Shoebox + pretty paper = ribbon storage!

So in the course of my growing crafting obsession, I managed to collect a lot of ribbon. I mean A LOT. And I just realized when I sat down to write this post that it probably would have been a good idea to take a before photo of my previous "storage solution," which consisted of a plastic Target bag inside of a small basket inside of a plastic storage tote in the crawl space under our stairs in the basement. Classy right?! Ha! You gotta do what you gotta do I guess, but the time has come for a change since I keep accumulating ribbon & I may even be getting even more if I start up an Etsy shop for my ribbon mobiles like I am seriously considering doing.

While beginning this quest to make a very crafty ribbon holder, I realized there were very few tutorials out there for the type of holder I had in mind, so I decided to write my own!

First, I collected up all my supplies:

• A shoe box (my hubby had plenty to choose from - he must have know I would need them for a project one day :o)
• Wrapping paper in your color/pattern choice (got mine from Target for a different project & then decided I didn't like it for that project, but that it would be perfect for this one!)
• Scissors
• Something to punch holes in your box (Note - I found that my normal hole punch was too short & the holes would be under the lid of the box, so I improvised (with the help of my hubby) & used an old wine bottle opener & a mechanical pencil - with the lead pushed in - to make the holes a little bigger. Hey, I was trying to do this project w/o spending any money!)
• Tape (I originally started out with Modge Podge on box #1, but quickly switched to tape - it's easier to correct mistakes like that).

Next, I got to taping - all sides & the top, but I left the bottom mostly uncovered since it won't be seen. :oD

So much prettier covered in wrapping paper, isn't she?!

After that, the hubbs helped me devise a plan to get the holes where I needed them, which is below where the cover hits on the front face of the box. He came up with the cheapo genius idea to use an old wine opener that we don't use much any more & then we used a pencil to make the holes a little bit bigger.

That's him poking the holes - he's my favorite tool. :)

Once we got the holes in the box, I arranged my ribbon by color & started threading it through the holes my hubby poked in the box for me. I had to make bigger holes for some of the ribbon as I went along.

I put some extra spools of duplicate ribbon in the back section of the box, along with some spare tissue paper I had laying around to stop the threaded ribbon from rolling around in the box whenever I move it.

In my second box, I put my oversize spools of wide ribbon & ribbon that was almost gone. I didn't see a real point in threading it through my box if it was almost gone.

And ta-da - a DIY ribbon storage solution & I have plenty of extra wrapping paper & an extra shoe box if my ribbon-collecting addiction continues & I need to make another. 

And the best part about it...it was my favorite price - FREE because I already had all of the supplies on hand! What do you think?! I love it & it's perfect for me & it'll go perfectly on the bookcase I plan to put down in my little corner of the basement since the babe's stuff is in my former office/crafting storage area. So what about you - do you have lots of ribbon or other crafting materials that you have organized in a thrifty & clever way? I'd love to see it - comment with a link to your blog post if you have one! If you have lots of ribbon & are looking for a way to organize it, then you should definitely try this solution out - it's quick, easy & pretty inexpensive (possibly free if you have everything on-hand, like I did). If you try it out, please let me know, I'd love to see how yours turns out. And now this pregnant mama is off to bed - 'till next time!

21 Weeks - going bananas!

So now I'm over the halfway mark in this pregnancy & overall I'm feeling pretty good. By the end of most days I am sore & tired, but nothing I can't handle. When I first got pregnant, I was sooo nervous all the time that I just wanted time to to fly by & for November to get here so we could meet our little one. Now, I still want November to get here, but I am starting to appreciate just how soon she actually will be apart of our lives - changing them forever. I am excited, nervous, scared, hopeful, in love & anything else you can think of at this point. I love her so much - I almost started crying in the car on my way to work this morning thinking about how I'd feel this year when the holidays roll around & we have our precious baby girl here with us! I laughed at myself & my crazy hormones for that one, but in reality, it's truly how happy I feel about this little bugger inside of me! Such a blessing & a miracle. ;o)

On my never-ending quest to spoil her (with daddy's approval of course), I bought some CUTE stuff from Baby Gap during their Summer Sale going on right now - I only wanted to get a few things since I hear sometimes their stuff runs a bit small, but I'm sure I'll be shopping there or at their outlet a lot more for her clothes in the future. I bought her two onesies & a cute little reversible cardigan (all in different sizes to see how they will fit her)...

