Blessings for Birth and Motherhood

Support, laughter, love, sisterhood, friendship, being seen, being heard, being valued as a mother and woman...

Those are the things I was given at my most recent mother blessing. Some cherished old friends of mine, many driving from afar to be with me, threw me an impromptu mother blessing last week. Stars aligned and it just happened to work out with only three days notice for the five of us to get together! I dearly thank Molly, my long-time best friend, for throwing it together so last minute.

38.5 weeks baby-belly and counting... gathered together for sweet blessings for me and baby!
I originally had the background and playing baby-Tanner cropped out but decided I love my home and friend's baby taking up some of the photo. This is motherhood.

 A mother blessing is a celebration of new life, womanhood and motherhood all rolled into one fantastic, celebratory, inspirational, and often creative event. The focus is more on the transition into motherhood and is supportive in nature, rather than a baby shower which is thrown as a party with games and baby gifts. At a mother blessing support is offered in preparing the woman spiritually and emotionally for the event of childbirth and beyond. I was especially touched at the offering of support and acknowledgment after all these years, all these births, and all these kids. I was told that this baby matters and I matter. I was reminded and joyfully honored that each birth and each baby is unique, and I am transformed into a new mother with each one! I admit it is usually easier every time, because with experience we all tend to gain new knowledge and confidence, but I'm still a human being. I still carry a brand new life and will birth that life. I bring forth a brand new individual that will always be an individual, with individual needs that will be hard to meet sometimes. I'm still a woman and mother who is ever changing. This is my special journey. Each mothering journey is a new path carved in the labyrinth of my life. I appreciate the energy my mother blessing celebration took on in regards to that. I also appreciated the confidence others have in me and how they shared that. It's actually a great balance. It is easy to pass off a woman with nine kids as 'been there done that.' It is easy for me to pass off myself as being there and having done that. While that still may be partially true and inspiring, it's also true that life, birth, motherhood, and womanhood are all so much more complicated and sacred than that. I might be an old hat at this, but even old hats have to be cared for... maybe even more so, as my friend Molly eloquently pointed out to me. 

Having a small mother blessing provided a nice opportunity for a bit more chit chat and sharing than we usually have time for with a larger group, and it parred well with our usual ceremonial events. I had the most lovely, inspiring, uplifting afternoon! (I missed Charlotte, my oldest, who had to work that day. She had never missed a mother blessing of mine until now.)

Pampering rose petal herbal foot bath and friends' babies discovering the warm water. I was delighted at their joyful playing in the water. I actually thought to myself  'I feel so alive and inspired around babies, it's where I feel the most comfortable.' Sometimes we have kids at mother blessings and sometimes not, but we always have nursing babies! And look how sweet they are!

Labor/birth candle collage we made for me, an inspirational group craft.

 
 In the past we have done group projects like: jewelry, belly henna, wreaths, birth prayer flags, painted belly casts... the sky is the limit with the creativity!

Some of my motherful treasures! Pampering gifts of herbal teas, hand thrown pottery, sisterhood bath salts, seashells, motherhood dolls and trinkets, handmade with love items, a tea ball with charm, pampering oils and soaps.

A well loved mantra and song at many of our blessings, Woman am I, Spirit am I. Mother blessings can include creative crafts, a floral head wreath for the honorary mother, belly casting/painting/henna, gifts, stories, working through fears, prayers, blessings for baby and mom, songs, and lots and lots of friendship and support! (And a pot luck feast!)

Pregnancy Post 36 / 37 weeks

Beatrice

Bea (2) was hugging my belly and telling the baby she loves the baby:
Me: What do you think the baby's name is?
Beatrice: Baby's name is...is... my friend!

This child is seriously cute and sweet and obsessed with the baby in my belly. She asks to see the baby all of the time. She claims the baby can't see and lifts my shirt up. She closes her eyes and hugs my belly and nuzzles into my belly. She totally gets that there is a baby in there. She confirms with me the baby is growing still. She tells me the baby will nurse. She is just totally in love with my growing belly, the idea of the baby joining us, and he fact that this baby already has a place. At nap or bedtime she tells me she is sleeping or holding the baby and she cuddles right in. I've never quite seen anything like it. She is very, very sweet and very excited. Oh in fact, now she actually asked to 'lay down with baby' when she is tired. This means she wants me to lay with her in my bed and she wants to nap with me and the baby belly. haha. So cute!

Baby Dream

For months I have been waiting for The Baby Dream. This would be the gender prediction dream I have that so far has always, always, amazingly been correct! Even with Everett at one point I thought that maybe he might be a girl, but then I had a very prominent baby boy dream and I was sure after that he was really a boy. Penelope (9) has been waiting and asking for months about my baby dreams for this pregnancy! I told her there were no dreams and she reassured me that it would probably happen in October. 

