Custom Ordered Headbands for Baby Ellie!

Custom Ordered Headbands for Baby Ellie!

My Maid of Honor from my Wedding recently added to their family with the birth of their baby girl! For her baby shower, she had requested a few headbands. So here are a few that were made just for her!

40 Weeks

Week 40 of Pregnancy: Your Baby Prepares for Birth

Now officially full-term, a baby born this week will weigh in the neighborhood of seven and a half pounds and measure anywhere from 19 to 22 inches. But many babies check in smaller or bigger than this and are both perfect and perfectly healthy.

At 40 weeks pregnant, this is the moment your baby (and you) has been waiting for! Now officially full-term, a baby born this week will weigh in the neighborhood of seven and a half pounds and measure anywhere from 19 to 22 inches. But many babies check in smaller or bigger than this and are both perfect and perfectly healthy.
 
The first thing you're likely to look for when baby makes his or her dramatic (and possibly fashionably late) entrance: proof positive that he is actually a he, or she is actually a she.  That major mystery solved once and for all, you'll also notice that baby (besides being cute as can be — and yours!) is wearing a little leftover travel dust, consisting of blood, vernix, lanugo, and amniotic fluid. From your baby's perspective, you'll look a bit blurry (babies at birth can focus only about an inch away), but that's okay. With all the tears of joy you'll probably be shedding, your baby will look a little blurry to you too. 

 
You'll notice your little one is still curled into the fetal position (though his or her arms and legs may flail a bit). That's because after nine months in such cramped quarters, it'll take a while before your baby realizes that he or she has room to spread out.  And because it's the only position he or she has really known, it's a comforting one to be in. (That's also why so many newborns like to be swaddled, it reminds them of your uterus.) Be sure to say hello to your new arrival. Your baby is very likely to recognize the sound of your voice — and that of your partner.

My week

Things are moving and shaking this week as we are on the Countdown till September 15th. Here's what's been going on this week:

WATER! I have been staying hydrated and feel like I have been carrying around my water-bottle everywhere! Benefit to a large purse!

Craving comfort food! Last night's dinner: Pot roast, Veggies, Stuffing and Cheddar biscuits. That baby is going to come out nice and plump!

Staying busy at work. Trying to get all my 'ducks in a row' for the guys, because I will be gone for a month taking care of baby M. 

Lunch with Friends! It was Rachel's Birthday yesterday, so I took her to lunch today! She is leaving tomorrow for Oregon for vacation, so when she comes back, I won't be pregnant any more! Kinda crazy to think about!

  

Still sporting the no- swell feet! I feel thankful that pregnancy has been so good to me! Praise God!

I am still feeling good, a little tired, but excited for the future!

39 Weeks

Week 39 of Pregnancy: Fetal Skills Expand

Your baby's weight and height have probably increased only a little from last week, but his or her brain is still developing rapidly, with changes you'll be able to recognize firsthand as your developing baby's skill-packed bag of tricks expands almost daily.

Your baby's weight and height have probably increased only a little from last week (and your overstretched skin at 39 weeks pregnant is probably grateful for that). But his or her brain is still developing rapidly (a pace that continues during the first three years of life), with changes you'll be able to recognize firsthand as your baby's skill-packed bag of tricks expands almost daily.
 
Heard that babies cry a lot?  There's definitely truth to that rumor — as you'll find out soon enough (and usually during the middle of the night).  But what you may not have heard is that tiny babies don't produce tiny tears when they cry, since their tear ducts aren't open for business yet.  While you'll be consoling your crying baby right from the get-go, it won't be until sometime after the first month that you'll be wiping tears off those chubby cheeks.
Your baby's skin has now finally changed from pink to white (no matter how dark-skinned he or she will be eventually; pigmentation will occur soon following birth). That's because a thicker fat layer has been deposited over the blood vessels (making your baby's cheeks —  both kinds — pinchably and kissably round).

