Nursery view

I finally took some pictures of Josie's room. Ignore the random clutter and focus on all the cutesy things please!

View from the door. I made the curtains and the crib sheet when I was pregnant. We had an old fashioned rocking chair in there but it was so impractical. We just traded this chair (which reclines and turns) from the living room and haven't regretted that choice at all.

To the right of the door, I did not clean up the changing table at all so you could see what it looks like on an average day. I painted the letters and Mike put up the tree decal. We got the crib and the changing table (Pottery Barn) from a cousin who had just finished using it with her son. We were so excited to get them because they were way nicer than what we could afford right now!

Crib (in desperate need of some bumpers with that roly poly baby:

The horse was made for Mike by his mom. I realize his "saddle" does not match the room at all, but that is where I keep the sling since I use it often enough to keep it out.

I'm going to have to do something different with the shelf since those tea cups are way too small and the rest is completely random but for now they work til I find what I want (could take until Josie is 18... lets hope not).

The two bags by the garbage are for the dirty diapers. I do have to admit that this looks a lot messier from this angle, which is never where you would stand. Thank God for that! The more popular angle is looking from the top down which means the clutter is hidden from view...

My favorite corner. It's so cozy and holds all of her books, which someday she will be so excited to read!

These were given to her by Aunt Elizabeth. They match so perfectly, I couldn't believe it!

Isn't that MP3 player just lovely? But it is truly a life saver when J isn't quite as sleepy at bedtime. I think that the giraffe needs to be put away... not too pretty although fun to play with (when she's older and actually knows how to use her hands).

I found these bins at Target for $3 each. So nice to be able to use all that space up there and the junk is hidden from view for the most part.

All that left side is sadly too summery now. I'll have to go through and see what we are missing and put those away until the next child. I think the closet will look a little bare after that. Guess we'll have to go shopping!

I realize how awkward this angle is, but I wanted you to see the rest of the wall decals. We had these left over and didn't want to just not use them since they weren't all that cheap. I like how it brings back the theme of outdoorsy/leaves and blue birds.

There you go! We like it... I still would like to put a colored mirror above the crib but I haven't been able to find anything I really like.

Wedding numero uno

Josie's first wedding this weekend! Mike's cousin got married and we got to celebrate with them. The wedding was soooo classy and I couldn't help but get some pictures to show you all. 

The bell's note says "To witness a moment of true wedded bliss, ring this bell for bride & groom to kiss!" The boxes had kisses in them and the colors for the wedding were silver and purple - so elegant.

 Josie was good for the most part, although she had to "be excused" from the wedding with daddy because she wanted all the attention and it was not her day. She hasn't learned the rules with that yet. :)

 After seeing these bird houses everywhere, I have decided that along with my hunt for ceramic pineapples, I also would love a big old fashioned bird cage for on top of the piano.

 Mmm. . .

Dancing queen, but wobbly like she's drunk. She'll get it down sometime.

 So sad because nobody would dance with me. I won in the end though; they all hit up the dance floor at some point of the evening. Why is dancing so much fun, you say? Because you get a work out and you have the most fun ever.

Eventually, the whole Deyle clan joined us way in the back corner of the room. Fun group, I must say!

At this point my feet were itching to dance so the camera was ditched and the dance floor was conquered. That was a great warm-up wedding to the next one which is next week! Bring it on Chelsie and Tony!

Success

After weeks and weeks of not losing ANY baby weight, I finally saw the number drop. Three whole pounds!! I felt like I did good this week but sometimes that feeling is way off so I was shocked when that number appeared. It's so easy to get in the mind frame that it is completely impossible even though I know that there is no secret to it and that the reason I was maintaining and not losing was all because I was eating the same amount as I was burning. It's not rocket science (I like how that is the expression, like rocket science is the most amazing thing and no other type of science can compare).

What's changed since the previous week? Well, for starters I am at work again meaning I can occupy my time better/distract myself. Really, though, that wasn't the problem before. The main thing is that I have limited what I am eating to a "strict" routine. I wish I could be more free with it but I am a servant to routine... just do better with it.

Breakfast: Oatmeal with peaches. So good. And I make enough for Mike so now he is eating breakfast which is something he has never really done before on a regular basis.

Lunch: Green monster. I know that I will have to mix it up eventually but luckily there are thousands of recipes out there so I can continue to make the smoothies but also have some variety.

Supper: Whatever we have planned. I give more freedom here because I am so strict during the day. It takes away the stress of planning every detail at the end of the day. I am always out of motivation to stick with it by that point so having that freedom saves me more than I realize most of the time.

This lovely calendar is my baby. I am proud of it so don't knock it too hard! I did this before I went back to work to help things run more smoothly at night. It helps Mike know what the heck I'm doing and I am way more organized and cost-efficient when I go to the grocery store each week because I know exactly what I need and don't waste money and time buying stuff we won't really need. I hate throwing away food so this plan saves us from a lot of that too.

I hope this system works long term. Let me know if you have any suggestions or better ideas. I love to learn new things, especially when it makes life easier!

Count the quality of your moments together rather than quantity of your minutes.

I got this from a blog I follow and it hit me hard.

The last couple of days have been so bittersweet. I am finding that there are a lot of things I enjoy with my "new" job and I'm not upset or bummed out when I go to work in the morning. Yet I want to spend so much more time with my daughter and every little thing that gets in the way like cleaning, cooking, or organizing just stresses me out. I think I need to relax a bit and think about the quality of life instead of quantity of time spent on each thing.

I've lived my life planning every little detail. It helped me be successful at a lot of things, a lot more than my peers took the time to do. Because I was so organized I was able to graduate in the standard 4 years after switching my major at least 3 times. I was able to have 3 jobs and more than 20 credits most semesters and still have time for friends and family. I was busy, and yes a little stressed, but it gave me a huge sense of accomplishment and work ethic and I wouldn't change that for anything.

Now though, my life is completely different. No longer am I pushing forward to the next stage. I am making every effort to enjoy this stage I am in because let's face it, it's a long one! The next stage for me would be after kids... I can't even imagine where we will be in this world at that point. With this new perspective, I am finding that I have to change more than just my routine. I have to change my whole way of thinking. I had myself trained to always look for the fastest most efficient way. If I do that now, Josie will be grown up and moving out before I can even blink.

I have such a great life. A job that is secure, a beautiful baby, a supportive, sweet, and faithful husband, and a goofy full-of-love dog to come home to at nights. I have a house, a close knit family, and my health. What more could someone ask for? I just can't stress enough how God has blessed me.

I hope that by this time next year I will have figured out a way to be efficient while enjoying each moment. I hope I will be able to look back without regrets and say "I did the best I could and wouldn't change a thing".