This weekend was (Canadian) Thanksgiving and exactly a year to the day we found out we were pregnant.

I can’t believe that was a year ago! Now we have this beautiful little munchkin and couldn’t be happier with our life.

We have so much to be thankful for this year, including the new bed….

A few years ago, before we were in  our house, our apartment flooded. A hot water pipe broke and it was a royal mess. The only advantage to having your apartment flood two weeks before Christmas is that you get a bunch of new stuff, including a new bed! Hubby and I went bed shopping with pretty much an unlimited budget because insurance was ”paying for it”. We picked out a fancy bed and loved it, for about 18 months. We started having problems with it just over a year ago. The pillowtop was indenting more than a mattress if it’s caliber should (>1.5”), and the pillowtop was almost pulling away from the mattress underneath.Those 2 rails should be lined up over top one another, you can see there’s a bulge and the pillowtop have shifted greatly left to right. Not cool Sealy.

Initially I thought it was me just being uncomfortable from being pregnant but it clearly wasn’t. Hubby and I have messed around with the bed frame and have resorted to sleeping with pillows between us to prevent us from totally rolling into each other, not comfortable at all. Add in a baby to the mix (we co-sleep while she still nurses at night) and we’re a real comfortable bunch. I decided to call and find out about our warranty thinking it was a long shot considering the bed was almost 3 years old but there was a 10 year warranty on the bed and after they inspected the pictures I sent (normally a rep comes to your house but he was on vacation) they issued us a new bed!

We picked it out last night and are counting down the sleeps until it arrives. Better deal yet, the new bed was less expensive because of a sale so they’re issuing a cheque for the price difference, double score! Now if only my poor broken dishwasher had a warranty still (it’s broken, *sniff*sniff*)…

Now that you’ve been warned, as a new mom who loves the internet, I know I’m not alone in the fact that I obsessively search everything and love researching every tiny detail about everything, especially motherhood and raising a child. When I say I research everything, I mean everything. I especially love reading personal experiences.  It’s reassuring that I’m not alone in thinking or doing certain  things. Isn’t that why we all blog?

When we decided we wanted to have a baby, my already strong researching addiction was fed a million times over as soon as I read my first blog post of a personal birth experience. I never get sick of hearing other moms stories so I’m here to share mine.

Medical practice for prenatal care is different all over North America, here in Nova Scotia, you have regular prenatal care throughout pregnancy but unless there is a medical concern beforehand, or pre-existing conditions (or you  don’t know when your last menstrual period was), your first ultrasound is usually around 20weeks and it’s really just to make sure development is on course. I happen to know my obstetrician outside of her being my OB so she gave us ‘sneek peeks’ before the standard 20 week mark as a ‘treat’. Around 6 and again at 16 weeks, we were lucky enough to have these peeks. Given that this was my first child and she was so small at this point, I had no idea what to look for but I quickly picked up on our OB’s concerning face during the 16 week appointment. She explained that she didn’t love the baby’s positioning, some unexplained ‘bowel brightness’ or how my placenta was showing up on the ultrasound. She tried to reassure us that it could be absolutely nothing and just a funny day/older machine but it could be something so she wanted a better look. I was scheduled to come back in three days upstairs where the proper diagnostic ultrasound machines were so we could get a better idea as to what was going on before we ‘jump to any conclusions’.

Whatever you do, do NOT leave your OB appointment and put ”Fetal Echogenic Bowel”in your search bar, I left the hospital and as soon as I could, started researching everything that could possibly be wrong with our baby.

BAD idea.

{Search results include: Cystic Fibrosis, Down’s syndrome, chromosomal abnormalities, infections, obstructions, bowel wall ischaemia, placental failure…}

Those three days seemed like the longest three days of our lives.

The day finally came and we had a full Biophysical Profile (BPP) done as well as Transvaginal (TVS) ultrasounds to check everything out. She was still in a crappy position, head up and curled into herself (evidently how she stayed the entire pregnancy) but more concerning was the bowl brightness and my placenta. They ran every test possible over the next 2 weeks on me and baby for the bowl brightness but everything came back fine. My placenta was another story.

