I just put an old lady's maxi pad through the wash and all I can think is this is my life...

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Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Kitchen Progress

Little Miss Elle had a good napping day. That being said, she's 6 weeks old so really I only got about 3 or 4 hours (total) to dedicate to cleaning the kitchen. Here are some photos of the progress I've made:
Waiting for my dishes to dry. It's takiing foooorrrreeeeevvvveeeerrrr.

Stove is clean. Counter is clean. Glass canisters are drying. Now I just need to look for a bread box at a thrift store.
Sorry that I forgot to get before photos of the cupboards. But this is my organized dishes cupboard.
My organized spice cupboard. Used a box that a stuffed animal came in to hold all the refill spice packages.
More organized baking/hot drink cupboard. Still could use a lot of work.
Got rid of all the half empty boxes of snacks and created the snack basket.
Still needs a lot of work but all my baking supplies are in the pink box (i.e. candles, cookie cutters, etc.). My plastic measuring cup (top right corner of photo) holds all my smaller measuring utensils.
Slow and steady wins the race... Or at least that is what I've heard. This is my life!

Cloth Diapering: Pre-folds

I finally got around to prepping my pre-folds (in my case, I boiled them) so I figured today I would give them a shot on Little Miss Elle.

My stash of (clean) cloth diapers that currently fit Little Miss Elle. 2 Fuzzibunz XS pocket diapers, 3 homemade All-In-Two's, 3 fitted diapers (one homemade, 2 Rearz), 11 newborn prefolds, and 4 diaper covers. 
This is a prefold. It's made up of a varying number of layers of absorbent material. The middle will always be the most absorbent and therefore have the most layers. This one happens to be 4X8X4 which means the middle has 8 layers while the two sides have 4 layers.
This is how I folded it today to use on Little Miss Elle. Let's call it the "tri-fold".
An example of a diaper cover that you would use with a prefold. I took these photos after Little Miss Elle was diapered and napping again so these aren't the exact ones on her.
I placed the tri-folded prefold into the diaper cover like this and then put it on Little Miss Elle like you would put on a disposable diaper. This diaper cover has velcro tabs.
So, I put a prefold onto the babe at 12:41pm.
The disposable that I had taken off was urine soaked.
She hasn't had a poopy diaper since approx. 9:15am.
She's very gassy so I wouldn't be surprised if I find a #2 in her prefold.
She drank approx. 1oz of formula before she fell back to sleep.
Cut to 1:51pm and Little Miss Elle has sprung a leak.

Upon closer inspection I realized that I didn't attach the velcro tight enough on the right side. This of course was the location of the leak. On a more positive note, the left side of her sleeper was perfectly dry so I know this epic fail was due to user error. Oh well, better luck next time.

This is my life!

Clean Up: Kitchen Style

The baby is asleep. I am not tired enough to nap.I went to the kitchen to disinfect bottles and found a leaking glass of bacon fat sitting in the sink. After a big sigh, I decided it was due time for a major kitchen clean up! Here are the BEFORE photos:

View of the kitchen (and bathroom door) from the dining room. Notice the cluttered stove area.
I've got to confess, I thought to take pictures after I had began cleaning. This is why the area to the left of the stove looks clean-ish.
The glass canisters with chalkboard labels haven't been cleaned since I got them. Which was before I started dating my hubby. Oops. They've been emptied, cleaned and are currently drying.
This area is to the right of the initial photo. On the right is our "pantry", the back wall (covered by the curtain) is for overstock items (i.e toilet paper from Costco) and our garbage sorting area, to the left is the laundry room entrance and the fridge.
Our toilet shelf turned into a pantry shelf. Will need to clean these jars and organize this area.
Our garbage sorting area is on the bottom and the shelf holds our Costco purchases, the breadmaker, and junk.
This closet sits to the left of the area in the above photo. It holds all of our appliances. Our clothes drying rack is currently blocking the laundry room door. P.S. We still don't have a washer or dryer in our laundry room. Sigh.
Last but not least, the area above the fridge needs some serious help.
Stay tuned for updates as this ovehaul progresses. This is my life...

