New Year..New You...

My family is doing our own biggest loser starting Jan 4th if you are interested in joining our little group let me know and I'll add you as an author to our blog so you can post your progress too!

http://shakinyourbacon.blogspot.com/2009/12/rules.html

Spina Bifida

Some of you may know my sister Heather and that she is expecting her second baby in May, well on Monday she had an ultrasound and found out they were having another little girl, they were so excited but were also told they didn't get good measurements so she needed another ultrasound. That happened yesterday morning and it was then that she was told their little girl has Spina Bifida. If you are like me I knew they name but not really what it meant, it is when the spinal column doesn't close all the way and leaves a hole. The following is from her blog post to tell you a little more but if you happen to know anyone with this condition pleas pass it along because Heather would love to talk to some others people who have already experienced this kind of news. Also if you would like to join our family in a fast for Heather and her family we will be doing so this Sunday.

I should have known something could be wrong as you never should have to go to another office for an ultra sound. I didn't think anything of it. I was just excited to get video of this one. I was hoping for some 3d images too. The only one I got was of the defect in our little girl.

Baby girl #2 has Spina Bifida. Spina bifida can adversely affect many body systems including the nervous system, the bones and muscles as well as the kidneys and bladder.

We were told that the opening was low so that is a good sign. There is a clinical trial that we will most likely try to be apart of to be either one to have Prenatal surgery to close up the hole. Or be part of the post surgery trial. They have 3 locations for this. San Fransisco, Philadelphia and Nashville.

This sort of changes my plans of leaving for Virginia because if I get chosen for the prenatal surgery It has to be done by the 25th week and I have to stay at the center until delivery at 37 weeks.

I've read about this and have lots of emotions going on right now. My parents have some friends that have a son with this and he's married and has a job but has had a lot of surgery's and has to have leg braces and wear a catheter and diaper all the time. I know it's going to be a difficult ride but I'm positive that we are going to be stronger for this. I'm so grateful for Kathryn. I'm sure she is going to be a great big sister and be able to help out as they grow up together.

If any of you have information or know someone close to you who has this I would like to talk with them or find some kind of support group to learn more about this.

Thanks for all your love and support

My Sweet Boy!

Caleb's 2 Week Check Up!

Again I'm a little behind the times but Caleb was 2 weeks as of Tuesday Nov. 3rd and he had his 2 week check up at the doctor's office. I was curious to see how he had grown since unlike my girls he will go 3-4 hours between feedings and the other night went 6! But he must be eating enough in those stretches because he was 7lbs 5oz at birth and then went down to 6lbs 13 oz at the doc appt after leaving the hospital and now he weighed in at 8 lbs 6 oz! Still 20 inches long but I can tell he is filling out more, he now weighs what Paige did when she was born! We are all doing great the girls love him I'm feeling good and he sleeps like a champ we couldn't be happier to have him as part of our family!

Happy Halloween!

I wasn't going to venture out for Halloween this year since my newest little goblin is only 11 days old but because the weather was warmer then is has been all week and I didn't want to miss out on seeing my two little ghouls trick or treat I decided to go anyway. Every year Mike's little brother's wife's family does a Halloween party and we usually go to that so we can see Mike's family and then after that stop by my parents house to see my family. It is always a lot of fun, the girls had a blast and Caleb was a champ, he actually slept the whole time! Rory, Paige and Raiden (their cousin) trick or treating. Raiden was dressed up as Captain America complete with muscles, he was so cute!
Our cowgirl and pirate ( who is giving you her best arrrugh! )

Our little All Star! (who clearly is way too excited about the whole thing)

I got these costumes off the Disney outlet site in like August or something for $5 so and they are both Rory's size but Paige didn't care and insisted on being a pirate and I think she makes a cute one too. So here are Jessie the Yodeling Cowgirl from Toy story 2 and Elizabeth Swan from Pirates of the Caribbean.

Happy Halloween Everyone!

