Introducing...

{Rilynn Nicole Crawford}

December 10, 2013

6:49 am

8 lbs 12 oz 21 in long

Greyson's 2nd Birthday Party!

We celebrated Greyson's birthday a week early this year! He will officially turn 2 on December 9th. Because Thanksgiving was so late this year, Matt's ENTIRE family had planned to go out of town Dec. 2nd on their annual trip to Florida. It is the last time they have to work their way down visiting customers for their business before Christmas & once they make it to their house in Hobe Sound, FL it is also the week of the Singing Christmas tree! Everyone was in town for Thanksgiving (except my family of course...they are coming for Christmas) so I planned to have his party the Sunday before they all went out of town.

Theme:

{Thomas the Train}

At this age, it is unbelievable how many little boys are into Thomas the Train. I remember the first time he watched a 10 minute episode! He paid attention to the whole thing & immediately learned the names of the trains, & was fascinated with everything about the whole show. He never cared about watching toddler shows & even if I turned something on, he would go off & play on his own...except with Thomas. Later he got really into Curious George..those are his 2 favorites! We did Curious George for Halloween, so I knew Thomas would be the theme for his birthday party.

At 9 months pregnant...I chose to keep things SIMPLE! =) I did not feel the need to go all out like we did for his first birthday. I plan to only have a few big parties for each milestone birthday & use those where more family from both sides can be a part of it. For this one, we had most of Matt's family & a few close friends celebrate with us.

The birthday boy got his very own Thomas shirt - Thanks to my very talented friend Emily. She can applique pretty much anything & they always turn out so cute. He loved the shirt & it made him feel extra special on HIS day! 

Since we were pretty much spread out all over the house, I decorated one small room & put all the decor & focus there. I used a lot of things over again from his 1st birthday since the colors were so similar. I only bought plates, napkins, balloons & wrapping paper from Party City with the Thomas theme. I also got a small 8 invitation packet to pass out to our friends & family.

Our favorite item HAD to be the cake. Matt had a major part in making this happen. When I told him the theme we were going with he immediately wanted to know the plans for the cake. I told him probably just a regular sheet cake with a picture of Thomas on the front....he wasn't having it! Apparently it had to be an actual train...3D & everything...

I already knew I wanted our good friend Courtney to make it, but couldn't bring myself to ask her to do that much work, so I told Matt if that's what he wanted, then he had to ask her & make arrangements for a cake pan because I KNEW she wouldn't have a 3D train pan!

She took on the challenge & we were SO happy with the results!! It was the cutest Thomas cake ever & I'm so glad Matt insisted on getting his way...haha Not only was it so cute & made the party extra special...but it tasted amazing too!! She used any left over batter & icing to make cupcakes & I added  sugar sprinkles to the tops. Greyson loves all of Courtney's cakes & has named every cake he sees a "Corty" cake =) whether she has made it or not! He's a big fan of cake.

Since things were so simple, I tried to spruce up the decorated table with left over confetti, straws from his first birthday & a few Thomas toys Greyson already had. I wrapped all the plastic ware in Thomas napkins & tied them with some jute string & put them in a bucket. The Thomas & Friends wrapping paper also added to the theme & was an easy decoration!

I bought 6 Thomas balloons & a pack that has assorted solid colors in it. We had some of them blown up with helium (because those are always fun) & the rest we just had laying on the floor so the kids could play with them too. It definitely made things look more fun, festive & colorful! I tied a few of the balloons to his highchair in the kitchen so you could definitely tell where the birthday boy was!

To make things easier on me, I just had everyone bring a dish to share for the main meal...everything was delicious!! Then it was time for CAKE!

 Greyson gets a little shy when we sing to him =)

Our last birthday photo of our family of 3!

Jace wasn't sure about having his picture taken...

Greyson digging right in!

Time for presents!! He got so many cute outfits & fun toys. He has been pretty busy playing with each one all week. Even with all the Thomas trains & toys he got, I can't say which is his favorite. He got a fun bath tub toy, some cute books, a reindeer on the roof, games, cars, stickers...the list goes on. He goes from one thing to the next...He officially named his reindeer on the roof "Cookie" yesterday...I guess he goes with the things he knows he likes best.

It sure was a fun birthday party! Not too overwhelming & worked out perfectly to have on a quiet Sunday afternoon. 

I was so glad to get through that week...I knew if I went into labor early I would only have one little pocket of time where it would work out. I did NOT want to be in the hospital over Thanksgiving & we were so busy up until that point that all I wanted to do was get through the party too. I was just afraid we would have to postpone until everyone got back in town & after the baby came. 

