It's a..........

Sorry to all....this is Josh.  I am supposed to update the blog as Mellissa is resting at the hospital.  Unfortunately, I cannot find the little cord that allows me to download pictures to the computer.  No worries, I've got the kids on the case.  I'm sure it will turn up.  As you all can imagine, the house is not as organized without our Mama who organizes all of the chaos of our household. 

Anyway, I will post pictures AS SOON as I find that cord thingy.

So, to answer the title, it's a....BOY!!  A BIG 8lb. 13 oz. 20 inch long BOY!!  He's got a full head of dark hair and big cheeks.  Mellissa proves again the she is a super trooper delivering URBAN JOHN FRAKER yesterday (nov. 29th) at 6:17pm without pain medication or an epidural shot.  She did an AWESOME job!  Baby and Mom are healthy and should be home sometime tomorrow.  I'm sure she will post more details and pictures soon.  Thanks to you all for all of your thought and prayers!

More to come soon........hopefully some pictures at least

baby

 40 weeks 2 days

Off to the hospital!

Thanksgiving surprise

(this is a random picture)



Thanksgiving morning I woke at 4:00 with strong, consistant contractions lasting until 5:00, almost continually.  They got worse lying down and no better walking around.  I woke Josh, not an easy task, and told him I thought we should call my dad.  He agreed and I hopped on the phone.  Once on the phone with my dad my body started shaking uncontrollably.  I knew we needed to call Josh's brother, who lives in our same town and had a house full of holiday guests, to come and sit the chillins until my dad could get here. It was raining like crazy and I knew it may take my dad a little longer to reach our house. 

Once Mike pulled in the driveway, we were off to the hospital.  About 15 minutes into the trip my contractions stopped completely, leaving me feeling a little sheepish that we had woken two sleeping men in the wee hours of the morning to drive in the cold rain for nothing.  I asked Josh to pull over so we could chat about what to do next.  We decided to drive a little more toward the hospital and see what happened.....and it started to happen. 

Contractions again.

We got to the hospital around 6 am and got hooked up to all the wires that a pregnant woman must endure and then waited.

Then, it didn't happen. 

After 6 hours of walking the halls, contracting, shaking, and drinking sips and sips of ice water......nothing happened.

The nurse assured me I was having contractions, the problem was that they weren't gathering to cause any progression on my part.  The hospital was surprisingly busy and they weren't willing to start a little pitocin to get things really going because of priority. 

We went home showered and headed to Mike's.

I contracted all through his delicious Thanksgiving feast and the after meal entertainment by the kids.

When we got home, I was exhausted and slept for 10 hours without a single contraction.

Haven't had one all day.

Good try body

while we wait

I was getting a little uncomfortable this morning with cramping on and off, but nothing came of it.  Since Josh had the car in the shop getting it fixed I thought for sure baby would decide to come for the one 2 hour period that we didn't have everyone's movements and thoughts planned and mapped out in case of emergency.

Nothings moving.  We are hoping to hold off now to enjoy a nice Thanksgiving with Josh's brothers and families tomorrow and then go to our scheduled induction on Monday morning.

But while we wait I continue to plan and prepare for baby, Christmas, a 4 foot snow or a UFO landing in the backyard. 

Ida and I made the Christmas birthday hats centerpiece paper trees, as seen above, to give the house an even more homemade Christmas feel.  Josh is at the store right now doing the veeeerrrrryyyyy last of our Christmas shopping just to "make sure" we will have everything done.  The sheets are all changed, the house cleaned over and over, and a movie in the mailbox ready for tonight.  I think the only thing I am now making a list to do before the baby is to get a whole bunch of stuff from the grocery store we don't need just to be sure and put it in our overflowing pantry.

Because of all this preparedness, the month after we have the baby will be devoted to baby and Christmas posts, because that is all I will have to talk about.  I still have some baby projects to share, especially the nursery.  I decided to choose curtains for the nursery, if I decide on them, until after the baby is born so I can be a little more gender specific.  I also want to give you a glimsp of what the Christmas festivities are looking like around our house.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

belly

39 weeks, 3 days

Still here and still pregnant. 

