I figured this can serve as an intro post, since I would never get around to doing one otherwise and it would be really boring because I wouldn't know what to say. The reason the blog is called XIXMMX is because I'm the worst at coming up with titles for things. Because I knew I couldn't think of a non-embarrassing title of my own, I chose my due date [11 October 2010].
Anyway, I saw one of these surveys on another blog and decided that since I won't be knocked up much longer, I might as well be cheesy and fill it out.
How far along? I'll be 37 weeks on Monday.
How big is baby? At my ultrasound this week, they estimated 18+ inches long and 5 pounds, 11 ounces.
Maternity clothes? No, I think I lucked out big time with that. I didn't want to waste money on clothes I'd never wear again unless I had to, so I have a Bella Band and that's it. Luckily, I don't normally wear supertight stripper clothes, so everything still fits [with the exception of a few shorts that won't button]. I could even button and zip up my JBrand legging jeans on Monday!
Stretch marks? Nope. Since everything I read said it's totally genetic, I decided not to even use lotions or anything. Nobody in my mom's family back to my great-grandmother had stretch marks, so I figured I'd just hope for the best.
Sleep? I'm still sleeping really soundly like I always have. The only thing is I have to deal with about 15 minutes of kicks and shifts from the baby when I lie down and then I can go to sleep. I'm hoping my deep sleeping will miraculously continue with a baby, but I'm not betting on it.
Best moment this week? My mom and husband, S, both admitted that my vegan chocolate chip cookies are better than non-vegan ones. S hates the idea of egg substitutes [I use corn starch and water for cookies] so I know he probably didn't like having to say that.
Food cravings? I have eaten the same things I ate pre-pregnancy this whole time. I was actually hoping for some weird cravings but I have always had a few strange food habits so maybe I was already ahead of myself.
Gender? We will find out when the baby gets here. I'm not sure why not knowing elicits such strong opinions from people, but it's driving almost everyone else crazy. Oddly, I generally hate surprises but I never even considered finding out the sex of the baby.
Also, strangers keep coming up to me out of nowhere and telling me what the baby will be. All of them have guessed girl so far but my mom is really hoping for a boy. There are only girls between her and my uncle and on my dad's side there are 8 girls and only 2 boys. Nearly everyone I know who has had or is having a baby this year is having a boy so I don't know what that means for my odds either way.
Belly button in or out? It's flat but starting to stick out a tiny bit. I'm wondering if it will ever stick out all the way [and kind of hoping it doesn't].
Movement: Yes. While it's stronger now that the kicks are in my ribs and the punches feel like they're going through my abdomen, it isn't as frequent as it was the past several months.
What I miss: Being skinny and having the ability to bend over. Oh and it was really cool back when I could sit at a table and not bump into it with my huge body.
What I'm looking forward to: Having the baby. It's so weird knowing it could happen at any time but not having any idea when it actually will. I also can't wait to find out how it all goes for me, especially doing it in the hospital and all.
I also can't wait to see how our 3 dogs are with the baby. Two of them [Great Pyrenees and German Shepherd] absolutely love babies and kids and the other [a Lab] keeps his distance, I think he's confused by them.
Weekly wisdom: When people are annoying you, tell them they are and hopefully they'll stop. If not, at least they'll know why you started ignoring them. This worked well for me when my mom kept referring to the baby as 'he' and then when she was harassing me about letting her find out the sex, even though we both know she couldn't keep it a secret.
Milestones: Monday will be full term, in theory. Due to my heart-shaped uterus [my mom had the same thing and had issues with me and my sister], I was worried I wouldn't make it past viability. Then, I just wanted to make it to 28 weeks. Now, it looks like everything is going to be fine so I keep telling myself that even if I go past 42 weeks, I won't complain about it.
Have a great weekend!
17 September 2010
13 September 2010
Nursing Pillow and Covers
This is inspired by another adorable Etsy find. I have heard for years that a nursing pillow is a must-have, even for those who don't plan to breastfeed because you can use it when the baby's older to prop him up [before he can sit on his own]. For my baby shower, I was very happy to receive a nursing pillow from one of my parents' friends. It's cute but the pattern and colors were kind of loud and I almost always keep everything plain so I started looking for some covers for it. Oh and also, I imagine they get all kinds of gross things all over them so it can't be a bad idea to have a couple of covers on hand.
My nursing pillow is not made by Boppy so I was unsure if the Boppy covers would fit. The pillow manufacturer never answered my email regarding the size -rude!- so when I was at Target one day and they had the cream organic Boppy cover [very soft, I recommend it],I figured I'd try it. It fit! I guess there is some sort of standard size for nursing pillows, which is very convenient because I came across Lauren Grace's Etsy store where she sells custom nursing pillow covers.
The owner, Karen, makes them to fit a Boppy so once I knew that would fit, I contacted her to see if she still had the alphabet flannel I had seen in one of her listings. She did, but just enough for one side. I already knew I had to have it, so I asked her to set up a custom listing for one cover with pale blue on the back. She doesn't have the original listing up at this time [just convo her for a custom listing] and obviously she could change her prices at any point, but when I ordered she told me it would cost $5 for one cover or $8 for two plus $6 priority shipping.
