Look at us, we started the nursery!

Folks, we have a nursery! After a few months of putting it off, then brainstorming, then putting it off some more, we finally cleaned out Mr. Right’s office/guest room (what a great guy), taped everything off, and got the thing painted, all in 24 hours.

A special thanks to my awesome sister who came over and painted the nursery for us! Talk about a servant’s heart. She knew that my doctor said no painting for me, and Mr. Right is crazy swamped with finals (oh, how we’re all counting down the minutes until grad school is OVER), so she just decided to do it for us. It was such a blessing.

You should have seen Mr. Right and I prepping the night before she came to get the room ready. I was in my work dress (because dresses are so much more comfortable than anything else right now), on my hands and knees taping off the baseboards while Mr. Right was on a ladder caulking holes and removing blinds. I’m not very graceful under typical circumstances, but I’m like a clumsy beast at this point, so I’m sure the neighbors got an eye full through our blind-less windows at 9:30 at night. And I’m just pregnant enough to not really care.

nursery 1

The next morning Mr. Right assembled our crib, and suddenly the room felt like a nursery. He has since moved in other furniture (an armoire for storage and a dresser that we’ll use as a changing table – pics to come), and slowly but surely we’re moving closer to being baby-ready.

nursery 2

The nursery will be mostly neutrals – grays and whites – with pops of color in our accents. This fabric, which is part of the quilt I’m making for her, is the inspiration for those pops of color – lot’s of tangerine-oranges, turquoises, and a few other random colors here and there.

nursery 3

And here’s the rest of the fabric for her quilt. We’ll be using the leftovers for pillows, possibly a bedskirt, etc. You know, whatever I get inspired to sew. Don’t be surprised if you don’t find some leftovers in my Etsy shop in the form of baby quilts or pillows.

map

And, finally, we’re thinking about using this picture for above the crib. Mr. Right and I have a real love for internationals (especially our ESL students!), and we also love to travel, so we think this is the perfect picture to go above our tiny sleeping baby. Plus, it reminds me of a quilt.

Stay tuned for more pictures as we make progress on the nursery. I’m 29 weeks along, so not too much longer until she’s here with us napping in this very room!

The Pregnant Girl Patchwork Quilt

Have I mentioned that I’m feeling better? To all of you dear friends and readers who have prayed for me and encouraged me through SIX LONG MONTHS OF ROUND THE CLOCK MORNING SICKNESS (bleh), I am pleased to announce that I have been (almost) completely nausea free FOR FOUR WHOLE WEEKS!

This is me doing a happy dance. Which is actually pretty disturbing considering the giant belly bouncing around.

So anyway, now that I’m feeling like a normal person these days (a ginormous normal person with a bowling ball sitting on her lap and a baby whose favorite position is bear hugging her bladder), I have been back to doing things I love. Like quilting. And eating. Lot’s and lot’s of eating, to the shagrin of my OB who all but wagged her finger when she saw that the scale reflected my newfound love of food (did you know food actually TASTES GOOD? I had forgotten.).

But enough of this rambling… I have quilt pictures to share. So back to the point, now that I’m feeling better I was able to reunite with my beloved sewing machine and whip out a new quilt top – not for any specific purpose other than it made me happy and I’ve been hankering to try this pattern.

9patch3

This is called a 9-patch pattern – if you look closely, you can see that even though all the scraps run together, they’re sewn into blocks of nine, and then those blocks are combined to make bigger blocks. I used a moda jelly roll so cutting the squares was super fast (you can also do this pattern by sewing strips and then cutting them, but I was feeling all organic and wanted to do the entire thing from scratch).

This is the perfect pregnant girl quilt pattern, because there IS no pattern. I wanted the overall look to be scrappy and cluttered looking – there’s something comforting in the craziness and unpredictability. Plus, since there’s no pattern, there wasn’t a lot of that obligatory getting up and down off the floor to lay out my pattern over and over as I sew. The only time I laid it out was at the very beginning to figure out how many patches I needed, and at the very end to pin on the border.

9patch2 I love this picture because you can see my new view as Wrenn girl grows.9patch1And there’s the final version. It still needs to be quilted, but since it’s for me, it’s going to have to wait until after sweet Wrenn’s quilt is finished. Which I have 11 weeks left to complete (assuming she’s on time). Oh my word, where has the time gone?

Stay tuned for more on her quilt – and her nursery – this week. And pics of our first baby shower. And baby bump pics. It’s going to be a busy week.

Let your light shine

Mr. Right has been out of town the past few days pretending to be a cowboy with his dad and brother and a few hundred other guys. You know, trail rides and chuck wagon cooking and cowboy hat wearing… the whole bit. I’m so glad he comes home today because I can’t wait to hear all about it.

But I had my own fun while he was gone – snuggling a friend’s new baby, getting a pedicure, catching up on quilting, hanging out with the girls in his family, and designing a few new prints for my spring collection.

Here’s the latest. I was going for a bit of a retro revival vibe.

let your light shine

Click here to see the listing in my shop

I was just praying this morning that our little girl would be a light for Jesus. What better way to spend a life, am I right?

