Before & After-- Baby #2 Update

Oh my!!! I can't believe I am posting this other than it makes me feel good to know that I gained double the amount of weight with Karly than I have with this pregnancy & was able to lose it... so there is hope for me after this baby! :)

I haven't posted any prego pics in awhile & have gotten lots of requests (after this I bet I stop getting request! lol!).

Baby girl is good. I am good. I've been having contractions for awhile now but nothing to worry about. She is growing like a beast and I am predicting that she is going to be bigger than her sister was at D-Day. It is really hitting home that she will be here so soon! We are all registered & bags are packed and I think we are as ready as we can be. In a perfect world she will be here the week of July 7th- I do NOT want a 4th of July baby, I already have one kid on New Years weekend. Please no more holiday babies! And I also don't want her staying too long after that- I do this delivery thing ALL NATURAL (A.K.A NO MEDS!) hints, I don't want a 9lb+ baby! Yeah yeah yeah I'm sure it is just wonderful with an epidural, but they just aren't for me. I love the rush of delivery and the feeling of accomplishment- I'm a lot tougher than I look ;) So we will see if she wants to make mama happy! ;) You can start praying for Jason now, because we've decided against hiring a doula this time around... So he better brush up on his doula skills!

Exciting times in the Courtney house! Can't wait for this new little life & glad to know that here soon I can dust off my running shoes. It is so exciting & emotional for me to think that we will be bringing a baby home & a month later Karly will be starting KG. Life is getting ready to take a new turn! We will soak in every moment with these precious girls.

No Bake Energy Bites. I'm in love!

I'm not quite sure how stay at home moms survived before Pinterest, it is my productive addiction! Recipes, cleaning tips, DIY laundry, organization, millions of things to do with the kids-- I simply cannot get enough! I have a ridiculous amount of pins and I can honestly say I do most of them. Today I finally got around to a recipe I've been wanting so badly to try. No Bake Energy Bites.

Having a 5 yr old & being 9 months pregnant, I need all the energy I can get not to mention the #1 ingredient is PEANUT BUTTER! LOVE.

These are super easy, require no cooking, are super healthy & my picky 5 yr old was devouring them! BONUS.

http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/no-bake-energy-bites/

You can kinda modify them to your taste, we chose to add chocolate chips & cranberries. but the possibilities are endless!

Interview with my 5 yr old

Every year I have a birthday interview with Karly. I realized the other day that I am a little behind (LIKE 6 MONTHS!) I'm working hard to get caught up on photos & baby books before baby #2 shows up! Better late than never!

Interview with my 5 year old:

1. Who is your favorite person in the whole world? Mommy

2. What is your favorite color? Blue & Green

3. What is your favorite television show? Dancing with the Stars

4. What is your favorite outfit? What I am wearing! (a fancy butterfly shirt & sweat shorts)

5. What is your favorite sport? Basketball

6. What song do you love? Party Rock

7. What is your favorite cereal? Fruity Pebbles

8. What is your favorite meal? RIBS

9. What do you want to be when your grow up? A Vet

10. What is your favorite book? Mouse Paint

11. What are you really good at? Taking care of animals

12. Where do you wish you could go on vacation? Disney World

13. What is your best memory? Going camping

14. What would you buy if you had $1000.? American Girl Dolls

15. What vegetable do you hate? tomato 
Me:"that is actually a fruit"
Karly: "Well it taste like a vegetable!"

16. If you could have a wish, what would it be? That my kitten, Chuck, would talk to me

17. What is your favorite ice-cream? vanilla or chocolate chip

18. Who is your biggest hero? My Dad

19. Who is your best friend? Wyatt

20. What do you have to do before your next birthday? Go bowling

Baby Blogging- THIRD TRIMESTER!

So I'm a little behind on my baby countdown. whoops! So backing up a little bit...

My Man.

So today happens to be one of my favorite days of the year. May 7th is my husband's birthday. Not only do I love my husband but I love birthday's! Anyone who knows my husband knows what an incredible man he is, and I feel so blessed that I know the deeper sides of him. He truly is a blessing in my life.

This has been a very challenging year- we have lots of changes, shocking moments, lots of tears, lots of hugs, brokenness and laughter, and no matter what we face we always come out on top.

So this one is for you! Here are just a few reasons I love you:

I love the way you look at me.

I love watching you rap & dance with our little girl.

I love your curiosity.

I love that you think I am funny.

Thank you for telling me I'm beautiful when my pregnant belly is growing & pretty is the last thing I feel.

I love your ability to make anything fun.

I love your strength & integrity.

I love that you have the courage to change.

I love watching you learn to love family time & create traditions.

I love how hard you work for our family.

You are the smartest man I have ever met.

You never give up on me.

I love that you give me the comfy seat on the couch.

I love that you challenge me to be better every day.

I love hearing you pray over us every night.

I love watching you seek God in every decision you make.

I love listening to the beat of your heart.

I love how high you set the bar for our girls, they will always know what a 'real' man looks like.

I love that you still open my door.

I love being your wife.

There are so many reasons I love you & love to celebrate you. You enhance every ounce of my world, and I am blessed everyday to get to share life with you. I don't take our time together or who you are for granted.

Our song of the year

Happy Birthday!