In the meantime all three of my daughters and my sister Heather had dreams I was having a girl! I told Ricky I thought girl too but I hadn't had any real signs yet. On October 1st Penelope woke up and excitedly asked if I had the dream. It was so cute! But I still had not! As October got started up there were quiet nights and pretty boring dreams. This wiggly somewhat of a mystery baby has been camped out, stretching and outgrowing my womb day by day, bumping and thumping, twirling and whirling... but still inspiring no dreams.  Then sometime last night, in the dark hours of the best slumber there is (3-6 am) I had a dream! It was pretty realistic and had all the realistic features of past gender dreams I have had. Maybe it will be right or maybe wrong...but my track record is so good! In the dream I sat up on our bed and cradled a newborn baby in a soft blanket, I placed her on the bed and Ricky stood over us. He was doing something near the closet in our bedroom, but still he was over me. I got the sense that the baby was brand newly born and we had just moved into the bedroom from the bathroom. All wrapped up in a neutral colored gauzy blanket (I think grey) I gazed at the baby and asked Ricky if he had looked at what sex the baby was yet. He said no and I said I would look. In the dream I was prepared for a boy for some reason, thinking I bet we had a boy because I thought we would have a girl. And then there she was, a tiny perfect naked newborn girl. As I swaddled her back up I told Ricky I was so happy and that she was a girl. In the dream I said with a sense of completeness, "This is the way it is supposed to be."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A couple weeks after the dream I made check-ups for the kids in order to keep them established at our doctors office and decided to go ahead and make one for the new baby in the upcoming future. Making 11 appointments all at once is a long process. Our doctor's office has lots of large families (and homeschool families) so they are a little used to it, but it's still a circus making the appointments and getting everything straight. I have to write down everyone's birth dates in advance because I am bad under pressure on the fast quiz of birth years! That's right, I need a cheat sheet!

The office wanted/needed the new baby's name to input into the computer, or suggested I just call and schedule her appointment after the birth. I didn't want to schedule after the birth because I wanted a block of appointments together on the same day. They wouldn't use my suggestion of "new baby" as a first name. I thought it was a good idea and funny, but nope, that's not a name! So I gave them our main girl name we have picked. It felt oddly satisfying to use our girl name! And like I was telling a secret out loud. Perhaps this day I just tempted fate too much though!

The doctors office needed a birth date too. I tried my due date, but the computer had a problem with an in-the-future date. We ended up having to use a random October 20-something date. Obviously we can change it later.

I feel very at peace if this baby is a boy or a girl. So dear future baby reading this: we love you already no matter what you are and know you will be a perfect fit for this great big family of ours. We are all so excited to meet you! Even though I have done this so many times I can still hardly believe you are here to be with us! I can't believe I am a mother to so many sweet children! How is this my life?

37 weeks... I was all in the mood to take a picture of my HUGE belly and show everyone just how BIG I got over the past two weeks and then I looked at this photo and I'm like, eh... I'm small. Looking down at my own belly and trying to get out of bed I seem so much bigger. The baby is a wiggly one finally. He or she started out so quiet. Now feet and legs are busy and pokey as can be. I really love this stage.

September: Talk Like a Priate Day Fun, Fall is Here, Baby Countdown, Birthday Season

We celebrated National Talk Like a Pirate Day at Krispy Kreme and had so much fun. If you go to a participating location and talk like a pirate on Talk Like a Pirate Day you get a free glazed donut, but if you go in dressed like a pirate you get a whole dozen glazed donuts. (EACH person dressed up gets a dozen donuts.) I had wanted to take the kids in the past but we never made it. Sept 19 this year (the official talk like a pirate day) landed on a Saturday, a perfect day for a family outing! As luck would have it our family has an unusual amount of pirate gear on hand. It's pretty hilarious (and ridiculous) that we didn't even use up all of the stuff we had at home and could have costumed at least a couple of more people!

Unfortunately Charlotte (18) had to work that day and Bea (2) was sleeping in the car, so they missed the group photo. I woke Bea to go inside but I wanted to get the photo done before I woke her up just in case she was a cranky mess. She was kinda groggy but enjoyed her donuts and all the commotion. The shop was pretty busy, but in a fun way. We got our 8 dozen donuts (we shared a dozen with Bea, she did not need her own) and even snagged up two tables.

Arrrgh!

A box of golden treasure for me mateys!

What did we do with 96 donuts? We ate them all weekend long. Some of us regrettably and some not so regrettably. I swore I would never eat donuts again after day one, but then had another one on day two. Ha!

 Fall is Here! 
Charlotte works at a grocery store bakery decorating cakes and she worked her way up to lead decorator over the summer! (I'm so proud!) There is this fabulous and fun lady named Fran that heads up the produce and floral department. Charlotte and her hit it off from the start. Fran totally reminds us of our Grandma Wanda with her green thumb and spunky, hardworking attitude. After Charlotte had been there a few months Fran told Charlotte, "They need to let me have you in produce. I like you, you are no nonsense!" That just cracked me totally up! We love Fran and she's funny without trying to be. She's also always smiling. Charlotte quickly became a valuable asset at the grocery store as they learned what a hard worker and how reliable she is. When some coworkers quit for various reasons she actually became the only person in the bakery department! Just eighteen years old and running it ALL herself! She has worked really hard and a lot of hours when they needed her the most. She has been appreciated and compensated by management and the store owner. It's been a great experience, and I'm so proud of her!

It's super handy having Charlotte working at a store, too! They sell straw and when a bale busts open Fran tells Charlotte we can load it into trash bags and take it home to our animals. When 47 mums needed to be moved because better stock was coming in and they need some TLC Fran told us we could have them for .50 a pot. We asked to buy some bulk apples but some "bad" ones came in that they can't sell  (they are still totally great just spotty and needing TLC!) so we got them for $7. Super awesome!

 Time for pie! I LOVE pumpkins, but apples are the real stars of my fall. Canned apple pie filling for all winter long. The kids eat it in their oatmeal too. Ricky likes apple butter.  (If I have the time I'll process twice this many. I have never had the time though.)

