Finn's Nursery Details!

I've been so excited to share and post photos of our little dude's nursery! There are still a few details missing that I will add later (e.g. an adorable pillow I ordered off of Etsy), and a little more organization to be done, but other than that, we're so ready for Finn to be here and make good use of this space! "Nesting" has been one of my favorite things throughout this pregnancy thus far. There's nothing like countering the agony of back pain with the sweet smell of his clothes and folding outfits that fit right in my palms. For a quick update, we are currently 36 + 2 weeks pregnant. Our last appointment we were told that I am 50% effaced. With that, she told us it could be any time now, or, I could walk around effaced and dilated for a couple of weeks. It's all up to the little mister at this point. :) But enough of that and on to the nursery goodness!

I LOVE wall art. Some of these prints I found at a little shop in downtown Detroit, and the others I simply downloaded & printed from: http://littlegoldpixel.com/2014/10/free-printables-for-kids/

I'm slightly obsessed with this glider and ottoman. Glider can be found at Babies R'Us and ottoman (and "I love you to the moon" pillow) I found conveniently at T.J.Maxx for $60 & $10!

I'm so excited to try out the Mamaroo swing, I've heard so many wonderful things about it! Obviously, it won't be occupying that corner once Finn man is here. Found at Babies R' Us

 here: http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=54201756. That gorgeous crib is also a Babies R' Us find!

I couldn't be more in love with our dream catcher mobile! I'm all about unique things and supporting small, crafty businesses. Find similar items and other boho lovliness from BlairBaileyDesign on Etsy.com!  

The arrows on the wall are gold vinyl decals from https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheLovelyWall. I was sincerely in awe at how straight/evenly spaced I actually got them! The great thing about them is they peel off super easy, so if you make a mistake just simply peel and re-apply.

What's Happening @ Week 25

Well a lot has certainly been going on in the Laskowski household this week, construction is a movin'! Right now we're waiting for our kitchen cabinets to arrive/be installed and for the drywall guy to come and do his business. Until then, our first floor is off limits. Our kitchen is now emptied except for the refrigerator and our microwave has made it's way to the basement for now. We're popcorn eating fools so there's no way we were ditching that microwave for good just yet. Today our floor-man came in to give us an estimate (going from the natural hardwood floor stain to a dark walnut) which was great...just means we're getting closer and closer to getting this reno DONE. I still can't get into baby Finn's room until walls and floor are complete which won't be for about another month, which of course is pulling at my heart strings. But, all in good time. When someone's renovating there's always a goal for time frame, but we all know 99% of the time that goal needs to be flexible (bendy, eh?). As for the bump, here's what's been going on:

Weeks Pregnant: 25 weeks + 1 day

 

Baby Size: Finn is about as heavy as a rutabaga (1 and a half lbs.) and about 13 and a half inches in length. According to Baby Center his  hair has both recognizable color and texture. Right now his biggest job is packing on that baby fat that I just can't wait to pinch (in a gentle way, of course)!

Weight Gain: Gained another pound this week making my total thus far 12 lbs. It's beginning to feel like I'm carrying a bowling ball in front of me.

Symptoms: Dry skin! I don't really know if it's the babe or the icky winter weather that's the cause, but boy am I flakey all over...and that's WITH the 5 pounds of coconut oil I slather on daily. For reinforcements, I'm now coating my skin in a nice layer of Bio-Oil as well which does seem to be helping. I'm still experiencing low back ache, but bouncing on the stability ball and yoga/stretching do wonders for immediate relief. Still no swelling or stretch-marks, but heartburn... ah, the heartburn. That symptom has been showing it's face quite regularly lately. Usually towards the end of the night though and nothing that a few Tums can't handle. Finally, bloody noses have made a comeback but only mild, so NasoGel is a must in my life right now.

Attire: Aside from work, the comfier the clothing the better. Still living in leggings, baggy sweaters/t-shirts and sneakers when at home or during the weekend.

Exercise: Work was insane this week so my exercise was compromised (sleep took precedence). But still yoga, walking, stretching, and barre workouts. Here's a link to the prenatal barre DVD I brought up last week that does wonders for those with a bump!

