The Nursery Tour: Part 1 (The Furniture)

So here it is, folks. The long awaited nursery tour.

I couldn't really get a good picture of the whole room (bad angles) so I've decided to break it up into a series of auto-posting posts. So come back tomorrow for the next installment!

Firstly of all, THIS is the recliner in question.
 

When we got to the nursery, I knew a regular old rocking chair was not going to cut it.  We needed a recliner.  A comfy, I can sleep in it, Jake can work from it, recliner.  And so we began scouring Craigslist.  After having slept many a night in this chair, as the pregnancy gets more and more uncomfortable, I can say, this was a good purchase!

Then there's the crib, of course.  This was a hand-me-down from our dear friends Amy, Fletcher and Jayne.  So aside from being a beautiful color and a great financial help, it's also a reminder of them, since they just moved away (and we miss them already!)

The changing table was an interesting adventure.  I found the one I wanted at Target, but my Target didn't carry it. (They did have a floor model though, for some reason.)  Jake, sweetly, called around the next day for me and was told that a nearby Target had it, but it was on sale so they couldn't hold it.  He immediately drove over and picked it up... and ended up getting it for 1/3 of the original cost!!  I was so excited!

The cubes and the bookcase were a big thing too.  Katie my sister helped pick out the cubes, and Jake and I picked out the bookcase.  I originally thought I was going to have a mismatched nursery, because I didn't think I could coordinate all the pieces, but it really came together nicely!

Up next: The Colors!

Guest Post: A Letter from a Mother's Heart

A few months ago I reached out to some of my mom friends and asked if any of them would care to guest post on this blog about my impending motherhood.  Here's the first guest post.

Cynthia is a lovely sweet mother from my church.  She and I actually grew up together, but have reconnected within the last year.  She wrote me this sweet letter as a guest post.  I will confess, and maybe it's just the pregnancy hormones (but I doubt it), I cried when I read this.  She has a beautiful way with words.  She's such an encouragement, and I'm so excited to share this with you.

As I'm counting down these last few weeks (Officially: 3 1/2 left), I find myself a lot less afraid and a lot more ready for the crazy whirlwind that is coming next.

Mary Beth, my clock reads 4:08am and I should be tucked in bed fast asleep. But something changed about two years ago when I gave birth to my daughter: sleep is impossible when someone I love is in labor. And my sister just called, breathing shallow gasps between contractions. It is time. 

My heart filled with prayer that won’t stop because I’ve been there. It is awesome. And terrifying. The most incredible experience I’ve ever had. And the hardest. Jesus can meet you in your weakness or it can be filled with terror. I didn’t get that before. Now as I storm the throne room with passionate prayer I realize I’m a part of something so much bigger than myself. I have been inserted in another woman’s story. Her life story. The stuff that matters.

As I pace the living room and ask God to fill her with peace and to bring this baby safely and quickly, I am fueled by memories and love. I’m part of a community I hadn’t realized existed. Because while anyone can pray and hope for great things for my sister, those who have been through it pray with a fervency and passion that is unique. We breath deeper as if breathing for her. As if by intense focus we can will her through this journey, lending her our strength. It’s why I cry every time a baby is born in a TV show or movie. Because even my tear ducts remember that incredible moment and I’m so full of joy for their moment of birth. Yes, even though it’s a fictional birth. That’s how powerful the bond of motherhood is. 

So as I pause my pacing I’ve been thinking about you, Mary Beth, and this precious little boy you carry inside you. I smile when I see you because of the excitement and the little bit of apprehension on your face when you talk about motherhood. Everything is so new and exciting. And it is scary. A smile comes to my face because I’m confident that you are going to love this whole motherhood thing. Because on the other side of the birth experience I find there are still lots of new things, and plenty that scares me. What I wasn’t expecting was the joy that would flood and cover it all. Who knew my heart could hold it’s breath when my daughter smiles or laughs? Who knew I would sometimes cry in sheer gratefulness for her being here, walking around the living room trailing toilet paper she’s carefully pulling off the tube? 

Before I wander off in endless stories about my child I wanted to mention a couple of the most important thoughts I can pass on. These are things I’ve thought about a lot, because you are probably overwhelmed with advice right now:

1. Every woman has her own story. Her labor story, her birth story, her experiences with an infant, toddler, preschooler and on it goes. And while hearing all those stories might be helpful I highly recommend you tuck them into that place labeled “random storage” in your head and focus as much attention as possible on your own story. Because you won’t experience this pregnancy with this baby again and you never know what wonderful memories you will make by being fully present. Now ignore what I just said so I can share more of my experience!
2. You are stronger than you know. Birth might be scary and full of unknowns but I have all confidence that when you reach that point you will be amazed to see your own inner strength emerging. Nothing can match the ferocious determination of a woman bringing her child into the world.
3. Hormones are your friends. I’ll take a lot of flak for saying this, but really, the craziness of hormones the months after birth have the potential to be that constant reminder to take care of yourself in a way you probably wouldn’t with all the distractions of having a newborn. They can remind you that a nap really is more important than the laundry, that some quiet time with Jesus and a latte can solve a bucket of tears. If you are willing to listen, they will let you know when you should simplify life. 