A special one for her sure-to-be-BFF, Dizzle, our dog (hahaha she just kicked me when I typed that..she loves him already!):

On sale for $9.99

This one just 'cause she's our lil peanut:

On sale for $9.99

And b/c I love love love cardis on baby girls & b/c she'll be born just when it's starting to get chilly around here:

On sale for $12.99

I heart Gap - it is so classic & their stuff never really goes out of style IMO. I also plan to buy here some cute baby legs I saw on Land of Nod when we buy her wall shelf (it's also coming from there), probably in the next couple weeks or so.

I like both the ones on the left & center!

And these pink polka dot BLs! Ahhh, chunky baby legs in these things = cuteness overload!

They will go perfectly with her little onesies I bought from Gap & I'm sure lots of other stuff she'll get. They will also protect her little legs from our hardwoods when she starts crawling around & added bonus - she'll be so cute just lounging around the house with her mama, daddy & doggie brother!

So according to the Bump, baby girl is about the size of a large banana this week, so she's about 10.5 inches long & weighs about 12.7 ounces. She is busy in there flipping around, kicking her mama & gulping down amniotic fluid. Babies start doing this in the womb for both hydration, nutrition & to start practicing swallowing & digesting.  I definitely still feel her lots throughout the day, but still nothing extremely regular, although I do notice that she moves a lot more right after or while I'm eating. She also moves a little bit more in the evening. One semi-alarming thing I noticed the other day was a swollen looking & sore area underneath my right underarm. That area has been sore since I was about 6 weeks along. I told my OB (well, the nurse practitioner anyways) during one of my very first OB appointments, so she did a breast/under arm exam & said she felt nothing. At the time, she guessed it was just a swollen lymph node & it probably is. But, now it's a bit more noticeable & swollen & still sore. My hubby told me to call the doctor yesterday & I forgot - work has been busy & I hate making calls like that from my office. So, I plan to call tomorrow when I'm teleworking to see what they suggest I do. At the very least, it'll be good to have the piece of mind knowing that I have informed my doctor of the situation. As long as it's fine & will go down after my hormones calm down & doesn't get any bigger, I am going to try & not stress about it. The hubbs has been especially wonderful lately - he helps clean the house a lot more & last night I was sooo achy in my thighs, hips, lower back, shoulders, neck, etc. that he massaged me to sleep - it was like a little slice of heaven! Hahahaha. Speaking of, I finally got my bonus form work (BIG let down, but I am still thankful for anything extra), so I think I'll schedule a relaxing prenatal massage & maybe enroll in a prenatal yoga class. I'm sorta bummed my gym (that we pay $60/month per membership for) does not have prenatal yoga...I bet if they did, they'd get some sign ups. Hmmm, maybe I should put that in the suggestion box - not exactly sure if they have one, but if not, I'll speak to one of the member counselors to offer that suggestion. It would be great if they could get that up & running in the next several weeks, LOL.

Anywho, here are this week's bump pics...I think I'm growing more & more every week & I love it! I'm pretty much in full time maternity clothes, but can still fit some of my pre-pregnancy stretchy-type pants (like my gauchos below) & my longer pre-pregnancy shirts - hopefully my growing girls aren't stretching them out too much at the top!

Clothed Belly

Bare Belly

And this weekend brings one of my favorite summer holidays - the 4th of July, woot! I love all the BBQs & fireworks! I am gonna be in heaven this weekend with the 3 events we plan to attend on the 4th (2 BBQs, 1 fish fry - yummy)! I'll be drinking lots of water as well to stay hydrated, but I hear we are supposed to be getting a small brake from this insane heat this weekend - thank goodness! Right now, I'm working on a new ribbon mobile for a friend's baby gift, then I'll be starting up another exciting DIY project for my baby girl's nursery! And of course, many many more project nursery posts coming up soon. 'Till next time!

