So I'm overdue now, just as I knew I would be.  Never mind all those annoying 'experts' who kept telling me I'd go on time or whatever.  I know my body better than anyone else and it know I have to keep waiting.  My midwife is coming over on Thursday so if I haven't gone into labour by then we might do a few things in order to get the situation moving.

In order to stay busy/active I have been continuing to work on craft projects and little jobs around the house.  I've been meaning to stencil a horse on to one of the t-shirts I made for Daisy (the practice one to test the pattern size that she actually likes a lot) so I cut out a freezer paper stencil and sorted that out during the week.  I also made a larger stencil to finish off the cushion for her bed that is going to be one of her Christmas presents and that turned out really well too.  I can't show you a photo of it because it is already wrapped up, but basically it is a big fat 50cm cushion made out of a some green floral dress fabric I bought for myself years ago (the dress was an utter failure unfortunately) and then a large green horse stencilled on one side.   The photo cube for Felix is on hold, thanks to the crappy t-shirt transfer paper I had and the fact that none of the Officeworks in my area had the mid priced stuff (it was all either expensive or crap basically.)  For the price of the expensive paper I could get Felix three new Thomas trains so I decided it wasn't worth it. 

We put the tree up on the 1st and the kids had a great time sticking all the ornaments on.  Of course it is all very random and a lot of things are bunched close together but I've been resisting the urge to rearrange things to make them more even.  We still need an angel or a star on the top but Daisy has been in charge of making that the last couple of years so we'll work that out before Christmas comes.  This is the first time I've not done an ornament swap in several years and that is a bit of a shame, but obviously I just don't have the time this year.  I still have a beautiful collection of handmade ornaments from around the world on the tree from previous swaps though so that will probably inspire me to try again next year.

My latest craft project is a couple of car caddies for the kids, based on this tutorial.  Instead of holding craft stuff it will hold all the things that they are currently storing in the baby seat between them (I'm guessing B3 won't appreciate being a drink and sunglasses holder.)  I have an elasticated pocket for a sippy cup, and a smaller elasticated pocket for a pair of sunglasses and now I just need to make a zippered pocket for 'treasures' and a couple of other attachments.  The caddies aren't overly large so I'm not sure if I can comfortably fit a book pocket down the bottom but that is something I'll work on today.  B3 doesn't let me sit down for more than about 10 mins so I'll be doing this job in tiny little spurts so I doubt I'll get it done in one day, but I would like to get it done by about Wednesday.

Everything is ready for the baby to arrive.  Swaddles, slings and clothes washed, nappies in nappy holder, car seat installed, it's all done.  I have my birth clothes and after care stuff ready to go (or not go as the case may be), Chris knows how to get to the correct side of the WCH and get up to the birth centre should I opt to go in (I'm playing that by ear) and everyone is sleeping with their mobiles next to their pillows.  The only thing missing is the onset of labour now and I think I'll experience that around Wednesday or Thursday.  I'm trying not to get obsessed looking for 'signs' but its hard when my Braxton Hicks are so damn painful and I think "ooh perhaps this is something happening".  My midwife did an internal on Saturday and I have made progress so I know things are going to happen at some point and I am very grateful I am not sick or suffering greatly (no swollen ankles or anything like that.)  

This week is about waiting.  Not in an active sense (pacing the floors and getting obsessed/upset/anxious) but in a passive sense.  Just keeping the house clean so I can let things go a bit after the baby arrives, doing some small craft projects to keep my mind busy, and generally maintaining a sense of normality.  We still have kindy this week so we have some kind of routine to follow and that is also keeping an increasingly freaked out Daisy busy for at least half the day too. 

I'm due around the end of the week so I really need to get a few things organised.  I had some handmade presents planned for the kids, some stuff for B3 and a few bits and bobs around the house so I just had to suck it up and make the most of my last few days of freedom.

