Randomness

This has been a restful but productive (sort of) weekend! Adam and I finished cleaning out the guest bedroom upstairs so it is now clean and clutter free, yeah! I went to JoAnn's Fabrics yesterday and picked up some super cute fabrics for some sewing projects. One of the projects I did this weekend was a nursing cover! I love how it turned out. I have enough extra fabric left so I can do a burp cloth (or two) and perhaps a bib as well!





I also found some CUTE curtains at Land of Nod for Sarah Beth's room. I just hope the pinks match! Of course they are back ordered until late March but it's ok - the room can function without curtains! They were also 50% off which made the deal that much sweeter!

Pregnancy - Week 25

Here's a little look at how things are progressing! I feel great actually other than a little back pain here and there. I've had several bouts of insomnia but overall I'm sleeping ok - only waking a few times a night to either go to the bathroom or change positions because my arms, hands, or other extremities have fallen asleep. I have no idea how much weight I've gained but last time I asked at my 20 week appointment it was 11 lbs and my doctor said I have done a fantastic job...so I'll take that as good! Sarah Beth is moving a lot! She's pretty quiet during the day but she really gets going at night! I think she is doing flips because one minute I'll feel kicks high up and the next they are way down low. She also really gets moving when I lay down in bed, go figure! I guess she's preparing me for what's to come! Here's a couple of pics I snapped with my iPhone today and another of the view from up above :o)

Happy Birthday Callie-bear!

Our little Callie turns 3 tomorrow, January 7! She came to live with us in March of 2008 and has brought much joy and laughter to our house since the day we met her! She has so much love to give - she loves to give kisses and gets REALLY excited when we get home (as seen in one of the videos below). She adores her big brother Calhoun and wishes he would chase her a little more often because she loves to be chased! Callie has had her fair share of health problems, mainly all with her eyes. She was diagnosed with juvenile cataracts and glaucoma and had surgery shortly after we got her. She has no vision in her left eye but the glaucoma is gone and you would never know she had any vision problems! She zooms all over the house and yard. If she's outside and we tell her she will get a treat if she comes in, she runs full speed ahead straight to the house! We have no doubt Callie will be a great big sister to Sarah Beth - she is playful and VERY tolerant (you should see the way my parents' puppy hangs on her ears with his teeth).

So Happy Birthday sweet girl, we love you!

Here are some videos I just took for your enjoyment...

Here she is with some tissue paper that came in a pair of shoes I ordered. She is in heaven with her paper! The bagpipes in the background are from the news that was on TV :o)


Here we are singing a song. Calhoun loves to "sing" but I don't think Callie likes it too much - she gets all worked up whenever we sing!


Here's one of the dogs getting SO excited when Adam got home. I love how her whole back half wiggles when she gets excited! Sorry for the poor lighting!

Nursery furniture - check!

Our child officially has nicer furniture than we do, but that's how it's supposed to be right?! Adam and I took advantage of this long weekend and spent a good part of Friday and Saturday furniture shopping. Thanks to my trusty Baby Bargains book, I had a general idea of what brands to look for and which to stay away from. Friday we went to Georgia Baby and Kids - the grand mecca of all things baby furniture. They have everything from cribs, bedding, accessories, baby gear, and kids furniture. We didn't see any chairs we liked - mostly because none of them had a back tall enough for Adam to lay his head back on. Most of the chairs we saw stopped at his neck - not so comfy! We did find a crib we could both agree on! It's Essex by Munire in white. Since they had them in stock, Adam was ready to be done with the shopping and buy it...but I told him we needed to see at least one more store before we made a decision! So on Saturday we went to another baby mecca store closer to our house called New Baby Products. We didn't really see a crib we liked any better than the Essex but we did find an excellent nursery chair!! It's actually a recliner that glides and swivels! Several people had told me about this chair brand called Best Chair. The chair we picked is the Irvington. It is soooo comfy and cost about twice as much as the crib, but I know it'll be worth it because we can transition it into the rest of the house after we're done with it in the nursery. We picked a tan colored chenille fabric and got it pretreated for any stains, because we know those are bound to happen. After we purchased the chair, we drove back over to Georgia Baby and Kids and got the crib and conversion kit (it will convert to a full size bed).

