DIY Drag Along

Before Emma arrived I had these vast plans of making a million little items for her. I planned parties and her nursery, but my energy and time fell by the wayside and she arrived with not a thing made by her mommy. I was quite sad. I had started a diaper bag, but it never got finished, and it still sits at my parents waiting for velcro and snaps.....such is the life of a parent.

A couple of months ago we were at my parent's house and we went into my mom's quilt store. I was in utter amazement by the adorable fabrics that the owner stocks her shelves with and quickly fell in love with some pink and teal graphic fabric to make a small little blanket for Miss Emma, or a "Drag Along." A mini blanket that can be taken in the car or just to snuggle with. At the same time I bought
the fabric for this quilt I also made her. Honestly my child didn't need another blanket, but mommy needed to make her something and that's where this little project came into play. Read below for instructions on how to make this adorable little carry along blanket

What You'll Need:
(9) 8.5"x 8.5" squares of fabric
(1) 25"x 25" square for backing (Minky)
(4) yards Rick Rack

Directions:
1. Ideally you want to have a minimum of (5) different fabrics for this project. Layout your fabric until you have a pattern you like. If you want to have custom embroidery done, start with that first. I chose to right set my embroidery on my center fabric. Since my baby girl's nickname is my "lil birdie" that's what I went with for my added touch. Sew your 9 squares together into (3) rows of three and then sew each row together until you have completed your blanket top. Make sure to press your fabric seams to one side to nest your seams easier.

2. Flip your blanket top and minky fabric so that right sides are together. Round your corners using a round tool or whatever you have on hand (a bowl works nice.)  Pin your ric rac so that the center falls on the edge of your fabric top. Place your minky right sides together on your fabric top and pin in place.

3. Sew a 1/4" seam around the entire edge, leaving a 4-6" opening for turning. Turn your project and press your seams flat. Pin your turning opening inside 1/4" and sew a 1/4" top seam around the entire blanket.

4. Place your baby on it and admire your work! Completed blanket size 24"x 24"

See, she really did need another blanket, just so I could take that cute photo of her! Love my lil birdie! Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below! Original pattern by Suzanne Zingg.

Custom Quilt for Baby Emma

This child is going to be a blanket baby just like her momma and daddy. With the amount of blankets that she received at her baby shower you would have thought that I would have decided to make her something else. I was feeling guilty that I never made her anything but I couldn't figure out something to make her that she didn't already have being store bought or made from my family. I had started a diaper bag, that has yet to be finished, but will be similar to this bag I made for my dear friend's son Aidan. That will be her overnight bag and I will post that when I have it completed.....seriously it just needs snaps and velcro and its done.

So that left me with making her a blanket. She didn't need another one, but I needed to make her one and especially one with her name on it. I took to Pinterest and found this pattern. I was in love and made it my mission to make this quilt!

Here's how to make it:

What You'll Need:
(4) Fat Quarters
1 yard white fabric per quilt for the center
1-1/4 to 1/2 yard fabric per quilt for backing (We had to piece the back because the original pattern said 1 yard and it wasn't enough
1/2 yard fabric per quilt for binding
Batting
Heat N Bond Lite
Colored thread for applique

Directions:

1. Cut the fat quarters you want to use for the border so that they are 5″ x 10″. You will need a total of (14)  5″ x 10″ blocks.

2. Sew (4) 5″ x 10″ pieces together along the short sides. Press & set aside. Repeat.

3. Sew (3) 5″ x 10″ pieces together along the short sides. Press & set aside. Repeat.

4. Cut your white fabric to 29 3/4″ x 29 1/2″

 

 

5. Sew one of the 3 block strips to the 29 1/2″ side of the white fabric. Repeat by sewing the other 3 block strip to the other side. Press.
6. Sew the 4 block strips to the other 2 sides of the white block. Press. Trim off excess if necessary.
7. Quilt as desired.

8. I used my mom's Cricut machine to find a font I liked. I also liked the idea of having all the letters lowercase. Trace the letters backwards onto the slick side of a piece of Heat n Bond Lite. Cut out roughly and iron onto wrong side of fabric. Cut out. 

9. Iron onto fabric according to directions. Hand stitch around all the letters.

Simple, straightforward and absolutely adorable. She loves to lie on it during tummy time, or nap in her pack and play with it!

If your interested in seeing the original head on over to Polka Dot Chair and give her a shout.

Little Details Before Her Arrival

Since Miss Emma will be rooming with us and we wont be doing a nursery tour, I thought that I would share some details of how we incorporated her into our little space. We brought a bookcase into our room and dedicated that all to her. The hubby condensed a drawer of his and we brought in her co-sleeper. She's not going to take up much room and we did all we could do to have as much of her items accessible.

