Frilly Little Nursery

So, aside from all of the cleaning and organizing we've been working on.....we've had a bit of fun too. Decorating you first baby's nursery, especially a lil girl, can be overwhelming. Bold colors and loud prints that she can grow into? Mature patterns and colors that fit into our house decor? Something girly and frilly...in case she is our only girl?

Well, after much debate (internal-debate, that is...Chris pretty much gave me full-reign, but he held veto power) I decided to go with pink and feminine and traditional. Let's get real: it won't be long until she's choosing what she wants to put on her walls and grows up too fast, so I'm making her nursery our frilly, lacy, little sanctuary while I can. :)

I just wanted to share the progress we've made so far:

* The Furniture *

Crib, hutch, and 6 drawer dresser (not shown) in Espresso.
The crib is a "Lifetime" Crib, which can into a toddler bed, daybed, and full.

* The Bedding*

We found this "Emma Rose" Kidsline Bedding at a local baby store,
but then learned it was being discontinued. With some help of my fab sis-in-law, we found a heck of a deal online for a 6 piece set! The pattern has dark and light pink roses and hints of purple too. The quilt has the most adorable cream lace w/ rose buds, and the flip-side of the quilt is a white pattern with tiny pink rosebuds, too. Does it get anymore girly and feminine? :)
(The picture does not do it justice!)

* The Wall Color*

Although a specific brand or color of paint has not been chosen or purchased, we have decided on a light lavender color for the walls. I'm hoping this, as well as splashes of sage green, will add a nice contrast to the pink. (The wall color below is similar to what we're looking at, but may go a bit lighter.)

So, that's where the nursery stands as of now. Once we're able to clear out her room, we'll paint and start putting things together. There are still little odds and ends to decide on....art for the walls...artsy pictures, her name hanging on the wall, family pictures...and choosing a glider. All-in-all, I feel okay about where we're at.....but these weekend will fly by before we know it. And I'm ready to see our plan in action.

97 Days To Go...!?!

Our baby girl is now 26 weeks along...only around 14 weeks until she's here! [Holy cow!] We've been busy preparing for BabyP...attempting to clean out the "nursery-to-be" and cleaning the garages out and reorganizing the entire condo. The furniture is ready to be picked up at the store, and the bedding has come in...if only we had her room painted and ready for decorations. =) This weekend, however, rather than focusing on "nesting"...Chris and I have our first Childbirth Preparation Class. I'm sure I'll have some interesting tidbits to share with you.

OH, and our baby girl is the length of an English hothouse cucumber and weighs around a pound and two-thirds.

OKAY, the bumps:

Baby Bump - 25 Weeks

Baby Bump - 26 Weeks

16 Weeks Left!

Our little girl is growing and growing and at 24 weeks young, she's about the size of an ear of corn. Although she has been pretty lean up to this point.....she will now start filling in and forming those Prilaman-Kline cheeks we all know she'll don. Her brain is still growing, her respiratory system is refining and taste buds are developing. I've read that the foods I eat now can possibly effect her 'likes' when she's older. Guess I better start eating even more veggies! (And less ice cream...? Nah.)

This morning I had a doctor appointment where we went over the BIG ultrasound...and everything looks great! BabyP's size, weight, and organs are all growing as they should. (Thank the Lord.) According to her size at the ultrasound, we are still due at the end of September... putting us somewhere between September 22nd and 25th. For clarity, we'll just stick with 9/23/09. :) Here's the latest bump!

Baby Bump - 24 Weeks

23 Weeks Bump!

So, I took a week hiatus after visiting family up in the Bay Area. But, our baby girl has been busy growing and I've got the bump to prove it. This week she's around 11 inches long, and should weigh a little over a pound....about the size of a large mango. Her sense of movement is becoming more developed and she can now feel me dance. (Bring on the music, honey!) Now BabyP's ears are sharper than ever and preparing her for the noisey world. Loud noises that she hears now...such as a barking Charlie dog...might seem familiar and may not faze her once we bring her home. (We can only hope!)

Some random thoughts about pregnancy:

1) Last week I was actually able to "see" my belly move for the first time. Feeling our her move is always unbelievable.