First up was Daisy's doll.  She is based on the Wee Wonderfuls Olive doll (from her Make-along story) but I changed the hair and the face in order to match a doll Daisy really fancied in a store recently.  A feature Daisy really liked was that the doll had a flower in her hair so I decided to crochet one and after a bit of experimentation I had a beautiful hot pink rose to match the hot pinkness of the doll's dress.  As usual it was the face that really held me up - I am not artistic in the slightest so creating something as symmetrical and attractive as a face is tough.  I'm pretty happy with the result though so hopefully Daisy will enjoy unwrapping her on Christmas Day.  (Please excuse the crappy photo but I only have my mobile camera at the moment.)

Next Christmas task was stockings for the kids.  I like to do new ones each year (because I am mad obviously) and when I saw the tutorial on Purl Bee I knew it was the one for me.  I used Christmassy fabric that the kids picked out at Spotlight and opted to fill in the embroidered names with crayon rather than hours of extra embroidery, but essentially they are the same.  B3 has a stocking too of course, but doesn't have a name on it yet.  I traced off their two choices of name - boy and girl - and it'll only take me about 5 mins to transfer the name and 10 mins to embroider it so that will wait until after they arrive.  (Once again we have a crappy mobile phone photo but I'm sure you get the general idea.)


Felix has shown a lot of interest in the fabric photo cube I made for Daisy years ago so I've started making one for him too.  Unfortunately the t-shirt transfer paper I used was super crappy and made the photos look rubbish so that present is in limbo until I can get to Officeworks to get more paper (and spend a few more dollars on it this time.)   I've got the six pieces of fabric cut out and sewn together though so all I have to do is reprint the photos out, iron them on and then sew the cube together and stuff it.  Easy.

Another thing I've been working is a few more small MCNs.  I tried a bunch of patterns when Daisy was born and none really fit nicely so I ended up using mostly the old fashioned towelling squares plus some store bought MCNs (my god they can be pricey!)  When Felix was born I realised I didn't actually have any MCNs small enough for him (and the Baby Beehind adjustable one was too bulky for his skinny frame) so I kind of dropped the ball as far as cloth nappying went.  We moved interstate when he was 7 weeks old and by the time we had settled into a new place I just had other stuff to worry about (my mental health being a pretty serious issue at that time.)  This time around I intend to do things the way I did with Daisy so I've spent a lot of time tweaking the Ottobre MCN pattern to fit better (it measures way too large for some reason and what they say should fit a 50cm long baby would Felix right now) and I think I like it.  Of course I have to wait for B3 to arrive to be sure - will I have another skinny minny or another buddha basically - but they are much much smaller and better fitted around the log now.  I also sourced some more PUL (the most expensive fabric I've bought in a while) so I'll try to bash out a cover pattern now based on a Baby Beehinds one I have in the cupboard. 

I'm at that part of the pregnancy where people start endlessly me telling how I'm going to have the baby soon.  And I want to punch them very hard in the face.  I am not due until early December and I have a history of going overdue so I am not at all expecting to have this child 'soon' and I don't appreciate people telling me they know better.  Going two weeks overdue with Daisy was crushing and then going overdue again with Felix was disappointing, even though I had stopped listening to all those know-it-alls with their crap advice about how obvious it was that I'd go on time.  How people think they are helping me by bullying me into getting my hopes up I don't know, but it shits me and I wish they'd bugger off and leave me alone.

I haven't made up any shorts for Daisy, mainly thanks to the fact that I cannot think out modifications to patterns right now.  She has enough skirts and shorts to get her through so I think I'll leave it until the new year and try again then.  I'm also occupied with sewing Christmas things, such as the stockings for everyone this year and a doll for Daisy (a copy of one she liked at a store we visited recently.)  The weather has been really nice the last couple of days so I am trying to stick it out at the sewing machine as long as I can before the heat returns and makes it too uncomfortable to sew again.

The garden centre excursion went ahead as planned but fortunately the temperature dropped enough overnight that the morning was quite pleasant.  I dropped Daisy off and didn't have to stick around as there were enough parents there to help, and then picked her up just as the temperature was starting to sky rocket.  Unfortunately the kindy concert the next night was just about unbearable as about 150 people crammed into a small church hall (across the road from the kindy) to watch the kids do their thing while the aircon desperately tried to keep things bearable (it failed.)  I just about passed out by the end of it and opted not to stick around for the picnic supper outside - it was still about 40C at that point - and went home instead.

