Oh Baby!

If you follow my blog on Facebook, you probably know that it is complete chaos at my house right now. We have a baby shower/housewarming party coming up, and every project {well….maybe only 1/4 of it} that has been on my list since we moved here is getting some attention.

Did I mention that we haven’t had a.c. for I don’t know how long?!?!? It hasn’t been completely miserable. Surprisingly, I do believe it could be much worse. And, we do have a separate unit to work our bedrooms, so if I need to cool off I can just go chill back there. They’re here right now, and I can’t wait for them to be done, so we can crank it up.

Because I knew they were coming, I didn’t do my weekly cleaning. I didn’t see the point of cleaning….only to have to re-clean once they leave. Plus….too many projects going on to waste time cleaning. It’s seriously driving me insane though. Dirtiness and messiness does not sit well with me!

Since I’ve  been stuck here today, I figured I would whip out a craft. The perk of the shower being at your house is that you get to contribute in ways here and there. Some people might think that to be a perk, but a crafty person like myself does. Plus, you don’t have to go anywhere. The people come to you!

I saw a wreath on Pinterest {linked here}, and it looked easy enough to do. I figured that I had half of the materials, and it’s a wreath that I can easily undo and make into something else.

Here’s what you need:

• Brown yarn
• Large needle
• Paint of your color choice
• Small paint brush
• Paper plate to put paint on
• Burlap
• Scissors
• Chalk
• Computer & Printer
• Grapevine wreath
• Raffia
• Poster board {or some kind of surface to paint on}

Here’s how you do it….

• Using a computer program like Microsoft Word, make a large triangle shape, print it, and cut it to the size you need. You can always trim from the top if it’s too large…easy fix!
• Lay your burlap out flat. Trace your triangle onto the burlap using the chalk.
• Cut out the triangles.
• Lay your triangles out on the poster board. Put your paint on the plate and start painting on your triangles. Make sure you give your triangles time to dry before moving on to the next step.

• After the triangles are dry, cut yourself a piece of yarn long enough to thread the triangles through and tie to the wreath. Thread the yarn through the needle and begin weaving them through.
• Tie to your wreath.
• Use the raffia to make a not-so-perfect bow and tie it to the wreath.
• On the back of your wreath, use a small piece of yarn to make a way to attach the wreath to the door.
• And now….hang on your door and admire!

It’s a very simple wreath! The best thing is that it can be adopted for all kinds of events or holidays! I’m already thinking of a way to use it for the 4th of July!

On another note, I did go to the doctor last week and had an ultrasound done. I’m not sure if I shared previously, but I was told at the beginning of the pregnancy that I had a common condition called a partial placenta previa that could correct itself as the pregnancy went on. The good news is that everything looked great, so Baby Langham can actually try to get out on his own instead of having no way out except through a c-section.

I’m now 30 weeks, so I graduated to the appointments being every two weeks……yay {not}! I’ve gained 12 pounds in all, and at least 2+ of those pounds are him. He’s still a tiny mite, so he’s going to definitely be cooking for a while longer!  During the ultrasound, he was head down, but we all know that can change. He’s still got plenty of time left to move around as he pleases, and he is definitely a mover here lately. My ribs are taking a beating.

Other good news that came at the appointment was that I passed my sugar test! So glad I don’t have to do the 3 hour test! The first one was bad enough!

His nursery is coming right along, and I promise I’ll be sharing more about that coming up. I just need to get his daddy to do a few more things in there before I show you our “progress” photo. I don’t think it will even be “complete” before he arrives. I’m not giving up hope though! The curtains did get hung last night though.

Be back soon with other house updates and news!

Serving Up a Makeover

You know how sometimes you get gifts for your wedding or your birthday or for some other reason, and you think that it’s a good gift but doesn’t really fit your needs? I’ve had a tray floating around my house for the past three years, stuck in storage, and serving no purpose at all.

It was one of those black photo collage trays, and I’m the world’s worst person about printing photos. It just wasn’t my style, and it definitely wasn’t working for me. It was working against me. I was beginning to think I just needed to give it a new home, but then I had a great idea of what to do with it.

Give it a makeover. A coat of paint and some fabric and it was good as new!

Don’t worry….I used a mask when doing this project for those of you worried about baby.

I gave the tray a good spraying of primer before giving it a couple of coats of glossy white spray paint. After letting it dry in the blazing hot sun, I relocated it to the courtyard to finish the project.

To give you an idea of what it looked like before, you can look at the photo above.

To finish the project, I gathered my supplies. I actually had some fabric samples that have been sitting in a box for years. They were the perfect size to cut to fit. I ended up choosing the lighter colored fabric, but I could easily change it for whatever occasion was coming up.

Right now, there is a housewarming/baby shower planned to be happening in two weekends from now, so I thought the top fabric would fit perfectly with the blues, greens, and yellows.

I used the matte as my guide to cut my fabric. I cut it just a teeny tiny bit bigger than the matte, so the edges wouldn’t be shown through the glass. I then put the glass back in {clean}, laid my fabric flat, put the matte in behind it {for future use}, and attached the back.

