Family of seven...

This week was a big week for our family, hence the silence in blog land.

We became a family of seven and we are all a little excited about it (and I'm relieved the pregnancy is over and we have a healthy baby boy).

We're now attempting to figure out what this new normal will be for our family. I have a feeling we've got a couple months of adjusting ahead of us, so we're just going to take it one day at a time!

Tender moments...

Its as if he's known the whole week that he's about to be dethroned as the baby of the family. He's snuggled up every time he sees me on the couch - which has been often. He bats his long lashes at me and lays his head on my chest doing his best to snuggle close with my belly in the way.

He brought me to tears one afternoon (blame it on the hormones) as he snuggled up and whispered he loved me and then stayed there for 20 minutes. My tears dropped, wetting his hair, with the same anxiety that's bubbled up every time we've welcomed another child: How in the world will I be able to love another kid like I love this guy? He's my little buddy and I don't want him to feel replaced or dethroned or less loved.

And with each child the anxiety has dissipated as we brought that new baby home and I watched as the kids loved on their new sibling without any hesitations. My love hasn't ever been divided, but instead multiplied over and over again. And no doubt it will yet again multiply this week.



But I'm sure glad this guy gave me some tender snuggle moments this week - perks of being a mom.

Nautical Baby Shower Invite...

We've definitely got baby on the brain over here. My good friend is supposed to have her first baby just 5 weeks after we have our fifth! Our husbands have been best friends since they were young and she has become my wood working partner in crime. I have no doubt our little boys will share a bond as well.

In celebration of her new little boy, her sister-in-laws threw her a nautical themed shower and I was happy to provide the invite.



We've taken several pictures together over the course of our pregnancy - these two pictures are from her shower and they are our second to last pictures being pregnant together. (The last one was taken tonight when they came over to watch Survivor with us. It's a pretty funny series of pictures - I'll have to get my hands on them from her phone!)


It won't be too long before we're taking pictures of our growing boys together - much more fun than belly photos!

The final countdown...

Induction is set for our due date next Monday, unless this little guy decides to make his appearance sooner. (Which the doctor assures me is a real possibility considering how far I've already progressed but we're not getting hopes up.) For Valentine's day, Steve gave me last Saturday without kids to get stuff done before the baby arrives. I knew I needed his help and the help of the kids so the day morphed into getting help from everyone in the morning, Steve taking the kids away for several hours in the afternoon and then a dinner date with just the two of us. It was just what I needed to ease my racing mind.

I checked things off the Baby Must Do list as well as the Need/Want To-Do list.
Cameras charged and memory cards cleared.
Pulling baby gear down from the attic.
Washing swaddle blankets.
Cleaning out the car and making room for another carseat.
Washing guest sheets.
Sending files to print for work.
Etc, etc...

And at the end of the day, I sat across the table from Steve on a restaurant patio and we talked and talked without any interruptions. We talked about baby names and made little to no progress. We discussed our excitement and our anxieties about baby #5.

I realized, the excitement changes with each child. Its not as if we're less excited about this child than we were our first but it morphs into something a little deeper. We know for the most part what we're getting into - we know the struggles of recovery both physically but more importantly emotionally. I vividly remember both types of pain and I don't enjoy either. We know the exhaustion that's about to overcome both of us. We know how a baby changes the dynamics of our family, not to mention my relationship with Steve. Our eyes are open. And yet knowing all of that, we're happy and excited to do it again. It is love and gratitude on levels that are hard to describe.

Yes, it will be hard. And yes, it may look like we've lost control on most fronts - but most things in life that are worth something are hard. Luckily, we've got a home full of love, waiting with open arms for this little baby boy and siblings who are as anxious as can be to meet him.

It's the final countdown...

38 weeks...2 weeks to go...

The panic has started to set in - we're having a baby in two weeks! I met with the doctor today and he keeps telling me I could have this baby at any time. I have to laugh because he's said the same thing with the last two kids and I've been induced the last two times. It's as though my body gets totally ready - three weeks early - and then it just sits there without much change. I'm not sure how the baby doesn't fall out before then!

I'll take advantage of two more weeks; finishing up work projects, gathering baby gear and supplies and making sure the other kids get lots of love and attention before their world gets a little crazy for a while.

36 weeks...

We're counting down - 4 weeks to go!

And I'm feeling it. It hurts to sit. It hurts to stand. Laying horizontal is by far the most comfortable position but even then rolling over is way too much work! I'm in the 36th week of my 5th child and as my doctor kindly put it, "Its not as if each pregnancy gets any easier." I would have to agree.

We still have yet to really discuss names - we're not those people that know months in advance what the name will be. We're usually hung up on the social security paperwork as we're trying to get out of the hospital.

