what i've been up to...

I’m still here…without a (new) baby, so…yeah…whatever. (Forewarning: This post contains no cute pictures. I only have sad cell phone pictures…sorry!)


I could/should have been cleaning/organizing…but I was not. Instead, I was making felt flowers to use as hair clips because #1: I had leftover felt from my birdie project and #2: This was more appealing to me than doing whatever else “needed to be” done!

Anyway, to start out, I used a tutorial for Peony Felt clips from Yoonie at Home:

This seemed like the easiest one I could find…and I like them. I think they will be adorable clipped to a headband.

But I wanted a fuller-looking flower, so I tried this Felt Hair Clip tutorial from Julie’s Blog (except I used buttons instead of a felt center). It was easy and they turned out super cute (I will get better pics because these do not properly display the cute-ness!):
I don’t know why but I’m obsessing over hair accessories lately! Maybe because I’m so unskilled when it comes to “doing” hair, that I figure a bunch of big, pretty flowers can deter attention from lack of styling...or something… I think soon I'll need to find a tutorial for cute ways to display/store hair accessories!

Also this weekend I scored this vintage toy box from the antique mall (for $25!). I liked it when I bought it, but the more I look at it, the more obsessed I am! I don’t know what it is about this box, but I seriously love it so much!

This will go in Jack’s room to house his many books. His books are literally overtaking his room (Note: as sad as this picture is, it’s actually what his room looks like on a daily basis…we have lots of books!). So this box will be great for containing his little, ever-growing library!

So that’s what’s been going on here. I wish I could say it's been more eventful/exciting, but it has not...I’m ready to have this little girl now. I'm sure once that happens, I will wish for some peace and quiet and for life to slow down a bit while I catch my breath, but for now...I'm ready for something eventful/exciting!

Ready to meet my baby girl!

At 37 weeks and full term (boo ya!), we are finally ready for baby girl to arrive (any day now…according to the Dr, we’re progressing and things are on track)! And after this weekend, I think we’re really prepared (as much as you can be), so baby girl, come see us soon!

We had a childbirth “refresher” class (LAME. Do they ever update those videos?!), but we did get a quick tour of the maternity ward (Is it still called a “ward”? Seems like an outdated term.) We also made some final adjustments to the nursery, did some cleaning/organizing, and re-acquired our newborn baby-gear from my Mom's (plus some new gear from Mom and Care…love it!).

I’ll admit that I’m no good at these “maternity self-portraits”, but here’s a shot to show that I am ready to P-O-P! Obv I haven’t dropped yet, but I learned that when it’s your second+ pregnancy, you don’t drop until much later (like during labor)…interesting!

Oh and check out the sweet banner I scored for the nursery! Love it. I've been noticing this banner trend in nurseries lately, and was contemplating getting one from etsy, but I found this on clearance for $5 (Marshall's). Yeah for deals!

And here's my other obsession: the quilt (from etsy). Note: the pillow is just for decorative purposes, I know it's a major no-no in the crib for a newborn!) I think the room has come together quite nicely. And although there are a few more things I'd like to finish up, I'm happy knowing the room is livable.

So, note to daughter: We're all super excited to meet you, and to see what you look like, and hold/hug/kiss you for...well, forever. We've been waiting for you...so when you are ready, we'll be here with open arms. And although I may look tired/angry/like crap when you first see me, know that:

#1: I'm bursting with joy to meet you, and hold you, and love you (oh, and NAME you). And,

#2: I look much better with some hairspray, makeup, and after a little rest. ;-)

Love!

birds of a feather...

This was my Friday night, and it was super exciting...thanks for all of your help Care, you're THE best!

I’ve wanted to make a bird mobile like the one I showed in my inspiration post back in March. But I’m not a sewer so I was seriously contemplating buying some birds from etsy and crafting a mobile on my own. However, I had so much fabric left over from my embroidery hoop project, that I thought, I could certainly find a way to DIY these birds!

So although I’m no seamstress, I certainly am a hot-gluer (I don’t have any fingerprints to prove it!), so with some hot glue, fabric, stuffing, felt, buttons, ribbon, and a home-made template, I was all about it! Check out my flock:

I think this one is my fav...I love the green and pink color combo! Carey was totally my "sous-chef of crafting"! She basically matched up all the buttons and color combos, and stuffed and did whatever I told asked her to :)...AND she made flower hair bows that are seriously Ahhh-mazing! I can't wait to play beauty shop with them!

another fav...

I bought little beads for eyes but kind of liked them without because the fabrics are so busy…thoughts?!?

PS: I finally bought a quilt (on etsy, of course!) that should be arriving today…boo ya! I’m super excited so hopefully I love it as much in person as I do in the pictures…here’s a sneak peek!

Nursery (part 1)

A while ago (in July 2009), I won this from The Light Garden! I love it. I was so excited to get a package in the mail from Istanbul, with the sweetest note from the artist. I told her that if I ever had a little girl, this would definetly find a place in her room.

And so, 8 months later, with a little girl on the way, I'm excited to finally hang my prize. Well, to think seriously about hanging my prize, because the nursery-to-be is a BIG, HOT, MESS! I would totally show you a picture of our third bedroom, but I'm actually afraid to walk in for fear of being buried by my junk treasures!

But I have a definite motivation to organize and beautify, and I can't wait. My general thought...wait for it...vintage birdies! I'm thinking handmade nests, turquoise (which is my new obsession), celadon green, bright pink, a sweet vintage birdcage, and a cozy quilt...I need to try to keep in mind that I'm decorating a s-m-a-l-l room, on a s-m-a-l-l budget, but the possibilities have me reeling!

Don't even start Googling "nursery themes, ideas, inspiration, projects, etc."...because you might become obsessed and want to make every room a nursery (or maybe that's just me)! So, to get my thought process started, here's a random mish-mosh of the look I'm dreaming of, basically I'm thinking out loud here (or something like that)...

(via here)

(via here) Totally obsessed with this nursery!

(via here)

(via here)

So there's just a few of my preliminary thoughts and ideas, all I can say right now is I-want-to-PAINT!