5QF + weekly recap - 6.25.10

Another Friday here & almost gone. This week has been busy busy, but we're truckin' right along. Highlights form this week include my baby sister's graduation dinner on Monday & then graduation ceremony on Tuesday evening. I am so excited for her, but it's bittersweet to me that she has reached this important milestone in her life. First, I can't believe she's gonna be 18 in just 5 days & is done with grade school! Where did all the time and years go? I remember when my mom first told me she was pregnant with my little sister. I was 9 years old & devastated. I.was.not.happy. I was sitting pretty - the baby to both of my parents - who were divorced by then (my little sister has a different father than my older sister & I). I rather enjoyed being the baby of the family, thank you very much. So I did what any self -respecting 9-year-old would do in the face of such news - I CRIED my eyes out, wished it away & told my mom just how upset I was with her, hahaha. Sounds ridiculous now thinking back on it because as much as she annoyed me when we were growing up, I love the kid now adult & can't wait to see what she will do with her life! This was seriously the longest graduation ceremony ever, but I'm so happy we could be there to share in this special moment in her life:

 The Class of 2010 - makes me feel OLD!

Yours truly, my little sis Kim (she decided to wear a wig, lol b/c she "didn't have time to get her hair done") & the hubbs!

Family - from left: my mama (yes, I'm mixed w/ black & white ;), my God-brother Mike, m'wah, the grad, my little brother Rasheed & God-sister Natiya

Back in September, I sold her my old (but still in GREAT condition) 2000 Honda Civic when we bought Stella. She bought is for $2,000 & I let her pay us $200 a month to pay off the vehicle - I think it was good for her, taught her responsibility & to be accountable (she's spoiled). So our gift to her was to forgive her last loan payment, which she greatly appreciated! Congrats lil sister - love ya & you still owe me $40! Hahaha.

The rest of the week was sort of a blur, but I did manage to get a Baby J to do marked off my list - buying her crib mattress. After doing lots of research, reading reviews & comparing mattresses in-store we decided to buy the Sealy Baby Ultra Rest Crib & Toddler Bed Mattress from walmart.com. Baby Bargains said it was one of the best brands for coil crib mattresses & the hubbs and I stopped by our local Walmart to check it out in person before buying it sight unseen online - it has so many positives, like a wet-proof cover, it's 204 interwoven heavy guage steel coils, and hospital-grade Staph-Gard protection to help prevent bacteria growth - just to name a few. On top of all that it felt firm enough, but also still quite comfy for our little girl add to that the awesome price & free shipping & we were sold. So happy to get that crossed off our Baby J to do list this week!

Today we went to Happy Hour (I had water, dinner & a divine dessert) with some friends & then went to buy Mario Kart for the Wii & played for a couple hours. Tomorrow we are doing a major entire house cleaning & then heading next door to our neighbor's birthday party. On Sunday, we are heading over to my older sister's house to celebrate my nephew's 2nd birthday - he's getting so old! Hoping for a pretty chill weekend over all & a clean house at the end of it. Next weekend is a long weekend - 4th of July, woot! Gotta love long weekends!

And now, on to 5QF! If you want to participate, head on over to My Little Life & link up (and let me know if you do, I'd love to read my reader's answers)!

1. Do you know how to play a musical instrument?

Nope, not at all. I acted like I could play the piano when I was a little kid, but all I really could play was "Mary Had a Little Lamb" & not very well at all! The hubbs and I have vowed  to get our child(ren) into playing at least one musical instrument so that they can become proficient in something, unlike both of their parents.

