What coffee sign?

In my last post I talked about how we painted our family room, kitchen, breakfast nook, office area, and half bath downstairs.  That was a lot of painting.  It took us 2 1/2 days to finish.  But I am so glad it is done!  However, that means some of the decor had to change.  You may recall this picture from the last post:

Ok, do you see that brown coffee sign hanging above our pantry?  Not so bad.  Just not our my style anymore.  It is a perfectly good sign though.  So my wheels got to spinning (steam may or may not have come out of my ears).  I covered the sign with some paper towels and taped ‘er up and outside I went (with my white spray paint can in hand).

After spray painting the frame white and letting it dry, I used my handy bottle of Mod Podge and put some scrapbook paper over the "coffee” part.  Then I used my Cricut to cut out the word EAT, mod podged those letters on and I had a whole new sign!  Here’s the final product:

Much better and in the color scheme of blues and greens that I am trying to incorporate. 

And because I’m trying to get better at this whole before & after thing…..

Much better, right? 

Ok, I’m done with posting for today!  Just trying to play catch up!  You understand!  ;)

Amy

Downstairs Makeover

Last  month hubby dear and I took on a pretty big project (for us, at least).  We painted half of our downstairs.  We painted the family room, the kitchen, breakfast nook, and office area.  We also painted the half bath.  The bathroom turned out awesome!!  It’s my favorite.  I’m not 100% done decorating it, etc. but I’m constantly switching stuff around so I figure it’ll probably never be truly done!  Now, you guys know by now that I am HORRIBLE at taking before pictures.  But I did my best.

Um….yes, this is what my walls looked like in my family room for about 3 weeks.  I just couldn’t decide which “route” I wanted to take.  Blue or gray?  Blue or gray?  I am so indecisive.  But we finally decided on gray!

Holy mess!  This drove me insane!

The hubs is such a trooper!

Not the best picture to tell the true color, but pretty close.  Nevermind Fonzie, he’s just chillin’!

This is a good pic of the color.

We painted above the cabinets in the kitchen as well.  Ignore our mess on the counters.  Painting is a messy task!

And here’s the 1/2 bath!  My favorite!  I wanted blue somewhere so I figured this would be a good space to incorporate it.  Best decision ever!  I love it!  This picture isn’t the best because it was taken at night.

This is a little better!  I added the small square shelves above the toilet.  And our favorite painting from our honeymoon in Hawaii to the right of the toilet.  I would like to get a silver or white frame for this one day.

We got a new rug and some new hand towels from the ever so amazing Tarjay!  I still need to find a picture or something to go above the towel bar. 
All in all, I love the transformation!  I’ll be back tomorrow to share some other little projects I did to spruce up the spaces!


UPDATE:  The color we used in the bathroom is called Nordic Blue.  It's from Lowe's and is part of the Waverly Home Classics collection.



Amy

Newborn/Baby Must Haves

I figured since I did a post on my pregnancy must haves, I would do a post on newborn/baby must haves as well!  Please remember, these are just the things that worked best for me.  Each baby and family are very different.  But, these are some things that I found to be very helpful.
#1

The Graco Pack 'n Play Silhouette Playard – Rittenhouse.  Love, love, love this pack ‘n play!  I love the pattern and I love the fact that it has a  changing station on it.  I would HIGHLY suggest getting a pack ‘n play that has a changing station on it if you have a 2 story house and your nursery is upstairs.  All our bedrooms are upstairs and I have this downstairs in the family room.  It is perfect for newborns to nap in as well.  It vibrates, has a light, and plays music and nature sounds.  I will say that I am pretty disappointed in the “music”.  It can be dead quiet in the house and I turn the music on on the pack ‘n play and you can still barely hear it.  It’s pretty ineffective.  But, I haven’t really needed it.  I have used the vibrate function which is pretty nice.  This is a pricier pack ‘n play but I think it’s worth it.  Love it!
#2

Ok, I live in Florida and I still use a wipe warmer to warm the wipes for my little one’s bum!  On baby skin, even wipes at room temperature are so cold to them.  I love mine.  I will say that the top few wipes get dried out, but the other 147 stay perfectly moist!  I have this one up in Em’s nursery.
#3

I also have this travel wipe warmer.  I keep this plugged in downstairs by the changing station on the pack ‘n play.  That way I can grab it and go if I need to take it with me.  It comes with a standard plug so you can use it in your house, as well as a lighter adapter so you can plug it in your car and use it on the go.  It doesn’t hold a ton of wipes, but it works for us!  This one does a really great job at keeping all the wipes moist.
#4

This cream is wonderful!  It’s California Baby’s Calendula cream.  It is really great if your baby has dry skin anywhere on their body.  It is also great to get rid of baby acne!  It is all natural and 100% organic so it isn’t harmful and doesn’t have any dyes or toxic perfumes.  Perfect!  It’s pretty pricey, but you don’t need to use a lot.  I got this when Emily was 2 weeks old.  She’s 3 months and I still have 3/4 of a jar left.  Granted, I don’t use it on her whole body everyday.  I do, however, use it on her face everyday after her bath.
#5

These are Gerber long-sleeve onesies.  Emily lived in these for the first couple of months and she still sleeps in them at night.  I would recommend the ones with the mitten cuffs.  These are perfect for preventing face scratches in those first few months.  Mittens built in….GENIUS!
#6