Voila! The final product! A much better fit for me! An easy, quick project!

A Big Day of Celebration

On this day three years ago, I married my very best friend, and I love him more now than I did then. Our love has certainly grown over these past three years, and our lives have changed a lot since then.

I got a teaching job and finished my Master’s Degree. Colby became an Advanced EMT and went to more classes {near and far} than I could have ever imagined. We got a dog and bought a house.

Now, three years later to the date, we celebrated the coming of our first little bundle of joy with my first ever baby shower in my honor at school. Did I mention that we only have two days of school left?!?! Can you sing “School’s Out For Summer”? You know you sang that like Alice Cooper. If you didn’t, you should be ashamed.

Anyhow, the ladies of my grade level hosted an amazing shower that left me with a bundle of gifts that we are counting our blessings for. We are so thankful for so many people that have taken the time to make this baby transition as easy as possible.

The décor and food was way more than one would expect in the school library. The lovely ladies in my grade level can take all of the credit for that. Absolutely lovely and delicious!

And how fitting that my favorite flower was chosen to be a part of the décor as well!

Then, there was the cake….french vanilla…..and it was decadent. Super moist!

Thanks to everyone who made my day today! For a week with a rough start, this sure did turn it around!

10 Bits of Randomness

{One}

It’s finally set in that this baby is coming and is coming soon. We’re three months away! I can’t believe how quickly all of this has gone by. I’ve been busy planning out the nursery, getting things ordered, and making plenty of lists of all the things that need to be done in there before I’m fully satisfied.

The fabric for the curtains came this weekend, so now it’s up to me to hand them over for someone to make them for me. One step closer! My mom is ordering the crib this week, and I’m hoping for a sale to come up at PB Kids before I order the bedding. That might be like asking for a miracle!

{Two}

Zeb turned one! It seems like we were just getting picture of him and trying to decide which one we wanted. Of course, we pretty much knew he was the one for us right away. Sometimes he makes us question our sanity, but we love him anyway. Luckily, he’s slowly but surely getting better behaved. I just hope this is a trend that continues.

{Three}

Colby has been hard at work in the yard lately. That horrible stump is now gone thanks to Colby and one of our dear and generous friends. Colby’s new stump grinder is awesome! It’s easier to convince your wife that you need a stump grinder for the business when the big, ugly stump in the backyard can be made to disappear!

And the stump now….

Now, we just need to plant a tree and give some organization to the plants around it. I don’t know if we’ll ever get this giant flowerbed landscaped!

{Four}

Colby and a few friends around to help have been trying to get the posts ready for our new privacy fence! When that thing is done, I might be doing a little dance. For once, we’ll actually have some privacy and not be giving passers by the opportunity to sneak a peek inside our house from the street. Not to mention the fact that our neighbors will finally get some peace and quiet! Hallelujah!

{Five}

Colby also cut down the azaleas alongside the fence by the road, so our yard is kind of looking like a train wreck. Hopefully, the end is near and things will be better than ever! In the mean time, it may stress me out in this in-between stage.

{Six}

This week is Teacher Appreciation week. As a teacher, I can definitely say that it is a nice little pick-me-up when people just do something thoughtful to say thank-you for taking care of their children during the day and for teaching them and preparing them for the future. Don’t forget to thank your child’s teacher! A simple thank-you note does the trick!

I must give a big shout-out to our PTO and the 4th grade parents! Today, we had an awesome food spread of yummy finger foods….right up a teacher’s alley!

Yesterday, we got this bottle of smell-good soap.

We are certainly not complaining, and I must say that the consensus is the same for all of the teachers I’ve spoken to.

{Seven}

My first baby shower is this month! What?!?!?! I can’t believe it is already time for that. I totally can’t wait though! Showers just make it that much more real! Especially since he’ll actually have things at our house and in his room finally!

And we even had a baby gift surprise this week that totally made my day!

{Eight}

I had my first hydrangea bloom….little bitty or not…it still counts!

{Nine}

I have had a good run in this pregnancy so far, but I believe I’m finally entering the uncomfortable stage. Some days I feel great and could easily forget that the little guy is in there, but others like today really take a toll on me. The months of being semi-skinny are over, and the baby bump is making its appearance. No pictures….sorry. You’ll be lucky if you see too many of those. With the ever-growing baby bump, there comes the pains of stretching and making room for the little guy to hang out for another three months.

{Ten}

We have picked a name! And it is…..

Something I’m going to keep a secret until the very day he is born!

Since I haven’t got to share news about the little man in the way I planned thus far, I figured I could have some reign over that.

His initials, however, are LRL {first, middle, last}. 

Have fun guessing until then!

Just a Swingin’

And just putting that as the title made me think of this…

John Anderson- Swingin’

Colby and I have this lovely area in our yard beneath a giant oak tree that was used by the previous owners as a place to swing. Luckily, my mom donated a nice wooden swing to us to put there.

For the past week or two, Colby and I have spent more and more time out in the yard….swinging, playing with the dog, talking about future plans for the yard and for life. It really is a lovely spot that I’m sure will hold lots of memories in the future.

