How is the pregnancy, how are my dreads?

I'm not sure I could exactly call this an FAQ, but I have been asked a few times about the pregnancy and the dreads, so I figured I'd give an update.

Pregnancy is all going wonderfully. I am in the third trimester now and feeling it. I'm pretty tired and my mood....well, I overheard the girls talking about how when ladies are pregnant it makes them extra grumpy. I'm thinking they must have read that in a book or something, how else would they know such a thing?

Yeah I've been a little edgy. But baby Ally seems to be growing strong and healthy. There have been no problems so far, and I'm hoping it will stay that way. I think we have a bit of an Irish Dancer brewing in there. The amount of kicks and punches are unreal. It's a great feeling, though somewhat annoying when baby decides to rehearse riverdance on my cervix or bladder...I still love knowing I am sharing my body with another human, and I'm growing a person. It's awesome.

So yeah, no major drama in that area. We're looking forward to our Christmas time baby and are savoring the pregnancy as much as possible. Despite possibly some grumpiness. Just a little.




My dreads are over a year old now. They're still not mature dreads, they are still a project in the making. But they're coming on a bit. They started off July 2009, looking like this



And then they seriously shrunk as they started to tighten






And they pretty much haven't grown a whole lot since then. I think they are just now starting to gain some length back. Here's the most recent pics I have.







I'm enjoying them. They're much less work now than they were at the beginning. I do need to do a rip and palmroll session pretty soon, but I am putting it off since it makes me grumpy and...well...I think we've established that I don't need any extra help in that area.


So now you know how my pregnancy and dreads are doing. You can all finally sleep well tonight. Phew.

Other than sewing diapers and trying my hand out on sewing some other things too, which I will no doubt showcase here at some point, I've been busy entering blog giveaways again. Like crazy. I figure in the run up to Christmas, I can use all the help I can get.
So far, in the past few weeks, I've won: A pizza costume from anytime costumes, an apron from All Moms Go To Heaven, some carbon odor reducing hanger thingies from Fresh Hanger, a Gogurt pack, a kids music CD, a kids reading program, some cloth baby wipes, a Rattle 'n' Roll, 3 months subscription to Zoodles and a maternity (organic) tshirt worth $40. Not a bad start.
Feel free to check out my other blog, where I list giveaways that I'm entering here if you fancy a shot.

I am hoping to get my photoshop laptop fixed up soon so I can get back to editing pics and blogging up a storm with cute photos etc. The keyboard is wrecked on it, and it's a pain in the bottom to try to type by clicking on individual letters in the tablet software.

And that's about all my news for now.

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iKaya - episode 15

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My latest obsession

I am a faddy type of person. I like to have new jobs or hobbies or projects to keep hold of my attention. As soon as it starts to become sort of habitual I tend to move on to a new challenge. It's just how I am.

Combine that with the fact that I'm in nesting mode expecting a new baby and voila, we have a nice, new, productive obsession for me. Making cloth diapers.

It started off with me stumbling upon this free diaper pattern, which is a one size fits all, super adjustable and versatile diaper. And it looked easy enough. And I thought, hey, I could do that. Why not? The fuzzi bunz Turtle is using are so old now, the elastic is shot and stitching is coming loose. They still work, but we have had them since Kaya was a baby...we could use some new dipes for sure. Our kissaluvs were awesome, but didn't hold out for long in the wash. And the applix on the Bum Genius is just no good at all.

So what the heck, I'll try making a diaper. Ok...dust off the sewing machine. Then call on my husband and ask him to teach me how to use the darn thing. I don't sew. I just don't. I've never been any good at it. If a teddy bear rips, the kids ask their Dad to repair it. Me and sewing, we just don't get along. I have no spacial awareness and am way too clumsy.

So then it's a challenge...and I'm in the mood for a challenge.

And now, I showcase my first ever home sewn cloth diaper. Made out of flannel receiving blankets I bought from yard sales for like 10c each. It's extremely messy, clumsy and sad looking. But it's functional. And I made it all by myself!






It's reversible







Because I had so much fun making that one, I decided to cut up an old tshirt and sew it into a diaper







And a couple blankets






Here's a modelling shot of that one


So then I bought some snap pliers and a new pattern and made this diaper out of an old denim looking cotton shirt







Then I came across another pattern I liked better. This is the Darling Diaper Unlimited pattern and it rocks. Yeah...any true hobby end up costing money, right? I made this out of a shirt I bought for 50c at a yard sale, I bought it specifically for making diapers. It's so stretchy and soft.





Microfleece inner. So soft.


So there's my first little stash, super cost effective.



Next I attempted to make a cover.



with leg gussets


And an ooga booga diaper







And a tartan diaper. Och aye. (yes, it's Daddy's favorite)






And then I started on some wittle teensie diapers for wee baby Ally. Broodiness in overdrive.



















I've made some more since then, but haven't uploaded the pics yet. I'm still making tons of mistakes and I have a looooooooong way to go until I'll be good at this sewing palaver. But I'm having a ton of fun and am getting better.

The biggest downside is I haven't dreamed about anything other than making diapers in like 3 weeks. It's getting a bit old by now.

But ya know, it really isn't all that difficult. It's very rewarding, saves money, is good for the environment to use cloth, and it's so much fun to stick a bit of fluff on my baby's bum that I sewed up all by myself.

So that's my latest obsession.

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I am always yours

I was quite decided this time. I wasn't going to make a silly slideshow and I wasn't going to cry. This is the 9th time I've celebrated Heather's birthday without her, surely by now I know how to stay strong. Surely by now I should be "over it" or something. I have 4 beautiful kids noising up my house and another one punching me in the ribs, I have more joy than so many ever get to experience, more than I can contain or describe. So this time I would simply acknowledge the date, have a cake or something, dwell on the beautiful memories and on all I have.

We are without a working van at the moment, so I've been stuck in the house for 2 weeks now. I've figured out how to stay pretty busy indoors. So yesterday, we gutted the basement, I cooked a lunch and cleaned it up, I got some projects done (which I plan to talk about on here in a future post - it's my latest obsession), I got organic fertilizer put down on my garden..and then it was 7.45 pm and there was nothing left to do. I wasn't thinking about the next day, and I didn't cry at first. I just started leaking. From my eyes. Without my consent. What on earth was this about? Why were my cheeks so wet. Oh, yeah. That.

So I faced it. I surrendered to it. My body knows it's been 9 years, my soul knows it, even when my mind doesn't want to admit it or confront it. I walked to the calendar, looked at the date and just sobbed and wept from this pocket of emotion inside that I didn't even know was in there. But I punctured it and it came oozing out.

I miss her. Today is a happy day, the day she was born. It was an amazing, beautiful day. I remember many parts of it clearly, some are fuzzy. It was an incredible day. And I miss her. I wish I could have been stressing about staying up late to wrap presents and hang streamers, and wondering if she'd like all the things I got her. I wish I could see what she'd look like as a 9 year old. I'm at peace with my story and with where we are in life and where we're headed. But the fact that's she's gone still sucks. And there's no point in me pretending otherwise, because, well I'm just no good at faking it I guess. And that's ok. I love her, she's my baby, I'm her mother. And it hurts to not celebrate today with her. I'll still celebrate her birth and her life, and I'll grieve that she's gone.

While I contemplated all this, a Switchfoot song came on my playlist. And every word spoke exactly how I felt. So I had to make a silly slideshow. This one isn't all upbeat, it isn't preachy with a moral at the end. It's just real, and it's an expression of how I feel today.

Happy Birthday, Peach.

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