The weather seems relatively mild this week so at least I should be able to sleep a little better.  Sleep makes everything more bearable I think, and will certainly help me cope with the endless fighting between the kids.  Those two are at it 24 hours a day these days, with Daisy being the main instigator (usually needling Felix out of boredom.)  And  my pain levels are so high that I am using up all my resources on dealing with that so I have little patience for the constant bickering between those two.  I'll be happy to not lose my voice yelling at the kids, get the sewing done that I want to do, and not turn to hard drugs/liquor/risky behaviour to cope with it all. 

The heat wave definitely cramped my style this week but that was to be expected.  The kids haven't slept well and have therefore been rather cranky all week (and weekend for that matter) and I haven't slept that well either.  The baby keeps getting bigger and having more of an impact on me too so that has slown me down (in a literal physical way but also mentally) and kept me from getting things done.

I did get a few important baby related tasks done, getting some clothing storage set up in our cupboard and giving the slings one final wash.  I have to go out in the shed and get the newborn clothes out but obviously it is like an oven in there at the moment so I'm putting that off until early next week when the temps are supposed to drop for a few days.  I still have two weeks to go and my babies are never on time so I'm not too worried, plus the baby is only going to be wearing singlets and nappies over the summer anyway so clothes aren't a huge issue.

To use up some more of the cheap lycra and jersey that I made the t-shirts out of last week I made up 4 tank tops for each of the kids.  The cut is almost exactly the same and I modded the ribbing in the same way as it worked so well on the t-shirts, so that some more hot weather clothing I have now sorted out.  I'd like to do some shorts up for Daisy but I can't find a suitable pattern in any of my Ottobre magazines (I know, shocking!) so I may have to purchase a pattern from Spotlight this week instead.

The garden centre trip at kindy was cancelled as I hoped it would be and has been rescheduled for this Wednesday.  Unfortunately they are predicting 41C for Wednesday so I'm assuming it will just be cancelled instead.  And what is worse is that Thursday is also expected to be 41C and that is the day (well evening actually) of the kids kindy concert so I'm not sure if that will go ahead either.   This hot November weather is just so unexpected and quite frankly it sucks.

This week will be about surviving the heat, enjoying the two (alleged) days of relief we are apparently getting and making it to the next weekend in one piece.

T-shirts.  That is what my life has revolved around this last week.  I traced out a pattern for each kid, did a test t-shirt and then cut/pinned/sewed my heart out.  Now the kids have four new t-shirts each and I can now move on to some tank tops for them, using the same fabric and same basic cut.

How much is this week going to suck?  Doing the kindy run in 37C heat does not appeal to me at all, and it really worries me that the garden centre outing has been rescheduled to Wednesday and that it going to be one of the hottest days.  Fingers crossed they reschedule it again and I don't have to go out in the scorching heat with the kids.  The house seemstot be coping much better than the Magill house as far as keeping out the heat goes, but we'll give it until Friday to see how it stands up to a whole week of over 35C heat.

The kids now have a bunk bed in their bedroom and I'm hoping the novelty wears off in the next few weeks (before the baby is born.)  I'm not looking forward to rescuing Felix off the top bunk every time I sit down to feed B3 so I'm just hoping we've left enough time for him to get that out of his system (or work out how to climb safely down the ladder by himself and that's pretty unlikely.)  The bottom bunk is actually a double bed so they can hang out together down the bottom during the day and then Daisy can retreat to the top at night and if Felix needs a cuddle during the night then it is comfortable for one of us to lie down with him.  Getting the bunk then frees up the single bed Daisy currently sleeps on so we can store that and bring it out if we have visitors come to stay.

This week is about surviving the heat.  Simple as that.  If I get other stuff done like tracing or cutting out etc I'll feel very pleased with myself but it is not the priority it has been of late. 

Well we've sure had some warm weather the last week, finally reminding us what the next three or four months are going to be like.  Surprisingly the heat hasn't really bothered me as far as the pregnancy goes, I think because I am already at the limit of being uncomfortable plus this house is much better at dealing with the heat than the last place.  What did catch me out was the complete lack of hot weather clothing for the kids but I quickly sorted that out over the weekend after finally finishing Chris' laptop bag.

