Author Archives: Administrator

Week 39 Update

Less than one week until his due date. I had an appointment with my NP this morning and she said she wanted to put me on the induction schedule. Her supervising MD said to be safe, she rather not let me go too far past my due date because of the gestational diabetes. Partially afraid that the baby may grow too big and make delivery difficult for me.

The only available times they had were either tomorrow (!) or next Thursday March 4th. We chose March 4th, I was a bit caught off guard and definitely not ready for it to be tomorrow. But I hope he’ll want to come out by himself and won’t have to go through the induction process.

So otherwise, all is going fine. I’m still having non stress tests twice a week. Yesterday I finally got the chance to see him exercising his diaphragm to get ready for breathing outside the womb, aka fetal breathing. I’m looking forward to having him take his first real breath.

Homemade Nursing Cover

Since I finally have some free time, I decided to work on my project of a homemade nursing cover. One of my co-workers had one of these and said they were very useful for breastfeeding your baby in public.

You can purchase a commercial one made by Bebe au Lait and it is known as a nursing cover or Hooter Hider, which sells for about $35.

I found instructions here for a homemade one which can be as inexpensive as $8. If you buy the fabric on sale, it can be even cheaper.

For full instructions, click here but the basic supplies you need are:

1 yard fabric, cut into the following:
26 x 38 inches (1 pc)
3 x 31 inches (1 pc for long strap)
3 x 10 inches (1 pc for short strap)
8 x 8 inches (2 pcs for pockets, optional)

2 D-Rings (I bought 2 inch but 1-1/2 inches should be enough)
1/2 yard (18 inches) corset boning (1/4 inch wide)
Matching colored thread

I wasn’t as talented as the person who put together the instructions so I ironed all my hems before sewing (per the instructions, she didn’t pin them, just held them as she sewed).

My completed one:

The neckline so you can see your baby while breastfeeding:

I added pockets to both inside corners to tuck in a tissue or washcloths as suggested.

Now I’m having fun making them so I have a few more fabrics so will try to finish them up before the baby comes. These may become gifts someday soon as I don’t think I’ll use more than one.

Let’s see if I can get some more baby projects done that I’ve been wanting to do…

Oatmeal Cinnamon Cookies with Milk Chocolate Chunks

It’s actually been a busy few days but during some down time today, I decided to bake. Taking a recipe from my favorite cookie book, Big, Soft, Chewy Cookies, I made the oatmeal cinnamon cookies and added some milk chocolate chunks from a candy bar, used whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour, and used a mix of white and light brown sugar.

Ingredients:
2 cups old fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 tbsp dark molasses
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup milk chocolate chunks

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350 F
2. Combine oats, flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, beat together egg and sugars. Add butter and continue beating. When completely blended, add molasses and milk and blend again. Stir in the oat mixture, pecans, and chocolate.
4. Using a 2-ounce ice cream scoop or 1/4 cup measure, scoop level amounts of dough and drop 2 1/2 inches apart onto an ungreased gookie sheet.
5. Bake until cookies are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Remove cookies from oven and let them set for 1 minute. Using a spatula, transfer cookies to a rack and let cool.

Cookies may be wrapped individually in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to three days.

Makes 14-20 cookies.

The kitchen smelled delicious as the cookies baked, cinnamon and nutty. I let them bake a little more than 15 minutes because I like it a bit more crispy on the edges. Tastes like breakfast, great with a glass of milk or coffee.

These are different than the Tartine Chocolate Oatmeal Walnut Cookies since they are more cake-like. The Tartine recipe makes thin and crispy cookies so it will depend on what I’m in the mood for because I like these cake-y cookies too.

Biggie Pooh

On my last day of work, I had a very BIG surprise from my coworker. He’s been warning me all month that I’d better have Ron come to pick me up on my last day because I couldn’t ride the bus home with what he was going to bring me. In the last few days I’ve been wondering what in the world it could be.

Well, here it is:

It’s called a Biggie Pooh! and boy, is it big! The baby will probably only be the size of Pooh’s paw. It’ll make for a very cute picture once baby can sit up. Until then, I have no idea where we are going to store it… it’s so huge!

Thanks Herb! It’s a really sweet gift.

Now the countdown begins… today is my first day off of work and I am enjoying relaxing at home and finally updating our blog. I have a few things planned for the next few days but I just really want to relax a bit before the baby decides to show himself as after he is born, I’m sure I won’t have much time to rest so want to energize myself now so that I can take good care of him.

I left my heart in San Francisco

In walking downtown, Ron and I came across this new heart in San Francisco. There are a lot of these scattered around town and looks like this one was installed on Feb 11th, 2010.

Walking has been getting harder for me especially on the hips. I think it’s partially because he is dropping down so the weight distribution is different. My feet have been swelling a little more easily too which makes shoes uncomfortable. I had to remove my toe rings a few weeks ago because they were getting too tight. I hope my feet will eventually return to normal.