Monday, November 28, 2011

I dislike pink.

The following tale will elaborate my dislike of the color pink:

Turkey Butt put Little Miss Elle in an all pink outfit this AM. Because of this, I wasn't careful with my spit cloth placement and oops she got spit up on her pink onesie. Oh, and since you have to change her anyways, could you please put her into her navy onesie? It looks much nicer with the bubblegum pink pants you've put her in. Thanks : )



This is my life!

Chocolate.

I must stop eating chocolate bars for every meal. Seriously. I'm sitting here at 9:30am, eating a Crispy Crunch bar that I found lying by the couch. It's not even satisfying, it's just something to eat within arm's reach. I really must stop eating chocolate bars for breakfast.... at least I will once my house is rid of them. Don't want that King Size Coffee Crisp or the box of 10 "Mars Bars" to go to waste now do we? Sigh.

This is my life...

Saturday, November 26, 2011

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas...

Today while Little Miss Elle was sleeping, I did a Christmas photo shoot of the babe. I used various props (stockings, ornament balls, xmas decor) as well as various locations (laundry basket, rocking chair). I then used Picnik to turn the photo's into Christmas cards for my loved ones. So far I have 4 different cards created and I simply cannot choose which I like the best. *Insert consultation with Turkey Butt* Okay, we've both agreed on a favorite so I will show you the ones that didn't make the cut:







And just for fun, our (mine & my sister Aych's) holiday photo from last year:



and our Christmas card from last year:


from Gwen Marie Designs

This is my life!

Elodie at 5 Weeks


This is my life!

Saturday, November 19, 2011

One Month!

Big Teddy was given to me by my Diddy the day I was born.

Elodie turned one month old on November 18, 2011. I can not believe that my little Muffy is a month old already. Boy does time fly when you're having fun! Yesterday we went to the Dr's for her one month check up. My babe now weighs 8lbs and is approximately 55cm long (21.7 inches).

After the appointment, we went for a drive so that little Miss Muffet could take a nap - she sleeps so easily in her car seat! I went to two baby stores and bought her all kinds of new goodies! I guess I could say they were one month gifts but really I just like shopping for baby stuff. I really don't remember the last time I bought something for me. Anyway, I bought her a new hooded towel, 7 Sandra Boynton board books, a sleeping wedge (luckily it was used and only $6 because I don't think it'll work for our squirming baby), a pacifier clip, some clothes and a couple newborn sized cloth diapers.

This is my life!

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Elodie at Four Weeks


Yesterday my sweet baby girl was four weeks old! We were lucky enough to spend time with her Auntie Aych. So far, my lovely sister has been able to visit every Tuesday of Elodie's life (and other days during the week as well). Life as a Mommy is certainly not easy but it is so amazingly worth it. I look forward to every single moment that I get to spend with my sweet little bundle of joy! This is my life!

Monday, November 14, 2011

Cloth Diapering

Turkey Butt and I had this idealistic idea that we would cloth diaper our baby. I went online and purchased used diapers. I researched the different types of diapers, how to clean them, how many you need, pros & cons, etc. I even have a wonderful friend who makes cloth diapers and gifted me a dozen or more when Elodie was born. Fast forward to four weeks after her birth and we've only cloth diapered her twice. Believe me, it's not because we don't want to or that it's too much work. The fact of the matter is that six months after we've moved into our current apartment we are still waiting for the washer our landlord promised us. Honestly, what's the point of cloth diapering if you have no cost efficient way to launder them? I say cost efficient because our current laundry situation involves one old washer and one old dryer in a building frequented by 30+ tenants. So when you take into account the fact that it costs $1.25/load and for each load of dirty cloth diapers you have to do a cold rinse followed by a hot wash and another cold rinse. That would add up quickly. Probably a lot more quickly than disposable diapers do! Add to that the fact that the washer is notoriously bad, awful, horrible at cleaning anything. Sigh. Until the time when we can cloth diaper on a full time basis, here's an adorable photo of Little Miss Muffett in a cloth diaper (and cover)!


