The Asbjornsen Family Blog

500 WOMEN

2011-05-04T22:18:00.000-07:00

I'm signed up for Kat's @ inspiredtoaction.com (Maximize your Morning's challenge!) I"ve been really wanted to try something like this for some time now but just couldn't get motivated and really needed someone to hold me accountable. Stumbling across her blog a few months back has been such a huge encouragement. Looking forward to MAY 15th.

Today her post was as follows -

500 women signing a petition can’t get a law passed.

500 women buying a book can’t make it a best seller.

500 women watching a movie can’t make it a hit.

500 women alone can’t make a big impact.

500 women waking up early to fall on their knees in prayer for their family.

500 women finding hope and security in Christ’s love for them.

500 women hearing and and responding to their Heavenly Father everyday.

500 women overflowing with the love, grace, courage and hope of God…

Unstoppable.

AMEN ! So ready for this !

Simple Living

2011-04-17T20:59:00.000-07:00

I'm all for simple living, everything about it really.

Yet I can't seem to get with the program and SIMPLIFY.

I think I have the hardest time because their are so many parts of my life I want to simplify that I shave a bit off of here a bit off of there and in the end, really nothing has been simplified.

I want to simplify my belongings. (Clothes, furniture, food, toys "Amalie's and my own.")

I want to simplify my monthly budget, and my activities.

The stress I have on a daily basis comes from a few things:

A messy room

A messy childs room

A messy toy room

I really want to get rid of half of the "stuff" in each space to create an openness that makes you feel relaxed. Which none of these rooms feel very welcoming now.

I started to write down all the things I wanted to do to make this happen, and again OVERLOAD. And nothing gets done, because I start thinking about another area of life that needs revising and a to do list/action plan.

So alas I'm content with baby steps. Even though my first step is a baby step it feels huge !

Our storage unit is getting a facelift.

My motto:

If I haven't thought about it in 6 months.....

It's outta here !!!

Thankfully my neighborhood is hosting a missive 75+ house garage sale soon and I get the opportunity to sell all my stuff (fingers crossed) and take the first step towards simplicity.

Also hoping I make enough to tack a bit of cash onto our emergency fund. (Thanks Dave Ramsey, ha !)

(This Moment)

2011-04-04T15:53:00.000-07:00

The Homemade Everything Life !

2011-04-04T15:42:00.000-07:00

thehomemadeeverythinglife.blogspot.com

I made this blog awhile back... okay so maybe last summer.

Now we are approaching the best time of the year:

C A N N I N G T I M E

I thought it would be only appropriate to start journaling on what I"ve been lusting over in all my books from the library/late night Amazon (one click) purchases.

Feel free to post resources you've found that support a homemade life.

Cheesemaking

Keeping Chickens

Sewing

Canning

Bread Baking

Homemade house cleaners

ect !

Also if you are interested in getting together for canning/baking/sewing parties. Let me know and we can kick something off.

Living in community and sharing resources is always better than doing it all on our own right

( This Moment )

2011-03-28T19:47:00.000-07:00

{this moment}

A Monday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

MAMA made : Reversible A-Line ruffle dress

2011-03-15T16:48:00.000-07:00

A-Line Ruffle Dress + Matching diaper cover

Fabric: Top Amy Butler

Bottom and Bias: Anna Marie Horner

"Choosing handmade is choosing a slower way of life, one rooted in tradition and creative expression."

- Cathy McMurray /PDX

Once Amalie goes to sleep The "Crafting Hour" begins in my house. I have more ideas floating around in my head all day than I know what to do with. I've been writing them all down and trying to just get to one project a week so I can both feel like I'm accomplishing something and not getting too overwhelmed by starting 5 projects and leaving the majority of them unfinished and in the "Will get to eventually" pile.

I got a great pattern off of etsy from one of my favorite stores : Heidi and Finn

Her tutorial are so easy to follow and the clothes always turn out wonderful.

I modified her ruffled tank-top pattern, turned it into a dress and made a diaper cover to pair with it.

I lusted over a bias tape maker for sometime and for Christmas my mother-in-law got one for me. Yippee ! So EVERYTHING i've been making of course needs adorable matching bias tape !

Needless to say my child is going to one hip chick this Spring/Summer

Also...

This outfit cost less than 5.00 to make.

Dusting off the cobwebs of the blog

2011-03-11T13:01:00.000-08:00

Spring is right around the corner and for that I am so thankful !

This winter has been hard on me.

Cabin Fever..... BAD

Lack of Motivation..... even worse

Health.... ha when was the last time we were all healthy? Christmas maybe?

Today the sun warmed me up on my way into work, I couldn't help but smile the whole way in.

Thank you sun, thank you pink buds on the trees, thank you to everything around me that is reminding me that the end is in sight.

Where we can run and play outside, where the days come with hours of sunshine and praying for a renewed spirit to be the creative, joyful, the continued heart to serve others in my community.

Sun.This is to you.Keep shining !

Day 3

2010-11-11T08:15:00.000-08:00

When we feel grateful, we feel full-full of love, full of inspiration, full of ideas, and full of creative spirit !

Today I am so grateful for friends that inspire me!

Friends that inspire me to:

Be creative,

Be a mother and wife full of love and compassion,

Be accountable,

Be content exactly where I am in life.

Day 2

2010-11-10T20:34:00.000-08:00

Early Bedtimes !

It is only 8:30 and I'm going to BED !

I'm thankful for a baby that sleeps so well that I'm able to enjoy a long 12 hour stretch too !

Gratitute (day 1) Nov 9th

2010-11-09T08:33:00.000-08:00

It's never too late to start..... right?

Gratitude (Day 1) November 9th

Elizabeth Mitchell's New CD

Sunny Day

Her music is so lovely, it really helps me relax and enjoy the simple joys of my life in the morning. I"m thankful and grateful for her music.

Wishing you beauty and wonder in the simple and ordinary tasks of your day, today! (SOULEMAMA)

Baby book:

2010-09-14T02:09:00.000-07:00

This is random, but i've been slowly working on pieces for miss Amalie's baby book and I came across these pictures, this was such a fun day at the park with her about a month ago. Just made my night seeing it again, can't wait to look back at these 5, months from now and 5 years from now. My baby is growing up so fast !

A little bit of this, a little bit of that.

2010-09-12T23:12:00.000-07:00

As a commitment to myself I'm going to start entering my journal entries on my blog again. I'm all about community these days and finding what it means to me and the role it has on my family. The next few months of posts will be about just that.

Motherhood

2010-05-25T01:27:00.000-07:00

Just another small paragraph that touched me deeply this week. Looking forward to entering my journal entries in here once this term is over.

There has never been a ruder awakening in my life about my desperate shortcomings other than motherhood. The huge responsibility of nurturing another life gets me thinking of all the ways I don’t measure up to whatever ideal it is I picture in my head. It’s like a magnifying glass over the things I’m incompetent in: cooking, keeping house, self-care, and more. But it is precisely because of this that motherhood offers us a way to grow into the person we truly are. We learn to be painfully honest of our weaknesses while we gratefully embrace our strengths. We daily stand on grace and nothing else if only to keep going in this rigorous task we have been given. The gift of authenticity. No more pretending to be more than who we are.

Domesticity

2010-04-20T00:47:00.000-07:00

" We can thank the women before us who fought to ensure that domesticity was a choice and not something required of all women. Thanks be to them that these expectations are no longer required of us but are now an option among many that we may choose if we so wish. Free from the burden of expectations, we can now look to domestic arts and skills to create and express ourselves in our homes, giving full respect to the art and skill they encompass."

-Amanda Soule

I will write soon how this wonderful quote has had a large impact on my life this week, but until then I'll just leave you with this quote.

18: the lucky number

2010-03-26T01:38:00.001-07:00

I met with my adviser on Tuesday, to make sure I was on track to walk in graduation on August 14th ! I am only 18 credits away from GRADUATION. I will still have my senior capstone to finish up in the Fall, but I can still walk in summer :) Hip Hip Hurray. Amalie has big a HUGE motivation in getting done. I can't wait to be done and have more time to hang with my little lady.