2. What is your pet peeve while driving?

People riding their brakes & driving SOOO incredibly slow that they hold up the flow of traffic. Living in a high traffic area, like the DC Metro area, this can get extremely annoying. Oh, it also annoys me when I'm following the traffic rules & driving in the correct lanes during rush hour & I see people breaking the High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) laws - ugh! This is so bad, but I always secretly hope the cops catch them - it's simply not fair for them to do that when everyone else is obeying the law! Parts of highways here are completely HOV only during rush hour & sometimes the cops set up road blocks on entrance ramps to catch violators & for just a moment, I think, "serves you right" when they have someone pulled over (I can see them while riding on the Metro) because I hate it when people are so cavalier that they think they are above the law!

3. Would you rather have a housekeeper or unlimited spa services?

Hands down a housekeeper! It's hard for me to keep up with all the housework now & I can only imagine that it'll be even harder once the little one arrives! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE spa days, but if I had to choose - housekeepers would be it.

4. Is there a song that you hear that will take you back to the moment, like a junior high or high school dance?

Yep, Cupid by 112. I loved that song the summer before my freshman year of high school - it was even my first real boyfriend (Jason) & I's song! His last name then happens to be my last name now, so if we'd have gotten married, then I'd still have my current last name, hahaha. I thought I was sooo cool dating someone a year ahead of me in high school, but our little relationship was short lived b/c I met my (long term) jerk of an ex-boyfriend that same summer & the rest is history as they say. FWIW, I have come to terms with all the crap he put me through in high school & have obviously forgiven him & gotten over it, but it doesn't prevent me from remembering it all. Despite all that, I still love the song & turn it up every time it comes on. :)

5. What song best represents your life right now?

Hmm, that's a tough one. I actually have no clue, haha. But whatever song that says I'm happy & content & right where I wanna be in life right now - that would be the song! 

And that's all I got this week. I plan on sleeping in as long as this little girl lets me tomorrow morning & then getting up ready to clean all morning. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! 'Till next time!

20 Weeks - halway there baby!

Well now that I'm almost 21 weeks pregnant, I thought I'd post my 20 week update! I have been in major buying mode lately. Lets see, recently I purchased this awesome Bumble Collection Diaper Bag for 50% off the retail value, which normally is valued around $110!!

I got in on Baby Steals for $55 & they ship sooo quick, I got my bag in like 2 days & it's so roomy & adorable! If you are a mama or soon-to-be-mama or even if you are in the market for a friend or relative's baby shower gift, then you MUST check out this website daily. I am obsessed with it now - I even set up an alarm on my phone to alert me 5 minutes prior to the daily steal posting!

I also recently purchased a cute little MiYim all natural pure cotton puppy dog toy for the baby & a sweet chocolate & pink Luxe Baby stroller blanket on Zulily, which an awesome discount website that has daily discounts on designer stuff for moms, babies & kids {full disclosure: if you sign up on the website using that link, I get a $10 credit to my account the first time you buy something...being the thrifty person I am, I'd love for you to use that link to register & if you see something you like can't live w/o, go ahead and buy something & I'd REALLY appreciate the $10 credit! I am not given your information & vice versa for you signing up thru that link}.

And, the great news is - I got them all for majorly cheaper than I would have paid had I bought them at their retail prices. In fact, I probably wouldn't have bought them at their retails prices - you know, being the thrifty mama I am. :o)

Other items I am currently lusting over on Zulily, that I will likely buy after running it by the hubbs:

This adorable Jen Jen little dress that retails for $44-$52 - on Zulily for $24!

This cute little Empress Arts organic froggy toy that retails at $20 for $11.50

I love buying stuff for her! And she kicks me every time I second guess a potential purchase, so I know she wants it, hehehehe. She's already getting everything she wants!

Anywho, enough already about my baby-buying obsession, on to the actual baby update! This week marks the halfway point in my pregnancy, woot! Soooo extremely excited to get here! We had our 20 week anatomy scan this past Friday & it was amazing. I was literally in heaven sitting there watching our little girl rolling around in there up on the screen for a little over an hour. I had to change positions & go pee like 4 times during the ultrasound so that the tech could get all the correct measurements. They looked at her brain, heart, hands, feet & several other major organs. According to the Bump, the baby is the size of a cantaloupe or about 10.6 oz! At our ultrasound, the tech estimated based on her head & tummy that she is about 11 oz., so she's just a wee bit ahead, which is all good with her mama. Here are the best of the best of the shots we got from this past Friday's ultrasound:

Profile

Top view of her face with her hands right next to her face

Cute shot of her leg, ankle, foot, thigh & little booty!

