We're putting Baby in the corner

...and we think our little one will like their corner!  

We are apartment dwellers.  Thankfully, we have a two bedroom apartment, which gives us a little bit of breathing room.  Even more thankfully, our second bedroom is massive.  Up until this point, bedroom #2 has served as our guest room/my husband's office/my craft room.  But now, we have added "nursery" into the mix.  

Yes, I do realize there is a lot going on in this room.  But it works.  Or at least we claim it does.  Want to see baby's corner a little closer?

There are lots of handmade details in this little corner of a nursery.  For starters, that crib was lovingly made by my aunt.  Beautiful, no?  

I sewed a little adjustable length crib skirt for the crib.  We have storage tubs hiding under there.

My husband built & painted the wooden sign teal, and I used my Silhouette Cameo to make a stencil for the wording, which I then painted on.  The burlap banner will have our kiddo's name on it, once we know what that name is ;) 

Baby's "chandelier" mobile.  I had to enlist the husband's help to tie the strings of circles onto the dowels - I lacked both the patience and dexterity, and he used the opportunity to practice his surgical knots ;) 

These cutie pie hand-cut animal silhouettes were a shower gift from dear friends.  So adorable!

Finally, this quilt was made by another one of my aunts (I have rather talented aunts!).  I want you to see a close up of the quilting:

See the stars?  So neat :) 

All in all, it might not be much compared to some of the ornate nurseries we've all seen.  But despite that fact, we are sure that a) our baby won't care, b) our budget is happy and c) we like it!

Also, in case you're keeping track, I am now two days overdue.  I was hoping that my cleaning marathon, twice daily walks or copious amounts of hot sauce I've been consuming would get the ball rolling, but no such luck yet.  Though I suppose if I got to hang out in a hot tub all day long, I might not be too keen on leaving either :)  

I'll be sharing our little corner nursery with these fun parties this week...unless we actually go into labor at some point ;)

Looking forward to: Post Baby

(Sorry for the overload of baby & pregnancy related posts.  It's kind of the only thing on my mind right now!)

I really haven't minded being pregnant.  Honestly.  Aside from the nearly constant first trimester nausea, it's really not been bad.  I would almost daresay that I've been enjoying it.  I'm still quite comfortable, am sleeping decently well (most nights - some are torture though), and have the energy to do pretty much whatever I want.  

That being said, as our due date rapidly approaches, I've started to consider the things that I'm looking forward to post-delivery.  Of course, meeting our firstborn child, finding out if we have a son or a daughter, introducing the kiddo to our friends and family, and figuring out what the heck we are doing as parents all make the list.  But there are also some rather selfish things that I'm looking forward to post-babe:

With regards to clothing:

jeans image source / tee shirts image source

• wearing pants with a zipper.  Zipping said zipper. 
• I've been told you don't leave the hospital wearing your normal clothes ;)  So I'll start small: wearing my own tee-shirts...not that my husbands aren't lovely to sleep in, but I really do miss mine.

With regards to sleeping:

sleeping image source

• having something cuter than my bladder wake me up 3-5 times in the middle of the night.
• rolling over in bed without feeling like I need to lift and support my stomach to do so. 
• sleeping on my stomach, or my back.  Basically any way but on my left side!

With regards to eating: 

sushi image source  / wine image source / sub image source

• sushi.
• wine (that bottle in particular).
• as much cold deli meat as I want without being paranoid that I'm poisoning our baby.

With regards to living:

grocery image source  / silhouette image source / spray paint image source

• it not being socially acceptable for anyone to make any comments about my size or weight.
• lifting things without people asking if/telling me it's too heavy.  Related - going back to carrying all of our groceries for the week up to our third floor apartment in one trip.  The day when I was carrying 10lbs of grapefruit, 4lbs of oranges and 5lbs of potatoes, along with everything else for the week was when I realized that perhaps I was in excess of that silly 20 pound limit.
• bending over without feeling like I could potentially topple over.
• spray painting.  Odd, I know, but I like the smell of spray paint to spray paint often, and my husband has pretty limited time and patience to paint all of my projects for me!

We're down to two days until our due date (Thursday).  Just throwing it out there, I'm pretty certain this little one is quite content right where they are, and I'm absolutely expecting to go well past our due date.   I asked my OB how long she'd let me go over prior to inducing...she informed me that she just delivered a woman at 42 weeks!  So at most, we've got 16 days left before we become a family of three. 

Is there anything that you experienced moms out there can advise me to be doing in these last few days(weeks) pre-baby?  Aside from sleeping as much as possible, that is ;)  I've got as many meals in our tiny freezer as I can fit, my mom-in-law got me a pedicure yesterday (yes!), and my hospital bag (fine, bags) are as packed as they're going to get before heading to the hospital.  Any other last minute preparations that you'd recommend?

Family Medicine Rotation

My husband is on his family medicine rotation now.  Actually, he's halfway done with it, so it's probably past time that I mention it, considering, you know, the basis of this blog.  

