Nursery Update

We are still in the process of decorating Harper's new nursery. It is completely different from his last nautical nursery so it is taking a little longer than expected. This time around I decided to go a different route. I loved the nautical theme but I didn't love my Pottery Barn bedding. The bumper just didn't cut it. I found it flimsy and it never looked like it fit properly. Not to mention because it wasn't as sturdy, Harper figured out how to pull it down and chew on it. For all of you expecting mamas... I highly recommend a boxed bumper. They fit in the crib SOOO much better and it makes the whole bedding set look crisp and clean. This time around we went with Hoohobbers bedding in "Master Blue." I love, love, love it.

I decided to go with more soft and soothing colors. The powder blues, creams, tans, and celadon green look perfect together. Above the crib I put an awesome decal. I felt better about having a decal above the crib so I didn't have to worry about a picture frame falling into the crib. And I love adding a nice personal touch to the room. I was so excited to find these awesome decals at Baby Furniture Plus Kids. They are only $35 and are custom colors and design. They had several great "boy" designs which are hard to come by!

I had a really tough time with his new nursery chair. I am obsessed with Best Chairs. They are by far the most comfortable nursery chairs on the market. Expecting moms, you will want... actually NEED one of these chairs. In his nautical nursery we had the "Tryp" recliner glider and it was amazing. My old one was navy blue so it didn't go with Harper's new color scheme (yes it would have probably been much easier to just buy new bedding that had a similar color scheme... oops!) Erik and I wanted to get the same exact recliner glider in a green color to match. Then came the bad news.... the "celery" color I picked out was totally off. I tried to make it work but it just looked horrible. So I went back to the drawing boards. I debated between a neutral brown, burlap, linen, but none of them added enough color to his room. The baby store carries a new line of nursery chairs called "Four Seasons." These chairs are different because they are slip cover and down filled. Unfortunately they do not come in a recliner but they do have about 500 different fabrics to choose from! They had the exact green I was looking for. And they even had the exact cream color I wanted for the piping. They are a bit more expensive so buying the matching ottoman was a little out of our budget  but I decided to get the glider chair. They are custom made so I am patiently waiting for its arrival. Not having a chair in the nursery has been driving me crazy... I never realized how much and how often I use that thing! I can't wait to test it out his new glider. I really hope I like it as much as my last one. Mister Bear is sitting in the chair's space until it arrives.

I found some incredible prints for the nursery. Today I took three to Michael's to get them framed. They are supposed to be ready in two weeks. I also found a cute rug that matched the greens in the room perfectly. It is called a shaggy raggy rug. It is the softest thing ever! I love how it feels on my toes. So we are making great progress but there is still quite a few things left to do. Maybe the nursery will be complete by next month? Then I can start on the rest of the house!! But as all new moms know, the nursery is always going to be number one on the priority list.

Still No Baby!

Harper decided to stay in my belly a little bit longer! The checkup went great and it looks like he will be here any day now. So I am patiently waiting for something, anything, to happen! I feel like a paranoid mama, I don't want to leave my house just in case my water breaks. For some reason I am comforted by the idea of my water breaking while I am in my own home. It just seems way less stressful. So I figure I will stick close to home for the next few days and I will wait for him to make his appearance.

In the meantime, more nesting. Because really... at this point, I have nothing else to do. Erik, Denise, and Gary finished the stripes in the nursery last night and I love them!!

I ordered the cutest prints from an Etsy shop awhile back. I think they will look great over the dresser. I am going to put them in white frames with Navy and white matting. I can't wait! 

I came across this print today and I think it would be a really cool addition in his nursery too! I found it on Etsy HERE! What do yall think? It is the international code flag for "H." 

Well I am off to paint another canvas. Have a wonderful Thursday! 

35 Weeks

How far along?   35 Weeks! (SO close)
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How big is the baby?  5 1/4 pounds (think honeydew melon)
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Weight gain?  At the end of my 35th week I gained 28 pounds! Putting on the belly. I am still able to wear my wedding rings but I have a feeling they won't fit for too much longer.
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Stretch Marks? Don't think so. Still can't see much of the belly these days. And I have no idea how my feet are doing down there. I think they are getting a little fat though. My right shoes feel a little tight.
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Sleep? I am getting used to feeling uncomfortable and have put myself to sleep faster this week. But when I wake up, I ache. My neck aches, my shoulders ache. I guess I will just have to get another prenatal massage!
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Best moment of the week? When I went in for my appointment on Tuesday, I had to go in for an unexpected ultrasound. The doctor couldn't tell which way the baby was positioned. I was kind of nervous and hoped he wasn't breeched. The ultrasound showed he was in perfect position and there is plenty of fluid for the little guy. So that was a big relief!
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Food and cravings? I eat a lot now. I feel like he is so big at this point that he must need quite a bit of food. I guess my cravings have been chocolate milkshakes. I still love to call all of my normal favorites "cravings." It makes me feel less guilty when I grab my second milkshake for the day.
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Movement? His little feet are now right at my side and he has a very strong kick. My belly looks like a bowl of Jello moving around all day.
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What I miss?  I miss feeling normal. I literally feel like an oompa loompa. Erik has to help me up. I can't lift things. I am pretty independent so relying on other people for help for the simple things has been a little difficult.
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Belly Button?  It is flat. no more belly button. 
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Looking forward to?  I can't wait for our "babymoon" in Wild Dunes. I am so ready. 
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Milestone? Harper is in position and ready to go!

