The Baby's Room

Well, I got those last few sewing projects finished for the baby's room and decided that even though there's still a bit to do, I might as well take some pictures and post it anyway.. 

BEFORE

(and this was even after we'd cleaned out a bunch of the junk from moving...)

In case you missed it, those walls are that beautiful cantaloupe the rest of the house was..

DURING (post primer)... 

(Ethan was VERY excited to help paint "mine baby brudder's room!")

 After...
(total NEW cost < $40)

Obviously it's the same furniture as we used when Ethan was a baby (in a MUCH smaller space), and I actually struggled quite a bit figuring out what to do this time around.. My taste has changed so much in the last 4 years - I just really wanted new bedding, but couldn't justify the expense, no matter how hard I tried (including selling the old stuff to make up some of the difference.)  I sat and sat and sat in that green chair for several days "agonizing" over it - it's the important things, you know.. ;)  Finally I settled on yellow - it's kind of the rage now - and knew I could do some fun banners to help make it a little more what I'm currently into.. I think it turned out pretty well.. :)  The little details of the rectangles on the wall were easy enough (although I learned the hard way that chalk lines don't come pre-loaded with chalk) but I think they make a big difference.  We're planning on painting all the doors in the house next week - they're all still that lovely orange color - and I have a couple images I want to get printed on canvases to go in the squares on the wall next to the changing table, but that's kind of low priority now.  I'm still working on having it be Ethan's idea to let the baby use his elephant lamp because it matches the bedding (I stole it during nap time for the photo op).. either way, we've got to get something for one of them.. We also need to figure out some more storage solutions for blankets, diapers, toys, etc., since Ethan has kept all the baskets and other pieces we were using before.. We'll get there, though.. :)

Nesting...

You can't tell it from looking at my house, but I'm nesting.. MAJOR.. I'm just so all-over-the-place it looks more like a tornado struck than a mommy trying to make things nice for her baby.. When I was expecting Ethan, my only responsibility in the world was baby prep, so I had lists and more lists, calendars and check boxes.  Everything was packaged beautifully away into nice and neat little categories, and you could see progress each day...

***************

... fast forward 4 years... I'm working full time, trying to get a lot of scrapping design work stocked up for after baby comes, spending lots of quality time with Ethan now because he won't be getting much for a while come April, and oh - btw - did you know I'm having a baby?  It's seriously almost like an afterthought.. Poor Alec has taken the brunt of the crazy, though.  I'll insist and insist that something has to be done TODAY so it can be ready for everything else that's waiting on that one task.  Once it's finished, though, all those other things have fallen to the back of the line, and he's left wondering what the rush was.

We have the baby's room mostly finished - spent President's Day weekend painting and putting the crib back together.  It did help things feel a little more real, though, and whenever I find myself needing to be grounded again, I'll just go sit in there in the quiet and think.. which is nice.. But now I've also been rearranging closets trying to get everything in it's proper place.  (We used the baby's room/closet as a dumping ground when we moved, knowing that even though most of the stuff would end up in there it still needed to be organized a bit.)  So it's been a shuffle between our closet of storage stuff, making baby stuff accessible in his closet and finding homes for everything that doesn't fit.  (Currently that home is lining the walls in our bedroom, so we have a nice little cardboard box motif going on in there... again...) 

A good number of those boxes contain picture frames and other decorations I just haven't taken the time to unpack yet, so now - of all times - I have this great need to hang things on the walls when my time could be so much better spent on baby stuff, but I want those boxes gone, dangit!

It probably took me two weeks to get all the baby's clothes put away after they had been washed because I kept getting distracted with other projects. We need to replace a bunch of the storage items we used when Ethan was wee because he's still using them, or because one of the drawers on the changing table/dresser is broken beyond repair, so can't be counted as usable space, or there were a lot of built-ins in KC that we've forgotten how much we relied upon them.  Still need to get that checked off the list...

