stickin' it to pinterest - vol. 1

so if you follow me on facebook, you may have caught my little bout of pinterest anxiety the other night.  i can waste time on that site with the best of them & after a while it makes me anxious.  why?  so so many projects/recipes/outfits/diy crafts/home decor ideas/kids games/blah blah blahs that i LOVE, but i may or may not ever look to pinterest again when it comes time to use them in the future.  ya know?

in short, it fills me up with inspiration & then i hear this little voice saying, "hey, you just spent all kinds of time looking at random things on my site.  are you ever gonna do anything with all of this?"

actually yes i am, stupid belittling pinterest-voice.  i am.

so here's how this is gonna go down.  every now & then i'm gonna do a pinterest-inspired post.  it may be a recipe, a craft, or my interpretation of an outfit i pinned.

this is me stickin' it to pinterest.

i picked this project because i really just wanted to improve my sewing skills.  sewing triangles to a ribbon seemed easy enough & the reading nook in p-rays room needed a little somethin-somethin.  win win.

here are sites i had pinned for inspiration:  this.  this.
and here's the tutorial i {semi} followed:  tutorial here.

but honestly?  i pretty much made it up as i went along.  here's what i did & how you can do it too.

parker was such a trooper in the fabric store.  it is SO hard for me to decide on fabrics... there are just so many!  i'm like a kid in a candy store.

i bought half a yard of each color, which was way more than i needed.  if i was to do it over, i'd just use the little scraps for a buck or so each & do way more colors.  like, a couple different orange patterns, a couple different blues, etc.

i experimented with different pattern sizes until i liked the way the triangles looked.  i think my final ones ended up being 5.5" across the top & 6" down the sides.  like the tutorial, i chose to have a raw edge on my flags rather than finished.  i like the look of it, & it's way easier.

so you cut out all your triangles, stick them back to back {"wrong" sides together} and sew down the sides.  i left the tops open since they'd get shut when sewing the ribbon on top.

i measured out my ribbon to the length i wanted & then started laying out my flags.  you can experiment with spacing & color patterns.  you're the boss of you.

then i folded my ribbon down the horizontal line & ironed it so it'd stay folded over nicely for pinning & sewing.  wanna know a secret?  sam helped me hold down the ribbon so i could iron it, but he probably wouldn't want you to know he helped.  so don't tell anyone.

i only pinned about four or five flags on at a time & then went & sewed them on just so it didn't get too crazy keeping it all together.  again, personal choice.

after you've sewn all the flags on you can sew up your ribbon ends & celebrate!  because you're done.  easy peasy.

ok, actually this wasn't suuuuuper easy for me since it was my first time sewing all on my own.  but it was a huge learning experience.  i got way better by the end & i even had to do all kinds of crazy things like re-thread my machine on the top & the bottom.  AND, i even had to wind up my bobbin!  i used youtube tutorials for help with that.

i feel like an old pro.

so here it is in p-ray's room.  it was really hard to get a good picture of it so you could catch the "essence" of what it looks like.  if you want to see more of his room, check out his nursery tour here.

{bookshelves stolen from here}

and yeah, those bookshelves are totally photo-shopped in.  they'll be added soon & it will complete his little reading nook!  this is where he gets stories read to him in his great-grandma opal's rocker before naps & bedtime.

so yeah.  i think my first pinterest-ing project was a success!  take that, pinterest.

wanna feel successful?  just click twice to vote.  you'll succeed every time.

p-ray's poster giveaway

so i've gotten quite a few emails asking about the alpha poster seen in the nursery post. it's an 11" x 14" print i made custom for p-ray's room.

i am so happy with the way it turned out & i wanna share the love. sooooooo......

i'm going to be giving away a custom alpha poster to a blog reader!

how is it custom you ask? just show me your colors & i can adjust it accordingly. for example, the image below has oranges & blues incorporated as opposed to the more neutral color scheme i chose for parker's room {think pinks & purples, or neons or black/white. whatever your heart desires}.

sweet.


don't have any need for nursery art? enter anyway! c'mon, it's free stuff. give it away to a friend's-brother's-pregnant-aunt. or maybe just use it as a placemat for your dog dishes?

the point is, i want to know who's out there. i get a pretty decent number of hits to the blog every day & i wanna know who you are.

so, here's how to enter:

