We're Still At It...

Craig and I spent yet another weekend working on and finishing up various projects in the nursery.

Project #1--Craig finished installing cubbies in one of the closets. He also installed a lower closet rod in that same closet. Last, but certainly not least, he installed lights in both of the nursery closets. I think he did a great job and now we're ready to store the numerous baby items that we will be needing!

Project #2--A few months ago we found a great rocker at the local Goodwill for only $30. It was in perfect condition... no scratches on the wood and no tears or stains on the cushions. Even though the cushions were in good shape I was a little bored by their beige color. I suggested to Craig and I sew slip covers for them... he agreed and suggested that I use a turquoise colored fabric. I think it turned out great... definitely a pop of color and a HUGE improvement of the old cushion color!

Project #3--We found a really cute, handmade mobile at a neat little shop in Gatlinburg last month. We finally got around to hanging it above the crib.

Project #4--I had a little yellow night light that I bought a few years ago that I thought would work well in the nursery. Unfortunately, I didn't really care for the plain white shade on it. So, I decided to jazz it up a little bit with different colored ribbons. All it took was 20 minutes and a glue gun. The end result is definitely more fun and the plain lamp shade it had before!

Crib Creations!

Since we decided not to do the traditional themed nursery, but rather to do a modern, brightly colored nursery, we hadn't been able to find any crib bedding that would work the way we wanted it to. Most crib bedding is themed and/or consists of softer, more pastel colors... not at all what we are looking for. The only bedding that we thought could possibly work we saw online at Ikea. Unfortunately, it was part of last years collection and is no longer available in the stores or online.

So, after many disappointing and frustrating searches online and in stores I decided that I would try to make my own crib bedding. I stumbled across this great "decorative tapestry" at Target and thought that it would be just perfect!

So, I decided to use the fabric tapestry to make a duvet cover and pillow case for the crib comforter and pillow that we had previously purchased at Ikea.

I attached snaps to both the duvet cover and pillow case so that Bailey couldn't get tangled in them. Here's a picture of the completed duvet... I think it turned out just fab!

I thought that I would try to make bumper pads out of the remaining tapestry fabric. I wasn't quite sure how to do this, but I was able to find a couple websites that gave me a good idea of how to get started. Once I got going it was pretty easy to figure out!

Here is the completed bumper pad... another fabulous creation! I think all of the colors really look great up against the bright green nursery walls!

Here's a shot of all three completed items... the bumper pads, pillow, and duvet. The plan is to use solid colored fitted sheets (courtesy of Ikea) with these items as a contrast. I'm still debating whether or not to make a dust ruffle.

What a fun way to spend a weekend! It truly is amazing what a little creativity and a sewing machine can do!

Labor Day in Charleston!

Craig and I spent the Labor Day weekend in Charleston, SC. We stayed with some friends of the family and had a fun time visiting with them and catching up. The weather was just beautiful... what a perfect weekend to head to the low country!

The view of the marsh and the intercoastal waterway from Jim and Jan's back deck... what a view to wake up to each morning!

We spend Saturday enjoying the sunshine at the beach on Kiawah Island. Not too hot and not too crowded... the absolute perfect day to go to the beach!

Sunday was spent poking around in all of the stores on King Street and in the Market in downtown Charleston. We definitely got our exercise!

A Great Smokey Mountain Birthday!

Yesterday was Craig's birthday. We decided to celebrate by taking a day trip down to Gatlinburg. It had been years since I had visited there and Craig had never been, so we were looking forward to seeing what all there was to offer down there.

We started off by enjoying a nice lunch at Calhoun's. We then took a ride up the Ober Gatlinburg aerial tramway to the top of Mount Harrison. It was a nice way to take in the views of the town and of the Great Smokey Mountains in the distance.

And of course we spent some time poking around in all the different shops.

After finishing up in Gatlinburg we then headed through Pigeon Forge, to some of the outlet stores, before heading back home. What an exhausting, but fun, way to spend a Saturday!

Too Cute...

Sydney decided to curl up in my lap and cuddle with Bailey while she was kicking away in my belly this afternoon! He just layed there for 10-15 minutes snuggling with her!

I think he's really looking forward to having a little sister and he's going to be a very good puppy brother! What a sweet boy he is!

The Crib is Here!

Today, Bailey's crib arrived! So, Craig decided to go ahead and put it together tonight. I was under strict instuctions NOT to help! Craig wanted to do it all himself! He was however, very closely supervised by Sydney throughout the entire process.

All in all, it took about 45-50 minutes from start to finish... not bad considering some of the distractions he had to put up with (Sydney trying to "help" and me constantly snapping pictures). I think the crib looks simply beautiful... job well done Craig! More to come...

Nursery Re-do Part I

So Craig and I are trying to get a jump start on the nursery. We're not necessarily going with a particular "theme" per se... instead we decided to just do a variety of bright, funky colors . We thought that we would start with the paint. We decided to pick a brighter, more fun shade of green called Honeydew... this paint is definitely a big change from the old paint color!

Here's a reminder of what the bedroom paint looked like before... a darker, olive green.

Craig looked a littler nervous about the new color at first...

...but in the end he LOVED it!

I think we're off to a good start! More nursery re-do to come! Next post... the crib! Can't wait until it's delivered!