..Our Tiny Apartment Nursery Reveal

The deets: IKEA shelves, basket inserts, & drawer inserts; Stokke crib; LittleMoosebyLiza crib sheet (#6); RugsUSA rug exact one also here; Target mirror, wall paper, floor lamp, and elephant basket; Anthropologie knobs & changing basket; Amazon hangers, changing cart, & shelves; Overstock table lamp; pot was made by me at a pottery place; Soybean sign was a baby shower decoration; PBK laundry basket & night light; Cuddle and Kind lamb doll; Bla Bla puppy doll; Ubbi diaper pail; Hatch sound machine.

Okay first off, let me say the word "nursery" is slightly over-stated for the actual situation I have created here but "baby wall/general baby area" didn't have the same ring to it. If you are a city dweller or small apartment lover like me and are trying to figure out how the heck to fit a baby into the picture then this is the post for you. 

We all know how awful moving in a city can be and and my husband and I truly love the space we currently live in. I could seriously go on and on about all the things that make it my favorite place we have ever lived - the short walk to metro, grocery store, pharmacy, and restaurants, quick work commute, tons of natural light, a huge terrace, it really is just a place with a happy vibe. We moved in the weekend after we got engaged and were the first people to live in the unit. We got married and came home here. We found out we were pregnant here. The thought of leaving it and throwing a new huge life change into the mix all in one year just seemed overwhelming and scary so we decided to try to make it work for at least one more year. That way we can tackle this new parent thing now and moving can be something we worry about later.

Seems like a great idea until you realize how HELLA STRONG those nesting emotions are. They came in HOT and all the sudden I needed the baby to have her own space and it had to be stylish and functional and not interrupt the apartment vibe too much. OKAY? Tall order, right? Just for reference, this is what the space was before - your basic office/den. We tried to get the most out of the space by getting rid of the desk (we put this floating corner desk in another part of the apartment), adding fun wall paper (the perfect square was a great candidate for peal and stick), swapped out the rug for something more crawl around friendly, and converted our beloved Kallax Ikea shelves that we have had for approximately 100 years into little closets using perfectly sized inserts and these rods.  It worked out pretty great but we clearly still needed a changing space. The changing area spills into our bedroom - we just put a cart in the corner and added a changing basket to our dresser which is right next to the den/nursery so even though it's not in the den we think it worked out. Everything we purchased is pretty affordable (I don't think anything is over $100!) but we did splurge on the crib since it has wheels and can convert from a small bassinet size to a regular size crib (space comes at a premium in our apartment). It just seemed like the perfect fit for our current situation. For baby's shoe storage I just covered some cardboard boxes in some of the extra wall paper I had lying around. We are overall very happy with how the tiny space came out! We'll see how living in a place with no walls goes - will report back on that possible disaster choice later but for now the nesting monster inside me is satiated.

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..Nurse Thank You Bags

The deets: Blue Raccoon Designs muslin baby onesie bags via Etsy (mine are 5x7); Plum Polka Dot hair ties via Esty (I asked to swap dots for floral ties); Forever 21 Rose Face Masks; Vaseline Rosey Lips; cards were a Home Goods find (sorry); Tiny Bees cookie wrappers via Etsy (had them leftover from my wedding welcome boxes).

Okay, I know some of you may think this is #extra but I knew very early on that I was 100% going to be putting together thank you gifts for my delivery nurses and doctors. I definitely don't think it's something you have to do at all (they just care about you getting out of there safely with baby) nor do they expect anything for doing their jobs but for the amount of trust you have to put in them and how they much take care of you in your most precious life moments just makes me personally want to leave them knowing how much gratitude I have. Those jobs are so hard and so high pressure! I could never do it. 

Since I knew I wanted to do them I just added it to my hospital bag to-do packing list and since I am pretty type A when it comes to being prepared (you guys know how I start preparing packing lists for trips months in advance) I actually already have my hospital bag 90% done and knocked out these thank you baggies this weekend too! I only have a few things we use everyday left to throw in there along with some fresher cookies. I baked these just for the photos (and my husband) but the homemade dough is ready and frozen in my freezer so I can make some the week leading up (currently 35 weeks pregnant). I know that might not happen if I end up being in an on the fly situation but in that case I have some boxed snacks I'll throw in instead since the rest of the bag contents are packed. 

