11.26.2008

Sadly...

I will no longer be up dating this blog. It'll still be hear until my service runs out, but I will concentrate on updating my other blog. There will be Evie updates there. In fact, I just posted one last Friday.

But here's a bonus for today that I'll post here:
Evie at 3 separate occasions yesterday took 5 steps! My daughter is walking. She can't even crawl, push herself up to sitting or pull herself up on furniture properly...but my daughter can walk. Yay!

10.27.2008

Month 9

We've been busy. We're thinking about selling the house. I got my first wholesale order for onesies from a baby boutique, and also been in contact with another boutique owner that is interested in buying from me as well. I haven't even been blogging at my other blog. It's mostly been updated with my exported twitter posts, but at least its something.

Now onto Evie:

:: Evie got pretty sick this month. It included a 104 fever and a trip to the emergency room. That was the scariest thing I have ever done.
:: She waves! To everybody! Even to nobody.
:: It's her job to turn the pages when we are reading a book, and she knows it.
:: We are down to 2 naps a day - one at 10am, one at 2pm, and down for the night at 8pm.
:: We've started dairy. She LOVES yogurt and cheese.
:: And Cheerios. My girl LIVES for Cheerios.
:: Only 2 bottom teeth so far. We're waiting for the top ones. They have been due to come out for the last couple of weeks but apparently have stage fright.
:: Still no crawling. Just rolling.
:: She all of a sudden this month discovered that the most comfortable sleeping position is on her belly.
:: Just starting to pull herself up to her feet on furniture.
:: Her new favourite thing? Offering you some food, and then taking it away laughing. She does this to the dogs on a regular basis.
:: We thought the bald spot on the back of her head would be gone forever. It's made a second appearance.
:: She is as tall as a 2 year old. We stood her side by side a 2 year old. They are about the same height.
:: She is wearing size 4 shoes.
:: When she is done playing her piano, she applaudes herself. Every. Time.



9.23.2008

Month 8.

Just a quick little update. We've been very busy preparing for a toy and comic fair that runs this Sunday.
:: We started Cheerios last week! I was using them more to help her with her pincer grip, but she seems to like them very much. She gets excited when I ask her if she wants some.
:: Log rolling from place to place. Still no crawling, but like I said before, I don't think she's going to be a crawler.
:: She wants to walk everywhere! When we are sitting on the couch, she'll grab my fingers and slide of the chair so she can walk. She's now using my hands more for balance than support.
:: Evie had a reaction to tofu. She had some rashes and belly aches (we think). We're going to stay away from that. She seems to really like her fruits (sweettooth, like her dad). What I find interesting is that she has the same tastes that I had when I was pregnant: sweet tooth, fruit, chicken aversion. Does this mean she'll like spicy food?
:: As mentioned in a previous post, I've been making her pants since she is so tall. I've made her 4 pairs so far. Also, I find the 18-24mos size of the Karate American Apparel pant fits well.
:: 2 teeth! She has quite of bit of trouble when the teeth want to come in. So exhausting. But I love to see those teeth!
:: My daughter is silly.


9.13.2008

Near the End.

I think my time at this blog is near ending. I've cancelled my subscription, and although there's still a few months left here, I'll probably be spending more time on the new blog.

I started this blog as my crafty blog. Knitting, sewing, spinnning...all the things that I wanted to do lots of. But now, with Evie, it's become my report of Evie blog. There has been no knitting or sewing or spinning to report of. Okay, there's some sewing, but nothing really to report as it was not for self consumption but as inventory for the sellings.

Now we are focused on other things: Trying to make it work for me to stay at home means that I have to try to supplement income. More of the sellings. Most of my merchandise is in the form of wet bags and buttons, but there may be some screenprinting of shirts on the way. It's a far cry from the original knitting and sewing of dog clothes.

I still will probably post a thing or two here, but you can catch me more at http://pumpingalrights.livejournal.com/. I've been twittering, so you can catch my daily tweets on the blog as well as the progress of screening shirts and trying to break into the indie craft shows...*fingers crossed*

9.02.2008

My tall daughter...

...can't fit any pants I buy. Although they 'fit', they are all TOO SHORT. There is no choice but the make her pants. Winter is coming. I don't want her shins to get cold.

Working on my own pattern. I've made 3 test pants so far.

