I caught this pic of my boys today, and I just had to share it with you guys. I love seeing these two together!
Kevin & Logan
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by Sarah
by Sarah
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard this in the past few weeks since Logan has been born, but I can tell you that it grates on me every time. I know that these people – parents, nurses, doctors – mean well. However, there are things that I need to do that I seem to only be able to do when Logan’s sleeping… things like drinking water to make sure my human dairy stays open to him, eating food so that I stay nourished, and *gasp* taking a shower so that I feel more human. Sure, I can rest and do eventually rest when he’s resting, but I can’t do that every time he’s sleeping. *sigh*
Words of advice that mean well… but please, if you read this, don’t tell me these words again. They really don’t help.
by Sarah
This past Thursday, I went through one of the weakest/most vulnerable and yet strongest/most fierce times of my life – natural childbirth. In the end, I’m overjoyed at the arrival of our son. Logan Po Liu Dutkiewicz was born on Thursday, April 5th, 2012 at 11:01am. He came out at 6lb 15oz and 20″. He really is a good mix of Kev and me.
We were sent home yesterday, in time for Easter! So from Kev, Logan, and me… wishing our friends and family a very enjoyable Easter!
by Sarah
Whoever wrote the manuals for these things – strollers, car seats, pack’n'plays with bassinet and changing table add-ons – are jerks. Plain and simple… jerks. The manuals show random straps that connect here or random slots where random straps need to go in. Oh… and that vibrating module for the bassinet… they recommend using a coin to open the battery compartment. Most normal assembly instructions for things with battery compartments advocate the use of a flathead screwdriver, and that should’ve been the case with this thing. But no… let’s be different and use coins instead of the screwdriver. It’s bad enough that I can’t see the pry point for a coin, as it’s a deep D-cell compartment. But as soon as I put the flathead in, it all worked magically. Jerks!
I swear… these guys who wrote these manuals were put on this planet to test our patience before our little ones arrive.
by Sarah
Today’s post is dedicated to my silly goddaughter and her brother, who were apparently singing this today:
Of course, if you’re familiar with “Popcorn”, then there’s this:
Then there’s the Muppets take on “Bohemian Rhapsody”:
And finally, from the Muppets movie, the chickens take on Cee Lo:
by Sarah
We’re down to 2.5 weeks to go until I hit the 40 weeks mark. On Friday, Kev and I got to see the little guy via ultrasound, as my doctor wanted to get an estimate on weight. Sure enough, Logan is a little guy – coming in just over 6lb at the moment. I was almost 7lb, and Kev was almost 7.5lb. So if he comes in as a smaller baby, that’s fine. Thankfully, our doctor isn’t concerned with his weight and has mentioned that it’s probably a blessing that he’s smaller, easier to deliver.
With his arrival not far away, I’ve got songs going through my head reminding me more of him. These are a few of those songs.
Michael Bublé – Haven’t Met You Yet
And I know someday that it’ll turn out
You’ll make me work so we can work to work it out
And I promise you kid that I’ll give so much more than I get
I just haven’t met you yet
ELO – Mr. Blue Sky
Hey you with the pretty face
Welcome to the human race
A celebration, mister blue sky’s up there waitin’
And today is the day we’ve waited for
Elton John – Blessed
Hey you, you’re a child in my head
You haven’t walked yet
Your first words have yet to be said
But I swear you’ll be blessed
by Sarah
I love this toast, as performed by Brigid’s Cross.
Here’s to the beer we love to drink
And the food we love to eat
Here’s to our wives and sweethearts
May they never meet
Here’s champagne for our real friends
And real pain for our sham friends
When this journey finally ends
May all of us find peace
Here’s to the women that I’ve loved
And all the ones I’ve kissed
As for regrets, I just have one
That’s all the ones I’ve missed
A woman’s faults are many
We men have only two
That’s every single thing we say
And every thing we do
I wish you wealth
I wish you health
And happiness galore
I wish you heaven when you die
What could I wish you more
May your joys be as deep as the ocean
And your troubles as light as its foam
And may you find
Sweet peace of mind
Wherever you may roam.
Slainte!
Wishing you all a safe and enjoyable St. Patty’s Day!
by Sarah
As I think here on maternity leave, my mind is slowly preparing for the little guy’s arrival and wondering things. Today, though, I realized that I don’t like some of these songs that were once sung to babies… while the lullabye tones are soothing, the words are awful!
Rock-a-bye Baby
Rock-a-bye baby
On the tree top,
When the wind blows
The cradle will rock.
When the bough breaks,
The cradle will fall,
And down will fall baby
Cradle and all.
I know after reading up on it that there’s history and figurative representation in this song. But if you took the words literally, the whole cradle and baby falling bit… that’s just not nice! I don’t want to sing to my son that he’s going to be in a cradle that will fall. I don’t want to wish harm on my boy.
The Mockingbird Song
Hush, little baby, don’t say a word,
Mama’s going to buy you a mockingbird.
And if that mockingbird don’t sing,
Mama’s going to buy you a diamond ring.
And if that diamond ring turns brass,
Mama’s going to buy you a looking glass.
And if that looking glass gets broke,
Mama’s going to buy you a billy goat.
And if that billy goat won’t pull,
Mama’s going to buy you a cart and bull.
And if that cart and bull turn over,
Mama’s going to buy you a dog named Rover.
And if that dog named Rover won’t bark,
Mama’s going to buy you a horse and cart.
And if that horse and cart fall down,
You’ll still be the sweetest little baby in town.
Really… let’s sing to the baby about how the things we’ll get him may be defective. Not a single one worked. What?!? Setting the kid up for failure already?! Meh… there’s gotta be a happier lullabye to get my boy to sweet dreams.
Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star
Twinkle twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are.
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.
Twinkle twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are.
When the blazing sun is gone
When he nothing shines upon
Then you show your little light
Twinkle, twinkle, all the night.
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are.
Then the traveler in the dark
Thanks you for your tiny spark.
He could not see where to go,
If you did not twinkle so.
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
In the dark blue sky you keep,
While you thro’ my window peep,
And you never shut your eye,
Till the sun is in the sky,
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
Finally… hope in the world! I don’t think I can sing the other two songs though… the words just don’t seem nice.
by Sarah
Here I am, in the 3rd trimester of pregnancy. Kev made mention that we’ve got about 2.5 months to go until our son arrives. Holy cow! This trimester stuff is going quickly, and I can’t get over it.
These are just some updates and stories of how the pregnancy has played out so far.
Second Trimester Tuna
In my 2nd trimester, all sorts of “fun” started. My friend “pregnancy brain” started making its first appearances – more on that later. I also ran into “food aversions”, of the smelling kind. Kev came home one day and made Tuna Helper for dinner, which sent me running to the bathroom. The strong smell of tuna did not settle well with me. Poor Kev followed after me, only to find me crying and laughing in the bathroom. I knew what it was and just had to laugh about it.
Garlic stuff would do that to me whenever it was cooking. If it was a super strong smell while cooking, I’d have to hide in with the chinchillas or somewhere else away from the smells.
Unfortunately, I think my wiring really got flaky, as coffee started to smell like tuna. Mind you, I can’t drink coffee as it’s too bitter for me. But I could at least handle the smell. But 2nd trimester, coffee smelled like tuna.
I’m thankful that come late 2nd trimester, something triggered that wiring back. Coffee finally started to smell like coffee again.
Pregnancy Brain
This morning, Kev and I were walking into yum cha when we saw a bunch of little birds in a tree. I made the comment that those were the little birds that didn’t fly North for the winter. 
Wait… that’s not what I meant!
This isn’t the first time I’ve said the wrong thing, and I know it won’t be the last time. We had gone out for dinner last Monday, since it was my last night at home with Kev until Friday. We were talking about something and I managed to flip two words around completely. I don’t remember what I said, but I do remember he repeated it to me and we were both cracking up, almost to the point of my crying from laughing so hard.
Pregnancy brain has been getting worse as the pregnancy has gone on. Words get flipped, wrong words get put in the wrong places. If I say something that doesn’t make any sense at all and it’s not a time when I’m tired, please understand that my brain is apparently not itself and that this pregnancy has reworked some of the wording, not always in the right form.
Nursery Work
While I was out this past week, Kev painted the nursery. For those who’ve been here, the chinchillas have been moved to the basement, and their room will be the nursery. I was gone for most of this week at a conference, and my awesome husband worked his butt off – sanding the old walls (since they were semi-gloss), painting the ceiling, and painting the walls. It’s coming together nicely!
This afternoon, we picked up the boy’s crib. I’m looking forward to seeing how this will work in his room!
As we were driving home, I made the realization that if, by some awful timing, I went into labor today and had our son, we would be able to make this happen, mostly. However, I keep trying to negotiate with the little man to get him to stay in there as long as he can bear, as it’s a bit early for my liking.
Snoring
While catching up on Grey’s Anatomy, I was watching an episode where McDreamy was laying in bed, watching Meredith snore. Kev happened to be sitting here with me, and apparently in that scene he’s like McDreamy, and I’m like Meredith. Pregnancy has definitely brought on all sorts of changes, and the added weight and inability to adjust to moving around in my sleep has brought on snoring, a lot more than usual. When that scene replayed later in the episode, I had to ask him if that’s how we really are some mornings. I hate snoring and waking him up, and I can only hope that once I have my son that I can lose the weight and hopefully lose the snoring too.
Ah the joys of pregnancy…
by Sarah
As many of you know, I’m not a crafty type typically. I can sometimes crochet things, but otherwise, craftiness is not a skill that I’ve really inherited. However, a trip to Chinatown inspired me to take on a simple craft in preparation of our son’s arrival. After yum cha, Kev and I explored some of the stores nearby, as we like to do. That’s where I found 6 different Yoshi keychains at a really good price, so good that if I had bought them and wanted to sell them on eBay, I could have easily made a profit. However, when I saw Yoshi, I knew I had to take on this project.
Ever since I found out that I’m carrying a boy, I’ve wanted to do a Super Mario Brothers theme in the nursery, which Kev has agreed to! These Yoshis were the start of the idea of creating a mobile for Logan’s crib. Once I got home, I had to have Kev check his supply of computers to see if he had any fan grills. Unfortunately, with as much computer stuff as we have, we didn’t have the ones I was looking for. After a trip to the overpriced MicroCenter, I ended up ordering 2 120mm fan grills and 1 140 mm fan grill for this project.
Then, I realized I needed more characters for my fan grills. So I ordered more:
I needed a way to hang the mobile on the crib, so I ordered a mobile arm off of Amazon.com.
Finally, I needed something to hang the grills to the mobile arm to make it come together. For now, I’m using floral wire that I picked up at Michaels.
The key to putting all of this together was finding balance – between the characters on each grill and in mounting round objects. When suspending a horizontal circle on a mobile, you have to account for gravity and weight, which is why each side had a piece of floral wire coming up to the middle to balance the grill properly. The current project looks like this:
I’m not sure on the floral wire and whether I like it. I also have a little MP3 player with an external speaker that I’m going to load up with lullabyes and mount to the mobile for my little boy as well. Stay tuned for an update on the final product.