STILL working on the longies!

Joining in the Yarn Along today!

As you can see, I'm still working on the Osprey longies.  It has been slow going because the baby is sleeping so restlessly these days... but they have also been a huge learning experience for me.  I've made a bunch of mistakes, probably because I work on them late at night when I'm tired, and I've learned how to fix so many of them!

I've learned how to rip out rows without dropping stitches, and I've learned how to pick up stitches that I accidentally dropped a row before, and I've learned how to begin a new ball of yarn mid-project, among other things.

I'm very happy with how these are coming out and can't wait to finish!  I only have one leg to go so I know that I'll be finished in a few days.  I didn't do a gauge so they're coming out a little big but I'm hopeful that it won't be too bad and that the baby will still be able to wear them this fall and winter.

I'm reading Buddha in the Attic.  I picked it up spur of the moment the other day and I'm very happy I did.  It's a really quick read (I only have a chapter to go) and its fascinating to think of how hard life must have been for the "picture brides" from Japan a century ago.  It's a little depressing, too.  Still, well worth the read!



Yarn Along

(Belatedly) joining Ginny Jonny (ha!) for the Yarn Along.

I'm still working on my Osprey pants for the baby.  The body went quickly but I've had a couple setbacks with the legs.  They're going nicely now but I'm not a fan of double pointeds, at least not yet.  They're so awkward to hold.

The knitting would be going faster if the baby was sleeping better.  He has been very restless this week so it's kind of 'knit a row, nurse baby, knit a row, nurse baby.'

Still, I'm hopeful that I'll finish them by next week.

I'm currently reading the patchwork chapters of this beautiful copy of The Sewing Encyclopedia that my mother lent me. I'm starting my very first patchwork quilt and I'd like it to be finished by this winter. So far the book has been very helpful... though it's a bit overwhelming. The 'encyclopedia' part is right. It has everything!

How about what I'm watching, too? I don't have cable hooked up yet so I usually pop a DVD in and play it on low to keep me entertained while I knit. The volume has to stay pretty low because the baby is sleeping only a few feet away but it still makes good background noise.

So these days I alternate between watching NCIS Season 3 (I love that show! It's by far the classiest crime drama on television.) and watching Jane Austen movies (Pride & Prejudice and Persuasion.) The weird thing is that I can switch between them in a single night.

My mood changes easily, apparently.



Fluffy Mail

I had several packages waiting for me when I got home from our trip. I really love getting packages in the mail!

The first was three extra workhorse fitteds since I'm planning to transition Deacon into fitteds and wool whenever possible - especially overnight. He's already in size large and I really love the fit. The elastic is so gentle! I'm thinking of destashing my prefolds (he is outgrowing them and its getting difficult to put them on the wigglier he gets) and getting some more workhorses. I can alternate quite happily between those and the Swaddlebees Simplex and then my entire stash will be nice, simple 100% cotton dipes with a good fit on my chunkster.

I also had a package waiting from Quince & Co!

A brown paper package, so of course I had to start singing 'My Favorite Things' from The Sound of Music. Now, I don't know much about yarn, but I'm just in love with the Osprey. Its so cushy and soft and the color 'marsh' is a perfect deep green that will look very handsome on the baby.

I'm a little disappointed in the Lark, however. It sounded like it would be good at showing off the cabling of the Milo vest I'm planning, which is why I bought it, but the texture is only so-so, I think.  My mother says its a good yarn and she knows more about this sort of thing. Also, the color is nothing like what was pictured! The color is 'honey' so one would expect it to he somewhat honey-like, yes? Some sort of orange, tan, or amber? Thats what was pictured. Instead, I got olive green. Straightforward olive green. I don't know about you but I've never seen honey that color! Still, I think the color may make a nice vest in the end. Here's hoping!

My last package wasn't actually mailed. My sister is lucky enough to live a couple blocks from Mountain Rose Herbs so I picked up an order of herbal tea and some herbs to make my own diaper balm (calendula, comfrey, chamomile.) I'm modifying recipes I've seen a couple different places, going mostly off Ginny's recipe for bottom salve on Small Things.

