Bump Watch: 32 Weeks

So excited that we are in the final home stretch!  We had our 32 week check-up and ultrasound this week and baby looks great!  Highlights:

    * Baby's heart rate was 180 ... again!  Just goes to show how active she still is!  Avery was always between 140 & 150, so if the heart rate has any correlation with a baby's personality and temperament outside of the womb, we are in for a real surprise with this one!
     * The first thing the ultrasound tech pointed out was the head of hair!  Avery was born with a full head of dark hair and I think it would just be adorable if this baby had it too!  Only time will time!
     * Baby weighed in at 4 lbs. 4 oz. at 32 weeks (FUN FACT: Avery measured 4 lbs. 6 oz. at 33 weeks).  So I'm going to say we will be holding a 7 lb baby in 7 weeks!

                      Baby #2 at 32 weeks                                                         Avery at 32 weeks

Pinned this, Made that: Halloween Chain

I love decorating for Halloween and try to incorporate a few new things each year into my collection.  This year I am trying to be good and not spend much on holiday decorations (too many bins of decorations + baby coming very soon = staying out of the Halloween aisles!!)

While snooping around on Pinterest, I came across this tutorial for a chain garland made out of foam insulation.  Easy enough!  So off to Home Depot I went and $4 and a couple of hours later, I had a Pinterest SUCCESS!

Here's my tutorial for how to make your own!

SUPPLIES... get a pen & paper, this is a long list! :)

* 6' piece of gray foam pipe insulation (available at Home Depot) 6' of pipe will get you approx 11' of chain.

* Scissors

 

 

 If this helps you find it, get the self adhesive pipe that fits 1" copper, 3/4" iron

 

 Cut foam into 3/8" - 1/2" rings (do not make thicker than 1/2") - just eyeball it, it goes fast!

 You will get approximately 140 rings out of a 6' pipe!  Not bad!

 Now is the fun part - peel off the sticky backing (mine was clear) on both sides of the ring and stick them together.  Then loop one ring through the other and repeat. (*Warning - this isn't super glue sticky foam - it does the job as long as the chain will not be pulled on or rough housed.  If you want it to last for years or need it more durable, I would recommend reinforcing each link with hot glue.**)
 UPDATE 9/27 ... Most of my rings have come unattached (go figure!) so make sure when you are making this, you reinforce with glue dots or hot glue!!)

 It's a tedious job, but it goes much faster while watching Hocus Pocus and drinking a cup of apple cider! :)

 Voila!  A spooky Halloween chain!  I bought 2 pieces of foam pipe insulation (big spender at $4 total!) and it got be 22 FEET of chain ... that evens out to a whopping 8 cents a foot!

 I sort of decided to make this without having anywhere to put them, so they have officially landed a place on my kitchen curtain rods.  Spoooooooooky, right?!

Pinned this, Made that: Pom Pom & Sequin Pumpkins

Like I mentioned before, I have so many Halloween decorations, but wanted to whip up a few new things this year!  I tend to primarily use silver, black & purple in my Halloween decor (no orange - what a weirdo I know!) so I was inspired by these two pumpkin photos on Pinterest.

 

After a trip to Hobby Lobby (where everything I wanted happened to all be 50% off on the same day!) and the Pumpkin Patch for some white pumpkins, Avery & I were ready to craft!  

 Supplies: white pumpkins (real or fake), pom poms (I bought black in 2 sizes), sequin trim (purple/silver/black), hot glue gun & glue sticks, scissors

 

 Obviously this was a mother-daughter project, so please note that they probably aren't my most mature project ... especially those pom pom ones! :) Note: I toned the pom poms down in the next picture! :)

Since I have damaged a table or two with real pumpkins (if left out too long they can take the finish right off!), we housed these lil' pumpkins in the kitchen using a glass plate & cake stand.

They are playful and cute and make me smile when I look at them!  BOO!

Fall Fun!

Fall is in the air!  Which starts my favorite 4 months of the year ... September/October/November/December.  September & October bring bonfires, smores, apple cider & donuts, caramel apples, pumpkin carving, sweatshirt & jean weather, fires in the fireplace, trips to Edwards Apple Orchard & the Pumpkin Patch, Hocus Pocus & of course Halloween!  Now that the weather is starting to cool down a bit, Avery & I made our first trip to the Apple Orchard & Pumpkin Patch this year.  Since Avery is really enjoying herself now (and mama needs cider donuts), I have decided to take her once a week to the Apple Orchard or Pumpkin Patch - we will alternate between the two!  Ahhh...... my happy place! :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bump Watch: 30 Weeks

Is it just me or did my belly get huge this week?!  I swear this happened overnight!  My doctor measured me yesterday, but didn't mention that I was in the 300th percentile or anything, so I hope/assume I'm right on track - just hard to believe my belly still has 9 weeks to get even bigger - yikes!  Baby is still moving around like crazy, had a more steady heartbeat of 150 yesterday.  In 2 weeks we go for our growth ultrasound, so we'll find out just how big she is! 

                                                Baby 2 at 30 weeks                                              Avery at 30 weeks

Miserable - I think not!

So word on the street (aka Forbes Magazine) is that we live right by the 3rd most miserable city in the country - Rockford, Illinois.  I personally don't know anyone that is miserable that lives in Rockford and think that the city is actually pretty cool, with lots of great restaurants, people and things to do, but Forbes Magazine appears to feel differently.  Last weekend we decided to take a walk along the river and check out one of the non-miserable places the city has to offer - Nicholas Conservatory.  Maybe Forbes should check it out - maybe they would change their mind about #3 on the list!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bump Watch: 28 Weeks

We are officially in the 3rd trimester - SO exciting! We are getting oh so close to meeting this baby!  A couple of things to report:
* I passed my glucose test!  Woop!  My lab work was great, but did show slight anemia, so I have been eating steak and spinach & broccoli all weekend.
* I have graduated from month appointments to bi-monthly appointments.  Thank goodness my doctor is 5 minutes from my house because I am about to be spending a lot of time there!
* Baby continues to be extremely active and is getting very powerful.  She kicked the remote off my belly last week!

                                                            28 Weeks Baby 2                                               28 Weeks Avery