This is my life!

Sunday, November 13, 2011

My Caged Animal


This is my life!

Friday, November 11, 2011

Baby Love

I am overwhelmed with love for my perfect little baby. The one who arch's her head back and puckers her lips in her sleep. The one who pecks her Daddy's nose like a little chick when she's hungry. The one who nuzzles her head into her Mama's neck and wiggles til she has her head near her Mama's heart. The one who "throws gang signs" when she gets startled in her sleep. The one who, at this exact moment, is sound asleep with her entire right arm hanging out through the bars of her crib. The one who stares intently at her Daddy like he's the most amazing, interesting and entertaining man she has ever seen (I happen to agree with her). The one who melts my heart, blurs my painful labour memories and makes me desperately yearn for another baby - already.

Daddy is so cool!

Kisses, kisses baby-o!

I love you Muffy! You have made us the happiest people in the world! This is my life <3

Elodie at Three Weeks Old


Elodie turned three weeks old on November 8th. She was having a fussy day - the kind in which she was only happy when being walked while being walked around the apartment. Luckily for me, her Auntie Aych showed up in the early afternoon and gave me a break from all the pacing! Then later that evening she had a bath, what a funny kid she is in the tub. She doesn't cry anymore but she does contort her body in mysterious ways in order to try and get out of the water. So serious! Love that kiddo!

This is my life!

Elodie at Two Weeks Old


On November 1st Little Miss Elle turned two weeks old! She went for another Dr's appt at which we found out she was back to her birth weight (6lbs11oz) and was measuring 52cm long! Again she was alert and awake and not fussy. That evening Little Miss Muffett and I went for our first outing, just the two of us! We drove a few towns over to visit with my parentals, a.k.a. Grampie & Nanny Beth.

This is my life!

Elodie at One Week Old!


On October 25th, my little one was a week old. That day she went to her first Dr's appt! She got all dressed up in a navy dress with cherry's on it and navy leggings. She was awake and alert and not fussy throughout the entire visit at the Clinic. Oh, and the medical office assistants were all in LOVE with her. But gosh, who wouldn't love that squishy face?

This is my life!

Elodie's Birth Day


So, better late than never... I hope to keep track of Elodie at certain week and month milestones.

October 18th, 2011 at 10:55pm - I got to see my baby girl for the first time! The nurse brought her to Turkey Butt and then he showed her to me while the Dr's were stitching up my belly. He then passed her to me, and although it was a fleeting moment, it was wonderful just the same. Then Turkey Butt and the baby left and I was wheeled off to Recovery. While in Recovery, Turkey Butt brought Elodie to visit with me again but they were only there for a minute or two before I became nauseous and they had to leave so that I could vomit. Again. Those two short moments were all that I got to see of my babe on her birth day!

This is my life!

As Promised...



... the dinky car track that I created for my cousin's 2nd birthday! Turkey Butt purchased a 4-pack of foam mats for his man cave/workout room/the shed at Wal-mart for $9.99. I swiped one to use as the base for the track. I also picked up a 4-pack of electrical tape (in 4 lovely colours) from the Dollarama and found the wooden trees in a random box at the local Used Bookstore. Sadly, this photo was taken before I stumbled across a pack of Transportation scrapbook paper in my craft area. Picture if you will little red, glittery, paper stop signs taped onto all the important traffic stopping intersections!

Let's tally up the cost of this project:

Foam Mat ------- $2.87
Electrical Tape --- $1.73
Wooden Trees ---$1.15 (I could've had 20+ trees for $2 but only wanted 4 and offered to pay $1 for them)
Stop Signs ------- Free (since the paper was bought years ago for a different craft project)

= $5.75 for a birthday gift for a 2 year old!

This is my life!

Thank you!