So I packed the herbs in a mason jar and set it in the sun to steep for a couple weeks. I've noticed this is almost the same recipe used in my brother in law's Three Sevens tattoo balm - minus St Johns Wort and Chickweed. So it must be quite versatile. I can't wait to finish it!

I also got a copy of The Amish Kitchen Cookbook from my sister. It has some good simple hearty recipes.  I'm excited to try them out.

Finished Soaker

I finished washing and lanolizing the baby's first wool soaker the other day and I'm in love with them.  He wears them over his GMD workhorse fitted diapers and between the two of them it seems so comfortable and breathable.  The elastic on the workhorses is so gentle.  I'm so pleased with how the soaker came out and I can't wait to knit up some more.  One is not enough to get us through the day every day.

We have been going to the park in the mornings when its cool to let my sister swing (her favorite pastime.)  So I took some pictures of the baby modeling his new soaker.

He seems happy in it, doesn't he?

Yarn Along

Joining Ginny's Yarn Along today.

We were on vacation last week so I didn't work on a project per se, I just knitted a quick I-cord for the baby's wool soaker and also knit up another square for the patchwork blanket I'm (slowly) working on.

A couple days ago, however, I began my new project... a pair of longies out of the new Osprey yarn I just received.  I really like this yarn!  I love the color (marsh) and I love the texture and the fact that it never splits.  This is my first time knitting on circular needles and so far I love them.  They're so much easier and the project is going so quickly!  I hope to get them finished by next week... that is, if I don't get distracted by the pair of bamboo shorties I want to make.  Or the other five things.

I'm still finishing up The Wet Nurse's Tale so today I took a picture of a book I'm not so much reading as glancing at now and then when I walk by.  My mother gave it to me and once in a while a quote from it catches me and makes me think.

Impromptu Vacation

Where to start?

 My father took my younger sister on a camping trip over the weekend, so Deacon and I used the opportunity to visit my sister in Eugene. We enjoyed ourselves so much that we stayed a whole week.  I really liked that city and wish I could still live there.

There was something so comforting about going back to the house where the baby was born. I've always loved my sister's house, even though with two kids and a work-at-home business it can be a little chaotic. But there is something reassuring about it. My sister is so even-keeled, her children are sweet and precocious and so dear to my heart. Plus, the smell of her house always reminds me of my aunt's house when we were children - a smell I can't really put my finger on - a kids soap, fresh air, sunscreen and popsicle type smell. I loved visiting my aunt so it brings back good memories.

Deacon and I slept in my niece's princess bed which worked remarkably well considering how small it was. He woke a bit more through the night than usual but not bad. Every morning when we went downstairs my nephew was already up, bright eyed and bushy tailed, and we got to spend a little time together just the three of us before the rest of the house woke up. Deacon adores his cousins. He loves watching them. I can tell he's learning so much.

I admired my niece's curly bob so much that I asked my brother-in-law to cut mine just like it! All I was doing was keeping my hair in a bun anyway. It turned out so well I think I may make him my official stylist!

By the end of the week both the baby and I were tired so it was good to go home... but even though the peace and quiet and routine of home are nice, it seems a bit lonely after all the life and noise of the other house. And it really makes me want a yard - just a little place to sit and look at something green. My tiny balcony garden doesn't quite cut it.

All in all I'd say the week did me good. I came home with a fresh perspective and a bit more of a plan on how to get this little family where I want it to be.

making paper stars with my niece and nephew

going for a walk

taking the kids to the park

daisies

Deacon's cousins swinging

my new hair, kinda blurry (my niece took the photo)

i jusy love this photo

A Series of Unfortunate Events

The past day has been such a comedy of errors. It's hilarious to me how a day can be chugging along peacefully, then take a wrong turn and be completely derailed.

It started yesterday afternoon after my mother came by to show me how to increase a stitch by knitting the front and back. We had been talking about enjoying the simple things. The baby was playing happily so, when she left, I decided to bake a cake. I had all the ingredients for a spice cake (I thought.)