When we went to pick up the mums Fran saw Ricky for the first time. As he began loading them into our 15 passenger van she said in a really funny and friendly way, "Are you the one responsible for all this?" Then she looked at the mums, the kids, and me with my pregnant belly. It was really funny.

The mums just needed a little TLC and a lot of water! These kids happily helped me trim every single dead bloom off of them too! We all had so much fun. The mums will bloom again soon! It only took all of us a half hour and even Beatrice helped! Now to plant them...as if I don't have enough to do already!

 Fall is off to a great start. I have so many plans and there is no way it is seriously all going to happen. My little pregnant brain is floating on a cloud of oblivion. I think it's totally hilarious that my to-do list before October 31st (Halloween is baby's due date!) is out of control ridiculous, in like, the most ridiculous way ever. As long as I know it's ridiculous I think it will be okay when more than half of it doesn't get done.

Speaking of Fall: Turkeys!
Just a random pointless update that I still LOVE raising turkeys. I keep wanting to sell them and might sell a few holiday birds for next year. We are still wanting to move to more land when we can and then I'll have one hundred turkeys. Well, maybe. :)

I call the really big one Thanksgiving.The small red ones won't be butchered until spring, the bigger black ones will be butchered this fall.

Everett turned FIVE years old on the 21st of September!
He's a super spunky wild kid that has a super sweet tender side too. He's really smart but also 'checks out' sometimes. I use play dough with him a lot. He has to keep his hands busy at home. He likes structure and needs loads of play, but wants us to play with him. when he is being spacey and imaginative we say that 'Everett World' must be a verrry interesting place! lol. He's really imaginative and impulsive. He has an alter ego named Bobby Henderson. (He made up ALL by himself!) He has always had an unhealthy relationship with risk too...no fear of heights for the first several years of his life, seriously into fire/fire men/fire trucks, and even bull riding. He scared me when he ran across the street without warning a few months ago. He then declared happily to me, 'I made it!" as I stood there flabbergasted and frustrated. I now know that Sage and Ethan and their young and wild boy-ness was just preparation for dealing with Sebastian and Everett. Boy, I have learned a lot about boys. In hindsight, Sage and Ethan were easier! 
I asked Everett if he thinks the new baby is a boy or a girl:
"I think the baby is a girl because I love girls! And I will name her Blueberry when she is a baby, and when she is a grown up I will call her Grape."
He has wanted to name her Blueberry for a while. I told him that while that might be cute for a baby it won't be that cute of a name for a grown up to have, and Blueberry will be a grown up someday. Thoughtfully his solution is that she can go by "Grape" as an adult. My sweet wild child.  

Baby Countdown & Birthday Season
September 30th we celebrated Charlotte's 19th birthday.

 Nineteen years ago in September I was laundering baby diapers, clothes and blankets while pregnant with my very first baby. I had no idea what to expect but I loved her already. She was the baby that opened up the path I would take in life, deciding the moment I saw her that I wanted to shape my entire life into being a nurturing mother and "housewife." (Yes some of us do really like being housewives and don't mind the term! And that's okay.) When she was about two years old I was sure that I wanted six more children. Boy, I had no idea what I was in for! I stopped to snap the photo below as I was feeling very blessed that on my oldest daughter's 19th birthday... I was laundering some newborn baby laundry. I'm in amazement and wonder. Charlotte will have a baby sister or brother and they are 19 years apart. And I am a mother of an adult and a newborn, and lots in-between! I got to do *this* with my life and I'm so thankful.

35 weeks 4 days ~Washing newborn baby diapers and blankets so they will be nice & clean
on whatever day this baby decides to arrive.

Birthday Season and Baby Countdown
Two birthdays are left in this years birthday season! Birthday season officially starts in August with Layla's birthday on the 1st and Sebastian's birthday on the 23rd. In September Everett has a birthday on the 21st and then Charlotte on September 30th. As we head into October Penelope celebrates her birthday on the 17th (just one day after our anniversary). The next birthday in the birthday season line-up is yet to be determined...will we have an October or a November baby!?! Your guess may be as good as mine! I think November 2nd sounds promising. Or October 25th...or October 31st, or November 6th, or...or...?

Beach Vacation

Family Picture Gulf Shores 2015 ~8 kids and a baby on the way

Our beach trip was great. There were ups and downs of course... I somehow actually expected everything to be perfect and it wasn't (I know go ahead and laugh), but it was totally okay and I did not have my expectations ruin the trip in any way. One day it rained, two days were super duper windy but we had some beach time anyway, one day there were horrible biting flies, one day was pretty perfect. It was interesting comparing the things we liked last year and this year as well as the things we didn't like. The trips were at the same place with totally different pros and cons! I realized the crappy spring weather we got last year was made up for in other ways during that trip. Crawfish and frog leg feasts, for example, were out of season in September but not in April. While both trips were quite windy, the fall trip had MUCH warmer weather and water. Anyway, what I'm actually trying to say is that it's great to have perspective!

You know what WAS perfect this year!? I finally got my family photo on the beach (see above) and I am a very happy momma for it! We haven't had a good one on the beach since Penelope (8) was a baby (see below). I was thrilled. Last years picture was so windy that my hair was standing on end. See. 