Movement: Still tons of movement, but not as much as the weeks leading up to this which had mom and dad worried! Doctor said it's just because he's running out of room in there to give full-blown punches and kicks. What I'm feeling now is a bit more slow, but pressure as if he's rolling from one position to another.

Missing: Putting my shoes on without gasping for air afterwards.

Cravings: FRUIT and hot pretzels were my go-to's this week.

Sleep: I slept a little bit better this week than the last! Still tossing and turning but starting to make myself comfortable in that left-side position.

Mood: I'd be lying if I didn't say I was a bit hormonal and stressed this week. But aside from that, happiness. :)

Birth Plan: This week I made phone calls to local companies that do placenta encapsulating! Judge me if you wish, but that amazing organ that's giving life and nutrients to my little human right now will be consumed by me after birth. The placenta will be dehydrated  and then encapsulated so it'll be like taking a daily vitamin, not baking a potato and eating it like a steak dinner.

What I Am Loving: How much rounder my belly is in just a week. The continuous love from those around us. Shopping for the sweetest, tiniest, most adorable little man clothes. I mean, there's not much I don't love about this experience!

Easy Beauty Treatments: At Home

There really isn't anything better than a little pampering to make you feel all refreshed and rejuvenated. Unfortunately, regular trips to the spa for facials and treatments to get such a feeling just isn't in the cards for many of us, myself being one! I've always been a DIY-er, not saying that things always turn out the way I want (I have an extensive list of Pinterest and DIY fails), but I'm always willing to give things a whirl. Not only are these at-home beauty treatments absolutely WONDERFUL, but they are essentially fail-proof. Not to mention the ingredients can be found amongst things you already have stocked in your kitchen. Since there's nothing but dust and chaos from the construction going on at our house, I headed to my mama's and recruited her to test this goodness out with me!

Cocoa & Coffee Facial

The first thing we jumped into was making this face mask consisting of coffee and cocoa. Apparently these two ingredients are quite the dynamic duo. Not only do they brighten your skin and give you a glow, but this particular mask is supposed to decrease puffiness as well. We added an egg white to this recipe which helps to tighten skin and minimize pores, and used goats milk instead of yogurt because of its' calming and nourishing benefits. What to do:

-4 Tbsp. ground coffee: anything that's finely ground will work, so ground up espresso beans, instant coffee, etc.

-4 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

-2 Tbsp. honey: all natural is best!

-8 Tbsp. dairy: This could be unflavored yogurt, whole milk, almond milk,

coconut milk, or as we used, goats milk! Obviously the yogurt will provide you with a thicker consistency though.

-1 egg white: remember this is optional, but based on our experience I highly

recommend adding it!

Now throw it all in a bowl and mix it up good! (We warmed ours up in the microwave for 15 seconds just for a little added "ooooh" when we slathered it on our faces).

This is what you'll end up getting if you do everything the exact same as us. Consistency was somewhat runny and it smelled like cake...therefore it took every ounce of resistance from my pregnant, hungry self to not take a spoon and dig in!

We just used our hands and slathered it on while over the sink. Make sure you have clean skin before applying! We left the mask on for about 20 minutes, you'll notice it dries on your face pretty quickly and you'll get an instant "tightening" sensation from the egg whites too! When you're ready to take it off, make sure you use a warm washcloth and pat your skin as opposed to rubbing, otherwise the coffee grounds will serve as an exfoliator and you might end up with redness.

Results:

Ohh yes, everything it was supposed to do. My 25 year-old skin and my mama's 50 year-old skin (sorry for the age call-out mum) both felt and looked wonderful once we took this puppy off. Not only was our skin super smooth, but we got that brightening effect and had less noticeable pores/fine lines! Success!

Essential Oil Sugar Scrub

In the midst of hanging out with cake on our face we decided to start on some good ole' scrubs. The first is an essential oil scrub, which means you can tailor this recipe to use any of your favorites (just make sure the essential oil is pure as to not irritate skin)! What you'll need:

-1 1/2 Cups raw sugar

-1 1/2 Cups pure granulated cane sugar

-1 Cup + 2 Tbsp. soybean oil

-10+ drops essential oil: Try not to go overboard, but you can add as little or as many drops of the essential oil as you'd like! We made 2 batches and put 10 drops of Lavender-TeaTree oil in one, and 10 drops of Lemongrass oil in the other.