New spring prints and a sale

It’s spring, and a new season filled with so many new possibilities. To me, spring is clean and fresh and warm. It means denim jackets over long maxi dresses and bare toes. It means snow cones and open windows with curtains blowing in the breeze. It means the smell of freshly cut grass and the start of a new garden. It means twinkle lights on my back porch as I take a moment to rest.

And it means it’s time for some new prints. I decided to capture two of my favorite verses, because these prints are as much for me as they are for others. I was feeling whimsical and light, and I hope it comes across in these prints. And I hope they can be a reminder to me to be still and know that He is God… that He is in control. And to do things wrapped in love – whether it’s the way I speak to my husband or teach my ESL class or interact with friends. May others see love in the way I treat them.

be still

Print available here

be done in love2

Print available here

Also – it’s time to clear out some of my older prints, so I have discounted them 33%. You can check all of them out here.

Now excuse me while I go grab a bowl of ice cream, which is also an important spring activity.

I’m currently…

Inspired by the Tiny Twig’s regular feature, here’s what I’m currently…

watchingLincoln. And it’s terribly boring. Does that make me not very smart? I listen to NPR, I read the newspaper. But this movie is just too slow for me.

reading

I’ve got two books going – I’m reading The Informant (you may have seen the Matt Damon movie version) on my new iPad and listening to the Steve Jobs biography as an audio book (it’s 25 hours long!). I’m on a big non-fiction kick right now.

enjoying

SIX whole nausea-free days in a row. And eating like someone who hasn’t had a good meal in six months. Because, well, I hadn’t really been able to have a good meal for the past six months. I’m now making up for lost time. You know, things like cupcakes at 10:30 a.m. (hey… they’re shaped like muffins), or eating two lunches. And pickles… lot’s of pickles.

planning

My schedule. I’ve got 14 weekends left until this baby comes (approximately) and a lot needs to be done between now and then. Important things, like childbirth classes, and baby showers, and decorating a nursery, and getting a pedicure (since I’m already having trouble reaching my toes), and starting on that baby quilt. And having neighbors over for a cookout, and friends over for a potluck, and finding time for a few dates with Mr. Right before we have to start springing for a babysitter.

excited about

Finally deciding on Baby Wrenn’s name. It has provided me with such relief to finally have a name for that little girl who keeps kicking my tummy. It makes her that much more real. Come quick, Wrenn Olivia! (well, not too quick… keep cooking girl)

pinning

Nursery ideas!

worried

My glucose test in the morning. I have been dreading this almost as much as childbirth itself. Please pray for me – an empty stomach does not help my nausea.

playing

My new iPad. I feel so organized and high-tech. I’ve gone to all-digital to-do lists – we’ll see if it turns me into a new, totally organized person. Fingers crossed. Now if I could just find an app that folded my laundry.

looking forward to

A pedicure on Saturday. Oh boy, do these swollen hobbit feet of mine need it! Mr. Right gave me a very generous spa gift certificate for Valentine’s Day and I’ll be using the first part of it this weekend. I can’t wait.

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What about you? I’d love to hear what you’re “currently”… leave a link in the comments to your post.

Easter weekend… & baby girl has a name!

  • Ate my weight the baby’s weight in peach cobbler and chocolate cupcakes and chocolate pie.
  • Caught up with loved ones on both sides of the family.
  • Visited a dear friend in her brand-new house.
  • Wore sundresses and flip-flops and LOVED it.
  • Held hands with my man as we sang worship songs at church.
  • Chased some bad guys in my car. Err, I mean called 911 to report a suspicious vehicle, then hunted them down when they moved one street over and called again. (I watch Law & Order – I know how these things work.)
  • Attended a birthday for a friend. Everybody there had little kids running around. It was like a glimpse into our future, and I kind of dug it.
  • Took naps.
  • Registered for baby gear while lying in bed. God bless the Internet.
  • Baked and cooked and pretended to be domestic again.
  • Watched my little toes swell up like Vienna sausages. (isn’t it too soon for that?!?)
  • Found an old box of treasures from my childhood. Was highly entertained by third grade journal entries and my “Men of Mansfield High” calendar. I’m embarrassed – or proud – of how many of those boys I dated.
  • Oh, and we named our baby girl.
Story behind the name to come later.

Sorry blogs, I’m just not that into you

My husband and I were discussing the death of Google Reader and what my next move will be. I told him I’d migrated everything to BlogLovin’, but I’m struggling with changing to a new format after so many years.

And that’s when Mr. Right asked me why it’s a big deal. He reads six blogs.

Me? I read 159.

I guess that’s kind of a lot. Many are written by friends who only occasionally update, others are work related, others help me when it comes time to brainstorm my next big event. There’s quilting blogs, Christian blogs, decorating blogs, fashion blogs, and then the random ones that I love just because they’re lovely. I don’t actually READ all of them. At least, not every day.

But 159? That’s the definition of excess.

How many blogs do you read?

And so this week I forced myself to break up with more than 1/3 of my beloved blogs. You know the ones that I tend to skip, or skim, or the ones written by authors who tend to make me feel inadequate. Because honestly, am I ever going to weave my own rug? Um, no.