Also I have lost 18 lbs on my "hot mama diet" :) about 15 lbs more to go to get back to the 130 lbs I was when I got pregnant. I haven't been too hardcore about my diet, but trying to eat well and exercise when I can, I continue to loose a pound or two a week, hopefully I'll be back to my normal self early summer.

18 is MY number this week !

!

End of the term

2010-03-14T16:33:00.000-07:00

It has been a little over three months since Amalie was born. I have never been so challenged and stretched in my entire life ! I am so thankful for this though, I have grown up a lot and continue to grow into this new roll, a mother. Yesterday Chad and I went on our weekly Saturday walk as a family. (It seems like this is our only time together throughout the week.) It is truly cherished though ! I can't imagine any other thing that brings me more joy than being with my husband and my daughter. When we got married we felt like we were a "family" but I don't think anyone can describe fully how your heart changes when a child is added into the mix.

I have really been struggling with being away from Amalie so much when I have to go to work. I work 5 nights a week so I only get to put her to sleep 2 nights :( When I am home I have housework ( which sadly comes at least priority) and homework and making dinner and juggling all the other parts of life. I try to spend as much time as possible with Amalie, but I feel so sad sometimes at the end of the day I feel like I haven't been able to have that undivided attention and time with her. She is quite social and doesn't mind being watched and held by anyone, but deep down in my heart I get so sad sometimes that she doesn't get the majority of her day with me her mama !

I never pictured myself as a stay at home mom, and not to say that I want to do that, especially once my kiddos get into grade school, but I can tell you that I am going to work so hard in getting a work from home or great part time job once I graduate. I commend those who work full time and have their kids in daycare during the day but for me I just don't think I could do it ! I never understood people who wanted to stay home and not work, but now I understand. I think with so many things we have these ideas of how we want things or how we think we will do things, but I am learning every week that really until you go through it you have no idea what you want or what you will do. I try to be flexible and go with "what is best right now." approach. For all plans change, and If I never want to change my plans around I would end up just really discouraged.

So what will next term hold? Gosh I have no idea ! But I'm sure excited to find out.
Life is such a crazy wonderful journey !

And having a kid makes it SO much fun !

Thank you for my husband and my little Amalie for keeping me sane this term, it has been rough !

I-Phones, why I love them

2010-03-02T01:04:00.000-08:00

For awhile now I have wanted an i-phone, but their wasn't much of a need for one, so we never decided to add the extra expense to our budget. Their are so many reasons why I am so glad we canceled cable, and a few other expenses to get these. But the main reason i love them is we are able to take and send video easily to each other. Going back to work has been good, but I miss my little Amalie SO much ! Especially those 8 hour shifts are killer. ONce I come home she is fast asleep and I wont get to hold and kiss on her until around 7 am when she wakes up for a bottle. Chad is great about sending me video clips so I can watch on my break. This one is my all time favorite though, she is such a talker these days !

The sleep story

2010-02-24T00:51:00.000-08:00

Well tonight is Amalie's first night in her own room. I am actually kind of sad about it, yet happy at the same time. It has been about a month now since she has been sleeping through the night. She usually goes to sleep between 10:30- midnight will sleep until 7 or 7:30 then take a bottle then back to bed until around 10:30 in the morning. I had loved having her in her bassinet right next to my side of the bed when I was up every 2 hours nursing her, but once we made the switch to formula after the" milk saga" she wasn't waking up more than twice a night, and then went to just once a night, she is outgrowing her current bed and we decided it was a good time now to make the transition before she gets too use to sleeping next to us. It took her a bit longer to settle tonight Chad said "I was at work" but she has been in her crib and doing well.... she is moving a bit more than usual but she is probably just getting use to all the space. I can't help but watch her on the monitor, I have a feeling I might not get much sleep tonight, I've been so worried I might not hear her when she wakes up for her bottle. I'm sure I will, but I'm just worrying. My little one looks so grown up these days I can't believe she will be 12 weeks on sunday ! Where did the time go? Chad and I love her more than we could have ever thought, she brings our family so much joy and she has blessed us so much. When either of us has had a hard day we love to just cuddle with her, makes life stand still, worries of the world fade and we feel at peace. Having a child is so amazing ! I love this little chic so much ! Praying the rest of the "first night" goes well.

Amalie's 1st Boyfriend

2010-02-14T22:42:00.001-08:00

This was probably one of the cutest things ever ! We went to visit some friends and their adorable son Malakai. He is almost 8 months so quite a bit more aware of his surroundings than Amalie. But it was SO cute seeing them staring at each other and when Amalie reached out her hand Malakai held on to it ! So so so cute. I can't wait for Amalie to have more baby friends.

Life as of now

2010-02-09T23:35:00.000-08:00

I can't believe Amalie is 9 weeks old ! She is getting so big, every morning I wake up and feel as if she has grown so much overnight. Everyday she is discovering something new, making new sounds, smiling a ton, and bringing so much joy to our little family. Life is truly crazy around our house but I wouldn't have it any other way. Being a wife, a mother, a student and an employee takes a toll on me from time to time but I try to live day by day and be thankful for this time in my life.

I day dream frequently about a year from now... two years from now,.... a time where Chad and I will hopefully have full time jobs with weekends off, a house of our very own ( I don't care how small it might be or how run down) something to call our own! I can't wait to fill it with love and energy and watch our little girl grow up ! I can't wait to paint the walls (without having to paint them white again) I can't wait to have a sandbox in the backyard, to have a garden to plant vegetables, flower boxes outside the windows, an art room to encourage creativity and spend countless hours crafting my heart out, a kitchen to cook together, a dining room to sit around the table and share a meal with my family and friends, a fireplace to cuddle up next to in the winter... just thinking about the day when we get to look for our "First House" seriously warms my heart.

To make this possible Chad and I are trying to be really frugal with our money and save save save so we will be able to get to where we want to be. WE want to be debt free when we go out looking for a house and have a decent amount saved for a down payment. We will have student loans probably for as long as we live but besides those and paying off our hospital bill (giving birth is expensive !) we don't want to have payments each month hindering us from buying a house. Once our tax return comes our way we will have no outstanding debt ! I coupon religiously, we share one car, and do what we can to cut costs, but still our situation right now (being in school and only working part time) we spend all our money each month on rent and utilities about 1,350 ! So Alas we have made the decision to not renew our lease in May and make the move to house with the inlaws in their spare room. We understand it's not the most ideal situation..... it's not going to be overly comfortable (I have serious space issues) and it may feel like a step back instead of a step forward. We are both ready to make the sacrifice for more long term goals. A HOUSE! We hope to stay there until Chad graduates( a little under a year) hopefully we last that long, we will see how everything goes.... In this time we are going to continue to save all we make in hopes of getting a house.......

Amalie's stats from her 2 month check up today

Weight: 11lbs 12 oz 74 percentile
Height: 24 inches 94 percentile
Head: 15 1/2 inches 64 percentile

she did really good with all her shots, 3 pokes and an oral vaccine ! A lot of crying at first but I had brought a bottle so we fed her and she calmed right down, and has been sleeping all day long ! hoping she doesn't wake up middle of the night and ready to play.... fingers crossed for a repeat from last night. She slept 10pm-6:30 am then feeding and slept until 8:30 !

Also Chad and I are on weight watchers, it has been really great. I have never needed to diet before so this is kind of new but I have 28lbs to loose to get back to my pre pregnancy weight. ( Yes I gained a TON!) so dieting is a must ! I have lost 8 lbs and so has Chad. I worked out for the first time since Amalie was born and no words can explain how out of shape I am.... only huffs and puffs.

Well Amalie is starting to stir... we might not be so lucky with a good nights rest tonight.

The cutest smile ever !

2010-02-03T00:33:00.001-08:00

::Update::

2010-01-26T20:28:00.000-08:00

Well, where to start ?

