Happy Labor Day!
As I mentioned last week, I’ve always thought it would be fun to actually go into labor on Labor Day — but so far, no such luck for me! Of course, my due date is still 2 weeks away — so I’m really not surprised that I have no signs of labor yet.
That said, I was recently thinking about our fun Labor Day announcement 4 years ago, when we announced I was pregnant with Simon. I LOVED this photo!
This was my caption for the photo when I shared it on Facebook:
No “laboring” for me this Labor Day weekend… but that might not be the case in about 26 weeks!
Now, 4 years later, I’m (almost) ready to give birth to our 4th baby.
My, how time flies!
38 weeks
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Dave and I actually did quite a bit of “laboring” this weekend — we finally finished staining our shed and we’re really happy with how it looks (we sent all the kids to my parents house for the majority of one day so we could make lots of progress!)
We also did some yard work, installed extra storage shelves in the boy’s bedroom closet, and cleaned out both our cars. This, of course, included removing all the car seats, cleaning out the car seats, and officially rearranging everything to accommodate the baby’s infant car seat. I’m super glad to be finished with that task!
Oh, and I finished canning the last couple batches of jam as well (I did 5 batches of jam total, which should last us for 2 years).
If you’ve ever been interested in canning or preserving but feel overwhelmed by the process, I would HIGHLY recommend starting with jam — it really is quite simple. Here are my recipes and instructions!
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My Plans for Blogging After the Baby:
Since we’re already on the topic of labor — I thought this might be a good time to share my tentative plan for working and blogging after the baby arrives.
In the past, I’ve scheduled many posts in advance, had guest bloggers, or scaled back to only a few posts per week — all of which were great options for me at the time. However, this time around, I’m giving myself as much of a break as I possibly can… because that’s one of the perks of running my own business!
I honestly don’t really have a set-in-stone plan for the blog — gasp!
I’m NOT planning to quit (don’t worry, I love it too much!) however, I do anticipate things being pretty quiet around here for 4-8 weeks after this little lady arrives.
I’m hoping to pop in once in a while to share life updates, little tips, links to recipes I’m making, and cute newborn/family pictures. But that might be it for a while.
I PROMISE, I will come back to more of a “full time” blogging schedule before the holidays, but I haven’t taken even a 1-post break since last Christmas, so I’m giving myself permission to take it easy, enjoy my new baby, and slowly ease into life as a family of 6.
Aren’t you proud of me! 😉
Are you laboring today?
If you’re hard at work in your yard, purging a closet, cleaning out your garage, or just going for a walk or run… you might have a few extra moments to listen to the fun podcast I did with Wellness Mama several months ago! It went live last week and I’m super happy with how it turned out.
I’ve touched on some of these topics on my blog already, but so many of you have asked me to start a podcast (not sure if that will happen any time soon) so I definitely wanted to make sure to share this with you!
Angela says
I really enjoyed listening to the podcast while I was working! It would be great if you would do more of those once in awhile! Even though I’d already read your posts on many of those topics, it personalized it more to hear your voice. Fun!
Kristen @ Joyfully Thriving says
Good for you, Andrea! Give yourself as much time as you need to soak in those first days and weeks…again! I can’t believe your fourth is almost here! Prayers for a smooth and safe delivery and I’ll be looking forward to to the pictures and good news!
Andrea says
Thanks Kristen — and I see congratulations are in order for your family as well 🙂
Debbie says
Enjoy your break! I haven’t listened to the podcast yet but will get that on my list. How the kids are looking bigger and older now. Even James is so much bigger!
Lynn Oyama says
Love this post! You definitely deserve time off. We (my friend Angie and I) spent Labor Day launching our new blog, FullTimeFullLife.com! We are excited for our new adventure. We follow you every day and have for years! Thanks for all your inspiration.
Have a wonderful break! Can’t wait to see pictures of your new daughter. 🙂
Andrea says
yay — good luck with the new blog!
How Mama Saves says
About to listen to your podcast, how exciting!
Yes, please do take time for yourself and family! You’re doing the right thing!
With every new little blessing, there is a time of adjustment both mentally and physically. You come back when YOU are ready!
Hoping all goes well with your upcoming delivery and that you have a wonderful day!
Ann says
Can’t wait to see pictures of baby girl Dekker & hear what you name her!! Also, I really liked the podcast! Speaking of PAPER clutter…the App “Paperkarma” is very helpful getting rid of unwanted mail.
Andrea says
good to know — thanks for the tip Ann!
Olga says
Hi Andrea,
Even though i will miss your morning posts, you definitely deserve a break from us and the blog, especially with your best possible reason for this break. I really wish that the new Dekker Princess will be an eating and sleeping champion from all of your kids. By the way, in one of the posts, on the pic involving her nursery there were wooden blocks kind of hinting on baby’s name, with initials IKD. Or it’s just for fun?
