Hazel Avoids Ruining Various Things

I just ordered Blueberry's birth announcements which I will be sending to immediate family (this includes our siblings and their kids) and family who don't use email. I know it's a bit "premature" (sorry) but I am hoping to have them all addressed and stamped so that I can just order a bunch of prints from Shutterfly, hand-write her important info on each card, slip in a photo, and then they will be ready to go soon after her birth. That's the plan, anyway.

I ordered the announcements from Paper Source, a company which I love. I first used this company for my wedding "guestbook" in which I asked guests to write their wishes on a small card and stick it in an envelope, as well as for place cards at the reception entrance telling guests which table they should sit at. (Yes, I told my guests to stick it and sit it.) They've got a lot of great products. Did I mention I love them?

The announcements arrived, they look great, and were packaged excellently for shipping. Everything in the box was recyclable; no foam peanuts or bubble wrap (yes I know you can recycle these but in my town, it's not curbside, which is useless). Instead, the product was packaged with this:


Biodegradable air cushions! They break down in 9-60 months. I plan to put them in the compost bin, which is working out great, by the way. We've been composting all our vegetable waste since this past spring, and the pile is shrinking, decomposing and not smelling. We haven't spread any compost around the garden yet; maybe next spring.

So I emailed their customer service and thanked them for helping me avoid ruining the environment. In return I received an auto-reply, followed by a standard reply thanking me for my comment and saying they would forward it to the appropriate people. I hope the appropriate people see fit to reward my comment with some free products from their lovely company. Otherwise, what's the point?????

In other news, I ruined our dining table.


In the lower left, you'll see my belly has crept into the picture. It has just begun to get in the way in many ways, such as in this photo, and also when I go up to the window to look outside; it arrives at the window first and I have to lean in to get closer. But I digress. See the big white blotches on the table? So do I. These developed because while making curtains for Blueberry's nursery I used the table as an ironing board. I had wrapping paper on the table (to protect it from fabric glue, which is better than thread, in my opinion) and I had a towel on top of that, to protect it from the heat of the iron. It didn't work.

So as with every other problem I have had since 1998, I googled it. The #1 advice on the topic was to lay a white t-shirt on the blotches, then apply an iron to the area on the steam setting. It seemed counterintuitive to use the same method to remove the stains as I did to put them there, but I tried it and it worked terrifically. After:


No sign of the white blotches whatsoever. So, I didn't need to tell Stanley that I ruined our cherished antique table. But I told him anyway. He was alarmed and relieved.

Stanley finished painting the nursery last night!! I'm so excited to put everything in place and take pictures. Also last night, we picked up our new crib from IKEA (thank you, sister Lotus*), along with a crib mattress, and on Friday I assembled our new glider rocker and ottoman (thank you, sister Janis* and bro-in-law Grover*), and I think all of the fabric decor (curtains, basket liners, pillows, etc.) is complete and ready to install. Also on Friday I washed all of Blueberry's clothes and diaper covers (still need to do a 5-wash marathon on the diapers themselves). So in a matter of a few hours the nursery will be DONE!! Of course I will then spend the next 7-12 weeks tweaking it to perfection.

My hip still hurts, but I can walk (slowly), and it feels better or worse depending on my activity level, which is great for my peace of mind because it's not getting steadily worse and it's somewhat within my control. So I'm happy.

*Names changed.

Ow! :( Sympathy Please.

My hip hurts a lot when I walk. It has hurt for two or three weeks but it is getting worse. I stayed home from work yesterday, and Stanley surrounded me and my chair with everything I needed and wanted for the day before he left for work. I sat in the chair all day except for eating and bathroom breaks. Either it didn't help, or I shouldn't have taken that one trip up the stairs to get a Phillips screwdriver to assemble Blueberry's mobile (Fisher Price N8849):


("Mobile": Is that ironic?)

So since I'm not better, it looks like today will be another day of sitting. It really sucks not to be able to tool around the house. I am kind of running out of things that can be done while sitting. Yesterday, in addition to assembling the mobile, I Skyped with Jasmine* and showed her all the fun stuff I've been making for the nursery. I am really excited about it and can't wait to show all y'all, but I would have to do a lot of hobbling around to take pictures, and I'd rather just show you pictures of the nursery when it's done. Other things I did yesterday: made some fabric liners for a set of three little baskets (sized small, smaller, and ittybitty), put a bunch of Blueberry's clothes, towels, etc. in a bag so they can be laundered (wish the machine was not in the basement, or they could already be clean). :( :( I am not happy about this. Everything was going so great. I know this is par for the course with pregnancy but I would rather have more pain somewhere else if it meant I could at least walk around. I have been taking my mobility for granted up until now.

My plan for today:

• Get a phone call from my boss to discuss some data and maternity leave.
• Make a fabric "saddle" and mane and tale ribbons for a rocking horse in the nursery.
• Write some letters, such as to Aunt Martha.
  
• Start filling in Blueberry's baby book with family history, baby shower details, etc.
• Mani-pedi
• Write up a birth plan. We got some helpful tips on that at Monday's birth class. Oh, did I tell you we're taking a birth class? Every Monday night for five weeks. Two sessions down, three to go.
  
• Make pumpkin bread for a church potluck tonight. I'm using this recipe. Stanley put a stool up to the counter, and most of the ingredients and tools are out, so I can sit and make it. I know I'm trying to stay off my hip, but I have to go to the potluck because I have to get sympathy for my hip.

Hey did I mention my hip hurts and I can't walk much? Yeah.

Update: I talked to the doctor today, took some Tylenol, got a massage from Stanley, did some stretching, and I feel much better. Still painful, but manageable.

A Saturday Project

I bought a Moses basket for Blueberry at a yard sale last month. It looks pretty much exactly like this:


Three people who saw me carrying it around voluntarily commented on it. One lady said, "You're going to love that!" SOLD! The woman running the sale said she used it for her son 10 years ago. Her son was there; he looked about 10 years old, and none the worse for wear. SOLD AGAIN! The woman's husband later appeared and said that they used to bring it (with their son in it, I presume) out on the back patio and sip coffee. SOLD AGAIN!

It came with a waterproof bottom cushion and two washable cushion covers, but without a liner. So today, I made one for it:


I am quite thrilled with how it turned out. I made it out of fleece because Blueberry will be using it in the winter to start with (inside, of course), and because fleece is one of the few fabrics that does not require hemming. I didn't even need to sew anything; I just cut 1/2" holes to thread the strips through to attach it to the basket. It's on there pretty good but is easily removable for washing. If you click to enlarge the photo, you can see the fringe I put around the edge. This step is what took the longest but it helps it look more finished.

Since I didn't do much measuring (I much prefer eyeballing when possible), the striped fabric with lots of colors turned out to be very useful to make sure I was keeping it even everywhere. Stanley says it reminds him of Joseph's Coat of Many Colors, so being that it is on a "Moses" basket, it's a virtual testament to the Old Testament. I think I will fill it with stuffed animals, two of each kind, and then banish it from the garden.

I'm ready for Halloween. The candy is next to the door, the porch light is on, and Stanley is at the grocery store, buying, among other things, more candy for the trick-or-treaters. We have enough candy for 34 kids, and it seems like we got more kids than that last year.

In addition to handing out treats tonight, I'll be working on curtains, pillows, and lamp shade decorations for the nursery. When Stanley gets back, he's going to start painting the nursery. It is my utmost hope and, dare I say it, expectation, that in one or two weeks from now I'll be able to post photos of a completed nursery. I'm excited!