A place to hang his hat...

Disco Nap Ball

Yes... it is a real disco ball!

Mirror mirror on the wall...

Shooting for the stars!

My favorite part... scented drawer liners!

2 fairies watching over Brase.

(Only I can say that!)

Does a caged bird sing?

Brase doesn't sing but he is learning to pick up his toys!

Mr. Frog weds Mr. Duck.

We embrace diverse families!

Little friends gather everywhere.

The Book Nook

We have a reader on our hands!

Papi's whimsical artwork in oil.

A good Catholic boy.

Bedtime Training

Brase is on the floor for 2 weeks

After a little practice, Brase will move to the lower bed.

Brase will graduate to the big bed with rails in a month or more.

Krafty Korner: Diaper Genie Cover

We are finishing up many household projects as our due date nears. We whipped up a Diaper Genie cover in one hour with fabric remnants. We saw an exact copy online but were not willing to pay 60 bucks! This is an easy project that anyone can accomplish with a little time and basic sewing skills.

We got a crib!

After months of works and many sewing projects our nursery is complete! Well... almost completed aside from the mural that will be added tomorrow. We purchased a crib and dressed it with our personalized bedding. We are ready for our little one.

Krafty Korner: Diaper Stacker

This is another little project we completed for our little one. We purchased a Babies-R-Us diaper stacker and returned it after taking detailed measurements. The pattern was cut out of brown paper bags and creative engineering pulled it together. Actually, we were impressed with the results because the construction was more difficult than we originally anticipated. Total cost was $6.00 and the fabric matches our baby bedding. Contact us if you want detailed project instructions.

Nursery Bedding - Bumper Pad

We decided to use a white Babies-R-Us, Koala Crib Bumper. It was embellished with red bias ribbon for a personalized touch. It's very simple and adds to the overall bedding look. The bumper's total cost including ribbon was $31.05. The best part of this entire project was that we worked on it together and made every piece with care.

We have excess caramel linen fabric that will be used for a diaper stacker and crib sheet protectors. We will splurge on an additonal yard of circus print fabric ($12.00) to embelish these little projects.

Below I have outlined our project buget. The good news is we came in under budget! The bad news is we still need to buy a crib.

$ 75.00 Crib Blanket (Carini)
$ 38.00 Crib Skirt
$ 46.76 Crib Sheets
$ 31.05 Crib Bumper
+_______________
$190.81 Subtotal
$ 46.76 Visa reward point gift card
-_______________
$144.05 Subtotal
$ 75.00 Crib Blanket (Carini)
-_______________
$ 69.05 Total Out of Pocket Expense
$125.00 Original Project Goal (excluding Carinin Blanket)
-_______________
$ 55.95 Total Saving From Original Project Goal

Nursery Bedding - Crib Sheets

We decided to break down and buy crib sheets. It's more trouble than it's worth to try and make fitted sheets. In addition, they would never fit properly. Our vendor of choice was Babies-R-US because they had 100% cotton khaki gingham fitted sheets. They are really nice because the maker used a quilting stitch as an added embelishment. Total cost was $46.76 for three fitted sheets. We had a 20% coupon and used a Visa reward points gift card. This brought the total out of pocket cost to zero dollars for this purchase.

Nursery Bedding - Crib Skirt

We should put this project under the title Almost Homemade. We cheated by opting to buy a Babies-R-Us basic white crib skirt. The $17.99 Koala Baby Dust Ruffle was much cheaper than a Simplicity pattern. This was a great foundation for our project. Caramel linen fabric and red cotton bias ribbon was added to this inexpensive skirt for a full look that will puddle onto the floor. The double rolled finished edges were time consuming but very essential for a custom look. Total project cost was $38.00 including Babies-R-Us off the rack crib skirt.

Nursery Bedding - Blanket

Nursery bedding is expensive! We have looked in stores and online at these little sets and their outrageous price tags. We have a problem spending $500.00 to $1500.00 on a crib ensemble that will most certainly be covered in poop, pee and vomit. Let's face it... diapers leak and kids get sick.

After much thought and debate we decided to make our own crib bedding. The accent fabric we have chosen is called Topsy Turvey Circus Toile (sage). It's fun, classic and fits into our gender neutral nursery. The accompanying fabrics are: caramel linen, white oxford cloth, khaki gingham and red cotton piping.

We did however succumb to the retail gods. The blanket pictured below is from Bambini Carini and was a splurge. The cost was actually reasonable because of the workmanship and cable knit backing. We also thought the purchase would give us some creative inspiration. Take a look online at http://bambinicarinionline.com/blankets-c-27.html to view Carini's other great finds.

FYI... we set a project goal of $125.00 for all materials (excluding Carini blanket). Look for upcoming pics as we complete this creative task.