Monday, April 26, 2010

Ready for Summer

I want...
no work,

sunshine every day,

{i want to go back to aruba, now}

and a tall glass of iced tea.

I'll also take one of these!

Jantzen Vamp Maillot One Piece Swimwear Swimsuit Red
{seriously, how cute and retro is this suit?!}

I wonder if it would fit over the bean bump?

I only have 33 more days of work left!! Let the countdown begin!

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Bean Fashion

I cannot wait to dress up my little girl and although I've wanted to go on a shopping spree solely to  purchase adorable syrupy sweet clothing for the bean, I've hesitated. One of the biggest reasons being I cannot find things I'm absolutely in love with. I do have to admit it's very hard to resist every and any itty bitty article of clothing I come across. Seriously, who can resist? But, there's always the thought in the back of my head that says, "Really, another pink article of clothing?!" I'm not a pink hater on others and their little girls; it's just not me. I've never really been a fan of pink. Greens, yellows, and blues have always been my favorite colors.

So, my confession...I don't want my baby girl to only wear pink. I do love touches of the perfect pink, but just like her nursery, I want her wardrobe to be cute, soothing, sweet, delicate, light, feminine, and airy. Oh, and of course very stylish. This is where Makié comes in. I am in love with EVERYTHING on their site! Too bad their clothing just won't fit with this mama's budget. But, if I could, I totally would. I think I'm going to have to start learning how to sew teeny weeny clothing. They look easy enough. Right?














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Really, I just die looking at those adorable outfits!

Counting down


Sunday, April 18, 2010

The Bean Curtains

In a previous post I mentioned I was considering purchasing these (picture below) curtains for the bean's nursery. 


Well...it should be no surprise I couldn't commit. Not because I didn't love them, I do. But, they were just not long enough and they are just a too expensive for me. I was trying to figure out what kind of sewing magic I would have to do in order to make them long enough for our tall windows and ceilings and this just really drove me nuts. I basically came to the conclusion that they were just not going to work. I was out looking for fabric to make alternative window treatments when I came upon the most perfect fabric- a striped yellow/white seersucker. I fell in love and it was decided. I came home, started sewing (I added a layer of crisp white muslin for the back part to add some oomph and block out light), and then realized they needed something else. I used this ruffle tutorial to add those ruffles I loved about the Urban Outfitter curtains. 

The results: 

{5 layers of ruffles at the top!}

{bad lighting, but you get the idea}

{i also made a little curtain for the balcony door with one ruffle}

I love them. One more thing done and another step closer to finishing the nursery!

The Bean Bump: Week 25/26

We are coming very close to the end of the second trimester!


Week 25
{no more feet from my point-of-view. rosco loves the bump.}

{these jeans make me look tiny}

Week 26
{i bought myself a fresh gardenia while downtown shopping.}

{that fresh gardenia smelled soo fabulous.}

Week: Are we really at week 26?!
Bean Size: Mi niña, you are about fourteen inches.
Total Weight Gain: I'm up 20 lbs. ahhhh. I guess it's expected. It's a bit shocking to see my weight go up so quickly while not changing my eating habits very much and still working out. I feel bad for a bit, but then realize I've got the very important job of keeping my baby girl healthy and it makes it all worth it. It's definitely all out front.
Maternity Clothes?: Is there anything else?
Sleep: It's alrighty. I feel like I've been waking up a lot more because every time I turn from one side to the other I wake up. I've also started getting some hip pain from sleeping mostly on my left side.
Stretch Marks: Nope.
Movement: Mucho!
What I Miss: Moving easily while sleeping.
Status of the Button: It's opening up, but not popping out...yet. 
What I'm Looking Forward to: summer time with my summer baby
Best Moment this Week: Getting to see my baby girl squirming around inside. My wonderful doctor said she was putting on a show for us. =)
Preggers Bod-New and Exciting!..maybe: My bump measured perfectly according to the doctor this week- 25 inches top to bottom. The bump is definitely inching up towards my chest. I can feel my solid uterus about two inches above my belly button. I drank that yummy orange beverage for the gestational diabetes test this week! I passed. No diabetes for me. woo. 
Bean Milestones: Hi Sweetie- you've opened up your eyes and can check out that exciting uterus of mine. The books also say you've probably reached 2 lbs. Good thing because I at least have that to blame for all these pounds I'm gaining. During our appointment with the doctor this week she said you're looking great. I was lucky to get another sonogram and see those cutie legs you're always kicking me with. You're still a girly! No boy parts and you love keeping your legs crossed like a proper lady. 
Food Cravings: I'd like some chocolate cake and chocolate ice cream with my main course of sugar. We recently discovered a new-to-us Ben and Jerry's flavor and I cannot get enough. I'm usually not a fan of chocolate ice-cream, but this bean has made an exemption on this one. 
How's the Rice?: Amazing! He finally felt our little bean kick. He hasn't seen the crazy punches that make my tummy stick out in random spots, but I'm sure he will soon. Our little girl is a crazy one. 



