Monday, October 7, 2013

shopping, crafting, revealing

In happy contrast to the emotional-cry-fest of Thursday, I'm glad to report that Friday and the rest of the weekend were marked by excited and happy planning for the new babe. This returned sense of confidence was due in no small part to a well-timed 5pm text on Friday afternoon from our baby's mama! As we'd suspected-- she'd been having phone problems, but she texted to say that all was well now, she hoped we hadn't been worrying, and-- best part-- "everything is going great and my decision is still the same" (DIRECT QUOTE). 

Thank you, Jesus.

Exactly the reassurance we needed to kick off a fabulous weekend in Augusta with my family. We headed east as soon as we got off work and got to my parents' house just in time to spend our evening practicing our baby skillz with Carley!



Carley obliged us by giving us lots of solid 'baby situations' to navigate, including projectile spitting up all over my dry-clean-only shirt, crying for no reason, not liking any of her toys, being super cute, and refusing to be put down. In short, it was fabulous. I also appreciated having a couple of hours to get wisdom and tips from Emily, my sister-in-law. 

My sister drove up from south Georgia on Saturday to join the rest of the family. I was super excited because a) I love my sister and b) I really needed a haircut. Sarah's presence meant that my baby-cuddling time got cut in half, but we managed to find a few ways to call a truce and play with the baby together, so that seemed like a real sibling accomplishment. 


Sarah's baby-entertainment skills are like Level 10 Code Red, so I know my baby will be in good hands when Aunt Sarah is around. And if you think it's strange that a grown and fashionable woman such as Sarah is wearing a t-shirt with gold metallic cats on it (stolen from my mom's closet circa 1993), clearly you haven't read this. So fix your ways. 

We spent most of the weekend talking about/planning for my baby (MY BABY!!!!!!) and on Saturday took a family (well, me, Matt, Mom, and Sarah) trip to Buy Buy Baby. Matt and I have done a good bit of online registering already (Target & Amazon), but haven't actually looked at stuff in stores yet. The main reason for this is that Athens is a baby product wasteland. We may as well be in Antarctica or something. The only baby store (besides small boutiques that no one can afford/you can't really register at) is...Target. And about 2 rows inside the nasty, disgusting Toys R Us where you wouldn't catch me dead. We have no Babies R Us. No Buy Buy Baby. Nothing. So...Target and Amazon it is. BUT there were some items I actually wanted to check out in person, so a field trip seemed prudent. Then Emily and my mom and sister convinced us that we really needed to go ahead and register at BBB anyway since people in Augusta will all want to shop there for our shower, etc., so...twist my arm, right? We grabbed the little gun scanner thing and went to town!

It was by far the most fun I've ever had in a baby store (shocking? no.) and definitely the first time in a long time I've even gone in one without crying, so I call it a huge success! I made lots of hasty and uneducated choices about products I know nothing about and we spent most of our time debating the merits of various designer diaper bags, so clearly our hearts were in the right place. 

I had so much fun.

I also managed to walk out of there having spent only $5-- on a two-pack of baby nail clippers. Somehow I just thought that if I didn't go ahead and get them, I might never remember to...and nobody wants a baby to have jaggy nails, right? A girl's gotta be manicured from day 1. So I got them. In green.

Having spent some time at BBB test-driving and discussing various strollers, a subject I actually had done some research about, I left the store lamenting my 'champagne taste, beer budget' (that will be the theme of this 'pregnancy,' I can tell already). Since everyone else had also taken the opportunity to push the different kinds of strollers, I was at least happy to find that everyone was in agreement that the one I wanted really was the best one. And totally worth the extra five billion dollars it cost. And then when we got home, I decided to juuusssst take a little peek and see if it was still marked down on a discount webpage I'd found last week. And it was. And then-- be still my heart-- my Mom offered to buy it for me! I mean, for the baby. I seriously debated it for about 1 second and then took her up on her generous offer. So YAY!!! The Baby Jogger City Mini GT in Bamboo is en route to my house!!!! WOOOOOO! And now I swear we're going to stick to The Plan and not buy anything else. Exxxcccept....

Well, I also have this little issue of nursery decor. Namely, I hate all crib bedding I have ever seen in a store. Ever. All. Pastel colors and cutesy animals are not remotely appealing to my eyeballs. A few years ago we painted the nursery and I made curtains, so the curtains have kind of locked me into a color scheme that I love. Unfortunately, trying to find crib stuff that fits into that scheme has been a huge failure. Until I discovered custom crib bedding on Etsy. That was a huge win. A few weeks ago I found this seller/fabric set and nearly died of happiness. FINALLY! Bright, happy colors and patterns that are not completely lame and matchy-matchy. Heaven. Unfortunately, the price tag and 6-week-wait time were NOT heavenly. Since I don't want to order the stuff til after we know we get to keep Baby, she would be like 5 years old before it ever came in. Not cool.