Either way, i wish that your very own labor day goes smoothly and as painless as possible. :)♡☆
Also if you think that you are actually ready, you might want to try the trick with taking in some castor oil. For many women it helped to “ignite” the process and aided to relatively painless labor, without any stitching. Some women say as little as 2 tbsp worked. I haven’t tried it yet, but when (or if) i will be pregnant and nearly due next time, i will definitely try it. I was over a week late with my all three, and being induced IS NOT fun, and very painful. :'((
May God bless you and your family.
JoDi says
Enjoy the break with the new little one when the time comes! Looking forward to seeing the birth announcement and pix of your baby girl!
Emily says
My sister is actually in labor today!! We’re patiently waiting to hear the exciting news that baby has arrived. They’re in the east Grand Rapids area. Yay for babies!! Looking forward to meeting your little one soon. Take as much time as you need after baby arrives. Baby #4 was a big transition for us and I remember taking things slow at the beginning and really allowing ourselves to ease into life with four kiddos! I’ll be listening to your podcast while folding laundry today. 🙂
Andrea says
yay — congrats to your sister!
Maria says
You’re such an inspiration, Andrea! I’ll really miss your blog, but you certainly deserve time off with your new baby. Best wishes for a safe and speedy delivery.
Great job on the shed. What kind of flowers do you have in the flower box?
Andrea says
thanks Maria — and guess what, the flowers by our shed are FAKE! They are silk geraniums and have been going strong for 3 years already! We get so many compliments on them and I never have to worry about watering them 🙂
Francie says
We love you too, Andrea!Enjoy your little blessing, I will be looking forward to the updates. http://www.supersimpleways.com
Cathy says
With all you did this weekend it might be soon…..seems to me that you are in super nesting mode! Can’t wait to see the new cutie. You have such a gorgeous family. I’m sending prayers for a speedy and uneventful delivery and recovery for you and the Little Miss!
Andrea says
haha — I’m not sure this is “nesting” for me, or just “normal”. We were on a “Labor Day Deadline” to finish all our house projects, and we squeezed them all in, thanks to a busy (but very productive) weekend!
Pixie508 says
How did you know what I’m doing today?! I just finished purging my kids closets and mostly transitioning to fall (60 degree temps in CLE last week and this coming week jump started that process) – I had to leave a few summer things, because today for instance is going to be in the 80s. That also meant doing laundry, as I had some things from my oldest in storage that needed to be washed for my younger one. And, I also need to sort through old clothes, figure out what I can donate and what I can sell (I know you don’t waste your time, but I want to give it a shot!). And, I need to go through and weed our beds this afternoon during nap.
Hopefully all of that frees us up to take the kids to the neighborhood park this afternoon, and then grill out and relax this evening.
DeeDee says
WOW! Seeing that delicious jam makes me want to get out my canner again! I’ve done freezer jam in the past – but nothing compares to doing it in the canner.
The day’s early still – you might get your Labor Day wish after all!
http://deedeedoes.com/
Andrea says
I agree that canned jam is a lot yummier than freezer jam — but I’ve honestly never used my canner for jam 🙂
If you follow the link in this post to my jam instructions, you’ll see how I do it without a canner — it’s SO easy and I’ve done it this way for 12 years (and both my mom and grandma have done it this way for as long as I can ever remember).
DeeDee says
WOW,that is so easy. I never knew you could do it out of the water by just flipping it upside down. I’m definitely doing this soon. Thank you!
Andrea says
yes, it’s SO easy and I’ve never once had a jar that doesn’t seal properly!
Angie Roop says
Happy Labor Day, Andrea! You certainly deserve a break from daily postings but I will definitely miss you! Enjoy every minute with your new bundle of pink joy. What is the bush that you are standing in front of in the 38 weeks photo? The big white blooms sorta look like hydranga but have never seen their bushes grow so big! You have several of these around your house and they are gorgeous! Good luck on your upcoming adventure! Love……..
Andrea says
They are Limelight Hydrangeas — and yes, they get huge!
Ashley says
Good for you for taking a break! I’m very curious to see how you’ve rearranged your vehicle. I fully plan to use your configuration for when I have three, and have recommended it to several of my friends!
Andrea says
Nora and Simon in the back — James behind the driver’s seat and the baby behind the passenger seat.
We put Simon behind James since Simon has shorter legs than Nora, so we can push James’ seat ALL the way back to allow for easier entrance into the van. Then the baby’s seat is pushed forward so Nora has more legroom and so I can more-easily get the carseat out.
Nora helps get Simon buckled in in the back and he can get himself unbuckled on his own 🙂 So far (2 days in) it’s been working well!
Chris says
I hope everything goes extremely well with your labor and postpartum weeks. You deserve the break (although I will really miss your blog).
Andrea says
Thanks so much Chris!
Karen says
Yea! So excited to listen to the podcast and can’t wait to see adorable baby pics.