Tid Bits: We got a family car! We're both very thankful that whole ordeal is over. It was a lot of work to do research (thank you hubby!) and find the best car for us. We ended up with a super sweet Honda Civic. It has everything both of us wanted in a new car. I wanted a black car with tinted windows and power windows and doors. The hubby wanted an affordable, secure car with power everything and a moon roof. We ended up with all those things and more. We're really stoked! I think we also decided on a middle name for the beanette! Oh yeah, I also got my maternity leave figured out. yay!

Monday, April 5, 2010

The Bean Bump: Week 23/24

Week 23

{bump before bed}


{bump exposed}

Week 24 

{pregnant or not, i love stripes.}

{Rosco loves to get in the pictures. he loves the bump}

Week: what up week 24?
Bean Size: Chiquita, you are working on creating those wonderfully unique fingerprints and your taste buds are fully developed. I think I know what you're favorite food is.
Total Weight Gain: 14 baby loving pounds and 38 1/2 inches around. I decided I'm going to measure the bump from this point on every week. I'm up 11 1/2 inches from my regular waist size. wow.
Maternity Clothes?: Why, yes. I stocked up on some more basics at the Gap. They really have the cutest and most affordable maternity clothing (on clearance).
Sleep: Pretty good. I am finding it harder to turn from one side to the other in my sleep, but it's not preventing me from sleeping just yet.
Stretch Marks: Not that I can see.
Movement: LOTS! She's moving right now. I feel her most often after I have a snack or lunch and when I'm sitting or lying down. Last night she was doing some crazy tap dancing. It was constant movement in one area for a few minutes. She loves to tickle me with her dancing.
What I Miss: wine

Status of the Button: Way in.
What I'm Looking Forward to: snuggling my baby girl in her room
Best Moment this Week: Picking a first name for the beanette! We'd originally had this name on our list, but it somehow disappeared. It came up on Thursday and by the end of work on Friday we were both totally in agreement and in love with the name. It's not Olivia, although I really really love that name. But, I think the name we decided on is much more original. We just need to pick a middle name. We're keeping the name a secret until the bean arrives. 
Preggers Bod-New and Exciting!..maybe: Growing feet! I feel soo great. I love being pregnant. I've been doing some running/walking on sunny afternoons and it feels so good. I also am having so much fun doing Zumba at the gym. Our gym has a CRAZY Zumba class! It is sooo much fun. It is THE class to take and they pack that room really well. I have to get there 15 minutes early just to make sure I'm not stuck way in the back. I'm very proud of myself for keeping up with the endless and super aerobic dancing for an hour. I wish I could do it every night. I'm looking forward to class tomorrow!
Bean Milestones: Hey baby girl, you're got eyebrows and lashes! How cool is that. They currently don't have any color in them yet. We'll find out once we meet you!
Food Cravings: I'm a bit surprised at my lack of strong cravings. I've always had cravings for certain foods and I don't think it's changed that much. I definitely still crave meat, citrus, and berries, but nothing weird. I want at least one weird craving. 
How's the Rice?: Wonderful! He says he can't believe how fast it's going. Last weekend we spent time looking at cars which happen to be on the same block as Babies R Us. We decided to stop in and complete our registry. Although he was tired and wasn't really in his element; the hubby did extremely well. It went smoothly and we were out of there in about an hour. 

Tid Bits: I cannot believe I'm almost done with the nursery. I'm sad. I've been having so much fun. 