Last Wednesday when I was in Eugene Amalie started acting really different, and not "herself." I know newborns change all the time but this screaming business was so not like her. Up until that day she would cry when she was hungry and when we would put her in her bassinet for bed and that was about it. But that day... that day.... the screams were endless and so loud ! Screams, like she was being really hurt. It was horrible to listen to, even worse to see the look in her eye and the worst was hours being spent walking back and forth in our apartment listening to music and nothing would seem to help her until she would finally fall asleep only to wake 10 min later ready for another feeding. We heard it all, it's just a phase, maybe it's colic (I knew it wasn't) it will pass. But that mother part of me knew something was up. Yesterday I hit breaking point. I had no sleep for days, and was wearing thin. I had fallen over and hit my head on the side of the fireplace two days ago and Chad was starting to worry. Yesterday was Chad's long day class and work from 8am-8pm and I had no idea how I could make it that long. Chad shipped me over to his parents house so his mom could watch her for a bit while I snoozed. (Thank you Grandma kelli) I had only one bottle pumped so I didn't get too much sleep but atleast having my hands free, made me feel a lot less stressed. I was upstairs sleeping(well trying to) over the loud screams and wails of Amalie. I knew nursing her made her stop so I was keep wanting to run down their to offer up my boob, but everyone was keep telling me, she just ate she needs to learn to go longer. Helpless, I would sulk back upstiars to try to catch a little more rest, which was hard since my boobs were getting engorged at this point and I wasn't able to sleep on my stomach anymore.

I picked up Chad after work and back to the apartment we went, from then until about 2 this afternoon was a cycle of, feed, content for 20 min or so, screaming, more screaming, fall asleep, 10 min later wake up to feed. ( I generally go 2 hours between feedings) during the day.

Through out all this we wanted to just put her down and let her "cry it out" which we will end up doing, but still I didn't think it was just her crying to cry.

Chad got fed up and called the Dr office, we knew nothing was "medically" wrong with her but we needed some professional advice. At her 2 week apt she weighted 9lb 4 oz today 5.5 weeks later she was only 10 lb. He weight had leveled off and not gaining on the curve she was on earlier. During the apt she started to wail for the Dr. I had brought a bottle with me and Dr. Meyer had me give it to her so she would calm for a bit, she sucked it down so fast (even though I had just fed her before leaving the house) and Dr. Meyer said I think we have a case of hungry baby syndrome. I felt horrible, have I been starving my child ! But I knew I was doing everything I thought was right.

About when she started these spells is when a growth spurt started she thinks and my milk supply wasn't catching up to her needs, also she takes 45 min - hour to nurse and by the time she unlatches half of that may already be digested. She sent us home with formula and had us mix 3 oz of my milk with 3 oz of formula and offer that to her.

She drank it ALL
And fell asleep within 2 min not 2 hours
And has been asleep on her own for 3 hours now !!
I just had a hungry baby !

Also she has not been taking naps and won't fall asleep easily at night, we have been wanting to do the cry it out method but wasn't sure if it was too early. Dr. Meyer said at this point we need to do whats best for Mama, since that will be best for Baby. So once her tummy gets full we will start putting her down to cry it out, praying we get this no sleep/crying phase to pass soon !

The sleepy/satisfied baby tonight makes my whole night ! I was feeling so helpless....

Thank you God and Dr. Meyer
Little Amalie I love you we had no idea you were just hungry :(

A reminder to myself

2010-01-23T00:16:00.000-08:00

These pictures are a reminder to myself that
1. My child is happy
2.My child is capable of sleeping

If you were in our apartment tonight, I don't think either of the above statements would have crossed your minds. Amalie seriously had a full blown meltdown ! Not sure what her deal was, it started out of nowhere. We have had trouble with her not taking naps so I think she might have just been over tired. Even though she slept well last night and took one nap on my chest today, maybe days of sleeplessness are catching up with her ? I hope we have our happy baby back tomorrow though, all this screaming is tough !

Tonight I had a quiz due by 11:59 pm. I had planned on taking it earlier when Chad's mom was over watching Amalie but Amalie decided she wanted to eat three times in 3 hours so I was only really able to work on my homework for about 45 min. Leaving my quiz until tonight. At around 9 I sat down in the other room to get started, it's timed and I had 90 min to take it. Right when I got started Amalie started her fit, Chad tried everything to soothe her but the only thing that ended up working was for me to nurse her, then have her on my chest. I think Chad felt bad he wasn't able to help her, and that I wasn't able to focus on my exam, but it all worked out. I had my laptop set up on one side of me to take the quiz, the other hand with a binkie on it just in case the wailing started up again flipping through pages looking for the answers and rocking to keep the baby calm.... multi tasking to the MAX ! Not the most ideal situation, and I was quite a site to see but I ended up with 29/30 on the quiz and a quiet sleepy baby who is now sleeping away on Daddy's chest, we are not brave enough to try to set her in her bassinet, enjoying the quiet......

2010-01-18T19:06:00.000-08:00

I Try I really do !

2010-01-18T18:56:00.000-08:00

Ah the saga of getting Amalie to take naps continues...... Yesterday was awesome she slept all day long ! Today she has been awake all day long ! I have paced the house bouncing her in the dark until I was pretty sure I had lost at least 500 calories, put her in the swing, the bouncer, laid her on my bed, the bassinet, rocked her, swayed, and repeat. At what point it's been about 2 hours and alas she is hungry again, so the cycle starts over after an hour long nursing session (I'll post about my love/hate relationship with nursing later and the inevitable formula that will be coming soon) at what point, I threw in the towel. I feel horrible sometimes that she can go so long without taking a nap, but I really have tried everything ! She doesn't get fussy or irritable, just looks hyper and wants to play. So today I decided to stop trying and gave in and put her in her crib with some toys to keep her occupied so I could get some homework done, oh and PEE ! I think my full bladder kept me dancing for a while longer than usual :) Now it's been 1 hour of silence in the dark, went in to check on her and not a sleepy eye in sight.... so the lights went on, gave her a kiss, she gave me the cutest smile back and I snapped a picture of her playing.

Fingers crossed this could mean a good night rest for Chad and I ? Chad's free day (no work or school) tomorrow so if she is hyper thankfully he'll be able to stay up with her. He's the most wonderful husband in the whole world, If I haven't mentioned that yet ! Such a huge help all the time, we miss him so much when he's gone !

Happy Baby

2010-01-02T15:45:00.000-08:00

Amalie is going to be 1 month old tomorrow ! I can't believe how fast the time has gone by. She is so wonderful in every way. Chad and I are truly blessed to have such a wonderful daughter, we can't wait to see all the changes she will go through this first year.

School starts for me on Monday, so praying that transition goes alright. They are all online again this quarter but we are still to attain any kind of routine with this little one and running off of very little sleep each day. She loves to stay up all night long ! Literally she can be awake and alert for 10 hour chucks of time. We have been working on some ways to get her nights and days switched around in hopes of getting us some more sleep for when school and work start up again for both of us.

Right now we are just taking one day at a time, waking up every morning saying I wonder what the day will bring today. Being a new parent is hard work but so rewarding.

Our little princess:

2009-12-22T11:20:00.000-08:00

Even though she isn't sucking on her pacifier, the second I would try to take it away she would suck it back in... it was so funny.
Our friend David finally got to come hold Amalie, I think they sat like this for over 2 hours ! It gave me time to clean :)

One of these days I'll post what has been going on with our new addition, I'm still rather sleep deprived, so every time I start a post I know if I have time to blog I have time to SLEEP and that is the most important.

So I'll just leave you all with a few pictures of little miss Amalie

Amalie Claire's Birth Story

2009-12-12T22:34:00.000-08:00

This may be a long post, as was my labor.....

December 5th around 3 am I woke up having uncomfortable yet not unbearable contractions. I was slightly skeptical if I was "actually" in labor or not. The Monday before that I had the same type of contractions and got overly excited and then they stopped after a few hours. So I assumed these contractions would do the same thing. I couldn't sleep very well, but went out on the couch and watched a few infomercials until Chad got up around 8 am and I told him I thought I was maybe having more serious contractions.

We had a 9am appointment at the hospital scheduled for a NST (non stress test) to make sure Amalie was doing good since I was overdue. I figured they would be able to let me know if the contractions were just Braxton or if I was truly in labor.