And here comes my mom to the rescue again.

"We can MAKE the stuff you want," she says with all of the confidence in the world.  Ummm....maybe some people can make it. But not me, I think. But then I remember all the 'easy crib skirt!' tutorials I pinned a few years ago and I start considering that maybe I actually COULD make it. IF I could find fabrics I liked, of course. They can't be lame. Or pastel. They have to match the curtains.

Mom was up to the challenge, so off we went to Joann's.

Lo and behold-- non-pastel, curtain-coordinating, super awesome fabric!


With the help of this YHL no-sew crib skirt tutorial, I kid you not-- we made the dang crib skirt in maybe 20 minutes. WITH NO SEWING. And it cost about $10. I'd call that a win for Team We're On a Budget! My excitement cannot be overstated here. I also have the fabric and materials to make the bumpers, which will be a bit more challenging and probably require a sewing machine, but my confidence has been bolstered (and I have friends that are legit sewers. Whom I will be calling upon.) and I know I/we can do it.

When we finally packed it up and came back home, we brought with us a bookshelf my parents weren't using anymore that will fit perfectly in the nursery-- today I plan to get paint to make it look a little more awesome. We also have a variety of borrowed/gifted/thrifted baby items that we're starting to collect in the nursery. Are you ready for the big nursery reveal?? Brace yourself!!!


I know. It's a lot to take in and pretty super fabulous. Try to contain your jealousy. Unfortunately, although the awesome crib skirt is completed...we have no crib on which to put it. So it's in a bag. Sad face. Oh well. 

You wanna know what else is weird? That pretty much everyone in our families and Augusta knows our baby's name and yet I haven't shared it here, at work, or with people in our church. And not really for any good reason. It's not a big secret or anything. But now it feels weird and like I should do some kind of big reveal or something, but then I feel weirder that when people just ask, I just answer like it's no biggie. Ha. Anyways. Ponder that for awhile. Maybe I'll plan a super magical reveal for this week. Or maybe I'll just be lazy and tomorrow instead of calling her Baby I'll just be all 'when Esmerelda gets here and we do blah blah blah' and then you'll have to think of a nice lie about what a cute name we picked. GOOD TIMES. 

PS. Esmerelda is not actually her name, but three of the letters in it ARE in her first name.

29 comments:

  1. Sounds like the best weekend doing baby things and being with your family!!! Carley is so adorable - she has such pretty eyes! I can't wait to hear the name!! :)

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  2. BUY BUY BABY- squeal!!!!!! I love that store... when we first started trying, I lived in the BBB in Augusta. Soooooo amazing!

    I'm so glad that you got to spend an awesome weekend with your family shopping! I bet your mom was thrilled! And yay for the text- SUCH good news!

    I'm REALLY loving the nursery... super fabulous! Can't wait to hear baby girl's name!

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  3. So much for not shopping girl! I can't wait to hear the name. EKK!!!!!

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  4. Yay! I'm SO excited! And way to go on following my have-the-clippers-early advice. I cut E's nails twice before we even left the hospital. Also, I totally wish we had invested in a good stroller from day 1. Still don't have one I really like. Good decision!

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  5. Two things...

    1. I have the Citi Mini Jogger and I love it. Seriously best stroller ever. I just used it in NYC with my (almost) 2-year-old and I convinced every non-parent I met that they needed this stroller when they have kids. It was so easy to lift, fold u, carry and maneuver...even with my hands full.

    2. I made my daughter's crib bedding. The bumpers were the hardest part. Give yourself some time to do them and maybe find yourself a really experienced sewer!

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  6. Please do a name reveal! I've wondering, but didn't know if it was super top secret.

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  7. Please stick with Esmerelda... with that kind of name, she is bound to be on reality tv one day!

    Very impressed with your progress (and thriftiness) so far- keep up the good work, mama!

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  8. Yay!! So glad you got an update and everything was just fine :) I love the fabric you picked out, so very cute!! I just don't like the "typical" baby stuff either, this is way cool! I would expect nothing less from you! HA!

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  9. Yay!!!! It sounds like an AMAZING weekend! I love that you are registering and collecting baby things. Enjoy it!!

    I would definitely do a name reveal. I already have ours in draft form - just waiting to see who's in there. :-)

    I'm registered on Target and Amazon, too. One for in person, one for out of town. Perfect!

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  10. So happy to hear that you received and update and all is well. I love the fabric! I am so, so excited for you guys!!!

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  11. Just putting this out there...we live about 7 minutes away from the BBB in Snellville, so should you ever need a weekend shopping partner, just let me know! I LOVE that store! And I'm also an avid coupon collector. :-)

    Sounds like your weekend just couldn't have gotten much better! Hope your week is just as wonderful!

