A Wonderful Christmas Time!

My mom and dad have just left today to go home and their visit was nothing short of an awesome time!  Luckily they agreed to help Dan and I start converting our guest bedroom into a nursery for Sophie.  I had no idea how much work it would be.  We got to work the day after they got here and didn't stop until the moment they left!  The crew was lucky and got one day off, Christmas Day.  But, just ONE day =)

We started by painting the walls a beautiful lavender/grey color that turned out just as I had imagined.  I had also wanted to put up a decal that I found on-line, but was worried how it would turn out with our textured walls.  Dan to the rescue.  We took the image (sorry on-line decal dealers) and projected it on the wall to outline and paint in ourselves.  Dan and Dad spent some time getting the details just right on the image, painting with tiny brushes and the finished product is perfect!


Painting in progress: A view the color and the mural before it was finished



The finished design and Sophie's crib!

The next task for the guys was putting together the furniture.  I had a feeling it would be a daunting task for them.  The reviews I read about the dresser/changing table all complained that it took 3+ hours to put it together, I didn't share this with them before they started.  Wisely, my mom and I left the house to do some shopping while they figured the furniture out!  By the time we got home, both men were still on speaking terms (yay), they had fed themselves (yay) and we had a beautifully put together dresser (2.5 hours, beat that grumpy reviewers!).  After the dresser, they put the crib together in record time.  Both pieces are perfect!

Working on the crib.  Lucy was on quality control!

The dresser/changing table

But it doesn't stop there!  My mom and I had a few projects of our own.  We had another dresser in the guest room that was already painted white, but had been sanded down for that antique/distressed look.  The drawer pulls were also in need of a change, so I put my mom to work on that.  She repainted the dresser pure white to match the other furniture and changed out the drawer pulls.

Mom painting

New paint, new drawer pulls!

We also saved a hanging lamp by covering it up with some material to match the accents that will soon be a part of the nursery.  The existing colors and design just didn't match our design.  My mom sewed a cover to slip over it, and it turned out really well.



Before...





After!

One final project that remains a work in progress is the mobile to hang over the crib.  Again I found some inspiration on-line (sorry to the lady that sells these for $85!!).  I cut some sweet little birds and an owl out of felt and had my mom sew them up with some stuffing inside.  Now I'll just have to complete the "sticks" to hang them from and we should have some cute little birdies for Sophie to stare at as she drifts off to sleep.

Birds and owls and clouds!

Despite all this painting and sewing and putting-together of furniture, we managed to have a wonderful Christmas right in the middle of it all.  We drove to Inverness on Christmas Eve to get Grandma so she could celebrate the holiday with us.  We brought along a nice gift for her, a new flat screen TV!  The guys set it up and mom and I managed to teach Grandma how to work the new remote.  That evening, back in Orlando, we enjoyed the annual Kobe Japanese Steakhouse outting with our friends and their LARGE family.  We had three hibachi grills to ourselves and enjoyed the entertaining grill masters as they flipped shrimps into their hats and filled our bellies with delicious food.

Christmas day was wonderful, but it passed by way too fast!  We enjoyed a breakfast pizza baked up by mom and opened our stockings and presents.  Sophie even managed to snag a few presents of her own (already!?) thanks to Grandma, Grandpa and Margie!  Everyone pitched in to create an amazing lunch of steak, lobster tails, mashed potatoes, corn bake and brussel sprouts.  Of course we topped it all off with a peanut butter pie (Dan's favorite) and a chocolate pie.  We all settled on the couch in a food coma to watch "A Christmas Story" over and over and over again (thanks TBS, it is our favorite movie of the season!).

In closing, we are 27 weeks pregnant today!  I can't believe how time is flying by at this point.  Sophie kicks me and tumbles around all the time.  The other day I'm pretty sure she had the hiccups!  So sweet.

26 weeks 1 day

Dan and I on Christmas Eve.  Not Dan's usual attire, but it is entertaining to our friends...

Hope the holidays were wonderful for all!

With Love

Dan, Jess, Lucy and Sophie

Christmas goodies!

