Love: Nursery Sneak Peak

My fall break is wrapping up and I have been hard at work on painting the nursery. Here is a sneak peak of what to expect to see in the nursery. 

Crib: My mother and father-in-law graciously bought the crib for us, we picked it out at Babies "R" Us.

Vinyl above Bed: I plan to order this from Uppercase Living, just waiting on the layout of the room to decide what color.

Bedding: Again from Babies "R" Us, I haven't bought it yet, but I registered for it to see if we get it for a gift. If not, it is the one we are buying.

Rug: I wanted a rug as an accent, I found this one at Pottery Barn Kids. I am going for the smaller rug because of price, 3x5 feet.

Art above changing table: I found this on Pinterest of course, and can't wait to make my own. The plan is for it to go above the changing table, but depending on the layout of the room, it may end up above the bookshelf. It will be on a solid cream wall. They covered canvas they had laying around the house, but I have none so my husband is going to make a wood frame so that I can staple the fabric to it.

Changing Table: I found this Ashley Furniture media center marked down because of a dent. It was worth the investment to have a changing table that would grow with him into his room as a dresser. I found canvas baskets at Target that fit perfectly inside for socks and stuff.

Accent Wall: Again a Pinterest find, but this one is complete. It was definitely a chore to paint the wall, but worth it. Hopefully the crib will sit centered on the wall and look great between the baseball stripes.

Love: Pregnancy 22 Weeks

How far along? 22 Weeks

Weight Gain: 9 pounds

Morning Sickness: none

Maternity Clothes: Yes. Aside from 2 pairs of jeans that still fit, and a handful of shirts, it is all maternity. I tried to purchase shirts that would go with sweaters and scarfs I already had. This has worked out pretty well so far. I have spent about $260 for 3 pairs of pants, 10 shirts, 1 dress, and 2 pairs of leggings. I feel pretty good about it, and although I wish I had a few more shirts, I am going to try not to buy more, instead just come up with different combinations. I have a lot of cardigans and bought several neutral tops to mix in match.

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: I have had several Charlie horses in the middle of the night that continue to wake me up. But other than those I sleep fine as long as I’m not sick.

Baby Movement: All the time, although he has become a little shy, not wanting anyone else to feel him move. JD has been trying for a few weeks and every time he puts his hand there, he stops moving. He did it to my mom too.

Food Cravings: none

Belly Button In or Out? In, but changing.

Wedding Rings On or Off? On

Thoughts and Feelings: We are finally going to start decorating the nursery this next week. I am very excited about that, although the room needs a lot of work because it has been JD’s uniform room. I have been buying some clothes for him, mostly Carter’s brand and sports themed stuff. I am just not crazy about all the baby blue and baby animals, especially all the monkeys that are popular right now.

Love: Gender Reveal Party

We had a great weekend at home, and were able to do a Gender Reveal party for our families. We picked a football theme (actually I was outvoted on the theme when I found the invitation). I spent about $15 on the t-shirts and all the decorations. Thank goodness for my Cricut, it made everything so easy.

 

I baked the cupcakes in football liners to go with our theme, and just had a simple piped swirl on top. I made toppers on my cricut, then put toothpicks on the back to have a stick to put it into the cupcake. There was also a frame with a vinyl chalkboard inside for everyone to cast their vote, pink or blue. In the end the score was tied 10 -10

 

 Everything is pointing to a girl...

 

The set up for food, I didn't wait until the food was out for the picture, but we had quite a spread: buffalo chicken dip, hamburger dip, meatball, vegetable tray, cheese and crackers, and fiesta dip with pretzel crackers. Thanks to my dad for preparing all the food.

 

So what did they bite into?

 

That's right, it's a BOY!!!!

 

 

 

Love: A Year in Pictures

 One year ago today I married my very best friend. He is without a doubt the best man I could have ever asked for. He believes in me, encourages me, supports me, and most of all loves me. We had the perfect wedding day.

 

 

 We went on a Caribbean Cruise for our honeymoon and it was definitely something we will do again.

 

In October we got a new puppy, Sydney. She is a schnoodle, and absolutely perfect. My husband did all the training, she is kennal trained, potty trained, and all around a great dog. 

 

 

 We spent Spring Break at Disney World, and taking the trip without kids was well worth it. We had a blast, and got to visit all 3 parks and both water parks.

 

We did major remodels on the house. The kitchen got new appliances, and a new backsplash. The 1/2 bath got a complete overhaul with a new vanity, toilet, light fixtures, and paint. The full bath also got an overhaul, a new bathtub with tile walls, a new toilet, a new vanity, new paint, new light fixtures, and new decor. Also most of the house got new light fixtures. It was definitely a busy year around the house.