I'm enjoying my Cannon time while it's still his time (while Bennett is at preschool). He's in for rude awakening as has been the case with all of our children when they give up "youngest child" status.

I'm tired of wearing the same pants and shirts day after day. I refuse to buy anything new and every morning I have to get dressed I stare blankly at my clothing thinking how many more times I'll have to wear this small section in my closet. In fact, two of my very favorite shirts this pregnancy are not maternity - they're from the Loft and they've been my staples (the one shown in these photos). They'll come in handy after the baby too!

I've got to buckle down and start locating all of our baby gear/clothing from storage in the midst of all the other things I want to get done (none of which really needs to be done!).



The countdown is on.

Pregnancy...week 32...

It's a little weird to think that we have a baby coming next month - yes it's the last day of the month but it's still next month. All of my pregnancies have been relatively easy - this go around has been harder. Varicose veins are no fun and I'm amazed the aches and pains those things cause. I would consider myself a fairly active person and basic tasks that require standing for any period of time, like making dinner, have become increasingly difficult. My doctor is confident that once the baby is delivered, they should subside. Fingers crossed!



And just for comparison's sake, here's a throwback to when I was pregnant with Cannon at 32 weeks:

Our little secret...

We have a little secret...and we're pretty excited about it. For those who have seen me lately probably know its not a secret at all, but we're bringing Baby #5 home at the end of February.

It's been a long, long summer and I've spent more time in my bed than I ever have before. Steve likes to joke that I now have the energy of a normal person - but for me it's really hard to manage this pace. Building projects have all been put on the back burner (and if I'm being real - cooking dinner has been put on the back burner!) and my motivation for much else just hasn't been there.

But I'm almost half-way done and feeling much better. It's just a shame to know I'll only feel this good for a short while before it starts to taper off again towards the end!

Today we found out the gender. We went into this pregnancy with the understanding this is most likely our last one, so Hallie was pulling hard for a sister knowing this would be her last chance. Steve insisted we take her to the appointment today for the big reveal. Steve, Hallie and I sat in that dark room patiently until she confidently declared this baby was a boy. I was happy with this announcement. I was actually hoping for a boy for several reasons. But my heart wanted Hallie to have a sister - just as I've hoped with every pregnancy.

I thought she might keep it together with the two technicians in the room, but she lost it. Sobbing. She had me and the tech in tears over her extreme disappointment. I had prepped her so many times telling her it was probably a boy. But she is young and hopeful and honestly believed it was a girl. It was hard to focus the rest of the appointment as I heard her sniffles coming from the couch. Fortunately, the baby looked totally healthy and it put me at peace. (for some reason this pregnancy I've had worries I never felt with the other pregnancies) A clean bill of health was just what I wanted to hear.

We drove home and had the same conversation I've had with her after every gender reveal. You're my favorite daughter. No one will steal your clothes. You'll never have to share a room, etc, etc. But it didn't calm her like it has in the past. In the past she always held hope that the next one might be a girl. And now her fate has been sealed and it was a hard reality for her. Throughout the night she was up and down. One minute she was fine and then someone would mention the new baby boy and tears once again rolled down her cheeks. It was heartbreaking for me to watch. But then I watched her with her brothers and I couldn't help but think just how great she is for those boys. She's a saint and she loves them even when they steal her candy.

She helped us share with the boys the good news. A nice, friendly, blue silly string war. The minute blue started streaming from the nozzle both Hunter and Bennett screamed with joy that they were having a boy. (Yet another dagger in Hallie's heart!)




Not sure Cannon loved our reveal idea. He was fine until someone sprayed him!


Before we found out, Hallie was adamant that it be a girl. She added..."But if its a boy, I hope its a boy like Cannon and not like Bennett or Hunter." Cannon has a special place in her heart - I think it's the age and he'll grow out of his cuteness to her soon enough, just in time to love a new baby brother.


Hallie and I are going to have to stand strong - we're in this together amongst all these crazy boys. I'm blessed she was my first and these boys don't understand just how lucky they are to have her. Good thing we know how to do boys.

Cannon's Nursery...

I shared a wall treatment I created with a large world map. That wall is in our nursery - the bedroom I spend the most time in next to my own.

I had the idea for the world map and created it long before other elements started to take shape. I thought I would be able to get the whole thing put together before our baby arrived. I was wrong. In fact, after Cannon arrived I didn't touch the room for months, such is the life of a new mom.

But piece by piece it came together and it might be the only room I consider "done" in the house. And it's for a baby who couldn't care less. But like I said, I spend a lot of time in their and I quite enjoy it.






My mother-in-law made the quilt just as she has for each of our children. It uses some of the same fabrics that were ironed to the wall.

