In case you were wondering...

I'm working on something new.  My new site will be up and running in the next few weeks, it's in the construction phase at the moment, but check back at cheryltang.com soon.

In the meantime you can follow me on instagram, twitter, or my real estate site!

So much to tell!

Well.  Here I go again, letting things go beyond the point of no return.  Is it even fair to just pick up where I left off nearly 7 months later?  I'm gonna.

So, I had a baby.  He's basically the cutest human being on the planet.  His name is Poe.  Just Poe.

 

Poe on his 6 month birthday, May 11.

I've been debating writing my birth story and breastfeeding saga here lately, wondering why I would ever want to expose so much publicly - but let's be real here - I'm not an overly private person.   Also, I'm not even sure anyone reads this, so I'm kind of just writing it for myself.  The goal is to have the posts up by the end of this month!  Oh my goodness.  I said it.  Now I have a deadline, something to work towards.  

Ok, gotta go.  I have drafts to write!!

My Pregnancy in Photos

 

It can be really annoying to always be the person behind the camera.   I have tens of thousands of photos of Steven and I'm sure I will have hundreds of thousands of photos of Steven with the baby, but I have only a handful of pictures of myself.  I'm a terrible critic though, so I certainly don't make it easy for him to get shots of me, always directing him and often getting a little mean when he is unable to create exactly what is in my head.  We end up in some pretty ugly fights from time to time - and that never helps a photo turn out well. 

Usually I'm quite content to document my life with drawings and photos of the things around me, objects that indicate what was going on at a particular time in my life.  However, for the first time I have felt that documenting my pregnancy would have been best portrayed in photographs.  Sure, there are other ways I could have done it, I could have set up a tri pod, I could have done a weekly shot in a mirror, etc, but I didn't really want to.  I photographed a friend of mine last year every week from 15-40 weeks throughout her pregnancy.  I put the entire series in a book for her and it turned out so beautifully I will forever be jealous of not having one similar for myself.  Oh well.  No matter how hard I pushed, Steven couldn't handle the pressure and we never managed to get consistent with shooting.  I'm a little demanding, to say the least.

This is about it for my pregnancy in pictures.  It's funny to look back.  It seems like so long ago, yet it went so quickly.  I've been taking photos a little more frequently the past few days, who knows, every day could be my last day pregnant at this point.  I'm trying to get Steven to sit for a portrait together soon, as it could be our last photo ever as just the two of us.  For 11 years it has been just us... wow.  Now we're about to be three.

We put this photo in a card and gave it to mom and dad around 6 wks.  It was early and she had a hard time not spilling the beans to her siblings.  We didn't make her wait too long though.

17 wks, I thought I was so big... fast forward to now...

37 wks.  WOW.  And I'm not there yet.

At prenatal class in August with two of my many pregnant cousins.  Dana, in the middle, has already had her little girl. 

At Erin and Kevin's wedding in July - 20 wks 4 d

Lake Louise, 25 wks 3 d

32 wks

My Nanny Brennan at my baby shower

32 wks and a bit

Pregnant cousins

...and some of my silly aunts

Our moms with us (well, there's a mom-in-law on the right, but that's fine)

36 wks 5 d

38 wks... could this be the last one?  I'll keep you posted.

Baby McTang's Nursery

Well, I think we can call it complete - for now.  Although it is missing the key component, a BABY!  We've worked on this room for months, from painting old furniture (that bed was the most hideous honey veneer), to emptying closets and hanging shelves, Steven and I have really worked together to make our little guy a place to call his own.  This was our spare room for the past five years, the room where guests would stay when they'd come to visit, or people could crash for the night if they really shouldn't drive home.  The two closets in this room were all mine, in addition to one of the two in our master bedroom, and I used this as my dressing/getting ready room daily.  A few months ago I felt a sense of panic when I realized I would need to move all of 'me' into our master bedroom.  Well, it did take some work and a whole lot of purging, but we did it.  I am fully and comfortably situated in the master, all of my clothes fit and I even have a space to do my hair and make up (perhaps I'll post photos of our bedroom someday soon).

So, basically, we're ready.  The suitcase is packed and in my car, and the car seat is installed.  Now we're waiting.  Our due date is November 15, but I would be happy to have him make his entrance into our world at any moment.  Do you hear us little guy - we're ready for you!!

Monkey teddy from his soon to be buddy Lucas Walsh and the Dragon softie is from Auntie Di.

Swedish cross quilt was made by Nanny McIsaac and the two folded quilts are from Muny

Dwell crib sheet, Restoration Baby crib skirt, and the crocheted Christening blanket was made for me by my dad's mother, Grandma McIsaac, 33 years ago.

snug.songbird mobile from Snug Studio and the Boreal Forest print from Banquet Atelier on Etsy

More prints from Banquet

Sarah Jane Studios - Take Me for a Walk and a postcard from Leah Duncan

Pride

This teddy was made by my 3 yr old niece Ellajah's grandma.  There's a very sweet story around it and it is very special.

Dragon bracelet, first piece of jewelry from Ma Ma and Yeh Yeh (Steven's parents).

Diaper Caddy and Whale print

First toy from Dai Goo Ma and a picture of his buddy-to-be Lucas.

More gifts from his Halifax family.  Sai Goo Ma will ensure he is always decked out in the designer gear.

Perhaps we have a problem...

A bit much?  In my defense, I have had great optical coverage and get many of these glasses paid for in full.

The ones in the green display case are on highest rotation.  This was an ugly wooden box with "glasses" written in gold on the front that I picked up from the dollar store a few years ago.  I spray painted it and it now sits on my make up dresser.  I went back for a second one a few days later but there were none.  Major regret. 

 The sunnies are both mine and Steven's.

 These are our two most recent pairs, favorites, I might add.

My brand spanking new frames I just purchased on a whim this weekend from Regent Optical in Edmonton.  If you don't already know the place, it's a gem.  Fantastic prices and they always have my order ready in a few hours for pick up the same day.  The new location on Whyte Ave is the nicest.