This is his last rotation of his 3rd year.  In four short weeks, my husband will be a fourth year medical student - one school year away from being knighted putting an MD after his name.  It is an absolutely insane thought to consider.  

Family Medicine for us consists of two weeks of in-patient care, two weeks of clinical work in the residency clinic, and four weeks of outpatient care.  The hospital where my husband is normally placed no longer has family medicine docs roaming their floors, so he was at another hospital here in town.  It was nice for him to get some time in another setting, just to see how other hospitals operate.  

Today is his first day of outpatient care at an office here in town.  They are open 8a-5p, Monday-Friday, and 9a-12p on Saturdays.  My husband says that it's a shame that he isn't more passionate about family medicine/primary care, because a)there is such a high need, and b)the hours ROCK.  But, alas, I don't think there are quite enough adrenaline rushes in family medicine to make it on our possibilities list. 

I'm hoping that my husband is able to talk to his attending today regarding maybe having, you know, a day or two off when baby debuts.  There's nothing set at his school for spouses receiving time off when having a baby, so we're not exactly sure how this will work.  I'm hoping that he can just work some Saturdays or something to make up for a couple of days of "paternity leave."  May his attending be an understanding man!

Hey, by the way, it's Medical Monday!  (or technically yesterday was...so I'm a little bit late!).  Join in the fun!

Our (actual) Gender Neutral Baby Registry...on Pinterest!

Registering for baby items is not easy.  You've likely never cared for a child from birth onwards, and honestly have no idea what it requires.  Stores give you massive lists of items that are "necessary," and it is rather difficult to discern which of those items are actually needed.   Then you start to wander the aisles and see the 100 different pacifier options stacked from floor to ceiling and the strollers ranging from $25 to $2000.  If you're anything like us, this is when you start to break out in a cold sweat. 

After referring to countless lists and reliable sources (aka stalking other new moms' registries and conferring with my sisters-in-law!), my husband and I decided that we'd register at Target and on Amazon.  We were a little hesitant to do Amazon, simply because we weren't sure how the more "mature" generations might react to it, but it was such a great decision!  Obviously the variety is better than anywhere else, the prices are better, and shipping is basically free on everything over $25.  We've only had to make one return so far, and that was seamless (printed a free return shipping label, then they simply credited our Amazon account with the purchase price).  The only downfall to Amazon's registry is that if the gift giver sends the gift directly to the parents-to-be, and doesn't see to select the "gift note" option, you'll receive a box with a mystery gift and have no idea who it is from!  Luckily, there is a "thank you list" on your registry that you can click on and see who gave you what (with their addresses!), so I just employed my sister to check on our mystery gifts, so that we wouldn't see in advance any of our other presents.  

In hopes that it may be helpful to other new moms out there, I present to you:

Our (actual) Gender Neutral Baby Registry Pinterest Board

 

To see what we actually picked out for our little bambino, feel free to check out my Gender Neutral Baby Registry Pinterest Board.  I wish I could categorize it, but....you'll just have to suffer through it ;)  As you're looking, you'll be able to see that we went the very practical route.  Since we are apartment dwellers, we just don't have room for all of the cute yet unnecessary crap items.  I mean, baby doesn't even have a room to call their own!  I'm not much for the typical babyish patterns and colors, so most of the things you'll find are more modern styles, without breaking the budget (since I could never register for something on which I would never personally spend the money).   Also, everything you'll see will have very high customer reviews. 

As an aside, yes, we are cloth diapering.  We're doing a combo of prefolds with wraps and pocket diapers.  Am I particularly thrilled about the increase in laundry this will cause?  No.  Am I thrilled about the crazy amounts of money we will save by not buying cases and cases of disposable diapers?  Yes.  Being as we received almost all of the cloth diapers our child will need from birth to potty training, we'll essentially only need to purchase wipes from here on out...for this child and any subsequent siblings they might acquire.  Beautiful.  

Since we've yet to meet this kiddo and discover what else we actually need, if you peruse the baby registry board and see some glaring oversight that we will definitely be needing, please tell me!   Likewise, if you have any questions about why we registered for a certain item, ask away.  Feel free to pin and share!  I'll be sharing at these fun link parties this week! 

Questions people will ask a pregnant woman

Being pregnant seems to reduce your personal space, both physically and in the types of questions people ask you.  While we are overjoyed to be pregnant and are so happy that people want to share in our excitement, answering the same dozen or so questions starts to lead to some canned responses...

Here are the questions that I am asked rather frequently, some more so in the beginning of pregnancy compared to now (less than one month from our due date!):  

• How are you feeling / are you having any morning sickness?
• Was this planned? (seriously?) 
• Really, while in medical school?  Won't that be hard on you? (I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure a baby is hard regardless of what the dad does)
• Are you excited?  
• Are you feeling movement?
• What are you having / are you finding out the sex? (Subsequently - asker will give their opinion about knowing the gender vs. being surprised) 
• What will you do about work?
• Any cravings? (I think I disappoint people when I only say cauliflower and spicy food!)
• How much weight have you gained? (never thought anyone would actually ask that) 
• Have you gotten any stretch marks? 
• Can I touch your belly? (thankfully only people I know have asked this...I want to remind most people that they are just touching my stomach, which would normally be considered really weird, but I try not to be rude.  Obviously friends and grandmas get a pass on this one!)
• You've really popped! / You're not big enough! / What does your doctor say about your weight gain? (I'm sorry that I'm a smaller person?)
• Have you decided on a name?
• Will you breastfeed/circumcise/get an epidural/etc? 
• When are you due?
• Are you ready for this? (Is anyone ever actually ready?)

