Nursery Update

Providing a short pictorial post to show you the "fun progress" we've made in the nursery since Easter.  No, there isn't a nursery theme, but there is definitely a color palette with the art, rug and lamp we've chosen.  Unfortunately, I took the photos with my phone, and so they are small.  I tried to make them larger, but the quality goes significantly down.  Sorry -- Final nursery photos will be with our digital camera!

We ordered a glider a couple weeks ago.  Expected arrival is at the beginning of June.  There will also be a few more accessory choices to pursue, but I'm feeling confident that this will all come together in time.

At last, the final window in the house is covered.  Thank you, Target!  

Josh's art selection.  The prints are called "Moos like Jagger".  

A new side table and lamp.

Jake enjoying the new rug.

Baby Christensen's crib and dresser arrive!

Here we go: "second trimester energy"! If by energy, they mean, "with a little more gusto than first trimester," I guess that counts.

Our collective energy has been preparing our lives and home for our new son. We found out we were expecting a healthy baby boy about 3 weeks ago. (No big announcement on names. You'll have to wait until he's here!).

Last weekend, Baby's crib and dresser arrived. Josh didn't even need to assemble these! Jake was kind enough to pose in the pictures with me and my growing belly:

The dresser top is going to double as a changing table (hopefully):

And I know what you might be thinking right now: the crib and the dresser don't MATCH! Yes, that's true, folks. We went against the grain of matchy-matchy, just like the rest of our beautiful home. We're hoping to put an eclectic vibe in here, but without the assistance of a designer this time.

So what's next? We've ordered a rug and some wall frames which will showcase some vibrant art that Josh found online (and I, even with my risk-averse nature, agreed to this purchase). We also anticipate a glider and ottoman purchase soon -- we've got fabric samples on the way.

The rest is accessories and storage which is the stage that Josh and I usually drag our feet. Thank goodness for the remaining 3.75 months!

Preview: Baby's Room

We are without all of the nursery essentials, but here's the preview of what's to come. When we moved in, this bedroom was baby blue. Two little boys lived here before us, so it worked for the previous homeowners. Not so much for us, as baby Christensen's gender is still a mystery. So prior to Thanksgiving, we had the middle bedroom repainted. At that time, we weren't pregnant. Funny how things work out.

We chose a neutral: "cream cloak". As you can see, it has a very soft green hue. In a room without a lot of natural light, this color really helps keep a bright and light feeling. We were considering a lively yellow....and well, it was a little too lively when we got the sample on the wall. Thank goodness for paint samples.

Here's the result:

Next step will be to swap the ceiling fan with the one in our bedroom (Josh broke this one in an attempt to change the light bulb). Then it will be time for furniture and accessories. Stay tuned for the finished product. It's got to be ready before August!

...and then we sawed our bed in half.

Step 1: Remove staples and box spring cover.

Step 2: Saw box spring in half.

Step 3: Fold bed in half.

At this point, you may be wondering why we cut our bed in half.  Practice for future work in divorce law?  As a magician?  Unfortunately, the truth is not so exciting.  

It turns out that our the stairway to our basement isn't tall enough for a queen-size bed spring.  Our first thought was to build a new platform for the bed in the basement, which would avoid needing to make it downstairs.  Then, while searching for ways to make one, I came across a bunch of articles titled, "How to cut your bed in half."  I was intrigued.  It turns out, not surprisingly, that we weren't the first people to have had this problem.  

The next step was to convince Renee, as we actually had a person lined up from Craig's List to buy our box spring.  At first, I think she pictured me grabbing a chainsaw and hacking the bed in half.  But, once I showed her my plan...well, you can see the results.

Step 4: Rebuild the box spring with new boards.

Step 5: Reattach cover.

Complete!  Hopefully our guests enjoy the queen-sized bed.

Happy Birthday, Josh!

Here's an early birthday wish, babe! There's a couple dozen of these waiting for you when you get home. Love you!

Honey buns!

Nope, not talking about Josh. Here's a good recipe worth checking out for a sweet breakfast treat. http://www.marthastewart.com/354671/honey-buns

Jake update

Jake really likes soft toys that squeak. We discovered this when we bought him one of his first toys: a sock monkey. He loved this toy a little too much, and though I tried to mend Monkey several times, he's since departed the Christensen homestead. Sorry, Jake! Monkey had to go!Monkey with a mended butt.

Here's Monkey. At this point, he's lost an arm and an ear.

Here's Jake recently (underneath my feet, as usual). You can also see the banister-railing sanding project is still going on. A good improvement since September!