Oct 30th???

Now I know I probably have mommy brain but wasn't there supposed to be something significant about Friday October 30th?

Humm...let me think...maybe it was have a baby...yeah that sounds familiar...

but maybe it was something that is almost as exciting and as anticipated...

Oh now I know what is was...

it was the day I put on AND zipped up AND wore all day some pre-pregnancy jeans!

Caleb Michael

Caleb Michael Hanchett

I know this is a little late in coming but our little baby boy has arrived! Caleb Michael joined our family on Tuesday Oct. 20th at 12:52 in the afternoon. He weighed 7 lbs and 5 oz and was 20 inches long. He has beautiful skin and a little bit of blonde hair and we think he is perfect!

36 weeks and Counting

I had another doctors appointment today and another ultrasound. Not to worry this one was just to check growth and see how we are progressing. So I had my ultrasound first and the tech said our little guy already has lots of hair and is going to be tall since she was trying to measure his leg, which was out straight, and couldn't get the whole thing in one shot. She also said he is probably about 6 lbs 9 oz already and she would put my due date back at the 23rd which was my original one and I am totally okay with that. She asked if we had a name picked out and I told no we were still undecided so she tried to get some face shots with the 3D images and then said well that is what he looks like so that should help you pick a name! We still are undecided but did get some really cute 3D pictures of his chubby little face.

Then I had my regular appointment with my OB and he said everything looked great and that he wished that all of his patients looked like me so I was happy to hear that! Plus I am already 2 cm dilated so I really am hoping to deliver on the 23rd especially since my sister is moving to Seattle on the 25th and would like her to be able to see him before she goes! Anyway that is the update for our little guy and now I REALLY need to stop messing around and get ready for his arrival!

Counting Down to Boo!

My sister Shelley and I saw some cute advent calendars for the up coming holiday months and since we didn't want to spend an arm and a leg to buy them from Pottery Barn we decided to make our own. Shelley came up with the pattern/design and this is the result of our October efforts. It turned out pretty cute I think and I even helped 2 of my other sisters and 2 of my friends make one too so over all pretty productive. In fact I just finished it today while listening to the first session of conference. By the way I actually have one more kit ready to go if you are interested in making one yourself for only$15! I also have done 3 loads of laundry, a load of dishes and made 4 loaves of bread and that was just this morning so we'll see what else I can get done the rest of the day...can anyone say nesting!

Fat Belly?

Okay So I'm not trying to be hard on myself even though I will be 35 weeks tomorrow but I came home the other night and the girls we so excited to tell me about the new game they had been playing,

it's called...FAT BELLY! Mike put one of his shirts on the girls and stuff them with the couch pillows and then they run around and smash into each other like little sumo wrestlers. I have to admit it was pretty funny especially when Rory falls down because she really can't get back up! After telling me all about it Paige comes up to me and says "Mom you have a fat belly!"

I know I know and I can't just take the pillow out of my shirt!

Anyway just thought you might enjoy this new game at your house too!

Sewing Sewing Gone

I finally put away my sewing machine last Saturday after well over a month, I think I got it all out of my system, at least for a little while, and I'm sure my family is glad to have the table and kitchen counters back as well. So anyway here are the last few projects I've completed and now it is time to start thinking baby BOY! I did two versions of a summer dress for the girls that came from the smocked skirt idea that I did earlier, the red one was way easier! Then I finished my crib bumper pad and just a little flannel blanket for this little boy who will be joining us soon!
And for those of you who are buying into this crazy rumor about me being super mom or something I also included a picture of what my house looks like when I'm doing these projects and let me just add this was taken AFTER they had already started cleaning up!

Rory's 1st Day of School

It's Official...