We brought in the blocks my mom made with her name on them and displayed them on top of the bookcase with a photo of my dad that my stepmom had brought.

One shelf is dedicated to her diapers, wipes and necessary grooming items. Her changing pad is on another dresser, out of sight until we need it.

Health items, small baby brushes and grooming supplies! So little and adorable. The larger bottles are in another cabinet until they are needed!

She has two shelves dedicated to all the books she got. For the baby shower we asked that people bring a book instead of a card and sign it so she knows who gave it to her. We were lucky to not get very many duplicates and lots of great books!

This shelf was just a staged shelf until we figure out what to do with it. One frame says "look what we made" and will house a photo of the hubby and I holding her. The other photo is her 18 week ultrasound. We did eventually hang this up. And I just love the little tiny board books.

All that needs to be said!

All of her newborn and 0-3 month clothing, plus washcloths, hats, socks and headbands fit nicely into one drawer. It's so cute to open that drawer and see all of the tiny items. Seriously can't wait to see her wear some of these!

Here is where she is going to rest her little head. The co-sleeper fits nicely on my side of the bed and will assist in nightly feedings. I love the pink polka dot sheets and of course all the elephants! Hopefully she doesn't get sick of them!

 

She has all the necessary items that she needs right in our room. It's crazy to think that the time is almost here and she will be in our arms soon! Not pictured.....the million handmade blankets and all the rest of her clothes and items store away in our closet! She will not be naked or cold ever! Hehe. I hope you enjoyed this mini tour of Emma's things.

Pre-Emma Mommy/Daddy Weekend

This last weekend the hubby and I decided that we were going to take the whole weekend and dedicate it to us, relaxing and getting everything ready for our little girls arrival. For the most part everything was done with regards to her, but we still needed to get a few items and just have us time. So that's what we did.

Saturday we awoke bright and early and made our way to get a mani/pedi for me (a mother's day gift that I needed to cash in) and D got himself a pedi. Clean up those toes and sit in the massage chair. As a diabetic it's a good idea for him to get his feet checked out every so often too! After two hours and a Starbucks tea later, we left feeling refreshed and relaxed. I had such cute toes too! Pink for our little one's arrival of course.

After that we went to the mall to make some exchanges, I got my wedding ring checked and cleaned and while we killed sometime before meeting up with D's dad and grandfather for lunch we went into the Sleep Number store and found out our numbers. I also fell in love with the climate controlled bed and totally want one now! We had a nice lunch at Islands and then went to get our car washed.

Selfie shot at the carwash.

Once done there we headed over to Babies R Us to take advantage of a 20% off sale they were having on the pack n plays. We spent a solid 30 minutes trying to decide which one to get, and ultimately made a decision. We got some needed items for the diaper bag, but we still need to return to get an additional car seat base, because I completely blanked, and I need to figure out what I need for my breast pump. Sigh. We went home to drop off the stuff and discovered our baby book had arrived! We peeked through it and am so excited to start writing in it!

Then we made the trek into Burbank, because we had free movie passes, to see Neighbors. It's with Seth Rogan and Zac Effron. Honestly I thought it was pretty good, considering I am not big on comedic movies (they all seem to have the same jokes) and it was just nice to laugh and have some alone time with my love. Also the big bucket of popcorn, that we ate about a third of, didn't hurt either. Haha. We made our way back home and my lower back just really started to hurt. Once home it got progressively worse, a constant ache in my sciatica. I went upstairs to lie on a heating pad and proceeded to Google "low back pain in the third trimester." This brought up mixed reviews about whether or not it was labor or just back pain so of course I get to thinking that it's labor. I tell Darin that I'm not feeling contractions, but that this could be the start of it. He tells me to stay put, but that he's going to finish our hospital bags. Hehe. We packed everything that could be packed and within two hours of the heating pad my back felt 100% better. It's also nice to know that the bags are packed and ready to go.....who else sang "I'm leaving on a jet plane" after that? The whole incident got me a little scared that we weren't ready and left me feeling uneasy. I need to start mentally preparing myself that this can happen at ANY time.

Sunday. We actually slept in! Well sort of. I lied in bed from 7:30 to about 8:30 and asked D if he wanted french toast for breakfast. He of course said yes and I made it with this amazing cinnamon bread that we had in the house. It was yummo! Then I preceded to take some photos so I can schedule some blog posts coming up! Afterwards we went into full get ready for Emma mode. We put together her swing, bouncer and set up the pack n play in the guest room for a downstairs changing/napping station. Then we did a full scrub down of our bedroom and bathroom and put a waterproof mattress pad on the bed, just in case. We then relaxed for a bit and watched Pitch Perfect for the first time, super cute, and then D washed the other car and I blogged a bit. We ended our evening with a nice long walk with the puppero. 