I have a doctor's appointment today, so I will see what is going on and update the blog with any progress later.

This baby is holding on with all it's little power, not coming on it's own.  I have a feeling that, in the end, I will have to be induced.  My doctor said the hospital is very busy right now and not taking any inductions unless one is over her due date or in danger.  In my opinion, I am in danger of going crazy.....flashing between pre-baby jitters, fear that my water will break in JoAnn, and impatience in wanting to know what kind of baby we are having.  But the reality is that I am perfectly healthy and following the progress exactly as to how our other two children entered the world.

So, I am pretty pleased with the house right now.  Ida and I stopped at Hobby Lobby and purchased the last of our Christmas decorations yesterday.  The table centerpiece is now finished, with the help of Ida, and our advent calendar is still hot on the press.  I have some more sewing to do with it and then we will be complete, only waiting the chopping and trimming of our live tree.  Our little fake one is up and glowing at this very minute in the living room corner.  I don't know how we started the tradition of having two trees, but I kinda like it.

Compliment of the day: 

Hobby Lobby worker (while I am standing in line with sweat streaming down my shirt and puddling on top of my big belly), "You are all belly aren't you?  Are you having a New Year's baby?"

Me: "You are so sweet!  I am due this week."

Worker: "You are kidding me!  You look just the same as always with a little belly."

It was so nice, but I will see what she says after the baby comes and I am automatically transformed into a "skinny pregnant lady" to a women who is "shockingly not pregnant anymore and holding onto the baby weight."

******  Update: Progress still the same.  Induction scheduled for Monday morning.*****

burgers and the babysitter

(Daddy, Mommy, Baby, Emerson, Ida)

Josh has Tuesdays off so we went on a date while Emerson was at school and Grandpa babysat Ida.

We came home to find evidence of what she and grandpa did while we were gone...a lot of playing.  She has the creative gene.

And, just a little recommendation for the best burger in the world!  If you haven't had Five Guys Burger and Fries, you should.  I have it on my after delivery list of celebration meals.

bibs

My grandma makes amazing bibs for all her grand and great grand babies.  Stacks and stacks of hand embroidered, personalized, adorable bibs.

Emerson was a drooler.  Nonstop water running from his mouth and chin.

The bibs were a must in his daily attire.

But, I made a mistake.

I used the bibs, and because I did, they are now mostly stained.

I didn't use Ida's bibs.  I stashed them away like they were gold nuggets, leaving them squeaky clean.

I don't plan on using the baby's stack of bibs either.

Instead, I used one from my grandma as a pattern. 

I used scraps of fabric and lined the back with oil cloth, making them waterproof.

The rundown
Fabric scraps: pre-owned
Oil cloth: $5
Total: 10 bibs for $5

the chair and centimeters

 Okay, I am back from the doctor. 

Let's talk chair.

I found this chair months ago while I was out junking.  It was $25 dollars.  I loooovvvvveeeed the chair but fell disappointed when I sat in it only to find out the spring underneath was broken, leaving me staring straight up at the ceiling as if I were at the dentist.

 I thought and thought, circled the chair, weighed the pros and cons of the situation. I didn't want to spend $25 dollars to find out later that the chair was unfixable. This chair is old. My sister has one just like it that was our great grandma's. 

In the end, I walked away.

 Next day I woke up and knew I had to go get that chair.  I would chance it.  Josh is a very handy person and I have great confidence in his abilities to retrofit anything into something I want it to be.  So, I scooped up my little sidekick and she and I went on a chair hunt.

Can you believe it was still there?

I was so happy.

Plus, I was able to talk them down to $20.
And, Josh didn't even have to fix it.  My dad fixed it with stuff laying around out in the barn before Josh even came home from work.

Look at the woodworking!