8.24.2008

Month 7

2 days ago, I turned 30. That's the same day that the girl turned 7 months. Here's a small update:

:: She's pretty good at sitting up now. Doesn't need much support anymore...except when she's excited and bounces all over.
:: Started egg yolk on the food front. I think we are going to start fish next week. I also have started giving her little chunks of food off the table: watermelon, cantelope, green beans. She's pretty good at chewing now.
:: Her first tooth finally started to show about 3 days ago. That night was a gong show.
:: My daughter is as big as a 1 year old. We are in the process of getting rid of her 6-12mos and now wearing the 12-18mos.
:: She can turn both directions belly to back and back to belly.
:: She is not interested in crawling for the sake of trying to get things. She's happy where she is. I think she's going to be a sitting to walking girl, skipping the crawling step.
:: Evie can clap her hands. She does it whenever she's happy/excited about something.
:: Learning to walk! She'll use my hands to pull her self up then hold on and take steps. We can go from the bed room to the bonus room, probably about 10-15 of my steps...she's getting faster.
:: Finger gasping is getting better. We practice while me and the hubs are eating dinner. I break little rice crackers for her to try to pick up.
:: Lazy girl! she knows how to hold stuff for her self, but once someone touches it, she doesn't want to hold it anymore...
:: Milo likes to be around her more now. Before he would just remove himself from the situation, but now, I'm finding that he sits closer and closer to us. Someone is warming up!


8.22.2008

29+1

But I'm okay with it. *sigh*

7.22.2008

Month 5+6

So, we skipped a month. I meant to post. I really did. We've been pretty busy here. Working on some re-org at the Etsy shop. I've split my shop into 2 - one for baby stuff and one for other stuff. We've also been preparing for some Swap meets, toy fairs, and other venues to sell our wares. Not to also mention eBay. Busy busy! Now for some Evie updates...I'll try to remember them in order, but no promises.

Month 5+6

  • Evie's eating lots of different foods now - fruits and veggies of course. We don't plan on starting meat until 8 months. Foods include mango, pears, apple, avacado, carrots, peas, squash, sweet potato, apricots, nectarines, lentils, leeks, celery, banana, plums, and I bet there's more I'm forgetting.
  • She learned how to hold the bottle up herself.
  • She can sit up for about 1 minute by herself.
  • Everything she picks up is going into her mouth.
  • We did a 6 class session of Baby Yoga. Evie loves it. I highly recommend it.
  • Evie is learning to drink out of a sippy cup. She's getting better!
  • Loves to play in her activity saucer. She is in there all the time!
  • Another thing I recommend is Baby Signs. She can already sign 'change dipey' and 'milk'.
  • Learned how to roll over about a week after she turned 5 months.
  • Plays 'Peekaboo' with her blanket.
  • Getting better with people she doesn't see too often. I credit this to Evie's photobook. We go through it every day. We flip through pictures of people she should know, but don't see all the time.
  • Sleeps at 8pm, up at 7pm. I never take this for granted.
  • Doesn't sleep much during the day though.

Hopefully I'm not missing anything. I would love to post more often, but we'll have to see how that goes. I'm also thinking about moving my blog to a new title, that corresponds with the new shop. But we'll see how that goes. Cheers!

6.19.2008

9:38AM

And ALL my kids are asleep. It's nice and quiet.



I hope everybody is having a great day! Back to work for me now that I have a chance! =)


5.23.2008

The Stinkiest Pooh Award Goes To...

You would think it would be one of the dogs. Nope. Not even close. There's only one other guess. Here's a clue: Evie. There will be no pictures. It's not something I want to remember.

5.22.2008

Month Four.

