So You're Pregnant, Mothering a Toddler, and Playing a Nun in December.

Baby Bechaz #2 or The Singing, Pregnant Nun

Before I begin, I apologise for not continuing my blog since last year. My bad. Life got in the way. Please love me, internet land. In my absence, around 6000 people have viewed my blog -uh. Wow! Yay! Hope you all liked it and sorry if it was simply the ramblings of a narcissistic pregnant lady!  Hope you have enjoyed the sarcasm and blatant brain-ramble.

Guess what!  Hubster and I recently found out we were having baby #2. Apart from the initial (good) shock (WTF were we even trying for more babies right now? Yay us and our fertile loins!) and the blatant fear (oh my, how shall I deal with TWO little screaming, sticky, Peppa-Pig loving, Playdoh-eating, whirlwinds? Will I ever sleep again?) we were overjoyed! 

#1 (Isla) will be around 2years 4 months when little PeeWee is born, and though we aren’t sure how she’ll take it (loves being centre of attention like the majority of toddlers) she will hopefully love the little munchkin and be able to understand a bit of what is going on! So far she has decided the baby is a boy… no wait… a girl… no wait… it’s a frog. Called PeeWee. Peppa Peewee. (Pretty sure she was saying ‘Poo-Wee’ but I choose to take it how it sounded phonetically). And the Peppa part comes from a particular TV show that her grandparents have got her hooked on.

So PeeWee (Gender Neutral) it is. 

And enough about my fabulous first child and on to our second Wonder-kid. 

Little Fetus PeeWee is around 12 weeks old, and we are just finishing Trimester 1 this week.

Despite only just growing arms and feet, our second child has already demonstrated their complete disregard for the way things are done around here, and the standard set by the daughter-who-must-be-obeyed.

Firstly; Morning Sickness. Why do they call it morning sickness when it sticks around 24/7. The wondrous feeling of wanting to hurl your guts up but not actually hurling… (Lucky me doesn’t spew easily). Sometimes I wished I would just throw up to get it out of my system, but of course that’s not how morning sickness works. According to my all-knowing friends (many of whom have had several children) the act of throwing up does not disperse the nausea. So instead, I nibble on a cracker or dry toast, and hope it subsides. Some days are better, and this week (around 2 days ago!) it subsided almost completely, so I did what any sane mother-to-be would do, and visited Sizzler. Got a light bout of food poisoning, learned my lesson, and retreated to my salt and vinegar rice crackers.

Anyway, this morning sickness was far beyond what I had experienced with Isla. Some days it was to the point of not being able to get off the couch and allowing my toddler to watch an hour and a half of morning cartoons (something I promised myself I would never do…). Due to this, many people think we’re having a boy this time around.

Secondly: Aversions & Cravings. Oh my lawdy. Do not bring meat (especially red!) near me (just like last time!!). Anyone who knows me, knows I usually take my steak moo-ing, bloody, and sometimes cold in the middle (perhaps a vampire/caveman in another life?), but whilst pregnant, heaven forbid anyone should wave a charcoaled sausage within two metres of me! Goodbye meat!

Farewell Dairy, Sorbet, Coffee and all my favourite foods! Yep, they make me bloat like a pufferfish. 

In other news, Salt and Vinegar (which normally I despise and find very… stinky!) suddenly makes me feel so much better. Also chickpeas. And refried beans. And BABY CORN! OH holy crap how did I not know about the joys of tinned baby-corn before this? Drain them and eat them by the tin! To a lesser extent, water-chestnuts. Fortunately I have found a great recipe for a chickpea, babycorn and water-chestnut stir fry which I plan on trying soon.

Thirdly: I got fat earlier. Granted, was a few KGs heavier after Isla (yeah, probably not going to get into all the pre-maternity clothes I saved from 2012 after all…) but my lower tummy has popped out in the last week. Probably bloating (as I said, I did visit Sizzler and I now eat a lot of babycorn/chickpeas), but I treated myself to a new pair of maternity jeans all the same. The ones with the 30cm long beige elastic waist that reaches to my bra. Yeah, Justin can’t keep his hands off me. Fortunately, I can tuck that part in for a few more weeks and pretend to be a normal, hip and happening 28 year old.

A couple of things that are different to last time: 

1.       I have a toddler so don’t have as much time to feel pampered and excited and take tummy pictures. Though I did snap a pretty fabulous one with a  lime (baby’s size this week) while she was hoe-ing in to some avocado.

2.       I am working part time at the high school whilst juggling the toddler and a home singing studio 3 afternoons a week. The tiredness just doesn’t cut it.

3.       I am playing Maria in The Sound of Music right as I hit approx 19/20 weeks pregnant. Yeah, I didn’t plan on getting pregnant when I auditioned. Fortunately I am making all my costumes and have given myself extra girth in the stomach region. And boob region. We all know how that goes. So, Biloela, be prepared to view the Pregnant, Singing Nun in early December! (Theatre-people, you get this, right? The show must go on!)

