Little Sister's Nursery

We've finally put the finishing touches on our little girl's nursery. I had so much fun putting together a girlie room! We painted a few months ago, which included painting our main living area as well. It took a couple days and the nursery stayed empty for a long time afterward, but we are thrilled with the result. Ben + my brother Cody also scraped the popcorn ceiling off in the nursery. It's something we'd love to do to the entire house but would be quite the undertaking. So we started with that room since it's small and would be empty for painting anyway. I love the way it makes the room look instantly brighter and bigger.

Here are a few pictures of the room before it's transformation. It started out as Malakai's nursery when we moved here, he was 9 months old. We have 3 bedrooms in our teeny house, and the 3rd was a guest room until we transformed it into a play room and then a nursery for Desmond. Nearly a year ago we moved Malakai into that room with Desmond so we could remove all toys (distractions) from where they would be sleeping and have a dedicated "play room" in Malakai's previous room. When we found out we were expecting, naturally the playroom would become baby #3's nursery.

{just after we moved in, March 2010}

{after we moved the boys to share the 3rd bedroom and turned this one into a playroom}

When we found out we'd be welcoming a baby girl I thought we would leave it green and add dark pink accents. I loved this green in our previous home, but it was a much bigger room with 2 windows and wood floors. I didn't love it as much in this house; with less lighting it didn't look as cool and light. The more I looked around for inspiration I started to change my mind. I fell in love with the idea of a light grey nursery with coral and peach accents. Somewhere along the way I decided to include arrows to represent their meaning in Psalm 127. 

Once we got the crib and started putting some pieces together I got more and more excited about the color scheme. I had a hard time finding both coral and peach pieces but was able to acquire several things through our baby shower, gifts, and DIY projects.

The teething rail guard is a must right off the bat because of all the horrendous teething marks the boys left on the crib. I made this simple no-sew version from some peachy fleece Ben's mom bought for me. It matches the peach on the quilt she made as well. I wanted to make a crib skirt but couldn't find the perfect fabric, or the time. I ran into a queen sized bed skirt we had on our guest bed years ago tucked away in the linen closet and made it work by clipping it to the crib support underneath the mattress, making it adjustable as well! It's not perfect, but it works to make a nice hidden storage area under the crib for sheets and other things.

Much of the decor came from the decorations at my baby shower. The pom poms above the crib, the bunting and scripture above the changing table, the letter P on the floating shelf, even the curtains which my mom sewed up from the table runners. The basket that I have the diapers in held a gift from my friend Carina. 

Liz also painted the gorgeous peonies (which were on the invites she had made for my shower) and made the wooden arrow sign above the shelves.  Malakai made the decorations underneath. 

I love the simplicity of our little nursery and the way the bright coral and peach colors really pop in contrast to the neutral grey walls and dark espresso furniture. I'd still like to add some softer peach accents, and I may in the future or as our needs in this room change.

Our crib and changing table/dresser have lasted us since Malakai was born 5 years ago. They've got some cosmetic wear and tear but we still love them. The glider is new and was a gift from my parents, we love it so far and I can't wait to rock sweet little sister in it soon! 

Baby P #3: 38 weeks...

How far along:  38 weeks. The point where I always look tired and am never thrilled with photos taken of me. This may be the last update that includes a picture! 

How big is baby: heavy. at least that's how she feels these days!

What have you been up to: I'm still going crazy getting things ready over here. We've reached the point where we are ready, now it's just maintenance and other side projects that aren't "musts" but would be nice to have done sooner rather than later. I have the hardest time sitting down because I keep thinking of things to do, Ben mandated some rest time for me today and Amy took the kids for a couple hours making it possible. Thanks for taking care of me!

Maternity clothes: not in this picture actually, which is odd because there are very few non-maternity things that I can get to fit this growing belly. 

  

Sleep: has been surprisingly better the last few nights. 

Milestones: the nursery is done! I will post about that soon. 

Best Moments: Having an impromptu date night last night thanks to my in-laws!

Worst Moment: false labor last weekend. Sunday morning I was up at 3am with contractions and never got back to sleep. That was a rough day and made me more ready than ever to meet our little girl. 

Food cravings: fruit and salads.

Food aversions: none.

Symptoms: lots of contractions and cramping, but nothing consistent or painful. 

Movement: same as usual, lot of big movements. 

Gender: girlie

What I’m looking forward to: I'm just ready to meet my daughter, to be done wondering when she'll be born.

What I’m nervous about/praying for: I'm constantly worrying over (and praying about) her arrival date. I really don't want to miss Malakai's first day of school which is in less than 2 weeks. I'm hoping that she will arrive this weekend or some time this next week.

