[Nursery] All we need is a baby!

Our crib bedding finally arrived earlier this week, and I couldn't love it more! We had quite the debacle with getting it ordered and finished, but I finally found a great vendor on Etsy, thanks to the referral of a sorority sister. Her work is impeccable, and it is exactly what we were hoping for. Here are some updated photos with everything... all we need now is the baby! :)

They can't wait to meet their sister! <3

[Nursery] More progress

We have progress! We found the perfect teal colored curtains at Target, and got them hung last night... this then allowed for us to hang the "whitney" letters I've been so excited about, too! It turned out great!

[Nursery] Progress and setbacks

I've totally procrastinated posting updates on the nursery (and in general) for several reasons:

1. I'm freaking exhausted all the time! :) I went to bed at 7 two nights last week, and could easily do it most nights, but life gets in the way
2. I was hoping to have our crib bedding, curtains, etc. to share, as they were due to be done January 7th

Unfortunately we've had a major setback with the bedding and everything... we initially placed the order back in November, and everything was to be ready at the beginning of this month. After several phone calls to check in after the new year went unreturned, I started to get worried. Then we've gotten a total runaround for the past three weeks since then... stories have included: the fabric was on backorder, the curtains were ready/not ready, the other fabric hasn't shipped yet and they don't know why, no one will return their emails, woah is them, it's not their fault, etc. Well, today was the final straw when they were supposed to call me with tracking numbers for the fabric that had yet to be ordered last Friday, and I still hadn't heard from them today. There's no excuse for not returning phone calls!

We had a doctor's appointment this afternoon and decided to go by their factory to see if they were there, since they weren't answering their phone and returning our calls. Sure enough, still no proof that the fabric was even ordered, and I was OVER IT. We asked if they were prepared to give us a discount on the balance due since things were so late, and they said no. We asked for our deposit back (and received it).

It turned out they did have our glider covers done, and just before we left, they decided to give them to us at no charge... which was VERY nice. Low and behold, we got home and discovered they'd also had the pillow covers done and they were in the bag with the glider covers. Granted, they were done in the wrong fabric (they were supposed to be floral), but they look really nice on the grey couch, so I can't complain.

Wes and I realized tonight that the cost of the glider cover and pillow covers were what would've made us happy if they'd agreed to discount our order... so essentially they gave them to us for FREE, and LOST our order. If they'd given us that amount off of the order, we would've waited on the other items. Silly!

That being said, I strongly recommend that you NOT use The Baby Guy for anything bedding related! He has a factory shop in Santa Fe Springs, but sells mostly out of the OC Swap Meet/OC Marketplace on the weekends. While his work is gorgeous, his business practices are incredibly sketchy.

So now the search is on to find a seamstress or someone on Etsy to make the rest of the stuff... know anyone? Let me know!

But in the mean time, things are certainly starting to come together... some photos:

We love how the pink pops off the grey walls!

We spruced up a plain white bookcase with fabric along the back!

Eventually the crib will have bedding...!

We put shelves up on the tree. Love it!

Hopefully we can get bedding and curtains done in the next few weeks, but regardless, Whitney will be in a bassinet in our room for a few months, so we have time!

[Fun] Horton Family bassinet

We've been planning to have Whitney in our bedroom when she first comes home, and had registered for a pack-n-play with a built in bassinet and changing table. About a month ago, my girlfriend Juliana contacted me to ask if we had a bassinet...

I met Juliana and her then boyfriend/now husband my sophomore year at Sonoma, and she is my sorority sister. We were in one other's weddings, and have always had an amazing connection. She's mom to four handsome boys, and has a heart of gold. Her husband and his family are equally fabulous, and his mother-in-law heard I was pregnant, and asked Juliana if I would be interested in using the Horton Family bassinet.

Now this isn't any old bassinet... it's been in their family since 1956! Every child and grandchild born since then has slept in it, and it is not only incredibly meaningful, it's absolutely precious! Juliana & John bought new bedding for it when their oldest son was born, and it is all darling. I mentioned it to Wes, and we were both overcome with how sweet of an offer it was. We gladly accepted, and can't wait to bring Whitney home to sleep in it!

[Nursery] Mural

Our dear friend Stephanie and her mom Diana gave us the incredible gift of their time and talent... and painted a mural in Whit's nursery! We fell in love with the idea of having a tree on one wall, and found some really fun ideas to work from thanks to Pinterest. We'll eventually have shelves on three of the tree branches that are more flat and long. We'll use the shelves to put little trinkets and photos.

Diana will also be painting a Disney quote on canvas for us to hang over the crib. We love that the nursery is coming together, and can't wait to have Whitney here to enjoy it! <3

The tree as it came together:

  

  

[Random Thoughts] Yes, I can!

A few weeks ago we had a guest speaker at school, Akbar Gbaja-Biamila. Akbar is one of our assistant football coaches at Sage, and this summer he appeared on ABC's Expedition Impossible with some of his football buddies (he played at San Diego State and in the NFL for several years). He is a Pac-12 football sideline commentator, and aspiring motivational speaker.

He spoke during the assembly at school about the power of positive thinking. He showed several video clips of well-known athletes who'd experienced failures and setbacks in their lives, but yet they became heroes and role models, and found incredible success.

He asked us to think of a time we were told we couldn't do something... and call it the pregnancy hormones, but I was taken to the time when one of the many doctors we encountered in our quest to get pregnant told me, "Oh, you'll never get pregnant." 

