We have 38 days to go until BB2's due date, and as of two nights ago, we still didn't have a name picked out. That's a lie, we had four names picked out actually. Four names that we really liked. Four names that were throwing us for a loop, because we couldn't just decide on one. We were pretty sure about the middle name, but not 100%.
So finally we sat down after dinner the other night and thew out our opinions, Ava included. I didn't like one name as a first name, but I did like it as the middle name That was mainly because it's a nickname and we thought BB2's first name should be more formal, and neither of us really liked the formal versions. (ie., Liz is short for Elizabeth, Jill is short for Jillian, but both can also be used as just "Liz" or "Jill".) I was in a dead lock between my top two choices. One more traditional, one old Southern and different. Ava preferred the Southern and different name, but she also had come up with names like Pinky Pie Blue Balloon, and Skyla, after a boy (Skyler) at church. Nathan simply said that on the way home from work he was thinking about it and he liked "...". And as it was with Ava, Nathan more or less made the decision and broke my tie.
It was done. We had chosen a name, first and middle. Ava didn't really like it, but we sure weren't going with Pinky Pie Blue Balloon, Skyla, or even another favorite we had that she really liked. (Nor were we going with any other name that others thought we should use. Like we'd actually let someone else name our child!)
BB2's name fits very well with our names, meets our "criteria" for a name, and even has an added bonus that we didn't think about until a friend brought it up to me several days ago.
So what is the name we've chosen? Sorry, I can't share that information. (WHAT?!?) We've decided to keep it quiet for now. And don't get upset, we aren't telling our other friends or even our family. Sorry family, you have to wait too. We need time to make sure this is BB2's name, and to get used to it ourselves. It seems much harder this time around, and we just want to be sure. We don't want to tell everyone and then change our minds. So we've been trying it out, saying it in conversation, and I've been trying to talk to BB2 and use the name. I've also used it when talking to Ava and she still insists she doesn't like it. She says there is another "..." in town, and she likes "..." better. I tried explaining that there are a lot of Avas, Sarahs, and Nathans out there too. Oh well.
Oh, and the friend I mentioned above, she doesn't know either, but she did know early on of some of our choices.
With September quickly approaching, you'll all find out before too long, don't worry. And if this little girl is as eager to meet us as Ava was, we could be introducing her in the next 3 or so weeks. Crazy right? If not, 38 days isn't too long either.
P.s. if you're watching the ticker on the side and you realize that I wrote this and there are actually 39 days until BB2 is due, you're right. But we'd really like to have a September baby, so I don't think saying 38 days instead of 39 is a big deal. She can be born on Sept. 30th and 11:59pm if that makes any of you feel better, and it wouldn't make a difference to me as long as it's September! :o)
Friday, August 23, 2013
Crafter...
I'm a crafter... meaning I like to craft. Not kiddie crafts, but I like making things for friends, family, and our home. I used to craft a lot. One Christmas every gift I gave I had made (and I'm not talking about having a picture of Ava put on a mug!) I gave scarves, and wreaths, and yes, I even had Ava make things... Grandparents and Great-Grandparents LOVE those things. At least they tell me they do.
Anyway, each year for Ava's birthday I have made her a birthday shirt. Yep, it's cheesy, but it has made me happy, and she always looks cute. I know it won't last forever, so I'm doing it while it lasts. Now, Ava's birthday is next week, but her party is this Sunday. Being born on Labor Day weekend requires us to have parties early or late, as everyone always has other plans on that specific weekend. So we planned the party for this weekend and got to working on the details.
Being almost 9 months pregnant, I knew I didn't want to have to deal with everything myself, so we outsourced it to a fun joint down the road which the kids love. And since we don't really have the option of having a theme for the party, we have used all other opportunities for a theme. The cake, invites, thank yous, and of course the birthday t-shirt. We talked about it early on and Ava told me exactly what she wanted. This year's "theme" is Rio, like the animated movie. Ava has been on a Rio kick for some time now, and although it took a little creativity, everything was going as planned.
I got the party booked, made and sent out invitations, designed the cake and ordered it, and all that was left was the t-shirt. I got all the pictures and things I needed for it, bought transfers and got to work. Ava added a few of her touches (a couple extra pictures, she couldn't just pick one!), and it was ready to go. That was until this morning when she decided she didn't want a t-shirt but instead a tank top. No problem! I'd cut off the sleeves, and hem them up so she would have a tank top. I even had the idea of putting a little bit of lace around the shoulder area to give it more of a girly detail. Ava's still not a girly girl, but I didn't want her shirt looking too much like a cut off.
Here are the before pictures. We were going to add some jewels and other things that Ava wanted, but I wanted that to be the last step. These pictures were intended to be used as a DIY later on.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as I had planned. When I was hemming the sleeves, my iron got too close to the picture on the front of the shirt and it began to adhere to the back of the shirt (it was inside out so one couldn't see the stitching and pinked edges.) I of course didn't realize this until after it was done. So when I went to pull it apart, some of the blue from the front ended up on the back. Crap! Well, it wasn't horrible. A little splotchy on the front, far from the perfect shirt I had in mind, but I figured if I left Ava's hair down, it would cover up the blue that has transferred to the back. I was so mad at myself for not thinking that one through.
