Lucy's Nursery

Planning and decorating a baby girl nursery was SO much fun and surprisingly easy. It's much easier to find thrift shop items to refurbish and re-purpose items we already had when you're decorating for a girl. We're still waiting on the custom crib bedding, so I'll post a picture of that once it arrives. Otherwise, here is the "close" to finished product:

Repainted dresser from Goodwill. I added new knobs from Cost Plus and then sanded everything to give it a "shabby chic" look. The changing pad was Jackson's and I got the diaper organizer from Target. It holds all of the supplies perfectly!

My favorite part of the room is the daisy light from Ikea. We got the "Lucy" pillow off of etsy and the lamp was inherited from my Great Grandma. I love the attached table that can hold a book and nursing supplies. My Grandma made the quilt and we already had the rocker and bookshelf.

I framed fabric scraps using embroidery hoops from Joann's. Cheap and easy! The crib is painted a dark kelly green to give it some character.

My sister made the banner for Lucy's baby shower. I took old frames from Goodwill, painted, and sanded them. I strung ribbon on the empty frame (the glass broke) to make a mini bulletin board for pictures and cards. For the other frame I found a template on Pinterest for the birds and cut them out from scrapbooking paper.

Vintage toys I collected from antique shops.

The handmade doll is from etsy and Sophie the Giraffe was Jackson's when he was a baby.

My sister made us the adorable "Love" canvas. The blue birds were my Great Grandmas and the Peter Rabbit pillow was given to me when I was born.

What do you think?

Pregnancy Update

I'm SO behind on this blog! I am now almost 40 weeks pregnant and due in four short days. I've been scrambling to get everything done while trying to stock up on as much sleep as possible before our new little bundle of joy arrives. Here are my two most recent belly pics:

No signs of baby girl coming early, and with this being my second that's totally fine with me. I'm enjoying my last few days of spedning time with Jackson as an only child and loving on him as much as possible before his poor little world is taken over by a new baby. We're hoping the adjustment goes well, but definitely know that there's going to be a period of time where he's going to struggle. I hope it goes as smoothly as possible for him! Pregnancy-wise I'm definitely ready to be done. With the extreme Arizona heat and huge belly I am cranky and tired most of the time. It won't be easier when she arrives, but at least I won't be as physically uncomfortable!

Seven Month Pregnant

I can't believe how fast this pregnancy is flying by! You definitely don't have as much time to think about being pregnant (or do updates on the pregnancy) when you're chasing around a very active two year-old. Here are the seven month stats:

Food cravings/aversions:

Craving comfort food like macaroni and cheese, pizza, and cookies.


Symptoms: Still lots and lots of contractions. Some days I have so many and they're so strong that I contemplate calling my doctor. So far nothing has come of them and I'm just trying to rest more when I start having a bunch in a row. My exhaustion is now at a high point. I can barely get myself off the couch at the end of the day, which is NOT good when you have a two year-old who hasn't seen you all day and wants to play. Talk about mommy guilt. :(

What baby's up to: She is head down and hiccuping a lot! She likes to move around a lot at night, just like Jackson, and it's cool to watch her bump and roll across my belly. At our 28-week ultrasound she weighed 2 pounds 11 ounces (ahead of schedule) and is approximately 13.6-14.8 inches long, or about the size of a rutabaga.

What we've been up to this week: Not a whole lot, thankfully. I've slowed down on the nursery and haven't gotten much done, which is really stressing me out. I would love for everything to be finished so I could just relax, but I don't think it's going to take care of itself.

What's next: We found out that my placenta previa has completely resolved itself, which is wonderful news and means no more c-section! Other than that, we're on bi-weekly doctor appointments and everything is measuring normally. Yeah! Now I'm just trying to figure out how I'm going to balance being a working mom of two young kids. The closer I get to my due date the more I'm freaking out about this. Any tips?

24 Weeks Pregnant

Six months pregnant already! Sometimes it feels like this pregnancy is flying by and somedays it feels like it's taking forever, just depends on how I'm feeling that day. Baby girl is very, very active and I love that, but it definitely makes for some uncomfortable nights! I've also been having lots of contractions, which I absolutely hate. I think a lot of this is due to the stress I'm under right now (work stuff as usual) and some of it is due to this being my second pregnancy. I'm carrying a lot higher this time around and not putting on much weight (which I'm sure will change soon). Jackson loves to pat my belly and say "baby," which is totally cute. The nursery is coming together and basically all we have left to do is paint the crib and either make the crib bedding or have someone make it for me. Four more months to go!

Size of baby: Grapefruit! Baby girl is about 10.5 inches long and weighs around 12.7 ounces.




Weight gain so far: Still only four pounds. I've ramped up my eating schedule to try and pack on more pounds. I'm not really concerned and that as baby girl gets bigger I will too!

Sleep: Getting better. I have been sleeping through the night more regularly, but I'm still pretty uncomfortable. Just another one of those aspects of pregnancy that you have to deal with.


Clothes: Non-maternity tops are getting too snug. Luckily I don't really have to get "dressed" each day due to working from home, so I just wear baggy t-shirts and sweats for the most part.


Food cravings/aversions: Still liking sweets and fruit. No real "cravings" right now.

Symptoms: Tons of contractions, which can be exhausting and worrisome. I've also had some nausea. I'm also a LOT more tired at the end of the day.


What baby's up to: Growing bigger and moving around a lot! The coolest thing is seeing my belly moving around when she does!


