Last Black Friday

To my Sweet Brecken boy - One year ago from today we saw you for the very first time. Thanksgiving was exciting last year because we were so excited about the news of having you and knowing the next day that we would get to see you for the first time! Last Thanksgiving you were the size of a raspberry in my tummy and now you are such a big boy! Seeing you for the first time was so exciting! You were already the squirmy little boy you are today.  Your daddy and I were a little nervous because we were hoping you were ok in my tummy and you were. We saw you for the first time and got our first picture (first of MANY!) of you. You still had a tail in the picture and this was before we knew you were our sweet boy joy! So much has changed in the past year and we are incredibly blessed to have you Brecken!  

Love, Your Mommy

Giving Thanks!

I have alot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving: wonderful, helpful families on both sides, a loving Savior, being able to stay at home with Brecken, a part-time job I love, our home, our health and many more things than I count. This Thanksgiving I am especially thankful for my family.

 I am so blessed with such a sweet, wonderful husband that is a great provider, partner, and best friend.

I am so thankful for this adorable smile. It is an absolute joy being his mother. Although it can be hard at times, being a mom is the best job in the world. I am so thankful for an easy pregnancy, safe delivery and a happy, healthy baby boy. He is my little blessing and I am so thankful for him!

Happy Thanksgiving!

4 Months Old

I think I say this each month, but I can't believe that Brecken is 4 months old already! Time just flies! I also can't believe that it is Thanksgiving this week... and a few weeks later, Christmas!

This photo captures of the new thing he loves to do - play with his toes. He is starting to get very wiggly and more active. It is such a fun age as he is more interactive and loves to chat it up with us at times. I love his shreks and giggles and as much as I don't want him to grow up, I look forward to the new things he can do.

He just had his 4 month check up and shots. He is 14.5 pounds and 25.2 inches. He is growing up so fast! He can still wear some 0-3 month clothes, but a majority of his clothes are 3 -6 months.

He isn't always so cooperative... :)

Nursery Reveal

And now for the post you have been waiting for.... the nursery reveal.
Here are the links for other blog posts about Brecken's nursery in case you missed the post:
Before Pictures of the Nursery
Nursery Inspiration
Stripes and Crib
Crib Skirt
Chipboard Letters
Picture Frames
Book Slings
Custom Made Art
Gray Chair Makeover
Lanterns and Puffs
Lamp Makeover
Dresser Makeover

Enjoy the photos!

Brecken's Nursery: Chipboard Letters

The letters over Brecken's bed was the last project I had left and actually only got it done a few weeks ago. But I am very glad all the details in his nursery are done!

I went to Hobby Lobby and picked up the letters of his name in Chipboard letters. They were on a half off sale, so I got all the letters for $7. I painted all the letters with some leftover light gray paint from his room. I wanted to cover the letters with the same material as the pillow, crib skirt and book slings because I had some leftover. I put the letters upside down on the fabric and traced the letters onto the fabric. I then cut out the traced letter from the fabric.

I then used my favorite craft tool: Modge Podge, to attach the fabric to the chipboard letter. I not only glued the bottom of the fabric to the chipboard letter, but also gave a nice couple coats to the top as well. I let them dry between coats, but this ensured that the fabric was bonded to the letter and gave it a nice shiny look.

I then had a piece of thick foam board that I cut a large rectangle out that I could use as the background for the letters. I covered the foam in leftover gray fabric from the chair. I glued all the fabric down except for the corners. I then used strong glue to bond the letters to the fabric covered board. With the corners of the board that I left uncovered, I nailed the board to the wall. Then I tucked the leftover fabric to cover the corners between the wall and board so you could not tell where I nailed it in. It looks nice but I have no idea how I will get that board down! :)

Brecken's Nursery: Frame Makeover

There was a large wall in Brecken's Room that needed some kind of wall hanging. I already had my two painted canvases so I needed something that was a bit different. I went to Goodwill and bought some old & (ugly! Do you seen the one with the dolls in it?) frames. I then bought white, golden yellow, blue and dark gray spray paint to makeover the frames.

They turned out pretty awesome. I then put a variety of photos and mementos in the frames. Two of the frames feature a picture of Todd and I as babies with our parents. We then have a picture of us with Brecken in another.

 

 Another frame has the lyrics of "Jesus Loves Me"

One particular frame was pretty big and had a sturdy piece of cardboard as part of its backing. I decided I wanted to use this as a chalkboard. I had some leftover chalkboard paint so I painted the piece of cardboard with it. It turned out pretty cool.

 Other frames have Brecken's footprints from the hospital, his ultrasound photo, a mirror, a piece of artwork a friend made, a photo of our dog Bella, and a newborn photo of Brecken.

One of the frames I bought did not have a back on it. I picked up a chipboard letter "P" and a pack of buttons.

 

I covered the letter in white tissue paper and glued the yellow, dark gray, and light gray buttons on it with a hot glue gun. I tied on a piece of white ribbon to the letter. I put two nails in the wall for the hollow frame to sit on and then tied the ribbon to these nails to give the letter the illusion of floating.

Brecken's Nursery: Custom Made Art

When it came to the artwork, I knew what I wanted but I knew I wouldn't be able to find what I had in mind. I love making my own art - it is cheap and (most of the time) fun. I used canvases I had around the house, cut out printed letters, paint and alot of Modge Podge.

I absolutely love this piece of art and it turned out exactly what I was thinking. I love this little song and the lyrics are perfect for nursery decor. The colors of the nursery are in the song: sunshine yellow and grey. So perfect! I know it probably wasn't the proper paint to paint on a canvas, but I used leftover paint from the stripes to paint the dark gray so that all the colors matched.

I got the inspiration for this print from a piece of artwork I saw at Target. I loved the print because an alphabet print is the perfect nursery decor but it also sneaks the words "I love you" in perfectly. The Target print was cute but was not the right colors for his nursery. Obviously I couldn't have unmatching colors in the nursery! :)