35

Dear Scarlett,

We had an appointment with Dr. Thackeray today,

1.5 cm dilated and about 70% effaced.

We also scheduled an induction for December 29th (40.1 weeks),

so you'll be here in 35 days or less!

Daddy doesn't think you'll wait that long

and is convinced you'll come at 37 weeks on December 8th.

Millie asks everyday, "Is it Scarlett's birthday tonight?"

and starts singing happy birthday to you.

Needless to say, we're all excited for your arrival.

It's Thanksgiving on Thursday,

and I've been feeling so grateful all month for my two girls.

It's sometimes so overwhelming to be mother,

you're never really sure if you're doing it right,

and you're always second-guessing yourself,

and crying lots because all the other babies you know are potty-trained.

It's the hardest and best thing I've ever done.

Bringing children into this world

and trying my best in motherhood

is the most powerful thing I've done in my whole life,

I hope you know that

I hope you know that I love you

indescribably. 

just call me al borland

I'm not sure if this is common knowledge, but our sleigh bed broke a few months ago. You know the black one that matches our dresser and night stand? Yikes! I wanted to replace the awkward hole with something, but all my research indicated I either needed to put down $190490398 to buy a new headboard or maybe look into some DIY. So, off to pinterest I went.

Can I just say that the tutorials out there aren't that great? I'm a look through the pictures, that seems do-able, kinda gal. Unfortunately, I hadn't set out to do a tutorial and do not have many pictures to show for this project. Bear with me though! It's so easy, and so worth the $50!!! I debated a long time on how I wanted to do this, especially since I knew Jer had hesitations with putting holes into our walls to hang anything (seriously, all our photos are hung with command strips). Finally, I took the plunge and went to Home Depot and Hobby Lobby by myself to get all the materials

Materials:
cheapest sturdy 4'x8' plywood board- $9
two 2"x4"x14' boards - $6.50 +$1 (I got a piece on clearance, score!)
foam- $16
2 yards of duck fabric- $ 12

I measured around our queen bed and decided I wanted our board to be 60" x 35" Home Depot has amazing customer service and will cut anything to size for you! I told the man helping me I was making a headboard, and wanted the cheapest board I could get my hands on. He literally asked me, "Well, are you going to be banging against it a lot?" Seriously, still dying about this. Anyways, I had him cut the plywood to size, and the 2"x 4"s into pieces to frame around the back, flush with the plywood and one extra piece for the center to prevent bowing of the board (wow, if that wasn't a run on sentence, not sure what is).

Don't worry, my 25 week bump and I didn't really do any of the framing... Jeremy doesn't really trust me with his tools. HA! Thanks babe, for supporting my projects!

Finally, the easy part... hand-stapling the foam and fabric to the wood. It's really as easy as it sounds... just staple, staple, staple. I also had a hammer handy to nail in the staples tight. Don't be like me and staple yourself twice... Also, don't be like me and bang yourself on the head and the thumb. I text this information to Jeremy, and he called to make sure I didn't give myself a concussion.

Oh my land, I'm proud of this piece of work! Sorry this wasn't a great tutorial, it wasn't meant to be! I'm just proud that I was able to think outside the box to create something on my own. Oh and ps. Jer "put holes in our walls" and this headboard is hung behind our bed.

xoxo

34

Dear Scarlett,

We finished four night shifts in a row this Monday morning, and it was a killer... I'm relieved we made it through, and I'm grateful we only have 17 shifts left until your due date! Daddy took us on a date on Tuesday (Interstellar in IMAX-- matinee tickets on Tuesday are only $5, with our mini popcorns and drink totaled the whole date to be $13!). It was so loud in the theater, and you let me know you didn't appreciate it by rolling and stretching around the entire time. On Wednesday, I made us all matching Christmas jammy bottoms (shorts for Daddy, per request). Don't worry, you'll have a pair waiting for you in case you come early. :) We also celebrated the young women in the ward for their personal progress and the excellence in their lives. I just kept thinking of you and Amelia in Young Women Program, and the great influence I hope it brings to your lives. I hope you feel the love from your leaders as much as I love my young women right now. It's such a fun, spiritual, uplifting place.

We're hoping to get together with the Hanks later this week, Amelia has her first dentist appointment, and we only work two shifts this weekend. It's going to fly by, and we have another appointment with Dr. Thackeray on Monday. 

I always like reading back to what it was like around this time with Amelia's pregnancy. It's crazy to think how stir-crazy and ready I was to have her by now. This time around, I want to cook you until the very last minute! It's a good thing I'm not feeling quite as enormous and claustrophobic this time around, which makes sense with the 21 pound weight gain thus far.

Looking back at the list I made 10 weeks ago:

sell desk & aquarium
paint nursery
order/assemble crib, mattress, & changing table/dresser
sort through baby clothes/ rewash and organize
make a mobile?
ready a diaper bag
clean the carrier carseat
big sister gift to Amelia from Scarlett
order solly baby wrap
newborn diapers
set up bassinet

We should probably add on:

treats for the hospital staff

Christmas gifts

What else am I forgetting?

Wow! We are procrastinators over here! Am I the least bit frantic? Nah... I'm still counting on you waiting until after Christmas to join us! No early business, keeeeeeeay?

