Pregnancy Dreams

I've had the craziest baby nightmares dreams lately. They go something like....

• Our baby arrived super early and turned out to be a boy. I had no clue what to do with him and was even scared to pick him up thinking I would do something wrong. I was actually so in shock I decided not to name him! Thank goodness for the sweet friends that appeared in my dream and showed me how to change a diaper and feed a baby... Let's hope real life is nothing like this!
• I went into labor several weeks early. It was so painless that I didn't believe I was actually having the baby (let's hope real life IS like this). She just popped right out in a matter of minutes. BUT as a full-grown child, about 7 years old to be exact. She had so much energy and was running around the hospital like a hellion! I kept telling the nurses that there was a mistake, and I was supposed to be having a BABY! Like a 7 pound sweet little girl, not a 7 year old! 

These are just two of the most vivid ones I can remember. I think the first occurred because I was worried about not being able to get into the baby classes. Believe it or not, the morning after that dream a spot magically opened up in the class! I think the others are a result of the very graphic detailed and informative baby classes. I've been told these pregnancy dreams are normal but I'm just about over these wild scenarios!

 This is me as a child with my crying baby sister, Brooke! Honestly, this is exactly what my dreams felt like. I just had no clue what was going on or what to do!

P.S. Just love that the little mascot for our baby class is a panda!

What Happens at Grandma's!

We've been told that since Carolyn Jo is the first grandchild on both sides she'll be spoiled rotten. The grandparents' excitement has proven this might just be true. Not long after we told our families, I received an email from my mom with the first grandparent assignment she'd given herself. Apparently, sharing Carolyn Jo might be an issue!

 

In all seriousness, I think mine and Seth's parents are going to make AMAZING grandparents! Carolyn Jo is already stocked with tons of toys, clothes and all the necessities at both grandparents' house. Not to mention so much love and excitement! I think they are having too much fun with this already... i.e. Curious George testing out all the toys (and even the Diaper Genie) at Grandma's!

Baby on a Budget

Y'all know I love good deals! I started marking my calendar off early for all these baby consignment sales I'd been hearing about. Opportunity to get gently used clothes and toys for next to nothing, sign me up! Well, let's just say I had a great and not-so-great experience! 

The first on my list was the Junior League's Bag-a-Bargain event which I'd previously worked and sells just about everything you could imagine. I knew there would be some good deals there. So one Saturday morning Seth, Brooke and I headed to stand in this crazy line (picture does not do it justice as it wraps around the building) to treasure hunt. 

We got some AMAZING deals at BAB. We spent about $80 and racked up! We got 40 cute outfits for Carolyn Jo (many with tags still on them), a ton of books, a brand new BabyBjorn (retails for $100), a Boppy Pillow and a few decorations. Well worth the trip but I could not have done this trip alone. Exhausting and overwhelming!

The following week I decided to tackle the popular Jack and Jules event. I felt a little bit more confident as this was my second go around, I knew what to expect. Wrong! The line was just as long but everyone was looking for the same stuff in a space 1/5 of the size. Too many strollers and kids running around for me. Not to mention, these people that consign their stuff REALLY like it! Poor Seth was one of 3 males in the building. Needless to say, there is another kids consignment sale this week that I don't think I'll be venturing to. Some things are just not worth it! 

Scrapbook Mania

I love to scrapbook! But up until recently I haven't had the chance or the space to really get back into it. In January we made some updates to our office, which is now basically my craft room. A dream come true! The perfect place to put all my junk craft supplies. One of my birthday presents was a nice big table which allows me to layout all my pages and organize.

Every year since Seth and I have been together, I've made a scrapbook. UNTIL we got married and I've been seriously bad about it. I'd kept all the mementos and printed most of the pictures, just haven't pieced each year together. I have been hard at work these past few weeks in attempt to finish before Carolyn Jo arrives! This is what my craft room looks like on a daily basis right now and it makes me so happy!

I am working backwards and have now completed 2012, just two more years of memories to go. I have already started collecting for Carolyn Jo's first scrapbook which I vow to keep more up to date! I'd love to have family and friends contribute to her scrapbook by writing a letter to her. If you're reading this and I haven't had a chance to tell you yet...It can be about your relationship with her mom or dad, how excited you are to meet her or even your hopes and dreams for our baby girl! It is sure to be something she will treasure for the rest of her life!

Why Carolyn Jo?

Unlike most couples, our baby name (for a girl at least) required little discussion. When I first told Seth he was going to be a dad, out of excitement we decided right then and there. I've always loved family names, and we have so many special people in our lives!

For a boy we knew we wanted to use the name James. To any siblings reading this, we might have a boy one day and are still staking claim to the name! My father and grandfather are both named James. Seth's father and both grandfathers have James in their name. Clearly it was a no-brainer. The other boy name was a toss-up between Ralston (my other granddaddy's middle name which I love) and Otto (a well-respected mentor and friend of Seth's). It's probably a good thing that we have a little bit more time to think on the boy name as we were not ready to come to a compromise just yet.

As for the girl name, Carolyn was my #1. That was the name of my grandma who I much admired and lost her battle to Breast Cancer when I was in elementary school. Read more on her in this post. Coincidently, it is also Seth's mimi's name! Crazy I know! Seth lost his other grandmother when he was young and wanted to use her middle name, Jo. So Carolyn Jo it was. Simple as that! We did toss around using my other grandmother's name too-- Lily. We are pretty blessed with some amazing family names, right? But there is already one Lilly in the family (Nick and Samantha's dog) and the verdict is still out if my mom will go by Lily for her grandma name!

Shout out to my cousin, Carolyn Ann, also named after my sweet grandma. Happy Birthday Carrie!!!

Picture of my Grandma Carolyn and Grandpa loving on me as a baby!

Some of the first items in our nursery-- Baby blanket made for me by my Grandma and my favorite book she used to read to me at our sleepovers!