On the car ride to the hospital they began to be more regular, but still not overly painful. The nurse (Megan) showed me to my room and hooked me up to the monitors, (one for Amalie's heartrate, one for uterine activity) The test lasted an hour, and at the end of it they showed me I was indeed in labor, I had contractions every 4 minutes lasting a minute for the past hour. She said this was the general criteria to get checked in to the hospital and told me I was able to stay If I wanted. At this point I was thrilled that today was going to be the day (the 5th of december) Since it was just 10 am I thought for sure she would be born then.

We decided to go home since we needed to get our bags and carseat. I decided to labor at home until I felt that I needed to go back to the hospital. I called my mom and let her know, the show had began, and she cruised up I5 to be with us. I labored at home until 4 pm, at this point my contractions were more severe and I was ready to go !

When we got to the hospital (Megan) my nurse from earlier on in the day was still there, I was so happy and hoping she was going to be my nurse all night, but I knew she was probably getting off soon since she was there in the AM. Which was correct she showed us to our room, we had the largest in the hospital ! It was like a hotel suite (side note) and said my labor nurse would be Gayla and she would be in shortly. I should have know from the git go, with a name like Gayla, only bad things could come of this. And oh they did !

With my anxiety about hospitals I prayed so hard that I would get just the right people helping me to make the experience that much more enjoyable for me. When she walked in , right away I was NOT happy with her. Bad personality match to the extreme. She was old, and crazy and not personable at all ! I tried to stay calm during the first go around of questions and checks, but the second she walked about of the room I broke down and told Chad I was having a home birth and would not have her in the room with me no matter what. At this point my anxiety kicked in and starting slowing down my contractions.

I'll try to make this part short, I was hooked up to the monitors but my contractions were not progressing very fast, Gayla suggested I go home and labor for a few days (yes she told me it might take a few days !) hello 2009, pitocin ! But she was obviously bias for natural childbirth and I was all about my epidural. A long series of events followed this, (hopefully I'll be able to share this part with friends in person, it makes it much better) but this part of my labor ended with Chad having to fire Gayla, yes she got fired, well just from being my nurse.

Shift change a 7pm and my new nurse arrived, (Kayla) walked in the room, and I was so thrilled. A young vibrant nurse that was just AMAZING. We shared the same philosophy. "Let's get the baby out." At this point I still wanted to labor naturally so I wouldn't be stuck in bed with the epidural. I walked the halls, sat in the tub, used the labor ball, then around 8:30 I got my epidural. (Much less scary than I had anticipated at well)

At this point I was only dialated to 3/4 cm and Kayla said I would have to be in the first go around of IV fluids, see how the epidural was going then I would be put on pitocin to get my contractions to speed up. This point kind of all became a blur since I was so tired. But I remember her saying I would probably dialate around 1 cm an hour so that would put us around 8 am or 9 to start pushing. I was bummed because she was getting off shift at 7am so I would have someone else to help deliver. I fell asleep and rested for pretty much the rest of my labor. She came in to check me an hour later and I was dialated to a 8 ! And she thought I would be at a 10 in less than an hour. I woke up Chad and he was so shocked it happened so fast. I think we all were.

After this they waited for my water to break naturally, and then a little after 6 am I was ready to start pushing. She told me it would probably take about 1-3 hours to get her out. Especially since I had an epidural, and sometimes it is harder for women to control the pushing. I started to push and within a few pushes she could see the head. At this point she said Amalie was coming way faster than anticipated and she needed to go grab the doctor. My Dr. wasn't on call so another Dr. from the practice was going to deliver. Again, she was AMAZING the greatest doctor of all times. I was so blessed to have these women helping out. God was looking out for me ! After 20 minutes of pushing, they said we would start a short pushing sequence to get her out, but after the next push she literally shot right out ! Listening to Mozart, Amalie Claire arrived at 6:58 am (2 min before Kayla was off shift, see God again taking care of me) weighing 8 lb 10 oz 22 inches long ! And full of baby fat rolls ! I must have fed her good.

This is enough, for part one of the most amazing birth experience ever ! More to come, to finish the whole story.

40 Weeks, baby Amalie where are you ??

2009-12-02T19:05:00.000-08:00

Just a little picture of my big belly :)

December 2 : Amalie's "Official" Due Date

2009-12-02T00:01:00.001-08:00

We are still waiting on this little one to make a move....
No sign of her yet though.
At my doctor appointment today my doctor suggested we make December 9th the induction date. So it's exciting to know, she will for sure be here by then !
I think today would be a great day.... really not to thrilled with the idea of an induction, but willing to do whatever I need to do to get miss Amalie here safely.

Amalie Claire, your mommy and daddy are anxiously waiting your arrival, please come soon

::::: Almost 40 weeks :::::

2009-11-28T02:26:00.000-08:00

The "Due Date" is almost here. I'm anxious, excited, nervous, and thrilled. Emotional to say the least. I have had so much energy lately, it has been wonderful ! I think I was in denial that working was making me so tired. I had decided it was just pregnancy, but now having some time off to recoup and actually be in bed at a normal hour has done wonders for my body, mental well being and heath. I'm so thankful I have had this time before she arrives, God has been taking care of me, as I trust him with her timing I can rest assured it will happen at the best possible time. I have been learning this week just how much he loves us and takes care of us. If it would have been my call I would have had her last week, but now sitting here fully refreshed and mentally prepared for labor I feel comforted in the fact that his plan is above all the best.

This week Chad and I have been going on countless walks, it's been so refreshing ! Taking walks with Chad has been really special, knowing this will be our last week of just us, we have been trying to take full advantage of just our alone time. Even though most of it is spent talking about how excited we are to meet our daughter. It's been special to just stroll through the parks together hand in hand and talk about all the exciting things life has for us.

Tonight.... I feel calm, relaxed and ready.

Basketball Belly 38 weeks 4 days

2009-11-22T13:16:00.000-08:00

38 Weeks

2009-11-19T16:38:00.000-08:00

Don't mind my crazy hair, I had just got out of the shower ! As you can all see, my belly can pretty much no longer get any bigger, (well I'm sure it can) but hoping she won't be hanging out inside for too much longer to find out :) I have had contractions on and off but nothing major.

This waiting game is loosing me sleep, Chad and I are comparing it to Christmas eve, all the excitement and anticipation and you should really just go to bed and wake up the next day but your body is telling you something else. But I do still have 2 more weeks to go so I'm trying to just take it one day at a time.

37 Weeks :) Hopefully less than 3 to go

2009-11-10T10:39:00.001-08:00

WOW... I have grown so much since the last picture ! She is getting ready. My last day of work was last night, praise God. I was so ready to not be on my feet for hours at a time, and more ready for all the customers to stop commenting on how huge I was. I was over it at like 30 weeks.

I'm heading down to Eugene for the rest of the week, so I told her she was not allowed to come just yet ! After the weekend is fair game ! 3 weeks to go.

A countdown to so many things !

2009-11-03T22:39:00.000-08:00

First: My Maternity leave starts on November 16th ! I work this Wednesday-Monday but then have Tues-Sat off, my sister and brother in law and niece are coming into town so I'll be in Eugene spending time with them. I am so ready for leave, my feet are so ready for leave and my classes are so ready for leave. So all together I only have 7 more shifts left I think.....

Second: I'm officially on to week #6 of Fall quarter. Just finished up with all my midterm, then on to papers and finals. I am due during finals week, so this could be interesting, but I have A's in all my classes thus far so If I somehow scrape by on the finals I'll pass on my classes and that is all that matters right now.

And Finally : The countdown to Amalie ! I can't believe that we could very well be in her birth month if she decides to make a timely appearance. For all important and special things it seems like you prepare for so long then in a blink of an eye it has happened and you are moving on to the next thing and all you have is pictures. This is how I felt on my wedding day, it went by so fast for all the prep that went into it. I know giving birth is going to be a really hard process, but before we know it, it will be over and we will get to hold and kiss our little girl. I can't express how much we love her already. Chad is so adorable every night as he talks to my belly and kisses her goodnight, I am so blessed to have a wonderful husband that is going to make a great father to our kids.

It seems so hard to be patient and wait sometimes, I'm so anxious to meet her already. But I daily have to remind myself that this is the last month of just me, of just Chad and I and of having her in my belly... so trying to soak up the last few days or weeks until she arrives and changes our lives forever.