Earlier this week I was beginning to panic that we hadn't gotten anything done for Sarah Beth's arrival yet, but after this weekend I'm feeling a lot better!

Blog Giveaway Alert!

Head on over to Mada's Place Blog to enter a giveaway. My friend Steph has an adorable gift shop with all sorts of fabulous goodies!

http://tinyurl.com/ykphxhq

The last Christmas as we know it

Christmas 2009. I can only wonder what Christmas 2010 will be like. For over 30 years, our family has been used to me, Temple and Amanda being the babies. And of course the Brannons have been used to Ann-Margaret, Adam, and their cousins being the babies! For 30 years!!! Yes, it took THAT long for us to decide to add on to our family and relinquish our titles as the babies of the family. As each month/week/day passes we get closer and closer to meeting three very special new additions. Adam's cousin Hannah is the first to add to the family with the arrival of her son Henry - due any day now!! Temple and Jonathan will be next to welcome their new baby boy - Reese. He is due February 1 and we can't wait to meet him. Soon after, our little Sarah Beth will come into the world sometime around April 20.

That brings me back to my original thought - Christmas will NEVER be the same again! Our family has traditions just like any other family. We spend Christmas morning with Adam's parents, sister, and brother-in-law. Christmas afternoon and evening are spent with my family - MaMa Miriam, my parents, Aunt Ann & Uncle Ricky, Temple, Amanda and their significant others. Next year there will be two little crawlers bringing much excitement and joy to our Christmas day. Sarah Beth will be around 8 months old and Reese will be around 10 months old! As I look into the future, I try to picture a scene in my mind as if I'm looking in from the outside. I see lots of giggles, tons of smiles, even more love than ever possible, and an all around renewed sense of joy and family.

So yes, this Christmas 2009 may be the last one "as we know it", but I can't say I'm sad. I simply can not wait to see what the future holds. Years and years to come we will have new babies and new traditions. Everyone in our families is so excited and ready to meet the new little ones. So Merry Christmas 2009 and HELLO 2010!!!

Nursery Inspiration

Of course the nursery is something I've been planning since before I was even pregnant. I wanted to share a few ideas I've found while searching the Internet. I've already shared a picture of the bedding we're using. It's Bananafish Lily Bedding from Target. Of course it is back ordered which makes me nervous. Many reviews say they've been waiting for months and it still hasn't come. I'm giving it until February. If it's not here by then, I'm going to make my own. God help us all. Here's a picture of it:



The "theme" if you want to call it that, will be pink and green damask. I went over to one of my favorite overpriced baby sites, Rosenberry Rooms for some inspiration. If you have $900 to drop on a crib set, this is your place. I just go there to drool and find things that I love that I can recreate. Thankfully I have a very artsy friend named Beth (Beth of Unskinny Boppy blog) who has offered to recreate these two precious paintings for the nursery. I want to hang these over the crib, I think. I'll also do a pink or white distressed frame since the walls will be green.



I also love this little piece of art from Etsy to hang over the rocking chair area:



The last two little gems I found this morning on Rosenberry Rooms. They are each over $30 which is absolutely insane. If you have a glue gun and a little patience, you can do these yourself so easily!! I may not use the exact same fabrics because I don't want to go overboard on damask, but you get the idea. First is a night light and second is a little hair bow holder! Now the hair bow holder may be useless if we have a bald child, like both of us were, so maybe I'll wait til she's here to do that one!





OH and I almost forgot, I bought a couple of things at Hobby Lobby last night. They were 50% off so how could I resist? First is a switch plate cover and next is a decorative door knob thingy to hang on the wall. I will probably hang a cute dress or tu-tu from it on one of those cute little satin covered hangers.