We managed to take a few picts Sunday after Church. The weather has been so strange. Tons of rain and humidity. Typical tropical storm type stuff.  Since we were outside in the back yard, Tyson wanted to get in on the action this week. He said he is ready to meet the baby too. He likes to lick my tummy when I go outside. I am not sure if he can tell there is another person in there, or if he thinks I am hiding his ball. 

Here are my boys, they had to get in on the action too this week! We are all on the count down to BABY M's arrival!

38 Weeks

How your baby's growing:

Your baby has really plumped up. She weighs about 6.8 pounds and she's over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). She has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold her hand for the first time! Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.

Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? You may not be able to tell right away. If she's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If she's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time she's 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after she's born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.)

37 Weeks

Week 37 of Pregnancy: Full-Term Baby

Your baby is gaining weight at about half an ounce per day. Since your little one is considered full-term now, if your baby was to leave the wet nest this week, he or she would likely thrive. That's because Mother Nature and you have done such a fine job.

With just three more weeks to go and at about six and a half pounds (though weight and height vary from fetus to fetus), your baby is doing just fine. You can expect weight gain to be about half an ounce per day. (Boys, though, are likely to be heavier at birth than girls. And here's a bit of boy baby trivia to back that one up: Moms carrying boys tend to eat more than moms carrying girls — a foreshadowing of teenage refrigerator raids to come.)  Since your little one is considered full-term at 37 weeks pregnant, if your baby was to leave the wet nest this week, he or she would likely thrive. That's because Mother Nature and you have done such a fine job.
 
So what's keeping your little one busy while waiting it out until D-day? Practice, practice, practice. Your baby is simulating breathing by inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid, sucking on his or her thumb, blinking, and pivoting from side to side (one day you feel the tushy on the left side, another day it has swung around to the right side). All these are skills needed for his or her next gig  — starring as newborn.

Here's an interesting fact: Your baby's head (which, by the way, is still growing) will, at birth, be the same size circumference as his or her hips, abdomen, and shoulders. And guess what's making an impression (literally) these days on those shoulders and hips: fat — causing little dimples in those cute elbows and knees, shoulders and hip, and creases and folds in the neck and wrists.

36 Weeks

 Week 36 of Pregnancy: Fetal Skull and Bones

Your little one is now about six pounds in weight and measures slightly more than 20 inches in length. Growth will slow down now in preparation for birth, so your baby will be able to fit the narrow passageway to the outside and so he or she can store up the energy needed for delivery.

Your baby's skull isn't the only soft structure in his or her little body. Most of your baby's bones and cartilage are quite soft as well (they'll harden over the first few years of life) — allowing for an easier journey as your baby squeezes through the birth canal at delivery (and less prodding and poking for Mom along the way). At 36 weeks pregnant, the skull bones are also not fused together yet so that the head can easily (well, relatively easily) maneuver through the birth canal.  
So your little bruiser (who you've now learned won't be bruising you all that much with those soft bones) is now about six pounds in weight and measures slightly more than 20 inches in length. Growth will experience a slowdown now, both so your baby will be able to fit the narrow passageway to the outside and also so he or she can store up all the energy needed for delivery.

By now, many of your baby's systems are pretty mature, at least in baby terms —  and just about ready for life on the outside. Blood circulation, for instance, has been perfected and your baby's immune system has matured enough to protect him or her from infections outside the womb. Other systems, however, still need a few finishing touches. Once such notable example: digestion — which actually won't be fully mature until sometime after birth. Why's that? Inside his or her little gestational cocoon, your baby has relied on the umbilical cord for nutrition, meaning that the digestive system — though developed — hasn't been operational. So your baby will take the first year or two to bring that system up to speed.
 

Week 35 of Pregnancy: Fetal Weight Gain

With five more weeks to grow, your baby is accumulating fat at a rapid pace, but he or she has pretty much reached the in utero limit in height by now. Which means your developing baby's once skinny arms and legs are now quite plump…and irresistibly, squeezably soft.