A busy week ahead of myself, praying for energy to accomplish all the things I need to get done, work and school....

::sewing::

2009-11-03T21:42:00.001-08:00

I truly think sewing is one of the most relaxing things to do.....

I love just sitting down in my sewing room, sipping on tea, and listening to some really relaxing music. It really just makes all my worries go away.
Lately I have been trying to perfect the art of shoe making, (it is super hard to get two shoes to come out looking like a pair !) Kind of like knitting gloves, which I gave up on last winter season because each one looked so different than the next.

More to come...

35 Weeks and counting...

2009-10-27T19:56:00.001-07:00

I had my 35 week check up today, from here on out I'll be going every Tuesday until she gets here ! Which is probably sometime between now and 4ish weeks from now or 36 days or 864 hours. You get the idea... she is coming so soon ! I had a small panic attack last night about it (pretty sure it was 100 % hormonal though.) I have a very full schedule for the next few weeks with midterms, homework, working my last few weeks. We have everything ready for her arrival, and i'm not worried about that it was more of a panic of WHEN am I going to have a few days to MYSELF ?? I have it all planned out that I'll be able to get what I need to get done and have about a week and half before she gets here to tie up some loose ends, then the panic reached my tipping point when reality set in they she could come before then and I would never have my time! Chad being the loving wonderful husband that he is hugged me and just held me for an hour last night telling how wonderful I was and that I was going to be the best mom in the world, and that everything would be just fine if I didn't get all my lists finished. But to me it was cause for panic thinking about not having my bags packed for the hospital or not having my house spotless at all times leading up to when we bring her home so she doesn't come home to a messy house. (Yes, this is one of my main concerns, silly I know) But all I can do is to take one day at a time be grateful she is healthy and I'm sure once she gets here I will care less about how the house looks the day I bring her home...

So soon !!

32 1/2 weeks

2009-10-10T08:59:00.000-07:00

Where have the past few weeks gone ? School started and now time is flying by so fast. Life is busy.
My belly is getting so much bigger every morning. I wake up and can tell she has grown. 7 more weeks until we get to hold her in our arms :)

Old Car / New Car

2009-10-06T19:20:00.000-07:00

I just put an add up on craigslist for our truck, please pray it sells quickly !

http://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/cto/1409917850.html

This weekend we get our new car a Honda Civic 4 Doors and 30+ miles to the gallon ! We couldn't be happier to have a car that fits the carseat and to get great gas mileage for once !

Bargains are the best.

2009-09-25T18:00:00.000-07:00

Our changing table revamp is still in the works, but it's coming together nicely. It just needs a new coat of bright white paint to match her crib and we'll be all set. This was a dresser that has been in our family for a really long time. My sister Ab has had it for the past 5 years or so but isn't using it currently so we took it off her hands and think it will make the perfect changing table. One with a little more character than most, and once she no longer needs the changing part of it, it will just her dresser.

Why People... Why ??

2009-09-24T11:58:00.000-07:00

Customer at work:

"So how many days do you have left?"

Me:

" Oh 69 more days, she'll be here before we know it."

Customer at work:

"Really, looks like you only have 10, is there any way they can speed things up so you don't get any bigger."

Me:

"Smile and laugh"

But really thinking, what would posses you to say something like that Maynard, I thought I liked you.... now I think you are a jerk ! Even though I'm sure he wasn't trying to be mean, but seriously what goes through your head to make you think that would be ok to say to a pregnant woman ! Errr

30 Weeks

2009-09-22T10:13:00.001-07:00

Colorado thus far.

2009-09-18T20:58:00.000-07:00

Well we have done a lot of relaxing while we have been here. Isla is an angel baby to say the least. I have only heard her cry once in the past 2 days ! And that is because she was getting a bath. She is so cute an adorable, really just such a joy to be around. I have an awesome niece. I hope her cousin takes after her ! But I'm not getting my hopes up...

Tomorrow is Isla's second duck game so Joey and my dad are getting her all geared up in her duck onsie to watch the game with them. Em and I are going to hit up starbucks in the morning for a Chai then hopefully take Isla on an outing to hobby lobby after the game.

Being around the newborn gets me that much more excited to see our little one, to see her personality, what she looks like and to hug and kiss on her. Babies are so special !

Just a few pics...

2009-09-18T09:59:00.000-07:00

Ok so Kris told me not to do anything with the pics until I got the cd will the high res jpg's but I loved them so much I had to post just a few.

Thanks again Kris ! I will love looking back at these. :)

Newest Purchase

2009-09-13T11:42:00.000-07:00

Look what Chad found for Amalie !

28 weeks 3 days

2009-09-11T08:38:00.001-07:00

9 days until Colorado !

2009-09-08T12:32:00.001-07:00

I only have 9 more days until I get to fly out to see my cutie of a niece and my sister and brother in law!

Can't wait :)

Shower Invite

2009-09-06T17:07:00.001-07:00

I'm not planning my own shower but I love making invites so my mom let me design the shower invite. Here is just the front cover of it. I thought it turned out cute !

More butterflies

2009-09-05T14:07:00.001-07:00

My sewing space is still taking up a good half of her room...
The cute butterflies got put up over her crib today and her coat rack.

27 weeks 3 days !

2009-09-05T11:19:00.000-07:00

Time is flying by ! I can't believe the third trimester is almost here. I feel like their is so much more still to do...getting the nursery ready, buying everything I need, childbirthing classes, getting a good start of Fall term classes. It is going to be a hectic and busy next 80 some odd days until our little one arrives. As much as I get anxious about getting everything done, I know It will be just fine and I have plenty of time, but I'm a planner at heart and I like having my to do lists list done way before they ever need to be ! So trying to take one day at a time, before moving on to the next.

I have this weekend off, so i'll be soaking up some well needed rest around the house. Before the week start up again. Hoping to finish a few sewing projects.....

I'm an auntie :)

2009-09-03T14:44:00.001-07:00

Congrats to my sister Emily and Joey ! Isla is perfect.

Born Sep 2nd
7lb 9 oz
20 1/2 inches long

Mia Joie

2009-09-01T00:11:00.000-07:00

http://www.miajoieblog.com

I browse etsy probably every day or so, It's my new obsession ! I came across this artist and fell it love with all that she does, by the time I found her though she had sold out of everything in her etsy store, so I'll have to wait to buy Amalie a pair of these adorable shoes ! They are really too cute for words. I don't think i'll try to attempt to make these ones, buying them seems much easier. Check out her blog though ! True talent !

Feeling huge !

2009-08-28T22:38:00.001-07:00

" Wow that is one nice sized belly on you." Then walks off with nothing else said.

Some random lady at the fabric store walked up to me today and said the above comment. Seriously lady, yea that makes me feel really great. "Nice Sized" is usually used in reference to something being huge !

I'm starting to feel much bigger lately. Like I have a large weight attached to my front half. I have been going strong up until now, almost forget I'm pregnant "well not really" but for the sake of changing activities I'm doing. Nothing really had changed or been difficult for me. Until one day this week I woke up and had to roll several times to get momentum to get my butt out of bed ! It started. It seamed like Amalie doubled in size overnight. Now everything is just a touch harder than usual, walking up the stairs, dishes at work all my active activities. Well I guess I better get use to this I have a full 3 more months of getting bigger ! I hope it goes by fast :) I'm so thankful for our daughter and that she is growing strong, but I'm also looking forward to shedding all my pregnancy pounds ! The weight is worth it though, we will have a beautiful baby girl before we know it.

Chad tells me how beautiful I am every day which helps though, thanks honey for being wonderful and amazing :)

26 weeks 2 days

2009-08-27T11:36:00.001-07:00

First artwork on the wall

2009-08-25T12:34:00.000-07:00

99 More Days !

2009-08-25T09:56:00.000-07:00

Miss Amalie has been moving like crazy the past 2 days ! All kinds of kicks and turns. It's fun, knowing she is growing bigger and stronger every day. We are curious of what these next 99 days will bring us.

26 week picture tomorrow....