What I miss: being able to move with ease. Getting up from the floor or sometimes the bed/couch is quite the effort.  

Next appointment: tomorrow morning. 

Weekly Wisdom: everything to God in prayer. 

Baby P #3: 37 weeks

{9pm is not the best time to get a good photo...}

How far along:  37 weeks

How big is baby: approximately 18.-9-20.9 inches and 6.2-9.2lbs (quite the range!)

What have you been up to: nesting like crazy. Today alone I cleaned up the boys' toy storage in the garage, added a bedskirt to the crib, made a carseat canopy, had a play date and made a Target run, organized my entire craft cart, rearranged some storage in the garage and the baby's room, set up all her headbands + clips, Ben + I arranged the poms in the photo above and did some other decor brainstorming, plus the usual chores of dishes and laundry and kid wrangling. Ben is currently setting up the co-sleeper in our room. 

Maternity clothes: maternity tanks and maxi skirts during the heat, but thankfully we've had a reprieve and I've been able to wear T's and jeans a couple days. 

  

Sleep: lots of tossing and turning. 

Milestones: full term!

Best Moments: watching my boys play with dolls and stuffed animals, pretending to take care of baby sister. They are so excited to meet her!

Worst Moment: injuring my back last weekend. I was out for a few days and it was super stiff and painful. I can't exactly pinpoint what I did but it was different and worse than my previous injury...and I was JUST discharged from PT for that one! Thankfully I'm doing better, I was so worried I'd go into labor with my back messed up!

Food cravings: chocolate.

Food aversions: none.

Symptoms: aches and pains. 

Movement: lots of kicks and bumps to the ribs. 

Gender: sweet little sister.

What I’m looking forward to: finishing up projects so we can relax and wait for baby girl's arrival.

What I’m nervous about/praying for: I can't help but constantly wonder when she'll be here!

What I miss: being able to bend down without involuntarily holding my breath. 

Next appointment: Last week started weekly visits, so I'll see my doc again end of next week. 

Weekly Wisdom: listen to your body and slow down before you overdo it...I've NOT been doing this!

moving slower

If you couldn't tell by the quiet here on my blog, I've been moving a lot slower these days. This applies to just about every aspect of my life and is largely due to my pregnancy (no puns intended). Between being tired + sick for so long in the beginning to now being so tired + sore I feel like I didn't get much of the "energetic" part of pregnancy. I have drive and motivation to do things, I want to do ALL THE THINGS, but I can't. I try anyway and end up miserable at the end of the day, and my husband isn't too happy with me for pushing it either. Most days I feel fine in the midst of activity, but oh how I pay for it later!

I've had a couple sessions of physical therapy and have already been able to tell the difference in my physical ability just by keeping up with the exercises and advice given to me. I'm really disciplining myself to get my stretches done, it helps that the boys love to join me. 

I have a blog post all written out for an update on our 40 Bags in 40 Days project, but editing the pictures has been slow going for me. It'll come soon. We've also taken on a couple big home improvement projects over Memorial Day weekend that I'll share soon after. 

Oh yeah, Mother's Day has come and gone as well. I was showered with gifts and given the gift of relaxation. Ben + the boys gifted me with an act of service which I loved because 1. it got something done and 2. it is teaching our boys how to love others with servants' hearts. They cleaned out our garden area, which was a tangle of weeds and filled a couple pots with dirt for me to plant my herbs. I won't be planting a full garden, just basil and cilantro this year. Overall I felt blessed to be a mother to my sweet boys and wife to my thoughtful husband. 

Slowly but surely I'll get some more exciting updates posted and maybe some more baby posts thrown in here and there. For now, Desmond is napping so I'm going to snuggle up next to Malakai and take a little rest myself. 

Motivation to Declutter- 40 Bags in 40 Days

I came across Ann Marie Heasley's blog, White House Black Shutters last summer through Pinterest when she had started her "Summer Simplify" series. She shared inspiration for simplifying spaces around the home. I tackled quite a few areas and shared my success on Instagram along with her and other followers.

Now it's time for spring cleaning and our house (and garage!) could really use some decluttering and simplifying. Anne Marie came along again with 40 Bags in 40 Days and I was sold. Over the 40 days of lent you focus on areas that need to be decluttered and/or purged of the overflow. She even has a printable chart (see linked post above) to help you plan and keep track of your progress. I've got my whole house mapped out on one and am ready to start TOMORROW!

I chose fairly small areas and even broke some up into two days, for during the week. Saturdays are for bigger projects that Ben + I can take on together or one of us can spend time on while the other keeps track of the kiddos.