I just wanted one for now [to alternate with the Boppy cover] so my total was only $11. I could hardly wait to get my cover and see how cute the fabric was in person, so her fast shipping was helpful. I don't know how she even sewed it that quickly! Here's the finished product:
I'm already contemplating ordering another one but making myself wait until the baby is here [I think]. Karen has an assortment of cute printed and solid fabrics [I'm sure she will send you photos of them if you ask] from which to choose, so if you're in need of a cute shower gift or an additional cover for yourself, check out her store! You can't beat her prices. Thanks to this cover, I am now even more excited to use my pillow once my baby gets here!
Note: I just wanted to add that these covers are zippered, unlike many other slip-on styles I found when browsing Etsy. That definitely makes a difference for me!
My nursing pillow is not made by Boppy so I was unsure if the Boppy covers would fit. The pillow manufacturer never answered my email regarding the size -rude!- so when I was at Target one day and they had the cream organic Boppy cover [very soft, I recommend it],I figured I'd try it. It fit! I guess there is some sort of standard size for nursing pillows, which is very convenient because I came across Lauren Grace's Etsy store where she sells custom nursing pillow covers.
The owner, Karen, makes them to fit a Boppy so once I knew that would fit, I contacted her to see if she still had the alphabet flannel I had seen in one of her listings. She did, but just enough for one side. I already knew I had to have it, so I asked her to set up a custom listing for one cover with pale blue on the back. She doesn't have the original listing up at this time [just convo her for a custom listing] and obviously she could change her prices at any point, but when I ordered she told me it would cost $5 for one cover or $8 for two plus $6 priority shipping.
I just wanted one for now [to alternate with the Boppy cover] so my total was only $11. I could hardly wait to get my cover and see how cute the fabric was in person, so her fast shipping was helpful. I don't know how she even sewed it that quickly! Here's the finished product:
I'm already contemplating ordering another one but making myself wait until the baby is here [I think]. Karen has an assortment of cute printed and solid fabrics [I'm sure she will send you photos of them if you ask] from which to choose, so if you're in need of a cute shower gift or an additional cover for yourself, check out her store! You can't beat her prices. Thanks to this cover, I am now even more excited to use my pillow once my baby gets here!
Note: I just wanted to add that these covers are zippered, unlike many other slip-on styles I found when browsing Etsy. That definitely makes a difference for me!
10 September 2010
Cloth Wipes
If you're cloth diapering, these are a must. Even if you're not, these soft cloths can be used to wipe noses, faces, and sticky little hands. I don't sew, so I originally planned to order some organic cotton flannel and use pinking shears to cut it into cloth wipes and hope that they didn't fray much. Since I've read mixed reviews about whether they actually would fray, I went to Etsy [which just happens to be one of my more recent online addictions] to see what affordable organic options there were.
I'm not going to lie, some of the items I came across were a huge rip-off and others were really ugly. While I am more concerned with function than having really cute butt wipes, I didn't want to get something that I would hate looking at, especially considering how much I'll be using them. I also really wanted to pay less than $1 per wipe and when you add in the organic factor, that really narrows the choices down.
Luckily, I came across these wipes by Milk Made Momma and I sent the owner, Becca, a message to see if she could do a custom order. She [currently] sells them in sets of 8 for $7.98 plus $1.60 shipping. I wanted 40 wipes so she set up a custom listing for $30 and $5 shipping. I got my adorable wipes a few days later and all for about 88 cents each. Bonus: I also received a free sample of her Green Tush baby wipe spray with my order so I can't wait to try that out.
In case you're wondering, the wipes came to me already extremely soft and just as cute as expected [the hearts and shamrocks are my favorites]. I washed and dried them the other day and have them stacked on the dresser in the baby's room. I cannot wait to use them so I just had to give her a plug because I am so impressed with the price and how they turned out.
By the way, it just dawned on me that a set of these would make [or complete] a fantastic gift for a new or soon-to-be mom. In fact, I'm bookmarking them now as a go-to baby gift for the future. I always try to give something educational and something practical as well so these are a great addition to my list. Have a great weekend!
I'm not going to lie, some of the items I came across were a huge rip-off and others were really ugly. While I am more concerned with function than having really cute butt wipes, I didn't want to get something that I would hate looking at, especially considering how much I'll be using them. I also really wanted to pay less than $1 per wipe and when you add in the organic factor, that really narrows the choices down.
Luckily, I came across these wipes by Milk Made Momma and I sent the owner, Becca, a message to see if she could do a custom order. She [currently] sells them in sets of 8 for $7.98 plus $1.60 shipping. I wanted 40 wipes so she set up a custom listing for $30 and $5 shipping. I got my adorable wipes a few days later and all for about 88 cents each. Bonus: I also received a free sample of her Green Tush baby wipe spray with my order so I can't wait to try that out.
If you can sew, you might have already made your own wipes, but for those who are challenged in that area like I am or would rather let someone else do the hard part, check out this Etsy shop! Becca is very friendly and seems more than willing to accommodate custom orders. I got 8 of each color and design she offers but if you want all one color or design, she can do that as well. Here's a close up of the designs [click on the photo for more detail]:
In case you're wondering, the wipes came to me already extremely soft and just as cute as expected [the hearts and shamrocks are my favorites]. I washed and dried them the other day and have them stacked on the dresser in the baby's room. I cannot wait to use them so I just had to give her a plug because I am so impressed with the price and how they turned out.
By the way, it just dawned on me that a set of these would make [or complete] a fantastic gift for a new or soon-to-be mom. In fact, I'm bookmarking them now as a go-to baby gift for the future. I always try to give something educational and something practical as well so these are a great addition to my list. Have a great weekend!
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