a nursery for kate

Kate's nursery is pretty much done! There will always be more organizing to do and different decorations to add... but for now... it's at a pretty satisfying point! Since we are in an apartment and she more than likely won't even be living in this bedroom for a year I resisted painting and tried to keep things pretty simple! 

One of the biggest challenges was that her room is also our guest room. I felt a little bit guilty pushing the bed up to the wall, but if it's ever being used by 2 people, it can easily be pulled out from the wall a bit. For our every day function it will be fabulous to have it against the wall because we'll have a comfy place to lounge with our baby girl! I left the wall by the bed blank because I wanted to have a clean spot for pictures and backdrops. Hopefully this spot will work out! 

I'm super happy with our crib and dresser purchase! It was a lot of work putting it all together. The crib wasn't so bad... but that dresser... we felt like true carpenters once that was assembled! Do you see my Little Miss. Piggy on the changing pad? I've been practicing my swaddling! :) Don't mind her!  Anyways, above the dresser, I framed some of my favorite Mother Goose illustrations from my childhood MG book. It was SO hard to pick!! I had to work really hard to bring it down to 6, and then I ended up just using 4! I decided to pick pictures that looked girly, matched the room, and had close to the same size of picture. Here are some very poorly taken up close shots of them! We have: 

Polly Put the Kettle On & Mary Had A Little Lamb

BaBa Black Sheep & Mary Mary Quite Contrary 

        

The Mary Mary Quite Contrary illustration was sort of my inspiration for Kate's room. I knew that I loved the mossy green, blush pink, and garden look. Which was exactly what I was going for with my wedding decor! Kinda funny, but now when I go in Kate's room and dream about what it will be like to rock her, I'm also reminded of the best day of my life! :) 

My mom made this sweet little lamp with the "Pink Over The Moon Toile" fabric that was used in other places such as the crib skirt. She had also purchased the crib mobile that went along with this fabric theme, but sadly it didn't fit the crib! Talk about disappointment! She was able to exchange it for the diaper stacker in this fabric which we will probably get a lot more use out of... so crisis averted! 

Here was my one and only "crafty" project. In the end... I didn't even really do much of it! We ordered her letters already connected because I would NEVER be able to hang individual letters in a straight line! Blake painted the letters for us... and I picked the point color! I cut out circles of fabric and my mom stapled them around cork trivets. I used command picture frame sticks to hang all of this up on the wall. I'm not very crafty but I AM good at picking out ideas for other people to do for me! Haha. I saw an idea similar to this on Pinterest years ago and it was ironically with the name Kate... and that was when the charming simplicity of the name Kate first struck me. I love that here we are with our very own little Kate on the way! 

Here is the quilt that Blake's mom made. Sometimes I have the back showing, then other times I show the front. It won't stay in her crib for much longer so that doesn't really matter so much! We'll have it out and be snuggling with Kate under it soon! If we ever use the toddler rails on the crib, the quilt will be the perfect size for it too! 

I had a hard time getting a good picture of this because it's dreary outside and the light on the celling kept glaring but this is my little special prayer for Kate. 

"She is clothed in strength and dignity and can laugh at the days to come." ~ Proverbs 31:25

I don't know what mom doesn't want this for her daughter. Life will bring so many different occasions; to have the strength and dignity that comes from the spirit of Christ dwelling inside of you is the only way to make it through gracefully and happily! 

Here is my little rocking corner. The shelf has some empty frames just waiting to be filled with special pictures of Kate! Hanging are a couple of delicate and old dresses made by my Grandma Lehman. Blake's mom made the adorable cushions to go on this wooden rocking chair that was handed down to me from my mom. 

Here is the fabric up close. Are those illustrations just precious or what?!

Well, now you've seen the nursery... along with my endless commentary! I enjoyed sharing it with you! We are so excited to have a special place to bring our baby home to in few weeks! 

update on the pregnant life... 33 weeks

33 weeks!

