The best thing I ever made!

                                                                     Source

Hi friends. Hope you're all enjoying your summer. I've been on a hiatus for quite some time so I figured I'd give you an update on what's been going on in my life....

My due date was Monday, June 25th. Monday came and went. So did Tuesday and most of Wednesday. No baby. I finally had a doctor's appointment on late Wednesday. The doctor examined me and said, "we need an exit plan." He told me that they would have to induce me the next day. I cried for hours. When I finally calmed down I called my Mom & gave her the news. She asked me why I was so upset. I told her I wasn't ready, that I needed more time to prepare. She basically told me to suck it up & that I had 9 months so it was time to have this kid.

I went into the hospital on Thursday night for my induction. Around 5pm on Friday the little man still hadn't made his grand entrance. I knew in my heart I would need a c-section so I started asked for one. I was told that they were going to do everything they could to help me go naturally. Fast forward 12 uncomfortable hours later....

The doctor came in and said he had some bad news. He said the baby just wasn't progressing and wasn't dropping the way they expected. They would have to do a c-section. Really dude? I asked for one twelve hours ago!! And then the kicker....he said, and I quote, "we have someone in line ahead of you for a c-section. Can you just stay here and hang out?" Ummmm, where the hell did you think I was going???

Anyway....

On Saturday, June 30th at 6:02am my little Nugget (aka Liam Andrew) finally came into the world. It was the happiest moment of my life by far. He brings me so much joy and I honestly can't remember life before he was born.

Everyone told me to enjoy every moment because it goes by so quickly. I never really believed it. Now I see how true that is. It's been about 10 weeks since that amazing day. Where did the time go? Next week is my last week of my maternity leave. I wish we had the money so I could stay home. We just don't so back to work I go. Sad me.

I'm so excited for the next chapter of my life. I have a lot of things in the works, so I hope you join me as I learn how to juggle being a new mom, a wife, working and crafting. For those of you who followed me on the old blog (kellydunne) please note that I changed the name so I think you will need to re-follow me. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Happy Friday. Have a great weekend!

I confess...I'm terrified!

I confess...
I'm really nervous about becoming a Mom. I worked at a preschool for years, and I was a nanny too. Not to mention I had a long high school career of babysitting. I remember watching a newborn when I was probably in 9th grade. Someone trusted me enough to pay me good money in HIGH SCHOOL to watch their newborn. I wasn't afraid then but I'm terrified now. Maybe because he's mine? I don't know...but I keep having dreams that I drop him or bang his little head into a wall. Uggg. The closer I get to my due date the more I freak out.

I confess...
The labor and delivery part scares me as well. I'm so not looking forward to it. I have been having terrible nightmares about that too. My doctor is requiring that Hubby and I attend a birthing education class next weekend. They even show you the tools that they may use during labor. No thank you. The less I know the better.

I confess...
I'm trying really hard to distract myself from thinking about the class. I have a baby shower to go to this weekend and the weekend after the dreaded class we're going to a family BBQ. This weekend is Mothers Day and I need to figure out what to get my Mom and Mother-in-law. Shopping trip! So I'm trying to focus on those fun things instead of the class. It's not really working but I'm pretending it does.

I confess...
I saw this story online the other day and it really warmed my heart. I love a good pit bull story!

pit bull rescues owner from trains path

I confess...
Lily looks just like my Maddy dog so it made me smile even more. I'm sure she would do the same for me....if I had cheese in my pocket.   :)

I confess...
Maddy almost made me puke the other day. I was sitting on the couch watching TV when all of the sudden I smelled poop. I thought she might have been sick and couldn't hold it so I ran around trying to find her mess. Nothing. Then I figured she must have been gassy. Nope. I realized she was licking her mouth. OH MY GOD!! She ate the cat's poop out of the litter box. Barf. Barf. Barf!

On that note...Happy Friday! Haha.

What are you confessing? Link up.

I confess... it's been a great week!

I confess...
It's not often that I can say I've had a truly terrific week...but this is one of them. I feel so lucky, loved and blessed. What a great feeling!

My baby shower was last Saturday. It was a fantastic day. Liam got so many presents it was honestly a bit overwhelming but very appreciated. The kid will never need another bib in his life! And I'm pretty sure he has more clothes than my husband and I combined. :) My sister-in-law, Jackie, had people bring diapers for a raffle. For each package you brought your name was entered into a raffle for (as she likes to say) a fabulous prize. I wish I would have taken pictures of all the diapers we got. There were TONS. I was especially excited because a good percentage of them were organic or natural. Yay. Since Liam's room isn't done yet half of the gifts ended up at my parent's house and half is at our house. Maybe I will try to get a picture when everything eventually makes its way back to my house.

(Isn't that the cutest cake ever??)

