We loved having the baby shower at our house this past weekend. Having everyone come to us was so comfortable and homey. It was definitely a tight fit in our old home, but I thought it was the perfect little intimate shower. Thank you to my sister for organizing everything and making the delicious french toast bake!

THIS amazing strawberry cake was so delicious and just our style, an imperfect kind of fancy. Thank you to our friend Lindsay who went above and beyond with this naked cake. I used to always ask my mom to make strawberry cake for my birthday when I was little, so this was just perfect.

I loved these jelly jar favors filled with roasted walnuts from my sister. I'm going to use the leftover jars as juice glasses.

Everyone crowding in the living room to play Bingo while we opened gifts. We are so fortunate to have received so many handmade crochet blankets generous gifts. Feeling much more prepared now having the carseat, stroller and play yard... and we still have another shower to go!

Can't wait for our little lucky charm to wear this onesie. It was definitely one of Pat's favorite gifts.

Feeling Like Spring

Starting to get the house ready for the baby shower next weekend!

I ordered some headbands for baby, now I just have to decide which one she will wear home from the hospital! Becci brought over a ton of clothes. Now I easily have two loads of laundry from her alone. Someone told her we're only having one baby, right?

We took a tour of the birthing center at the hospital so now we know where to go on the big day. All the rooms are private with their own bathrooms, a real suite! We could not get over how quiet and still the whole floor was, no people rushing or babies crying. I think the rooms must be sound proofed...

31 Weeks

Finally feeling some warmer weather and CeCe and I are trying to spend as much time outside as possible. Throwing frisbees and sitting in the sun on the back porch every evening this past week. It was my turn to bring treats for a coworkers birthday, so i whipped up these delicious cupcakes completely from scratch! I must have time on my hands while Pat is working in Lansing. I made the flags out of some leftover scrapbook paper and toothpicks and they turned out adorable.

Pat and I went to a Baby Care Basics class this morning and the instructor said "Some people have never even held a newborn!" in a can you believe it sort of way. I wanted to raise my hand, guilty! No really, give me all the information! It was mostly powerpoint and handouts, but at the end we practiced swaddling and dressing the baby dolls, so now I'm practically a pro.

I got this stretchy floral dress at Old Navy and its so comfortable I wish I could wear it everyday. Nobody will say anything, right? In nursery news, I moved some plants in there, mostly to get some light, but I love the way they look so they might have a new home. Still looking for a headboard for the twin bed that will stay in there, but the room is pretty much complete. Well except for not really having any baby things in there yet...

Two months to go and I'm starting to slow down and feel tired already. I guess I should get used to it?

30 Weeks

30 weeks and my belly is feeling so tight! Baby is moving around a lot and sometimes I swear I can feel her little head! Everything looked good at my doctors appointment today and pretty soon we'll be counting down the weeks in single digits :)

Not too much progress on the nursery lately, but I've been playing with the chalkboard wall in the dining room. I'm starting to get cabin fever being cooped up in the house with the weather so terrible. Here's hoping for warmer temperatures soon!

We've been narrowing down our list of names, which is fun but also a lot harder than we thought :)

DIY Light Fixture

We've had this light in the kitchen since we moved in and I've been wanting to update it to something a little more sparkly. I used a nail to hammer in holes around the perimeter and then strung crystal beads from the top rim to the bottom piece.

Before:

After:

I think it adds something unexpected to the kitchen and I'm glad I finally had the guts to do it. We also bought some retro dining chairs at the Habitat Restore for $5 each. They will take some work, but I think they will be a fun project to refinish to hoard sell eventually. Maybe a maternity leave project?