Today I went in for my second weekly ultra sound. It went just as well as the last one! I was a little confused before these started and I thought I'd be having weekly growth scans, but I was wrong. With the weekly exams they are checking Kate's major organs, as well as the amniotic fluid and positioning. They give a grade of 1-8, 8 being the best. This is mostly to see how well the diabetes is being managed and to make sure it is not affecting her. Both last week and today she scored an 8! Woo!!

A perfect sore! Can we hope that this will be the first of many perfect scores in her life? LOL just kidding. As someone who struggled to earn even a C... I can only dream!

That being said... next week we have another growth scan scheduled. I've been managing my sugars very well lately and I pray it's paying off! I'm hoping her percentile number goes down a bit this time.

We are getting more and more ready for our little Kate. I've started washing her things and reading more books. We are working on getting things together for our hospital bag... believe it or not... that's Blake's idea! We've taken several classes now, so we are feeling a little more prepared. I'm starting to
get some of our favorite meals in the freezer. This week it was lasagna and next week it'll be Pioneer Woman's comfort meatballs. I'm not a huge "crock pot freezer meal" person so I'm sticking with casserole type items. I don't need to have a huge amount since our church is pretty good about taking care of new moms and dads and I've got my parents who are happy to bring us food. I suppose it makes me feel better to know I've got a few meals on backup though!

I met Kate's pediatrician this week as well and I LOVED her! Just a 5 minute drive from us too. So it's a relief to have that sorted out.

Everything is just coming together really well! I don't think you can ever be fully prepared for the birth of your first child, but we've definitely come a long way!

All for now! Enjoy your Labor Day weekend! :)

update on the pregnant life... 32 weeks

This past weekend a sweet group of women from Westbury COC hosted a shower for me. It was so much fun! There were all kinds of sweet treats (which I had to very carefully nibble on for my gestational diabetic self), cute nursery rhyme decorations, lots of presents, and of course- great company! The last picture is me with the hostesses.

It was so much fun to get to visit with everyone and know that I'm still loved by them even if I'm not attending church with them every week. Westbury will always be an important part of my life! 

I'm now in my 32nd week of pregnancy... and I definitely feel a lot more pregnant. Between the numerous bathroom trips during the night, the huffing and puffing that come from just trying to get adjusted on the couch, the constant hunger, the stretching I feel all over my mid-section, and the just plain exhaustion.... yes... I definitely feel more pregnant! I read from an older OB that he'd never come across a woman who reached full term and longed for another month of pregnancy. Yup. I can completely understand that now! I'm still feeling very blessed to be pregnant though, so I want to be careful that I don't forget to be grateful through these more challenging weeks ahead! In case you haven't seen me in a while, here is what I'm looking like at 32 weeks! 

I feel like I have so much to do. I want to get things done early because you just never know when a little babe is ready to enter the world! (Plus I'm praying that she will want to come out a little early so that they won't induce me... which is very common when you have GD.) Right now my priorities are finding a pediatrician and getting her nursery ready. All of the major stuff is done, but I just have some organizing and washing to do. This week Blake and I have a Infant CPR class and newborn care class. This is starting to feel more real every day!!

That's all for now! :) 

update on the pregnant life... 31 weeks

It is another night of insomnia for this pregnant gal of 31 weeks! It's funny because in the afternoon I'll use every ounce of control in me to resist taking a nap to help prevent this from happening. Hmm?

I suppose that tonight my brain is hyped up thinking about both Kate and the round ligament pain that WILL NOT GO AWAY!! It gives me a great excuse to sit down and give an update though!

My appointment with my High Risk doctor (I really am not sure what to call him) went well on Friday. She's breathing really good and all of her organs look great. They tell me she has grown quite a bit and though she is on the upper side of a normal weight, she's still within the healthy/ normal range. Here are a couple of the 4d ultra sound picture we were able to get!

They are still a bit foggy and hard to see but we had to work very patiently to get them because Kate was keeping her little hands in front of her face. I think I can see Blake in her though! I also found out that because of my GD they will not allow me to go past 39 weeks... so we now officially know she will come before October 13th. Obviously there isn't much we can really know until it's gets closer so I'm trying to not get too obsessed with this yet. 

