Nesting

Finally getting to some of the MANY projects on my to do list. Somehow I pictured having this to do list all done by April 24th--this will not be happening.



I've always loved gallery walls but had no idea how much time people put into them to make them look perfect! I am not one for perfection, at all, so instead of measuring and leveling and blah blah blah I just threw them up there and crossed my fingers. Many nail holes later I think it semi-turned out. Still have a few blank frames, baby pictures perhaps?





Always trying to make my kitchen look less like an apartment (cheap cabinets, counters and floors tend to give that impression), and more like a NY alley kitchen (hah!!). We decided valences to the ceiling might help emphasize the narrowness and height of the room. Everything else in my house is pretty neutral, so I though why not bring in some blue, pink and orange? Livin' on the wild side, I know. As with all creative projects, I take no credit---my mom comes up with all the ideas and sews everything. I provide entertainment and treats while she works.



I gave up finding affordable chair cushions that fit my chairs and I could stand to look at every day, so we made these! Never in a million years would I have thought orange fabric would look good. I love it though. I've always been scared of color and cling to white (can you tell?!?), my mom on the other hand lives for color, and I'm starting to learn she's always right.



As cute as this couch is, it's incredibly uncomfortable since it's from like the 70's. SO, we (my mom) made a really comfy seat cover over the cushions. Living room is till coming along, it's a hard space to work with since it feels super small, but we're trying to make it cozy.



Picked this cool thing up at the thrift store. It had an awful finish on it. We power washed it (quickest way to antique something!), and it turned out pretty nifty.

Mini Nursery

The nursery still needs a lot of work. We have all the fabric picked out but still need to sew sheets, bumper pad, and crib skirt. The closet needs some serious organizing (its very tiny, not sure what to do with it... good thing his clothes are ridiculously tiny as well). Also need to get light switch plates, door handles, dumb stuff like that. I finally feel like it's close to finished though! We (always refers to my mom and me, Brandon has zero interest in home decor, phew!) picked out the drape fabric a long long time ago and fell in love with it, but then had to match the entire nursery to it which ended up being really hard! I always wanted a yellow and grey nursery, but the yellow, turquoise and grey in the curtains is somehow the HARDEST shades to match. We brought home fabric after fabric that didn't come close to matching! And then there was the whole white-comes-in-waaaay-too-many-shades debacle. We had bright white trim around the windows, clashing with slightly off-white crib/changing table, clashing with very off-white drapes, clashing with cream chair cover, it was horrible. Somehow it ended up working out.



Duke thinks we are the coolest parents EVER for giving her her very own room. She especially appreciates how all the onsies are at eye level so she can carefully choose which one should be carried around the house (ugh). Naturally this is her new favorite rug to shed on (it is the softest thing I have ever felt).






Meet Mr. Monkey. My crafty (she would hate that I used the word "crafty") mom made him and he is oh so cute. She is in the process of making him an orange "fat friend" with a big old monkey gut. I had to take a picture of his hand---she sewed a bug on one and a leaf on the other because he's eating :) I love it. I'm not sure how she comes up with ideas like this and whips them out in a day with no pattern or previous experience, I'm so untalented.



I'm obsessed with this hot air balloon mobile. Because of the crazy slanted ceilings in this room I couldn't put it over the crib (kept hitting the ceiling and was way too low), but it's pretty cute over the changing table.

3 Weeks 6 Days

Not that I'm counting or anything. Just DYING to get this baby boy out of me and meet him! I always thought it was weird when people said they couldn't wait to "meet" their baby, but I totally get it now. It's strange being so close (literally) to another human but not even knowing what they look like. Official due date is April 24th, but I'm more than aware that only 3-5% of women actually have their baby on their "due date" (crazy huh?) and most go over with their first, UGH.

Pregnancy has actually been a lot easier than I thought it would be. I hate to admit that because I know a LOT of people have miserable pregnancies and I feel really bad for them and sort of feel like I got "cheated" of the "real" pregnancy experience (but I'm not complaining!). I really was never very nauseous, never had morning sickness, and haven't had trouble sleeping. Don't get me wrong, it hasn't been a walk in the park and I can come up with a huge list of my own complaints (soreness, heartburn, feeling fat, extreme exhaustion, etc.), but comparatively I got pretty darn lucky. My biggest cravings have been dairy and fruit. I go through milk like no one's business and I'm ALWAYS up for a bowl of cereal (honey nut cheerios are a favorite!). With fruit starting to come in season (kind of) I've been buying up over priced Strawberries and Watermelon like crazy (which Brandon likes points out is a very expensive not-in-season craving). I could eat Watermelon for every meal, and easily go through one a day. And then of course there's my constant need for sugar! But that's nothing new, everyone who knows me knows I'm a complete candy junkie. I admit I pictured myself eating a little healthier when I was pregnant, like it would be some really good motivation to eat nothing but the best organic veggies and leanest meats...but I have zero self control and I think I'm okay with it.

Below is my pathetic attempt to snap a prego picture in the nursery mirror. Note the oversized sweater and leggings. CANNOT WAIT to never wear leggings EVER again. I was so glad they were "in style" when I got pregnant because they're extremely comfortable and cheap but I am soooo sick of them 8 months later. Squishing into those pre-prego jeans is going to be so wonderful. I think I've stretched out a good 70% of my closet with my refusal to buy maternity clothes...guess I'll have to go shopping, whoops!

Not Rational

I'm sure all five of you who read this blog are also friends with me on facebook and know by now that yes, I'm pregnant! I know this doesn't excuse me from posting belly pictures, so I promise those will come soon (when I'm on my laptop and not at work). But for now you have to oo and aww over my new favorite obsession: ridiculously overpriced diaper bags.


Inspring the title of the post, this bag is called "Not Rational--Hansel Diaper Bag." With a price point of $598, I'm thankfully not even tempted by this one. It's a beauty, but one that not even I can justify.



I don't know why I'm in love with this bag, but I am. It comes in at a mere $198...is that so wrong? It's amazing how somehow $200 on a diaper bag seems just a-okay to me. But don't worry, I probably won't be owning this (or any of these bags) anytime soon. I married the man who invented the word "budget", and my consumer life has been much too predictable ever since. I miss crazy impulse purchases, but I guess I don't miss the bounced checks and overdraft fees I was famous for pre-marriage.



Another $198'er. Yes, Angelina Jolie toted this bag throughout India, and yes, that might be the only reason I must get my hands on it. After seeing The Tourist last weekend I finally admitted to Brandon that she is one of the worst possible actresses out there (it took painfully sitting through Wanted, Salt and The Tourist for me to come to terms with this). BUT this does not in any way affect my die-hard obsession with her.



Lastly, the cheapest bag I can find that I love---only $149 :) This will be the last one I show Brandon, and I plan on saying something along the lines of "FINE, I'll resort to this CHEAP-O bag if I can't have the 598 dollar one, hope you're happy!". Look at me, always willing to take one for the team and save a buck.



Prego pics and nursery pics to come....