I am the mother of a kindergartner! I can't believe it! After much decision making and strife we found the right school for Rory. She started a half day kindergarten yesterday and is loving it! When we pulled into the parking lot it was a mad house but looking at the school you would have thought there was a party going on, there were balloons everywhere and they had speakers outside blasting music and all the staff was out there with big smiles saying Welcome to School! I was really impressed everyone looked like they were having a great time! So when we got out of the car and took her to the kdg playground she was practically running up ahead of me and one of the staff there was watching and laughing and then said "she's not the least bit excited is she?" We waited on the playground just to make sure she got to the right class okay and Paige was disappointed that she didn't get to stay and play on the playground and then when we got back in the car she kind of started to cry and said "I need my sister!" It was really sad but very cute at the same time. Then later when I told her it was time to go pick up Rory she was so excited she almost ran into the wall trying to get her shoes and run out the door! Rory loved her first day but the best part was going to recess and the library and she thinks it is the coolest thing to get to check out books and take them home all on her own! When I picked her up we found out that she was on their list for bussing which I didn't think we would be because we live outside of the boundaries but we are nonetheless so this morning was her first time riding the bus! So I put my little girl on this giant bus with only 3 other little kiddos and again Rory was so excited about the whole thing. I think we will have a great year!

Due Date???

I had another doctor's appointment today and in addition to doing my glucose screening I asked my doctor if after the 3 different ultrasounds I've had if he would change my due date since I have been given 4 now! So it is official, he even wrote it in my chart, we are now due on October 30th as opposed to the 23rd. We started off with the 23rd then the 31st then the 29th and now have settled on the 30th. Both my girls came right on their due dates so we'll see if this little guy follows suit, I mean he's got plenty to choose from so odds are pretty good we'll hit one of them!

Another cute girly thing!

I finished yet another sewing project and again all of the fabric was left over from a previous project, this time it was left over from a bedspread my sister Shelley made for her daughter probably close to 3 years ago. I think it turned out pretty cute but the bad news is all of these projects are girly so I can't really use then for our up coming baby boy but the good news is whoever has the next baby girl will get some cute homemade gifts from me!

Giveaway Today / Maternity Clothes

Hey ladies!

Giveaway Today is doing a contest offering gift cards to Milan Maternity and they are cute and affordable to if you are prego or hope to be or want to just stock up for the future check them out!
http://giveawaytoday.blogspot.com/2009/08/today-august-6th-we-will-be-giving-away.html
One $50 Gift Card and One $75 Gift Card from Milan Maternity
Anyway, pregnancy should be a time to celebrate and every woman deserves to have a great wardrobe during this special nine months.
Well Milan Maternity wants to help your budget because they are giving our readers a 15% DISCOUNT off your purchase, just use the code "GIVEAWAY" when checking out. Do you like secrets? Me too. So I'll tell you one now about Milan Maternity's clothing. A lot of their tops and their skirt, can be worn after pregnancy, especially the ruched tops. A lot of women wear them and you'd never guess they were "made" for maternity. So even if you are not pregnant (or during that post partum stage), you can still wear Milan's Clothing. Pretty nice, eh?

An Evening Out

Thursday night Mike and I were able to go see the musical WICKED. It was a lot of fun and I am glad (and a little sad) that my sister and her husband were still out of town so that we had to use their tickets for them so they wouldn't go to waste! (thanks Shelley)

So anyway we dropped off the girls at grandma's house for a sleep over then drove to Tempe and had dinner at a Mexican place called El Penasco on Mill that looked like a little hole in the wall when we drove up but was actually really good. Then over to Gammage and fought the crowds trying to find parking. In fact one of the cops that was directing traffic was Donivan Billingsly, a guy I went to high school with, it was random to see him standing there. We also saw Mike's cousin Laura and some people from our old ward when we were kids, it's funny how small the world is sometimes. Anyway you are supposed to be in your seats at least 15 min prior to the show starting and because of the traffic I was worried we weren't going to make it but we got there just as they were about to close the doors for the show to start, just in the nick of time! Anyway the show was very entertaining and Mike thought the Glinda character was hilarious! I think this run of the show is over for now but when they come back you should try and go it was worth it! Plus I got to wear my latest project to the show. I bought the pattern off the make it and love it blog for the Lilly Skirt. It is just a cotton skirt but the cute part is that the top is smocked, you know where they fabric is all gathered together and stretchy. So I learned how to do this and it was really easy to do, you just use elastic thread for the bobbin and it gathers it all up! Plus my favorite part is when you look at the skirt the waist is like 6 inches around but then when you put it on it fits perfectly around my huge belly and still has room to grow and not be tight or uncomfortable, how much better can it get! So anyway eventhough this isn't a very flattering picture, this is my new favorite skirt and I will probably be making a few more and if you want a skirt that will fit you not matter what stage of life you are in come on over and we'll whip one out!