At about 20 inches and five and a half pounds (but with about five more weeks to grow), most of your baby's growth over the next month or so before you meet will be in weight (with a gain of anywhere from one pound to several), not height (baby's pretty much reached the in utero limit in that department).  Accordingly, fat continues to accumulate at a rapid pace these days (on baby, not just on your hips). Back in the middle of your pregnancy, your baby's weight was made up of only two percent fat; now at 35 weeks pregnant, that percentage has soared to closer to 15 percent (and will increase to 30 percent at term). Which means your baby's once skinny arms and legs are now quite plump…and irresistibly, squeezably soft.
 
Also continuing to grow at an amazing pace is your baby's brain power. Luckily, the part that surrounds that amazing brain — the skull — remains soft. And for good reason: A soft skull will allow your baby to squeeze more easily through the birth canal. (Mother Nature was really thinking this one through — imagine trying to push out a rock-hard head…ouch!)

34 weeks

Week 34 of Pregnancy: Gender Differences

Your baby could be as tall as 20 inches right now and could weigh about five pounds. Need a visual? Hold a five-pound bag of flour in your arms and imagine it's your soon- to-be-born baby (cradle it, and you'll only get strange looks in the baking aisle).

Your baby could be as tall as 20 inches  right now and about five pounds. Need a visual? Hold a five-pound bag of flour in your arms and imagine it's your soon-to-be-born baby (cradle it, and you'll only get strange looks in the baking aisle). Then stack three such bags one on top of the other (and get ready for some more strange looks, maybe from the same clerks who saw you grinning and holding that one-pound box of sugar a few weeks ago). That's how tall your baby is at 34 weeks pregnant. (Now go bake some oatmeal raisin cookies with all that flour!) 
  
If your little doughboy is, well, a boy, then you'll be pleased to know that this week his testicles are making their way down from his abdomen to his scrotum. (Some baby boys — three to four percent — are born with undescended testicles, but they usually make the trip down sometime before the first birthday.) 
  
Your baby's fingernails now reach the end of the fingertips and may even curl over the tip, making a manicure one of the first things you'll need to do for your little bundle.

33 Weeks

Week 33 of Pregnancy: Fetal Immune System

This week your baby may be anywhere between 17 to 19 inches in length and weigh more than four and a half pounds. Your baby could grow a full inch more this week alone — especially if he or she has been on the shorter side until now.

This week your baby may be anywhere between 17 to 19 inches in length and weigh more than four and a half pounds. At this stage in fetal development, your baby  could grow a full inch more this week alone — especially if he or she has been on the shorter side.  Weight gain can range from a third more growth to a full doubling before the big debut.
 
The level of amniotic fluid in your uterus has reached its maximum at 33 weeks pregnant, making it likely that you have more baby than fluid now. That's one reason why you're probably feeling lots of nudges and pushes — there's less liquid to cushion the blows. (Of course that means you're even closer to your baby now!)
 
If your uterine walls had eyes, here's what you'd see: your fetus acting more and more like a baby, with his or her eyes closing during sleep and opening while awake. And because those uterine walls are becoming thinner, more light penetrates the womb, helping your baby differentiate between day and night (now if only baby can remember that difference on the outside!).
And good news! Your baby has reached an important milestone about now: The development of his or her own immune system that (along with
antibodies from you) will be able to provide protection from mild infections.

This picture was taken at a co-worker's (Lulu's) baby shower, all 3 of us work together and are preggo! We are all a month apart, I am due in Sept, the girl Andie in the middle is due in October, and Lulu is due in November! The other two girls are both having Girls, so will I join in and have a girl? Or will It be a little boy that would be lucky to have his pick of two beauties that are going to grow up with him? we shall see!

32 weeks

Week 32 of Pregnancy: Fetal Postion

This week your baby weighs almost four pounds and could be up to 19 inches long. And though that's a head-to-toe length, your baby is actually back to a curled-up position in preparation for birth (you try standing up in those cramped quarters!).