Now mix it all up and enjoy! My hands now feel like silk, really.

Brown Sugar & Vanilla Scrub

Just like the cocoa-coffee mask, it again took every bit of willpower in me not to eat this.

 -2 Cups brown sugar

-1 Cup pure granulated cane sugar

-1 Cup soybean oil

-1 Tbsp vanilla extract

Again, mix it all up and dig in (with your hands, not mouth). Just as a side note, each of these scrub recipes filled about three 8 oz. jelly jars, so share some with friends and family or stuff in one big container for yourself!

That was it for our self-pampering today. But keep an eye out for more at-home beauty goods and ideas!  My mom makes killer soy candles and all natural soaps as well so I'll eventually be putting a link on here as to how you can get your hands on those!

  

Renovations + Pregnancy

John and I have lived in our humble abode for a little over 7 years now. I must say, it is quite the charming home. I've always been one for character and a little history when it comes to houses and definitely not the sleek/modern type, though there's plenty of beauty in those kinds of homes too. For the longest time John and I discussed moving and possibly building new after we got hitched. However, in bringing it up multiple times post-wedding, we just couldn't fathom the thought of leaving the place we built our lives into! We have a beautiful yard with lots of trees and acreage which is wonderful for our animals and a growing family, not to mention a pleasant neighborhood that's in close proximity to both of our families. With all this goodness, we decided that staying here for as long as possible (I mean, lifers) and renovating was the best decision for us.

We had put a lot of work into it already to make it as cozy and 'us' as possible these past 7 years...but there is still a lot of work to be done. As I had said, our home is quite charming, but quite old. With old homes comes the closed-off rooms, coved ceilings, narrow hallways, ancient wiring/electrical work, plaster walls....you get the point. With the arrival of our sweet, sweet boy fast approaching, we knew we had to get going on the renovations ASAP to avoid chaos and dust with a newbie in the house (plus, we all know it would be impossible to sustain motivation to work on a house when there's a perfectly good baby around to snuggle). With that being said, the wrecking bars and hammers were brought out and walls began crumbling down. My husband, being the do-everything-himself type of man, is currently doing just that....almost everything himself, with the help of family and yours truly of course (I'm hormonal and sometimes taking a hammer to a wall just does a little something for me). The first thing we wanted to accomplish was making our first level more of an "open" floor plan where we can see the kitchen from the living room, and getting rid of those dreadful coved ceilings that just make your home look so teeny and broken up. John has also re-wired and installed some lighting in our living room so far (our living room has only been lit by lamps in the past). The ultimate plan is to add a master suite off of the back of our house once first-floor renovations are complete.

With both of us working full-time throughout the week and appreciating our mellow time in the evenings, that left only weekends open for renovation work. Working only on the weekends has made things pretty challenging for us, especially since we decided to begin this project during the holidays. Add family gatherings, work events, and other pre-planned functions to the mix and we've only had approximately 3 weekends since the end of November to get things accomplished with the house. Half of our home is blocked off with plastic to keep dust from getting everywhere and we're living primarily in our room upstairs and in the basement for the time being.  It hasn't felt the coziest in our home these past couple months, to say the least. I mean, during Christmas time I did have a faint view through the plastic 'walls' of our Christmas tree, complete with an inch of dust piled on top of each ornament. I haven't been able to get my desperate hands on the nursery either as it's part of the first-floor renovations, and ohhhh is that killing me. I feel like we have made so much progress, but oh, is there so much yet to do. We've got engineered wood beams coming in next week and some dry-walling will also begin...and next up, tearing down our entire kitchen! Some may say renovating while expecting is stressful and far from a good idea, but I say it's simply putting my "bendy-ness" and ability to live flexibly (literally) to the test. :) The photo below is me and baby in his empty nursery that's going to get all new walls, ceiling, lights, etc.. I will be posting renovation photos and progress as we go along!