Baby Watch 2014 continues...

So we took a gorgeous walk on Saturday around the trails at the NCMA museum park-  The weather was perfectly mild and even though the mile and half walk we took didn't coax the baby out we enjoyed ourselves none the less:)  

Let's just say we are all getting a good lesson in patience as we wait and trust that Baby T will arrive in his or her own perfect timing...

Today is my official first day off of work.  I'm trying to enjoy this time before Baby comes but I have to admit it's hard to not just sit around and wait, wondering when I will finally go into labor.  So to occupy my time so far-

Abbey and I went for a walk first thing this morning.  I may or may not be trying to coax this baby out...then we threw the frisbee, a lot.

I stumbled upon an awesome brownie recipe from a blog I read called Living Well, Spending Less and decided I needed to use up our leftover chocolate from the holidays (I'm talking red, green, and silver wrapped Hershey Kisses, some of which were even peppermint flavored, still lying around in our pantry 8 months later).  That's the beauty of this recipe-  no chocolate chips, no problem.  Just use whatever chocolate candy you have on hand and voila!  Gooey, yummy brownies in just 30 minutes.

Then, I got crafty.  I've been brainstorming for weeks now about a way to announce the arrival of our little one to the neighbors and passersby (a modern spin on pink or blue balloons at the mailbox, if you will).  I've spent a fair amount of time on pinterest trying to decide on what I could make with materials I already have on hand.  It's been a challenge to come up with just the right thing, especially since we have a surprise coming our way.  All of a sudden, it hit me-  a double sided wreath to hang on the door!  I took out some burlap, sketched a design and cut it out (2 pieces).  I painted yellow polka dots on each side then designated one side "it's a girl" and one side "it's a boy."  

I stuffed the middle with some crumpled paper towels to give it a little shape then hot glued all of the edges together.  Add a matching ribbon for each side and it's ready to be hung accordingly when we get the exciting news!  Plus, I think it'll be a cute addition to nursery decor after it's done decorating the front door and can be used for the next baby as well.  

Can't wait to see it hanging on the front door!

And now it's time to throw the frisbee some more-  gotta spoil my Abbey Girl while I still can:)

  

It has officially become Baby Watch 2014 as we anxiously await the arrival of our little bundle of joy (hopefully any day now).  Today marks my last day of school for more than just the summer this time and it was a wonderful send off!  My co-workers put together a great luncheon to honor Baby T and everyone is so excited to find out if we have a little girl or boy on our hands since they have been debating it over the last several months...

I so enjoyed my time at Tammy Lynn and will miss the students and the staff I've grown close to but am beyond excited for this new journey.  One thing is for certain though, Baby T is loved by so many already-  check out this precious and thoughtful minky blanket hand made by a dear friend from school-  can't wait to bundle our little one up in it!

I also must share with you my fabulous anniversary surprise that Dan brought home the other weekend.  You may remember me talking about plans for a kitchen island that was inspired by a project we found on This Old House on line-

Little did I know, Dan had been building it behind my back at work!  When he pulled the frame out of his truck I was in total shock-

There were only a few things left to do before the project was complete-  one trip to Home Depot and a couple finishing touches later...

we brought our new island in!

I can't believe how it turned out-  even better than I was imagining over a year ago when we first started brainstorming how to repurpose this 5 dollar piece of granite we picked up at a yard sale!  I submitted a picture to This Old House and the editor told me they'd love to feature it in an upcoming issue under "Reader Projects" so keep your eyes peeled!