Nursery Status: COMPLETE

Here are the final pictures of L Bean's nursery.  While I'm relieved to be done (and proud that we didn't procrastinate), I'm also a little sad.  We had so much fun planning and completing the nursery. 

Hope you like it as much as we do!

A Way Back When Weekend Update

L2L, oh how I've missed you!  I'd like to say that I've been slacking on the blog solely due to the vigors of our rigorous social (because we're soooo popular) and baby preparation schedules  but I'd be 50% lying.  I've also been suffering from pregnancy enduced laziness resulting from sore feet and a baby that's sucking all of energy out of me.

Here's what we did last, last weekend.

I made banana bread.  We already had a baked breakfast item on the kitchen counter, so I put these two loaves in the freezer.  I forgot to take an after picture. Pregnancy brain is REAL, people!

I made "Muffins That Taste Like Donuts."  For reals, that's the title of the recipe.  And yes, they do taste like donuts.  In the bowls above: frosting (totally my idea!), butter, and a sugar and cinnamon mixture. 

Josh REALLY loved the muffins.  Personally, I prefer my muffins to be moist.  But since these were meant to taste like donuts, they also had the consistency of donuts.  Josh polished them off all by himself.  My little champ.

I made chocolate chip scones.  They were surprising easy and super tasty.  The second time around I'm going to add less chips.  But the recipe lends itself to adding other accent ingredients, like blueberries or cranberries.

Lastly, I made rice krispie treats.  Delish! 

We spend Sunday afternoon completing the FINAL nursery project.  Yes, that is my husband cutting-out fabric.  He also drew and cut-out the templates.  I'm a lucky lady!

How cute is he?!  He didn't even complain about the pink scissors.

I'm so thankful to have a husband that can draw.  My skills rival that of a 3rd grader.

The final product.  We got the frames from Michael's during their dollar days, so they were 50% off.  Pregnancy has made me a cheap deal seeker, and I like it.  These little guys are my favorite thing in the nursery.  I'm so smitten.

I'm sure we did something else that weekend, but it was a long time ago (a whole week and a half), and I'm PREGNANT (read: my memory is shot).

Gettin' it done

We had another busy weekend full of (mostly) baby related stuff. Warning: This is another long weekend update post with lots of pictures and random baking tips thrown-in the middle.

Friday:

We went to a Dave Matthews concert at Nationals Stadium in Washington, DC with my brother and his lovely wife. It was awesome. HOT, but awesome. It was still in the 90s at 9:00 PM. Josh and I spent almost $30 on water alone. We got the tickets months and months ago, and weren't sure how it would go being 32 weeks pregnant. But it was a piece of cake. Really. And there were a handful of other preggos there.

Saturday:

I was WORTHLESS for much of the day due to a late bedtime Friday night and a still early rise Saturday morning (and the concert/heat themselves). But Husband, on the other hand, was productive. While I laid in bed/on the couch/lazily putzed around the house cleaning, Husband got to work on the magnetic chalkboard in L Bean's room. We've been planning this project for a while now. Remember that blue square on the wall from a picture in a previous post? It's more than a blue square now!

Husband put a few (okay, like six or seven) coats of magnetic paint down. And then he put two coats of chalkboard paint down. He cut, painted, and built the frame to look like our windows.

Magnetic paint

Painting the trim in the 100+ degree heat.

Doing something important that I asked about but don't remember his reason. BEST WIFE EVER!

He even cut-out a groove for the chalk!

I made the magnets months ago. I heart Michael's. We LOVE the finished product.

During the day, I baked more chocolate chip cookies. These cookies are my claim to fame. A guy Husband works with has offered to pay me to make him a full batch. What do I do that's special? These are the five cookie baking rules that I swear by (if you care):

(1) You're baking, so follow the directions EXACTLY. Measure and level-off everything. You can eyeball dinner, but you cannot eye ball cookies. If the recipe tells you to mix for three minutes on high, then set the micro timer and mix for three minutes on high. If it tells you to mix the dry ingredients then mix the wet ingredients, DO IT.

(2) Use a good cookie sheet. Don't even dream of using a dark, non-stick one. That's cookie suicide #1 (unless you prefer your cookies all around crispidy crunchidy). We got our cookie sheets from a restaurant supply store for $10 each. Crate and Barrel sells them for $30 each. The bottom has two layers and form a bubble in between.