I was able to spend tonight ironing and cutting fabric for some fun decorative projects for baby's room - will hopefully finish that up tomorrow and can post pictures later this week.. I also have a blanket I'd like to get made, too - we'll see how that goes..

I should also prob'ly get a diaper bag packed to take with us to the hospital.. I've been so scatter-brained lately, I wouldn't trust myself to know where to tell Alec to look for things if he had to do it by himself..

And speaking of going to the hospital - last Thursday marked the beginning of the weekly doctor's appointments (everything looks great, still measuring big, but I have been the whole time), so it's going to be a real joy fitting that into my day while I do last-minute prep stuff for people to cover at work while I'm gone.. Right now the plan is that I won't come back after Spring Break (week ending March 17) so hopefully those 10 days or so of being at home will help me calm down a bit, get ready, and feel more prepared.. HOWEVER, Alec and I were talking about things last week and realized that {while every baby is different} if this one follows in Ethan's footsteps of being 2.5 weeks early, he could be here as early as next Sunday.. EEK!  Needless to say I've been a little more anxious since that popped into my head - resulting in all the crazy pregnancy dreams people talk about, most of which consist of people coming and taking the baby away because we're "unfit parents" (that was the major theme when I was pregnant with Ethan, too).  Last night, though, I dreamt I was going into labor, and it was SO real, I had a spend a fair amount of time after I woke up convincing myself it really was just a dream.. 

Anyway, this has been a novel - scattered all over the place - and now you have a better idea of what's going on in my crazy head... the end. .

What's in a Name?

Well, Alec and I have resigned ourselves to the fact that young Master LaBau will remain nameless until we actually meet him in person. So for now, the best we can do is offer a few meager ideas as to what we might name him. Tell us your favorite(s) and who knows, maybe you'll pick the winner! (We've even managed to find a name that appears in both the Zane and LaBau family trees. Can you guess which one?)

Extreme Makeover Nursery Edition

Well - We've finally made the switch from office to nursery. I've been thinking it couldn't come soon enough, and Alec's been very patiently putting up with my impatience. He's too good to me. Enjoy the pics!

BEFORE

THE MESS WE MADE CLEARING OUT THE ROOM

TAPING IT OUT

PHASE ONE - BASE PAINT

PHASE TWO - THE FEATURE WALL

Alec is officially the Mary Poppins of circle-painting: Practically perfect in every way - I was actually quite impressed!

PHASE THREE - CLEANING OUT THE BRUSHES

A bookshelf my dad made back in the day that I refinished.

Alec taught me how to change out a light switch. This is just a picture of the wall plate, but I did the actual switch too. I just made him watch me so I didn't electrocute myself. That's why there's not a pic of the real deal.

Living with the computer in the hall because we didn't call soon enough to get the cable line hooked up in the new office... it's now moved back into the nursery until the 1st when the cable company can come.

AFTER

I couldn't be happier. It's everything I ever hoped it would be... Some of the walls are a little bare because I'm being slow making the decorations. And the mobile doesn't fit on the crib so that's out, too. But I really do love it. I woke up the next day and walked past - having forgotten what it looked like - and just about cried. Ironic how the baby's room is the most grown-up room in the house, eh?

Help!

Okay people, this is something I never thought I would have a problem with, but I guess you never really can count on too much when it comes to your own brainpower...

Alec and I are having a REALLY hard time finding a name we like for this child of ours (a boy). Yes, there are a few options that are okay, but nothing has really jumped out at us. So, we are enlisting your talented, wise, and open-minded suggestions. Just post a comment with your ideas, and then look forward to another poll as the big day approaches.

*A caveat: Please don't give us suggestions if it's a name you've always wanted for your own kids. I'm a little superstitious about baby-naming, and therefore don't tell people names I like for fear that they will get stolen... Don't make me be a name-stealer, please. Thank you. :)

. . .

