Bowen Zephyr

He's here! Meet the newest, tiniest member of our family, Bowen Zephyr. We chose to name him after his daddy; Bo's middle name is actually Bowen. And Zephyr is a nod to the great Tony Alva, who we met last year while I was pregnant.

Little Bowie was born last week on February 16th at three in the morning. The story is short and sweet; my water broke at home at exactly midnight. Not long after, I was having contractions that were three minutes apart. And Bo was at work, finishing up a big project. I texted him to let him know that this was it and he'd better get home fast! We bundled up Lo in sweatpants and bunny slippers and I told her we were going on a midnight sleepover adventure at her grandparents' house. A quick car ride downtown to the hospital and we were on the fast track to baby town! Bo's sweet cousin, Allie, is a labor and delivery nurse (who I had been texting to confirm if my water had actually broken ... or if I was merely peeing my pants) and she met us there. She was amazing and it was really special to share the experience with her.

Just two hours and four pushes later, we were holding our brand new sweet baby boy. He is beautiful and we can't believe he's really here. I couldn't have asked for an easier or faster (!!) delivery. Especially since I was scheduled to be induced earlier this week. We're back home and life is so good. I am over the moon in love with having a family of four. Lo adores her baby brother and is a huge help to us. Seeing Bo hold little Bowie is pretty much the coolest thing ever. The smell of his hair is intoxicating. I want to (and luckily, get to) snuggle him all day long. We are so very lucky ... so very blessed.

A huge thank you to everyone who has wished us well along the way! I'm preparing a big photo dump that I'll post very soon so you can see what we've been up to with this little guy.

no worries

My mother-in-law gave me this rad little pregnant worry doll to keep under my pillow until baby time comes. And the time is here. We're on our way to meeting our newest little family member. Wish us luck!

40 weeks

40 weeks. Hey, little dude. Happy Valentine's Day. Today is the day that we made it to exactly 40 weeks. It's due-date day. And kind of a cool one at that. It is a weird and miraculous thing to think back to last May, when this all began. When February seemed so very far away.

Here we are, and yes, I'm trying my best not to get too impatient but I can't lie. I really want to see this little guy's face and hold a tiny wriggling newborn body in my arms. I've had about four days (and four long nights) of contractions. The big ones. Sometimes they will be ten minutes apart for a few hours, but I'm not quite there yet. So here's hoping ... wishing ... praying ... for a speedy delivery of a healthy little baby boy. We can't wait to meet him.

kid art: paint a skateboard deck

Sometimes a really good idea is right under your nose. Especially when it comes to creative projects for kids. Bo and I were brainstorming ideas for kids' room decor, since we've totally switched up Lo's room recently. With Bo (and now Lotus) being skaters, skateboard decks popped into our heads. I'll be sharing pics soon to show how we used these in the baby's room, too.

Lo is quite the little artist (haha, isn't that such a typical mom thing to say?) so we figured she could really work some magic with a blank skateboard deck. One cold and snowy afternoon, we hooked her up with the supplies and she went to work.

We thought over some ideas for her painting's subject matter, and she decided that she wanted to paint a bomb pop popsicle. And a bunny. (And a hamster and a duck and about twenty other things, but we stopped there.)

I drew a basic outline for her with a pencil so she had a little something to start with, and then she painted away.

In no time, she had finished painting in the outlines, and we took a much-deserved bomb pop break.

 (Brrr!)

We let the background colors dry for the afternoon, and then Lo went back over the outlines with a skinny brush and some black paint. When she was done, we asked her to add her autograph to her new 'pro model' deck.

This is how it turned out. So unbelievably fantastic! Just a reminder to myself (and maybe you, too) that it's usually a really good idea to let your kid go crazy with art supplies and materials you might not normally give them. This skateboard deck turned out so much cooler than I ever could have anticipated. Don't fear the paint; kids are washable.

