the.waiting.game.

Anyone who has ever been pregnant and gone past their due date knows exactly what I am talking about. I'm not here to whine. Quite the opposite, actually.

The boys were whisked away yesterday by K's parents so that I could rest and relax (so maybe things would start happening???)... Isn't that the sweetest!!??

Soooo, K and I took advantage when nothing was really happening last evening to go to the city and have dinner on top of the clock tower hill (Schlossberg). It was lovely despite my being very uncomfortable (oops, sorry for the whine)...

My handsome husband...

And here I am in all of my overdue glory in the ladies' room...

This picture I took last week when I took the boys and their good friend to get a clown ice cream after school one sweltering hot day...

This is one of those random iphone shots where I got really lucky... I have to admit that my heart wants to burst with happiness when I see my three beautiful boys. I feel overwhelmed with blessings when I think that very soon there will be yet another little man on that lap... Oh this sweet life.

love and hugs,

h

nesting...

Hello again. Yep, we're still here, hanging on by the seat of our pants. Life is full and rich and we are blessed.

Soon we will be joined by our third little man and we can hardly wait!! I absolutely love preparing for a new one and this one was no exception, although I definitely started later than usual.... Anyhow, a few pics of the preparations.

Could be called nesting or madness... either way it's me and it's been a ton of fun!

This wonderful hammock was a gift from K's parents and we couldn't be more excited to see if our little man likes it as much as we do! It can be moved from our room to the living room, where we have another hook installed.

I love this giraffe sticker (made with vintage wallpaper) -- a great relief to all of the white walls and the white Pax closets!

The crib bumper I made following Lotta Jansdotter's instructions in her book Simple Sewing for Baby. The crib skirt was sort of a wing-it deal I played around with. The shrug was one of my first knitting projects for this baby, taken from this book, which I ended up making two of. The pants were made with this pattern.

This diaper bag I made with the pattern from (again) Lotta Jansdotter's book.

This beautiful bassinet was lent to us by K's sweet brother and his (equally sweet!) wife. My mother-in-law helped me sew the bumper and I made the canopy out of some Ikea curtains.

Our snuggling/reading/nursing place.... room enough for all!!

One of the blankets I made for our babe. Pattern and yarn from Pickles. Details on Ravelry.

One of the sweaters I made for this little man and the belly he is still residing in. Pattern here. I used the softest hand dyed wool yarn from Uruguay.

Bib pattern from The Purl Bee. Diaper cover pattern from here.

Changing pad pattern from Simple Sewing for Baby (again!!). Patterned fabric from Ikea, inside organic flannel.

Hat pattern from Pickles. Booties from here.... For more of my ongoing projects, you can visit my Ravelry page (yes, that is where I have been spending my free time!!!). I most definitely have "cast-on-itis!!!" Yarn is Pickles Soft Superwash.

Another little sweater from this book... I was running out of the wonderful yarn and so I added the stripes in front.

(And last but certainly not least) -- Our big boys are such joys. They love to share the one normal swing that we have..

I can't quite tell you how curious we are about how this little man will look -- these two look nothing alike, don't you think?!!!

this I know....

:: I'm already head-over-heels in love with our third little man. We got to see him again yesterday and I tell you my heart just melted!!! He looks healthy and is super active (surprise surprise!!). I have already knitted him a sweater and am working on a blanket (there'll be show-and-tell later, I promise).

:: Baby steps make my world go 'round. We worked very hard looking at school options for L for next fall and it was a tight race to the end to get him in, but he will (oh so thankfully!!) attend a really special Montessori-based private school not far from us. More on that later. But for now, a wonderful baby step!!!

:: Life is funny. Shortly after we moved here, a good old friend from Vienna called to say that we must run out and buy the most recent issue of Woman Magazine. O.k. Did so. Flipped through only to find an advertisement for our wedding photographer using one of our wedding photos!!!

Fast forward to a week ago or so. Another good old friend from Vienna sends us an email with this link. Pretty funny, right? It seems like centuries ago and yet only just yesterday. Good times, that's for sure. And mostly because of all the wonderful memories we made with special family and friends!!!

This is the beloved photo, including our famous "black velvet" rose arrangement with around 1400 roses!!

:: It's amazing what a little energy will do for one's mojo! I have reeeeeaally lagged during the first part of this pregnancy, but I am starting to get some great bursts of energy, for which I am eternally thankful. I have started nesting (yeah!!!) and the wheels are bigtime turning about what I want to make for the baby's room to make it "his" and for how we can best utilize the tiny space our two big boys share in order to also accommodate an addition to the closet and a desk!!! It's already exploding as it is!

:: We hope that everyone's 2011 has gotten off to a wonderful start! To all of you who are so very far away, we miss you and love you!!!

oxox,

h

moments...

The other night after dinner we were sitting around the table and W walked around to me (my belly actually).

He said "Hi Baby, I'm your brother W. Do you like to swim?"

To which I replied: "Yes, the baby loves to swim. That's what he is doing all the time inside Mama's tummy."

Then "Does he have a swimsuit?"

"No Love, he swims naked."

"O.K. I will give him one of mine. I have two."

~~~~~~~~~

About a week ago, while rubbing W's back during bedtime:

Suddenly nervous, W opens his eyes and sits up "Mama, we don't have any pajamas for the baby."

"Oh yes we do. Don't worry. We have all of the pajamas from you and L in boxes and I promise you can help Mama get all of them ready before the baby comes. I promise, okay?"

W smiles, says "O.K." and instantly turns and falls asleep.

One day when Papa and L were skiing, I took these pics of W in the room that he shares with his big brother since September....

W showing off his "big boy bed."

He made a little "bed" for himself in the middle of the floor with his "minkie."

Proudly showing off big brother's space, which is a double-sized bed.

traumhaft...

... or "just like a dream." Whichever you choose. It was.

My wonderful husband surprised me with a trip to my favorite place and when he told me the boys would be coming too, I wasn't so sure it was a fit, as this place is so serene and quiet and we have two active and not-so-quiet boys.

It was perfect and they were perfect and I am so thankful. Two full days. One night. Heaven....

One of our absolute favorite things about this place is going to breakfast in your bathrobe... Apparently the hotel had looked at my birthdate (as you have to include this information in your registration, interestingly). They prepared our table with flowers, confetti, cloth napkins, freshly squeezed o.j. and strawberry nectar for the boys and me and even champagne! Then they brought me a little chocolate almond cake with candle....

L took this picture from the window next to our table. You can see the outdoor area (one at least) of the thermal water pools. It was very cold outside, which is the perfect contrast to the warm water.

The boys couldn't get enough of the water and of course they made new friends along the way (they are so not shy, those two!). The second day they even went to the free-to-hotel-guests kindergarten and played games and crafted for a couple of hours so that mama and papa could enjoy the adult-only areas of the spa... and take a long nap, of course ;-). I'm kind of a fan of sleep these days ;-).

Thanks again to my wonderful K.

love and hugs,

h

happy 2011

I have to admit that I am gladly saying goodbye to 2010. It was a painful year on most every front. The main exception being, of course, our beautiful boys.... They fill me with love, hope, courage and faith.

We are looking forward to 2011 with much positive energy and thankfulness for an already good start with the job (thank you!!!), some now pretty-established friendships, supportive family (again, so thankful!!!!), and of course the anticipated birth of our third child....

We are wishing you all a wonderful 2011, full of health, happiness and intentional fullness in every way!

much, much love,

h

Happy Holidays and we have news...

Baby boy #1

Baby boy #2

Baby boy #3 (at least an 80% chance)

... with an estimated arrival date of July 11, 2011.