Maternity Clothes

I am so grateful to my sister in law who has given me two boxes of maternity clothes from her own pregnancies. Even still, maternity clothes get boring very quickly and I was elated to receive a package from my Aunt last week with a cute top and pair of shorts. They shorts were a bit on the small side so I made a trip to Kohl's to exchange them.

We had received a $50 Kohl's giftcard several months ago for signing up for a free trial of something which I don't remember that we immediately canceled. I had been saving the giftcard for maternity clothes or some other shopping later down the road. Maternity clothes are way overpriced in my opinion and I am so grateful to have been given so many clothes. I returned the too small shorts and decided to buy a skirt instead. With the money from my return and the giftcard I got a skirt, and two dresses plus the top my Aunt had mailed me. Then, on Saturday I found a nice Target maternity dress at a garage sale for only $3. I spent $7 out of pocket at Kohl's coming to a grand total of $10 for four new pieces plus the one my Aunt bought me. So happy to have more clothes that fit my ever growing belly!

Wonderful couponing trip

So sad, I started this post on Sunday and I'm just now getting around to finishing it.
I haven't gone hard core couponing in quite a while. It tends to stress me out a bit and so I haven't hit up CVS for a good deal since last month. Here's what I got on Sunday at three different stores.

CVS-
Transaction #1

• Renu contact solution $7.89
• -$2 coupon. = $6.44 after tax. Got $6 back

Transaction #2

• 3 cans shaving cream 2.19 each + 8 pack disposable razors $14.79
• - 6.25 manufacture coupons  - $0.50 ECB - $6.00 ECB from Renu = 10.07 after tax got $10 back

CVS total

• Spent $16.91, Value $29.43, + $10 ECB

Next a made a mad dash to Toys R Us. Southern Savers had just listed a great deal on diapers and I knew they would be gone by day's end. I lucked out and got 66 count Babies R Us diapers for just $5 a pack. I'm using cloth for our baby girl, but I was told the Best Bottom cloth diapers I registered for are a bit large on a newborn so I wanted to stock up on newborn and size one diapers. Plus diapers on sale make a great baby shower gift so I bought two pack of size two as well.

Toys R Us total

• 4 packages of Babies R Us diapers, normally $12 on sale for $5 each (7 cents a diaper)
• 2 packages of Huggies Natural diaper $5 each minus $4.50 in coupons + $5 gift card for buying two packs of Huggies. After the gift card (which I have to use later) the diapers were only a quarter a package! 
• Used a $10 gift card I already had which brought my total to 18.30, Value $72 + $5 gift card

Lastly I stopped at Walgreens to get wipes.
Huggies wipes on sale for $2.49x2 - $3.50 in coupons = $1.48 plus tax

Total spent $37.21, total value $108 and I got $15 in gift cards and extra bucks.

I did it!

It took an untold number of hours, ripped out seams and tears but I finally finished the crib dust ruffle last night. It's by no means perfect or professional but I think it will look nice in our little girl's room. Her crib is not set up set so I can't put the bedskirt on just yet but here's what it looks like draped across the table. It's hard to tell from the picture, but the fabric is mini stripe not a solid green. 

I had enough energy and motivation to get started on the valance yesterday as well. I was a little nervous about cutting out the pattern without any guidance but after reading it several times through I went ahead and cut it out. The valance turned out to be much easier than the dust ruffle and it only took me a few hours to make it. I have a curtain rod that's too large for the nursery window but I put the curtain on it anyways, just to get an idea of what the finished product looks like. I'm going to buy some cheap sage colored shears to layer underneath the valance. I couldn't be more thrilled with myself, it's the first time I've sew something using a pattern without any help!

June and July Reads

David and I start our Bradley Childbirth class tomorrow and I'm excited to say I was able to finish reading Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way, before the class began. I highly recommend this book for all pregnant mommies, even if you are not planning on having a natural birth. The book is graphic, which threw me for a loop at first, but the details of birth, relaxation techniques and labor practice have helped me to become educated and at ease about labor. The Bradley classes study and practice this material over a course of 12 weeks. For more information on the Bradley Method and to find a class visit Bradley Birth.com.

June Reading
Finished bible study book No Other Gospel 
Babywise
Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way


July Reading 
Bible study, Shepherding a Child's Heart 
The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding (this book is rather long I may not get around to my second book)
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child 

Gender Party

I had an ultrasound on June 24 to check on baby's growth and find out if our little bundle of joy will be a boy or girl. 

We kept the gender a secret for a week and planned a party to tell out families. This was my first attempt at decorating a cake. I bought a box cake mix, dyed the batter pink and made the icing from scratch using Wilton's buttercream recipe. 

To create perfectly smooth buttercream, first ice a crumb layer and allow to harden. I placed my cake uncovered in the fridge until it was firm. Then I added a second thick layer of icing and allowed to cool and harden. Once it was firm, I placed a Viva brand paper towel over the cake and rubbed over the towel until the icing was smooth. Check out Cake Central  for more detailed instructions. 

Pink and blue supplies from the Dollar Store

I asked people to vote for whether they thought the baby was a boy or girl and any names suggestions. I will add these pages to baby's scrapbook. 

It looks like I was surprised but I was excited to show off the pink cake!

Baby's Nursery

I worked for several weeks to find neutral fabrics for the baby's room. Even though we know the gender of our sweet baby, I wanted a nursery that will be useable for all our children. With the help of my mom I plan on sewing a bed skirt and valance. My sister in law is sewing the bumper pad for the crib.

I went to Jo Ann's, Hobby Lobby and Hancock and didn't find any fabrics I wanted. I finally looked online and found this wonderful website, Carousel Designs . They have a fun interactive design page that allows you to drag and drop fabric and create a custom nursery. Carousel Design will create custom nursery bedding but I wasn't about to drop $300 plus on our baby's bedding. Instead, I just ordered fabric from Carousel Designs. I can't wait to set started sewing this week!

Toile, Mini Stripe Sage and Minky Sage