Sorry! *I still need to get a recent photo of this belly!*

Here are some photos of the paintings I did for the nursery. I still have several more to paint. I had a really hard time finding paintings that I loved. So, I decided to be brave and try to paint them myself. I have not painted since the 5th grade. Literally. I was worried I would just waste a bunch of money on paint and canvases but I actually like how they turned out. I tried to match his little quilt. And I figured sea creatures were appropriate.

I finished sailboat #1- (there are going to be three total)

And I finished the little seahorse-

I started on a crab and I am going to do two more sailboats (with the numbers "1 and 2" on their sails) and possibly an octopus. Any other fun ideas that I should try?

A tip for other moms who are considering to start painting-

Sign up for the Hobby Lobby newsletter. Once you do, you receive an e-mail with a coupon almost every week. Quite often it is for 40% off. So I buy one canvas a week. It saved a ton of money and I knew I would feel less guilty if I mess one up. I also waited to buy most of my brushes until they went on sale. Two weeks ago, all of the brushes in the store were 50% off. And then I got the paints when they were on sale. So it really didn't cost much to start up this new little hobby!

And here is a photo of his new crib put together. It looks black in the pictures but it is actually expresso.

Now that the new furniture is in, we can start decorating! I am going to try to hurry and and finish these paintings so we can put them up on the wall. We area waiting on a window valence from Pottery Barn kids. And we ordered a custom glider/rocker so hopefully it will be ready before the little guy gets here. Once we start putting all of the details together, I will post photos so you can see what it looks like.

Men: If Your Wife is Pregnant, these tips could save your life!

I saw this article in the Baby Furniture Plus Kids catalogue and had to share. It is HILARIOUS!!! I have to admit, Erik has been the perfect hubby throughout the entire pregnancy. I think he has this list down. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

Men: If Your Wife is Pregnant, these tips could save your life

By- Eric Ruhalter

If your wife is pregnant you are on the verge of your life's greatest joy. However, you're also in tremendous danger. Pregnant women have surging hormones. If you find PMS difficult to navigate, pregnancy will open your eyes to a while new world of slippery slopes. Mind you, she deserves the courtesy and the special attention. By and large your contribution to the birth if this child involves doing something every man want to do day and night anyway. And until you've peed a grapefruit, you'll never really quite understand what you're wife's going to go through when having your baby. So take heed...

• Your pregnant wife had an internal instinct to "Nest." "Nesting" is a quaint way of saying. spending way too much money on decorating a nursery and buying baby stuff. LET HER! And when she's nesting and asks your opinion about something, you better have one or pretend you do. Do your best to have the same opinion as her. 
• You'll get ultrasound photos on some of your visits to the Obstetrician. These images will look nothing like anything. It's like looking at a Doppler radar weather map. However, you should coo at this photo as if it were the actual baby alive in your lap, or your wife will think you're "not excited." Do not ever be "not excited." Always be "excited."
• When selecting baby names first offer to name the child after your wife's dad. Even if his name is something really stupid.
• Pregnant women have "cravings" for particular foods. With your mouth closed, you should acquire said food for her at the first mention of any such food. If you have any misgivings about your wife getting heavy while pregnant, you should make absolutely sure that you never ever under any circumstances mention, allude to or even hint at them.
• Repeat after me" "Honey, from behind you, you can't even tell that you're pregnant!" 
• In the later stages of pregnancy when she's at max size, refrain from providing large dinosaur footstep sound effects when she's walking across the room, "KOOSH!! KOOSH!! KOOSH!!!" Same goes for making beeping truck-in-reverse sounds effects any time she moves backwards
• In the delivery room, don't say: "The baby's almost out. How come you still look fat?"

I strongly urge you to heed this advice, as your wife in her hormonal state is significantly more likely to set fire to you while you sleep. So just help out as much as you can, shut up, and rub her feet. And Congratulations! 

Great article right!?! I think all the preggo ladies should print it out and post it on their fridge for their husbands to see! Ha

And here are some photos of some of the fun "Nautical" items we got for Harper's nursery. Still working on it but it is really turning out cute!!! The glider should be here in a few weeks! YAY!!!

This is the sweet pillow Erik's Aunt Sharon made for Harper. I am in LOVE!! 

And this is his octopus rocking chair. Is even sings!! Hehe. You can find them here! 

Harper's nursery!

The new carpet has been installed! Which means I can finally start decorating the nursery. It is painted a gorgeous blue and I am trying to determine if I want to paint stripes on the wall or have the men put up chair rails and wainscoting.

Here is an example of chair rails and wainscoting in a nautical nursery:

And here is an example of it in a bathroom:

Here are some photos with blue stripes in the nursery:

We are going to have to choose one and that project is going to be the next big step in decorating the nursery. I try to pick up cute nautical items and decorations whenever I see them. And I am currently painting several canvases with cartoon sea creatures to hang on the walls. I just finished up a seahorse and I started on a crab. I think I am going to do a fish and and a whale. Then eventually I want to paint a larger canvas with a sailboat and his name. I need a full day to just sit down and paint. But life has been a little hectic lately. Now that my mom is out of the hospital I will probably have more time. And I need to have mom help with some of the paintings, she is actually an amazing artist and went to the Art Institute of Ft. Lauderdale where she graduated with a degree in advertising. When we were little, my dad built us a playhouse in the yard, it was just like a real miniature home, and my mom painted the entire house with Disney life-size murals. It was unbelievable! She said she wants to paint one for Harper one day too! 

In the meantime I am trying to find other decorating ideas for the nursery. Here are some designs that I love!

This is the bedding we decided on! I received the bumper, quilt, bedskirt, and two fitted sheets at our baby shower and I LOVE it!! 

Do you ladies have any fun ideas for decorating a "nautical nursery?" Or do you know of any places that have good nursery decor?