So now I’m down to 102, and of those, only about half post with any regularity. I feel like I just cleaned out my closet (something else I should do, since those non-maternity clothes no longer fit – but let’s be honest, I don’t have the energy to do that).

It was like spring cleaning for my brain. Now if I could just muster the resolve to do the same thing to my car, which among other clutter has a giant adult-size tooth costume filling the whole back seat. At this point, I’m embarassed to go through drive-throughs. It doesn’t stop this pregnant, hungry girl, but I’m still embarassed.

Christmas is coming early, and some bump pictures

This year it feels like Christmas is coming early. Well, not Christmas, actually – but our due date. At my 22-week doctor appointment a few days ago, my doctor informed me that it was in fact my 24-week appointment. I’ve been skipped a grade. Or two weeks, thanks to a few ultrasounds that showed baby is much further along than they previously thought (and which better follows my original math for the due date). My new due date is July 12.

I was so happy I almost hugged her.

Two weeks closer to holding baby girl. Two weeks closer to not being pregnant. And two fewer weeks of BEING PREGNANT IN TEXAS IN JULY. Praise Jesus, this mama won’t be seeing August 1 with a baby in her belly.

And, for your entertainment, here’s some more belly pictures. I found out this week that my uterus is now the size of a soccer ball (is that TMI?), which explains why my belly is now the size of a soccer ball.

21 Weeks

23 Weeks

I’m so happy for maxi dress season – this one is a “regular” non-maternity one from my closet, that still fits… for now. 24 Weeks.

A front view of my new favorite dress, a hand-me-down from my sister-in-law. 24 Weeks.

A side view of that same dress, worn to a western-themed work party Friday night. I almost didn’t go, because I was feeling nauseous, but plugged through and ended up winning an award for “Board Member of the Year” for The Cowtown Marathon. What a wonderful surprise and honor from one of my favorite organizations. 24 Weeks.

What my colleagues didn’t see was me getting so winded and nauseous walking back to my car with Mr. Right that I had to stop twice, bend over with my hands on my knees, and try my darndest to “get it together” and keep going.  Good thing baby girl that you’re worth it.

A little shop update and a SALE!

Spring is here, and with it comes the need to refresh, get rid of winter and replace with light and airy springy things. This weekend we’ll be planting our second annual vegetable garden (yea!), updating our flower beds with pretty spring flowers (yea!), and opening all of our windows to let the fresh air in.

I haven’t mentioned my little shop in awhile, mostly because that pesky morning sickness zapped any energy I had to go to the post office, fulfill orders, create new products, wash my hair, do anything besides lay on my couch and stare at the television. You get the idea.  But now that spring is here and ushering in a new season and I’m having some good days mixed in with the difficult ones, I’m ready to start promoting my little shop again.

Here are some springy pictures that will be decorating my home over the next few months… click on the picture to see the listing in the shop.

And this pillow, which just screams spring. After all, toile = spring… it’s a known fact. If someone doesn’t snap it up soon, it’s going to find a new home on my couch. Pronto.

To sweeten the pot a little, I’m offering 25% off of all orders through the end of March – just use the code SPRING2013 when you check out.

Also – I’ve had a few questions about new quilt listings. Unfortunately I’m still too under-the-weather to commit to any new quilts at the moment (except for a quilt for Baby Right, but that’s a given). If I happen to get that crazy nesting bug that everybody tells me will hit later on (and if this nausea moves on to greener pastures), then I may change my mind, but I won’t be offering any custom quilts – I’ll just make whatever inspires me and list it as-is.

I do, however, plan to make some new pillows and possibly even an apron or two. So never fear, there will be new items hitting the shop regularly between now and baby girl’s arrival in July. In the meantime, help yourself to something new!

Statement Necklaces & a Give-away

Maternity clothes are expensive, and I hate investing in new clothes for just a few months of wear, so I’ve been trying to wear basic staples (think solid shells with colorful cardigans) and dress up my wardrobe with accessories that will fit no matter how much my weight fluctuates.

And because of that pesky morning sickness, I’m doing 99% of my shopping these days online. So when I found out my friend Kelly had started a new online accessory business, it was a match made in heaven. Even better, as someone who has a heart for adoption, I love supporting a friend who just adopted two adorable little boys.

I immediately bought two new necklaces – the Hallie necklace…

And this one that is already discontinued (sorry, you snooze you lose).

I got so many compliments from wearing them that I went ahead and picked out one more. After all, every good Texas gal needs an amazing turquoise necklace. It’s in the handbook.

I’m not sure what is more fun – having a stylish new accessory to go with my growing belly, or being able to tell people who comment on my necklace, “Oh this? It was just $22.” There’s nothing better than a good bargain.

Well, I have good news for you, my blog friends. Kelly has offered to give away a free Hallie necklace to one of you! There’s two ways to enter.

  1. Leave a comment, telling me which necklace from Curated by Kelly is your favorite.
  2. Become a fan of Curated by Kelly on Facebook, then leave me a comment telling me you did.

I’ll hold a drawing Sunday evening and announce the winner on Monday. Good luck!