AMALIE abc artwork

2009-08-20T13:39:00.001-07:00

I'm so glad I didn't buy this online. I have loved this print for a really long time. But it was 50.00 ! Not including the frame. Which is the Ikea RIBBA Frame so i'm sure it is under 10 bucks or so. I decided that I would just try to make something similar in illustrator. I went looking for a font on dafont.com and found the exact same one ! Lucky me. Then just eye dropped the colors into my document and 1 hour later. I saved myself 50 big ones. :) I will probably wait to print it until the lab at school starts back up again since they have nice epson printers and I have loads of print credits to use up. But Until I get it printed and framed here is the pdf version.

Let the craftyness begin !

2009-08-18T20:04:00.001-07:00

These are all ideas I found online for Amalie's room. It would cost over 250.00 to buy them all and I'm pretty sure I can make them all for under 40.00 ! So this is what all be working on this week ! I'll post pictures of my versions... hope they are as cute !

25 Weeks ! Countdown is almost under 100 days :)

2009-08-18T14:34:00.001-07:00

Today has been such an awesome day already ! Chad and I actually had the same day off ! This never happens. We got up early and just laid on the couch in our Pj's for awhile then went out to breakfast. I really was craving some french toast but we were all out of bread at the house so we drove to a breakfast place. Then had a doctor appointment. My placenta has moved to the "safe" range ! No C-section necessary at this point ! Hurray. My doctor said everything is looking great!

Not looking forward to my next apt though... I have to have my blood drawn for my glucose screening test and a shot in my hip since I'm RH negative :( Chad said he would take me to ice cream after though.... I'm such like a little kid I need a reward to look forward too.

Not sure what I have planned for the rest of the day besides taking it easy and relaxing. Ah life is good !

Isla

2009-08-13T16:51:00.000-07:00

My little niece is going to be here soon. Em is on the home stretch with Isla, she is due September 1st but both me and my sister have a feeling she will come a bit early. We will see I guess. I can't wait to see her. I'm so excited for Em and Joey ! We are hoping she doesn't come before my mom gets their on the 29th ! I fly out to Colorado Sep 17th-20th with my Dad to meet her. I'm looking forward to have some hands on practice with a newborn before Amalie arrives. Once we get back it's straight into childbirth and breastfeeding prep classes for us.... Eeek. I hope I don't pass out at any of the classes, no promises though.

24 weeks 1 day.

2009-08-13T11:27:00.001-07:00

on to year 3 !

2009-08-11T23:11:00.000-07:00

While Chad was at work today I cleaned the house spotless for him and put up the gift I got him for our anniversary. I tried so hard to get the words to go on straight, but the last few words slant a bit... oh well :) Then I framed a picture of miss Amalie we got from our ultrasound last week. Chad loved it ! He is so excited to be a Dad and start our family together. Today was a perfect day to celebrate being married for 2 years and celebrating the most wonderful gift that our love and marriage has brought us, our soon to be first child !

I was bummed I forgot the camera when we went out for our date tonight. Chad took us to a great Italian place for dinner then out to sweet masterpiece in the pearl for dessert ! Simple and Sweet.

I'm so thankful for such a thoughtful and loving husband, I really couldn't ask for anyone better. I'm one lucky woman.

Day away by the river

2009-08-09T21:33:00.000-07:00

It didn't seem long enough, but we savored every minute by the river this weekend ! It was awesome to be able to spend the day hanging out and having a campfire right on the altar where we said our vows almost two years ago ! It was tranquil ,peaceful and romantic. We will still celebrate and go out on Tuesday (8/11) for our actual anniversary but this was a great night away to celebrate ahead of time. I have the most amazing husband in the whole world !

Sewing projects

2009-08-07T01:45:00.000-07:00

I have started several sewing projects for Amalie this week. I've only finished a few burp rags though, hopefully I'll be putting the finishing touches on everything else by next weekend. But here are my first two burp rags. Cute Flannel on one side and terry cloth on the other. I figure I'll be able to make about 10 rags with 8 dollars of fabric I bought.

23 Whole weeks !

2009-08-04T23:55:00.001-07:00

22 weeks 3 days

2009-08-01T00:33:00.000-07:00

.... don't mind me holding back my gigantic boobs so they didn't get in the photo...
17 weeks to go
I have 2 more ultrasounds scheduled one on Aug 4th and one in early September and by then I'll know for sure if she'll be arriving a bit early and by c-section. My placenta is really low right now and covering my cervix, so they have been monitoring it and if it doesn't move by 28 weeks I'll be scheduling a c-section. It will be kind of strange knowing what day she'll be born ahead of time, but we just want her to get here the safest way possible so if it's a c-section that's what we'll do.

Life is CrazY BUSY

2009-07-31T14:48:00.001-07:00

Chad and I are so busy this next week. Well pretty much every week for us is crazy busy but next week especially since I'm working 10 days in a row ! (erg) It's been really hard trying to find time just to hang out, we usually always spend from about 12midnight to 1 am together though. Because many days Chad leaves the house around 7:30 for school then we see each other when I get home around Midnight. This sucks ! We can't wait when someday we have normal schedules where we can actually be involved in activities and hang out with friends..... until then we work, and study and work and study. Life is Crazy !

Freaking hot

2009-07-28T16:32:00.000-07:00

Chad and I went to Seaside for the day ! It was still pretty hot, around 80 I would say, but not going to complain when Beaverton is 105 ! We enjoyed some fish and chips and a long walk in the ocean. It was so nice to splash around in the water and not be numb. I don't think that has ever happened to me at the oregon coast. Either way life is wonderful and chad is wonderful and we had such a great little day trip. Back to work tomorrow for us... Counting down the days till we get to get away for our anniversary.

Thanks hubby :)

2009-07-26T13:37:00.001-07:00

Little Amalies Crib ! Chad was so cute, we got the crib a few days ago but we both had crazy schedules chad work 9-5 me work 6- 1 am so we had not had a time together to put it together. Chad was so anxious to though , so last night I got home a little after 11 pm and we set it all up ! It's so fun now walking by her room and seeing the crib. We can't wait to meet her.

Nursery

2009-07-16T15:37:00.000-07:00

I don't think this picture really shows what color the room "actually is" but maybe you get the idea. Light green...

20 Weeks 1 day

2009-07-16T15:34:00.000-07:00

Half Way !
For some reason I feel like in pictures my belly looks to be getting smaller .... but it is not. I have a pretty nice pooch going on now ;)

Money Saving Mama

2009-07-15T21:09:00.000-07:00

Chad and I are less than a month away from our 2 year wedding anniversary and finally we are narrowing down on a budget for ourselves, and savings plan (well hopes of one when we have money to save.) It seams like time and time again we get things figured out we think we are on a roll we save a few hundred dollars then a CRISIS happens... tire blows out on I5, I get sick and have to spend 300+ on doctor visits, well you get the idea. We understand we are in a hard situation and we won't be newly married, students with a child on the way for the rest of our lives. But it seams so hard to get ahead sometimes ! We know we are not going to actually start putting money away for a house and new car any time soon but we are trying to get our budget down to a science to make sure each month we keep our heads above water until we graduate and move on to 2 full time paying jobs ! Trying to figure out how much we spend each month or certain things is so tough sometimes but with my new helpful friend Mint.com hopefully we will be on a strict budget for awhile ! (Thanks Shell for showing me this amazing site) I highly recommend anyone wanting to get a budget and manage it easily to use this, it is AMAZING !

With our budget goals we are tying to be more thrifty on certain things such as coffee outings ( We have already spend 75.00 dollars this month ! ) Next month our goal is 25/ each all month, hopefully watching it more closely will help us stay on track.

Blog of interest to cut money of your grocery bill. I haven't gone shopping yet this week but once I do I'll see how much I can save off my total bill !

http://krazycouponlady.blogspot.com

Bumper Crib Fabric : Amy Butler

2009-07-15T20:59:00.000-07:00

My wonderful granna is going to be making Amalie's bedding for her crib. We haven't picked out all the fabric yet but my mom and I just ordered this lovely Amy Butler fabric from fabric.com a few days ago. It will be used for her bumper in the crib. It's been a lot of fun getting things figured out for her room, looking for lots of green and dark pink things !