This is a layout of our teensie not even 900 square foot home to give you an idea of what we're working with here...

in preparation

Here is what we've done so far to prepare for little brother and family of 4 status (in no particular order)

• rearrange our bedroom to set up + attach the mini co-sleeper. this also involved us switching sides of the bed.
• transformation of our guest room into a play room, a few things still pending.
• rearrange and anchor furniture in Malakai's room. 
• sort through all of Kai's clothing, newborn-18 months. 
• wash and organize all newborn-6 month clothing
• repack all 9-18 month clothing into plastic storage containers and put away in garage.
• get out of storage: pump, bottles, bath, swing, etc.
• wash all new baby items: blankets, clothes, etc. and put away
• contact paper dresser drawers and organize toys, baby toilettries, and clothes into the dresser. 
• reorganize living room bookshelf to include all children's book (non-board books) that were in the dresser. 
• dust all surfaces, wash windows, and other deep cleaning
• clean and organize my vanity/dresser
• wash insane amounts of our laundry to catch up before baby gets here (ongoing)
• purchase a deep freeze
• clear out garden beds and harvest pumpkins + squash. 
• keep an eye on tomatoes that are still ripening.
• freeze 2 dozen tomatoes
• make 3 batches of salsa
• give away extras
• Keep up with general weeklies: laundry, dishes, meals, cleaning, diapers, nap time, appointments, birthdays, and more.
• purge all excess:
• garage sale
• donations
• repurposing
• garbage + recycle
• Reorganize + clean garage space. This was a huge job and almost entirely Ben's doing. I wish I had before + after photos to document the transformation. My husband is amazing!
• pack hospital bag (about 3/4 of the way done)
• clean out car + install infant car seat.
• purchase needed items off of baby registry: wash and put away
• a dozen other things I'm forgetting that we've already done.

Still on the to-do list (also not in order of importance)

• replace tile floors in kitchen/dining area with laminate flooring (to match the rest of the house) This is in progress and will happen TOMORROW!
• dust again (after breaking up the tile, the house will need it)
• vacuum, mop, steam carpets
• replace door to garage, also tomorrow. the current one is crooked and slides across the floor. 
• prepare + freeze meals for after little brother's arrival
• mow + fertilize lawn for the fall
• repaint kitchen chalkboard
• repaint baseboards in Kai's room (they're peeling!)
• clean out fridge
• get a replacement shelf for the empty spot in our kitchen cupboard that has been w/o one since we moved here.
• store more toys to make additional space in play room 
• replace front room blinds
• hang curtains + decor in playroom, secure furniture to walls
• finish packing hospital bag
• pre-register at hospital and complete birth plan
• choose birth announcments and finalize mailing list
• finish childproofing: install latches for cabinets in bathroom + kitchen
• put together bouncer
• clean off double strollers and store single stroller
• clean out desk
• clear all surfaces of clutter: mail, magazines, random items

I think that about sums it up. I obviously still have a lot to do, but aside from packing the hospital bag none of it is detrimental to little brother's arrival. Well, we are praying he doesn't choose to be born while our house is under construction tomorrow, that would prove to be interesting. 

I'm hoping to get most of these things done just so we don't have to worry about them once little brother is here. We know very well that even small chores can go overlooked for a long time when you have a newborn, let alone a toddler as well! Wish us luck!

Happy Friday!

enjoying the wait

Today I settled into patience and decided to enjoy the wait. I've been so anxious to meet our little man and have these daily contractions progress to active labor that I've made myself miserable. I'm not even to my due date, but have been feeling overdue since my doc said I'm most likely give birth early.

I found joy in spending quality time with my husband- even while doing household chores. We also went for a walk in the sunshine and watched a movie. It was a lovely day with a perfect balance of getting things done to keep order in the house and relaxing. Even though I feel like I'll be pregnant forever, it won't be much longer before our days as a twosome are a distant memory. I've decided to tone down the grumbling (even though Ben is beyond understanding of my impatience and discomfort) and trade it in for a grateful attitude.

I've decided to not be such a punk- but I don't know that I'll be appearing solo in many more pictures. I'm really feeling self-conscious even though I know it's normal, I just don't feel like I look like me anymore. Mostly it's that I look more exhausted than I feel- which is pretty bad.
Anyway, here's a photo of us before we went out to dinner on our 2 year anniversary


Oh and we finished the nursery. I still tinker in there just about every day and change things slightly, but here are some photos of the finished product. I'm quite pleased with it and love to just sit in there and look around.
The green walls look truest to their color in the first picture because I didn't use the flash. The rest are a bit washed out.