Mexico 2007

 I dubbed our trip the 'fun animal trip.' We saw two sting rays in the ocean (Ricky and Charlotte found them while snorkeling and Ricky stepped on one!), some of us saw dolphins, we collected up sand dollar and small crab critters. We made 47 dollars in 'sand money.' We let them all go back to their home in the ocean. Charlotte (18) caught a BIG crab in our swimming pool! That was really fun. She said it was scary. It kept looking at her and snapping it's claws at her. She had to get it from the bottom of the pool and it took her a half hour to wrangle it. The kids told us something was in the pool that looked like a crab and that it even pinched some of them. We didn't believe them! Poor kids! I checked it out after a few minutes and sure enough there was totally a crab in the pool.

Beatrice, only two, had a rough ride to Alabama. It took us 19 hours to drive there instead of a more usual 12. We were pretty calm about it, taking it all in good stride. Over the course of six days I flip flopped between going back next year or waiting three years before traveling that far again (until the new baby is three because we don't ever want to road trip with a two year old again). I flip-flopped a dozen times as if I had to make the decision right then. It's my nature. One minute I was ready to put down a deposit for next year and the next minute I was saying how we are having a stay-cation the next couple years. I think vacationing with kids is like giving birth, you need the reality of how much work it is to wear off before jumping in and doing it again!

A moment for just us

We spent a lot more money on vacation than we wanted to. (Doesn't everyone?) But we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Rolling into Alabama at 6 am after driving all night we wanted a nice breakfast. Breakfast at Cracker Barrel was $112 for us all, but it was worth every penny! We had such a lovely time and enjoyed each others company so much. We almost went to the Waffle House nearby but in the parking lot we decided not to. There was not much space inside at all and we were SURE to be gawked at. I suggested Cracker Barrel across the street because they don't bat an eye when an army rolls in. And sure enough they didn't. We were treated to breakfast royalty and the wait staff acted like a family with eight and half kids waddles in the door every single day. We had fun browsing the gift shop after breakfast which gave the kids more time to stretch out too. 

We shared the ever so lovely and spacious purple house on the beach with our friends and their kids. All of the kids got along so well and had so much fun. I couldn't believe how much fun! I expected normal kid stuff and for everyone to tire of each other at some point but it didn't happen. The beach house we shared is very spacious though so we were never right on top of each other. The kids and adults alike had lots of good fun. It was wonderful to have friends to vacation with, we have never done that before! We had a private pool too, so when the kids weren't swimming like fish in the ocean they were swimming like fish in the pool.

Ahhh that water, those waves, and kids. Love!!

With Friends

In the days leading up to vacation I had the normal tiresome job of packing and prep work. It is so much work getting all of us, the house, and the animals ready for vacation. I asked my husband WHY were were doing this vacation again and said maybe we should have stayed home. He said, "Because you said you have to have pregnancy beach pictures." I smiled, "And why do you give your wife everything she wants?!" Then he grinned and kissed me on the head. Those small loving gestures keep me falling in love with him over and over again. I love him so much...

And sooooooo my mini maternity shoot. 33 weeks pregnant on the beach, thanks to my dear husband...

HOME
On the way home Beatrice understood much better that we had traveled far to someplace and we needed to get back home to our animals. We timed our trip home carefully, made two stops before dark that were about two hours apart (one was at a park to play and one was dinner), and things went much better. She actually didn't even cry once (whined a couple times). She is an amazing child and once she understands something she seems to really understand! She talked about home being 'far away' while at the beach. Now she tells us the beach or purple house is 'far away.' She is very smart and cute.

In a total of 19 hours driving there and 12 hours driving home I pitifully only drove 3-4 hours of it. Ricky did all the hard work. On the way home this exchange was funny:

Me: I don't think I'm much of a road tripper

Ricky: I know you're not

Me: Well I like the idea of it but...

Ricky: You like the "idea" of winter too.

Made me laugh so hard.

