Changing Table

I knew that we didn’t have an ideal spot or enough space really for a changing table.  I also knew I didn’t want to just get a towel or blanket and get down on the floor to change a diaper 10 times a day right after giving birth.  We were working on rearranging the nursery and discussing how to fit in a changing station, and Robert came up with the idea of having it on top of the vanity in the nursery.  It would be a table that would stay there from day to day but could be moved when needed.  It would be tall enough to still give us access to the sink and faucet.  We had planned to get it done in June, but Ray came to town the weekend before Memorial Day, and decided he was up for helping Robert work on it.

The three of us went to Home Depot to purchase the supplies.  I was in charge of picking out the paint while the guys got everything else.  They went with ¾” plywood in pine, and had the worker cut it to the necessary dimensions (52” x 20”).  They also purchased 2 pine 1”x6”x 6’ boards and 1 pin 1”x2” with one beveled edge.  Other supplies included wood glue, 1 ¾” screws, a paintbrush, and a quart of paint. I chose Glidden Duo (Paint + Primer) in Orchid Oasis.

Went with the top color

Before the changing station

The base of the table sits on the small backsplash of the vanity.  The base has three sides put together with wood glue and screws.  Wood glue went on the top edge of the base, and then they put down the sheet of wood and screwed it down.  The measured out 8” from the sides and 10” from ends to select their spot for handles for easy removal.  They drilled out circles with a bore and cut out the remainder with the jigsaw.  Then they added the 1”x2” to add a lip to keep it more secure.  The foam changing pad will fit perfectly inside the handles.

Then they sanded, and sanded, and sanded.  Thank goodness for the electric sander!

After my nap, it was time for me to go to work painting it with Robert.  We did two coats.  The color reminds me a lot of my bedroom in high school.  Robert says we’re getting in some early SBU brainwashing for Baby V .  4^th generation Bearcat?  Works for me!

Robert says this project was not difficult and says the project took about six hours from start to finish and cost about $80, less than what one could easily spend on a regular changing table.  Obviously, this is a pretty specialized item, but hopefully we’ll be able to repurpose it in the future.

Baby Mobile

Our first craft for baby V's nursery is complete!  After finding that most baby mobiles in stores were $40-60 I decided DIY would be a good option.  I was inspired by this baby mobile on Pinterest that was previously sold on Etsy:

It seems like most baby mobiles on Etsy cost $80+.  At first I thought this was absolutely ridiculous, but after spending $30 on supplies and spending about 12 hours making this thing, I can definitely understand why someone would charge $80.  Suffice it to say, this was one of those crafts that took 10x longer than I had expected, and turned out to be a labor of love.  It was mostly fun, and we weren't in a rush so it was still worth it.

Supplies needed:
Yarn (We used some leftover gray wavy yarn from a previous project.)
Felt (Bought a yard and had plenty)
Various colors of calico fabric (Bought a yard of three different colors and had plenty)
Hot glue gun
Circular ring

Let me just take a moment to say finding a circular ring on which to affix the poms was incredibly difficult.  It was one of those things where you feel like it'll be so easy to go to the store and buy a metal/wooden/plastic 12" ring, but after going to Hobby Lobby and Home Depot without any luck we settled on buying some rubber tubing, shaping it into a circle, securing it with Duct Tape, and wrapping it in the pretty yarn.

I used a tutorial by Little Miss Mama to make the pom poms.  Basically, you cut a circle with the felt (we used a biscuit cutter to trace the circles) and cut out a billion circles from the calico fabric.  Seriously.  This took forever.  Then you glue the fabric onto the felt.  Just go to the link and it'll explain how to go about doing this.  Once your circles are complete you'll glue two together to create a ball/flower.  We made three small poms and three large poms and affixed them to the hoop with more yarn.

Robert got excited and decided to make four animals on a center ring: elephant, penguin, hippo, and giraffe.  Isn't he cute?

Complete!

Becoming a Grown Up

Another good and busy week.  Tuesday I got to go to Windermere (where I worked last summer) to see some dear friends and have a wedding showing for Loretta.  I got her a waffle iron.  Which if you knew Loretta you'd know this item will be used on a daily basis. haha

I had two tests and a speech last week.  I don't know how either test turned out, but I felt decent about both.  I got an A on the speech which is encouraging after my last speech.  I really can't figure out that professor.

Robert and I went to Springfield to Wednesday to celebrate 13 months of dating.  We went to the mall, Chili's, and a park.  I'm blessed!