The Heat is on!

Tee Shirts on clearance - - $3.00

Iron on Transfers on clearance - - $0.50

A few minutes sweating over an ironing board - - $0.00

Three new shirts that I can feel cute wearing while my ever growing prego belly gets bigger - - priceless!

A Little Bit of Sunshine...

For today's project I used a piece of fabric left over from the crib bumper pads my sister, Shelley, made for her daughter that is 6 month older then Rory, can you believe we've been hanging on to it that long! Well I guess I'm glad we did because it made an adorable little dress for Paige!

Rag Quilt

~the top side with each square fringed ~

I made one of these (a slightly bigger version) for my sister Heather when her little girl was born a year and a half ago and have had these scraps left over since then so I decided try and clean out my box of fabric scraps and put this little number together.

~the bottom side, just fringed edges~

If you haven't ever done one of these quilts they are super easy and they best part is you can use any scraps you have and you don't even have to be able to cut or sew straight because the edges get all fuzzed up anyway. So if you feel so inclined and want to try one yourself just let me know I'd be happy to help!

Hail the Conquering Graduate!

As of Saturday morning Mike has graduated from the University of Phoenix with his Masters Degree in Counseling, Hooray! He still has to do his internship but is done with classes and we are very proud of his accomplishments! My camera battery died half way through so I don't have any good pictures but thankfully both our mom's and his sister had their cameras too so we did get some good ones I just don't have them yet! Anyway just wanted to pass on the good news!

I Spy with my little eye...

My newest crafty project!

I made these I spy bags filled with little trinkets and some plastic pellet things. Then you just squish them around and try to find all of the things listed on the back! It was very easy to do and my girls love them so far they have been a huge hit in the car to keep them occupied, we'll see how long it lasts on our trip to Utah in 2 weeks!!

Jump! Jump! Jump Around!

My sister Heather came with me to a Petal Party the other night which deserves a post of it's own but in so doing her husband Matt came over to watch the kiddo's since Mike had class and what better way to keep three little kids under the age of 5 occupied for hours on end then their very own bounce house! That's right they brought over and blew up an air bounce thing in my front room! We were lucky it barley fit, especially with the slide coming out one side! But it fit nonetheless and Rory, Paige and Kathryn couldn't have been happier!

Way to go Uncle Matt! So anyway I think they are willing to rent the thing out if you are planning a little get together, just give us a holler!

The 4th a little late...

Here are some pictures of our 4th of July activities. Rory went on her first extended trip away from us up to Heber with Mike's sister Cindy and her husband, Doug and his family. She had a wonderful time but having her gone for 5 days was a little hard on all of us. We stayed home celebrated by having a progressive dinner with some other families in our neighborhood. We started off at the Phillips' home for appetizers and then headed over to our house for dinner (on the grill) then over to the Web's house for games and dessert! The game we played is called Giganga, similar to jenga but on a giant scale. They had a stack of 2x4's in the middle of the room and we took turns trying to remove a "block" and stacking it on top! It was a little intense especially when one of the kids would run though...we tried to keep them in the kitchen or toy area so they wouldn't get crushed but the falling tower of wood! Needless to say it was fun and I think the game was Mike's favorite part by far!