Sad to say, I have been very slack about sharing baby updates so I thought I'd share the ultrasound pics and give some stats. I'm 20 weeks now. So far, I've gained 3 ibs. I hate the weight gain part. It'd be nice if you could plop out a baby and instantly be that much lighter, but for some reason it doesn't work that way.
I was quite pleased with the lady that did our ultrasound. She was very friendly and took lots of shots. It's amazing to see how far they have come in the past few years, with being able to see and measure the brain, heart, organs, blood flow, etc. You could also see the placenta pack which unfortunately for me in squished under the baby. Which means, if it doesn't move, I'll have to have a c-section. With having very easy child births for my other 2, I really don't want to have a c-section and was looking forward to a nice quick natural birth again. The only plus at this point is that I now get to have more ultrasounds along the way to see if it has moved to where it needs to be. It's very likely that the placenta will move as I get further along, so I'm trying to remain hopeful and try to not think about how I would take my son to school and care for my kids for the weeks that I'm unable to drive if it comes to having to have a c-section. So, baby stats... She's a healthy baby girl! She was very modest for us during the ultrasound, but when the time came to tell the gender, she eagerly spread her legs for us to find out if she was a boy or girl. She had her hands on her face for the majority of the time, but we did get some cute side angles of the face. The lady also did some 4-d shots, but they are always so ugly and weird looking. When I had my ultrasound, I was 18 weeks. My first ultrasound was at 8 weeks. She has grown quite a bit in 1o weeks as you can see from the pictures below of my first ultrasound, where she looks like a sea horse, especially in the bottom picture.
When I was 12 weeks along, I went in for a visit and they couldn't hear the heart beat. I got pretty nervous but the dr assured me that the baby was probably just being too active to find a beat. So she pulled out the ultrasound machine. The baby was bouncing up and down like a little pinball! She was so cute and incredibly active! I wish that I had pictures (or a video) of that visit! I was a little worried that I was going to have an ADD baby on my hands, but fortunately she was much calmer on my last visit.
Nine years ago I said "I do" to my best friend and I haven't regretted a second of it since! It has been quite an adventure :)
Happy Anniversary babe, I Love you!!!
Yesterday the girls left the kids with the guys and we headed to Duplin Winery for a bit of a tasting. It was pretty funny, the 2 Katie's enjoyed the sweet wines, while the other 3 enjoyed the dry :) In case anyone who doesn't know me well has to ask, yes, I spit out everything, I don't want to harm the baby in any way!
The hubby won guy of the year as he took the 3 kids by himself in the kayak down the ocean to the lighthouse. Through the day, he applied liberal sunblock, fed them, bathed them, and cared for them. Then he helped me make dinner. Yeah, he's awesome :)
This week at the beach has been exactly what we all needed, nice and relaxing and time spent together.
Well, I'd hate to say it was a bust, but that's pretty much what it was. The first 30 minutes went really well, with 2 flowers sold and a pack of notecards, then after that there was no business. People just weren't buying anything- from anyone. By 12:30 the crowds had dispersed, food trucks pulled away, and by 2 all of us had packed up and gone home. Oh well. I did get more people interested in custom orders....I guess I really need to get my etsy shop up and running again. The hubby suggested that I make my prices more expensive on Etsy so that these people will turn around and buy at the market. We'll see. I guess I need to take pictures and get things listed, as well as have a set Saturday that I sell at the market. Ugh. Sounds like a lot of effort.
On the plus side, the day went much better personally. The morning was nice and cool, they set me up in the shade (even still, I got a sunburn, haha, poor pale me!), I had a jug of ice water, fruit and peanut butter sandwiches to keep me stable. Also, I was set up next to a friend that was there painting faces -she got lots of business, finally, so I'm happy for her! And KennaKat was there to keep me company and talk to onlookers when I felt they needed a cute little person to talk to instead of an adult thinking "please buy my stuff, please buy my stuff!" in a casual, "buy , don't buy, whatever" attitude :-)
I liked my table set up too :-) If I'm going to do another market, I really need to plan ahead of time and start making an item a day. I keep killing myself the week of, frantically making things to display. I have no time to get anything done, except take and pickup Ethylwolfe from school, make dinner, and slightly entertain KennaKat. It's exhausting. One thing that stinks about working from home is that even though you're working all day and late into the night, people still expect you to do stuff around the house like a person who is doing nothing. And I HATE cooking. But the hubby has been supportive and tolerant of my exhausted, pregnant self.