I confess...
I seriously don't know what I would have done without Jackie. Saturday after the shower she helped me organize everything into piles. Then she took me to several stores on Sunday to return stuff. I still don't understand how it happens since we had a registry...but we got several duplicates. And if I'm being honest, we got a few gifts that weren't on the registry which I didn't like. (Whoops) By the end of the day on Sunday I had credits at Babies R Us, Target and Walmart. Now I just need to figure out what we need so I can go back and spend my credit. It's burning a hole in my wallet!

I confess..
One of my best friends, Annie, is pregnant too. Most of our friends had babies years ago so it's fun to be able to share this with her. She just found out she's having a boy too. I'm so excited! Liam made his first BFF already!

I confess...
As excited as I am to go on maternity leave and not to work for 3 entire months, I'm dreading it. I don't get paid one cent. We've been trying to save money here and there but we're not really the best at it. I try not to think about it because it really stresses me out. Yesterday at work my boss asked me if I wanted to work part-time from home when I'm out on leave. I seriously almost jumped across the conference room table and hugged him. Yay! I can be home and still work a little so we will have some extra cash. Thank god!!

I confess...
I was so happy leaving work yesterday that I knew I was smiling from ear to ear. I got home and there was a big package sitting on my porch. The part-time sales rep at my company told me she ordered us a gift and it was being shipped today. I figured it just came early. I opened it and read the card. It was from one of my clients. How nice is that? I couldn't believe it! It was so thoughtful of her.

I confess...
I'm such a lucky girl and it's been a great week. I feel like this was a giant Happy List post instead of a confession but it's Friday so confession it is. :)

What are you confessing? Link up.

Happy Friday!

Confession Friday

I confess...
These hormones are insane sometimes. I'm sure everyone knows that but I like to believe that I've never once been hormonal during my pregnancy. HA!

Take for instance, last night. I usually sleep on my left side with a body pillow in between my legs. Maddy dog shares my pillow and has her head near my belly. (I really think she senses something has happened to me because she's been extra protective of me the past few months). Since I was tossing and turning so much I annoyed her and she went to sleep near my husband. I literally cried. Yes, you heard that right. I cried because my dog slept closer to my husband than me. Oh the horror.

Speaking of crying...

I confess...
For some odd reason I am obsessed with Giuliana and Bill Rancic. I seriously don't know why. I never watched the Apprentice. I hardly ever watch E! News or Fashion Police but yet my DVR is set to record their show every week on the Style Network. I went online the other day and I saw the news that they were expecting their first child via a gestational carrier. I was so happy for them I cried. A full on cry at work...over strangers I've never met. Hahaha. What is wrong with me??

I confess...
I was a sap before getting pregnant. I probably would have cried even if I wasn't.

I confess...
Tomorrow is my baby shower and I'm so excited to see everyone. If my bridal shower was any indication, my baby shower will be amazing. My sister-in-law, bestie and cousin always spoil me. I'm such a lucky girl.

I confess...
I've sorta been stalking my registry. I tried really hard not to.....but... I couldn't help it. Mmmmmhahhaaha. So yea, I pretty much know what we've got for Liam and what we still need to get before he is born.

I confess...
The thoughts in my brain are pretty random and jump all over the place so....

I read Mamarazzi's confession today and she always cracks me up. I scrolled down to read older posts that I had missed when I was too busy working and didn't have time to keep up with her blog.

I confess...
She announced another swap. :(  Damn it. I really wanted to participate in one. I was going to plead my case and everything, since I"m a newbie. But I missed the deadline. Next time. I swear it! You can't see it but I'm shaking my fists.

I confess...
Ok, I'm really not, but I've read the posts and saw all the cool stuff people send each other. It looks like so much fun. I really hope I can do it next time.

What are you confessing? Link up!
Have a great Friday everyone!

Oh happy day!

Most days I drag myself out of bed at the very last possible second. Today I'm up an hour and a half early. Why you ask? Because today is massage day at work! Boss man says that morale is way down in the office so he is bringing in a massage therapist once a month, every month, starting today. Hooray. Being preggo, I can't even tell you how bad everything aches. I cannot wait for my massage. Oh yea, I am a HAPPY girl today.

Speaking of being pregnant, I don't know if I've mentioned it but in my Hubby's family we have 3 babies due within 2 months of each other. His cousin, Becky, is due June 1st, I'm June 25th and our sister-in-law, Amber is due July 22nd. It's a very HAPPY and exciting time for all of us. Hubby isn't particularly close to his family which is so odd to me because I'm so close to mine. I'm really trying to bond with Becky and Amber because we're all going through the same thing at the same time. I feel like this experience has brought me closer to Becky and I'm really HAPPY about that.

Becky is (well was, she had to stop for obvious reasons) a volunteer firefighter, as is her brother and I'm pretty sure her father. Her grandfather was the fire chief for years and years. He just retired last summer. I was walking through Walmart yesterday to buy some new socks when I spotted this adorable little number:

It was randomly in the front of the baby section, all alone. How perfect is this for her little fire fighter? Christopher is going to look adorable in it. I searched for a bigger size but none were anywhere to be found. Oh well. I cannot wait to give it to her at her shower. I guess I need to really get shopping for her baby shower. It's coming up in a few weeks. I love putting baskets together so I'm pretty sure that's what I'm going to do for her as well. HAPPY!

