Friday, November 30, 2007

38 Weeks


38 Weeks (3), originally uploaded by Kim (GGS).

And my navel is still holding (just!) I think this proves I have the most capacious navel in the WORLD!

More photos are here.

Without internet friends

I have been tagged by Sally this week for a meme. Rules are:
  1. Link to your tagger (see above), and also post these rules on your blog.
  2. Share 7 facts about yourself (random or weird) on your blog.
  3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
  4. Let them know they are TAGGED by leaving a comment on their blog.
However, since I am probably the most geeky of my friends other than Sally and Alison, this means it will stop here (apparently blog = no life to the rest of my friends) ! The facts are:

  1. My current breakfast menu consists of a mango and a cup of Earl Grey, followed about 45 minutes later by a cup of decaf (oh, the sacrifices) and a homemade egg and ham and cheese sandwich, with lashings of BBQ sauce. Very good, even if it has a tendency to drip BBQ sauce on your pregnancy mu mu.
  2. My body pillow is named David, after David Tennant, the current Dr Who and the hottest thing to ever come out of Scotland (and I am including Ewan McGregor here, ladies, he is getting sleazy as he gets older). Needless to say, anytime David needs a fluff up, he gets a good kicking from Paul.
  3. The TV show that has most made me yell at my TV in frustration is Six Feet Under, particularly at Nate Fisher. Honestly, the best show ever. And the most involving and frustrating too!
  4. When we win the lotto, I am going to buy a house with a view at either Peregian Beach or Nambucca Heads (probably Nambucca because the snorkeling is so good). It's going to have a huge crafty studio with a fabulous sound system and at least 3 sewing machines. And a hot tub (possibly not in the crafty studio though).
  5. On September 16, 2008, Paul and I will have been together for 10 years.
  6. I grind my teeth. Really well. I managed to dislocate my jaw doing in when I was at uni.
  7. I really wish I had organized a foot massage for today. But I was too slow. So I will go wash the sheets and repack my hospital bag for next week... Only 4 days to go before Paris comes out!

    Wednesday, November 14, 2007

    No, we cannot rebuild you

    I am starting to feel like a very cheap version of the Bionic Woman - where they rebuild her with duct tape and string instead of cybernetic organisms. As I get huger and huger, more and more of my body is starting to complain about the stress but there is no permanent solution at this point (apart from the obvious). So I just keep adding another device, medication or exercise to my day in an effort to ward off long term issues... At the moment, this includes:
    • A knee brace to give my poor knees a break from hauling the extra weight around. I currently only have one (pilfered from Mr Paul) so I need to investigate a second rather than alternating legs.
    • A back support (a version of this) that holds my sacroiliac joint in place. This stops the delightful sciatica down my right leg and prevents my hip making some very disturbing noises, but it requires that you wear extremely large undies underneath to avoid any velcro burn. Lucky for me, extremely large undies are the only thing that fits at the moment.
    • A tape edifice (applied by physio) to give my shoulders a break and hopefully relax them enough so they will stop bloody hurting.
    • Holding my jaw every time I yawn, to make sure I don't over extend and pop my jaw joints out or something equally dramatic.
    • Regular doses of mylanta to ensure I can continue to face eating in the face of excruciating discomfort from gas and generally no room for my digestive system.
    • And in the interests of my nether regions, pelvic floor exercises whenever I think of them!
    I am waiting to see what is going to go next. I am sure we can chuck in some constipation
    and even less sleep...

    Tuesday, November 13, 2007

    Stroller Toys


    IMG_1995, originally uploaded by Kim (GGS).

    Having been inspired by the work of Lupin, I thought I would attempt to make a mobile for Paris' room - but in a beach theme rather than eggs. But first (before I hand sew a million tiny pieces) I though I would try to make a stroller toy in the same concept.

    They are made of synthetic felt, not the greatest but certainly easier to find and much cheaper than wool felt, with hand stitching and Birch quilters template plastic cut to fit inside - this makes everything stick out nicely rather than sag. To keep them on the ribbon, I sewed one side of each toy to the ribbon with the sewing machine and then I am hoping the blanket stitch will hold it all together

    I didn't check the felt was colour fast or even safe for sucking on so these will have a limited lifespan, until Paris is able to reach them. Also, smaller blanket stitch will be the way to go next time, to avoid issues on curves etc.

    You can see the back and on the stroller also!

    Next, is a larger scale project to do the pieces for a proper mobile. I think this will be more challenging as I have thrown a crab and an octopus into the patterns!

    Saturday, November 10, 2007

    Week 35


    Week 35 (4), originally uploaded by Kim (GGS).

    Quote of the week (from Paul): You know how you see those actresses with pregnancy prosthetics on, and you think, oh, no one can possibly get that big? Well, I was wrong.

    Wednesday, November 7, 2007

    The Savita


    The Savita, originally uploaded by Kim (GGS).

    This week has been a great week for doing all those things I had forgotten to do... like tell you about this fabulous bag I made for Miss Savita! The lovely Sav held my baby shower (which was a raging success, given it was a school night) and I also wanted to make up for not ever running the 'how to make your own summer bag' workshop as promised.

    As I wanted to get all the finishing neatly done on this one, it took BLOODY AGES (no comment, Sally), and when I was done, I didn't really want to look at it for a while... I used fast2fuse to make the bag stiff, but I always struggle to get the glue to melt consistently. So despite mucking around with tacking the interfacing to the bag to get a nice flat application, it still bubbled the material. ARRGH. This meant quilting to hide the worst of the sins, but in the purple the same colour as the bag, it actually looked ok.

    This is the first attempt at using magnetic clasps as well - which Paul was able to apply with a minimum of fuss. Would recommend putting some material between the pliers and the clasp, as the clasp is very soft and you can get up with imprints it if you aren't careful.

    The combination of the clasps and stiff interfacing worked very well - after leaving the bag closed for a couple of days, it held it's shape all on it's own!

    Socks for those with no shoes


    Socks for those with no shoes, originally uploaded by Kim (GGS).

    Continuing on a feet-related theme, check out these awesome socks my Aunt Helen sent Paris! We especially love the penguin ones! Extremely groovy socks for those who don't need shoes!

    Helen, sorry haven't rung you yet... it's right on the top of my things to do, but I seem to only remember at 10 at night!

    Booties for Oscar


    Booties for Oscar, originally uploaded by Kim (GGS).

    These are made from the Heather Bailey Bitty Booties pattern for a friends new baby , Oscar. The ribbon actually matches some pants I made Oscar as well.

    Can't deny I have some self-interest though - he and his Mum are coming to visit tomorrow and I wanted to see if they do actually fit a new baby! I may yet have an excuse to buy some of that nice woolen felt, to make some for Paris!