At Jordan Valley Park

Thursday Robert and I got to have dinner at El Rodeo with our dear friend Harrison.  Delightful! 1. El Rodeo is my fave local restaurant.  The food comes in approximately five minutes and tastes delicious every single time.  2. Harrison is hilarious.  He and Robert picked me up and what was waiting in the back seat for me?  A precious baby animal calendar.  How thoughtful.  haha

We had this gigantic pageant thing called Mr. and Miss Southwest Friday night.  Residence Life was in charge of it.  Boy am I glad to be done with it.  It went really well, but it was a ton of work.

Robert and I spent yesterday together.  I love weekends without much to do.  I vacuumed, washed, and waxed Robert's truck while he worked on a research paper.  We went to the town library.  $2 for a grocery bag full of books.  Hello!  We got four puzzles and about 20 books.  We worked on a puzzle while watching the Cardinals kick butt that night.  We made dinner together: grilled pork chops, grilled veggies, and mashed potatoes.  I attempted to make dessert but the heating element in the oven decided to spark and essentially explode.  Hadn't planned on that.

Robert and I had the honor of playing for Carey's third grade Sunday School class this morning.  So great!  Then I got to work in the nursery.  Quote of the day:  Eisley called me Miss Robert.  I didn't mind. :)

Robert and I got to hang with Chad and Natalie today.  We painted a canvas for their house.  Now we get to be with them wherever they go!  We're so pumped to have them in Bolivar with us this summer and next school year.

Just in case you forgot, I have four more weeks of class and one week of finals until I'm a college graduate!!!

Big Week

This was a pretty big week for me.  The first week back after a break is always interesting.

Monday: I got the paperwork to fill out for graduation.  It was pretty exciting to see that I'll be graduating cum laude.  It's really cool to see that I'll my hard work has paid off.  I also met with Dr. Leo.  I am so very thankful God has given me such an amazing doctor.  He is very knowledgeable and does an excellent job of relaying the information to me.  He said my ultrasound looked perfect.  My blood counts are still low.  He switched my iron supplement to Bifera which is supposed to be easier on my stomach.  The main bummer is that although it's still OTC it costs $20 instead of $3.  It's totally worth it though to not feel sick.  We hired the new RA to replace me.  It's a weird feeling.  It seems like I just became an RA.  I think Bekah will do a great job.  It's hard to balance investing in the girls for the last month and a half of school and starting to let go.

Tuesday: I ordered my new car!!!  I have been very thankful for my Pontiac Sunfire.  It's served me well for the past five years.  We've had some good memories together.  It was my very first car.  It has never broken down or gotten a flat tire.  However, it's time to upgrade a bit.  I ordered a 2011 Ford Fiesta.  It should be here in 3-7 weeks.  It's cool to think that I'll be the first owner.  Although my Sunfire was kept up pretty well, I think the previous owner was a smoker.  What was my clue?  A couple of burn marks on the ceiling and chair.  The dealer said I've chosen a pretty "basic" version of the Fiesta.  It's interesting to see how "basic" has changed over the past ten years when my Sunfire was made.  My Sunfire is "basic" - manual windows, manual locks, manual mirrors, no keyless entry, etc.  My "basic" Fiesta will have automatic windows, automatic locks, keyless entry, MP3 hookup, CD player, etc.  I'm most excited about the locks and windows.  It's the little things, baby!

Wednesday: I worked in the church nursery in the morning and evening.  I'm guaranteed a good laugh every single time I work.  Three year old boy: "I use plastic spoons to bench press, but sometimes Mommy cooks with them."  Obviously, what he's doing is normal, and she's the weird-o.  On Wednesday nights my family always eats dinner with my grandparents (Memaw and Pepaw).  Memaw is quite the cook!

Thursday: I meet with Carey every Thursday morning.  Our time together is such a breath of fresh air.  She's an excellent example of a loving and Godly wife, mother, and friend.

Friday: I got to have lunch with my dear friend Tarah.  Tarah and I have been friends since we were in diapers.  It's a bummer that we don't get to hang out quite as much now, but every time we get together it's great.  Conversation comes so easily with her.  I gave a speech in advanced public speaking.  It didn't go as well as I had expected.  It's different when you don't prepare for a test, presentation, or paper and then do poorly.  But when you prepare and study your butt off you should be rewarded properly.

Saturday: I was the RA on call this weekend so I worked 1:00-5:00.  It was open dorm so I got to go over to Robert's room.  We watched Superstar.  Hilarious!  Then we played a game called trains.  Robert dominated.  I guess guys never get too old to play with trains.

Sunday: We all got to eat lunch with my parents.  Delicious!  Then Robert and I walked around the neighborhood.  It's 80 degrees today, people!  Now I'm working in the dorm office from 2:00-5:00.  I got employee of the month at work last week and was rewarded with a $15 giftcard to Subway.  I think tonight will be a perfect night for a free dinner date with my man.

