Our Baby Boy's Room

The Nursery, a set on Flickr.

Collin and I put the final touches on our baby boy's room! We sanded down and painted an old wooden bookshelf that we had and love the bright blue color it adds to the room. Collin also hung up flags that I had made for our "gender revealing party" back in October. It is great to be able to use them again!

We love our little nursery and feel so ready to bring our baby boy home to his room!

Baby Prep! We are just too excited

I find that all I can think about these days is our baby boy.  I can't wait to see his face, kiss his cheeks, and hold him close.  With every little movement he makes inside of me, I am reminded of what a perfect little being he already is!  We are so in love with him already and can't wait for his birth.  Since there isn't much we can do to rush that along, we are directing our energy towards full baby prep!

Preparations for our baby's arrival have taken many forms in the Wedel household.  Up until this week, we kept feeling like, "Oh, we will take care of that eventually."  Well, now that we are just about 2 weeks to our due date, now is the time to get things done.  I am technically full term, so our baby boy could make his arrival at any moment.  However, I am well aware that first babies are usually late and because my mom delivered me 10 days late, chances are I will deliver our little guy late.  We just have to trust that every day he spends in the womb is just making him stronger, healthier, and more able to thrive in the world!  It is also reminding Mommy and Daddy to enjoy our last few moments just the two of us.

Collin and I have created our "birth wish list" and shared it with our doula and our doctor.  It is settling for us to know what we hope to experience during labor and delivery while also remembering that things will not always go quite as planned.  I have also been creating our list of things to bring with us to the hospital when the time arrives (suggestions welcome).  We are holding off on actually packing "the bag" until labor starts--a nurse advised us that packing is a good thing (and a needed distraction) to do while you are in early labor before you go to the hospital. 

Laundry--lot's of it!  I have been busy washing all of the little guy's blankets, bibs, burp cloths, clothes, diapers, socks, and hats.  On a related note, I have been cleaning a great deal.  This whole "nesting" thing just makes me want to clean all of the time.  I am constantly reorganizing, scrubbing, vacuuming, and ironing.  Who knows how much time I will have to devote to these chores once he arrives, so maybe doing extra of it now will make up for it later..?!

I am also compiling the address list for birth announcements, and Collin is drafting up the email to send out when our little guy arrives.  Are we just being obsessively proactive or is this smart to do in advance? Either way, it makes us excited and feel more ready to share our exciting news when the time comes!

My body is preparing too!  The baby "dropped" and is in position. I have been walking, swimming, and stretching to help my body stay strong, flexible, and ready for the marathon of labor (and motherhood). 

This weekend, the plan is to paint our bookcase blue and to finish decorating the baby boy's room.  I will post pictures next week.

Learning to sew

I decided that before the little guy arrives I wanted to learn how to sew.  I signed up for a class at Santa Barbara City College called "Individualized Sewing." The course descriptions said all levels welcome, so I figured I would have company in being totally new to sewing.  I arrived the first day of class and was completely surprised when I looked around the room and saw that I was the only student under the age of 70.  It turns out the same group of women have taken this course for fifteen years together and are all great friends, including the instructor.  They are all incredible sewers and just love spending time with one another.  Each week, they bring coffee and baked goods to share with everyone else and just enjoy socializing almost as much as they do sewing.  This works out quite well for me because I get the help and input of many expert sewers, and I get to taste yummy goodies and hear all about the women's grandkids...and great-grandkids.  They love hearing about my pregnancy and can't wait for his arrival.

My first project was a blanket for the baby.  I simply sewed two pieces of baby blue flannel together, one side has stripes, and sewed a sail boat on to both sides.  It is super cozy and fits the nursery very cutely.  My next project was to make new pillow covers for our living room.  I have been wanting to replace the old ones for a long time now, so it was fun to pick out the material and create easy to slip on and off throw-pillow covers.  I love the new additions to the couch.

I am not sure how many more classes I will make it to, but maybe I will be able to conquer something a bit more difficult in the time I have left before the big day!

Nesting Weekend

Nursery progress, a set on Flickr.


Collin and I had a wonderful weekend "nesting" at home.  We both are so excited about our baby's arrival and have a strong urge to nest--it's not just me!

Saturday morning we attended a class called "Baby Basics" where we learned how to bathe our baby, change his diaper, swaddle him, safely secure him in a car seat, feed him, put him to sleep...and the list goes on.  It was a very informative class for the new parents that we are.

That afternoon, we continued the process of trying to make sense of our little guy's bedroom--there is so much to fit in such a small space.  We moved furniture around, cleared out some boxes, and put things in drawers.  We also set up our bassinet in our bedroom.  We have the UppaBaby Vista Stroller which came with a bassinet attachment.  We were able to get a stand for it, so the bassinet can be used in our room and on the stroller--no need to buy another piece of furniture!  Collin also installed the car seat in the car and hung up the mirror and UV shade.  It is such a trip to look back and see the car seat in the backseat; something about that makes it seem so much more real!

That evening, we took a break from "baby stuff" and made dinner.  We made homemade whole-wheat ravioli stuffed with ricotta cheese, spinach, and a pinch of pumpkin pie spice covered with marinara sauce made from scratch.  It was a delicious feast that we enjoyed Sunday night again (leftovers!).

On Sunday, our small group hosted a Baby Boy BBQ for us after church.  Everyone was so sweet, the food was delicious, and they all contributed to our diaper fund and pitched in for me to get a prenatal massage.  We are incredibly blessed by wonderful friends.

Here are some updated pictures of the nursery--it is still a work in progress, so I will post more pictures as we get more and more organized and creative with our space.

Pregnancy Update

Baby Boy Wedel is growing right on schedule.  Our due date is Monday, March 5th which puts me at just about 36 weeks pregnant with a month to go.  We had a doctor's appointment yesterday, and he is head down, butt up, and legs off to my right side--I can feel those kicks in my rib cage (painful but comforting).  We just hope he stays in this position for the next few weeks.  My tummy is measuring right on schedule which means his growth is right where it needs to be.

We have been so blessed with a healthy pregnancy and pray that our little boy bakes for a couple more weeks and is delivered safely.  Thank you for the continued prayers for our growing family.