There seems to be a phase before nesting where a mom to be becomes obsessive about making things. I suddenly figure out how to add all these things into small spaces of time. A month ago, I would have said my day is full and there is not any more room for anything. Now I have this plan to teach my older two kids phonetics and reading, make a bunch of cloth newborn diapers, knit my best friend a sweater for her birthday, and get back into baking bread (letting my husband mill the flour, since it hurts my back too much).
During my other pregnancies I have found myself going through this phase a bit differently. Instead of making a bunch of things, I would shop on the internet for hours. This is when I still actually needed new baby things and really wanted to get the best deals. Now most of this is taken care of all I really need to work out is having enough diapers. Plus, I do not know what gender child I will be having so shopping for things like baby clothes is less interesting.
So operation make cloth diapers is going well. I have completed six covers out of the PUL that I bought. Some can be used as pocket diapers as well. There are also three wool covers, one I knit myself and two made out of an old wool sweater. I think I might even be able to make some baby legs out of the sleeves when I find a moment. Then I needed to make a few more diapers. I have two prefold diapers, I plan to use like a flip diaper in some of my covers, some inserts for the pocket diapers, one fitted diaper, and a bunch more fabric to make even more stuff. Um..what next? I am thinking about AIO diapers, but they take FOREVER to dry, so probably not. Maybe just more covers...they are so much fun to make and it is really useful to have a lot around.
From sewing to phonetics, every day is interesting. My kids four and just six have finally put some order to the alphabet. I admit, I have not focused so much on this because I wanted my kids to love reading and books first. Plus, I am not convinced that the ABC's make any sense to a child who does not have a reason to learn them. Now I feel like it is time to focus, but I still get the most resistance out of my oldest, the one I hoped would want to learn more. We did not put my son in Kindergarten at five because I really want to teach my children at home. Instead we purchased the 4/5 Sonlight curriculum. This was a lot of fun for us and we had lots of great books to read. With a new baby due in early November I have caved into the thought of putting my oldest in school. (maybe only for the year). I will have five kids six and younger and of those, three of them will be two and younger! What a thought. It will be like having triplets or something. I have already worked with two kids close in age, but not three!
As for making bread, we are now stocked up with twenty five pounds of wheat berries, plus whatever we get with our farm share. My husband has agreed to mill and so hopefully this weekend our house will smell like freshly baked bread again. I miss the whole process. There is something amazing about the art of bread making. No other kind of baking has the same rewards, even if a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies smells pretty fantastic as well. Fresh bread makes me think of the name Bread of Life from the Bible and I am always thankful for being well fed.
Sweater making has also been a great tool in trying to relax. Knitting is awesome because one can knit anywhere. All you need is a bag for your project and you can be in your own home, or out and about. I am two thirds of the way done with this sweater, hoping I will not run out of yarn. My mother gave me some great wool from her stash, so it will be hard to find extra in the shops since I am not sure when she bought the stuff. Anyway, since the summer has been so cold, knitting a cozy fall sweater has been nice. Usually, I do not feel like touching wool in the summer, but this year that is not the case.
So as one can see, my energy level is up again finally and all preparations for the new baby are in full swing. This is always my favorite time in pregnancy because one starts to feel more alive again and there is a new sense of anticipation for the newest member of the family.
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