Halfway through the recipe I realized I was missing some key ingredients. (Baking powder, for one. Did it grow legs and walk away?) so I loaded the baby and my sister into the car and ran to the store. By the time I got back, I was a hot sweaty mess, the baby was crying, I was tripping over toys, I realized I was still missing one ingredient, the spaghetti was overcooked and the kitchen a mess. The cake turned out bland and I didn't have the ingredients to make a frosting (of course) so I threw cream cheese, half and half, brown sugar, vanilla, and butter in the blender. Thankfully, it didn't turn out half bad.

Now, while I was dealing with all this, what I wasn't doing is putting the baby down for his four thirty nap. Eventually, he demanded it... at six o'clock. He woke up close to seven. (His bedtime is usually seven thirty.) So my little guy was wide eyed and bushy tailed until a little after nine.

By that point, I was so tired I only got a few rows of knitting done before going to bed myself.

Tomorrow is a new day, I told myself.

Ah ha! Fool!

The baby woke up extra early this morning. Then I proceeded to spill a bowl of oatmeal beneath the burners on the stove. Before I had even had a sip of coffee, the baby had somehow managed to worm his way off his naked-time sheet and poop on the carpet. Every time I tried to oh-so-carefully extract him, he would flail and roll until the only way to get him clean was to give him a bath. Then scrub the carpet. (Came out beautifully with some Tide and a wet rag.) We were also having behavior issues with my sister this morning. I managed to shovel some oatmeal in my mouth before the baby started crying for his nap... all of this before nine a.m.

So I went to bed with the baby.

When he wakes up, I think the only sensible thing to do is take a vacation day from life today. We'll go to the park and play and eat fast food for dinner. The clothes will remain unfolded, the floors unswept, a million things undone. The world is trying to tell me, through a series of unfortunate events, that we need a break today... and also to never try to bake a spur of the moment cake at four p.m. ever again.

I wonder what it is about being a mother that makes us feel like we need to have everything perfect every day? What inner compulsion causes us to try to be domestic superwomen? It must be some internal drive to control the environment surrounding our children, to give them a 100% perfect world tailor made just for them. It's totally impossible. So I'm going to try to wrap my head around that right now and save myself a lot of aggravation in the long run.

Now, time to restart my day.

Yarn Along

Something about a new baby makes me extremely crafty.  I'm not sure why.  Something about trying to make the home cozy for him, probably.  Either way, I have an incredible To Do list, among them three or four knitting projects. 

Yes, I've found the knitting habit.  I'm just learning and having tremendous fun.  So I decided to play along with the Small Things Yarn Along - since I so enjoy reading everyone elses WIPs.

It's not very romantic looking with a Nook, is it?

Technically I took these photos last week and the project has already come off the needles.  It's a wool diaper cover.  It's all stitched up but I do still have a couple rows of ribbing to knit for the leg holes.  It was fun and didn't take terribly long... I think about two weeks from start to finish?  (Assuming I finish the legs by the end of this week.)  My mother helped me pick out the wool.  It's a worsted weight malabrigo and very soft. 

Right now I'm reading (or trying to -- who has the time with all this knitting?) The Wet Nurse's Tale by Erica Eisdorfer.  It might not sound like a terribly fascinating topic but it's remarkably entertaining!  Very well written, with a warm, engaging heroine who is chubby and good hearted and matter-of-fact.  I get the sense that the author did a lot of research to make it historically accurate... and I appreciate a book that writes about the Regency period through a point of view other than the aristocracy.  It's fun to read about what life was like for the lower-middle class.

And in other news, I'm making this for dinner:

Spicy Corn Cheese soup. 

I hope it turns out as good as it smells!



A Day of Milestones

It has been one of those days, a trying sort of day. Both the baby and I have been out of sorts for a couple days. We haven't been sleeping well and Deacon's tummy has been upset. So we've had a lot of fussing and tears... but we've also had good things. Lots of good things.

Today was a day of firsts. Deacon did a full roll from back to front! I misses it, of course. I set him on his sheepskin with a toy, turned to clean the table, turned back and it took a minute to register that he was in an entirely new position - and playing with a different toy! My excitement made him smile and look so pleased with himself.

He also found his toes. He was grabbing them all night.

He also had his first taste of something other than milk. We're delaying solids until he shows he's ready for it... but my pediatrician recommended some very diluted pear juice to help his constipation. He just seems so uncomfortable so I gave it a try.