It's pretty funny, at the beginning, KennaKat did NOT want any type of body painting at all. But Jamie won her over by painting a butterfly. She liked that so much, she got a rainbow and flowers, then on her other arm, a peacock feather. After that she was talking about getting her whole face painted. If we stayed all day, she would have had a full body painting I'm sure!
So that's our day. I may set up in October, we'll just have to wait and see!!
My first experience at the Art Market was just that...an EXPERIENCE!! I didn't get to sell as many things as hoped but you'll understand why in a minute... Ok, so for some crazy reason, they wanted us to set up 2 hours ahead of when the Rodeo was actually starting. So we visited RTP at 9am that morning, left after the talk and headed over to set up (after grabbing loose change at Costco that I had forgotten about until then).
Arriving on time at 10:30, the hubby and I quickly set up my table. (see above) Then he took the kids and went home. The set up of my table took no more than 10 minutes, so for the next hour and fifty minutes, I visited with the other sellers and basically sweated myself to death in a hot dress, as I didn't check the forecast for the day and when we left for the meeting at 8:30, it was chilly.
SO... me, sweating, hot dress, bored. That was where I was. To add to my turmoil, I hadn't eaten since 8:30 that morning and my breakfast consisted of a cinnamon roll that hubby made. Not a hardy meal whatsoever. Needless to say, my anemia was kicking in full swing, I could feel myself growing weak and light-headed and was STARVING! At 12, I asked someone to watch my table as I went in search of a food truck who was open. No go. They wouldn't open until 12:30. So for 30 minutes, I sat, sweated, and grew fainter. Oh and they decided to move my table to the other side of the road, and I was now in full sun. Boo. The gum that I chewed on made me shaky, and I felt like I was going to lose it. The lady across the way gave me her hand fan and said that I needed it more than her. The fanny motion depleted the last of my energy. How SAD.
As soon as 12:30 hit, I left my table and walked to the nearest food truck that didn't make me want to hurl from it's smell. I landed at a little 'pizza by the slice truck' that had an inviting OPEN flag blowing in the wind. As I stood there, waiting for service, I grew weaker by the second. Finally the owner came to the window, I inquired about some garlic cheesy bread, the owner said it was delicious and then said that they wouldn't be open for another 5 minutes. UGH!!
Off I walked to the next food truck. It wreaked of onions and Greek food. As I'm trying to politely walk away, the worker started spelling out in detail every item on the menu. By this point, I was about to pass out, so I took a U-turn for the market store's AC that was just up the road. My hearing went blank, I turned white, people and smells were everywhere, and I could hardly walk. But I refused to pass out in the street, REFUSED! So I kept walking.
As I neared the market window, the owners saw me, ran out, grabbed me, and dragged me to the AC. They gave me water and fruit and while I was cooling off, they carried my table into their store and said that I needed to stay in with the AC. I was so GRATEFUL!! But the 2 dried apricot slices that I ate didn't last long and I was still starving and weak.
After a while, a sister from another hall came in to check on me, and I asked her to watch my table while I grabbed some food. 15 minutes later!! I finally got to eat my cheesy bread. It was yummy, but veeeeeeery tiny, we're talking -flatter than toast, small, and slightly cheesy. NOT what I was expecting for $5. I was so disappointed, and so was my tummy.
For the next few hours, I sat in the store, that was growing hotter by the second, as the entire store front was opened up and the AC was flowing outside. It rained for a few minutes, then got cooler outside. I looked out longingly at the now shady, empty spot that was my table's previous location. For the 3 hours that I spent in the store, I got no business at all. The store did. But the customers thought I was an employee, as I was near the door and greeted everyone who entered. I had many people "look" at my stuff, but they were inside this pricey shop to buy cool, expensive, metal art...not my flowers. UGH. Oh and I got MANY inquiries for custom orders and hair clips, but silly me, I forgot my business cards and I made ZERO hair clips. Bummer!
So for 3 hours, I sat and envied the outside where I might possibly have business. Determined to sell SOMETHING and not end my day in hormonal tears, I finally got up and asked the sister to help me move my table back to it's previous location, and she and her daughter willingly helped me get re-setup outside. With only an hour to go, I was able to sell 2 headbands and 2 sets of stationery. I also saw many friendly faces as the family and lots of friends stopped by to say hi. I actually had business at this point, so I couldn't really chat. Yay! The hubby sent some slices of bread that he had made with melted brie on top for me to eat. And Eitak got me my favorite -Juicy Buns from the Chirba Chirba truck. Even after I gobbled these things down, I still couldn't gain my strength back, I was weak and shaky the rest of the time.