This week looks like it should be pretty chill.  No tests, papers, or presentations.  Just lots of work and babysitting. 

I've been reading a book called One Thousand Gifts.  It's a great challenge.  The author spent several months writing down 1000 gifts and blessings.  What a great way to show our gratitude.  I think there's something to be said for actually stopping to write down gifts.  It makes it seem more real.  I want a heart that continually seeks an attitude of gratitude.

48 days til graduation.

One Year

Robert and I have officially been dating for a year.  I honestly can't believe it!  Robert is my first boyfriend, and he was definitely worth waiting for.  Some of my fondest memories together so far include:
Going to St. Louis to watch the Cards play
Painting pottery together
Flying kites
Having choir together
Being able to talk about absolutely everything
Giggling together all the time

Robert definitely brings out the best in me.  I always thought it was weird when people said stuff like my significant other is my best friend, but now I understand.

Hiking around after our picnic

 

 

I've started working in the church nursery this semester.  Some of my favorite little kid quotes so far are:
After flushing the toilet: "Bye, toilet paper.  It's time to go see your friends."
"Is this the biggest sink?  I need the biggest sink because I'm a very big girl."
"I wear big girl underwear.  Do you?"
"Dad put this dress on me today.  He wears very big boy underwear."
Note: This was said to a co-worker, not me. hehe "I don't like you.  You do things I don't understand."
"I have a real horse at home.  It's blue.  I'll bring it next week."

I have an appointment to meet with Dr. Leo (an oncologist/hematologist) Wednesday afternoon.  I'm nervous/excited.  It's scary to think that he might find something that really is wrong with me, but at the same time I want to get an expert opinion.  Wednesday can't come soon enough!

This is the last week of school before spring break.  Trying to stay motivated.  It's really easy to shut down early especially since this is my last semester of college, and I've already been accepted into grad school.

I've Seen Better Days

Oh man.  It's been a whirlwind of a week.  Recap:

- Went to KC with Robert on Monday.  Crazy trip.  Didn't get back home til 2am.  Plus side: Got to see my dear friend Jen for a bit.

- My car broke down.  Pretty much everything that could have gone wrong happened.  I put it in reverse and it went kaplunk, put it in drive and it revved up a bunch, the check oil light came on, the check battery light came on, and the power steering went out.  Of course when my dad came to look at it it worked fine for him.  Does that sort of thing ever happen to anybody else?  We had a friend look at it.  Apparently the carborator (spelling?) was totally clogged.  Scary!  He fixed it. :)

- I had mono last spring.  With that it's totally normal to have low white blood cell counts, low platelet counts, high monocytes, and high lymphocytes for about six months.  So every few months I've gone in to have my blood re-tested.  It's been nearly a year now.  I got the results to my most recent test two days ago.  Everything is still out of whack.  Very discouraging.  My doctor is finally being proactive and has referred me to an oncologist and hematologist (cancer and blood doctor), but it's really scary.  If something is wrong I want to nip it in the bud.  So I guess the oncologist (Dr. Leo) is going to look over my records and then set up an appointment with me.  It could be something like: "No worries.  You're white blood cell counts are always low.  Happens to the best of us."  Or, as my primary care physician mentioned, it could be something like: "You have leukemia or lymphoma.  Wish we would have done something about it when we realized your counts were off 12 months ago!"

- I skipped all my classes on Tuesday.  I like to think of it as a mental health day.  Think my absences will be excused?

- I work in the church nursery on Wednesday mornings during a Mom's Bible study.  I have older 2's and younger 3's in my room.  Quote of the day: While playing with Play-Dough one of the kids stuck a blob on his finger and shouted, "Finger puppets!!!" Presh.

- I helped buy a new microwave for the dorm.  One of the fun parts of being an RA. ;)  In case you were wondering, it's not a good idea to microwave a cookie with a sheet of computer paper and a metal fork in there in as well.  Shocking.

- I sponsor a girl named Happiness through World Vision.  She lives in Zimbabwe, and I've been sponsoring her for a year and a half.  I wrote her the other day.  I'm so thankful for the opportunity to bless and be blessed by her.

- Sad story: On December 15 I ordered two tickets to a Yellowcard concert in KC on April 5.  Robert's favorite band of all time is Yellowcard.  When we first started dating he mentioned he wished he could have gone to one of their concerts before they broke up.  Well, this month they're releasing a new CD and going on tour.  March 13 is our 1 year anniversary.  So I got us tickets 3 months ago (4 months before the concert) to celebrate.  Guess what.  Robert has a choir concert the same night and will fail choir if he skips us.  What else? There are no refunds.  See ya later, 70 bucks!