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  12. I am so happy you got such direct reassurance from the birth mom on Friday. That was probably the best part of the weekend!

    And I love and adore that fabric! And I teared up a little bit when I saw the nursery. That must be so exciting for you.

    Yay! For your mom and your stroller. You will use it sooooo much.

    Also, I have some guesses for the name, and I can see that my favourite, Erika, Jr., is still in the running :)

    For a name reveal you could just drop little hints for a few days and see who guesses it first, although I like your casual way of just dropping it into a post at some point.

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  13. So, I totally remember the first time I didn't cry in a baby store! Registering is fun and super exciting. You have so many amazing adventures ahead of you and I'm thrilled you are sharing them with us! Can't wait to see the finished nursery and learn your little girl's name!

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  14. Ohhh I can't wait to know what the name is!!! I hope you enjoyed your haircut. I love haircuts. :)

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  15. So, now I'm DYING to know her name! Man, I am LOVING your "pregnancy." You are the cutest mama to be!! :)

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  16. Couple of very important thoughts...
    1) Love the stroller...excellent choice
    2) Great fabric choices. I am also not a huge fan of pastels which is why our daughters shared nursery is blue and yellow
    3) BBB has an awesome return policy. I had a friend that returned a baby monitor a year later for a full refund.
    4) Have you heard my myregistry.com you can register at ANY store you want and guests just use this one interface. I liked it because I did not have one "go to" store that I liked

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  17. Okay, I was doing fine and dandy not knowing the name until you threw that in there, so now I'M DYING TO KNOW.

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  18. I've been a Mom all of five minutes, but I can already tell you what we can't live without: swaddlers, the velcro-kind. LittleM LOVES them and he sleeps so soundly wrapped up in the love of those. Also, I wanted to tell you before you buy the crib stuff, make sure you look up the regulations regarding crib bedding. We were told by the hospital and our pediatrician that we couldn't have anything in the crib other than a sheet.

    I am DYING with excitement for you! We need our phone date!

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  19. When my parents were first married right out of high school my mom wanted a baby. My dad bought her a cabbage patch doll and her name was Esmeralda. I still have her.

    But I'm kinda glad as a teacher that isn't the name you picked.

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  20. Glad you heard from baby mama...y'all are going to amazing parents. So freakin' excited for you.

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  21. What a wonderful weekend!! Dying to know her name, now :)

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  22. Hurray for reassuring texts, niece cuddles, adorable nursery fabric, and fun in baby stores! Can't wait to learn her name, too!

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  23. Yeah, I reaaaaallly want to know the name. Stop being so coy :)

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  24. I am so glad things got better. This might be a dumb question but do you and Matt get to name baby or does birth mom get to name her?

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  25. I've loved catching up on you the last couple days. Your last few posts have been so amazing to read. I'm so happy for you and I can tell you are absolutely thrilled to be welcoming this baby girl so SOON!!!

    Annnnd high five on the crib bedding dilemma. I had the same problem. I ended up having my grandma make a quilt out of my old very very very favorite bedding that fit our own queen bed. And I LOVE it!!! And it has no cartoon puppies or dinosaurs or anything! YAY.

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  26. Cute crib fabric! You should do a DIY tutorial on all these fun craft projects. I am embarrassed to admit I took 3 sewing classes in college and still choose iron-on adhesive or velcro over using my sewing machine. Can't wait for the magical name reveal!

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  27. I can't wait to hear her name!! :)

    I love your bedding. LOVE! I have thought i might have to do the make-your-own thing b/c i haven't seen anything i like for a baby girl. I've seen a few that would do for a baby boy, though. The girl who taught my bootcamp classes - her colors were aqua & orange kinda like yours - it was SO cute! And for a baby girl, too. I am sorta the same as in i don't love pink. I more than likely would do a cute aqua color with little tidbits of pink. But not baby pink. Maybe a fun pink. :) Anyway... love your color scheme!

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  28. Excellent stroller choice!! We LOVE our Citi Mini. 120% worth the extra money. I literally can hold Clara on my hip/in one arm and break down and load the stroller with my other arm. Amazing!

    What a fun weekend! Can't wait to hear her name! I think we finally decided too :)

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  29. You are gonna LOOOVE your stroller!!! No joke. My older sister has it, I have the city select ( I like b/c I'll be needing a double, but hate how big it is), and we LOVE our baby jogger strollers. They fold easy, are lighter than most, and are so freakin' maneuverable. Go ahead and bask in the fact you bought it because you will be so glad you did.

    I really like your fabric choices for bedding. Super cute!

    Continuing to pray God brings this adoption to a favorable end for you!

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