4:30 ended the market and so we cleaned up and headed home. After cleaning up some and trying to cool off, I still felt terrible. We were going to play some bridge, but I needed to go to bed. Shortly after I got in bed, I RAN full speed to the toilet. Turns out, I got the Hubby's stomach bug that he had for a few days prior. NO WONDER I felt miserable and achy all day!! Ugh. I knew I should have stayed in bed that morning.
All in all, the experience was good. I received a very positive reaction with my flowers and other merchandise. The table I was set up next to, were the husband and wife owners of Bully City Craft, and they loved my flowers, notebooks, and stationery -yeah, everything on my table- and want to sell them in their store...SWEET! I received custom orders -yay for future business! And aside from one lady who threw my flower down in horror once I told her it was made from 100% wool (she's severely allergic to wool), everyone loved my flowers. Yay! It was a nice boost for my very insecure self.
So the question is: Will I do it again? YES! I learned a lot from this experience, and everyone was super friendly and helpful. It was nerve racking and of course a huge disaster with my anemia, but I know what I need to do next time. And I am prepared. I will be set up this Saturday for Centerfest from 9-6. So please, come out, check on me, and bring me FOOD! haha! I Kid, I kid...
I've got lots of new ideas for displaying my stuff better. And I've been making flower rings which I LOVE! There will be even more notebooks for the paper lovers, more stationery, hair clips, and whatever else I decide to throw in the mix before then.
I've put them on rings!!! I am not a ring person, but I am quite in love with this one! They'll be making their debut at Centerfest this Saturday on Hunt Street! 9am-6pm come and check em out!
(sorry for the blurry picture, it's dark outside right now :-)
Working hard to get things ready for the art market tomorrow.
This is my first public showing and I'm a bit nervous. But Jeanne from Not Your Family Jewels, convinced me to come out and give it a try. I've been working for over a week to get as much made and put together as possible. Along with the flower pins and headbands, I've also made some stationery sets and notebooks with hand-carved stamps and all. There's a food truck rodeo coming to town, and the Art Market at Vega Metals is having a special art day. I'll be set up from 12:30-4:30 on Hunt Street, so come on by!! I'd love to see some friendly faces and who can resist the 40+ food trucks that will be set up all over with their enticing smells and unusual cuisines?! Above is the new look of my boxes and below is a peak of my hand-carved and stamped handmade stationery sets, SO CUTE! If you love paper as much as I do :)
My dear boy, you didn't get the memo. You aren't supposed to get older. Time is supposed to stand still and I'm supposed to be able to never feel like you're getting older and becoming more independent. You're my little man, you always have been and today, you turn 7...I'm not ready for this... You're in second grade. You're a fantastic reader. Your smart, creative, kind, silly, a protector of your sister, and you are growing before my eyes. If time could stand still, maybe I'd have time to gather all of the wonderful moments into a jar for me to keep forever, and maybe then, I'd be OK with you growing up. I'd be eager maybe for time to move on so that I could collect more moments into my Special Moments jar. I know I can't keep you still in time, it isn't fair, and I know that there are many more wonderful things for you to accomplish that only time is standing in your way to do. You want to give talks, get baptised, you want to drive a car, you want to travel around the world and build Kingdom Halls for our brothers and sisters. I know you say you don't want to get married, but maybe someday you will, then I'll get to meet your beautiful bride that I know you will treat with tender affection, and maybe you'll have children, and oh boy, I'm gonna be the best grandma ever. But only time will allow these things to come. Time that I have no control over. So I look at the moments behind and the ones to come, bitter-sweetly I greet them and watch them come and go. Today my boy, you are 7. When you were born, there was a terrible hurricane that was named after me. I cried with joy the moment we first met. I knew then that you were something special, and you haven't proved me wrong yet. You are such a sweet, kind and thoughtful person. I love you.
A dear friend wasn't able to join us at the Convention this year and we all wanted to let her know she was sorely missed. As I walked through the halls, I bumped into many friends of hers who happily posed for my camera so that we could show her that even though she wasn't there in Body, she was there in spirit and on the minds of all her friends.