I had an OB appointment immediately following & her heart was beating at about 150 bpm (the ultrasound tech said 153 bpm, which I believe is a bit more accurate than the Doppler my OB uses). I met another one of the doctors at my practice, Dr. G - now I have met all three - and I LOVE her. She's so energetic & very very nice! She told me that I should probably get registered for breastfeeding & childbirth classes + any others I wanted to take soon because they fill up quickly in my area. The hubbs and I have also decided to do an infant CPR class - you know, just in case....you never know when those skills will come in handy, even if not with your own child. She also told me that I was doing awesome on my weight gain, which is about 11 lbs. (since 8 weeks when they first saw me at their office), but I think there's another 3 lbs. that I gained before 8 weeks. So my grand total is about 14 lbs., which according to my books, is completely healthy & normal & my doctor confirmed that on Friday. Did I mention I love her?! She also told me a new OB (woman) is joining the practice next month & will be delivering by the time I go into labor, so that I'll need to meet her at some point soon too. Next month is the last of my monthly appointments, then I move to twice monthly, which is just another milestone that brings us closer to meeting our precious baby girl in November!

One interesting & somewhat shocking (to me anyways) development - my left ankle was pretty swollen yesterday. I noticed it while working out at the gym - I had capri workout pants on & I looked down to see a left cankle. I was pretty concerned, so I went home and left a message for the triage nurse at my OB's office. She called back pretty quick - asked if I had any headaches or blurred vision, both of which I did not, so she said it's probably due to the hot/humid summer we are having here in the DC Area. She said it happens to a lot of women in their practice because of the heat & humidity in this area & that I should stay off my feet as much as possible & rest with my ankle elevated to relieve the swelling. By this morning, it looked much better - just a little swollen still.

So yeah, I'm trucking right along & baby girl is starting to move a little bit more everyday, which I absolutely live for. It even startles me sometimes how hard she kicks or punches or whatever she's doing in there to her mama. I can't wait till its even more regular & something I can count every couple of hours. Here are my 20 week bump shots (taken actually at 20w1d b/c I forgot to take them on Saturday):

Clothed Belly

Bare Belly

No mistaking the bump nowadays, which of course I LOVE, but I am thinking will be a bit rough this hot & humid summer. :o/ you know what that means right? Stock up on cute maternity clothes, lol. That's all I got for this week on Baby J - sorry this was so long! 'Till next time!

Revisiting the list - Part I

Hey there everyone! This past weekend (including Friday) has been SO busy for us, which is why I did not participate in this week's 5QF, but I'll be back to normal this week. I have officially hit the halfway point in my pregnancy, so I am trying to take a look back at our spring/summer/getting-ready-for-Baby J to do list now to see how much more we have to get done. And also since it's the first day of summer, I decided it might be a good time to take a look at what we have gotten done already and what we still need to do. So, here goes:

As a reminder, I split up our list into several sections to better organize the list. I'm really type-A and love to organize & then organize again, lol.

• Part I: exterior of the house - front & back yard, back deck & patio.
• Part II: main level - entryway, living room, kitchen
• Part III: upper level - both bedrooms (including closets), bathroom, attic
• Part IV: lower level - basement, basement bath, under stairs storage area, utility storage area, laundry room.

After breaking up the parts of the house, I started my to do list for each area. I have already deleted the items that were done as of the original post on that area, but this post will focus on Part I only.

Front Yard To Do's:

• Possibly remove tree completely (need HOA approval to do this).
• Pull up weeds in flower beds & around tree.
• Plant annuals & re-mulch.
• Get house & stairs power washed.