My placenta was sitting quite low, as well, when my placenta was forming it split in two. I essentially had, what we thought, were tw0 lobes feeding the baby. My understanding is that this isn’t entirely abnormal and as long as they know about it beforehand, natural childbirth is fine. It’s when they’re unaware of any abnormality that can become dangerous as the two lobes have the potential to split apart during delivery which can cause excessive blood loss or the second lobe doesn’t get delivered thus leading to other complications. I was, from that point on, put on pelvic rest and carefully monitored with more regular BPP’s and TVS’s.

Maria was developing fine, even if she insisted on growing upside down (or right side up?). Much against what I wanted, I was scheduled for a c/section because of Maria’s positioning and my placental issues.Things were great until 36weeks when they started noticing my amniotic fluid levels seemed a little low. They equated it to me being small and her consuming so much of my small womb. They wanted to monitor her weekly to make sure everything was ok until scheduled c/section at 39w3d.

We went in for our final ultrasound at 38w6d (Monday) when we were told by the nurse that we wouldn’t be going home without a baby, like TODAY! I must have had a very small leak that went undetected because my amniotic fluid levels had dropped too low for baby to wait any longer. They allowed us to go home and grab our stuff before admitting us that evening, four days before my scheduled section.

I was admitted and hooked up to fetal heart rate monitors as we waited for an operating room time. I was hoping Maria would be fine overnight because starting at 7am my OB was on call for the OR. We were both fine overnight and long story (slightly) shorter, she was born via c/section at 6:39pm Tuesday.

Although not what I originally wanted, as I felt like I missed out on a huge part of the pregnancy/birth experience, the c/section was totally fine. The operating staff at the hospital were beyond amazing. The anesthesiologist ‘underestimated’ how short I was until after he laid me down on the table, only after administering the spinal block so I was quite frozen for about six hours! Better too frozen then not enough I guess!

My placenta was weirder than we thought, there were actually three lobes, not two and they were all connected by their own blood vessels. My OB said me having a c/section was a blessing and probably saved my life as they would have been unprepared for the third lobe and in all my ultrasounds never picked up the blood supply connection. I could have bled to death.

One thing I very quickly learned was that we can have all sorts of plans for motherhood and how you want it to go but you’re very quickly put in your place. It’s an experience that forces you to roll with the punches without much notice to duck.  An experience I wouldn’t trade for the world. 

When it came to planning Maria’s nursery we did things we only hoped she would like and enjoy. Not that babies have much opinion about anything but we wanted her to have fun in her room until she was old enough to tell us exactly what she wants.

We waited to find out the sex of the baby before we decided on paint. We both quickly decided we liked purple and green. I originally thought her room would be a little more ‘mature’ as pictured in my moodboard from this post but the room ended up evolving in a much different direction. I think it started with these little guys: We found them at a local hardware store of all places. They were too cute, bright and quirky to pass up. I’m glad we got them, Maria loves staring at them while getting changed.

Since I was put off work early due to pregnancy induced carpal tunnel , money got a little tight when it came time to do Maria’s room. Creativity was a must. The only thing we spent money on was good-quality-sticky-baby-fingers-friendly-washable paint, curtains/blackout blind, supplies to make two $10.00 shelves to hold her vast collection of books as well as supplies to make her mobile above the rocking chair.

The crib was a very generous gift from her grandparents and the rocking chair is Mike’s grandmothers antique rocking chair. Since Maria is named after two of her great grandmothers, using her chair is extra special. The wooden legs of the chair on the hardwood was quite slippery so I stuck my green yoga mat underneath for anti-slip.

When looking online for mobiles I came across a cute one on pinterest from an etsy shop but decided, especially since funds were tight and I was off work looking for things to occupy my time,  I would have to try and re-create to the best of my ability. I ordered the paper lanterns off ebay for a total of about $10.00 with shipping, had the yarn at home and bought a cheap wooden dowel from our hardware store for less than $2.00. I think it turned out pretty good. Getting it to stabilize was a bit of pain, as it stands today it’s still not totally straight but it is usually moving around from the window breeze so no one other than me would really notice.  My favorite project of her room was my DIY wall flowers:

You can buy these for $20.00-$30.00 a package/24flowers but they’re all monotone colors. I wanted more than one color and wasn’t about to spend that kind of money. A quick google search lead me to Billie Monster and her DIY flower template. I knew I had found my solution.