I need to get ready for work...don't want to be late on massage day!

What are you HAPPY about? Link up and let everyone know.




Also linking to:

Silk dyed Easter eggs

Today technology was my friend. I finally got my laptop AND my camera working. I've had images trapped in my camera for over a year now. Oh happy day! Since I'm able to download images to my computer, I thought I would share a little tutorial for dyeing Easter eggs with silk neckties.

Hubby doesn't wear ties that often, or ever, so I went to a thrift store and found a few colorful patterned ties. I thought they would be a bit cheaper (they were $4.00 each) but I guess even the Salvation Army needs to make some money. I knew the ties needed to be 100% silk (or some said "all silk") in order to work.

First I dissected the ties and removed the guts. Yep, I said it. You have to cut away all the inside fabric from the silk. Then I cut them up into sizes big enough to cover an egg.

I wrapped the eggs in the scraps of silk and used a rubber band to secure them tightly. As I got to the skinnier part of the tie it became more difficult to wrap the egg in an entire piece. I improvised and made a cross shape which seemed to work out fine.

Some of the tutorials I've seen online say your next step is to cover the entire egg in thread or to cover it with a piece of fabric such as an old pair of pantyhose. There was no reason given for this so I skipped it. I feel like if you can't tell me why I need to do something, then I won't. I'm pretty damn stubborn that way.

Next I placed the eggs into a pot of boiling water that had about 2 tablespoons of vinegar added to it. I didn't measure exactly, I just poured. :) I let them simmer for 20 minutes. I read that for better results you can simmer longer, up to 40 minutes. I needed to be somewhere & I was pressed for time so 20 minutes it was.

After the eggs have simmered for your desired time, allow them to cool and unwrap them. I have to admit, I was like a kid on Christmas. I was so excited to see what each would look like. I placed the eggs on a paper towel until they were completely dried.

Here are a few tips I've learned:
1. Make sure you buy your eggs the day before Easter. It was slim pickings at several grocery stores near me. I literally bought the last carton of eggs in my neighborhood. Of course they were the expensive organic, extra omega something or others...but they were eggs none the less.
2. I think covering the eggs with the tread might have been a good option. I assume it may have helped the silk to stay in contact with the egg a little better, thus transfering a better pattern.
3. I still have no idea what the hell the pantyhose does.
4. You shouldn't eat these eggs. They are for decoration ONLY. I saw some fiber artist talking about how it's not a good idea. Also, she says that you should dye these in a separate pot that you would use normally. Luckily I had an old dye pot from when I was in school for textile design.

Here is the final result. I think they look so pretty on my table in the DIY thriftstore dessert stand I made.  :)

Happy Easter everyone. Hope the Easter bunny is good to you!




For some reason my button isn't working..so I'm linking upto the  bunny-hop Easter link party with Happy hour projects and Mrs. Fox's sweets.

Friday Confessional

I Confess...

Technology wasn't my friend this week. Hubby called me the other day and said that he sent me 4 texts and wanted to know why I hadn't answered them. I never got any texts from him, or from anyone else. This went on for several days until someone suggested I take out the battery and reinstall it. Bam! 20 text messages showed up. How annoying.

I Confess...
To further my case, my new laptop is sitting next to my desktop and I feel like it's laughing at me. I set it all up and tried to get online and nothing. I couldn't remember my wireless internet password. I called our internet provider to have them reset the password. After being on hold for a half hour they said they couldn't help me. The suggested I call the company who makes my modem. So I called the modem company. Another 15 or so minutes later they say they can't help me either. They told me to call my internet provider. Uggg. Can someone just reset my damn password?


I Confess...
I've been working about 6 days a week so I needed some time away from my office. I took off today to get some projects done around the house. Hubby is out buying a new weed wacker and then getting gas for the lawn mower...and I'm sitting here catching up with my favorite blogs. Hehe.

I Confess...

I'm still waiting on those magic cleaning elves to show up. I reaaaaaaaaaaaally don't feel like cleaning today. It's way too nice out.


I Confess...
I did clean the bathroom this morning so it should count for something. Right?

I Confess...
I really do want to clean the house just so I have room in the kitchen to dye Easter eggs. I've seen a few DIY posts about dyeing eggs using silk ties. I went to the trift store and got a few last night. I'm super excited to try it. I'm hoping it works out...and if it does I will post some pictures.

I Confess...
Hubby just called to see if I needed anything from the store. That means he'll be home in about 5 minutes. I should at least pretend to be doing something productive!

What are you confessing this week? Grab a button add it to your confessional post and link up.

Happy Friday everyone!