This week your baby weighs almost four pounds and could be up to 19 inches long. And though that's a head-to-toe length, your baby is actually back to a curled-up position (you try standing up in those cramped quarters!). At 32 weeks pregnant, you're likely feeling tapping and squirming instead of your baby's signature rocking and rolling. That's because, while comfy, your baby is a bit tight for exercise space right now. Your baby has also probably settled into the head-down, bottoms-up position in your pelvis in prepartion for birth. That's because the fetus's head fits better at the bottom of your inverted, pear-shaped uterus. It also makes it easier during childbirth if your baby comes out head first. Fewer than five percent of babies prefer the bottom-down (or breech) position by full-term. Don't worry if your baby hasn't assumed the head-down position yet. There's still a good chance he or she will flip head-side-down before birth — even in the tight confines of your uterus. 

 
While your baby is still getting nourishment through the umbilical cord, it won't be long before you'll be bringing on the breast milk or formula (and soon after, the mashed carrots and peas).  In anticipation of that momentous transition to mouth feeding, your baby's digestive system is all set and ready to go.
 
And because your baby is accumulating more fat, his or her skin is finally turning opaque (like yours), which means those see-through days are over.  Though weeks away from D-day, your baby's looking more and more like a newborn. 
 
And speaking of that big day, hope you're resting up for it — because your bambino certainly is. In preparation for that big first date with you, your baby is sleeping like a baby — with sleep cycles of 20 to 40 minutes long .

Last Friday we did another live art and music night at our local coffee shop, and I had a table out there, It was HOT, but we had a lot of fun!
Lisa ( my mother- in- law) came out to help me out!

Here are my tired eyes! It's getting harder to sleep!

Week 31

Week 31 of Pregnancy: Activity in the Womb

Your baby's on a roll, measuring an impressive 18 inches and weighing in at more than three pounds. You can still expect your developing baby to gain at least three to five pounds, possibly more, before you two meet.

As far as growth goes, your baby's still on a roll, measuring an impressive 18 inches and weighing in at more than three pounds. At 31 weeks pregnant, you can still expect your baby to gain at least three to five pounds, possibly more, before you two meet.
 
Your baby's brain is working overtime these days, developing faster than ever.   Connections between individual nerve cells are growing at a frenetic clip, and your baby can now perceive information from all five senses. Sure, your baby can't smell anything right now, but that's only because he or she is still submerged in amniotic fluid and needs to be breathing air to get a whiff of anything. Lucky for you — and your baby — yours will be one of the very first scents your baby breathes in, a scent that will quickly become his or her very favorite.
So what's your little dove doing all day while you're busy feathering your nest for his or her arrival? Making faces, hiccupping, swallowing, breathing, pedaling with little hands and feet along your uterine wall, and even sucking his or her thumb. In fact, some babies suck their thumbs so vigorously while in the womb that they're born with a callus on their thumb (what a little sucker!).

Marc's Sister Ashley came down to visit last week! So glad she did!

I had a wonderful Baby Shower with the ladies from our Church! It was a lot of fun!

Staying Busy

It has been quite a while, since I have shared some of the projects that I have been working on lately. It seems that I get busy and move from one project to another, and I don't take the time to stop and reflect.


This weekend I finished up a custom order for a wedding. Friends of ours are getting Married the first week in Aug, and wanted something "different" than the typical bridal bouquet and corsages made of real flowers, so different is what we did! 

I made the entire Bridal package (bouquets, boutonnieres, and corsages) out of beautiful felt flowers that were hand embroidered and embellished with vintage beads and buttons.

I had a lot of fun tackling this project, and can't wait to see them at the wedding! Here are a few pictures that I took of the final products!

Here is the entire set- Brides Bouquet, Flower Girl Bouquet, 4 Bridesmaids Bouquets  7 Boutonnieres and 4 wrist corsages.