 

 

In June we found out that we were expecting our first baby, due in February. We are excited beyond words.

 

 

Our first ultrasound.

 

We spent a weekend to Nashville, at Opryland Hotel to celebrate our anniversary. We had a great weekend, just spending time together.

Live: Bathroom Vanity

After weeks of being underconstruction the bathroom is finally complete. It literally did take weeks, partially because everything took longer than we expected, and partially because my husband had to work out of town for a week and a half before it was done. Just days before he left, we still couldn't take showers. I put one stipulation on him leaving, I could take a shower. He did get that done, but the vanity had to wait.

 

Now I had measured the hole for the vanity half a dozen times, and I really thought the opening was 30 inches. I hunted for a vanity for monthes. The problem wasn't finding a vanity, but the countertop. The standard size for countertops is a 31 inch, which was not going to work. Then I finally found the perfect one. Until my husband went to put the vanity in the hole. It didn't fit!!!! My worst night mare. It was off by about a half inch.

 

The end result: We cut the drywall out of one wall to the height of the countertop. To fill in the space we used a piece of cabinet finishing board, about an eighth of an inch thick, painted so that in the hole at the bottom of the vanity you can't tell. The slide the vanity in place. We did have to put a piece of drywall back in the front of the vanity. We also had to add a piece of trim, but it is stained to match the vaniy and looks great!

 

 So the vanity is in place, and backsplash is on the wall. We used the same accent tile from the shower for the backsplash on the vanity. After cutting out the drywall we had to have a backsplash, and this countertop didn't have one.

 

Some really neat features of the vanity are the curved front and the copper sink.

 

The front of the vanity. 

Love: 20 Weeks

How far along? 20 Weeks

Weight Gain: 5 plus pounds

Morning Sickness: None.

Maternity Clothes: I did wear maternity khaki’s the past 2 days to work, but shirts are still huge. I am having a hard time finding shirts that are not maternity that look good also. I guess this is the lovely awkward point when clothes don’t really fit. I am really happy with the maternity pants I bought from Old Navy. They have a demi panel, which sits low. It is very comfortable, and the huge plus is it’s not a full panel. I have a pair of khaki’s, a pair of black, and a pair of jeans.

Stretch Marks: None.

Sleep: I have become a light sleeper… I guess it’s my body getting ready for the baby.

Baby Movement: Yes, and my husband got to feel it while we were in Nashville celebrating our 1 year wedding anniversary. There are still flutters, or summersaults, but the baby is also giving some pretty good kicks too.  

Food Cravings: I don’t know that I crave anything per say, but I do watch The Food Network often and often things look good on there. It’s not like an I have to have that right now thing though, just a yum that sounds good. I think I did that anyways, who doesn’t when watch The Food Network.

Belly Button In or Out? In.

Wedding Rings On or Off? On.

 

Thoughts and Feelings: We are extremely excited to find out what we are having next week. Then we will be going home for a gender reveal party! We are ready to start decorating the nursery, just waiting to know what bedding we need to buy for paint colors. We are going to register the weekend of the gender reveal party so that we can do it together. We also decided not to have any of the optional testing done. Instead, we are just going to ask for prayers for a healthy baby.

Love: 18 Weeks

How far along? 18 Weeks

Weight Gain: About 3 pounds

Morning Sickness: None.

Maternity Clothes: I have been buying, but not wearing. Old Navy has been my go to store for several reasons: they are affordable, they have had good sales online, and I can try sizes on in Louisville, then order exactly what I want. I don’t really have anywhere to shop at home so I want to have a few things when I all of a sudden need them. I did wear a pair of khakis this week I may not wear again while pregnant, but jeans and jean shorts still fit. Dresses have been a go to item and my students have noticed. I also wear my dress capris with a belly band, and ruffle capris. I have also gone through my closet and removed form fitting shirts for now, and a few other pieces.

Stretch Marks: None.

Sleep: By the end of the day I am exhausted and ready for bed. Aside from Sydney getting me up this past week to go out I have slept great!

Baby Movement: It’s a possibility. I have felt some movement that I can only express as rapid waves in my lower tummy.

Food Cravings: No cravings, but my appetite has gotten a little bigger, at dinner time.

Belly Button In or Out? In.

Wedding Rings On or Off? On.

Thoughts and Feelings: I have been doing a ton of research on baby products: reading reviews and asking other moms. Looking for what we are going to register for and where. Also shopping sales and looking at prices. We have boy and girl bedding picked out, just waiting to know what we are having (3 more weeks!). I’m excited to find out what we are having so we can start painting the nursery and getting a few things.