And now, we're going to hang it on the wall in her bedroom. She couldn't be more proud of her new artwork. Want to give this project a try? Find artwork inspiration in coloring books or clip art, or let you kid run free with something totally abstract. We used regular acrylic paint, and you can find blank skateboard decks at blankdecks.com. We haven't sealed this yet, but it might be a good idea to coat your skateboard art with a clear protective coat. Krylon makes a clear spray varnish, and I've personally always liked Liquitex acrylic varnish. Let me know if you give this a try! I highly recommend it.

from here to maternity

Remember these? Little memories, all part of the big picture. Corn dogs, Renegade, pumpkins, NYC ... and getting rounder week by week. A quick look back at the journey. Click here to see all of the maternity posts from 12 weeks on. I have to say that I am surprised that I managed to stick to the weekly photo thing. From the start, I wondered if I could really keep up with it. I worried that it would be redundant and boring and that I'd run out of things to say. Sometimes, I felt like total crap and wasn't exactly thrilled to be taking pictures. At all. But now I am left with this kind of rad history of what this pregnancy was like, and while it may not be perfect or beautiful or super creative, I know it will be cool to look back on someday. Want to see some stellar maternity series pics from some of my favorite bloggers? Check these out: Bleubird. Pacing the Panic Room. Create Loves. Walk to 40 Weeks.

39 weeks

39 weeks: here we go, yo. Little dude, I'm so proud of us for making it this far. Your dad is so excited to have a little boy. I'm pretty thrilled as well. And your big sis is ready to wait on you hand and foot. She has lots of ideas about ways she can help you out. She'll shower you with hugs and kisses and songs and stories and funny faces. Get ready because I'm sure you will love her.

So, this is pretty much it ... right? I'm having lots of strong contractions, but they're all over the place so I know it's not the real deal quite yet. This week? Next week? Any day? A huge thank-you to the blog readers, Twitter pals and most radical friends out there who have followed along and sent sweet wishes our way. I have enjoyed hanging out with you during this fun time of change. You are the coolest. I can't wait to introduce this little guy to you in the very near future. I just can't wait.

baby knits

Just in time, it's a set! I knitted an entire baby set! (Well, no pants. But who really wants hand-knit pants?) You might remember the little gray sweater from a few months ago. I had a bunch of yarn leftover, so yay! More baby knits.

I made a super simple newborn hat. In no time flat.

And even more speedily, I knocked out a pair of these baby mitts. They are too tiny and adorable for words, people.

 

All three pieces were knit with Amy Butler Belle Organic Aran by Rowan (in zinc.) I think I used three skeins, total. You can find all of the other knitterly details here. The patterns I used were: New Babeh by Kayla Dyches, Welcome to the World Newborn Hat by Nona and Baby Mitts by Susan B. Anderson. I love tiny knits, I do.

a cowl for Lo

If you give a girl a cookie, she might agree to let you take one pic of her wearing her new hand-knit cowl.

Just one pic, though.

 (Then, if you're lucky, she starts posing.)

My little beauty. This is the Mallory Cowl by Shannon Cook of luvinthemommyhood. You can snag the kid and adult-sized pattern right here. (e.t.a. I knit this using Mirasol Miski – 100% baby llama – in 'storm.') Here's to cuteness and keeping warm.

38 weeks

38 weeks. Oh gosh. I am so ready now.

My bag is packed, a bag for the baby is packed and a bag for Lo is packed. Bo is on his own but I'm pretty confident he can throw a bag together pretty fast. If we have to go now, I'm ready now. 

We finally have a name picked out, but I think we'll wait to share. I'm exhausted and wide awake and excited and anxious and more than ready to do this. I can barely bend over to put on my shoes. I'm down to about two pairs of maternity jeans that still fit. Yoga pants are awesome. 

Three words: Sonic Cherry Limeade. 

 

My stomach is pulled tight in every direction and I can feel the shape of his little body hanging out in there, ready to push his way out into the universe. I hope he likes his new home with us. We're ready to do this. Waiting patiently.

FIVE

She's five today. My Groundhog Day girl. Last night, we dug up videos from the day she was born. And the three of us sat and watched in disbelief. It was like seeing life in reverse; noticing how her face looked so much like her, even in the very first hours after she was born. That cry and that little face ... it was so her and we didn't even know it yet. It's hard to explain but it's never been so clear how time plays tricks on you and all of a sudden, your baby turns five. We've all come so far since then and I can't believe that in the next week or two, another baby will be joining our little family. Almost exactly five years later. Wow.

So here she is; my five-year-old. She loves drawing and making books, watching Phineas and Ferb, playing drums, dancing to songs from Yo Gabba Gabba, eating grilled cheese sandwiches, and is a fan of anything and everything pink. Happy birthday, my girl. Thanks for being pretty much the coolest kid ever. We didn't make you that way – you just are.