These Gerber zip front sleep n’ plays are a Godsend!  Please note I said ZIP FRONT!  I have no idea why people continue to make the button front ones.  UGH.  So annoying in the middle of the night when you need to do a diaper change!  The zipper is soooooooo much easier.  Save yourself.  Do not even register for the ones that button because people are going to buy them for you anyway.  Register for a few of the zip-front sleep suits.  Target has some cute ones that are Circo brand too.  Trust me on this one.  Sacrifice the cute (because let’s face it, there are some pretty cute button-up ones) and go for the function!  You’ll thank me!
#7

This is the car seat we have.  It is the Graco Snugride 35.  This car seat is made to hold babies up to 35 pounds!  Perfect!  We also loved this pattern because it is neutral.  It would be great for a boy or a girl.  And I must say….Miss Emily looks pretty cute in it.  I made it a little bit more girly by adding some pink shoulder strap pad thingys. 
#8

To go with the car seat, you obviously need a stroller.  We opted out of the travel system.  It was just way too big and bulky for me.  I needed compact and easy!  So I opted for the Graco stroller frame.  It is very lightweight, small, and easy to handle.  However, it’s not that easy to maneuver.  The wheels have a mind of their own.  I run into stuff all the time and have a hard time navigating through stores, etc.  That’s the only drawback. 
However, there are other strollers that can also accommodate the Graco Snugride 35.  Too bad I found this out after I purchased the Graco stroller.  A friend of mind got the UppaBaby and she LOVES it.  It came with all sorts of extra goodies too (a bassinet…..score!!).
 
#9

These things are a lifesaver!  I have a few different baby carriers.  I have the Baby Bjorn, which I also love!  I have a Balboa Baby sling and I have the Maya Wrap!  If I need to clean the house and Emily is fussy and just wants to be held, I just toss her in and go about my business.  The Maya Wrap is great if you’re nursing because you can use the “tail” as a cover if you’re nursing in public. 
#10

The Boppy Newborn Lounger was a lifesaver for us as well.  Emily had some serious reflux early on so we used this to help keep her elevated.  It says not to let them sleep on it, but we did and she was just fine.  I wouldn’t recommend letting your baby sleep on it once they know how to roll, etc.  We have stopped using it with Em now.  But when she was a newborn, it was fine.  She loved this thing!  She would sleep on this in our bed, in her crib, in the pack ‘n play, etc.  We didn’t have a problem with the transition to not using it.

#11

This play mat has been fabulous!  Emily has loved this mat!  It is great for tummy time as well!  It plays music, has a mirror, a teething toy, and lots of toys to hang from it.  It’s pretty amazing!

I’m sure there are tons of things I have forgotten, but these are the staples that we use or did use almost every day!  I hope this helps some moms to be or new mommies! 
Till next time….
Amy

Emily’s 3 month photos

So last Saturday our photographer came over and we had Emily’s 3 month photo shoot!  Emily was so good and Jenna {the photographer} got some really good shots. 
Beware!  Here come a ton of super cute photos!!

 
{I made the bow on this headband}


{Amazing pram that Scott’s boss let us borrow}

 

{He is so silly.  That’s why I <3 him!}


{Rockin’ the tutu I made for her!} 

{Felt heart hair clip I made}


 


{I stenciled this onesie for her.}

  

 
I love this child!  Thank you, Lord!

Random…

Ok, so I had a dream last night about going to Blissdom.  It was really funny.  I was so nervous and scared and felt like I had no clue what I was doing there.  I felt like I had just stepped into Hollywood as some of my favorite bloggers were there and I got to meet them.  It was totally random.  Totally funny.  And probably totally unrealistic.  Or is it a sign!?!  Hhmm……

Happy Valentine’s Day

Amy

Pregnancy Must Haves

So I’ve had a few people ask me what some of my favorite things were during pregnancy.  What couldn’t I live without.  So, I thought I would compile a list of some of my pregnancy must-haves!

#1

 

These jeans are from Kohls.  They are absolutely amazing.  I had 2 pairs that I wore ALL THE TIME!  You know Kohls always has a good sale so they were constantly on sale.  Cheap, comfy, durable……a must have for pregnancy!

#2

I lived in cardigans as well.  I would buy the stretchy t-shirts from Gap or Target, throw a cardigan on top, with my jeans from Kohls and I had a cute and comfy outfit.  Cardigans really were the best.  They kind of hide your big belly, but allow you to still look pregnant.  Does that make sense?!?

#3

I lived in these pants as well.  I would throw a cute maternity t-shirt type shirt on with it.  In the summer, they were great because they were non-binding.  They didn’t stick to me and they really grew with my belly.  Loved them!  I would wear flip-flops and tennis shoes with these.  So comfy!  I even wore them to work a couple times. 

#4

Ok, ignore the watermark.  This was the only picture I could find!  But I loved crushed ice during pregnancy.  I know that’s weird, but I’d get a big cup from Chick-fil-a (I liked theirs because it’s styrofoam and not plastic so it didn’t “sweat”) and I would fill it to the brim with crushed ice, add a little water, and it was better than any dessert to me.  Speaking of which, it was really filling and I found that it helped me stay away from the bad foods and desserts.  It was probably bad for my teeth, but whatever.  I still have all of them!  :)

#5

B.O.C. sandals!!  The best ever!  I have these in black and they were the only shoes that didn’t hurt my feet later in my pregnany!  Soooo comfy and I think I got mine at Marshall’s so they were pretty affordable too!  Gotta love that!

So there ya have it!  My must-haves for pregnancy!  I’d love to hear about your go-to items while you were preggers!  That way next time I’ll be super prepared!

Amy