Jacob's room

Jacob's room is all set-up and decorated. We love the way our little monster's room turned out!

monster prints from Etsy

Chris is still finalizing the plans for the built in shelving and the closet & bedroom doors need to be hung, but Jacob isn't sleeping in his room yet anyways so we've got time to get it done. 

Welcome baby Jacob!

Jacob Matthew was born one day early on Friday, November 15th at 1:34pm. He weighed in at 7lb 3oz and is 19.5 inches long. 

ready to go home!

I was feeling really crappy at work on Thursday and let my boss know that I would need to take Friday off. I figured I was going to rest and set up some more baby items that were still in boxes & bags since Chris had gotten the baby's room 90% finished. 

I wasn't able to sleep Thursday night and hung out on the couch with Chris for a while. Baby Jake was very active in my belly and was kicking and punching me. I finally decided that I needed to try to go to bed and I started to feel weird pressure in my lower abdomen. And then my water broke. It was scary and exciting at the same time. Contractions started about 45 minutes later and I called my OB. She said to take my time to shower, eat something, and then head into the hospital. Chris managed to get me to sit on the couch and watch 2 episodes of Friends before I just couldn't take it any more and told him we had to leave. I wasn't in pain; I was mostly just nervous and thought I would feel more relaxed being at the hospital. 

We got to the hospital around 4am and were admitted pretty quickly. I labored for a while before I got an epidural and then I was able to nap. Later on, after 2 hours of pushing, baby Jake was born. It was the most amazing experience ever. 

Our hospital stay was great and Jake passed all of the tests that are performed in the days after birth. We were finally ready to go home on Sunday and of course Chicagoland was experiencing some crazy weather (tornadoes Southwest of the city and heavy rain & winds in Chicago and Oak Park). We watched the weather on the news and checked our iPhone weather apps and decided around 1pm to make a break for it. We were lucky to leave the hospital in between storms and we got home safe & sound. 

It has been an exciting week so far. I was absolutely exhausted for 2 days after getting home and now every day is better and better. Chris and I are absolutely in love with this little man and couldn't be happier! 

baby's room - paint & trim

 This past week the baby's room was painted, the ceiling fan installed, and the trim was cut and is starting to get installed today. The closet shelves & rods should also be installed this weekend. 

We are trying to get as much done as possible today and tomorrow morning so we can move the furniture into the room and get the crib set up. The baby's furniture is currently taking up half of our living room, so once that is all moved I think Chris & I will both feel a lot better. 

Don't worry, though. We have a bassinet, clean clothes & blankets, diapers, etc. so if baby decides to come home early we are prepared. 

painted walls! 

starting to put the trim up

Still on the to-do list:

-sanding

-paint

-finish trim

-window

-finish built-in shelving

-install new heater 

-install ceiling fan

-finish floors

-move-in furniture & decorate!

37 weeks!

week 37- baby is the size of a bunch of swiss chard

I reached 37 weeks this past weekend! It seems like the past 9 months have gone pretty quickly- likely due to the fact that we've been so BUSY! But now, time is dragging. My hands and feet are constantly swollen, so typing & writing at work is a challenge and walking is not much easier...

Chris installed the carseat this weekend and I did all of the baby's laundry & packed what I could in my hospital bag. So, we're ready if Baby P decides to come early.  

I have 2 countdowns going on in my head. The first is my due date and the second is my last day of work. Initially I was planning to work up until my due date and now I'm planning to give myself a week off before my due date. There are still some things I'd like to get done before Baby P arrives, so I plan to use that off week to make some freezer meals, organize the baby's room & closet, and unpack some of my own clothes that have been stored since we moved. I'd also like to just lay on the couch and relax. 

So, that's the plan for now... 

baby's room- the hard part is over

All of the taping & sanding in the baby's room was completed last week. The walls are primed and the ceiling was primed & painted white. 

The floor has been refinished and the new window installed. So, according to Chris, all of the hard stuff is over. 

(this was taken before the new window was installed)

There are still quite a few items left on the to-do list, but nothing as time consuming as the drywall so I think we're in good shape. 

Still on the to-do list:

-sanding

-paint

-trim

-window

-finish built-in shelving

-install new heater 

-install ceiling fan

-finish floors

-move-in furniture & decorate!

Week 34 & baby shower at home

My second baby shower was this past weekend- hosted by my sister at my house. 

She did a great job planning & decorating! 

Week 34!- baby is the size of a butternut squash

Pumpkin spice bundt from Nothing Bundt Cakes. It was soooo good. 

baby's room progress

The work continues in the baby's room. There was no insulation in the room, but we were told this was a good thing since insulation from when the house was built would have basically been shredded paper which means it would have been a huge mess to remove & clean up. 

So, Chris put in some insulation. 

And then he started to finish installing the drywall on that half of the room & the closet. 

And now he's doing the taping and plastering. 

Still on the to-do list:

-sanding

-paint

-trim

-finish built-in shelving

-install new heater 

-install ceiling fan

-finish floors

-move-in furniture & decorate!

I am DYING to get in there and decorate. It's hard for me to have all of the baby stuff pile up in other areas of the house. Some days it really drives me crazy and I end up reorganizing the bags of blankets, clothes, toys, etc. 

And it's nearly impossible to keep the house clean while all of this work is going on. But, it will be over soon and it will all be worth it in the end. 

Week 32 & baby shower in Buffalo

We went to Buffalo this past week for my first baby shower. It was a great time and nice to get away from the work on the house for a few days. 

homemade desserts :) 

lots of gifts!

We also got to spend a couple of days at the cabin in Ellicottville and we had to check out "Pumpkinville" while we were there. 

32 weeks! Baby is the size of a squash. 

baby's room- electrical, framing & some new drywall

So the pantry, baby's closet, and closet to the "3rd bedroom/scary room" were all knocked out so we could make the space more functional. Chris also had to re-route some wiring so we could have a light switch for the baby's room & the pantry since neither had one. 

Before:

baby's closet

pantry

you can kind of see the closet of 3rd bedroom on the left.
This bedroom is behind the baby's room.

After:

This was where the pantry and closet to the 3rd bedroom were. (Pantry on the left)

This was where the baby's closet was. 

Here is the framing for our new pantry. 

And next to the pantry will be a built in shelf in the baby's room. 

Framing for the baby's closet. 

A new wall & ceiling! And light switch :) 

baby's room- out with the old

The baby's room had wood paneling that had been painted & an ugly drop ceiling. 

Everything is getting ripped down & out. 

This was the lathe under the paneling. 

And here is the room with everything torn out.