I tried my best to clean it.  The stains just wouldn't scrub out.

I didn't want to take my chances at renting an upholstery cleaner and have that fail as well.  So, I decided to try my hand at the whole reupholstery game.

I hopped on fabricguru and found some very affordable houndstooth.  It would be exactly the look I wanted in the nursery so I went for it. 

I love this chair more now than I did before.

And I am very surprised to say that I recovered the chair in about 2 hours, with little helper interruptions, of course.  Taking off the old fabric took much longer.

Before

After

The Rundown

the chair: $20

the fabric: $30

Total: $50

P.s.  Sorry to those who don't want to know.....the word from the doctor is 3 cm.  Let's go! 

More baby talk tomorrow.

belly

38 weeks

I am starting to feel ready for this baby to come. The floor paint came last week and has been used!  The chair is recovered and will be shared tomorrow!  I am excited about this. The crib parts have been recovered and put together.  Somehow the actual parts to the crib were lost in our move so Josh had to go to the hardware store and get some others.  The pillows are made, the frames are together with artwork tucked inside, and clock...check.  Both clocks, actually, which you will see for the nursery reveal.  I am waiting to lay my eyes on the perfect fabric for the curtains.  No biggy.

My body is getting ready also.  Last week I was already 2 cm dilated, so I am very curious to see what happens this week at my appointment on Tuesday.  Another 2 cm would be sweet.  Having made so much progress before I actually go into labor makes me feel like I am cheating the birthing system....but can you really cheat having a baby removed from your body in any way it may happen? 

No.

Now let's chat a little name-age, shall we?  We were almost certain Emerson was going to be a boy and had his name picked from the very start.  He is such an Emerson and has always been. 

We weren't as gender-sure with Ida.  Though we didn't have a boy name picked out for her, we knew she would be an Ida or Myra if she were a girl.  I was pushing Ida, name taken from a book I read in 6th grade, trying to convince Josh it would be perfect.  The minute he saw her, he knew, "She's an Ida!"

Now baby 3's story.  We are still having trouble finalizing a boy name this time around.  Some days I wake up thinking it is between two, while other days I don't think we have one at all.  Our girl name, however, is finalized.

The suspense!   

when it's 62 degrees in November

Ida was convinced it was warm enough to splash in the pool.

I thought I would just let her explore the fridged mid-November hose water and the joy would rub off within minutes of her toes freezing.

Emerson got home from school and immediately put his suit on.

They played and loved it.

I was definitely overconfident in my learn-for-yourself approach.

I am glad they had fun.

my second baby, my first baby, and something for my third

My Second Baby

Today I told Ida that she was my best friend.

Her giddy laughter made me giddy.

I love so much about her.  She has a wicked sense of style for a 4 year old and shares my passion for modern and vintage things.  We found this coat while thrifting for $4 and I almost died.  She almost died from pure love, which me die again.

She is bursting with character, which, when asked where she got so much personality she replied, "I don't know where she came from but she is my best friend." 

She is sass all the way down to her socks.

My First Baby

My favorite vegetables are parsnips, green beans and artichokes.

Josh likes corn and carrots.

Ida loves broccoli.

Emerson's food pyramid was not constructed with vegetables.  His cornerstone is meat, upon which grains, fat, fruit, and V8 Fusion were placed.  My sister clued me in on the liquid brain power.  She is so smart.

After reading that, would you believe that Emerson actually consumed a cooked carrot in it's solid state?

I was so impressed I gave him two cookies after.  I couldn't help myself.  It was a BIG deal! 

Since, we have conquered Mounts Broccoli and Peas.

Something for my third

 This post obsessions are pants and hats.

 I am really going to make more of these pants.  I love the way the flannel ones turned out and need to head to the store for more elastic and material.  I was thinking about waiting so I could make some more gender specific things, but I just can't.  I have a few "specifics," so I am dying to make some pants using old flannel shirts.  So I will.  

I have time, right?