I am extra glad he was able to drive all the way home because this baby belly is moving up quickly into my diaphragm and ribs making sitting harder. The baby is bouncing around in there like crazy when I sit straight up. I can breathe okay...but I am slowly noticing a big difference in that too!

 ~~~

Pulling into our driveway at 4am the first words I said were "Home is where the farm animals are." I missed our place a lot. I am always amazed how nice coming come feels. We were all awake getting home, and the kids (especially Bea) were so happy with our familiar home. There is something so cozy and appreciating about being home after a week of being gone! I had even put fresh new sheets on the bed before leaving on our trip so that we would come home to a clean and cozy bed.

Ricky and I barely remember anything as we all crashed out. When we woke up at 9am it felt like we all slept for just a half hour. It was so weird and hilarious! It was like we were gassed out. (Kinda scary to be out that cold with kids in the house though!) I woke up to the kids crashed out everywhere all over the floor, which isn't *that* unusual, but it seemed extra funny that Bea and Everett were sharing and sleeping on a body pillow in the hallway. They were out cold! I would have taken a picture but I was still too tired. 

Ricky hasn't stopped working 12-14 hour days since we got home. He's been quite busy for months now anyway, but there is a even larger price to pay for being out for a week! Plus he is trying to prepare for taking time off when the baby comes (due on Halloween!) and then the holidays will come fast right after that.  Things are good but also tired and a bit crazy around here. I got back into the swing of things quickly and picked right back up with housework the first week we were home, and then school work this week. Vacations are lovely...but trying to settle in again can be so hard. We are all excited for fall and it's all I can think about now.

Oh, I almost forgot one of the best things! Ricky told me he feels totally refreshed after vacation. I was so glad to hear that. He so deserved a nice trip and some downtime. He works very hard for his family. He swam in the ocean a lot (he loves to swim) and I'm so very glad it soothed his soul. I know what he means, got to spend an entire afternoon in the water with him and it was very rejuvenating. The winds kept me out the last couple days though. (I get cold easy.)

Can't wait for next year...

31 weeks

31 weeks

This pregnancy is going by quickly! I find myself scrambling to enjoy this pregnancy and thinking up ways I can have weekly mini celebrations for myself as I close out the next nine weeks! I made a fall pregnancy celebration head wreath to wear already. I am taking online belly dancing classes (and signing up for a local one in October), I have started a list of must-get supplies for me and baby (waiting to purchase until October). I have plans to: do a belly cast, paint Beatrice's belly cast with Ricky (it is still just plain), color birth pages  and write affirmations on the back of them, go on a hike with the kids and tie prayers to a tree, and get pampered by my husband a bit! But ohmygoodness time is slipping away. I cannot believe it is September 1st and we leave for our beach vacation next week! When we discussed a possible beach trip for this fall I was very newly pregnant. The first thing I exclaimed to my husband was that I get to be pregnant on the beach and have beach-belly pictures. (I have never had belly-beach pictures! How fun!) Whenever I am getting ready to visit the beach I am pretty excited, but it is not until I am there that I can truly remember just how amazing the sight, touch, smell, and experience feels. Come to think of it,  it is a lot like having a newborn baby! Some experiences, no matter how fond and dear our memory holds onto them, are nothing like actually experiencing them all over again. I can't wait to feel the ocean's energy at my feet!

Life on Fast Forward
I started Oak Meadow with the younger kids this fall and although we have barely started we are loving it so much. I have wanted to dabble in this curriculum for years and years but I was too afraid. I realized I had way too many years left of being afraid and that I really just needed to take the plunge. I also am really tired of coming up with material on my own. I'm spread so thin. I wanted direction. I wanted help. There's some we add to it too, but having Oak Meadow be our focus has been simply wonderful. We have been sewing a bunch, finger knitting, working with clay, and keeping scrapbook journals filled with artwork and our schoolwork. Things seem to be really falling into place with the younger kids and this curriculum. The teens aren't complaining that they get to start school up after vacation. I am doing a mish-mash of stuff with them, but that is easier because they are largely independent learners and can pick and chose through many things I recommend to them easily.

 Ricky started a new job (at the same firm). As I mentioned we started a new school program and we are going on vacation. We are due on Halloween! We are in the middle of 'Birthday Season'. We have five kid birth days in three months ...and our anniversary. We absolutely LOVE fall and I am so looking forward to all the fall festivities as my belly grows. Whew! It's no wonder I feel like I'm on a Ferris wheel set on fast! (There have been some other not so happy things going on, like our air and septic system both needing major, major updates and repairs. Over the summer we also dumped thousands into repairs on vehicles...we have to take the bad with the good! Life happens.)

This baby is resting his or her head smack down on my bladder which makes cleaning house... and just walking in general pretty hard. Usually my babies are more centered on me with a lot more overall pressure and very low. I am walking a ton, staying active, crawling around on my hands and knees (scrubbing the floor is great for getting baby in a good position), belly dancing, and doing squats to all help optimal baby position. (I need to get to my chiropractor to check on/ align my pelvis, but since I don't hurt I have been so bad about taking the time to go in!) I'm not concerned about this baby's alignment, but I am aware of how to optimize my babies positioning in these last weeks!
Spinning babies is a great resource for learning about optimal fetal positioning for labor and birth.
See: The 3 Principles in Pregnancy Balance, Gravity and Movement! Positive principles to prepare for, and progress through, childbirth.

Nesting has started I think... I cleaned under the fridge yesterday (filthy!), I washed the silverware caddy out, I laundered the kitchen drapes, and cleaned nearly the whole (filthy!) basement, I washed the trash can inside and out (even the bottom). I sure hope the nesting energy continues. I feel like tearing the place apart (time to sort through fall wardrobe bins and paint the basement stairs)! This is all kinda bad timing because we leave for vacation next week! I sure hope vacation doesn't totally wipe me out. This mama is just getting started!

