5 Month Milestones

I cannot believe our little girl is 5 months old already. Seriously, I feel like I just found out I was pregnant (and that was over a year ago!) I'm so excited for her first Christmas. I have two (yes, two) Christmas dresses. I'm already setting her up to be just like her mom when it comes to clothes.

5 Month Milestones:

• Eating approximately 5oz every three hours (she is fed either by me or pumped milk when I am at work - no formula)
• Sleeps approximately 9 straight hours a night and takes 2-3 naps/day
• Talks so much! Squeals all day long - LOUD!
• Sits up (sometimes needs assistance)
• Rolls over back to belly and back again
• Will push up on her belly for long periods of time - hasn't attempted crawling yet, but does kick feet a little
• Grabs everything!
• Has started to reach for people
• Obsessed with her feet. Pulls socks off and tries to eat her feet
• Has such a distinct personality
• Recognizes voices over the phone and family members in pictures
• Recognizes her own name
• Smiles and laughs all day long
• Loves her bouncer and will sit in it for up to 45 minutes playing with all the activites attached to it
• When holding toys likes to 'whip' them around. We have make sure we hand her soft toys because she's hit herself once or twice with excitement.

We haven't started her on rice or any solids, yet. Her pediatrician basically told us she's gaining weight and she sleeps through the night, so she's getting all she needs. We could technically keep her on milk until she's a year old, but we will eventually start to experiment with a few solids. Like I've mentioned before, I'm making all her food which I'm very excited about.

It's incredible to notice all the changes not just physically, but developmentally, that Lucy has been going through. She has really become her own person who we already know is going to be hilarious once she can talk.

PS. Anyone else having trouble with Picnik?

I haven't been able to get it to work properly in days. Ugh..

Guest Blogger: Danielle from Neat & Tangled

Today I have a special treat - my friend Danielle over at Neat & Tangled is guest blogging! You may remember I did a guest post for her last month with the owl silverware holders I DIY'ed. Danielle is a different kind of DIY-er than I am - she does paper crafting. Paper crafting has always amazed me because of how intricate the designs look. It's such a different type of DIY than I do and I love looking at Danielle's blog and seeing the variety of cards she creates. I never quite understood how she made them and they look so detailed, so I asked Danielle if she'd mind giving a tutorial of how to create a card from scratch. Check it out:

Hey there! Danielle here, doing a little guest blogging for Jess.  She was so kind to help me out back in November by doing a guest blog post for me while I spent time with my new baby.  I was so excited when she asked if I’d like to do a post for her – of course!

Now let me preface by saying I’m not so much of a home improvement DIY type (although I have done a few things), I’m more DIY on the paper crafting front.  I’m big into making cards, stationary, scrapbooks, etc.  The beauty of what I make is that it doesn’t have to be limited to those things. The cards and things I make can easily be transformed into wall art, or used as inspiration for other projects. For example, here is a picture of how I incorporated cards into a collage on my son’s bedroom wall.

I had a really hard time deciding what to make to share with you all, there were so many ways to go. First I made some stationary…

It was cute, but it seemed a little dull. So, I decided to show you 2 different approaches to card making. One is super simple, so if you just want to get your feet wet you can. The other is a little more in depth. All the supplies I used are listed at the bottom of this page. You can click the thumbnail and it will take you to a shop (Simon Says Stamp) where you can get everything.  Although most supplies can be found at your local Michael’s, JoAnn’s, or AC Moore.

Rather than do a photo step-by-step I shot a little video to show you how these cards came together. I tried to keep it short and just give you the basics. If you think you’re remotely interested in diving into this world of paper crafting I’m doing a  “getting started” video series starting the week after Christmas that will cover all the basics.  So be sure to swing by my blog and check it out.  Now onto the video:

And here are the finished products.

 I thought it would look lovely framed and hanging on a wall, so I did that too :o) 

Thank you Jess for letting me hang out on your blog today!

Supplies:

InLinkz.com

Keys Please

Another trip to Goodeals means to a few more gems for our house! I snagged three new things on my last trip and already put one of them to use.

I love the detail and shape of this frame. Got it for $3.50.

Debating if I want to use it to frame some photos, create a DIY art piece, or make a mini chalkboard. This will most likely go in the guest room. I've got plans for a wall of gold frames in there.

Although I have yet to figure out what to do with it, I loved this vintage window when I saw it and had to buy.
I am sucker for the distressed, chipped paint and knicks in the wood.
Can't wait to find a permanent home for it - possibly in the guest room as well.
Picked this up for $11.20

Lastly, I had eyed this keychain hook a few weeks ago and when I saw it was still there, marked down from $7 to $4.90 I had to buy.

I initially wanted to put the key hook in our guest room so that when guests stayed, they had somewhere to put their keys. (We actually do get a fair number of guests staying over throughout the year.) But Jordan suggested replacing our current key hook in the hallway.

Here is the key hook we've had.

It hold my keys, Jordan's keys, the mailbox key, Lucy's keys :), and Lyla's leash.
Nothing wrong with it, but it's becoming a bit of an eyesore getting junked up.

So I took off the old hook and was left with this mess:

Luckily I always have spare paint leftover whenever we paint a room so I grabbed that with my trusty spackle and got to work.

I'm no professional spackle-applier.

I don't even use the tools, I use just my fingers.

But, hey it gets the job done.

A quick spackle, coat of paint and couple of nails later, my hook is up.

If you look closely I did need to hang it with three nails so the weight of one set of keys on one side wouldn't cause the hook to tilt and spill. I used small nails so they are barely noticeable.

I love how the detail on the key is actually the same design as the detail on the mirror in the foyer on the opposite wall.

The old silver keychain hook will actually go inside the coat closet so we can still hang Lyla's leash somewhere with easy access to the front door.

My next step is to find a new gold knob for the coat closet.

I'd also like to give the closet a fresh coat of paint (it's still bright blue from the old owners) and some much needed organization. 

I'm also debating if I want to hang some sort of framed photo or DIY art piece above the key hook.

Here are a few of the knobs I've been eyeing up at Anthropologie.

For both this door and the closet doors in the guest room.

Monday, Monday

Well I had a different post planned for today, but Safari and Picnik were both acting up last night and around midnight I gave up on trying to get it to work. So today's post has been halted and tomorrow I will resume. Here's a peek at what I was going to blog about:

I started on the dining room wall art this weekend, but as you can see I didn't get too far.

Even with only one line down I'm super pleased with how it looks. At my rate of one line per night it may take me a while to complete! I actually hope to get a good chunk of it done tonight after bug goes to bed. I'll keep you all updated on th progress. I'm anxious to complete and hang it in the dining room!

Is everyone ready for Christmas?

I'm not! Almost, but not quite.

And for fun, here is bug passed out on her grandfather after all the family craziness this weekend:

PS. Anyone watch the Dexter finale?? Holy cliffhanger!

Take Care of Yourself

(I can't remember where I found this picture.

Have had it saved to my computer for some time.)

Last minute Christmas shopping as well as being pretty busy at work has been taking a toll on my DIY projects and blogging.

I'll be back soon with plans for our guest room (I'm finally going to start working on it), a mini upgrade in our foyer, and the dining room art that will (hopefully) be finished this weekend.

In the meantime, speaking of busy, check out this great list I came across:

55 Gentle Ways to Take Care of Yourself When You're Busy Busy Busy

I'm a full believer that everyone needs to be a little 'selfish' from time to time and take care of themselves or you will certainly crash and burn.

I need to take a number of these and apply them to my daily routine.

Bookmarked for sure.