It was a full and busy weekend but we both feel so much better about having everything ready to go. We can just relax and mentally prepare for her to come. I'm going to finish reading "The Happiest Baby on the Block" and also start writing in her baby book! We also need to assemble her diaper bag. Still things to do, but mostly just relaxing! Whew!

Baby Shower for Emma Jean

{Warning Photo OVERLOAD!}

I need to start off this post by saying I have the most amazing family and friends! Seriously! The amount of love and support that the hubby and I have received up until this point is amazing, but it certainly showed at the baby shower for our little girl. The grandmas and aunt to be went all out in creating the perfect baby shower with a jungle theme.....based on my color scheme for her nursery...pink, teal and grey!

I could not sleep after all the excitement of seeing my step mom and seeing all the little things come together! I was up at 3AM, 5AM, 7AM......finally I just got in the shower at 8 and took the pup for a walk. She then went on a lead in the backyard and I started to "help" as much as I was allowed to! I helped by putting dishes in the dishwasher, organizing the thank you gifts and placing my custom designed chalkboard outside the front door. Basically I wasn't allowed to do anything. Haha. The ladies sent me off to get chips, salsa and batteries for cameras. When I came back, baby shower set up was in full force. They did such a great job, so I am going to try and let the photo's do all the talking. All the decor was meant to be useful, so there were diaper cakes, toys, wreaths....all with things that can be used later on!

Pictured above: My mom made the blocks with Emma's name on them. They have little animals on all the other sides and they were made with the fabrics that my mom and I selected here. The photo's are of me and D as babies that my M.I.L. put on foam core and hung with adorable clothespins.....no detail shot of those. She also made the wreath with socks, headbands, washcloths and mini bathroom products.

Pictured Below: OMG....my mom made this wall hanging/quilt for the shower. Neither of us want it to be used as an actual quilt though! It's too cute! She got the pattern before I decided that I wanted elephants and pink and grey too! She knows me so well! Haha.

Pictured above: We had two different types of cupcakes made by a family friend. They were so good! Lemon Coconut and White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake! The lemon coconut ones must have been popular because they were gone! My mom made the toppers with her Cricut and a cute punch we found at Michael's.

Pictured Below: These cookies were from a friend of my M.I.L. We affectionately call the chocolate covered pretzels "Crack Pretzels" because they are SO addicting!

The dessert table!

Pictured above: The Lemon Coconut cupcakes

Pictured below: My mom made adorable popcorn boxes, like the ones we had at the gender reveal, but stamped them on each side with a different jungle animal! My M.I.L. got a giant bag of kettle corn, per daddies request, also to fill them

Pictured above: One of the many diaper cakes that my M.I.L. made for center pieces for the tables! I love the stuffed animals on top!

Pictured below: These cupcakes were done by my mom and they consist of a receiving blanket base and onesie for the icing!

As you can see there was a diaper raffle and I honestly think that I will not need to buy diapers for a LONG time. We filled two 36 gallon plastic totes with diapers size 1 and up, and still have about 10 packages of newborn diapers! Plus another awesome diaper cake!

Here are some shots taken during the festivities and everyone enjoying the taco truck, sweets and games!

My two moms: My step mom on the left and my mom on the right

Playing games with good friend! Do you think she won?

I forgot what was said, but obviously I found it amusing!

Then it was gift time! Oh my goodness the amount of love that was showered upon this child was completely unreal and I am truly grateful to everyone! I didn't take pictures of everything being opened, but here's a few shots.

Reading cards

Wall decor

Family watching

The pile won't even fit completely in the frame!

We then had a mini photo shoot with us and our wonderful moms in the backyard.....please excuse how tired I look!

Me and my two moms

Us and my two moms

Me with my three moms. See this kid is already spoiled with THREE grandmas!

Us with D's mom

Us with my mom

D and my stepmom

And finally.....my mom bought everyone these socks and we of course had to take a photo of everyone wearing them. Note: They are already in my hospital bag! Hehe

There you have it. The whirlwind of a baby shower. I know I have said it already, but THANK YOU so much to all of the grandma's and my cousin who helped put this whole shindig together. It would not have been near as good without your expertise! Also thank you to the family and friends who spoiled our little girl already! She truly is a lucky little girl! <3