Our church hosted a wonderful shower for us on Sunday! We just felt so loved, honored, and blessed. It's been a lot of fun getting everything out and day dreaming about how we will use the different gifts when Kate arrives! Here are a few pictures from the day. The middle picture is with the thoughtful and generous hosts and the bottom picture is with Blake's mom and the lovely quilt she made for Kate. 

 Showers are such a wonderful outreach to others. We go to a larger church, around 1000 members. It's very easy to feel like you are "just another member" or  like you are isolated with the members of your bible class at a church of this size. Love and thoughtfulness are poured out lavishly when you are given a shower. People whom you've only met once, or possibly not at all go out of their way to bless you and share in your joy. It gave me this surge of energy- a happiness I can't exactly describe- not for the material things we received- but for the smiles on people's face as they gave me good wishes- for the presence of so many- for the the conversations that kept me too busy to chomp on my snacks and cake! I haven't done a very good job at being involved with showers at our church but I can tell you that after our shower on Sunday I'm inspired to to change that. I feel like I am a part of something grand- the body of Christ- and that's our whole purpose as a church- to shower God's love on others. I want to be a part of that when the opportunities come my way!

The coming days hold lots of activity for us! This weekend we will be honored with another shower by the ladies at Westbury COC (my home church). Next week we will attend an Infant CPR class and another for newborn care. I will also begin my weekly growth scan/ ultra sounds next week! I will try to get a good "bump shot" for my next post. Lots of good things going on! We are so blessed. That's all for now! Enjoy the rest of your week!

update on the pregnant life... 30 weeks!

Hello! Hope you all had a nice weekend. We are starting out August with quite a bang. Lots of hospital classes going on this month! This week we are going to the "Prepared Childbirth" class offered by our hospital. I honestly don't know how prepared you can really be for the birthing process... but anyways... hoping to be a bit more informed when it's all over. That will be 3 nights this week. Fun times!

Also this week I have 2 different appointments- both with my endocrinologist (today) and the high risk pregnancy center (Friday).

Today's appointment went really well! I was nervous... as I always am for those. It takes me back to the first grade when I was waiting to go down to the principle's office because I'd been talking too much in class. I'm always nervous my A1C will be too high, she won't be satisfied with my sugar testing results, and she'll put me on insulin injections after a long lecture about how I need to be doing better for my Kate. Of course... it never goes that way. My A1C was fine, my thyroid was fine, my sugar results are fine, no insulin needed, keep up the good work. Don't know why I get so nervous! Maybe it's because I know about the times when I could do better so I guilt myself. Anyways... I just praise the Lord that all is well in that department!

My doctor asked me something interesting today though. It took me by surprise.
"Have you found out how long they are going to let you go yet? Week 36 or 38?"

I told her they hadn't said anything to make me think I wouldn't be able to go full term yet, which is the truth. But boy it got me thinking. I'm at 30 weeks today, and in my mind I've still got 10 weeks to prepare for parenthood. 36 weeks though.... gulp.... that's 6 weeks away.

Goes back to my earlier thought though.... how prepared can you REALLY be??!!

Anyways, I'm still holding out hope for a full term pregnancy, but obviously, I want what's best for me and Kate! I definitely might be having some questions for the high risk folks though.

We have our first baby shower coming up on Sunday at our church! So exciting! We also have a shower hosted by Westbury COC (my parent's church) the following Saturday. So I'm treating myself to a pedicure so my toes will be pretty... and truth be told... I can't bend down to my toes well enough to paint them anymore! Also time for a hair touch up and cut. My last one before Kate is born! Ahh! (But to be realistic I'll be due for another one shortly after her arrival.)

And last but not least we have one more very big thing happening this week. MY BABY BROTHER IS LEAVING FOR COLLEGE THIS WEEK!!!! This is just too much for an emotional pregnant gal! It feels like only yesterday I was the one leaving my cuddly snuggly brother behind so that I could go to school. Now he is leaving me!!! On Saturday morning they will head out to Oklahoma so he can be at OC for engineering camp! I'm so proud of him! I will miss him though. Can't wait for his fall break so he can come home! Hard to believe the next time I see him (Lord willing) Kate will be here!

That's all for now!