4.       I pretty much know what I want, what I don’t want, and what I don’t want to happen that has happened in my last birth/pregnancy! So as fabulous as Doctors & Midwives are, unless there’s something wrong, don’t bother me or tell me to do something different (ie: Labour in bed or that I should get induced, or that I am breastfeeding wrong!) because it ain’t gonna happen and you are just going to anger the beast. In saying that I really respect you and think you’re all fabulous… but please just don’t rush me this time! 

5.       I already have a lot of baby clothes/toys/etc as hand me downs so I don’t have to shop as much. (Huge down point.) On the up side, Isla is moving to a new room so I can re-decorate the nursery and her new room! Woo!!

6.       I am a lot more blasé about the little things, and a lot less worried. Which makes for a happier Bechaz household. Or maybe I just don’t have the alone time to worry as much ;) 

All in all! First twelve weeks have gone quite well! Here’s to hoping the next 28 go well and my toddler stops kicking me in the stomach all the time (We think she is trying to remain an only child, as the other day I said ‘Say hi to the baby!’ and pointed at my tummy, and she said ‘Kick it! Kick it!’ and proceeded to do just that. Apologies to second child in advance.)

Welcome to the family PeeWee!

Love xxx

African Flower Hexagon Crochet Pattern

So today I thought I'd post (for the first time in several months!) about Mummy-hood and Crocheting - my two favourite things that take up my time.

Firstly - on mummy-hood - I now have a four-month-old daughter and things are starting to get back to 'normal' or perhaps we are just creating a new 'normal' and getting used to each other. We have just finished building our new home, and are in the throes of landscaping, gardening, measuring window furnishings, and packing boxes for the move next week. In amongst this bedlam I have attempted to continue my artsy-crafty nature (though as any new mummy will know - not a lot of time for that!!) and have started a new project (which we hope will not get vomit/spit/baby juices on it in the near future!) 

Meet my (or at least the beginnings of) African Flower Hexagon Crochet Blanket.

It's a mouthful, but it's pretty, and has bright colours and a nature pattern, both of which I love.

I finished my Chevron Crochet Blanket before Isla was born (though I still need to edge it and finish it off nicely!) but it is currently packed so I thought I'd start this! Basically all the hexagons interlock when I sew them together down the track. 205 hexagons in total, and several half hexagons for edging! I then have to decide how to do the edging. I estimate several months, but as they are small projects, I can do one in around 20 minutes - which is enough time when my little Muffin is having a nap without getting all the crochet regalia out of the box! All it involves is four colours of wool (I chose to do all my centres and outside edges white! I also added an extra row to join them together!) and a 5mm crochet hook.

If you are interested, here is the Pattern!

African Flower Hexagon Crochet Pattern

You Will Need:

4 colours of wool that you like together (I like to choose ones that are either harmonious or complementary colours!)

1 crochet hook (5 mm)

First Round (Colour 1)

1.      Make a magic ring. Chain 1.

2.      Do five DCs in the Magic ring.

3.      DC once more and slip stitch into the first DC to finish the round.

4.      Chain 1

Second Round (Still Colour 1)

5.      DC x 2 into the first DC from Round 1.

6.      Chain 1.

7.      Repeat for each of the six DCs from Round 1.

8.      Slip stitch to connect the final chain to the first DC in Round 2 to finish the round.

In the next two rounds we will make the ‘petals’ of the flower.

Third Round (Colour 2)

9.      Attach your new colour using a slip stitch. Chain 1.

10.  DC x 2 in the first chain space from Round 2. Chain 1. DC x 2 in the same chain space.

11.  Repeat for the next chain spaces from round 2.

12.  Slip stitch from final DC into first DC from round 3 to finish the round.

13.  Chain 1.

Fourth Round (Still Colour 2)

14.  DC x 7 in each of the chain spaces from Round 3. (42 DCs in total!)

15.  Slip stitch from the final DC into the first DC to finish the Round.

Fifth Round (Colour 3)

16.  Attach your new colour using a Slip Stitch into the central DC of one of your Six ‘Petals’.

17.  Chain 1.

18.  SC in the same DC.

19.  SC in the next two DCs.

20.  SC underneath the entire two rows into the ‘gap’ between the petals of your flower.

21.  SC the next 4 DCs.

22.  Chain 1. SC in the same DC.

23.  Repeat from step 19 – 22 for the rest of your flower.

24.  Slip stitch into the first chain you made in this row to finish the round.

Sixth Round (Colour 4)

25.  Attach your new colour using a Slip Stitch into the ‘point’ you have made at the

26.  tip of one of your petals. (In the chain space between two SCs)

27.  Chain 1. SC in the same space.

28.  SC in the next 10 SCs.

29.  SC in the ‘point’ of the petal, Chain 1, and do a second SC in the same point.

30.  Repeat 27/28 for the entire round.

31.  Slip stitch into the first chain to finish the round.

32.  Chain 1 to finish and pull tight. Cut final colour!

You are done! Hopefully it looks something like these!

 Tips:

You can also make Pentagons/octagons/etc by simply adding more or less DCs in the first round and adjusting your pattern from there!)

Try to keep your tension even throughout the project to avoid ‘holes’ or one side being longer than the other.

Use yarn with same (or similar) ply (ie: All 8 ply) to avoid buckling or stretching!

Happy Crocheting!