I am happy to report that we have essentially finished this area! We decied not to remove the evergreen tree right next to our stairs & just got the large branch that was damaged during the crazy snow storms this past winter tied with a clear plastict tie to the main body of the tree - looks good as new. We also decided that the house did not need to be power washed this year, but we did get the stairs done, along with the front sidewalk due to that oil spill. My husband attempted to plant gass seed, but that didn't work out too well, so we hired a contartctor to lay down sod. Since it was a small area, they didn't charge us much at all. You can view additional photos of the area before on my Spring Cleaning - Part I original post, but I snapped one more before we got the sod laid:

This was taken right before the sod was laid - most of our grass was killed by the snow & then by us attempting to plant new grasss - obviously NOT our specialty. So we brought in the experts (best.money.ever.spent)...and here's what it looks like now:

A yard that we can actually be proud of! I can hardly take any sort of credit for this outcome - I really owe all the credit to the contarctor who laid the sod for us & my wonderful hubby who got up early every morning to water the grass & goes out every several weeks to weed the area. And now it looks awesome!

Back (upper level) Deck To Do's: 

Embarassingly, we have pretty much neglected this area once again this year. Now that my husband has finished most of the assembly of the nursery stuff, he may get around to working on our deck. We were actually waiting for quite some time for word from our HOA on the approved deck stain colors, which we received in early June, but by then we were already busy with other house & baby stuff. So while we may get around to this area before the end of the summer, it's doubtful. If we get to anything, I'd love to see the deck get re-stained and sealed, but unfortunately, in my current pregnant state, I am of little to no help in this area, so it may ahve to wait until next spring, when I can help out. Sadly, we have crossed nothing off this part of the to do list. :o(

• Look for & purchase an outdoor dining set (we currently have a cheapo plastic set).
• Get deck power washed.
• Re-stain & seal the deck.

Perhaps I was a little too ambitious? :oP It doesn't necessarily look bad in this area, it could just stand a little TLC, you know? Sigh.

Back Yard & (lower level) Patio To Do's:


This area has also undergone a complete transformation! We used the same contractor to lay sod in theback that did the front yard & they did an amazing job back here as well. Again, my husband deserves the credit for the up-keep of this area - without him, our little bit less than $300 sod investment (for the front and back yards), would have most likely gone to waste.

• Get sod laid surrounding the patio.
• Clean under the deck area, get rid of any debris in that area.
• Fix exterior water spout (it has never worked since we bought the house; but we need it for the sod!!
• Buy a small sitting/bistro set for the patio.

As you can see, we still need to clean out under the deck area (there are a few spots where small weeds have grown in & I'd also like put down new rocks back there to cover the old, dirty rocks, but overall, the backyard area looks 1,000 times better!! I don't have any true before photos of this area because it was pretty embarassing. The previous owners had so much shrubery and crap back there that it literally looked like a jungle. We never went out there - not even the dog, so the only "before" photos I have are truly the "in progress" photos that I took shortlay after all the debris and weeds were removed, and you can check out my original post on this area for those photos. And now for the after:

::tear drops:: I am seriously SO happy with how this turned out. It looks fab compared to what we started out with. We will likely eventually buy a small bistro-type set to sit down there, but for now, it's just nice to have a decent looking patio area.

In other news, I have been accumulating (read: shopping like crazy) sooooo much cute baby stuff that I need to devote a separate post just to that! This week is sure to be hectic as well since my little sister is graduating from high school & my nephew's 2nd birthday is this week, but I have several posts lined up including the rest of the house spring cleaning updates, a new project nursery post & of course, my weekly pregnancy post. Lots going on over in the World of Dennifer. So, what about you? Have you completely finished your spring cleaning, or do you still have lots to do?! Please tell me I'm not alone in being a spring cleaning slacker!

Project Nursery - DIY goodies!

I've been busy nursery planning for what seems like FOREVER & everything is slowly, but surely coming together. I have wanted to make everything for this LO's nursery, but in reality, there are waaay more talented people that can make some of this stuff. However, there are some things this mama-to-be is perfectly capable of & so I tried my hand at two DIY projects - with more sure to come in the near future.