I used thick, textured scrapbooking paper and a package of flat-head thumbtacks. I started by placing them with double sided tape until I found a position I liked, once I was satisfied, I glued them to the thumbtack and pushed into the wall.Other than the pain (for me at least with sore hands at the time) of cutting each flower they were totally worth it. I love them.Hubby helped make the shelves for her books as well as painting an old dresser we use as a change table. The dresser turned out especially well. We had the white paint and brushed nickel spray paint from past projects so it was totally affordable. She doesn’t spend a whole lot of time in her room yet since she’s still co-sleeping in our room but we hope she grows up to like the room much as Lily, who lives in this room now, she loves the window.

If you’re reading this, I thank you for being patient with me!

Now that baby Maria is six weeks old (6 weeks?!), and we’ve slowly started to regain a bit of routine back in our lives, this new momma needs a little adult back in her life. Not that I don’t adore everything baby, I need an outlet. I fear if I don’t soon start using my brain for something more than breastfeeding, spitup and changing diapers it will turn to mush.

When I started this blog I chose the name Bluenose Life to reflect every aspect of my East Coast Canadian life and share it with people who care enough to read and indulge with me. Before baby, most of my free time was spent on our house so most posts were about just that; projects, crafts, homeownership fun. While the blog will still have that component, I can’t ignore the biggest part of my life now. This little creature:Pretty adorable, right? By far the best DIY project completed to date

So here we are, re-entering the big bad world of blogging, where I will share my stories, feelings and experiences in everything and anything to do with my Bluenose Life.

I have been suffering from sever pregnancy induced Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. It might not have manifested itself the way it has if I didn’t have the job that I do, Dental Hygienist, where carpal tunnel is already one of the number one reasons hygienists (as well as dentist and assistants) have to give up work (Yeah me!). 

Source

My hands are constantly numb, and in pain. I’ve been increasingly suffering for about eight weeks. When I’m not working the pain is slightly less but numbness is permanently there and typing/being on the computer is the last thing I want, or can do, unfortunately. This post alone, is taking me F-O-R-E-V-E-R to type out with my two ring fingers which don’t hurt as much. I am saving every single fiber of energy and pain control I have to make it through a few more weeks of work. I originally planned on working until the first week of June, two weeks before my expected due date, but I don’t think I’ll make it, work can be excruciating. I don’t wish this upon anyone! It is infuriating. I have seen my OB, massage therapy and an occupational therapist. The OT offered the most help. Her exercises, splints and use of kinesio tape has helped slightly but even being the tough chick I consider myself to be, I don’t know if it’s enough to make it seven more weeks of work. We shall see!

I’ve still been taking pictures of progress in the nursery/projects/house stuff/crafts (almost all of which hubby has done due to my hands) and will post as soon as I’m able to! Come June, this should be on the mend after baby girl has arrived and I’ll have nothing to do but blog while hubby is working (Ha. Ha. Ha.)

I try and keep up with everyone else’s blogs (just not commenting as much) which makes me want to get back into it even more but reading still allows me feel connected to all my favorites

We had our anatomy scan a little early and were able to catch the ‘potty shot’, our OB is 95% confident that we’re having…..a GIRL! We’re both super excited but will confirm with a 3D ultrasound at the end of the month. For now my dreams consist of amazingly sweet things like sparkly headbands, tutu’s and all things pretty (plus, of course, the right mix of soccer and hockey later in life).

One of my best friends/sister-in-law (who is having a baby in 7 weeks) quilts, so we need to get a general nursery idea soon so she and I can go fabric shopping!

The Bean’s room will be what is now the pink room. The neon pink room. The room that glows in the dark:We have cleaned since this picture.

I’ve been playing with a few different color combos and keep flipping between neutrals and bright colors. If we go ‘neutral’ this is the general direction we’d be heading:

Tan/neutral colored walls with purple accents and dark wood. I like the idea of an accent wall, either a single color, wallpaper or, even better, vinyl decals.

We will be having darker wood in the nursery as the crib is already on order and it matched the floors. I will also be making more of the wall shelves we have in the living room, probably for book storage and display. I have a small dresser from our apartment that I will be re-doing to be used as storage/change table. There will also be plenty of ‘kid’ items; toys, books on display. I don’t want the room to look like a stuffy master bedroom. One thing is for sure, she’s not sleeping inside a giant bubblegum ball.