Ouch! (A few other choice words did come to mind at that time)
I put the shirt on Ava, pinned on the lace and then set it aside to eat lunch. Meanwhile I emailed my Mom and told her what happened, as she knew I was making a shirt. She called with an idea. Maybe if I was able to iron the extra blue onto a towel, it would come off the shirt. It was worth a try. (This is by no means my Mother's fault, and I do not blame her in any way, shape, or form.) I grabbed a towel, heated my iron and went to work. Only in my haste did I not pay attention and ended up smudging the color on the large #5 that was on the back of the shirt. Short of taking a blue sharpie and trying to color the 5, and then trying to remove the excess that had smeared, the shirt was ruined. (See the angled part of the 5 in the above picture... yeah, it's not there anymore, it's smeared to the left.)
Man, was I mad. It was my fault. I hadn't thought it through enough, even though I had thought it through several times. There would be no birthday shirt this year. I failed. Crafter FAIL! This is not the first time I've screwed something up, but it just made me so mad. And I'm guessing it's because my little girl is growing up and she isn't going to want my handmade shirts much longer... or maybe it was just the fact that it didn't go the way I wanted it to. Either way, there is no shirt this year. I took the lace off the sleeves and handed Ava the shirt, apologized for messing the shirt up, but told Ava she could wear whatever she wanted on Sunday. Thankfully she was okay with that. And she has a new play shirt that she can get dirty, and it has her current favorite characters on it.
Oh well... things happen. I'm still bummed about it, but there is nothing I can do. I'll instead put my energy into her Halloween costume... yep, I've already started that. This girl can't ask to be something they sell in a store! Do you remember last year's zebra? Yeah, so I'm starting this one early. Hopefully I won't mess it up!
Anyway, each year for Ava's birthday I have made her a birthday shirt. Yep, it's cheesy, but it has made me happy, and she always looks cute. I know it won't last forever, so I'm doing it while it lasts. Now, Ava's birthday is next week, but her party is this Sunday. Being born on Labor Day weekend requires us to have parties early or late, as everyone always has other plans on that specific weekend. So we planned the party for this weekend and got to working on the details.
Being almost 9 months pregnant, I knew I didn't want to have to deal with everything myself, so we outsourced it to a fun joint down the road which the kids love. And since we don't really have the option of having a theme for the party, we have used all other opportunities for a theme. The cake, invites, thank yous, and of course the birthday t-shirt. We talked about it early on and Ava told me exactly what she wanted. This year's "theme" is Rio, like the animated movie. Ava has been on a Rio kick for some time now, and although it took a little creativity, everything was going as planned.
I got the party booked, made and sent out invitations, designed the cake and ordered it, and all that was left was the t-shirt. I got all the pictures and things I needed for it, bought transfers and got to work. Ava added a few of her touches (a couple extra pictures, she couldn't just pick one!), and it was ready to go. That was until this morning when she decided she didn't want a t-shirt but instead a tank top. No problem! I'd cut off the sleeves, and hem them up so she would have a tank top. I even had the idea of putting a little bit of lace around the shoulder area to give it more of a girly detail. Ava's still not a girly girl, but I didn't want her shirt looking too much like a cut off.
Here are the before pictures. We were going to add some jewels and other things that Ava wanted, but I wanted that to be the last step. These pictures were intended to be used as a DIY later on.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as I had planned. When I was hemming the sleeves, my iron got too close to the picture on the front of the shirt and it began to adhere to the back of the shirt (it was inside out so one couldn't see the stitching and pinked edges.) I of course didn't realize this until after it was done. So when I went to pull it apart, some of the blue from the front ended up on the back. Crap! Well, it wasn't horrible. A little splotchy on the front, far from the perfect shirt I had in mind, but I figured if I left Ava's hair down, it would cover up the blue that has transferred to the back. I was so mad at myself for not thinking that one through.
See the faded front corner?
Not horrific... but check out the back:
I put the shirt on Ava, pinned on the lace and then set it aside to eat lunch. Meanwhile I emailed my Mom and told her what happened, as she knew I was making a shirt. She called with an idea. Maybe if I was able to iron the extra blue onto a towel, it would come off the shirt. It was worth a try. (This is by no means my Mother's fault, and I do not blame her in any way, shape, or form.) I grabbed a towel, heated my iron and went to work. Only in my haste did I not pay attention and ended up smudging the color on the large #5 that was on the back of the shirt. Short of taking a blue sharpie and trying to color the 5, and then trying to remove the excess that had smeared, the shirt was ruined. (See the angled part of the 5 in the above picture... yeah, it's not there anymore, it's smeared to the left.)
Man, was I mad. It was my fault. I hadn't thought it through enough, even though I had thought it through several times. There would be no birthday shirt this year. I failed. Crafter FAIL! This is not the first time I've screwed something up, but it just made me so mad. And I'm guessing it's because my little girl is growing up and she isn't going to want my handmade shirts much longer... or maybe it was just the fact that it didn't go the way I wanted it to. Either way, there is no shirt this year. I took the lace off the sleeves and handed Ava the shirt, apologized for messing the shirt up, but told Ava she could wear whatever she wanted on Sunday. Thankfully she was okay with that. And she has a new play shirt that she can get dirty, and it has her current favorite characters on it.
Oh well... things happen. I'm still bummed about it, but there is nothing I can do. I'll instead put my energy into her Halloween costume... yep, I've already started that. This girl can't ask to be something they sell in a store! Do you remember last year's zebra? Yeah, so I'm starting this one early. Hopefully I won't mess it up!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