I am eternally grateful that no strangers have attempted to touch my stomach yet.  I had pictured myself fending off little old ladies in Meijer from groping my body, but luckily that has yet to happen.  In fact, aside from when I was looking at a stroller for my mom-in-law at a garage sale, no strangers have even asked me if I'm pregnant/when I'm due, etc.  I will take it! I've never understood why being pregnant means people think they can say or ask anything they want - how offended would some non-pregnant person be if I commented on their weight gain?!?  A dose of tactfulness is appreciated!

Just for giggling pleasure:

 

Again - don't take this post to mean that we are anything less than overjoyed that we have so many people in our lives who are excited about our little bambino, because we are! 

Soft Scrub 4-in-1 Toilet Care [review + giveaway]

Cleaning.  It's not my favorite thing to do, but since I am mildly obsessive about having a clean home (which has worsened since getting married, as my husband grew up with the world's neatest mother), I do it quite frequently.  If we could poll the world, probably the least favorite cleaning task would be "cleaning the toilet" (though mine is vacuuming...ugh).

I was super excited to receive this package in the mail a few weeks back for the new Soft Scrub 4-in-1 Toilet Care from my friends at Purex.

Upon receiving the package, I could literally smell the product before opening the carddboard box...which did worry me slightly, as I'm not a huge fan of scents in the house. 

However, once I opened up the product and had it in place, the scent dissipated to the point that I didn't notice it, except after flushing the toilet (which is kind of the idea!).  It's available in two scents: Alpine Fresh with Bleach and Sapphire Waters without Bleach. 

So here's how this neat little contraption works:

Soft Scrub 4-in-1 Toilet Care clips right onto the toilet with the plastic rim hanger, and with every flush, the water runs over the product and activates the cleaner (resulting in those little bubbles you see in the water!).  It helps to clean the toilet bowl, prevent buildup and fight toilet rings, and will freshen for up to four weeks!  Obviously, you are still going to have to clean your toilet, but this product is designed to keep your toilet bowl fresh in between cleanings. 

I only have two minor concerns with this product, the first being the hanger itself:

See how it looks a little loose and isn't super tight to the rim?  The rim hanger just seems a bit flimsy, though it has stayed in place thus far without any trouble. 

The other concern would be the fact that if we had a little boy, they might find it really fun and tempting to use as "target practice" (which husbands would never, ever do).  Aside from those two minor things, this seems like a great product, and we have no complaints! 

In order for you to try out the new Soft Scrub 4-in-1 Toilet Care for yourself, use the Rafflecopter below to enter for a chance to win a coupon for a free Soft Scrub product! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway
This giveaway is open to folks in the United States from now until May 15 at 12am. I will contact the winners via email to get their snail mail address to mail out the free product coupons!

This giveaway is now closed!  Congrats to the winners, Kim and Kendi!

The Soft Scrub brand provided me with a sample of Soft Scrub 4-in-1 Toilet Car in exchange for a product review.  However, all the opinions expressed here are my own. 

A break in the spring

Surgery is over (hallelujah), and is crossed off the "Possibilities for Residency" list with a thick dark line (double hallelujah!).  Surgery is a great fit for some people, but not for us.  It made us tired, cranky and counting down the days until my husband's spring break.

Instead of jetting off as we have in years past for spring break, we decided to have a staycation (for the most part).  Highlights included:

Attending my cousin's wedding to a beautiful and wonderful gal in Cincinnati, and being able to stay with good friends for a couple of nights.

Her dress?  Gorg.

Receiving our beautiful crib, handmade by my aunt.  Added bonus that my husband actually had time to stain it (since I'm apparently not supposed to inhale too many of those fumes).

This is still unstained, obviously

Having our maternity photos taken by our rockstar wedding photog.

Activities included tree climbing, horse petting and canoeing.  My dear husband is a good sport.

Something fun things without photographic evidence - getting our office/guest room/craft room organized and rearranged enough to include a crib and add a /nursery to the room name, and having a shower with my husband's side of the family.  Our baby is so loved by so many already!

My husband keeps saying that he did four months of life in a week, and it's pretty much true!  Between internal medicine and surgery, he certainly hasn't had too much time outside of the hospital/school in 2013.  I quickly remembered how much I truly enjoy and miss spending time with my best friend.   

Now he's on to family medicine!  Day two of his rotation includes night call (just until 11pm, which I will take any day).  Luckily there are only two night call requirements.  I already like this rotation ;)