Odin's Nursery

You know those people who post nothing but baby stuff online? It used to annoy me, but now I am one of those people. I get it now. My whole life is wrapped up in this little guy. I don't do anything else. So what else am I going to post about?

And in that vein, here are some photos of Odin's nursery. It's easily my favourite room in the house, and I'm just about done with it. I just have to make a bed skirt and some curtains for the windows, as the matchstick blinds don't block enough of the light for when he starts sleeping in there (he's currently still in our room in a bassinet, but I'd like to start transitioning him to his crib in the next few weeks). But sewing things involves clearing off my desk, which is a whole other task in itself, one that I just don't have time for at the moment. Right now all my time is taken up by nursing, changing diapers and rocking in the rocking chair, and that's just fine by me...

 Kirk's stepmother, Donna, made the beautiful quilt.
Mum and I made the awesome owl mobile.
I got the rocking chair/glider used on craigslist.

The crib is the Mod II by Status. My father made the toy box when I was a kid.

My sister-in-law, Angela, knitted Sleipnir the 8-legged horse. 

I made the birdcage mobile by taking birdcages from Wonderbucks & Michaels,
spray painting them white, putting birds in them and hanging them with wire.

I got the pillow on clearance at JC Penney.

The owl in a suit print is by Ryan Berkley.
The chickadee painting is by Michele Maule.

 Mum had the Odin wall hanging made with letters she took months to source.

Of course I couldn't resist sneaking in a baby picture!

Odin absolutely LOVES his owl mobile.

The small owl rattle is from Baby Bomb and the large bird is by Stuf.

The penguin print on the left is by Michelle of My Zoetrope.

The centre print is from The Haiti Poster Project.

I made the two prints on the right.

The top of the IKEA dresser folds down to make a change table.

I think I got this bird hook from Wonderbucks, but I could be mistaken.
It holds our wet bag for diapers I got from Puddle & Quack.

The square prints are by Trish Grantham.

I made the felt name banner on the door.
The bookshelf is Leksvik from IKEA. 

A lot of these books are my own collection. I hope I'm okay with sharing!

He's finally here!

After 38 hours of unmedicated labour and an emergency cesarean section, Odin finally made his appearance. Kirk and I couldn't be more thrilled to welcome our perfect little son into the world!

Crafty Time! Owl Mobile

I finally finished the felt owl mobile for Odin's room. It was a lot of work but fun to make. Mum helped out by making the brown owl, so it was a multi-generational project! I love it!

Crafty Time! Felt Baby Name

Okay, here come the baby crafts. It was inevitable, you know...

This week I made felt letters spelling out the baby's name for his door. I used to have a very similar one (actually, I still have it in a box somewhere) and I love the continuity of making one for my little guy.

I do wish the felt for the O was a little darker, but these are the blue and aqua shades they had at Michaels. I added the owl because his room has a bird theme and I'll be making an owl mobile very soon (and I'll be sure to post it when it's done).

I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. Not professional level by any means, but I like that it looks home made. And it makes me happy when I walk past his door!

Holy crap, it's 2012!

"May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you're wonderful, and don't forget to make some art - write or draw or build or sing or live as only you can. And I hope, somewhere in the next year, you surprise yourself." - Neil Gaiman

Well, Neil, I plan on surprising myself all over the place this year. And I'm hoping the madness will all be good.

It's been hard for me to get back into blogging. I've been considering it for a while, but couldn't come up with a story or "script" to get the ball rolling again. I haven't been doing much of the things that I would normally blog about (cooking, crafting, art making) for various reasons, and my self-imposed exile from all things social that began last spring/summer has been difficult to break. I only recently re-activated my facebook profile, and even that was a big step.

But New Years Day seems to bring a good excuse to do some public reflection, and I think I'm up for it...

So, what's changed in the last year?

I'm no longer vegan. I'm still largely vegan, but choose to eat some dairy. It started out as a way to get some extra protein and calcium after learning I shouldn't be eating soy, and it turns out I kinda like it. I still prefer my pizza & nachos cheeseless, and don't like lattes made with dairy, but I do eat organic yoghurt pretty much every day and don't always ask for "no cheese" while eating out. I even had ice cream cake at Kirk's last birthday. Honestly, I was afraid to say this online, as I know some people read this blog because it's a vegan blog, but I'm not ashamed of doing what I think is right for myself and hope that most won't judge too harshly. I'm still a committed vegetarian and have been for 2/3 of my life.

I found out, after four surgical procedures and a lot of tears, that I can in fact get pregnant. And then I miscarried, twice. This whole roller coaster fertility journey has taught me a lot, about myself and about life in general. I learned that I can be very fragile yet very strong all at the same time. I learned all too well that, as we've always heard, life is not fair. I learned who I can count on when the shit really hits the fan. I learned that people with good intentions sometimes say the wrong thing, and you can't hold a grudge. I learned that life is short and tenuous and we should never, ever forget that.

I am not the kind of person who believes that everything happens for a reason. I believe that it's a good idea to search for a positive outcome, no matter how tiny, when things are bleak, but I also believe that we're mostly out here flailing about on our own with no "plan" from some god or universal force. That's not a negative to me, but a very strong argument for keeping ourselves grounded, making the best choices we can, and not beating ourselves up for things that are out of our control. I do believe, however, that everything that has led me to this point in my life has helped prepare me for what lies ahead. More specifically, the ups and downs of trying to become a mother have helped prepare me, in whatever small way, for the joys and heartbreaks that come with motherhood.

I am currently 25 weeks pregnant with a little boy. I believe he is the one we will finally meet and share a life with. Kirk and I are both joyous and terrified to meet our son, and after everything that's happened it still seems very surreal.

My only New Years resolution this year is a vague one:
I plan on keeping my head up and facing whatever life throws at me with strength and dignity. 2012, I'm ready for you.