He loved his bottle! Every time I pulled it away he grabbed it with his chubby hands and pulled it back to his mouth. No progress on the poo front but I'll repeat the bottle tomorrow if nothing happens.

It was a hard day but a good day. These new milestones serve as a reminder that he is changing so fast and that even cranky days are things to cherish.

did ya see it mom? did ya?!

i rolled!

yummy

does this taste good?

(Very) Happy Birthday To Me

Today is my birthday.

I've never cared much for my birthdays and, to be honest, I forgot about this one completely.  My mother reminded me about two days ago. 

Thinking back on my 28th year, however, I feel nothing but peace and satisfaction.  It was a rough year, to be sure, but growing is always painful.  One year ago I had just found out I was pregnant.  It was not a welcome surprise.  I went through months of godawful vomiting and was so depressed I barely wanted to crawl out of bed.  I moved.  I had a baby.  I discovered faith.  I moved again.

Life going into year 29 is so completely different than year 28 that I can hardly recognize it as the same life.  I certainly don't feel like the same person.

I could never have imagined the journey God set me on last year... and I am so very thankful he did.

Here is my 28th year in pictures:

 not looking particularly happy?

baby shower, feeling better but still not thrilled

 family visiting after delivery

joy looks like this

we're having fun now

29th birthday

Breastfeeding Update

I didn't want to only document the hard stuff so I thought I would do an update on our breastfeeding.

Basically, the struggle is over.  Things are going really well and have been for some time!  There are no more nursing strikes, no more breast refusal (the baby is always willing to nurse), no more pulling off and crying (though we do pull off to stare at pretty things these days -- distractable baby!)

I've been taking domperidone for two and half months and my supply has evened out.  I have plenty of milk for the baby throughout the day and night... but he does still need an evening bottle.  He takes about 2.5oz before bed.

Bah, breastfeeding advocates will say, that's such a miniscule amount.  You must only be doing that for convenience.

That's what I would think.  But the fact of the matter is, I have tried multiple times to wean him off this last bottle.  He doesn't get cranky or fuss or cry, so it's certainly not a convenience issue.  The fact is, he can go a day or two on breastmilk alone.  But by the third day he is ravenous.  He nurses nonstop (with no swallowing) and just can't get enough milk.  So I break down and give him a bottle and he positively chugs 4oz in one go.

Clearly, while 2.5oz isn't much in a single day, doing without it every day is just slightly less calories than my growing boy needs.  So the lack of calories adds up and a few days into it he's starving.

I figured out this pattern last month.  Since then, I have accepted the fact that my baby is almost completely breastfed but really does need that last little bit.  If my right breast had more milk producing glands I would be able to make up a 2.5oz difference easily.  But as things stand, I'm just slightly short of the goal of exclusively breastfeeding.

I'm ok with that.

I'm proud of how far we've come, he and I.  Our breastfeeding relationship was so rocky and full of frustration (for both of us, I'm sure) that to have this easy, playful, bonding time now means the world to me.  I'm grateful for what we have and I'm not asking for anything more.

I believe breastfeeding is vitally important, physically and emotionally, for both mommies and babies.  Choosing formula is anyone's right and it doesn't make them bad mothers.  Their children will still grow up healthy and happy.  But it does make me sad on their behalf for the precious experience they and their children will miss out on.

Funny thing: lately he loves to grab my nose and hang onto it while he nurses. It is hilarious.

Stripping

No, I haven't taken up a new career.

I mean stripping diapers.

For some reason when I began cloth diapering I ignored all this talk about stripping. I didn't know what strange things other people were doing with their diapers but I was sure I wouldn't need to strip mine any time soon.

Fast forward two months.

I'm not sure which change caused the problem. We moved, so we have slightly harder water and a new HE washer. We switched detergent... but is it the new detergent (Country Save) or is it that the new low residue detergent has loosened all the gunk leftover from when I used a Free and Clear brand? Is it too much detergent or not enough? And what is that smell, anyway? It's not ammonia or barnyard. It's just... musty. I suspect a possible buildup of urea? But wouldn't that lead to ammonia? Its most definitely not ammonia.

Oh dear.