I'm really proud of how the laptop bag turned out.

On the inside it has a pleated pocket with a flap that has a velcro closure, and on the other side are three deep pockets that span the width of the bag.  I'd show you those but Chris has already filled his bag up with stuff and I couldn't be bothered unpacking it in order to take photos.

After I got that task done I moved on to some pairs of shorts for Felix.  I realised during the week that when we moved I accidentally put the bags of his Summer clothes in with the Goodwill stuff instead of packing it into a storage crate (I blame preggie brain but it was really just disorganisation.)  So when this hot weather hit he only had tracksuit pants and jeans to wear which obviously wasn't suitable.  I quickly whipped up three new pairs using the Ottobre pattern I used last year and he loves them.  And the temp is going to drop down to 20C tomorrow.  Of course.


Now I can get on to the t-shirts and get a few of them ready for when the weather turns back to hot again (at the end of the week I think?)

Mum's return from South Africa meant a much needed break from the computer for me and far less trips out of the house in the afternoon.  As much as the kids loved the runs to the post office I was getting a bit worn out from it all so its really nice not to have to do that anymore.  She brought back some lovely souvenirs though and the kids love what she got them.  I love little handcrafted objects and I appear to have handed on that love to my kids so the zebra ornament and spider toy have been given a solid workout. 

I got the babyseat into the car so the kids can get used to it being there - unfortunately it means Felix is no longer able to 'blast off' into his seat from the centre of the back seat.  I'm thinking of putting a little step in the footwell below his carseat and hopefully he can blast off from there instead.  I also need to sew up a couple of 'car caddies' that I have a tutorial saved for somewhere as they can't store their books etc in between their carseats anymore.

This week is about dealing with the miseries of the last few weeks of pregnancy (welcome back sciatic pain! nice to see you again!), the heat and the myriad tasks I have on my to do list.

Well I can finally talk about the sewing project I have been working on for over two weeks.  I bought a laptop bag pattern from Nicole Mallalieu's website after seeing a great hat pattern of hers used on another blog I read regularly, originally planning to use it around Christmas time to make a present for someone.  Then I realised that the messenger bag Chris used to take to work had gotten quite ragged and realised I could make a new bag for him and give it to him as an anniversary present.  Of course I didn't factor in how tired I was about to get, or how much time Mum's business stuff was going to take up, nor did I realise how hard to find some of the bag pieces were going to be (way to go crappy Adelaide craft stores.)  This final problem would actually result in me giving Chris an unfinished bag for his present today but fingers crossed the small black plastic clip that is part of the strap assembly arrives in the post soon and I can finish off the bag in relatively decent time.  Once I've done that I'll post some pictures, as it really isn't much to look at at the moment.

Now that the bag has taken a backseat for a while I now need to get the kids' summer t-shirts organised.  I've traced off a basic t-shirt pattern for both of them from an Ottobre magazine so now I just need to make up a copy in the grey jersey I've been using for t-shirt 'muslins' lately and make sure I have the sizing right.  Once I get that sorted I can then wade through the enormous pile of cotton lycra/jersey/interlock that I got on sale from Spotlight recently and churn out as many t-shirts as possible. 

The poor old garden.  It gets watered but that's about it really.  It needs weeding in the spots where the mulch wasn't thick enough (there is some kind of voracious vine type weeds sending in suckers from another property I think) and I need to set up the trellis for the peas but I just don't have the energy. 

I am so incredibly sick of being pregnant.  And I am sick of people saying "Well you'll be even more tired once the baby is born!" as though I don't already have two kids and know what it is like to have a newborn.  I may be tired but I won't have indigestion, back/hip/neck pain, a constant need to wee, a massive belly that gets in the way all the time, etc.  I just want my body back basically, and will happily trade that in for someone who just wants my boobs every two hours for a few months.  New preparations for B3 this week involve moving the car seat into the car so the kids can get used to it, and finding the sling and running it through the wash a few times to soften it up.  

The postie has just gone by and dropped something off so fingers crossed it is the clip I need for Chirs' bag.  It still has a bit of work to do on it and I want it done before I start on the kids' t-shirts.