At our 19-week ultrasound on Monday, we found out that our growing baby is a BOY! Andrew and I are thrilled and even more excited to meet him! For some reason, I had a feeling it might be a boy. Part of me was hoping for a girl (and the majority "vote" of friends and family was for a girl). Now that we know, I'm so excited and I can't help daydreaming of what he will be like.
During our ultrasound it was amazing to see how much he's grown and continues to develop. 10 fingers, 10 toes, arms and legs, his cute little profile, his beautiful beating heart. He was VERY active and kept moving around. So much so, we had to take a break before continuing to get all of the views and measurements. He kept rolling around - I have a feeling this is a sign of things to come... The most adorable part, was watching him keep putting his tiny hands in front of his face, almost as if he was being bashful.
We're working on a name(s), which is proving to be a bit challenging! We're keeping that a secret until he arrives. I've also started thinking about how to decorate his room.
I'm feeling good (aside from not sleeping so great). I'm really enjoying this second trimester. I just feel so happy and thankful. I love my growing belly and still look at it in disbelief. Most of all, we are tremendously grateful that baby boy Ohl is healthy and growing right on schedule. Tomorrow I'll be at the half way mark! I can't believe how quickly the weeks are passing. I keep trying to imagine what it will be like to see him for the first time and hold him in my arms.
In May, I started a "mini" makeover of our master bedroom. I was ready to say goodbye to the overall brown and blue color scheme, and say hello to pops of color and a more modern feel. My goal was to keep expenses low (it usually is), to make use of what I already had and to incorporate some new must-haves (like window treatments).
First, lets take a look at the BEFORE. (Sorry, these photos aren't the greatest and the lighting is poor, but it adds to the "before" feeling, right?) The walls are light blue and chocolate brown, even though they appear to be different colors.
At the time, I really liked the brown and blue combination. It was cozy but the dark brown actually made the room feel smaller. I am officially over accent walls. Our comforter set had a flourish pattern which I temporarily covered with a pale blue duvet. I wanted something more versatile and neutral. Now let's look at the AFTER!
Isn't it pretty now? So much lighter, brighter and airy feeling. We used the same light blue paint (Sherwin-Williams "Rain") to cover the brown walls and re-paint the wall with the branch mural on one side of the room (so 3 out of the 4 walls were painted). That made the biggest difference right away.
Here are some of the details: My painted coral nightstands have a home! They really add that pop of color and incorporate the coral color palette for the whole room. The grey reversible down-alternative comforter from JCPenny is one of my favorite purchases because it's so comfortable, versatile and it kept going on sale so I got it for a great price. I purchased 3 smaller accent pillows/pillow covers and I made simple envelope covers for the euro pillows I already had with $7 worth of fabric.
The Umbra Urna Double Curain Rod was also a purchase from JCPenny.com that was well worth it. It has two rods so you can hang sheers and panels with out having to mess with two separate rods. Installation was by far the easiest I've ever experienced. It's sturdy and elegant.
The window curtains are actually 2 shower curtains that I found at Target and added large rings to. More to come on that project. I seem to gravitate to Ikat pattern and the dark blue is so pretty against the light blue walls. I guess I don't like to use typical curtains - like the time I made our shower curtain out of a table cloth. I'm a believer in customizing things to fit your needs - and saving money while doing it! The white dresser was a thrift store find for $20! Jackpot! I like it in our room, but I may move it to the baby's room to use as the changing table. I just love saying "baby's room".
I found the small gold sunburst mirror at Pier 1 and was able to use a gift card I'd been holding onto. It's a metal "real" version of the large sunburst mirror I made for our living room. The botanical prints and wall art collage are a combination of re-purposed frames, simple artwork I printed or made and creative arrangements of things I had around the house. The rope mirror and small initials are from Hobby Lobby (with coupons, of course). The charming pair of vintage lamps were a gift from my Aunt Evelyn that I'd been holding onto for years. They just needed new shades. Aren't they adorable? They used to sit on her and my Uncle Pete's bedroom dresser and I commented one time during a visit that I liked them, and she gave them to me a few years before she passed away. They're even more special to me now.
Our biggest splurge was a new mattress and new sheets. They're so comfortable! It's definitely worth the investment if you've been neglecting your bedroom. I find that people don't usually put as much effort into their bedroom because "no one sees it." Except, the truth is, you see it everyday and it should be an inviting and restful environment where you can be refreshed and enjoy spending time in.
Pinterest definitely played a role in helping me narrow down the style I wanted and collecting inspiration and ideas that I wanted to incorporate. My bedroom pin board was especially helpful when I was shopping because it kept me on track while I was looking for the right elements and sticking to a color palette.
That's a look at our "new" master bedroom. I just love how it turned out! It took some time, careful shopping and creativity but it was well worth it.
Sharpie mug projects have been making their rounds on Pinterest for a while and I've wanted to give it a try. I was curious to see if it's as easy as it looks. Finding inexpensive plain white mugs was half the battle! For some reason they were difficult to find - probably because I was looking for them!
The type of Sharpie is critical. I learned that OIL BASED Sharpie's work best. I found a variety of individual colors at Hobby Lobby. This tutorial was especially helpful and guided me step by step.
My cousin Nicole and her fiance Matt are getting married in October, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to make a Mr. and Mrs. set to add to her bridal shower gift.
I measured the area of the mug where I wanted my design to go, then I designed my type on the computer and printed it out. I cut out the paper and scribbled pencil on the backs. Then I taped the paper to the mug and traced the outlines of the type onto the mugs. Next, I drew the design right onto the mug with the Sharpie's and let it dry overnight. I baked them the next day at 425 degrees for 30 minutes - placing the mugs in the oven when it was cool, and leaving them overnight to cool completely after baking.
Aren't they cute? I would definitely like to make more of these. It was a relatively quick project and you can customize them for anyone.