I know these are pretty girly but I didn't really see any male nurses my whole tour (and there are Starbucks gift cards I'll have on hand if that happens) but since I am having a girl I went with an "it's a girl!" pink rosey theme. If I were having a boy I also had plans to get the same kinds of items but in blue theme. I also added in the cards even though the hair ties say it already because when I was researching nurse thank you bags around the web a lot of actual nurses commented that they appreciated the handwritten notes the most. To be totally honest I just enjoy putting these kinds of things together and I am really happy with how they came out!

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..Baby Shower Dress

The deets: ASOS Maternity dress; Rebecca Minkoff bag (smaller version); Sam Edelman sandals; J.Crew earrings (sold out, found on eBay here, similar here).

Last weekend was my VA baby shower that was thrown by my lovely besties that I truly don't deserve. It was fun and light and so good to see all my friends at once since that is a rare, RARE thing these days. I had a seriously hard time finding a shower dress that checked all my boxes (comfortable in the heat, fancy enough, with elements of pink because I am an unabashed fan of theme dressing). I looked for what felt like months at every maternity and non maternity store for something that would work and then this one came up on ASOS about 2-3 weeks before my shower which I was hesitant about (not really a strapless girl) but decided to try out anyway. I am so glad I did because it worked! Paired with my favorite extra AF red floral sequin J.Crew earrings my husband said I look like some kind of Spanish dancer but I didn't even care because this 33 week bump was happy to have a flowery curtain over it for the day.

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..Floral Maternity Maxi

The deets: Pinkblush dress (c/o); J.Crew jean jacket; Banana Republic slides; Le Specs sunnies; Kate Spade bag (old, similar); GAP hat (old, similar).

I am 32 weeks pregnant now which is officially the start of my 8th month! Time is beginning to fly which is freaking me out a little because my due date is September 4th and by then the summer will be basically over which makes me sad. I feel like we just got going! 

Strangers stop me on a daily basis to ask me when I am due and then quickly make the "oh, you're going to be SO HOT" face. I used to find it slightly irritating but now it serves as a sweet reminder that I am actually enjoying this much more than people have expected me to! The heat has not been a problem for me at all, in fact, I haven't had to wash my hair as much since for whatever reason my scalp is much drier - which I count as a major benefit since it saves me time in the morning. I do have trouble taking in deep breaths now and also have developed a lot of varicose veins which are not fun but aside from that it's been pretty smooth sailing so far. I am hungry AT ALL TIMES, even right after I eat - I don't understand because there is no room left in me. I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for breakfast for the first time today and it was so damn satisfying I felt no guilt at all about it!
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..Bumpin' in Red, White, & Blue

The deets: A Pea in the Pod dress (30% off today!); J.Crew hat (old, similar), Banana Republic wedges (similar under $30); Ray-Ban sunnies (similar under $15); bag (same one in pineapple - under $45).

I wore this little outfit last weekend for a besties little girl's first birthday that was 4th of July themed so  OBVIOUSLY I waited it to post until today because...duh. Happy Fourth! I also wore this out to dinner on our Nantucket trip with a jean jacket, just a good summer buy for the bump! This may be TMI but I am officially getting to the point where I have to stuff my boobs into things because every month I swear they size up again. They are slightly spilling out in these photos but I like to keep it real here! This is what I am currently dealing with in week 30. I also have always been clumsy and fell up the metro steps like once every few weeks prior to being pregnant (there is a particularly embarrassing story involving bags of groceries and my produce making it up to the top before me) and now that I am knocked up I try to be more careful but every once and a while they get me..which is why i have a gnarly bruise on my leg. I will be spending the day enjoying not working OR metro riding mid-week. What a treat! Happy Birthday, America!

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