So I guess the only time that I blog is to talk about Evie. Oh well. There hasn't been much crafting - or at least none for self consumption. I've been busy working on a couple of projects - a whole lot of buttons for the local zoo gift shop, and now I'm getting ready for a 'swap meet' for kids for the end of June. Gotta get those bibs and things ready. Other things this month:

  • Evie has started solids! She was having so much formula before she went to bed (10oz! After breastfeeding!) that the doctor suggested that it was probably time for the baby gruel. She's had that, apples and pears so far. She loves the fruit!
  • She can follow sounds now. When she hears the dogs bark or her daddy come home from work, she turns her head in that direction.
  • We taught her how to pet the dogs. Evie seems to love to pet Milo. 'Milo nice nice!'
  • Working on sitting up. She can maybe MAYBE balance for 10 seconds.
  • Working on rolling over too. She can almost do it...she just needs a little help/nudging.
  • She sat in her big girl stroller for the first time 2 days ago, we went for a nice walk with the dogs in the neighborhood. She must have thought it was comfy, as she fell asleep. Normally, we keep her in the car seat and click it into the stroller frame.
  • She's sleeping up to 12 hour nights...she's averaging about 11 hours+. We are very greatful. We know that alot of other babies don't do this. She goes to bed at about 830 every night and is up about 730 the next morning.
  • I taught her how to kiss mommy on Tuesday. It's not really like kiss, it's more like 'I'm going to devour your cheek'. And then it's covered in baby drool.
  • Speaking of drool, Evie is SO DROOLY.

If things ever become less hectic, which I doubt, I'll try to post more. I'm on 24/7, so the only time I can get away is when Evie naps. But with the swap meet coming up, I need to work on those bibs and wet bags ready asap. The next time you'll probably hear from me is for Evie's 5 month. Or maybe I'll start blogging about her new foods as she tries them? Avocado is next. I'm guessing she won't like them as much as her apples and pears. Anyways...


4.22.2008

Month Three.

There hasn't been much on the crafting front lately. We attended a toy show so I had to help prepare for that (button making fanatic!). Some other stuff that has happened the last month:

  • Evie not longer naps in the later afternoons/evenings. She's up from about 3pm to when she goes down for the night at about 1030. We are in the process of getting her to shift her bedtime earlier to 930.
  • She's sleeping 10 hour nights! Amazing!
  • She started playing with her toys. Evie will bat at the toy hanging from her car seat handle.
  • Evie went on her first trip this past weekend. We went to Canmore for a friend's wedding. She did actually quite well.
  • She smiles every time she sees her dad or me.
  • She can sit in her bumbo chair for a few minutes at a time.
  • Evie's getting pretty drooly. She gnaws on her fingers so much (we try not to let her as much as possible), that she's starting to get a little callus on her finger. Boo.
  • She's still too small for her activitiy center.

Now that she's up longer, there will be even less time to do any crafting...not that I had time before.

3.22.2008

Month Two.

Two months already. This month Evie:


  • Started to watch her mobile very intently, and gets excited when I put her in the crib and crank it to turn it on.

  • Have conversations (oohs and ahhs) with various people/things; of course me and her dad, her 'po po' and 'goong goong' (grandma/grandpa), but she seems to like to talk the most with her mobile as it sings to her and moves around...

  • Can hold her head up for about 10 seconds without anyone supporting it -- we're slowly getting there!

  • Seems to know (but maybe wishful thinking on my part) that it's time to try to make a pooh when I make the 'poohface' with her so I don't have to change her again after the initial pooh.

  • Watches the TV.

  • Looks at the pictures in the book when I read to her.

  • Can turn her head from right to left (but not the other way) during tummy time.

  • Grew into her 3m size and is starting to wear her 6m clothes.

  • Stuck out her tongue when I stuck mine out at her.

3.14.2008

First Postpartum FO


Patterns: Baby Mittens (Free Pattern)
Yarn: Leftovers of Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock - Lightweight (Colourway: Pebble Beach)
Needles: US 3 DPNs

Now my girls hands won't get cold at night! Yay!


2.27.2008

One Month

Evie celebrated her one month last friday. We celebrated with her daddy picking up some take away from our favorite pasta/pizza place (very mom and pops) on his way home from work. Mmmm...restaurant food!

We went for her one month check up yesterday. She seems to be developing well -- growing 2 cm longer (making her 'off the charts' %-wise), and gaining almost a pound since we were at the doctor's last (just about 10lbs!) The doctor made a joke that she'll be taller than mom by the time she's 5. Haha. However, I wouldn't be surprised if she was taller than me by the time she's 12...

All through her first month, we had trouble getting her to sleep more than 1/2 hour at a time. Turns out, the secret weapon is a binky. We couldn't give it to her before her one month in fear of causing her 'nipple confusion', but now that she's able to use it, she has slept much more soundly.


