The Nursery: Part 1

The former office has been emptied and painted. Here's our progress so far. Yesterday, the first set of furniture pieces were rolled in and a piece was set up by Mark. It has taken a bit longer to get to this point than anticipated. First, the colors (paint) that we decided on turned out to be different than what the swatches made us believe, so we had to regroup. Should we try and find the color(s), or change the color scheme? Then, Mark's surgery put a halt on the painting. His movements and activity level were restricted for about 3 weeks.

Below you'll find the picture of what use to be the office.....pre-pregnancy.

The room was white and pretty empty. Moving into this home we both knew

we wanted kids, but we were not sure when we wanted them. We did not

put much effort into the decor of this room, because we knew it would change

into a nursery, sooner than later.

The room comes with enough closet space (three closets) and we pretty much

kept a bookshelf and two desks in the room. Initially, the thought was that one

desk was for me and the other for Mark. The one you see to your left was the

one we both used.

The closet space....

The unused desk...

Moving Day!

Uncle David came over to help.

Now, let's paint!

Mark is a man on a mission.

After all of the discussions and swatch comparing, we decided to go with a soft green and yellow. The majority of the decor will consist of pinks and browns. Most of the walls were painted green, except for one. Where my desk was kept, it will now become the reading area, decorated with The Very Hungry Caterpillar characters. At this point the characters have not been painted onto the walls. I want to get the section furnished so I can have a better idea of where to paint in the characters.

The reading area

Here is the first piece of furniture that has been assembled and placed in the nursery, the bookshelf.

We have gone from an office to a corner.... This is our new "workstation." It's kind of cozy.

Once we have the majority of the room finished, I'll have another blog with pictures. Thanks for reading!

Say Hello To My Little Friend......Heartburn. Well not so little.

So what can I say? Heartburn is just part of the game. I've experience heartburn since the beginning of my pregnancy, but it was rare. For the past week or so, it has been everyday, mostly at night, but now showing up after lunch. What has been my saving grace.....

These little magic pills work immediately and they aren't bad tasting.

Last week I was pleasantly surprise by a family I work with, work related. As I entered their home the mother presented me with a gift for the baby. This is her first formal gift! I was so appreciative of their gesture, I almost wanted to cry, but that may be due to the hormones. At this point who knows, but I was very grateful to them. That was something they did not have to do but did. Here's their gift.

Two sets of bibs (organic cotton) and a blanket.

Today was set aside for baby furniture shopping. I was so tired by the end! I think tomorrow we will make our purchase and hopefully within two weeks the items will be here. The room has been painted and emptied, so all it needs is some baby stuff and of course the baby!

I'm at the end of my 5th month. Wow time has gone by so fast. You hear that at the beginning of your pregnancy, and I, at that time didn't think it would, but I was wrong. I'm over half way there and getting excited!

Baby's "First"

Hi All! I've been out of commission for about 2 weeks. Mark had minor surgery for a deviated septum about a week in a half ago, so I've been playing "Nurse Erika." He's doing a lot better and is almost his old self again, but he does have his limitations when it comes to his activity level. Who knew your nose had so much control over you?

Well, before Mark's surgery, he had begun the office to nursery conversion. He was not able to finish due to the surgery and of course there were a few snags along the way. I don't want to give too much away, because there will be a blog entry of the nursery. Here's a little peak into what we have planned.

Mark is trying to figure out which color goes with our "plan."

I'm well into my 5th month and everything seems to be going well. My 4th month seemed to be a good one. There were a couple of days that I was tired or dizzy but nothing abnormal. I'm drinking a lot of water. My hunger is almost normal, but she still wants the homemade stuff. So I've become quite a cook. The baby and Mark are truly benefiting from that. The swelling is a part of life now. I believe it has to due with the heat wave we've just experienced, but soaking in our tub has been quite enjoyable. I don't think I've ever appreciated the tub as I have these past few days. It has mostly been my feet/legs and hands that have been swollen. Also heartburn is the latest craze for when I have to go to bed, but I keep my Tums right next to my nightstand and that usually does the trick.

Last week on September 1st, the baby gave Mark the privilege to feel her kick/punch. Mark was very excited and I believe shocked on how real it felt. Later that night she woke me woke because she was moving so much. It is a nice feeling, but when you are trying to get back to sleep at 2AM it kinda makes for a cranky mom.

Friends who are already mommies have been passing on some items to me. Here they are:

I was talking to Lorena and explaining that I wanted to learn how to sew and one of the first things I want to make is a sling. She immediately explained that she had one and I could have it if I wanted it. But of course!

Thanks Lorena!

Kimura, my BFF, thought I could use a breast pump, breast pads and a swaddle when the baby arrived and she was right.

Thanks Ki!

And I could not help myself when I had lunch with Lorena a few weeks back and we were in a kids clothing store.

Aren't they cute. It's not for a newborn. Since she is going to be born in the winter, I thought she could use this later in the year. There is so much to chose from for a girl.