Out of nowhere I started getting baby-girl vibes. This happened last week. Usually by now I "know" what gender we are having through intuition/dreams. Amazingly I have never been wrong...yet! I'm not actually sure if I am sure...but I started feeling a girl. I think that I really, really do think baby is a girl but I'm afraid I'll be wrong and I've never been wrong! Yet!
I don't get scans so there are no opportunities for us to cheat and find out even if we wanted to. We truly love not knowing though! It's such a special surprise that Ricky and I just love sharing with each other and the kids. It makes the birth even more exciting and special to us. I love when the kids come down early in the morning and greet the fresh newborn baby. They marvel at the baby for a while then realize to ask, "Is it a boy or a girl!?!" Every where I go people ask me what I'm having. Most are truly surprised we don't know.   

Just because we don't do scans doesn't mean other people's experiences don't touch me. I actually teared up (like a few tears actually fell!) at this yesterday:

Charlotte, our oldest (18), is lead cake decorator at a bakery. Yesterday she got to make a surprise 'gender reveal' cake for an expecting mom. A lady came in with her *secret* ultrasound picture in an envelope and pleaded with Charlotte to not lose it as it was her only copy and she didn't even know her baby's gender yet! Charlotte said the lady was really cute about it and had a little toddler girl with her. The toddler wore the same 'Big Sister' shirt we had bought for Beatrice many months ago. After the lady left Charlotte opened up the photo. Charlotte was excited to find out the cute little toddler girl has a new baby sister on the way! Charlotte thought it was really special and fun to hold this secret. She did four stacked thinner layers of cake so that she could get more pink colored frosting inside of the cake. I totally teared up as Charlotte told me this whole cake/ultrasound story! I couldn't help it, dang pregnancy hormones! As Charlotte told me the whole story with excitement and sweetness in her voice - well it was just so sweet! I love that my daughter is so touched by the celebration of new life and feels happiness for others in such a touching and sentimental way. I love how much effort and time she puts into her work. She really goes above and beyond for people and wants their cakes to be as special as their event.

Memories of the Last Days of Pregnancy

6/7/13 

I was lying next to Penelope the other night when I looked over to see if she was asleep yet. What I saw by the glow of the night-light was her blue wide-eyes peeled open and a smile on her face as big as the moon. She had her hands at her chest with her fists clinched in excitement. Her legs wiggled when we made eye contact. I was surprised she was still awake and whispered, "Are you excited thinking about the new baby?" "Yes!" she squealed.

The three youngest kids always ask to see baby and rub the baby belly at night. Everett often places his head to my belly, kisses, laughs and pats. They've seen home birth videos online and pictures of their siblings being born. They understand how babies grow and how they are born and it makes the big belly more real to them I think. I map out where and how the baby is laying in there so they can visualize it. Layla likes to see the birth photos of her siblings but doesn't like seeing hers. I think that's interesting, and it matches her quirky personality. Everett loves watching birth videos, which is pretty common for this age group. He asks for more over and over. He loves seeing babies emerge and as they cry for their first breath. His face lights up like it does when he sees a fire truck –total magic. I know just how he feels (about the baby magic, the fire truck thing is cool but not all that magical to me personally haha).

6/9/13

As the weeks melted by from 36 to 38 to 39 weeks I started thinking we wouldn't do a belly cast. We did one with 3 kids (Penelope, Sebastian, Everett) and I assumed we'd do another but the weeks started slipping away and we didn't have any supplies yet. Finally I bought some supplies and wondered if they'd arrive before baby did! It's so fun to see the shape of the belly and have as a memory. I really do remember more about how they were in the womb and what the movements felt like when I see and hold my casts. It's also just a neat form of personal artwork. Ricky and I have always casted them alone after the kids were in bed as a quiet relaxing date night activity. I have always been pleased at the attention to detail my dear husband takes with the cast, he's artistic but many people don't know that about him. He gets really into smoothing it out and making sure the shape is true to my form. It's something worth writing about so I remember, because in between casts I've forgotten his intentness on the artwork. I love thinking about it now. At 39 weeks 4 days, after getting everyone else asleep for the night, we told the girls of the house they could get out of bed; we surprised them by including them in cutting plaster strips, helping their dad dip them in warm water and smooth them out on me. They thought it was really neat. Layla said she had a lot of fun and for years she thought that there was a place that you went to try on bellies and buy a cast that fit you, she didn't ever think about or understand plastering! I thought that was so interesting and cute. I love how kids think, how else was she supposed to know though?! They enjoyed helping and I was really glad we decided to let them be a part of it. We have a roll of plaster left that I told them we could make fake pull-on and-off broken arm casts for fun! They loved that idea.

A couple weeks ago Layla made a household family chart for baby's birth date. She made two charts, one for June 6-9th and one for the 10th-15th. They keep adding more dates on as their guesses don't pan out correctly. It's so cute and a real treasure to see the kids' names written with dates and times and watch as they cross them off themselves as the days tick on by. They are so involved and so excited.

In our experience babies come when you least expect it. Since I've felt like I was prepping for labor for 2-3 weeks now (a very helpful thing the body does to make natural labor and birth easier!) I half expected to have the baby sometime in the last seven days. However, I've only had one baby "early", Penelope two days early. At the time it seemed like she was really early though; the previous babies had each been born at 42 weeks. (two weeks past their due dates). Due dates are an obsession with people, really babies come when they are ready. Every day I wake up I'm glad I have another day to prepare, clean, rub my belly, take a picture, charge the camera battery. :)

6/10/13

