re not done forever, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we take most of 2015 off as we go through some significant transitions. I’m praying and believing for some big things this year and I’m excited to see what God is going to do.
Here’s a great song for the new year called “This Year” by JJ Heller:
The verse I’m praying for this year is Isaiah 43:18-19:
“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
Graphic designer, MCM interior design enthusiast, wife to amazing guitarist and hard working realtor, mama—by way of foster care, adoption and biology—and follower of Jesus Christ.
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