The problem is that it’s not very easy on the eye. As a matter of fact, all of the flower beds in the back will be getting some attention very soon to spruce the place up. Thanks to an amazing BIL we got the great idea to move the flower beds out further and make it surround the swing area more on that side of the yard. Otherwise, it looks like we just stuck a swing in the middle of the yard. 

I still haven’t been happy though. The swing is being held up by three posts. It serves the purpose, but it’s not appealing at all.

And what can remedy that? Anything that resembles this…

Click on any of the pictures to be led to the original sources.

A painted or stained pergola with some type of vine growing up and above it. The second and fourth examples are my favorites.

Now, if I can just talk the husband into creating it….

What do you think?

Spring is finally here!

And it actually looks like it might be here to stay! Seriously, that makes my eyes light up. When spring comes, the flowers bloom, and the flowers are definitely blooming around here.

And my favorite oak tree has beautiful green leaves again! I love looking up into it when it’s so green and lush.

I wish spring could be the permanent season. I think I might be able to sacrifice some other miserable seasons if it could be just like it is now all the time. But then again, we probably wouldn’t appreciate it like we do if we didn’t have the other seasons too.

Like I shared with you in my last post, we made a quick visit {because I could stay there all day} to Lowe’s to stock up on some flowers for my front porch containers. They’re still in the growing stage since I always buy my flowers when they’re smaller since they are cheaper and grow rather quickly. Patience with this can go a long way.

For my {now} white pots by the front door, I went with a purple, pink, and white color scheme with a hint of light green thrown in within the darker green leaves.

The flowers are as follows:

1. Kalanchoe   2. Celosia   3. Petunia   4. Coleus

Then, I filled the containers are my front steps with another color scheme of flowers. In hindsight, I might should have just went with the same thing, but I still like it, and I think it will look even better once the plants fill out and get some height on them.

With this planter, I went with a red, white, and somewhat blue theme since I thought it fit the classic structure of our home {and our standard American flag hanging in the front}.

And the flowers that grace this planter include a little bit of Salvia {see below}….

A baby Ageratum…..

And some begonias {red and white} on either side of the Ageratum…

Here’s a couple of tips when shopping for plants for containers:

• Keep the plants together in the buggy when choosing your plants. It makes it easier to see what you actually have and how well they will look together.
• If you want to buy smaller plants to save money like I do, look around at the plants in their full grown state that will probably be around the garden center. This will help you see what it will be once it is grown.

And you might not believe me, but that list tip definitely helped me decide where in the containers I was going to place my plants because I could actually tell how big they would get and what they do when they are bigger. You need to know if they grow taller or cascade over the side of a pot. For instance, you sure wouldn’t want to put salvia in the front of a container because it grows straight up and pretty tall.

I hope these tips are helpful to you and that you are enjoying this wonderful weather as much as I am!

And I almost forgot….this checks another item off of my 101 list! Goodbye, number 75!

A Check-Up & Check-In

This week has been fairly busy, but relatively uneventful. Meetings and a doctor’s appointment pretty much sums up my week. Even though it’s been rather uneventful, I am absolutely beat. I guess I was spoiled from a week of rest called spring break.

Colby and I went to the doctor on Tuesday, which always gives an excuse to stop by somewhere to shop while we are down there. Living in a small town definitely has perks {like a laid back lifestyle}. However, the downside is that you can’t just run to Lowe’s or T.J. Maxx or any decent clothing store {or any store} with a wide selection of whatever it is I’m looking for.

As far as the doctor goes, I checked out just fine. I’ve gained a total of two pounds since my first weigh-in. While I’m sure some people think I’m watching what I eat and such, it couldn’t be more from the truth. I haven’t changed a thing from how I usually am {pregnancy or no pregnancy} other than increase that vitamin and water intake. Even though I’ve only gained two pounds, the bump is becoming a little more pronounced as of this week.

He was pleased with me though since all of my tests are showing up great. I’ve never been a gal to go to the doctor, so this experience has had me poked and prodded more than any time I’ve been my whole life. It’s all worth it for the little guy though. He also told me that my due date will not be pushed back like we thought it might. My due date will remain as we first thought….August 10th. Woohoo!

Afterwards, we did what I really wanted to do and that was to go to Lowe’s to check out the flower selection.

Pure heaven!

We stocked up on plenty of flowers for my front containers that sit on the steps and by the front door for now. There will be a reveal and details about all of that once the weather starts looking a bit cheerier. Rain and dampness doesn’t allow for decent pictures, so I’ll hold off for now.

We also looked around for good options for the backyard. Trees, of course. We have an ugly stump from what I’m sure was a gorgeous tree at one time. Now I’m in the market for something that will provide shade and be a nice focal point.

In other randomness…..

We are looking at finishing off the privacy fence in our yard. Hallelujah!

General Hospital {the soap I have watched nearly my whole life…..mom and grandmother both watched it} celebrated 50 years this week! I loved every minute of the classic characters who built the show coming back.

I can’t wait to go to the beach! Warm weather is definitely my friend.

The airboat is hopefully sold as of tomorrow!

And I’m so glad tomorrow is Friday! I will be resting and relaxing this weekend! Be back soon!