I'm so glad I was able to put all of my focus on his day & not have to worry about recovering & taking care of his sister at the same time. Now that it's over, I am able to take it easy...relax & get in some rest & extra snuggle time with my little man before our family grows by 2 more feet =)

Thanksgiving 2013

Thanksgiving was wonderful! 

It was a little harder this year because my mother in law was not feeling her best...but thankfully both of my brother in laws had their girlfriends visiting & were able to do a lot of the work & help out all week. I was hoping for some baby news early in the week, but did NOT want to spend Thanksgiving in the hospital...nor did my husband! 

God has the perfect timing of when this little one will arrive, & we were able to enjoy being with friends & family all week. 

First we are thankful for all the yummy food we enjoyed on Thanksgiving & the left overs after that =)

Second, we are thankful for friends & family that joined us. We could have had lots more around that table-- we sure are blessed!!

We got to celebrate 3 birthdays on Thanksgiving day because they were all within a week of each other.

 Greyson was trying to practice blowing out a candle!

 Third, we are thankful for naps...especially when we can snuggle with our babies & be with each other. I am thankful for my precious family.

Fourth, in addition to being thankful for family, we are thankful for the FARM! We love living here & enjoying the benefits of all the animals...especially our little pony, Baby Girl. 

 Greyson is a big fan of his uncles...& especially Poppy! 

Fifth, we are thankful for Cousins!! It is so fun starting families of our own & watching our little ones grow up together =) 

 Sixth, I am especially thankful for this little guy. He made me a mommy & has been such a joy to everyone he is around. He is so smart & funny...he makes everyone laugh but also has his quiet sweet side. There are so many things I could list about what he means to me & our family, but that would take forever! I am excited to see him as a big brother =)

And last but not least...I am thankful for a loving Savior who has blessed me more than I ever dreamed possible. God has been there for me every step of the way...He has given me an amazing husband, a darling little boy & the presence of a baby girl on the way. I have so many things I could list, but I would never get through everything I am thankful for...it's just not possible! 

My family & friends are enough & I am so glad that through the stress of life...He is there for me.

Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving!

38 Weeks!

How Far Along: 38 weeks 

Size of baby: 19.5 inches long & 6.8 lbs.

Weight gain so far: 15 lbs (give or take) I am feeling quite large at the moment! However, at my 39 week appt (a few days later) I had lost some weight. I'm not exactly sure where that puts me at the moment but I would say, since I've lost, I probably haven't gained any more than 15 pounds over my pre-pregnancy weight.
Maternity Clothes: Still wearing some regular clothes, but mostly maternity- the weather will be back in the 70's this week!

Gender: A Girl! 

Movement: Active mostly at night =)

Sleep: Had my first VERY uncomfortable night this week...lots of sporadic contractions that kept me awake

 Symptoms: Getting sore...thankfully hardly any bad symptoms..first time to have my feet swell this week & they went back to normal a few days later. I have enjoyed this pregnancy & am glad it has not been that bad here near the end!!

What I miss: Having Greyson cuddle with me on my lap...not much room there anymore!

Cravings: Greyson's left over birthday cake =)

Best Moment this week: Spending Thanksgiving with Matt's family & Celebrating Greyson's 2nd Birthday!! 

DIY Bookshelves & Crystal Baby Mobile!

I'm really behind on sharing some of the projects I have worked on for the kids rooms. Mainly these pallet bookshelves & a window project I've had done since we lived at our old house! The window will have to wait a little longer until we hang it & I can show the finished product.

For now, I can at least show you his super cute book shelves!

{Pallet Bookshelves}

We started out with some plain old pallets that Matt brought home from work.

He cut them to make 2 shelves & used a crowbar to take a few slats off & hammered them into place.

Then I cleaned up the wood & clear coated them to make them look nice, but still rustic. No stain, no paint...just natural. As you can see...we made these SO long ago...it's been a little over year since we finished these.

Finally, a few months later, Matt got around to hanging one...yeah...one. It was a lot bigger process than we thought because we had plaster walls behind this paneling at the old house. Matt broke off one of his bits in the wall in the process! Not good! You can see how little Greyson is here...he still looks like a little baby! He loves being front & center to help daddy =) 

We enjoyed our one bookshelf for awhile & then had to take it right back down to move...good thing we didn't put the other one up! 

Here is the finished product at our new house! We had to wait until the room was painted, & we still have some decor to add above the shelves, but for now, they are working, functioning bookshelves & Greyson loves them!