That is what I am telling myself.  In some ways I do.  

You see, our floor paint has been sent to the wrong address, so now we wait.  I am going a little, okay, A LOT crazy about it.  The only thing I can do while I wait is sew.

Lucky baby 3.   

The rundown:

Fabic: $10

Elastic: pre-owened

Total: 7 pants and 5 hats for $10

results of anxiety

 Twelve burp cloths in a little more than an hour.

I used the Chinese prefolded diapers we had from cloth diapering the kids for the backing and some scraps and new fabrics to make them look pretty.   

These are beast cloths.

Really.

I expect to have them for a long time.  They are durable, bleachable, and thick.

It was hard using our diapers to make them, but we have two more tubs in the basement so I thought I could spare a few.

I want to make more.

The rundown:

fabric: $5

diapers: gifted and pre-owned

ric-rac: left overs

Total: $5

for the ride

So, the car seat is a must-have that we did have.

We had it but it didn't make the rounds with all our moves.

Enter awesome friend.....

I wasn't feeling well one afternoon and decided to lie down for a nap with Smides.  Mid-nap the doorbell rang and I woke up.  I thought about not answering but then rethought thinking it might be the UPS or FedEX man.  Getting packages in the mail is aways fun but remains second to my brain.......curiosity.  Falling asleep again would have been impossible and would have lead to an afternoon and evening of wondering who was at the front door.  Really, it's true.

Anyway, I answered and it was my friend Traci stopping by to let me know that she saw a carseat with two bases for $25 at a garage sale down the street from her house.  She had checked it out and said it was only a year old and really clean.  I thought it would never be there when she went by on the way home, but it was and it was only $20.  It was in great shape, just a little too drab. 

I recovered it.

The rundown:

Majestic Oak Tree in grass by Joel Dewberry: $13

Herringbone in lake by Joel Dewberry: $7

Carseat with two bases: $20

Total: $40

belly

I am now sporting a 36 1/2 week baby belly and have my first weekly doctors appointment this morning.  Let's see how things shake up from here.

The nerves are getting to me.  I know what happens at these appointments, that's not it.

The nursery is still not finished which makes my stress level a little high these days.  I have an idea of just what I want and can't manage to settle for less.  I try to blame nesting and pregnancy, though I have always been this way.

We basically started from scratch this baby round.  All of the stuff we used for the first two were hand-me-downs and by the time we were done with most of it, it had seen it's days.  So, the report:  Most of the sewing projects, plus a little extra, are finished.  We have a crib and mattress now, carseat, bouncer, swing, dresser, and rocking chair.  The pacifiers came in the mail yesterday.  I made 12 burp clothes, 5(?) hats, and   8(?) pairs of pants.  Stocked up on long sleeved snap tops and onsies, but I want more.  We still need diapers and wipes, which I am picking up after my appointment.  The carpet is out of the nursery and the floor paint (yes, we are painting the floor and I CAN'T wait) should arrive shortly. 
Are you sweating yet, Em?  I think of myself as a prepared person, but she is more.  This post has got to be making her sweat because I am in puddles.

I can't wait to share pictures of what we have been doing, so from here on out, the Frakers Acres will be having an overload of baby posts. You have been warned.

P.S.  The lady at the polls yesterday was certain we are having a girl.  She also thought it was our first, bless her little heart. 

We are in November, but just one more thing

I know we have started a whole new holiay season, but I wanted to post where the ideas for this years costumes were found.

The Owl costume idea came from Martha Stewart.

 The strawberry hat was an original pattern with the inspiration from embroideroo.

I found the leggings tutorial at Sparkle Power and the skirt from Dana.

 The baby dressed up too. 

I got so many comments on this costume, I am glad I took the small amount of time and mere $5.00 to make it.

Complete strangers were taking pictures of my belly.  

The kids laughed their heads off and called me Mike all day. 

Sorry about the totally unflattering shot.  It is the only one I had.  I had to talk myself into putting it on the blog.