The future is full of good things for you, Mary Beth, and I feel so lucky to have a front row seat to see you experience it!

Yup, she's nesting

4 weeks and some change til my due date and I can't seem to help but nest.

My latest project: these throw pillows.

When we first got married our bedding set was rust colored and we had a few throw pillows. When the comforter fell apart at the seams, we kept the pillows, which I always intended to cover.

Now with a baby coming, who will not sit on a couch by himself for years and will never notice that I have beautiful throw pillows, I decided that the pillows MUST be covered now.

The first pattern I made up myself and it resembles and envelope on the back... one I had to hand stitch so that the pillow inside is preserved.

For the second pillowcase though, I looked online (mostly pinterest) and found a better design. I had to modify the sizes based on my pillow and the pieces of scraps I had, but the basic design is here:
http://cleverbetty.blogspot.com/2013/03/beginner-sewing-tutorial-simple-pillow.html

Like last time, I'm relearning the importance of ironing and pinning. And also, my messy first pillow and awesome second pillow look exactly the same from the front.

Pinterest Fail!

Having made quite a few of my own domestic blunders (many of which are accounted on this blog) I was quite pleased to discover PinterestFail.com

I highly recommend it for anyone frustrated with their own pinterest results. You are not alone!

Also, I think a lot of these disasters are learning opportunities. I *still* cannot bake a layered cake to save my life, but not everything I do ends up in the trash these days, or with me in tears.

Chalk failures up to learning, and keep trying!

The New Domesticity

I heard a fascinating interview on WUNC's The State of Things today at lunch about the new Domesticity with Emily Matchar, the author of "Homeward Bound".

Why do you care?

1. Emily is going to be at FlyLeaf books tonight, if you're interested.
2. You should listen to/read the interview.  There's great insight about why Middle Class Gen Y'ers are embracing crafts and diy lifestyle.  We are growing our own veggies, canning, and forming our own internet knitting circles (like on ravelry.com)
3. You might want to buy the book too! She was very interesting to listen to.

My new very favorite lunch

Some of you know, I have a lunch problem.  Well, more specifically I have a microwave problem that leads to a lunch problem.  And now, being pregnant, and supposed to avoid deli meat, my lunches got downright hopeless.

But the other day I was at Panera, craving a sandwich like you wouldn't believe, and I ordered their Mediterranean Sandwich.

After devouring it, I thought... I could make this!  And so I did. Over and over again.

Step One: The Bread!
Tomato Bread from Panera is pretty much my very favorite part. I order all sandwiches on this bread, even if they're not supposed to come with that bread.  So, you can buy some tomato bread from Panera. OR, my CSA (PapaSpuds) offers a Sun-dried Tomato Loaf most weeks from The Bread Shop.  Bread acquired? Let's move on to:

Step Two: The Vegetarian Proteins!
Feta Cheese. (1/2 square inch, or a half a serving, crumbled)
Hummus. (1 tbsp)
Guacamole. (1 tbsp)
If you don't eat these things, leave now, as you will probably hate this sandwich.

I use Athenos feta cheese (it's pasteurized so I'm allowed!)  And Sabra or Tribe Garlic Hummus and Wholly Guacamole.  Sometimes I make hummus (fave recipe) and guacamole (fave recipe), but buying is easier.

Step Three: The Veggies!
You need a cucumber. (3 slices)
An onion. (a few strips)
A tomato. (one slice, halved)

Step Four: The Assembly!
Since this is usually a lunch thing (and I have been eating 5-6 smaller meals to help deal with the heartburn), I usually only eat a half sandwich for lunch.

• First cut one delicious piece of tomato bread in half.
• Then spread 1 tbsp of hummus on one half and 1 tbsp of guacamole on the other half.
• On the hummus bread, carefully crumble a 1/2 serving of feta cheese onto the bread.
• Now, on top of the feta, add 3 cucumber slices, a couple slices of onion, and 2 half tomato slices.
• Now put the guacamole bread on top to close the sandwich.

The Nutrition!

If you are curious, I've calculated this delicious half sandwich to be:

250 calories; 33 carbs; 9g fat; 9g protein; 3g sugar

Blight in the Garden

This blog started as a post about our first garden, so as we start prepping garden number 4, I thought it was time for an update.

For the last 2 years, we have struggled with blight in the garden.  As in, it has ruined everything. 

I have read a few methods of dealing with this.... Fire is one, but the garden is a weeeeeee bit too close to the house for me to light it on fire.  Another is to use a chemical that kills everything for a period of 1 year. We didn't want to miss out on a whole gardening year if we could help it though.  The last was to basically hot compost the garden til it reached a hot enough temperature to kill the blight, so we are trying that.

We bought some "construction grade plastic wrap" on amazon and covered the garden, leaving a little extra wrap to hang over the edges.  Yesterday, I soaked the garden down and rolled the plastic out. Then Jake came and helped me line the edges with wood to hold it down and hold the heat in.

The interwebs said that this process would take 1 week in summer, but 4-6 weeks in spring...

So in about a month, we will pull it up and plant. I think we're going to purchase plants instead of seed starting this year, and I hope this will take care of the blight!!