I'm starting to get used to her schedule, but still don't really have any time to myself where I can sew or knit, and actually find myself with a list of things that I need to do (taxes, banking, making appointments, etc). She sleeps at almost exactly midnight everynight and sleeps for anywhere between 5.5 - 8 hours (yay!). I would love for her to sleep a little earlier, but I guess 'baby' steps -- I'm more than happy for her to be sleeping at a 5 hour stretch. I just have to resort to my university days where I was going to bed at midnight and up at 7-8 in the morning...

I'm looking forward to the weeks ahead where she will start to be more aware of her surroundings, play with toys and maybe even hold up her head by herself!

2.14.2008

Happy Valentines Day

Not much here on the front. Still trying to get Evie into a schedule. She sleeps somewhat during the night - I normally have to get up only once, but she doesn't really sleep during the day -- she cluster feeds. We are waiting for that to pass before I can get into anything crafty or sane/normal again. Poor Milo and Daisey want to hang out with me, but since Evie doesn't really sleep, we don't get to hang out too much even though I make an effort to talk to them any chance I get while I'm carrying Evie. At least it's slowly getting better...but I'm still exhausted. and hungry.


I can't believe how Evie has grown! She's already filling out her 3m size clothes. I'm going to have to pack away her newborn sized ones. Good thing I didn't buy too many -- I knew she was going to be big. I have a feeling she's going to be tall like her dad (who's 6'5"), and not like me (4'11"). She's 100% in length so far.

1.29.2008

The Rundown

**times are approximate

Sunday, January 20
5am: I get up to go pee (again), but find some hemorraging.
6am: We get to the hospital
8am: It's no big deal, so we get sent home.
noon: What I think are contractions, start. They are approximately 20 minutes apart. They continue throughout the day.
10pm: Contractions are 10 minutes apart.

Monday, January 21
4am: Contractions are 5 minutes apart and pretty intense.
5am: We get to the hospital.
5-9am: I am constantly monitored. Only 1 cm dialated, but I am on the inducing list today so, they decide to induce me since I'm this far along.
9:30am: Inducing stuff is administered.
9:30 - 11:30am: I am monitored, an am supposed to be sent home after.
noon: Contractions are 2-3 minutes apart. They decide to keep me. Still 1 cm.
noon - 4:15pm: Many mutterings of why they can't they just knock me out and cut the baby out. Contractions back to 5 minutes apart, still 1 cm. New nursing shift is wondering why I didn't get sent home.
4:30pm: I ask to go home. We go home.
11:30pm: My water breaks.

Tuesday, January 22
midnight: Back at the hospital again. Contractions are still 5 minutes apart and they are even more intense. This time they decide to keep me.
4:30am: 3 cm. At this point, I've had maybe 5 hours sleep in the past 3 days. I opt for the epidural.
5-7am: I have the best sleep I've had in months.
7:30am: 6 cm. We hope to have this baby by noon.
noon: No baby.
1pm: 6cm. No progress.
3pm: 7cm. Not much progress.
4:30pm: Instead of thinning, my cervix swells. Plus baby is facing up. No good. We opt for the C-section.
4:30-6pm: Mutterings of why they couldn't just knock me out and cut her out on Monday when I wanted.
6:20pm: Baby is born. Comments made about Evie when she came out: "It's a girl!", "She's big!" (8lbs 6oz), "She's LONG!" (56cm), "Man, she's got some BIG feet!" (she gets that from her dad.)

Her feet are so big, that she is wearing socks sized for 6mos. All the socks that were newborn size are being used as mitts. I hope to get back into some sort of routine by the end of this week.

1.25.2008

01.22.2008

Evie was born January 22, 2008 at about 6 in the evening after a long labor at 8lbs 6oz. We just got home from the hospital today. More pics to come as we start to settle in.

1.10.2008

Can't wait to meet you...

Seems Daisey and the baby are already best of friends...

1.07.2008

Waiting and waiting and waiting and...

I hope everyone had a great holiday and New Year's. Ours was full of the usual family gatherings and etc.

Still no baby. We are now at 39 weeks. Still waiting. Even the dogs are tired of waiting, I think.



For now, we are passing the time with downloads of Amazing Race Asia and Kitchen Nightmares UK Season 5. Hopefully there will be something to announce soon.