Update

Quick post to let you know we had an appointment with the midwives today.

Great blood pressure, lost 2 more pounds, baby's heart rate is 158, and we have our big ultrasound on Jan. 19!!! :)

28 days until we see our baby for the first time!

Home Improvement: Crafty style

The other night Matt and I sat down and made a list of things we would like to accomplish around the house before the baby arrives. Some if it is as simple as cleaning out a closet (i.e. no real crafting involved). But some of it definitely requires a creative flair.

These are 3 room projects I am getting excited about:

Painting the nursery:

I have known for a LONG time I wanted to do 2 tone stripes. At first I thought maybe the same color but in two finishes, to make the stripes very subtle. Then when I was cleaning some last weekend, I came across this picture I clipped a couple years ago. I love it. The two tone stripes and the third tone solid along the bottom. The division of the wall. LOVE it. So, this is the plan, but in yellow. Now to explore paint chips. :)


Curtains.:

The nursery has a double window along one wall and a single window on another wall. I found the following picture at the same time as the wall picture above. I LOVE these curtains! Of course, they are from PBK several years ago, and I wouldn't want to pay those prices even if they still made them! This needs to be added to the sewing project list once we know if it's a boy or a girl. I can already picture them. Solid at the top, with a coordinating pattern on the bottom. :)


Decor:

Also from PBK (who'd have thought? All 3 pics are from them). If we do birds for a girl, I want to make a bean bag pillow to match (like the PBK Penelope birds, since that's the bedding we picked out for a girl.... oh, about a year ago :) ). And if we have a boy, then I want to make the owl or raccoon. I think it would be too cute to have peeking out from a corner of the nursery! :)

The tree isn't all that's decked out...

A few more decorations around the house... be sure you scroll to the end! :)

What's the verdict?

Please humor my aside from normal crafty things:

Ladies, what is the earliest you felt your baby moving around? I know "they" say 18-20 weeks, especially for a first-time mom. But I've got to tell you, I've been feeling some taps and flutters, and on Sunday I felt a very swift JAB right where the midwife found the heartbeat at our last appointment (and after drinking a glass of OJ at our church brunch). What do you think? Anyone feel her baby early? Is it purely wishful thinking? :)

Christmas around the house....

I decided to try something new this year, and I'm taping Christmas pictures and cards to the laundry room door. So far I like it. :)

I also moved our little village to a bookshelf in the living room instead of the entryway table (where I have a nativity this year in its place).


Wreaths are up in the front windows!


And the tree, Spike, is all decked out for Christmas! Spike is HUGE, but Matt LOVES him. He still smells GREAT, and he's been drinking LOTS of water still after a week! He's a keeper. :)


Complete with ribbon (Matt wanted to try ribbon this year) and my new crocheted snowflake ornaments (thanks, Dad and Mom!) that even compliment a snowflake design in the ribbon.

Christmas is coming...

.... and so are Christmas tree pictures, as soon as I charge my camera battery. :)




p.s. The baby's due date is exactly 6 months from today!! And this time next year, we should have a 6 month old! :) :) :)

Ready to Roll!

I sat down the other night and typed up what turned out to be a rather ambitious-looking list of things I'd like to sew for the baby. I'm itching to get started, but for many of the items, I'd like to wait and see if we can find out if the baby is a boy or a girl. Here's what I have so far...

Things I want to sew for the baby:

• Nursing cover
• Burp cloths
• Shopping cart cover? (or should I just register for one?)
  
• Dipes and wipes case
• Travel changing mat (like the skip hop?) (or should I just register for one?)
  
• Boppy cover? (I know I'll register for some, but should I make some, too?)
  
• Clothes (just a few simple things)
  
• Quilt (I bought fabric for two quilts while we were in TN!! Pics soon!)
  
• Taggie ball or blanket
• Hooded towel
• Paci clips (also good as blankie clips for a stroller)
• Tie chair? (obviously not necessary for quite some time, but I think I could maybe figure one out)
  

Possibilities:

• Baby legs? (I have one pair and a tutorial on how to make them..... I'm not sure)
  
• Holiday bibs? (something similar to this.... maybe I should just ask for them for Christmas)
  
• Travel toiletry case (again, I'm thinking maybe I should just ask for one for Christmas)

Any advice??