Sewing 101

So I got a sewing machine from my mother-in-law when we first got married and I thought "I'll totally use that. I love crafty projects." Well the machine stayed locked up in its box for a year before I recruited Melissa to show me how to even thread the machine, which is apparently the easiest thing in the world since the directions are RIGHT ON THE MACHINE! I decided to sew some pillows for our couch, which I hate because they don't match at all, weren't the pattern I wanted, and they are so teeny tiny. So I boxed that bad boy up again and thought "I'll try again someday." Then I bought a sewing table on the cheap from DI and started to refinish it last summer. Trouble is I got side-tracked with repainting 2 dressers, an end table, and our massive entertainment center so by the time I was done with all those, I didnt' want to even look at another ounce of paint let alone sand a table. Basically it never got finished.

Now that I'm pregnant, I look through a million websites of cute baby clothes that look SO EASY to make but when you have zero sewing skills it can be quite tricky. Which brings me to today. Amy and I decided that we just HAD TO MAKE these super cute slings to carry out babies around in. Problem is 1) I don't even have a baby to put it into yet and 2) Amy's "baby" Alli hates slings so there's NO FREAKIN WAY she'll ever get into that thing, and 3) neither of us know the slightest about how to sew. We found an online tutorial for our project that was the EASIEST thing in the world to follow and somehow we still couldn't figure it out. We spent 4 hours this morning on it and it's still not even close to done. I pretty sure it was supposed to take like 30 mins total! The most embarrassing part of the whole ordeal was when the bobbin ran out of thread and, no joke, it took us an HOUR to figure out how to rethread it. Just so you know, 2 non-sewers does NOT equal one good sewer (is that spelled right because it can't be the same as the smelly foul water, can it??). Anyhow now I have to spend the rest of the day figuring out what exactly is a top-stitch and how to do it. I hope it turns out okay. So far it's completely hideous.

I probably shouldn't admit that I'm also in the middle of trying to sew my own bumper pads for the crib. I wanted something more original and cute and found ANOTHER tutorial online that looked so easy. I'm starting to realize that you should probably be able to at least thread your machine and bobbin before you attempt bumper pads!! But I love all the materials I choose so that's all that matter, RIGHT?? RIGHT?? Oh man, this is gonna be a long 3 months till the baby gets here. If these projects end up successful, I'm making little boy pants next. If not, I'm shipping all my materials to my mother-in-law to finish for me and putting my machine back in storage....permanently.

What's in a name?

Oh the joys of naming a baby.
Stressful.
Well, it's not really necessarily stressful for us but for the people (**cough cough GRANDPARENTS, SIBLINGS, etc.) who dont seem to approve of name choices we love. I always say "too bad, you had your change to use the names you liked. It's our turn now." So for all you who read our blog and hate the names we're about to share, either lie and say you love them or keep your two cents to yourself. We don't care whether you hate it or not, that won't change our minds. Once again, our baby our choice. That being said, here's some of the top contenders.

Number 1 by a LONG shot is SEBASTIAN Gene (after David's gpa) Rogers
Second, EDMOND (don't have any middle names we like yet) Rogers
Third, David Linas Rogers III

Since David is a Jr., we're still trying to decide if we should carry on the name especially since the baby is due on his birthday. I'm not into naming first names after anyone we know or are related too, but if David really cares, I would be willing to let him do it. Right now he's so stuck on Sebastian that he says he doesn't want a third but it might be a different story when the cutie is born ON HIS BIRTHDAY and looks EXACTLY like him. I'm a little fearful, I'm not gonna lie. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the name David but when we go to his house and visit his family, I'm less thrilled that he has the same name as his father when I call out David and both answer. Not sure I wanna deal with that for the rest of my life. And I HATE nicknames derived from a shortened version of a child's name. Little Davey is NOT an option so don't even think about it!!
Do NOT atttempt to shorten our kids' names or you will not be allowed to see them. You have been warned. That's the main reason I love Sebastian so much because you can't really shorten it. Seb sounds awful and Ian's not close enough to the actual name that I don't think people (besides my mom) will think to shorten it to that.
Edmond could be shortened to Ed or Eddie (which is dangerous) so I doubt we'll use it. I think I overthink these things too much, but I am NOT one of those people who name their child one name and call them another. I want to name my child something I love and chose for them and then stick to it. And I want them to have special nicknames that have nothing to do with their given name. Clever nicknames are where it's at! Just ask my brother Ryan and his crazy names he comes up with for the kids.
Anyhow, sorry for the information name overload. On another thought, who else thinks it HILARIOUS that Melissa is having another boy? I'm not gonna lie, I laughed. ;)
Anyhow, that's where we're at right now as far as names go for our baby bunting.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

There's nothing quite like having a Monday off of work and having David home from school all day. I love the holidays, whether or not they are the normal ones I would usually celebrate. We were bored outta our minds, so decided to venture up to Midway with our friends Averi and Elric to look at the Ice Castles. Over all they were pretty cool, but it was WAY overpriced for what you got...especially since all the cool ones were closed to walk through because it was warm out and they started to melt. I wish we would have seen beforehand that we could have walked in for FREE without being seen. I think we were there for a total of 5-10 minutes but at least we got outta the house for a bit.

For those who like seeing preggo-bumps, here's one for you. I can never get enough of them when other people are pregnant. Somehow on me it doesnt feel the same. I feel like a walking blimp.

That one time we were warm...

David and I had a BLAST on our cruise! We ate ourselves silly, enjoyed the shows, swam with stingrays, got hassled and scared by the Jamaicans, got a little bit of a tan, stayed warm, lazed around and just completely enjoyed ourselves....and our waistlines prove it! Grand Cayman was completely AMAZING and beautiful and we're already dying to go back. Jamaica SUCKS the big one. Seriously never ever EVER EVER go there. It's gross and scary and you get offered pot 20 times an hour (and they try to convince you that getting high is good for the baby) and the people are creepy and beg for money or try to sell you crap every 5 secs. When you say no, you're convinced they are going to beat you up or kill you. I was terrified. Everyone that we talked to on the cruise hated Jamaica as much as we did. Unless you wanna die, STAY FAR AWAY! I am not joking. Other than that tramatizing ordeal, every minute was bliss. The shows were fantastic, the food was delectable 24 hours a day, and the company was perfect. :) Here's a few pics of our week of bliss (minus Jamaica!).

Probably the most accurate description of Jamaica...getting wasted and nasty cornrows

A little look at my big preggo belly now. The frown is because I feel SO FAT!