(3) Use three cookie sheets. Cookie suicide #2 - putting raw cookie dough on an already hot cookie sheet and throwing it in the oven. The cookie sheets need to be room temperature each time you put the cookie dough down. I rotate three cookie sheets. That third sheet has plenty of time to cool-off by the time you need it (just don't leave it sitting on the stove, above the oven).

(4) Refrigerate your cookie dough in between batches.

(5) Bake for less time than the recipe calls for. And then set the timer for 30 second increments and keep an eye on the cookies for the last minute or so. Take the cookies out just BEFORE they've reached perfect doneness. They will continue to cook as they sit on the cookie sheet for a couple minutes before they're transferred to drying racks.

And what do you do with brown bananas?

Bake banana bread! I did banana bread muffins for ease of consumption. SO YUMMY.

Sunday:

I cleaned more. Did laundry. We cleared much of the furniture off the carpet and vacuumed. Husband rented a carpet cleaner from Lowe's and got to work on the carpets.

Fiona and Henrik watched-on from the stairs.

They NEEDED it. Renting the cleaner isn't very expensive, and it makes a huge difference. Especially when you have lots of pets. Add a kid to the mix? Yikes!

We went grocery shopping. Husband trimmed the front hedges

He also cut the grass and trimmed (Monday after work). I supplied the water and encouragement (two things I have gotten VERY good at these past few months).

The highlight of the weekend? I burned my stomach on a cookie sheet. 2nd degree burn. My standard at home pregnancy attire is a tank top and pj pants. It was warm in the kitchen, so I had the tank top pulled-up and my stomach out for ventilation (don't laugh. You've either (a) been pregnant before and done it yourself or (b) you'll do it when you're pregnant. Trust me). I momentarily forgot I had a protruding belly, and WHAM! SEAR! PANIC!

I ran outside to show Husband and complain about how much it hurt and how stupid I am. He loved on me and was a Sympathetic Super Husband. And then it dawned on him that we were having our maternity session with our wedding photographer in three days. He brought this to my attention, and then IMMEDIATELY regretted it. I made some sort of whining noise and then ran inside to commence Cry Fest. After cleaning the paint off his hands, he ran inside after me. There I was BAWLING while trying to spoon banana bread mixture into a muffin pan (which, btw, was very hard to do because I couldn't see ANYTHING through the tears). He coddled and loved on me, assuring me that Don could Photoshop the mark, and telling me not to cry. To which I replied, "I'M PREGNANT. CRYING IS WHAT I DOOOOO (sob, sniff, sob, snot bubble)." I eventually realized that he was right and stopped crying. But dude! That burn still HURT.

I accidently broke the blister right after it happened, which made the burn snot and goop. I'm wearing an awesome gigantic band-aid as I write this. As if I wasn't sexy enough already.

We only have one more nursery project to finish, and then we are DONE. Which is awesome and sad at the same time. We've had so much fun pulling the nursery together. We've bonded over the experience, and get this - we didn't fight. NOT ONCE. I mostly attribute this to being married to the nicest, most loving and understanding man on the PLANET. I'll post final pictures soon.

Oh, and we gave Fiona a bath. C-U-T-E.

L Bean's Crib Mobile

It's official: L Bean has a crib mobile!  It didn't take nearly as long as I thought it would either.  Overall, I'd say it was a total success.  And there were no tears involved.  Score one for the pregnant lady.

The little elephants are know as felties in the crafting world.  Obviously, they're made out of felt.  I was first exposed to felties and DIY mobile here and here.  And then I went here for further investigation and inspiration (that's one of the risks of putting things for sale on Etsy.  Someone will look at your craft and think, "I can do that!."  But for every one of those, there is someone who (1) doesn't have the time, (2) doesn't have the patience, or (3) doesn't have a crafty bone in their body).

The biggest thing I learned during the project?  Sewing machines are HARD.  And they take a lot of PRACTICE to master.  And I definitely need a lot MORE practice.  The hardest part was the speed at which it sewed.  If there was a dial to slow the machine down (and there may be such a dial, but this machine is old.  Like, really old.  And the manual is ancient, but I surely did not take the time to read it.  I'm a man like that), then I'd be a happy camper.  In general, sewing machines aren't that complicated.  Although, my bobbin is almost out, and doing another makes me super nervous.  