It's starting !

2009-07-10T15:45:00.000-07:00

I'm heading out soon to go buy paint at Fred Meyer ! It is actually quite exciting we can paint our apartment without getting evicted.... My mama is coming for the weekend to paint Amalie's room and also an accent wall in our living room. I'm looking forward to getting some color in here :) After much deliberation we decided on a light green for the room, I'll post pictures soon. Can't wait to finally start putting the room together it's just been empty for the past two months. We also just sold our beloved portable dishwasher we had in our old apartment so hopefully that will be able to fund a few more shopping trips for the nursery !

Excited for our little AMALIE CLAIRE !

2009-07-08T21:58:00.001-07:00

I was totally convinced we were having a boy ! Everyone was thinking it was a boy (not like they really have a good reason to choose one or the other) but still once everyone ( well minus my bestie Shelly the only one who thought it was a girl all along) was saying "oh it's going to be a boy" I just kind of went along with it. So today came as a BIG surprise.

Ultrasound story:

This story will be way more funny to those of you who know I have the SMALLEST bladder in the whole world.

They have you drink 16 oz of water before the visit, and it has to be finished atleast 30 min before you are seen. Are you joking me like I can drink that much and not pee within the first 1o min if i'm lucky. So I pee once...... head to the office and i'm bursting at the seams when I fly through the doors asking where I can go. The lady at the front desk told me polietly I was not able to use the restroom because I needed a full bladder. I tried to inform her I would have a full bladder in another 10min of waiting but just needed to pee !! She laughed and said your bladder only fills up once an hour.
I get called back right away and lay down, gripping the sides of the table praying I don't spring a leak. The baby is sleeping.... she pokes a little more to see if she'll wake up or stretch. Nothing.
I"m then told maybe my bladder is not full yet and I need to roll on my side and wait, she'll be back in 5 min. My bladder isn't full enough yet, has she not heard one word i've been saying ! I"m going to pee.. and pee soon. She comes back and takes some measurements that she can, mostly just of the head and brain. She says I might have to come back to finish the ultrasound another day. My heart drops, I was so excited to find out what we were having ! Chad knowing he would not have a happy wifey later if I could find out speaks up for me and asks if it's impossible to find out gender. The lady says she'll do in internal ultrasound for us and will probably be able to see what she needs to. For this you get to empty your bladder ! Hurray. Run down the hall pee and head back to the room. Lay down and get the whole thing started. She tries to measure a few more things during this time and within 2 min she said she is running against the clock to find the gender because my bladder is already 3/4 full again ! She was shocked ! I think now she believed me I could have peed several times and still had a full bladder for the ultrasound.

End of Story I do have the smallest bladder in the world and i'm not crazy !

After that we had her write down what we were having and we wen't out to lunch with Chad's parents and sis and opened it all together !

Now i'm all ready to start shopping for girlie stuff.

Amalie Claire we are so excited to have you in our family :)

19 Weeks

2009-07-07T15:53:00.001-07:00

My Belly now sticks out further than my Booty ! I felt the baby's first big move/kick on the 4th of July ! It was so special ! I stopped in my tracks and dropped my purse and was just in awe for a bit. It felt like I had swallowed my cell phone and it was vibrating in my belly. Then later that evening when I was laying down I felt "pops" right below my belly button , assuming those are kicks. I feel like I have to be really still to know for sure if it's the baby or not. Can't wait until Chad can feel it too. He has been so cute always wants to put his hands over my belly, just in case the baby kicks hard enough he will feel it and not miss it.

We are getting so anxious to meet our little one. 9:40 tomorrow is our ultrasound, can't wait to see him/her and make sure they are looking healthy !

Mother knows best

2009-07-03T23:44:00.000-07:00

After finally meeting my doctor for the first time last month ( I had seen a nurse, then the stand in Dr. while the doctor I had been recommended was still on maternity leave) She was very nice.... yet slightly over energetic for my taste ! I thought it would be fine, I told myself I couldn't be too picky and I am already 18 weeks along I can't switch now. But after a wonderful conversation with my mother I'm glad I realized damn straight I can be picky ! I'm going to be giving birth, not a time when I need to worry about if it's appropriate to be picky or not. I need to have someone with me that i'm totally 100 percent comfortable with. With much guidance from my mom, and talking over what is important to me and the experience I have decided to leave the OB practice I had started going to for a Midwife clinic that emphasizes more on holistic childbirth yet also is available to all types of pain medication administered by hospital staff if that is what I choose (which is what I'll be going with.) The clinic consists of 5 midwives which you rotate between during all your appointments so you'll be able to know each lady personally. Since who knows who's day it will be when I go into labor I felt more comfortable knowing I would know each midwife that might be assisting me. With the other doctor if she was not on call I could end up with someone I had never even met. The midwife will be with me during the Whole labor and delivery not just show up for the big push, continue to be with you through the hours following delivery to assist in breast feeding. Also the childbirth classes are taught in a small group 8 couples over 6 weeks. The classes are taught at a womens welness center that emphasizes yoga practice and nutrition for pre/post natal care. Overall I think I might the right decision to really think what is going to be best for me !

And on a side note I think it will cost less seeing a midwife, compared to the 3,988 bill for the doctor. Well once insurance hits it would only be 1,000.. but still. Having a baby is so expensive. The price above is only for the visits, to push on your belly and tell you how fat your getting. Not even including blood work and ultrasounds. Geez maybe I should just say i'm a teenager that got knocked up, then I wouldn't have to pay for anything ! The system is so screwed up.

I have been feeling really overweight and not attractice lately so no picture of me. Even though Chad is continually telling me I'm beautiful hearing it doesn't change the fact I hate getting dressed every morning. I do have a nice collection of mumu's now that make things easeir.

Overall Life is good ! And we are getting so excited for Wednesday ! We are going to have the ultrasound tech write down what we are having on a piece of paper and put it in an envelope then we are having lunch with chad's family and opening it up so we all find out together ! Then after that we will go shopping a bit so I can finally get something that isn't green or yellow !
We love our little one so much already, can't wait to meet our little (ezra jude,amalie claire)

Names for our little one

2009-06-17T18:38:00.000-07:00

July 8th is our BIG ultrasound ! We finally get to see the first glimpse of our child and also find out if we are having a boy or girl ! The time has really flown by ! I can't believe I'll be almost halfway through pregnancy by this apt.

If we have a girl she will be Amalie Claire if we have a boy he will be Ezra..... middle name is still up in the air. Ideas we have are Jude, Alexander, James , but those are rather traditional if anyone has any suggestions on middle names let us hear them ! I think we are both tired of coming up with middle names for awhile.

Picking out just the right name is tough, so many things to think about. Is the name too cute, will it be good for an infant and an adult. Will people mispronounce it their whole life. (and with a last name like Asbjornsen, we had to take this seriously) Will kids make fun of the name, example we were going to name our boy AMOS, but too many people said he will probably at some point or another (around middle school) be called amos the anus ! I can't do that to my kid.

We are in love with our girl name, but still trying to find the right boy name, but soon enough we will find out if we need to worry about it ! 21 days and counting

Entering the blog community

2009-06-17T18:27:00.001-07:00

Well, at one point or another I have thought about starting a blog. But stopped after a post or two thinking our life wasn't of too much interest. I had once told my friend Kayley that it's pretty much just families that have blogs worth reading. And the other day while chatting with Kayley I realized maybe i'll give this a shot even if she is the only one reading. ( I"ll try to make your work day go by faster kayley !) So we will start with my pregnancy, my woes of becoming huge, then move onto labor stories then pictures of our little kiddo growing up and all the trivial yet cute things that happen in the day to day life of being a mom ! I can be a legitimate family blogger now ! Yahoo.