As I listened to Akbar speak, I quietly rubbed my belly and started to tear up. If I'd listened to that doctor -- or anyone who ever told me I couldn't do something in my life -- who knows where I'd be today? If I can teach anything to Whitney in her life, I hope it's that a positive attitude and tenacity will take her far.

Akbar wrapped up his time with us by sharing a poem that was his life motto. My several tears turned into full on bawling as I listened to him recite this from memory:

You Can If You Think You Can!

If you think you are beaten, you are,

If you think you dare not, you don't.

If you like to win, but you think you can't,

It is almost certain you won't.

If you think you'll lose, you're lost,

For out in the world we find,

Success begins with a fellow's will.

It's all in the state of mind.

If you think you are outclassed, you are,

You've got to think high to rise,

You've got to be sure of yourself before

You can ever win a prize.

Life's battles don't always go

To the stronger or faster man.

But soon or late the man who wins,

Is the man who thinks he can.

~ C. W. Longenecker ~

I know that Wes and I were meant to be parents, and we stopped at nothing to make this dream come true. Whether we got pregnant or adopted a child (or children!), positive thinking helped us get there. 

A while ago we decided to have a quote stenciled on to the wall of our child's nursery, and the one we picked goes along with this post. I can't wait for Whitney to wake up every day and read this as a reminder to dream, think positively, and believe "Yes, I can!"

[Nursery] Bedding

After going back and forth 1,712,345 times, I *think* we've finalized the fabric choices for the bedding, curtains, etc.! We're going to see the "Baby Guy" this weekend who will be making the bedding (his prices are more reasonable than buying pre-made stuff in a store, and his quality is fantastic!). The photo above shows the fabrics we're going with (the pink is slightly off, but it will coordinate with the bright pink in the print).

I can't wait to see it come together!

[Nursery] Alphabet Wall

 

Thanks to my new favorite website (it's totally addicting, so click carefully!), Pinterest, we've gotten a lot of wonderful ideas for baby stuff and nursery decor. One of the ideas we like the most is having an alphabet wall in Whitney's nursery. We've mentioned this concept to a few family members and friends, and we love that people are now "letter shopping!" If you happen to find any fun, colorful or creative letters out there, let us know! We'll have everyone sign the back of the letter they give us, and it will be a wonderful addition to Whit's nursery.

A few questions people have asked...

• How big should the letters be? No more than 12" high.
• What color should the letters be? Anything! If they happen to be raw wood, then we can paint them with colors based on what will look best. But if they're already finished wood, a color, metallic, etc., leave it that way!
• Does it have to be an actual letter? Not at all! Some of the pictures we've seen as inspiration show the "O" as a life preserver, a big button, or a round mirror; or the "U" as a horseshoe. We love that!
• Some other inspiration photos for ideas:

 

Just keep us posted if you find a specific letter so we don't get duplicates! Thanks for helping to make this fun wall for the nursery!

Letters we still need:
D
I
T
U
X
Y

Letters done/people are working on:

A

B

C
E

F

G
H
J
K
L
M
N
O
P

Q
R
S
V
W
Z

[Nursery] Furniture!

First "Daddy Duty," building the crib!

We went shopping on Saturday to check out nursery furniture... we had no idea we'd hit the jackpot over the weekend, and take nursery preparation from zero to a hundred this week! We went and looked at a few stores and found the perfect set at Bergstrom's, a local baby & children's store in Orange County. We absolutely love the set we selected! The dresser and changing table came already assembled, and Wes was excited to put together the crib. It came together perfectly!

We also met with the "Baby Guy" to discuss custom bedding for the nursery, and narrowed down our choices for fabrics and color combinations. We ordered a few fabric swatches to make sure we like what we picked, and should be ready to place the order next week! It will take six weeks to complete everything, so it's perfect timing!

On Sunday we spent a fun day together up in Oak Glen apple country, and on the way home we looked for a loveseat for the nursery - we wanted one that folds out into a twin or full size bed. The first place we went had the perfect option, but we looked a few more places just to be sure... we ended up calling and ordering the one we saw first, and it will be delivered before Thanksgiving! It is a grey color similar to the walls.

Then Sunday night we were browsing online for a rocker/glider, and couldn't find anything in the colors we wanted... then it struck me that the "Baby Guy" could probably do a custom cover for us to match the bedding in the room. But why buy a new glider just to cover it? I went onto Craigslist and found a Dutalier glider in great condition being sold for only $50! The couple lived in Lake Forest so we went to check it out, and it was perfect for what we need! We'll have it recovered to match the room, and the original price on it was around $400... score!

We realized that all we need now is a mattress for the crib, bedding, a stroller and a carseat, and Whitney can come anytime! :) It feels great to have accomplished so much this week, and I get giddy every time I walk by the nursery and realize I'm not dreaming - it really is all coming together!

[Nursery] Paint!

We kicked off Whitney's nursery decorating today! It was so exciting to come home to the walls painted. We dabbled with doing the paint ourselves, but then decided to put a call into our buddy Paul, who did all of our house painting when we bought the house. He came by yesterday, and gave us a price we couldn't refuse. He asked when we wanted it done, and I told him by the end of November... his response was, "How's tomorrow morning? I'll be done by noon." Love it! Thanks, Paul - you're amazing!

Boring before... 

Dazzling after!

  

Of course the pictures are much more telling when they have subjects in them... look how sad the pups look in the boring white room. And don't they look pretty in the gray room? Hee.

 

Next up: furniture! We're going shopping for the crib, dresser and changing table this weekend - we can't wait! We're on the lookout for a loveseat w/ twin or full sleeper sofa, too. I've found a few I like, but not necessarily in the right color or price range.