Love ya,

Mom

33

Dear Scarlett,

I've been really feeling the exhaustion of this pregnancy this week, we are definitely in the third trimester! I've been dragging at work and it feels like I can't keep my eyes open by the end of my shift; I've also been sleeping so soundly at night, only waking up to pee 302389 times of course. My limbs are achy, and I think I have a bruised rib, and I cry really often, and I don't feel I'm patient enough with your older sister. I love you so much, but sometimes it's hard to always stay positive. I hope you know that motherhood is the hardest hardest thing I've ever done in my life. And it must be pretty incredible because I can also say it the greatest.

At this time with Amelia's pregnancy, stretch marks showed up. I'm glad that I had constant reminders around me of how important they were. Although we haven't had any stretch marks this time around, I constantly look at and feel my physical reminders of motherhood. I think of how grateful I am to have a body with the ability to house and grow beautiful children. I love how much you've changed me for the better.

We had an appointment with Dr. Thackeray a few days ago, we're measuring at 32 cm (right on the money). We didn't have a cervical exam because we're so close to "full term" and we're no longer concerned about these insane contractions. We set our next appointment for 35 weeks, and I cannot believe how close that sounds! I just know the next 7 weeks are going to fly by (Dad doesn't think we'll make it that far, but we'll see!)

Love you so much,

Mom

32

Dear Scarlett,

These days, I've been having dreams of labor quite often. We're that close! We've been contracting a lot lately, which means lots of warm baths for us. I spend a lot of time in the water wondering how you'll come into this world. Will your bag of waters break before labor starts? Will we contract heavily at home, and barely make it in time to the hospital? Will we make it past Christmas Day? I remember daydreaming of Amelia's delivery and birth and all the many different options-- and when it finally happened, it seemed to dawn on me, ah! but of course, how could it have happened any other way? I'm sure I'll feel the same way about your birth after you come to us. Somehow, I feel we will all look back at the end of our lives and think the same thing: how could it have happened any other way?

Mommy has lots of friends who have just told me they are pregnant. Aside from being overly excited they will be new moms or moms again (the best thing ever), my heart just swells a bit thinking you knew these little friends and your little spirits chose us and our families to join. It swells the same way thinking about how you knew me before this life, you knew me and you knew what kind of a mother I was before you joined our family, and you still choose us. I worry often about being the best kind of mother, and I keep hoping I won't let you down. I hope when you're grown and a mother yourself, you know that I tried my best. I love you, I love you so much, I can't wait to kiss you. I can't wait for you to be reunited with your best friend and sister. I can't wait for your daddy to hold you and cry. I just can't wait.

xo,

Mom

Halloween Week

****overload of my favorite pictures from this week:

We started off this week resting lots and recuperating from the weekend

(Millie babe loves to feel baby Scarlett kick)

Halloween Party at Michelle's house for playgroup on Tuesday. We loved this basement that was completely decked out with a trampoline, swing, hockey goals, toys, etc!!

We snapped a few pictures before our ward Halloween party on Wednesday. Amelia kept saying "fly like eagle?!" and running around in circles. GAH! I love this costume on her!

She was super excited to make this oreo spider, and now is obsessed with spiders (help me?!). It was a huge challenge for her not to eat the pieces before the finish product! We weren't sure why she had a mini meltdown, but she quickly recovered and offered me a spider leg!

(terrified of these minions!)

We won "best family themed" award (of course) and my young women also gave me "best pregnant woman" award! HA!

We went to Wheeler Farm with Bosten and Jenna on Thursday morning and loved it so much! It's so nice to have someone who understands what it's like to have a toddler who makes life so very exhausting! Love you two!

Jer and Amelia carved pumpkins Thursday night, and she picked out the "pretty monster" aka the grim reaper! It was hilarious how random it was, even though Jeremy said it fit her best (not). It was hilarious how much she loved it too! Seriously, those cheese faces kill me!

delicious and nutritious-- just call me mom of the year! (jk, the kids didn't touch this healthy crap)

Halloween Parade at Daybreak Academy. Usually Amelia is super excited to see me at school, but she was so confused when she saw me at the parade... It cracked me up that she was giving me this face! WHO ARE YOU!?

Baby girl seriously had the best day of her life eating to her heart's content. I only cringed a little watching her eat a cupcake, cheetos, marshmallows, pumpkin cookie, juice, etc. etc. etc. She was so so happy though! Once a year, right? (I'm that mom, I know.)

Had a little Mom&Millie selfie session, and just thought about how much I love this holiday because of my baby. My heart is fuller and I couldn't be more happy to be her mama.

We went trick-or-treating at Ah-ma's and Ah-gong's before the Halloween Party at Grandma and Grandpa's.

I had to go into work (what else is new?), and these were the pictures that were texted to me! I love that Amelia has such best friends in her cousins and I'm always so happy to see how happy she is (even though it breaks my heart a little that I'm not with her).

Thanks Julie for slaving away all day making our dinner for all of our adult appetites! I'm so grateful for you and all that you do to make your home always feel so open and welcoming! Maybe one day Jer and I will be adults and stay in our own neighborhood for holidays, but I sure love this tradition we've got going on. 

I woke up and found this little stash of candy. In this house, WE PAY TAXES!

Happy Halloween friends!

Can't wait for Thanksgiving and Christmas!!