The first was a ribbon mobile. I had seen a few of these on the web & thought they looked so cute & calming in a baby's room. I got the inspiration for all the colors from our little girl's bedding set (more on that later) - which is a whimsy (not too babyish) design with a mix of polka dots, stripes & gingham in chocolate, aqua, baby pink, light green & white. It's seriously adorable. I am going to go wall by wall of what my plans are for the nursery, so I'll post that another day, but it's cute & fits perfectly with the aqua walls! I digress - back to the DIY ribbon mobile {please excuse how it's semi-lopsided, I tied it to the kitchen cabinet to take pics...it's waiting on the hubbs to hang it where it belongs}:

And baby view:

What do you think? I really LOVE how it came out & it's gonna look so beautiful in her room! I hope she enjoys looking up at it. I have received lots of positive feedback on this mobile & I am even thinking about starting an Etsy shop for them...jury's still out, but it would be a great way to supplement our income, have a nice additional tax write (for a home based business) & we could pay down our debt quicker, which is always a good thing. When & if I do open up a shop, I'll be sure to let you guys know & probably even sponsor a giveaway for one of these cuties!

The second DIY project is closet dividers to separate all of her cute little outfits in her teeny closet & I'm even throwing in a quick tutorial for this one! I really have a feeling her little closet is gonna be packed full of stuff, so any type of organizational tool for the closet is a good thing. Here is how they turned out:

They have a few imperfections here & there, but they will serve their purpose & serve it in a cuter way than if they hadn't been made. So here's the dealio (sp?) on how I made these little cuties....

As soon as I found out we were having a little girl, I immediately started planning out my DIY projects. One cute thing I had seen long ago somewhere & knew I'd want to try when we had a baby was DIY closet dividers. For this project, you will need the following items/tools:

• 2-3 pieces of 12x12 scrapbook paper (in a pattern you'd like for the back ground of your dividers)
• wooden door hangers (I bought 5)
• Modge Podge (I used the glossy kind, but either kind would work)
• foam brush (for Modge Podge application)
• sparkly stickers (in a complimentary color to the scrapbook paper)
• Xacto-type knife & cutting board
• ribbon (to hang them in the closet - mine aren't hung yet, but I will use ribbon to tie them on the pole)
• scissors
• hot glue gun & extra glue sticks
• embellishments (to decorate the bottom portion of the dividers)

And I'm so bad ::slaps hand::, I meant to save the receipt so that I could list the prices for everything I bought & I totally must have recycled it b/c yeah, it's gone. But, I'd guess you could spend less than $12-15 for this whole project. I went a little crazy on the embellishments & bought them from this cute specialty shop in my area called "The Nest Egg," so they were actually $3.50/piece, but you could definitely get some very cute ones cheaper from Michaels. Or, if you have a color printer, you can print some from off line & Modge Podge them onto the dividers for FREE!

So, first you gather up all your supplies:

Then, cut the large pieces of scrapbook paper into smaller pieces - slightly larger than each of your wooden door signs. Then, trace the shape of the door hanger onto the back side of the scrapbook paper. Be sure to press down hard when your tracing so that the door hanger doesn't slip around on the paper!

(I forgot to take photos of these next couple of steps - sorry!) Next, cut out the shapes you just traced with regular scissors (including the circle part that goes on the door knob). Then, Modge Podge the back side of the scrapbook paper & the front of the door hanger & carefully stick the scrap book paper onto the door hanger, being sure to cover any exposed wood. Don't worry if the paper hangs over the edge of the wood - we will take care of that later. Repeat for each door hanger. Allow Modge Pode to dry completely before moving to the next step (no more than 10-15 min per hanger, so by the time you finish the last one, the first one will be ready for the next step).

Next, use your X-acto knife & cutting board to trim off the excess paper from each door hanger.