For all you parents out there I will have loads of questions and want lots of input on certain things in the next few months (what to buy, what’s a waste) so keep your thinking caps on!

Our tree this year was a little large. We had to totally move its location (and the entire living room arrangement) because it was too big. We love it though, one of the prettiest trees I’ve ever seen!

Our tree ornaments are eclectic, a collection of trips, memories and our favorite moments.

Like this one from our European Honeymoon:Or this one that’s over 50 years old and given to us from Mike’s late grandmother:This one is from my great grandmother who, every year, would buy one for my mom. My sister and I would fight to hang the ‘cool egg/penguin cut out ornament’ A few ornaments from trips:Some were gifts and some just pretty:My sister gave this one to us the year we were married:And next year we’ll get to hang an ornament that looks something like this:Yup, I’ve been keeping a little secret! And now you know the reason behind the blog lacking the past few months (me and ZERO energy). Next Christmas should be fun with kiddos around (my step brother’s wife/my best friend is preggers too). Baby posts will commence!

Mike and I have been super busy around the casa with a few projects, some that will have to wait until next year to finish (stupid winter). Some you will hear about soon!

Winter isn’t all that stupid I ‘spose. It does mean CHRISTMAS. My favorite time of the year. The crafts, the smells, the lights, the baking, the family, the tree, the music, everything!

I’ve never been one to decorate with any sort of color scheme. I totally appreciate those who do but I love collecting different decorations/ornaments and enjoy unpacking them every year. When hubby and I go on trips or vacations we buy one special ornament as a reminder of our memories and then reminisce when we decorate the tree each year. The same goes for our home decorations. I know where every snowman, santa and reindeer came from and each holds a special memory for Mike and I.

Growing up, my Grandmother had a beautiful, elaborate, Christmas village that my sister and I would admire for hours. I knew I would have one just like hers when I got a place of my own. Before getting our first place I started collecting little pieces for my village- trees, people, village ‘accessories’. I was a little sad to find out how much money it was going to cost me to collect my own village, we’re talking minimum $30.00/house.

So I decided to ‘make’ my own.

Years ago I found some cheap ceramic houses at walmart that I could paint myself. All it required was time, paint and a steady hand. Two years later I have my little village started.

It’s taken some time but I love my little hand painted village. My ‘residential area’, complete with St. Catherine street sign.

Kiddo’s need to go to school!

Santa hanging out feeding his reindeer…

And complete with a functioning mini train track!

I still have a few unpainted houses to finish which will complete my little collection that I hope to share with my family for a long time!

She held a contest back in the summer with the prize being a custom header and guess who won! I was pretty stoked.

Now everyone head on over to her site to check it out!

The fan in Hubby’s office wasn’t the yuckiest fan I’ve ever seen, but I still sort of hated it. I was stuck with it because I didn’t want to spend any molla on a new one just yet so I did my best to pretty it up with some good old fashion spray paint.

All of this happens while hubby goes out of town by the way, something about his tiny wife being on a ladders home alone scares him?

Here’s the before: I had already loosened the lampshades before I realized I hadn’t taken a before picture and also noted I probably should have taken it with the light off. At any rate you can see all the scratchy brassy-ness shining through, not really our style.

After I took the lampshades and light bulbs out, I detached the fan blades from their holder by unscrewing the three screws holding each blade in with this little device (and my fingers):Convenient little Phillips screwdriver, almost like it was invented for just this project.

Quite difficult to get a proper picture but you can see how the blade is in with the screws, unscrew the three screws from each blade and you’re ready to tape!

While I was taping the paper I caught myself reading the ceiling as I went. My favorite was a cartoon, it says ”Baby’s first tooth” and the baby has a Bluetooth headset in his ear. So true.

After I finished reading paper/taping I was ready to prime!I ended up doing two coats of primer before applying two coats of the RustOleum Satin Nickle spray paint {which I had left over from my doorknobs}.

Here’s the finished product, it’s still a ceiling fan but slightly less ugly ceilig fan.
Just for comparison:

I would like to change out the toggles but given I did this on a total whim I didn’t have time to plan for that. I also need to get rid of those old energy burning light bulbs!

Not bad for a 3hr total project!

Ps: Don’t forget to open all the windows and wear a mask if spray painting indoors!