Nursery Decor

Evan's nursery has been in dire need of some decorations to liven it up for awhile now. I've looked on Pinterest, and seen some things I like:

Quotes, books, shelves... I had even found some cute prints on Etsy that I considered. However, I wanted cheap, and easy.

Yesterday, I found the solution.

Eddie had an interview, so I took Evan to Michael's. I actually had him in a sling out in public for the first time, and oh boy, did a lot of people come up to me. One woman actually touched him. And here I thought people were less likely to touch babies when they were being worn - but that would mean people have to respect bubble space. They clearly do not.

For Christmas, my mother gifted me two 8.5" by 11" frames to use in Evan's bedroom. Now I just had to fill them.

Two frames from my mother, one cricut paper cutter, and what we got at Michael's.

 I walked up and down aisles, looking for big stickers, decals, anything that would look alright. Eventually, I thought that maybe I could find some plain scrapbook paper to use.

First, I saw birds. I do love simple birds. Then I saw rainbows. While they would match nicely, in my opinion, I didn't really think they looked right for the room. However, I loved them.

Then, I found something perfect. A sailboat paper. It was on clearance for 29 cents! Soon after, I found a paper with miscellaneous forms of transportation in cartoon form. While they didn't quite match each other - they worked for a boy's room.

The four different scrapbook pages, size 12x12.

Maybe someday I'll do something that matches the room and theme more - or maybe not. I like the idea of a random pop to them. Especially now that Evan is noticing more colors and patterns.

We want to put something between them, but we aren't quite sure. Also, on the opposite wall, above the changing table, we want to put shelves of some sort. And yes, we currently "line dry" our diapers over the edge of the crib - Evan isn't sleeping in it yet, and it works. We'll get a drying rack some time before he does.

As for the theme of the room, another Christmas gift from my mom was a Scentsy monkey. He lives on top of the armoire. Along with some random bears, also from my mother.

 

I think I'll use the other two scrapbook papers to decorate my desk area in the basement. It's currently unused and a total mess. Maybe if it were brighter, I would be more inclined to do something with it. Maybe.

What's new?

Evan had his 2 month appointment last week.

We decided to do an alternate vaccine schedule for two reasons:

1. I'm not 100% comfortable with vaccines.
2. Evan's dad had "absent seizures" as a kid.

Also, his ped assured me that his weight gain was fine. He was 1 ounce shy of 11 pounds.
He's also smiling, cooing, laughing in his sleep, trying to laugh while awake, awesome at almost rolling over, and lifting his head pretty amazingly.

 Exclusive breastfeeding for the win.

On another note, I'm trying to change my lifestyle. I've been overweight since pre-baby, and I'm lucky enough that I lost all the weight as soon as he was born, and immediately fit into clothes pretty much the same as before. However, they've always been tight because of pre-baby weight gain, and now my stomach is... well, weird. Ever seen The Shape of a Mother? Well...I would easily fit in around there. And my stretch marks are not  fading. So it's time to do something about it.

First, a new diet. I've read a bit about paleo and primal "diets", and we're going to take bits and pieces from them. So, we're cutting out dairy (for the most part), among other changes. We bought coconut oil, coconut milk, almond milk, and applesauce (for healthier baking). We've had a lot of stir fried dinners of chicken and veggeis, and before were doing a lot of chinese (home-made) - so that will continue. However, we've cut down on grains, and will slowly phase them out. Maybe not entirely, but mostly.
We also looked at coconut and almond flour.

Monday, I weighed myself and came in at 254 lbs exactly. I want to lose 100 lbs, and it won't be easy. Especially not with Evan, and breastfeeding. I've never been as hungry as I am now that I am breastfeeding.
I've decided to start working out. Monday, I was only able to do about 3 minutes of cardio before I was exhausted. It's pretty pathetic, but I suppose 3 minutes is better than no minutes. Yesterday, we had to go downtown and pay property taxes. With the way it's laid out, one way roads and all, we ended up walking two blocks from the car to the building. Last night I was feeling it. Oh man, I remember walking farther with our dog pre-pregnancy, and even a few times during pregnancy - even at the end. But, I haven't done anything in the 10 weeks Evan has been here, until now. So, I suppose it's understandable.
I need to work up to more.

I've worked out a rewards system to keep me motivated - I hope it works!

240 - Go to the movies

220 - New Twinkie Tush Diaper (Stalking and all!)

 200 - A casual dress

180 - Dinner out

160 - Paint the trim in the bedroom, finally! (Or...have Eddie do it. :) )

140 - Shopping for new clothes

Here's to hoping I see some results! I know, I know... it'll take time. I can't let myself give up. I think I'll do weigh-in's on Wednesday, and update here to keep myself motivated.

Also! Early April I will be posting a review and giveaway for a Wahmies wet bag, size medium. Be sure to check that out!

Patterns & Schedules

I would like to have one.

Usually these days, Evan goes to sleep around 1 or 2am. Sometimes he wakes up 3 hours later, sometimes not for 5 or 7 (it all depends on the diaper, or if he has to poop). However, I'm not sleeping well, so he gets a diaper change, and I nurse him back to sleep each time he wakes up - until I decide to come downstairs around noon or one in the afternoon. Then he stays on my lap for most of the rest of the night.
His daddy holds and plays with him multiple times throughout the day, and he's occasionally set in the crib on his tummy while I use the bathroom, or placed in his rocker to look at the fishy for a few minutes. But honestly, I feel like he's always on my lap, and I'm always immobile.

Wraps and slings don't seem to work for him, because they take work to put on, and then if he's awake, he doesn't want to be in them right now. He may be content for a couple minutes, but then he wants to move! He wants to walk, stand, crawl. Too bad he's a long ways from being able to do any of it.

Some days he sleeps a ton, others he happily stays awake, and others he is grumpy and overtired and won't get to sleep. So, I think we really need a schedule. I know I have to actually wake up earlier, and start the process of getting into a schedule. But it's hard. And I'm not quite sure where to start without it making everyone miserable and grumpy.

Also, I only know how to nurse him to sleep. Rocking, shhshing, and all those other things don't work. I guess it's fine for now, but what about as he gets older?

Evan is 2 months old on Friday, and I think it's time to try something. Momma needs to start a routine of her own, but she can't if she's glued to the baby.

Any tips or advice?

For the love of sleep: SttN Update

We purchased some Thirsties doublers to use alternately with our lone Joey-Bunz premium, and then my darling son became even more of a heavy wetter. Doublers don't work anymore, they get soaked in a matter of hours.

Our Best Bottom inserts still work somewhat. Not as long as 7 hours, but about 5ish; however we would like to use those with the Best Bottom cover, at least sometimes!

So we made a new purchase.

A used Twinkie Tush, and it is amazing! I can't wait to get more. This is the real deal now.