Put your stickers on the front, top section of the door hangers & hot glue your embellishments to the bottom half (feel free to embellish as much or as little as you'd like). The final step would be to use ribbon to tie them onto the pole in your little one's closet. I haven't done it yet because I want to use this opportunity to buy some cute new yellow ribbon & I haven't made it back to Michaels yet. :)

So those are my two little DIY projects I've done for the bug so far. I can't wait to see them in her closet with all the cute little dresses & outfits she's sure to get! I hear these come in handy for baby's closets especially since they grow out of stuff so quickly, which is why I tried to space out what months the dividers covered: Newborn, 3-6 months, 6-12 months, 12-18 months & 18-24 months. Everything else after that will have longer staying power, right???!! Don't you get into the "T" for toddler sizes after that? I'm clearly not too schooled on this topic, but I love my little dividers nonetheless! 

This Friday, after our doctors appointment & ultrasound, we are heading over to Babies 'R Us to register for Baby J's shower! I really really want to make sure we put everything we need on the registry & try to avoid the fluff & unnecessary items (admitted clutter hater here). Of course, I'm sure I won't be able to resist a few really cute unnecessary things, but for the big stuff, I'd really love to avoid it if  we won't use it. So, I's calling out to all my mama readers - what did you find that you really used/needed for your first little one & what items did you buy, but found you really didn't use or need?

19 weeks - lovin' me some mangoes!

I wanted to get this post out of the way for the week since I have lots coming up - including an all new Mood Board Monday (woot), a yummy spaghetti/lasagna recipe, updates on our spring/summer/getting-ready-for-Baby J list & several more Project Nursery posts.

I have continued to do research & pick the brains of friends who have recently had babies on what items they really needed/used & what they didn't. And of course, I'm still working on planning out the nursery. I keep adding cute DIY ideas to my list of things to do to decorate her room! After our 20 week ultrasound & doctor's appointment this Friday we are planning to go & register at Babies 'R Us & I'm also registering for a few things at Target as well. I'm trying to also persuade my hubby into going to Ikea next weekend to get some of the other stuff I want for her room, but we shall see about that.

According to the Bump, this week baby girl is the size a mango! The vernix caseosa, a greasy white substance made of lanugo, oil & dead skin cells, coat the baby's body to protect it from the amniotic fluid. And Baby Center says this is a crucial time for the baby's development - her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. She can almost definitely hear our voice now, so we talk to her a lot & her daddy tells her he loves her every night.

I have still been feeling pretty good. Can't complain too much - of course, I have periods of discomfort & slight back pain (likely from my growing belly), but I'm a happy pregnant woman overall. The end of this week I'll be 20 weeks pregnant, which means I'm halfway done! And although I'm happy this pregnancy is going by rather quickly (mainly due to the constant worry I feel about whether the baby is doing okay in there - 1st time mama thing I think), I'm also kinda enjoying being pregnant. I love feeling her movement, which is a bit stronger now, but still pretty inconsistent. I can't wait until I really get to feel her constantly throughout the day & really can't wait till her daddy & I can feel her from out here! I'll be even happier when my bump completely comes in - my husband says I look pregnant, but I'm not so sure I do in my normal clothes - who knows?! Maybe I'm being crazy. I mean I know there is a definite difference, but it does not look like a full-on pregnant bump to me. I'm growing out of one pair of my original maternity jeans - when I bought them, I knew they were only intended for use during the first & second trimesters, but I really thought they'd last at least most of the way thru my 2nd tri! I'm thinking about getting a prenatal massage soon, I just need to find a reputable place in our area that does them - I bet that'll feel amazing!

Here are my 19 week bump photos - I think I see a pretty big difference from last week & others are definitely starting to notice my belly. This week my {drunk} hubby (as a result of the wedding we attended last night) wanted to get in on the bump photo action, so there are a few extras:

Messing around with the hubbs, lol.

Clothed Belly

Bare Belly

And that's all I got for this week. Hopefully baby girl will look perfect & we'll get some good ultrasound pics this Friday! 'Till next time!