Week 16

2009-06-17T18:25:00.001-07:00

Week 15

2009-06-17T18:24:00.001-07:00

13.5 Week Baby Bump

2009-06-01T01:20:00.001-07:00

I was a little surprised that I started showing so much so soon, but I couldn't be more happy to be gaining a few ;)

Boy or Girl

2009-05-26T17:28:00.000-07:00

For a while I always thought Chad and I would wait to find out the sex of our baby. "The Surprise" factor I thought, would help me get through labor. Now that I have this little human growing inside me, I can't wait to find out if we have a little Amalie or Ezra in there. Right around the 4th of July we will find out at our 20 week apt. I have been rather healthy lately, which is such a blessing. Life was getting rather stressful, being sick all the time. We are all moved in to our new place, not quite situated yet, but soon. It's so exciting knowing this is the home we get to bring our son or daughter home to. Chad has been getting really excited lately, it is so cute. He is going to be a great father !

I have been feeling huge lately, and lots of people noticing my baby bump ! People actually think i'm either having twins or am further along than I thought..... we have an apt tomorrow at 1:45, so I guess if news changes I'll post then.

Little One:

2009-04-22T18:03:00.000-07:00

It's the last few weeks of my first trimester and I'm praying I start feeling less sick really soon ! This whole experience has been so horrible (sorry trying not to whine too much) I sleep 12-15 hours a day, I'm not joking. I've been so tired ! I generally throw up twice a day and have lost 6 pounds. Nothings sounds good to eat but frozen yogurt. But thankfully I have the greatest husband in the world, who understands i'm not feeling great and has done everything to make me comfortable and help out getting chores done ect. When I get really down by being so sick we try to think of the positive things that will come of this and turn our thoughts to more enjoyable things. Like picking out names, looking a nursery furniture ect. This really helps me push through the last few weeks (fingers crossed) of feeling sick.

We are moving into a more family friendly apt next month. It won't be right downtown like our great place now, but it is right on a max line so downtown will just be a short 10 min trip away. It's twice the size of our apt now, with 2 bedrooms and even a laundry room ! woo hoo I'll post pics soon when we get the keys on the 7th !

Names we are liking so far:
Girl-
Amalie Claire
Lowry Genevieve

Boy-
Amos ?
Hayden Avery (chad's not a fan of this though ;)

We go in for a check up on tuesday, so once we know more i'll most something. I'm not showing or anything yet, but maybe in a month or so we'll get a belly pic up here.

Baby Chashley Due December 2nd.

2009-04-10T22:06:00.000-07:00

Out of much surprise Chad and I found out a few weeks ago we will be expecting a little one. I've been rather emotional about the whole thing, since it was not the timing we had anticipated. But at the end of the day we are thankful to be fertile, and bringing a life into this world. God must have big plans for us. We trust him through this and hope for a healthy year.

I'm looking forward to the day when I can eat and not throw up as well :) will that day ever come?

EVENT POSTER

2009-03-22T14:24:00.001-07:00

This was the Event poster I made for my ART 210 class. I had a lot of fun designing this. Below is the mailer that goes along with the poster.

Metro Sign Hybrid

2009-02-19T18:46:00.000-08:00

For this project I first traced my original image in illustrator then after my complex rendering was complete I added textures in photoshop to make it look more realistic.

Parte Dos

2009-02-12T20:54:00.001-08:00

2 page Magazine Spread

2009-02-11T02:52:00.001-08:00

Very much still in the works, but a look at my 2 page spread I'm working on for my Design communication class.

A little bit of that...

2009-02-05T01:01:00.000-08:00

Black and White Line basic composition
Complex color options in Illustrator Using blends, gradients and gradient mesh.

A little bit of this...

2009-02-05T00:57:00.000-08:00

Fosques Class

2009-01-27T19:55:00.001-08:00

The first image was from an assignment for Visual communication. We had to create a technical guidebook cover while using non representational technical graphics to create a strong composition, this is my first attempt, much to be worked on but it's a start !
Second, for typogrpahy 1 we had to use our initials to create a logo. AA

Chad's WACOM tablet drawings

2009-01-27T19:43:00.001-08:00

This is just a quick sketch chad worked out last night with is Wacom tablet he got for christmas, I'm excited to see what else he starts working on.

Winter Term happenings :

2009-01-27T19:34:00.001-08:00

This is a rendering about 1/2 finished, just working on shading now. It will be the second in a sequences of 4 renderings of this illustration. B&W line, flat color, complex color and hybrid (placing it in photoshop to texture ect.) I'll post the rest soon

Self Portraits

2008-12-12T22:21:00.001-08:00

Rauschenberg Style:
Warhol Style:

Photoshop: ART 120

2008-11-27T00:24:00.000-08:00

This is my first ever chance to learn a bit about photoshop. I feel as I have only scrapped the service, or less than scrapped if that is possible... but looking forward to learning more this winter break on my own to gear up for next term.

Factory project for ART 112

2008-11-14T22:45:00.000-08:00

ART 118 Project #2

2008-11-14T22:14:00.000-08:00

These are not at all the colors that were in my illustrator document: so I guess perfect example of what we were talking about in class how I need to convert from CMYK to RGB.... but I haven't quite figured out how to do that, so until then I'll just leave this one up.
This isn't really related to the process of our ART 120 projects but I thought I would end up using my blog to post images of my work from all my classes as well.

This particular project was to use type as a visual element. We had to state a design objective to explain our project to the class. My overall design objective was to use both straight lines, angels of letters and a curvalinear element to show and explore the relationship between the two figures.

I was happy with the colors that I ended up going with, they were really bright and vibrant and while using Helvetica I got a rather late 1980's feel from the whole thing.

Something I struggled with overall was where to place the type, I was going for all the obvious places that lined up with the letters. Since I was going for an overall simple design I really wanted the typography to play a larger part in the appeal of my design. I created color segments throughout the letterforms and ended up placing the type along one of the constructed shapes inside of the letter G.

PROCESS ENTRY FURNITURE DESIGN POSTER

2008-10-28T12:18:00.000-07:00

* My first concept was primarily derived from a piece of furniture that I found on an image hunt that was very aesthetically appealing to me. I first traced both chairs from the image I had placed in illustrator. I knew I wanted to texture the chairs with something beyond just a plain color. I used type to attempt to look like texture. Or to give the idea maybe the chair was constructed from a recycled piece of material.

After the first class discussion about all the designs I gained a lot of ideas of what was working and what was not working in my design. First things first, text on the chairs not working, took those off, also the gray bar that was extending from left to right behind the "title" was not adding to the design I took that off as well. The squiggles on the right hand side, are random and not cohesive with the design primarily just "fluff." My text was pretty much just a block of text so that is an area I decided I wanted to explore a bit in my following designs.

What I have left from my springboard design is one of the chairs. I knew I loved the shape it created and thought It would go well in the design. At this point I just had a chair and it seemed like many examples I saw from classmates just had a single piece of furniture just sitting there. Like look i'm a chair or a table ect. I didn't really know how I wanted to explore this, but knew I needed to enhance my design in terms of how the viewer saw and experienced how the furniture was placed into the design.

Still with not a good idea of how I wanted to spice things up, I decided to work with swatches and clipping masks of my wallpaper designs that were needed to be incorporated into the design. I had fun playing around with this for awhile but still just felt like I was rolling paint on a chair.
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(The above design was my final design, in this design I changed the colors a bit. I added one of my wallpaper designs to the back panel of the chair, and revereted the yellow bottom half to white. Overall I was pleased with the proccess of getting to the point of my final design. I liked the chair how it was to begin with but by breaking it up , I think it creates something more visually appealing and interesting to the viewer.) I'm sure there is more that could be improved on but for now this is where it ends.
Read before directly above post:
While taking a break from homework my husband and I were setting up our new living room furniture from Ikea. We learned from this experience that you need to be really good at following directions via image and diagram since all directions use no words ! So after this I got the idea of creating my chair into what maybe it would look like broken up in a diagram if you bought it and had to put it together. I decided on a simple grid in the back, I tried first without a grid but it looked like the 3 shapes were just floating randomly. The grid seemed to me to seem more like the shapes were locked into place. I placed the text/information along lines protruding out from the object such as those that you might find leading you to follow one direction to the other to get all the information needed to complete the task. In this example, what you need to attend the show.
I added the PSU logo I had forgot to insert in previous desings and with this fourth logo I thought it would be more appropriate to line them up one next to another to look more streamline opposed to stack them in the corner like what I had been doing.