2) Although feeling her move is always a blessing, it was interesting earlier this week when she chose to nap all day, but then kick away when I went to sleep that night. Boy is she getting strong!

3) Speaking of sleep, Chris bought me a new pillow made by Boppy to help me be more comfortable. So far it's a slight improvement...but I really miss sleeping on my back!

4) Thanks to all the mama's who've lent me their pregnancy clothes! You underestimate the value of variety and fit in your wardrobe until your pregnant and limited to 2 pants and 5 tops. LOL. (My dress below is compliments of Dani...thanks, girl!)

5) Ice Cream. I'm trying to continue my healthy eating habits and not using my pregnancy to eat everything in sight. I will not, however, give up my ice cream. It is a good source of calcium. At least it's of the slow churned variety... which IS lower in fat. :)

6) My stomach is starting to feel fuller faster. And I'm definitely starting to feel the extra weight. I'm pretty sure my belly rests on my lap when I sit! haha.

7) My baby is eating my brain. I'm forgetful, clumsy, and even saying my words funny. (It's a great excuse for my normal 'flaws'....but I'm pretty darn sure it's getting worse by the month). Please forgive any typos! haha

8) Linea Nigra...Latin for "black line" ...is the dark vertical line that appears on your abdomen from your belly button down. It is a type of hyperpigmentation thought to be caused by the estra estrogen. And...it's definitely starting appearing on my belly. Check out the before and after:

Belly Bump - 11 wks 3days

Belly Bump - 23 wks [Why the heck does my tummy look tan?! It has not seen the sun since March and only for 20minutes.]

Belly Bump - 23 wks
Belly Bump - 23 wks

Lickety Split...

This update is going to be a quick one. Lots of things to do before traveling to visit our new niece!

Baby girl is growing and growing.....and is making her presence known by the size of my belly. She is about the length of a carrot, and as of last week she was 13ounces....and I'm sure she's grown a bit since then. (See picture below) LoL.

I've been really trying to stay active with long walks in the early morning, and Charlie-the-pup doesn't seem to mind. Aside from the teen-like pimples on my face, I'm feeling good lately. I have most of my energy back (although bedtime is still early) and my hunger pangs have subsided (somewhat).

This little girl of ours sure is active. She was moving all around for our ultrasound, and yesterday she was practicing her kicks and punches. (But I didn't mind that one bit.) She goes through quite days and then tries to kick my butt on others.....so I'll take any movement I can get. :) They are love taps, I'm sure.

OK, not a "short" blog...but I do type fast. *winks*

Baby Bump - 21 Weeks

Baby Bump - 21 Weeks

Sugar, Spice...and Everything Nice!

...............that's what our little GIRL is made of! :)

Probably a surprise to a lot of you...since 59% of voters thought we'd be having a boy. :) Needless to say, Chris and I are on cloud nine. Not only do we know that we have a daughter in our future...but so far, everything has checked out okay. (You know, two feet, two hands, healthy heart, full spine....the vital things).

I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking. Say hi to our beautiful BabyGirl!

Half-time

We've officially hit half-time, folks!

20 weeks down...around 20 more to go!

According to "them" ...BabyP should weigh about 10.5 ounces now and is about 6.5 inches long from head to bottom, and 10 inches long from head to heel. (Guess now we'll be measuring from head to heel now that BabyP is not curled up so much). Anyone wanna guess what fruit or veggie BabyP is most like this week?? If you guessed the length of a banana, you are correct!

After tomorrow....we'll be able to throw these estimates to the wayside, and share have some real numbers from the doctor. OH yeah....we might share the gender with you, too. *winks*

DON'T FORGET! If you haven't already, take our poll and let us know whether you think BabyP is a boy or girl. Look like the majority of votes are for boy.....we'll see soon!!!

Here's the latest pic.

Baby Bump - 20wks 1day

Lastly.......but definitely not least.......we were given a baby niece this weekend! My sister and her husband, Jenny and Joey, welcomed their baby girl into the world. Brooklyn Rose was born on May 2nd at 5:16am weighing 8lbs 5oz and 19in. Mom, Dad, and baby girl are doing wonderful. I know BabyP and Brooklyn will make great friends very soon. :)