What we've been up to this week: I found a dresser at Goodwill, repainted it, and added new knobs. It turned out super cute for all of $60! We also bought the crib and I now need to paint it the green color I found on Pinterest and figure out the bedding situation. Otherwise the nursery is pretty much ready to go thanks to the vintage furniture I've inherited from family members!


What's next: We have a regular monthly doctor's appointment next Friday. I'll finally get to have my ultrasound in two weeks to determine if my previa has moved at all. My doctor is very optomistic that it will, so we're crossing our fingers! If not, then it looks like we're going to have a c-section.

The Nursery

We're definitely on a budget for this little one. Luckily, Pinterest now exists and I have found SO many cool ideas for decorating our little girl's nursery. Below are some of the projects I've made or plan on making. So far I've only had the chance to clean and organize her room, so we still need to buy a crib and dresser. I still have 4 1/2 months to go, so I'm sure we'll get everything done in plenty of time!

We bought this lamp at Ikea and it was only around $40!

I made the fabric embroidery hoops to hang behind the crib using scraps of fabric I had laying round the house. The letters I bought to spell out her name were only $1.49 each at JoAnne's!

Buying a Jenny Lind crib from Walmart and I'm going to paint it green.

One of the prints I have picked out from Etsy.

I'm either going to make (yeah right!) or pay someone to make me some mismatched crib bedding similar to this in Amy Butler fabric.

What do you think?

Twenty Weeks Pregnant

Twenty weeks pregnant and halfway there! I'm trying to take time to appreciate this pregnancy, since it will most likely be my last. Feeling a baby kick and grow inside of you has got to be the most amazing thing ever and I hope I never forget the sensation. So far (beyond the obvious complications), this pregnancy has been very easy going. Here are the stats:

Size of baby: Banana!

Weight gain so far: A whopping three pounds! This pregnancy has been a lot different in the weight gain aspect- at this time with Jackson I had gained at least 13 pounds.

Sleep: This has been one of the toughest aspects of this pregnancy. I've had insomnia really bad since the first trimester and it's just now getting better since I borrowed one of those awesome maternity pillows (a "Snoodle") from a friend. I'm so glad to get some sleep again!

Clothes: Definitely wearing only maternity bottoms, but I can still squeeze into my non-maternity tops, provided they're on the long side.

Food cravings/aversions: Sweets of any kind! And chocolate, which is definitely not something I usually even like, much less crave. I've been having weird aversions to fruit like bananas and blueberries. Maybe it's their texture?

Symptoms: Nothing much. No heartburn, nausea, or tiredness. Just harder to get off the floor when I'm playing with Jackson. :)

What baby's up to: She's a movin and a shakin! This baby girl is definitely an active one, which I appreciate because it means she's growing and developing.

What we've been up to this week: I finally finished vacuuming and steam cleaning the carpets in the nursery. I'm basically trying to get everything I can done before I might have to go on bed rest. The furniture is now placed in its approximate location but we still need a dresser and a crib. I'm making the decor for her room and am planning another post with what I have planned.

What's next: We have a regular monthly doctor's appointment on Friday where she'll probably go over my placenta previa in more detail. We'll still have to wait another three weeks before we can see if there has been any improvement.

Pregnancy Bump Comparisons

I think it's pretty cool to look back on my pregnancy with Jackson and compare how my belly looks with my second pregnancy. I took a weekly snapshot as my belly grew with Jackson and this time around I'm just doing it once a month (a LOT busier with this pregnancy!).

8 Weeks Pregnant with Jackson

8 Weeks Pregnant with Baby #2 (definitely a bit bigger!)

12 Weeks Pregnant with Jackson

12 Weeks Pregnant with Baby #2

16 Weeks Pregnant with Jackson

16 Weeks Pregnant with Baby #2

I am now 20 weeks pregnant with Baby #2 and will take another bump picture today. Halfway through with this pregnancy- I can't believe it!

Jackson's Second Birthday!

I had SO much fun planning Jackson's second birthday party! This year I decided to split up the chaos between two parties, one for family and one for all of his little friends. The family party was low-key and we were able to spend a lot of time chatting and catching up while celebrating. The friend party was bigger and a little more elaborate with a bounce house and a circus theme, all ideas coming courtesy of Pinterest. :) I would definitely say Jackson had a blast at both parties, but particularly enjoyed the bounce house. We couldn't get him off it! He had to say "night, night" to it before he went to bed and was SO disappointed when he woke up the next morning. Poor buddy! Here are some pictures of the big day:

Personalized treat bag labels from SweetnTots

Personalized Happy Birthday banner from SweetnTots

Ribbon Wreath Tutorial can be found here. Number two was bought at Michael's.

Pouf Swag

The Dessert Table

Circus candy- I printed out the labels using a cute font and glued them on to circus-themed scrapbook paper I had laying around.

Chocolate-dipped pretzels (recipe here)

Chocolate-Covered Oreos. I just melted Wilton's candy melts and dipped the cookies in. Let them dry on parchment paper. Easy and delicious!

Popcorn cupcakes! These were my favorite to make- the tutorial (with free printable labels!) can be found here

Rainbow Striped Straws with Circus Flag Toppers from HeyYoYo

Popcorn Bags from HeyYoYo

The birthday boy double-fisting it.

Opening gifts!

Happy birthday to our amazing little man! We love you to the moon and back!