I know, I know: It's been ages! And I apologize to those of you who think I'm cool enough to check this blog frequently enough to miss me posting (thank you for that ego boost...). Anyway... unlike most of you who have cute stories to tell about their kids and their day, not much has been going on here in the LaBau household (one of the many excuses for me not posting). But the main reason is that I've been working... yay! I'm just temping right now, although after being there for a month with my own company email address, phone line (that doesn't work) and cubicle, it doesn't much feel like temp work. I'm working in the marketing department of a company called Fujifilm Sericol. They make ink and printing presses. I don't really have any experience in marketing, but I can run circles around them when it comes to spreadsheets, so that's a lot of what I've been doing. Hence - me not writing. I find it really hard to sit in front of a computer for 8 hours a day at work and then come home and sit in front of another computer... Oh well, I will try to be better... :) Anyway, it's been good to get out of the house, and the money has been nice, so I guess I can't complain too much... It was hard to adjust to the "demotion", if you will... In Logan, I was in charge of myself, could do whatever I wanted, and was respected and given more credit than I was probably due, (thank you, Jarrod), but at Sericol, they still haven't quite figured out that I have a brain and can think for myself, and they're always running out of projects so I spend a lot of time just sitting there trying to look productive even though I could probably really just go home after half a day... But like I said, I'm enjoying it pretty well....

Alec has been having a good time in school. It's approaching the end of the semester, so he's realizing the impact of what not having any due dates can do to you. But he'll get through - he always does. He's been able to find some outside work, as well, which has been a nice change of pace from the grind of schoolwork. And it's giving him the opportunity to make some really great connections in the city that he can use later on... We think he's found a summer job, but it's not very official yet, and we don't want to jinx it, so stay tuned for more on that later.

The kitties are doing well. Sasha has become quite a momma's girl, so whenever I'm home, she has to be right there with me. It's cute, and also a little annoying at times. I guess it's just practice for when some other little person is counting on me to fulfill his every need.

Speaking of the baby.... He is doing well... We've only been to the doctor once since my last post, and it was just in and out, everything seems to be going fine, do you have any questions, see you in three weeks... which is good. We have made some pretty exciting purchases lately, though. Two weeks ago, what started out as Amber and Alec sitting down to go over the budget turned into Amber and Alec spending 5 hours of our Saturday baby shopping. A lot of what we were planning to get (the big purchases) we were going to do online because we found some really great sales (40% off), and shipping was free... but the sale ended "tomorrow". So, we got in the car and headed out for a marathon crib/bedding/glider experience so we could actually see the items in real life pre-purchase. I was very proud of Alec - he didn't have a chance to mentally prepare, and he ended up being the more logical one of us in the end anyway. Below are the pictures of what we've purchased so far:

Crib
Changing Table

Bedding Set

Glider & Ottoman

We actually got this in a color called "pear" which will be really exciting and versatile for both genders, and the chair is the comfiest chair I've ever sat in!

So... I guess that's really it for us... I will try to be better about posting more frequently, and if you really miss me, you can always nudge me... (you know who you are!)

the results are in...

I know you've all been anxiously awaiting the announcement of the gender of our child... at least the 39 of you that voted...

And....

Well....

This kid doesn't believe in conforming, because... It is a boy!

(despite the majority vote for a girl... guess the kid doesn't believe in democracy, either)

Our appointment was for 1:30 this afternoon, and we didn't leave until about 4 hours later. No complications or anything, just a really busy day at the clinic, apparently... He is looking healthy and normal; the ultrasound lady even said he had a beautiful heart. And for those of you who are familiar with this term, he also appears to have the "LaBau Nose."

He was being really stubborn [taking after mom] and wouldn't move out of this super-comfy (aka squished-up) position the whole time we were there.

Yes, his knees are just about touching his nose.

Celebratory cupcakes for Alec to take to class tomorrow.

Appropriately colored frosting, of course!

(sorry, Elizabeth, I know they're not very beautiful... the frosting was SO heavy!)

So that's our news... yay! :)

what will it be?

With just 13 days left until we find out if we're having a boy or a girl, we thought we'd give you all the opportunity to cast your vote and see who's right. The poll to your left will close at noon on the big day - October 3rd.