1. become a follower of "i guess you could say we have..." on google friend connect - 3 entries
{already a follower? just mention that in a comment & i'll give ya the entries}

2. vote for "i guess you could say we have..." in the top baby blogs - 1 entry/day
{i can't see who voted, so just tell me you did in a comment. i trust ya.}

3. comment this post & tell me how long you've been reading & how you found us - 2 entries

A winner will be picked one week from today, september 6 at 10:00 pm pst using random.org.

and if you couldn't care less about an alpha poster, or nursery things, or giving away something that cool to someone who might like it, just keep on lurking & living in your shadows.

late night randoms

so i'm blogging at midnight the night before my one-day-a-week-in-the-office workday. why is it that i always get a rush of urgent to-dos late at night before a work day? yes, blogging falls under the "urgent to-do" category. life is hard.

the items discussed in this post are truly random... so, first things first:

better late than never

our nursery was featured on spearmint baby!
{waits for applause & cheering to die down}

way back in july. oops. ah well. you can check us out here:

that'll take you to someone else's blog who posted the exact pictures i already posted on my blog. but hey, it's my stuff on someone else's stuff. so therefore, i'm proud.

today's discovery


so remember how i waited in line for the new iphone 4 for 12 hours? well today i made a discovery that made it all worth it. it has voice controls. through the headphones. yup. now, everyone run out and buy one.

you see, i was out running with my new running partner... {insert token cute baby picture here}


...and had my iphone in a carrying case on my arm. i had already discovered the volume controls on the headphones, but i then noticed a strange mystery button in between them. i held it down and heard a little "duh duh" sound. i went out on a limb and said, "play playlist 'workout music'". my phone repeated back to me, "playing playlist 'workout music'". it then proceeded to do exactly that.

and then i fell in love. again.

you see, when i went down to working my day job as an ecologist part time, i knew there would have to be some monetarily/lifestyle cutbacks. i told sam i will be barefoot & starving before i give up my iphone. i meant it.

and lastly

you may have noticed my new "top baby blogs" badge on the top right of my sidebar. i joined this blog directory today but have to get continued "votes" to be ranked where anyone will ever see me. after reading my posts, if you wouldn't mind clicking the little badge, and then hitting that top link i would be much obliged.

oh, & you can vote daily. just sayin'.

gracias.

where parker lives

this has been a long time coming. i've been wanting to post pictures of parker's nursery but hadn't gotten around to taking the pictures.

plus, it's not completely finished. i still want to add a reading lamp over the rocker & a couple shelves on that wall. but really, is any room ever really finished? not to an ocd decorator like myself.
parker took a 2.5 hour nap yesterday. it was conveniently just enough time to get these pics snapped & edited the way i like.

and fyi, he still sleeps in our room. but the crib looks nice, right?

and what would one of my posts be without a little eye candy? here's the little man himself. thinking about how someday in the near future, he's gonna have a pretty sweet room all to himself.

37 Weeks & Some Progress

Not the kind of progress one might think of when referring to a pending due date. No dilation, no effacement for those who are interested. Nope, I'm talking progress in being READY for Baby N.

Things are coming together. The nursery is taking shape and I think a baby could probably actually live in this house if he had to.

I'll give you a sneak peek into what's goin on in the nursery, I know you're all dying to see. I actually ordered his bedding this week and have been watching the UPS tracking info like a hawk. This is his bedding:


And my mom is working on some art to put up above the crib, which I'm super excited about... it's gonna look something like this:


Freakin cute, right? Don't worry, if you like it I can hook you up. She does this stuff for a living.

Oh, and this week's splurge/source of excitement? I bought Baby Boy a sock monkey. I couldn't be happier with him.

37 Week Update - FULL TERM


If I was to go into labor today, this baby would be considered fully baked. All his vital organs are fully developed and all he's doing in there from now on is getting fatter. Just like his momma. So... any day now Baby Boy!!


At 37 weeks, needless to say... I'm uncomfortable. Sleep is the worst, followed only by walking. Oh yeah, and standing up... and getting out of bed... and getting out of the car... and... you get the idea.

I found a new source of happiness this week. SWIMMING. It felt amazing to glide through the water feeling completely weightless without any sort of weight or pressure on my back/pelvis. I went yesterday, and am counting down the minutes til I go again tomorrow.