This bookshelf was my very first wood project just 5 years ago. It was the project that gave me confidence and made me fall in love with the process. It's been in Hunter's room, Bennett's room and now resides with Cannon. It's still one of my favorite creations.





Source List: (many of these items we've had since Hallie was a baby - when I worked at Pottery Barn Kids and received an unreal discount.)
Paint Color: Benjamin Moore Cumulus Cloud
Crib: Pottery Barn Kids
Chair: La-z-boy Outlet
Dresser: DownEast Home
Curtains: Made with fabric from TonicLiving.com
Rug: Rugs USA
Lamp: TJ Maxx
A-Z Bookends: Pottery Barn Kids
Plane: Pottery Barn Kids (the same plane that hung in Hunter's nursery in his vintage planes room - now with a new coat of paint!)
Wire Globe and orbs: Pottery Barn Kids/West Elm
Snow Leopard Bean Bag: DownEast Home
Navy Honeycomb blanket: TJ Maxx

Eczema...its back...

We've been fighting Cannon's eczema since he was two months old. I remember hearing constantly that his skin issue was a result of my eating habits. Which I didn't buy. And wouldn't you know - I stop breastfeeding him and it didn't go away.

We have all sorts of creams, lotions, oils, body soaps as well as prescription medications. And they all work some of the time. We had it nearly cleared up and out of no where it came back in full force and we haven't been able to fight it off since. The poor kid wakes in the middle of night screaming and when I go into his room he's scratching at his legs or the back of his neck.

The pediatrician is hopeful that he'll grow out of it by the time he's two. Bennett still hasn't grown out of it so I'm not holding my breath.


The hard part is we have no idea what triggers it. Is it the grass outside? Is it the strawberries he eats at lunch? Is it just the dry winter weather? Just when I think I've figured it out, it changes on me. So I'm counting down the days until summer pool weather because if he's anything like Bennett the pool clears it right up.

Until then we'll continue to rub lotion on his sandpaper legs!

Circus Birthday Party...

We finally got around to celebrating Cannon's first birthday; in true circus style.

We had family come over to help us celebrate the big day (and to help us eat all the really healthy food we provided!). Steve doesn't usually question my party ideas, I just run with it. Yesterday he started to ask some questions.

Steve: So what are we eating for dinner at this party?
Kara: Hot dogs
Steve: What else?
Kara: Peanuts, popcorn, circus cookies and cotton candy
Steve: But what else?
Kara: That's it.
Steve: That's not a meal
Kara: It's not supposed to be - it's a circus.

And if I could've figured out how to mass produce funnel cakes, I would have! This was definitely not a meal you want to have more than a few times in your life...but let me tell you it was heaven for the kids.




When I was putting Hunter to bed I asked him what his favorite part of the party was. He grinned and said, "I had three bags of cotton candy." Awesome. We only let them have 10 pieces of their Halloween candy and he probably consumed more sugar in cotton candy! You're little brother only turns one once, right?

I printed off his weekly photos and had them on display. When Steve first saw it a couple days ago he thought he had come across his Christmas present because he's been asking for something like this. I missed the boat on that one - Steve already has it by the back door ready to go to work with him tomorrow!


Cannon reacted to his cupcake about this same way he did when we shot his original birthday cake. Not so much a fan.




Cannon had his cute moments but for the most part he wasn't overly happy for his party - of course the song, "Its my party and I'll cry if I want to" kept coming to mind. Perhaps circus theme wasn't his thing. Maybe he's more of a sock monkey kind of kid. You just never know. Luckily the rest of us had a good time.

Weekly Photo Wrap Up...

A week ago Tuesday, I set up the studio lights for the last shoot of Cannon's weekly photos. Part of me was relieved that I didn't have to come up with another chalk drawing (some days when the creative juices weren't flowing it was really hard!) Part of me was surprised that I made it 52 weeks. And of course part of me was sad because he's one years old and we were done with this chapter. My Tuesdays are now looking surprisingly empty!

Check out the video of his weekly photos here.


I can't decide which is my favorite, I love them all for one reason or another. But I really like weeks 37-40 - perhaps just a fun stage he was in. What's your favorite?

Get a closer look at the weekly photos here.

Have your cake...

And eat it too...

Actually - there wasn't a whole lot of eating. His first go at sugar and he wasn't a big fan. The minute he got it on his hands, he cried and started flicking frosting everywhere.


And after he flicked frosting everywhere, he finally got some in his mouth and kinda liked it.




And then he was done and he turned over the plate to let us know he was done.


He didn't dive into it like the kids were hoping and cheering him on to do - and he left quite the mess which is all we expect out a first cake experience! I'm sure the next time he sees cake he'll put a little more in his mouth.


Check out Hunter's first cake and Bennett's first cake.