Today we are 25 weeks and 4 days pregnant!  Baby Sophie is moving all over my tummy all of the time.  It's truly a special and reassuring feeling.  People I don't know are starting to ask when I'm due and what I'm having.  It's nice to have finally gotten out of that awkward "Did she gain some weight or is she pregnant?" phase.  It's special to share that with the patients I work with, now we have something in common.  One lady asked me if it was my first, and when I replied yes she said she knew it because I was "glowing".  Thanks baby!

This week my friends and I got together for a cookie exchange.  I made two new treats that I found on the internet.  Both went over very well.  I made extra for Dan and I to take in to work and people raved.  Therefore, it's necessary to share the recipes with friends and family.

These are Oreo truffles, so yummy, so easy!  I used more white chocolate chips than the recipe called for because it went on fairly thick.  So, towards the end of the batch, there was not enough melted chocolate to fully submerge the truffles in.  I used a bag and a half.








This is called Reindeer Food.  It's a delicious and simple chex mix covered in white chocolate and crushed peppermint.  Can't mess this one up!

Enjoy the recipes.  I'll end this post with a picture of me at 25 weeks in front of our Christmas tree. 

With Love

Jess, Dan, Lucy, Baby Sophie

Baby York is 6 Months!!

Last weekend I celebrated my 31st birthday!  Dan had been asking me what I wanted to do this year as it would be a change from years past when we would go to the bars and clubs.  I accepted the fact that it would be a subdued birthday this year since I get to enjoy it with our baby girl in my tummy!  Dan and I met up with some friends at our favorite "hole in the wall" mexican restaurant for a delicious taco dinner. You can't go wrong with chips and salsa!  He invited everyone back to our house for "dessert" he said.  So when we got home he had me open the gifts he got me.  One was a book called "Preggatinis", a book on mixology for virgin drinks made especially for the expectant mother.  The other item was a wii game called Dance Party 3!  It's a game with pop music that you dance along with that I had been wanting for a while.  Dan said now I can have some cocktails and dance the night away just like my other birthdays.  He made me some delicious drinks (which are also proven to have ingredients in them that are good for a fetus) and we danced with our friends all night!  Despite the pregnant belly, I beat all of my opponents!  Can't wait to use the game to work off the baby weight once the little one arrives.

The next morning I met up with my girlfriends from work to enjoy a scruptious breakfast followed by manicures and pedicures.  They brought along some champagne to sip on and also had a fine sparkling grape juice for the pregnant ladies (yes, one of my friends is pregnant too!).  Top that off with red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, and you have a prefect afternoon!



Enjoying the spa!

 

Nice toes!

24 weeks

Today we went to the doctors office for a routine check-up.  Her heartrate was 140 and my belly measured 25 weeks (even though I'm 24 weeks by my dates).  It's normal for you to measure up to one week ahead or one week behind, whew!  I'm feeling her move all the time, and only once has she kept me up at night with consant kicking.

The house is decorated for Christmas!  Dan and I got our tree on my birthday weekend which is something we've done every year.  I decorated the tree while Dan hung the garland and lights on the porch.  The fresh smell of the tree is amazing!  I think Lucy likes it too since I frequently catch her curled up on the tree skirt catching some Z's.  I have actually completed all of my shopping this year!  Most of it was done online while in my pajamas enjoying a cup of tea, very relaxing.  Today all of the gifts were wrapped and put under the tree, so I'm all set.  It's such a relief to be done early and to have skipped the crowds!  Below you will see some pictures of our decorated home.


Lucy and Dan with our tree




Our frist "baby" ornament from Melissa



My Christmas cactus is actually blooming for Christmas!
It's usually my "Easter" or "4th of July" cactus

Just a few more weeks until my parents are in town for Christmas and we can't wait!  We're excited for Mom's good cooking along with Dad's handyman skills.  We will start working on the nursery while they're here as well.  And one last thing, Dan and I have decided on a name for our little girl!  She will be Sophia Elaine York, and we will call her "Sophie".  Sophie is a name that we both adore, and Elaine is after Dan's mom.

With Love,

Jess, Dan, Lucy, and baby Sophie