See how much he's grown since these were done?? We can be such procrastinators!

 One thing that didn't take me long to make was this baby mobile for the nursery. I made Greyson's mobile before he was born, so I knew I would make something this time too. On days when I had to wait on Matt to help with bigger projects...I focused on smaller things.

The nursery has been pretty easy to decorate & majorly cost effective...I haven't had to buy hardly anything! I'm using all the same furniture from Greyson's nursery & upgrading him to his "big boy" room. Plus most of the decor & other items I'm using I already owned...with the exception of 2 or 3 things & some little crafty accents I bought from my aunt =) So I figured one little DIY item couldn't hurt & I used lots of 40% off coupons to make it!

{DIY Crystal Baby Mobile}

I have seen several crystal mobiles on pinterest & since I like the chandelier vibe it gives off, I knew I wanted to make one of my own. 

I started with a wire wreath frame (about $2) & wedding crystals from Michaels. I already had burlap, craft paint & some embellishments at home so those were the only things I had to buy. I painted the green frame a cream color to match the room so when you look up at it, it's not so dark & unfinished looking.

 I bought the crystals 2 separate times to use my coupons so it made it way cheaper. I didn't feel like stringing individual crystals on fishing line or string like I have seen done before...too time consuming, so these wedding crystals are a great alternative! They are used to drape in floral arrangements etc & come in long strands so I just took them apart & attached them to the frame.

I love neutral colors & always had an idea of what I wanted to do in a nursery if I ever had a girl. Even when I ended up having a boy, I still used most of those same ideas like my cream & white furniture, rustic accents & decor. I have had lots of burlap on hand ever since & use it for so many things. It was a no brainer that I needed something to go around the wreath frame & since I already had other burlap accents in the room, I tied this in. To create a "ruffle" all I did was pull one strand of the burlap to make it bunch up...being careful not to break it on the other end. It worked out perfectly! I just attached it to the frame & then hung my crystal strands.

I used a thin twine string to hold it up giving it more of that rustic feel, but the crystals make it seem girly & elegant. I embellished it just a tiny bit with a burlap rosette & a little craft tag I got from my aunt. 

 Matt hung it up for me in a corner of the nursery with a simple hook. It is a little heavier than normal with all the crystals, so I wasn't really comfortable hanging it over the crib. Especially with longs strands that a tiny baby could get tangled up in! So this won't be serving much as an actual mobile over her crib. 

I placed it a little behind our chair so that she can still look at it & enjoy it while I feed or read to her. We still have a shelf to hang near the chair so it won't look so lonely up there =) & the only other thing we bought was ONE shade of gray paint! No, that is not a darker gray or tan color...it is the same color as the other wall!

 I have always loved the color gray (being so much into neutral...I should probably try to branch out more) & it was the color we painted our living room at our old house when Matt & I first got married. Matt rarely likes to buy a sample paint to test on walls before painting because it costs just about as much as 1 gallon! SO after we painted it, the room looked A LOT like this picture is showing here! It was definitely in the tan family. Gray is just one of those colors you have to be careful with...I have seen it look blue, lavender, & tan...just to name a few. 

To be more clear, here's a little sneak peek of our nursery accent wall. We tried to pick something light & went with the color called "Grayish". I love creams & tans next to it, but every now & then a picture like the one above will distort the color. Also, during the day it leans more towards lavender...like the photo below...but its ok because it IS a girls room! =) 

We wanted an accent wall so we could use part of the existing paint color. The previous owners had just painted this room the perfect shade of cream that matched all my nursery furniture!! I wanted to utilize it someway but didn't want to leave one whole wall cream, so we left the bathroom & closet all cream & accented this wall with a stencil. I love how it turned out! We had very willing painters tackle this for us & for beginners...they did an amazing job! 

We will eventually change the fan out to a white or cream one since that one is obviously overbearing...but you just gotta have a fan in your bedroom living in Alabama! So that will be the last thing we have to buy. 

I'm excited to finish this nursery, but again...you know us! I probably won't get around to sharing the final details until months later. I have a really neat cast iron bed that we bought the first year we were married...one part of the frame was broken that Matt STILL hasn't gotten around to fixing! We always thought about using it in a little guest room at our old house...now, it's the perfect bed for baby girl to grow into & since the room is so big, it definitely needs something else in there. I'm happy to say that the bed has finally made it to the shop after 7.5 years...now lets just see if it makes it back home in the next 2-6 months! =)