no worries

My mother-in-law gave me this rad little pregnant worry doll to keep under my pillow until baby time comes. And the time is here. We're on our way to meeting our newest little family member. Wish us luck!

40 weeks

40 weeks. Hey, little dude. Happy Valentine's Day. Today is the day that we made it to exactly 40 weeks. It's due-date day. And kind of a cool one at that. It is a weird and miraculous thing to think back to last May, when this all began. When February seemed so very far away.

Here we are, and yes, I'm trying my best not to get too impatient but I can't lie. I really want to see this little guy's face and hold a tiny wriggling newborn body in my arms. I've had about four days (and four long nights) of contractions. The big ones. Sometimes they will be ten minutes apart for a few hours, but I'm not quite there yet. So here's hoping ... wishing ... praying ... for a speedy delivery of a healthy little baby boy. We can't wait to meet him.

kid art: paint a skateboard deck

Sometimes a really good idea is right under your nose. Especially when it comes to creative projects for kids. Bo and I were brainstorming ideas for kids' room decor, since we've totally switched up Lo's room recently. With Bo (and now Lotus) being skaters, skateboard decks popped into our heads. I'll be sharing pics soon to show how we used these in the baby's room, too.

Lo is quite the little artist (haha, isn't that such a typical mom thing to say?) so we figured she could really work some magic with a blank skateboard deck. One cold and snowy afternoon, we hooked her up with the supplies and she went to work.

We thought over some ideas for her painting's subject matter, and she decided that she wanted to paint a bomb pop popsicle. And a bunny. (And a hamster and a duck and about twenty other things, but we stopped there.)

I drew a basic outline for her with a pencil so she had a little something to start with, and then she painted away.

In no time, she had finished painting in the outlines, and we took a much-deserved bomb pop break.

 (Brrr!)

We let the background colors dry for the afternoon, and then Lo went back over the outlines with a skinny brush and some black paint. When she was done, we asked her to add her autograph to her new 'pro model' deck.

This is how it turned out. So unbelievably fantastic! Just a reminder to myself (and maybe you, too) that it's usually a really good idea to let your kid go crazy with art supplies and materials you might not normally give them. This skateboard deck turned out so much cooler than I ever could have anticipated. Don't fear the paint; kids are washable.

And now, we're going to hang it on the wall in her bedroom. She couldn't be more proud of her new artwork. Want to give this project a try? Find artwork inspiration in coloring books or clip art, or let you kid run free with something totally abstract. We used regular acrylic paint, and you can find blank skateboard decks at blankdecks.com. We haven't sealed this yet, but it might be a good idea to coat your skateboard art with a clear protective coat. Krylon makes a clear spray varnish, and I've personally always liked Liquitex acrylic varnish. Let me know if you give this a try! I highly recommend it.

from here to maternity

Remember these? Little memories, all part of the big picture. Corn dogs, Renegade, pumpkins, NYC ... and getting rounder week by week. A quick look back at the journey. Click here to see all of the maternity posts from 12 weeks on. I have to say that I am shocked that I managed to stick to the weekly photo thing. From the start, I wondered if I could really keep up with it. I worried that it would be redundant and boring and that I'd run out of things to say. Sometimes, I felt like total crap and wasn't exactly thrilled to be taking pictures. At all. But now I am left with this kind of rad history of what this pregnancy was like, and while it may not be perfect or beautiful or super creative, I know it will be cool to look back on someday. Want to see some stellar maternity series pics from some of my favorite bloggers? Check these out: Bleubird. Pacing the Panic Room. Create Loves. Walk to 40 Weeks.

39 weeks

39 weeks: here we go, yo. Little dude, I'm so proud of us for making it this far. Your dad is so excited to have a little boy. I'm pretty thrilled as well. And your big sis is ready to wait on you hand and foot. She has lots of ideas about ways she can help you out. She'll shower you with hugs and kisses and songs and stories and funny faces. Get ready because I'm sure you will love her.

So, this is pretty much it ... right? I'm having lots of strong contractions, but they're all over the place so I know it's not the real deal quite yet. This week? Next week? Any day? A huge thank-you to the blog readers, Twitter pals and most radical friends out there who have followed along and sent sweet wishes our way. I have enjoyed hanging out with you during this fun time of change. You are the coolest. I can't wait to introduce this little guy to you in the very near future. I just can't wait.

baby knits

Just in time, it's a set! I knitted an entire baby set! (Well, no pants. But who really wants hand-knit pants?) You might remember the little gray sweater from a few months ago. I had a bunch of yarn leftover, so yay! More baby knits.

I made a super simple newborn hat. In no time flat.

And even more speedily, I knocked out a pair of these baby mitts. They are too tiny and adorable for words, people.

 

All three pieces were knit with Amy Butler Belle Organic Aran by Rowan (in zinc.) I think I used three skeins, total. You can find all of the other knitterly details here. The patterns I used were: New Babeh by Kayla Dyches, Welcome to the World Newborn Hat by Nona and Baby Mitts by Susan B. Anderson. I love tiny knits, I do.