Lest We Forget!

This is my life! 

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Nursery Art

Lately I have been creating random things in my spare time. How do I find spare time you might ask? Well, I have a wonderfully supportive hubby who helps out with baby duty (when he's not at work) and I have mastered the art of accomplishing tasks with one hand. Anyway, back to afore mentionned nursery art. I created the following graphic print this evening using Picnik, a design found here, and a quote found at this site:


I think it will be absolutely perfect framed on the wall of Little Miss Elle's nursery! This is my life.

P.S. Tune in tomorrow (-ish) for photos of the foam mat that I turned into a miniature town for my 2 year old cousin's "D cars" (a.k.a. dinky cars).

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

All Nighters

My dear hubby is sick, sick, sick (potentially) with food poisoning. His illness has led to the creation of Super Mom! Super Mom can take care of hubby, baby and doggy - all at the same time. Super Mom is capable of anything, including rocking the baby to sleep with one arm while simultaneously spreading Cheez Whiz onto crackers (for sick hubby) with the other. No easy task if I do say so myself!

Now I'm giving up my night to sleep in (albeit only til 7am) so that sweet hubby can get some rest. Oh the joys of new parenthood - all nighters! This is my life.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Three Weeks With My Baby


At 10:55pm, my perfect little baby girl will 3 weeks old!! How the heck did that happen? I am honestly in awe of the fact that so much time has passed and I haven't done any irrevocable damage to my daughter. Well, at least not as far as I can tell!

It's amazing to me how quickly time flies when you're sleep deprived! Turkey Butt and I have devolopped a tag team approach when it comes to sleeping. One of us, usually him, takes baby duty for the first part of the evening (starting around 11pm) while the other holes up in the bedroom and catches up on some uninterrupted sleep. Then at sometime during the early morning hours (anywhere from 4:30 to 8:30) we switch. When the switch occurs typically depends on when Turkey Butt has to work. Baby duty, by the way, consists of diaper changes, feedings, sleeping on a make shift bed by the crib in the nursery, checking if the baby is still breathing, holding the sleeping baby because she refuses to sleep for more than 20 straight minutes in her crib, watching mind numbing amounts of YouTube videos while holding said sleeping baby, and fighting the urge to wake up your spouse early so that you can sleep in a real bed. Sounds like a pain in the butt, doesn't it? Whenever we explain it to people they, without fail, tell us about how they had the baby in their room or how they both got up with the baby - one doing diaper duty and one doing feeding duty. That's all well and good, and I'm glad it worked for them, but it didn't work for us. One night we really missed sleeping together so we both camped out on our makeshift bed by the crib. The problem with that? When the baby was up fussing, neither of us were getting any sleep. With Turkey Butt working 6 days a week and me being home all day with the babe, we couldn't both be completely sleep-deprived. I don't know, it works for us.

Now if only I could stop dreaming that the baby is in bed with me and about to suffocate! This dream occurs every time I go to sleep in our bedroom and it causes me to frantically tear through the bedding (or laundry on the bed) in search of my suffocating baby. Sometimes it's 15 minutes or more before I calmly remind myself that the baby is in her crib. Even then, I have to get up and go check on her in her crib to insure that she is really there and really breathing. Usually I wake up Turkey Butt in the process and I have to step over him to reach into the crib. One day during an afternoon nap I even imagined that I did find her in my bed and carried her (the invisible her) out to her crib and was shocked when I found the real baby was already asleep in the crib. But don't worry, I laid the invisible baby down in the crib right beside the real one and then went back to bed. Yup, Turkey Butt was a tad worried about my sanity after that one! Oh, and did I mention that these dreams occur on an hourly basis when I'm sleeping? Like last night, where I went to bed just before 11pm. Got up during the 11 o'clock hour, and the 12 o'clock hour and 1 and 2. Yeah... I think after that I might have actually fallen asleep til Turkey Butt woke me up to tag me in. But you get the picture. Welcome to parenthood!

This is my life!

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