I was a bit nervous about walking out into the public pool amongst onlookers of all sorts at 37 weeks prego, but I got over it quick. I love my big bump. The real self-confidence tester will be doing the same thing a few weeks post-prego... oy vey.

35 Weeks & What is the deal with the Sock Monkey?

Seriously? Why have I seen these things everywhere? Am I missing out on some sort of inside joke? It seems like they've come from nowhere and taken over everything from nursery themes, to car commercials (ie: the controversial Kia Sorento commercial that first aired during the Superbowl... controversial b/c it showed sock monkeys in Las Vegas, and there weren't supposed to be any references to Vegas during the Superbowl), to... well, I don't know what else. But it seems like they're all over the place. Can someone please fill me in?

In the meantime, here's a life-sized monkey that is worth sharing:

Meet my bro-in-law Jason. And here's the setting: 11:00pm on a Saturday night. Sam and I are getting ready to leave Vancouver and head home when before we even know what's happening, Jason starts Gorilla-suiting-up for who knows what reason. Do you really need a reason to be a grown man in a gorilla suit? Really? It was legendary.


35 Week Update

And then there were 5 weeks. Left. One month. No, really... one month from THIS Sunday is the big due date. Not that I'm holding my breath because I know the average first time mom goes like, 41 weeks 3 days or something. But let's not think such horrible thoughts.


Baby Boy's probably around 18" long and weighing in around 5 - 5.5 pounds these days. Kinda like the above pictured honey dew. Only, the honey dew in my belly has lots more pokey limbs that like to jab at my ribs and tickle my insides. Silly honey dew.


At 35 weeks I'm finding myself sore-er than ever. But, who needs details. If I write them down then I'll have to remember them later, right? We do want at least one more kid, so I'm gonna spare my future self the pain of remembering how being 35 weeks prego feels and skip the griping for this week (and no, the term "prego" doesn't bother me... but it really bothers some prego girls).

I had my 2nd shower this last week... and it was a blasty-blast. I'm gonna post-pone details until I get pictures to post, since they were taken on a friend's camera. For now, just know that it was super fun and I was so touched by all who came and all the thoughtful gifts people gave, and all the effort lots of people went through to put the whole thing on! I went home a happy girl that night.


Ok, so back to the sock monkey. I think I like them, and I think I will get one for Baby N's nursery. But seriously, what is the deal with them??

33 Weeks & Our First Shower

And the weeks just keep flying by. That is definitely one thing that a busy life is good for! Between work, church stuff, baby prep, working out, keeping a clean house and washed hair, the days are zooming by.

33 Weeks. How did we get this far? Less than 7 weeks away... a month and a half... under 50 days. Next month. How many different ways can I say this to not make it feel so far away yet so close all at once?

Things are starting to feel real. I can feel Baby N's movements getting stronger and I can tell he is getting much bigger. Watching my belly contort and move all over the place is now not only one of MY favorite activities, but my co-workers' as well. Usually around 9:30am every morning, a small crowd gathers around my cubicle to watch Baby N do his daily stretching and rolling routine. He doesn't disappoint.

So, speaking of my co-workers, they did something amazing this week... they threw us a BABY SHOWER!

Our First Baby Shower


This had been on my calendar since January, but it had always felt so far away. Well, yesterday was the big day and it was a BLAST! Sam was able to come (it was co-ed, w/ all my co-workers) and he actually had a really good time. He was a bit hesitant as showers are not known to be the most masculine of activities, but there were quite a few guys there and no cheesy baby games, so he did just fine.


My co-workers really went all out. The room was decked out in a jungle theme (we're doin the nursery in jungle animals) and the food was amazing, complete with a chocolate fountain and jungle chocolate cupcakes!

Everyone was super generous and Sam and I both were just floored with how thoughtful everyone was. We were given blankets, clothes, books, toys, giftcards, and words of advice. It was amazing... I cannot thank them all enough!!

33 Week UpdateAnother week down, another week closer to meeting Baby N! And one less week left to prepare myself and everything around me for his arrival. Gulp.

Like I said, he's getting big. babycenter.com says he is similar to the size of a pineapple (but I'm not sure if this is with or without the spikey hair...?) Imagine giving birth to one of those... ouch. He could be a bit over 4 lbs. and 17" from head to toe.

From here on out I'm supposed to gain a pound a week, and about half of that goes straight to Baby Boy. At least I can mark one thing off my to-do list... gain weight: check and check. And check.