The laundry situation is definitely the most confusing part about using cloth.

So I decided to strip my diapers. My first attempt failed utterly but this time around I seem to have gotten it. The diapers smell fresh and clean. So I decided to write down my stripping method because, knowing me, I won't remember the next time I need it.

First I did a deep clean with Tide Ultra (in case it was a not clean enough problem.) Rinse. Hot wash with 1 squirt of Dawn and 1/3 cup of bleach. Rinse, rinse. Overnight baking soda soak. 1/2 cup vinegar rinse. Rinse, rinse, rinse, rinse, rinse, rinse, rinse... so many suds were coming off. It was amazing. Maybe that baking soda soak really loosened deep residue. Anyway, I rinsed the whole day until I didn't see any more soap. Tumble dry.

Fresh diapers.

It's a real pain in the ass though and I hate to see what it does to my electric bill. So hopefully I only have to do it every few months.

Grammy's House

We really enjoy visiting Grammy's house.  She always gets a huge smile out of the baby.  Plus she feeds us and lets us sit on the swing in her garden.  Today there was a gentle breeze and we had a nap on the swing.

I've been threatening her with making a Pinterest for her for a while.  She has a definite interior design touch.

Happy 4th of July!

We spent a low key holiday at the park and at grammy's house.

Happy 4th of July!

Blog Change

I decided to change the title of my blog. 

The old title is too clinical and really doesn't describe what this blog is all about.  It's not about a parenting method.  It's about the life I'm trying to build with my son. 

But I can't think of anything good.

Hmmm...

How Can He Be This Big Already?

My little man is getting so big these days.

We just bought a highchair and he is enjoying sitting in it with a favorite toy and watching while we eat dinner. 

He's also quite interested in toys and blowing spit bubbles on mama's neck.

He has learned to arch his back when I'm trying to change his diaper or put him in the carseat.

Speaking of carseats, he was too tall for his infant carseat and has now graduated to a big boy Graco convertible.  He looks a lot more comfortable in this style... but SO BIG!

He has begun to (loudly) express himself when something displeases him.

He is wearing 6-9 month onesies and 12 month pants.

He loves to move his feet (walk) while I hold him by the arms.  He will direct me where he wants to go.  (Usually to his toys or on adventure clear across the room.)

He adores naked time.  He lays on a sheet with some toys and kicks around there for a half hour at a time, happy as a lark.

He is finally enjoying tummy time.  He wriggles like a worm and actually manages to move about a foot in any direction.  I'm very glad that I followed my instincts and held off on "enforcing" tummy time when he was younger.  Neither he nor I was ready for tummy time at one month old!  He hated it.  He loves it now.  He has hit all his developmental milestones without forcing him to do something he was not ready for.

He has found his knees.  He pats them.  Next up: feet.

He loves books.  He sits in my lap and we read six (short) books a night before bed.  His favorite is Dr. Seuss "The Things You Can Think."

Every day with him is more of a blessing than anything I ever expected in life.

Little Routines

As we settle into our new home, we also settle into a routine of sorts. Anything can happen during the afternoons but our mornings and evenings have a rhythm to them.

In the evening, once we finish dinner dishes, its time to play with toys. Then we read books, have our evening bottle, and a bath. Then jammies and bedtime.

Our mornings start with a little snuggling in bed, then the baby sits in his bouncy chair with a favorite toy (a cow rattle) while I shower. I am so grateful for a baby who lets me shower! Both of us are dressed, we come downstairs so he can sit in his swing and play with toys while I have coffee and breakfast.

Its a simple routine that works for us... that is, unless the baby wakes up at 4 in the morning with a leaking diaper. I changed him and cuddled up to him again, thinking he would go back to sleep. No such luck this time. To his credit, he's a happy baby in the wee small hours, and he let me sleep off and on (more off than on) until 8. If you can call it sleep.

So this morning instead of a shower and getting dressed, I wrapped my naked baby i na Winnie the Pooh blanket and stumbled downstairs for coffee first thing. At first he seemed bewildered by this change but he's going with the flow (babies are good at that.)

So much for starting church this week. I can't wait for our morning nap!

my little monkey

breakfast while working

on meal plans

he loves that giraffe