Sunday, April 4, 2010

Alphabet Soup

After a very busy week at work I really wanted to spend the weekend finishing up some nursery sewing projects and just being lazy. I was happy to find out that the hubby felt the same way. No car shopping this weekend, thank goodness. Car shopping is not fun.

While I sewed and crafted, he played games on his ipad and lounged in the glider. That's pretty much all we did yesterday except for lunch with a friend and a movie in the evening. Today was devoted to de-furing (Enzo sheds like it's going out of style) the house/cleaning, a bit of laundry, sewing some more, and finishing up the alphabet!

With the help of the hubby on the ladder, we finished putting up the rest of the letters above the molding on two walls in the nursery. Here's the finished product.

{wall above the door to the balcony}

{wall above the dresser and shelves}

Originally, I thought about hanging them on a ribbon across that same area, but the more I thought about it, the less I liked that idea. First off, I didn't find ribbon I liked. Second, they wouldn't be lined up perfectly across because the tension on the ribbon wouldn't be strong enough to keep them above the molding. So, I decided on a slightly more complicated way of hanging them up. 

Step One:

Cut a piece of Velcro to stick on one side of a clothes pin.



Step Two:

Cut the other piece of Velcro and attach it to a push pin. The push pins are easier to get in the wall, the hole is small, and the head has more area for the sticky Velcro to attach.

Step Three:

Use the clothes pin to hang the alphabet card. Easy as pie. 


Putting them on Velcro also makes it easier to adjust and remove. 

ps. here's a few more pictures of the other projects I finished this weekend. I completed more than these, but I want to save something for later. =) 

The finished glider. It was definitely a lot of work, but it was completely worth it. I'm very pleased with the end result. It's not perfect, but it's good enough for me. I also saved myself a boat-load of money by making them. 


{front view}

{side view}


{back view}

I sewed some blankets using the organic fabrics I'd purchased while under the influence of pregnancy brain. 
{zigzag stitch for the edges on this one}


{funny "H" pattern stitch for the edges of this one}


pps. We picked the bean's first name!! It's a secret. We haven't mentioned this name to anyone. So, it will really be a surprise. Maybe I'll give some clues for guesses. 

Saturday, April 3, 2010

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Too much good art... aka. going overboard

I love art. I especially love beautiful photographs. Proof of this... Sharon Montrose's animal portraits.

I've been reading her blog for a while because I'm a huge fan of cutie patootie animals and I truly enjoy visiting her site during my workday. Her work always  brings a smile to my face, even on the worst and hardest of work days.

I know I have lots of different art installments going on in the nursery but I think it's time to add one more. Really, even if it doesn't end up in the nursery. I know I want this in my home. I just need help deciding. Dearest friends, which one should I get?

p.s. you can find all of the photographs for sale (and more) on Sharon's etsy page. You can use the link above to take you there. 


{chick}


{deer}


{kangaroo}


{baby sheep}


{baby giraffe}


{baby piglet. doesn't it look like he/she is smiling?}


{baby raccoon. she can even make raccoons look good}


{basset hound puppy}


{baby deer}

What's your vote for?

It could be much worse

Yes, things are a changin' with this body of mine. New pregnancy symptom #48: growing feet.

Really body? Growing feet? Do you know how many pairs of shoes I have and how much I love them?

{eek! I was wearing socks before this. ignore the lines. =)}

I am OH so very thankful at how wonderfully easy this pregnancy has been thus far and I'm crossing my fingers for the best in the last few months. But, this foot thing makes me an itsy bitsy sad. At least most of my shoes still fit, but for the sake of comfort I'm pretty much sticking to flats now. This foot growth did mean I got to shop for new shoes, although not the super-cutie-I-can't-wait-to-show-them-off kind. More like the these-are-made-for-comfortable-pregnant-feet type.

I went out looking for shoes with a clear focus: comfort. The result: Born shoes. LOVE.

{Born Jolina}

{don't they scream SEXY!?}

Honestly, I do think they're cute. 

What did I find on my shopping trip aside from these two comfy pairs of shoes? I can wear a 7. A seven! I'm usually a size 6 and sometimes a 5 and half. Wow. I have happy feet. I'm just hoping they don't get any bigger because I don't want to have to buy more shoes and my sneakers won't fit.