Baby was quiet last night. “She” is usually kicking like a crazy thing! I had more of the same deep twinges and at 11pm and when Ricky fell asleep rubbing my belly I got up and cleaned the bathroom, mopped the bedroom floor and finished 2 loads of laundry. For good measure I set a clean stack of towels and receiving blankets on the bathroom counter. I felt I could sleep through the tightness and pre-labor (pre-labor is something your body can do for weeks) so I went to bed and slept like a baby --even though Everett crowded into bed three times. I woke up with Ricky's good morning kiss and of course he said, "No baby yet..." :) He agreed it's always when we least expect it. 

6/11/13

Today is 40 weeks.

Yesterday I had nice firm deep pressure and cervical pressure/twinges all day long. It reminded me of what dilation and labor is like (for me). It reminded me of the work, effort, and triumph. It reminded me that ‘oh crap I'm totally going to have this baby soon!' After a regular stressful day at home yesterday (nothing bad, just a regular day cleaning house with crazy kids.) around 2pm I hear:

"Mom! Everett's bringing a chicken inside..."

 This is exactly why I'd never go into labor during the day: too much excitement. Night-time is safer. (That's why most mammals labor at night) Everett laughed like an ornery little turd as he ran around the living room in circles after the chicken - then the chicken hopped on the couch. I put it outside, a bit flustered because I just mopped the darn floor and I’m in the middle of 20 other things. He cries to me, "Noooooo me play my chicken, my chicken!" I told him to play with his chicken outside then!!

I get back inside and Sebastian says "We had a chicken in the house once, then twice, now three. Three times we've had a chicken in our house now." Overall, in the span of the last 4 years in this house that might be a low estimate. I've brought in at least two before.  

Today I picked up the house, made the bed, switched laundry, made breakfast and had a list of simple things for the kids to do when they woke up all before 7:30am. We finished up simple chores and I told everyone to get ready to go to the park (homeschool play day). As we were leaving I painted the hallway wood floor I have been trying to paint forever! It’s a circle hallway in the middle of our two story house. The circle leads off to doorway that include a bathroom, master bedroom, the upstairs, kitchen dining room, and living room. I love it. It never occurred to me until now that I should call it a roundabout hallway! I love our old house! I’ve never seen anything like a “roundabout” hallway before. Anyway, ever since we ripped the carpet out in favor of the wood floors underneath I’ve wanted to paint the hall floor. It’s not an easy task because it’s smack in the middle of the house. It requires stranding yourself to one side or the other --not very do-able with kids. So today I decided to paint it halfway and then load up the kids in the car, paint the rest, and then leave the house for the park. It worked! Finally I did it, I got our floor painted… on my due date. 

On his way home from work I sent my darling husband to the dollar store for a couple things, poster board for the creative kids that are on an art making binge was one of them. He came home with candles too and said, “I thought you might want some soft light for the birth, these were the only unscented ones I could find.” What a love. He's so thoughtful. Every morning and night he asks how baby is and how I am. It' so neat after doing this so many times it's not just the same ol' thing but a different day. Everyday is new, every baby is special, every moment counts, every day is a gift. A few mornings ago the alarm went off at 6am and as usual he asked how baby was, I told him the baby didn't move all night and I don't like that. He rubbed and pushed gently on my belly until the baby moved. "There's the baby" he said. And these are the things I want to remember. The little personal moments in time that make my days bright, my blessings plentiful, and life so rich.

6/12/13

This morning I'm sipping on Third Trimester Tea and feeling happy as a clam my wood floor is painted. I should tend to some outdoor things today (which includes more painting!), and try to keep the kids out of the house as much as possible! I don't really care when the baby decides to come, I just really don't want the kids messing the house up and eating all the food! lol! I'm slightly OCD so I want everything in it's place and ready when I have the baby. I just heard from Aunt Sharon and her and Grandma are coming over! We love when they visit. Family and food ...the greatest gifts.

39 Weeks: Mama and Baby Update, Birth Preparation, Nesting

Mama Belly
I love the change between 36 and 38 weeks and then 38 to 40 weeks. I don't think I'd realize how cool and distinct the change is without having done this so many times! I love getting big! At 36 weeks (safe for a home birth by some people's standards but still pretty darn early) I think to myself 'baby would probably be fine at 36 weeks', then by 38 weeks I'm like 'okay NOW baby is fine.' Then by 39 weeks I'm like 'NOW THIS is what a baby-belly is supposed to look like.' Then by 40 weeks I'm like 'ohhh this is ripe, oh yes, I remember this now." :) 

Last week I asked Ricky if I was big enough yet and he said I ask that every time around 37-38 weeks and then he added that I was almost indeed ready. :) We didn't do a plaster belly cast yet, it's coming in the mail today. Every pregnancy I try on the other ones we made to see the shape and how it's different or the same. Some babies lay to the left, some to the right. It's cool; this one's feet are on the right, body to the left, head down and chin feels tucked.


Nesting Mama
The last two weeks I/we did our normal stuff plus painted the kitchen incl. cupboards, sewed/ hung curtains, cleaned half the basement, washed all baby stuff/got the cloth diapers ready, brought the changing table up from basement (rearranged bedroom), got birth and baby supplies ready, ran all the kids around to various parties/sleepovers Etc., hit up the playground parks 5 times for playing fun, got the teens to their youth group camp teen leader training 3 days in a row, cleaned the back porch, cleaned/de-cluttered the most important parts of garage, got our starter tomato plants in the ground finally, made a mini obstacle course for the kids, mowed/weed whacked around our property, painted picnic table with kids, got all the laundry caught up (because Charlotte and I are laundry ninjas with mad skills!).

Me with the painted kitchen cupboards, sewed cupboard curtains (I took out the old cheap 70's fake wood laminate doors everyone hates to have in their home down and opted for the very old-fashioned kitchen curtain concept! The doors were painted over the laminate but paint on laminate chips/peels after a while.)

Below is the fabric that I used on the lower cupboard shelves, you can't see it at all in the pictures above. It's very country-cute and vibrant without being overwhelming. The yellow ties in our table and OLD counter tops. I picked colors I wouldn't tire of. The upper cupboard is a gray polka dot curtain that is super flattering in person.The roses below that look purplish are actually gray so it ties in our gray-white kitchen brick.