I used the sewing machine for the ears.  To prevent the fabric from fraying (and to avoid using the sewing machine anymore than absolutely necessary), we used a product called Wonder Under, or more affectionaltely known as My New Best Friend.  We'll be seeing more of W.U. on another upcoming nursery project.  

That's right people, you read that correfctly.  I said "we."  As in my husband helped me, WILLINGLY.  He's been so awesome throughout this entire pregnancy.  I really am a lucky lady.  He drew the templates for the elephants (I can't draw to save my life) and the ears and he helped with the W.U.  He also built the wooden structure and helped hang the mobile.  Best helper EVER.

I hand-stitched the two felt piece together using a blanket stitch.  I learned using this awesome tutorial.  Seriously, what did people do before the internet?!  Probably went to the library and looked at a sewing book.  Yikes.  The hand-stitching was actually the easiest part.  It was also my favorite part. 

Stuffing the tusk was a pain in the you know what.  The first feltie was a struggle; but I developed a sytem and after that it was a breeze.  The eye is a small black bead (Josh actually found them in the fabric store). 

Adding-up all of the time we spent, I'd say the mobile took about 12 hours to complete.  We spent about 3 hours the first day drawing, tracing, cutting, ironing (W.U.), sewing, and pinning.  After that, I spent an hour or two here and there over the following week hand-stitching.  We spent $27 on the felt, fabric, W.U., thread, and beads (the mobile that matches our bedding is $40 + shipping).  I was geninuely sad when it was completed.  I really enjoyed the process.  But I LOVE the finished product.  Hopefully L Bean will love it too.

And just for fun, here's a picture of Mr. H getting some Fiona cone love this past weekend.  She is SO CUTE in her cone. 

Crib Mobile Teaser

Almost done.

You're stupid crazy, wife!

So, I’ve been hinting at some exciting projects that we have in the works for L Bean’s room (I realize that these may only be exciting for me and Mr. H, but indulge me and feign interest). I’m ready to share one with you! If I put it on the blog, my thought is that I’ll HAVE to follow-through with it, right? It has the potential to be time-consuming and annoying, but I know we’ll love the end result.

I read a blog called young house love, which is maintained by a young design couple in Richmond (when I first started reading the blog, I didn’t realize they were from Richmond. Fun surprise!). They published a post this week about a bookcase project in their guest room/office/playroom. I immediately fell in love and texted Mr. H. L Bean’s room is missing a place for books and toys, a kid’s corner of sorts. We figured a bookcase would be a great addition to the room. So that night it was decided.

I trolled the Ikea website for a bookcase and found one. I went back to the website the next day (because we all know I like to obsess) and found a better one. It’s 17 inches taller and four inches deeper. It also doesn’t have a back that we would need to remove (which removes the need to caulk the dark crevice left behind). Another perk is that the shelves don’t move, so we wouldn’t need to caulk the extra holes. Sold.

So what do we paint behind the bookcase? I was thinking stripes, but then I got bored with the idea. Maybe dots, and then I got bored again. I was cruising young house love, and I clicked-over to their dog’s blog. HELLO awesome symmetrical pattern! I fell madly in love with the two-tone blue pattern in the background of the blog. I asked Mr. H if he thought it was doable (I can’t draw AT ALL, so he’d have to draw the template), and he gave me a look. It screamed, “You’re stupid crazy, wife.” It’s true – I will likely HATE myself for choosing the pattern; but I think it will look fab when it’s finished, so I’m jumping in with both feet.

We’ll finish-off the bookcase with some baskets for toys and miscellaneous items (that I will obsessively pick-up off the floor and hide), a great vintage alarm clock (many a feeding will probably take place in the glider next to the bookcase), a lamp that matches his bedding, maybe some framed photo cards, and stacks of books. I can’t wait to see the finished product!

We both really want make the Ikea trip this weekend, but we have something Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights (I know, SHOCK AND AWE). I get tired from making my morning cereal, so we’ll see. Next weekend we’re also booked, so it would be July 4th weekend. That’s a long time to wait when you’re excited. And I want to ride this motivation train while I still can. I’ll keep you posted (HA! A little blog humor for you) on the status of the project.

Oh! Guess what came in the mail on Wednesday!

Doing-it-myself (and encouraging Mr. H)

Happy 27 weeks, L Bean!

