Bathroom Remodel Progress

When I first bought the house over five years ago, one of the things on my list was to re-do the second bathroom, but other things kept moving ahead of it on the list. The bathroom had been remodeled by a previous owner…who had very different tastes than us. Also, the shower had several cracked tiles, so I’d never even used it for fear of leaks.

With the baby coming and the subsequent influx of guests, Robert and I decided it was time to take action. We met with a few contractors over the holidays and found one that we liked. Work got underway about a week and a half ago, and we’re pleased with the progress so far. Check it out!

Before Pictures

So ugly...

Note the lovely yellow cultured faux marble countertop and shell-shaped sink.

Yucky shower

Day One

The window hidden behind the mirror...

Goodbye gross shower tiles!

Day Four

New Hardiboard in the shower

Plumbing is set and holes are made for sconces.

Damaged subfloor is replaced.

Day Five

Wiring is done for shower light fixtures and niche has been made.

New drywall and Hardiboard are in.

Day Six

Tiling has started!

Hopefully I'll have more updates to add soon!

28 Weeks

Officially third trimester! I'm definitely carrying this baby all in the front. :)

Nursery Progress

Robert and I had some serious cleaning out to do to make room for the baby. We decided to turn the guest room into the nursery and combine the office and guest room. December was busy sorting through things, cleaning out closets, and making trips to Goodwill - hope someone enjoys the couch!

Getting a crib was a bit of a saga - we initially ordered one online, and the one we got was damaged. After a second crib also arrived damaged, we got our money back and found one at a local store, Baby World. We love it, so everything worked out in the end! The bedding is from Pottery Barn Kids - they recently discontinued it, so I was happy to find all of the pieces we wanted during the post-Christmas sale. It was difficult finding something gender-neutral that we liked, but I'm really pleased with this set - and the price!

Mom came the weekend after Christmas, and she and I really enjoyed working together to paint the room. It's so cheery in there now - I love walking in and daydreaming about sitting in the glider rocking our baby.

Robert and I purchased a dresser from Ikea and ordered a glider which should be here in the next 6 weeks. We also still need to put up the curtains and start adding a few decorative touches - I can't wait to see everything come together!

My Growing Baby Belly

A few belly pictures as promised...I swear I don't wear red every day!

11/4/07 - 18 Weeks

11/18/07 - 20 Weeks

11/25/07 - 21 Weeks

12/2/07 - 22 Weeks

1/2/08 - 26 Weeks

From Two to Three...

I began suspecting I might be pregnant while Robert and I were in Japan. My sense of smell suddenly seemed to go into hyperdrive, and my stomach was definitely more sensitive, but we also thought there was a good chance that those feelings might just be due to the strange food in Japan. :) We doubted our ability to interpret a Japanese home pregnancy test, and thought that the chances of me actually being pregnant were pretty slim, so we decided to just wait until we got back home to test.

I'd bought some Dollar Tree tests a couple of months before in anticipation of our plan to begin "trying" in a couple of months, and I grabbed one as soon as I woke up after our first night at home. Even though I suspected I was pregnant, I was still shocked to see this!

I can't remember exactly how long the test said it would take for results, but it definitely didn't take as long as the instructions said - there was a strong second line literally within 10 seconds! I heard Robert get out of bed, and he walked in to see how it was going. I asked him "Are you ready to be a dad?" and showed him the test. We were both in shock, but so excited!

Since we didn't want to rely on a Dollar Tree test, I ran to the grocery store for a digital which quickly confirmed the cheapo test - almost no time at all passed before "Pregnant" flashed on the screen.

At our first OB appointment, my doctor scheduled me for an ultrasound the next day to check the baby and date the pregnancy. We were thrilled to get our first glimpse of our baby on August 29th and see the little flashing light indicating a strong heartbeat! It also showed I was about 8 weeks pregnant. We decided to just tell a few people the news at first, and it was so hard to keep it a secret!

Every appointment since then has continued to bring good news that both the baby and I are healthy, and we are excited to meet our little one who is due April 6, 2008!