Pregnancy, Chiropractic, Nutrition, Vitamin D
This pregnancy has not been uncomfortable (most aren't too bad at all --but Everett's was rough). I think this is easier than Everett's because of all the chiropractic care I've had over the past three years, particularly the chiropractic care I had while actually pregnant with Everett. I had bad pinched nerves with him and sciatica. Getting my vit. D levels up is a huge help too. It's sad I suffered through so much pelvic/hip/joint pain with Everett (and after having him) until finally discovering my bones were softening and it was due to vit D deficiency. I had "adult rickets" which is, thank goodness, reversible. I felt so much better after discovering that; before it was corrected I felt 90 years old and I was in pain everywhere (but especially so in my hips and pelvis)! I also tested for low thyroid hormone (hypothyroid) which I now take "natural" thyroid hormone for. I've had it checked four times during this pregnancy. My care provider (who is not a MD but works along side one) actually has had an unassisted birth too! I had my iron tested a couple months ago and it was low so I'm on an iron supplement too. 

Low Thyroid and Pregnancy
I had to dig a little for info on low thyroid and pregnancy, it's a seriously under diagnosed condition (so is postpartum thyroid issues!). If I would have known I would have been tested several pregnancies ago. If you found me by searching for this condition my advice is: have a practitioner that listens, seriously consider a practitioner that supports natural and conventional medicine, test vit. D levels, get thyroid panel drawn at least 3 times while pregnant and then again 2-3 weeks postpartum. If taking thyroid hormone consider having smaller pills so you can adjust your thyroid dosage if needed. I have 15mg pills so if I feel too much or too little thyroid I'm not stuck with a huge pill; I control my own dosage if needed and while waiting for more test results. In addition I learned not to worry; many, many healthy babies are born to thyroid problem mothers. It's not optimal to grow a baby while your thyroid is off, but don't let the internet freak you out either. I sprinkle kelp (for iodine) on my hand and eat a little every day or so; don't overdo it though. Iodine helps regulate thyroid function. Blueberries are supper good for regulating thyroid function. Reduce intake of foods that inhibit thyroid production like broccoli, spinach, peanuts... here's a list. I still eat those foods but I watch the amount and eat other foods instead.

Do-it-yourself mamas: you may consider doing a mail order thyroid test. I know very little about them though, and some say they are not that accurate. You need to research, I'm just putting the info out there that they exist.

Food Nesting
Today, not surprisingly, I woke up pregnant still. So I got to work! I had a double batch of chili in the crock pot by 7:30am. It's chock full of beans and pureed peppers and onions for lots of healthy eating. The precooking phase begins now. I'm going to try to get some freezer meals done this weekend. Taco bake, chicken and broccoli, chili, banana breakfast cake and muffins, pumpkin muffins and whatever else I can think of. Nothing sounds good to me. I hate cooking when I don't have a clue as to what to cook. I usually have a hard time if nothing sounds good -my inspiration usually comes from hunger!

Looks like I still have time to get some other food/supplies we still need to get to make life easier the first couple weeks with new baby:

paper plates

frozen waffles
pancake mix

syrup

a truck load of bulk yogurt

a truck load of cereal and milk

a truck load of baby carrots

frozen pizza

pretzels

copious bags of frozen fruit

other FOOD (lol you need lots of food on hand in a big family)

I need to work on my list. 'Food' is very nondescript. I wish there was something called "food" and it could be healthy, yummy and served for weeks at a time. lol.

MORE on Nesting:

Last week was super-duper nesting, cleaning, organizing week also. I was so exhausted when this week rolled around that I thought I was going to collapse or have a baby. I was also afraid nesting was over for me. I was thankfully wrong! Also, last week Ricky was away in New York on business. I had 'practice labor' for days that felt reallllly promising to produce a baby soon but no baby came. My body and baby are both getting ready and that is excellent, baby is low and head down and getting ready but that doesn't mean anything other than my uterus is smart and getting ready! (Layla and Sage were both born at 42 weeks; others were born pretty close to due date, Everett on his actual 40 week due date!)

Every two days the theme of my attitude changes: overwhelmed and exhausted (mostly due to the toddler), excited, nesting/productive, content. Last two days was nesting and content. Hopefully this weekend is content and productive too!

I have a long list of "to-do's" but overall things are ready. Every day I wake up without the baby in my arms is another day to get more done!
I want to paint part of the back porch, we all have more mowing to do (Charlotte and I love mowing!), later we drop off teens at a party...the house needs cleaned again so I hope to dust and scrub and mop this weekend. I hope!

On a normal week I'm usually an obsessed OCD/ADD busy, crazy, house-cleaner/re-organizer/crafter/decorator/yard worker, but it takes on a whole new meaning by this time of a pregnancy. lol.

Baby Supplies / Birth Supplies / Mama Supplies
I'm excited that the baby birth basket is ready to go: baby blanket, baby diapers, sterilized scissors, placenta bowl, pajamas and postpartum pads for mama, other fancy herbal pampering mama products (earth mama angel baby products, herbal tea, Etc.), paper towel roll, wet wipes, charged cell phone, charged camera. Now just add 1 quick, happy labor and a baby... :)

The baby's birthday party basket is ready for the kids to decorate the house with too: crepe paper, happy birthday table cloth, happy birthday balloons, birthday cups, napkins, brownie mix, and handmade welcome signs. The kids even have presents to wrap for the baby (newborn onesies, blankets).

Kid Presents!

I totally lost my mind and bought ALL of the kids a surprise present for after the baby is born. I just want them to have something special for being so good to me, helping me clean and paint (I'm not doing all this nesting completely alone! lol), and doing their chores/homework without complaining. They have been so great. Everett has been a total handful to all of us, and we all really do a lot for each other and help each other when things get crazy. The kids are all so loved, special, and wonderful  -even if they all make me crazy sometimes. They aren't all cute tiny babies anymore, but they are still sweet blessings in our life that we cherish just like this new baby. On another note the kids are SO EXCITED. Especially Penelope. The baby is talked about constantly! It's so sweet and really neat.