So Tricia Jane, this is for you. We look forward to the day that you are fully back to yourself again and can enjoy all the things in Jehovah's Organization that you love so much!
A quick summary of our Summer through mostly pictures and a small bit of dialogue from me... The Very First day of summer vacation, we loaded up the car, picked E up from school and headed to Virginia. 4 hours and one speeding ticket later, we arrived in Chesapeake Bay at First Landing Campground, greeted friends, and set up camp. The campsite was on the Bay, but we were just a short drive away from VA Beach. The beach was crowded. The water, take your breath away cold. The weather, HOT. The sunsets, Take Your Breath Away Gorgeous. We had a great weekend visiting friends and making new ones. The kids (and adults) had a blast! E got to sleep in a separate tent with his bud for the first time, he LOVED it! The campground sat under tons of large live oak trees, it was awesome and made the perfect spot for hanging the hammock and relaxing the day away. This trip marked the beginning of summer. Fun and Perfect. A friend in the hall is starting Kindergarten this year. Her parents threw a nice party in their back yard. All the kids from our hall were there (all 30 of them) then there were friends from surrounding congregations. Everything was so organized with the help of the friends and their large family. They had tons of fun crafts for the kids to do. Everything was Mickey and Minnie Mouse themed, with mouse ears and everything. They had face painting by Jamie of Jamie's Paint Boxes. A Professional Photographer (my sis-in-law) Sarah, of Sarah Michelle Photography. Cotton candy (somehow the hubby and I got put on cotton candy duty...it was yummy). And freshly popped pop corn for the outdoor Disney movies that were played after dark. It was really nice. And a lot of fun spending time with the friends. The kids got to meet their Great Grandmother for the FIRST time!! My Grandmother, is 82 years old. She is the most independent woman I've ever known. This woman can literally do anything. From being an amazing cook to making & sewing leather seats for her husbands newly restored hot rod. She also has a wickedly green thumb. She can grow anything. Seriously, she's awesome. She's lived in almost every single state in the US. And when she was young, she was the spitting image of Ingrid Bergman. My Grandfather passed away 8 years ago this August. He was the best story teller around. We called him Papa Bear. She lives in a state that's a 12 hour drive from us and 500 miles away from her closest child. She's a Regular Pioneer. She fell and broke her hip in January and she is still pioneering. My role model. She flew in for a week to stay with her oldest son, my dad, and go with him to the convention. My dad had us over to his place after the meeting so we went over for the day and went to his meeting and had dinner with the family. The kids fell instantly in love with their great grandma! I see a road trip in the near future!!! I wish we lived closer to them. When I was 7 they moved out of state and have moved farther and farther away from us over the years. It really stunk not having them close by to get to know better and be apart of each other's lives. When I was 5, my grandmother taught me how to cook. She taught my sister how to sew. We would always joke that put together, we'd make a pretty awesome house wife! To this day, my sister doesn't cook, and I can't sew. My sister sells her own clothing line and I...don't own my own restaurant. But I still enjoy cooking. My Grandmother is a pretty amazing woman and I'm thankful that my kids finally got to meet her. I hope that they will get to enjoy many more visits with her and get to know her a lot better. Oh and did I mention, my Grandmother owns an Iphone...and I don't. Love you Grandma! Story-Time and the Park with Friends. Seriously, I KNOW I've taken more pictures than this. I know I'll find them eventually. But for now, this is all I've got. deal. A short trip to Myrtle Beach with the 2 kids and friends and almost cousins. Short and sweet. The water was perfect. We went to dinner at an all you can eat crab leg bar. I ate all I could. The baby in my belly did not thank me. I probably ate near 20 ibs of crab legs. Yeah, I regretted it. Can you believe that I've been to the beach twice this year and I didn't get burned?! Thank you spf 80! And last but not least, there was a kid party thrown by some friends for all the kids in the area that were interested. They had an awesome large water slide that I'm pretty sure X-rays would confirm whiplash for anyone who rode it. I was bummed that I couldn't give it a go. Perhaps next summer when there isn't a little bundle of sweet life growing in my belly! So this sums up our summer. (Not really) but I'm out of pictures. It's funny how at some events I remember to pull out my camera, and other times I forget completely. Oh well. All in all, for only 5 1/2 weeks of summer vacation, we packed in a lot of fun events. There's more to tell, but I have mommy brain and I'm sure you're completely burned out by this long, over stimulating post. Tah tah for now!
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