It’s hard to believe that my third (and FINAL) trimester is almost here. Time is flying. I’m excited to meet what I’ve been cooking for 27 weeks, but holy cow. Let me just reiterate – the third trimester is the last one. Did you know there’s only three trimesters in a pregnancy?!?!

We didn’t get much done this past weekend, but the ideas are still flowing. We have managed to start some projects, though. I’ve documented everything, of course.

I ordered these, and let me tell you how excited I am: SO FREAKING EXCITED. My only complaint is that there isn’t a zero month sticker, but I shall survive. I’m already day-dreaming of the frame collage in his room and monthly picture updates on the blog. I’m also excited to have something other than our pets to take pictures of with my fancy new camera. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE our babies. But I recognize that people don’t want to see a billion pictures of our pets. Pictures of babies, on the other hand, are universally adored. Even the snarling cartoon version of the church coordinator this past weekend (she was kind of evil, people) would enjoy pictures of a baby.

You know those fancy glass canisters with the chalkboard strip that you can buy for $15+ at Crate and Barrel or Target? Waste-o-money, my friends. We made our own. We purchased two jars from Michael’s for $3.99 each. We also got the can of chalkboard spray paint at Michael for $7.99. They will reside on L Bean’s changer and house Q-tips and cotton balls (babies need those, right?).

Josh used painters tape to mark the strip and protect the rest of the jar.  He sprayed five costs of the chalkboard paint.

I started L Bean’s baby book. I saw the idea on a friend’s blog, and I immediately fell in love. I knew I wanted to do a baby book, but I didn’t want a canned, store-bought version.  I also knew that L Bean wouldn't have a baby book if I didn't do the set-up pre-baby.  I have the template downloaded and plan to spend some time tweaking it. So far, I’ve cut the backing paper and put in the pages. It resides on L Bean’s tall dresser waiting for the template inserts and pictures. I’ll get there eventually.

A trip to Ikea is planned in the near future. I’ve made a list (go figure!) of a few items that I want:

(1) Drawer organizers for L Bean’s dressers (in white). I saw a picture on one of the MANY blogs I read (which of course I cannot find today because my brain had a pregnancy fart and can’t remember ANYTHING) and the organizational freak within did a happy dance. I picture diapers, rolled-up blankets and onesies, socks, underwear, and so many other items nestled neatly into their cubbies.

(2) Venetian blinds for L Bean’s windows. The blinds currently on the two windows are the cheap-o ones what don’t block any light. We’re not big curtain people, so nice, thick blinds are perfect.  I perfer to sleep in the dark, so I'm assuming babies appreciate it as well.

(3) A bookcase for L Bean’s room. There’s a sad, lonely space of wall that needs some bookcase love. The bookcase will be a good place to keep books (NO WAY), boxes/baskets of toys (I’m thinking the square version of the drawer organizer mentioned above), and any other random items that I will pick-up obsessively. And no, that part of me won’t go away when L Bean arrives because I’ll be too tired, numb, or could care less. Clutter makes everything (like focusing and falling asleep) nearly impossible.  It also makes me cranky, and nobody likes a cranky Betsy, trust me.

Our plan is to get there early and leave quickly for two reasons: (1) I hate crowds, and (2) the amount of time spent at Ikea is directly related to the amount of money spent at Ikea.

We’ve got a few more projects on our list that I am super duper excited about, but there will be more about that later. For a couple, I need to learn a few things first (anyone know how to use a sewing machine?). For my favorite, we need a free weekend for painting, building, and more painting. Two things that I’m not much help with right now. But, as I’ve mentioned before, I am the BEST observer and encourager around.


Random thought of the day (moderate TMI warning):

I'm going to write a book about pooping during pregnancy.  Think Eat, Pray, Love, but it'll be Sit, Wait, Hope.


And since our dogs have gotten some photo representation thus far, here's a picture of our youngest.  SO HANDSOME:

So cliche, but we really don't care (obvi).

We didn't get many baby-related things done this weekend, but we (again, by "we" I mean Josh - have I mentioned before how amazing it is to have a husband who knows how to DO things?) did get Liam's name painted and hung above the crib.  With just the addition of those four little letters the room is already looking so much warmer.  I can't WAIT to see it with all of our little projects completed. 

The letters are from Michaels.  Josh used a glossy spray paint to spice-up the matte white finish.