Decorating for Baby on a Budget

When I found out I was pregnant I had tons of nursery ideas for a boy, but I could not come up with anything for a girl. One of the very few things I kept of Karly's was her bedding. You have no idea how many times I almost sold it,  I just could not bring myself to let go of it. I know it is silly but I grew so attached to her bedding. It holds so many memories for me! I can look at it & just get overwhelmed with emotion, remembering placing her in it for the first time, seeing her roll over, her first fever, her little dimples every time I would walk in the room... silly yes, but I'm not ready to let go. So when we found out we were having another girl I knew that our budget was not gonna allow me to go wild & buy a bunch of new things. This pregnancy has been all about repurposing (& incredible friends blessing us)! I have been slowing working on the baby's room for some time now, I did not want it to look just like Karly's nursery (just a weird quirk I have), but I was drawing a blank, oh & I refused to paint (hate painting!!!!) so I had to get creative. Thank God for Pinterest! A mother's dream come true.

Tonight I finally put the finishing touches on baby's room, and I have to say that I love how it turned out! And I am proud to say that it cost under $75 to finish the room!! YAY!

Crib & Bedding. 2 of the 3 things I kept of Karly's.
The glitter 'M' my mom found at HomeGoods, it had a little chip in the corner so they discounted it out.
My fabric circles were repurposed, it was a window valance that came with the bedding, I was not fond of  it so I cut it up & put it in embroidery hoops that I had packed away ;)

One of my favorites in the room. This is Karly's little chair but she wanted a spot in the baby's room "I need a spot to sit & read and sing to Baby Meredith" So this is Karly's spot! 

I had a wall saying on this wall previously, but I didn't like it for a nursery so I scrubbed it off. When doing so it messed up my paint, and like I mentioned I refused to paint. I had some old canvas bird pictures that were sitting in my closet & a bunch of pink fabric from a party last year so I got busy with my staple gun & in about 15 minutes had this little masterpiece, which happens to be one of my favorite things in the room.

Get this! This changing table was my nieces, who is now 19 yrs old! They don't make furniture like they use to. It was actually white when I got it, but I wanted some color & I love the shabby chic look. I sprayed it & beat it up (Yes Dad, this is how I wanted it to look!) My mirror is from a friend who was moving away (it was blue) but with a little paint it made the perfect accent (Thanks Jill)!

Ok so check out the changing table shelves. My husband is a rock star and cut me some new shelves for the table & I covered them to match the room. love my handy man!

Just some tissue balls for a little pizazz!

I love pick & red together.

When I was decorating today, Karly was wanting so badly to help me. She asked if she could make a picture for baby M's room... and this is what she made! Precious Girl, she's gonna be a great big sissy!

Ok so this lamp was in the garage & my hubby used it as extra lighting. I really like the lamp but it had a ugly grease stain that would not come out. Nothing a few flowers can't cover up! Now it is my most favorite accent in the room!

SO here is my baby room on a budget:

Crib & bedding: already had-- $0

Glitter M-- $10 (HomeGoods)

Embroidery Circles: already had-- $0

Pink Chair & Bear rug: Already had-- $0

Lamp: Already had but needed some cover up... $4. (flowers Hobby Lobby)

Red Curtains- $20 (Target)

Changing Table: given to me but needed paint $6 (Home Depot)

Changing Table Shelves: $4 

Baskets: Already Had

Tissure Paper Balls: Already had tissue Paper

Pom Pom's: Already had from a precious party

Fabric Squares: Already had pictures & fabric

Rug: (not pictured) $29.99 (Marshalls)

Grand Total: $73.99

Now I can sit back & relax and wait for baby girl! I love to decorate and I love the challenge of doing it as frugal as possible. I wish I could get a pic of the entire room cause it is just that cute. I am very pleased. So hard to believe that I have 14 weeks left at best. I know she will be here before we know it. Since I found out I was preg, Jason or I would ask the other one, 'Are you ready for this?' and usually one or both of us would says 'I don't know!' Last night the question came out and we both said "Yes"-- We care so excited to meet her & have this new little miracle join our family.

Word of the Year.

I have determined that the word for this year is: TRANSITION.

In fact we have had so much transition that I've been a horrible blogger. Sorry! 

Even as a young child I never liked change in my life. I love to change my hair color, paint my bathroom, or rearrange the furniture, but hated meeting new people, starting new schools or classes...  Life changes sent me spinning. I have always had a negative view on transition, like it was some kind of purgatory before you got to the real thing. 

Before we even hit the new year, I knew this was going to be a year of change. And before I even finished that thought I knew I had more gray hairs on my head (yes, I have a new shade of 'blonde' showing up more & more :( not a fan!). 

This morning I got up to do my normal routine (I sure do love routine!), catching up on Twitter I read this quote by one of my favorite pastors and it slapped me in the face.  

"Transition is not a regrettable place, but a place where power is being transferred to a new and exciting era."

With Jason starting a new work schedule, planning for a new baby's arrival (in 15 weeks!! I might add.), a wedding (did I mention I am due at the same time as this wedding?- hello stress!), my baby girl entering Kindergarten & trying to focus on my time with her. There's been a lot of resistance for this mama who does not like transition. This was exactly what I needed to hear. Its amazing how something so simple can have such an impact. It was a relief, all this transition is good, new & exciting- I am in a place of power. God is entering my family into a new season of life. So often our minds can take something that is meant for good & twist it into something bad. I am making a decision to love all the crazy transitions in my life, big or small, because I want to live in a place of new & exciting power!