Paint, paint, and more paint

I'm one that constantly likes to change and update things in my home. When we first moved in, I knew I wanted to paint the nursery yellow. I love the yellow that is in there. It's such a happy color. It's bright and airy and is just a happy room for my little girl. But I tire of colors very quickly, much to my husbands annoyance. 2 years in this house, and I'm already ready to repaint (let's be honest though, I've been ready to paint after the first year).

The first room we conquered was the bathroom. We did a complete overhaul in there. Right now, we're just waiting on the bead board and baseboards to get installed, and then it'll be finished and I'll update with pictures!

The next two areas on my list of never ending things to do are Bug's room and the master. Currently, the nursery is yellow. Like I said before, I love the yellow. But I think I want to go with something slightly more neutral. A brown of some sort. Maybe the color of warm cinnamon or Martha Stewart's brown sugar.

  

                    Martha Stewart's brown sugar                 warm cinnamon

Now are master bedroom is a dark green. I like the color, but I've never been in love with it. There isn't enough natural light in our master bedroom to pull of such a dark color. In an attempt to lighten things up, we're already repainting the trim white. At the moment, it's that ugly 80's stain. The white trim is definitely helping brighten things, but in my opinion, it's not enough. So now I'm thinking of doing a yellow and grey combination. Our new (washable) bedspread is yellow, and I love it. But the green doesn't really go well with it. So now, it's time to paint.

grey possibilities

I love these greys, but I did tell the hubs that he could pick out the grey in order to get him on board with the master bath redo. 

I don't know if I'll actually get to do these redoes, but a girl can dream right? I'm hoping that when baby #2 is on board, we can redo the nursery to accommodate. I guess I'll just have to wait to see. 

Mommy Moments Blog Hop!

Hey mamas!
Welcome back for another great week of Mommy Moments Link Ups! Thank you for linking up and for spreading the word last week! We love all of the great posts!

 This week's most viewed link belongs to Brit from These Happy Times! Her post Oh Hey There highlights her summer including a peek at her adorable baby bump.


Our guest host for this week is the author of Keeper of Reign, Emma Right! Go check out her great blog and her book too!


Now it's time to link up your posts! All you have to do is...

1. Follow Host: The Life Of Faith 

 Co-Hosts: The Not Quite Military Wife, Beautiful Family Affairs and The Mrs. 
Guest Host: Emma Right

2. Link up your post!
Post can include anything related to mommy-hood, children, homemaking, pregnancy etc. If you aren't a mom yet, feel free to link up your preparation for motherhood, your journey as you try to conceive, or even a post that would be encouraging to the other moms in the party!

3. Add the Mommy Moments button to your post or blog so everyone knows where you are linking up!

4. Explore some of the other posts in the link-up and say hello to some new blog friends! 

5. Tweet or Share the link up on Facebook so we can all make even more friends!

Tweet

<div align="center"><a href="http://the-life-of-faith.blogspot.com//search/label/baby" title="The Life Of Faith"><img src="http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/k537/faithkonrath/mommymomentsbutton.jpg" alt="The Life Of Faith" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

P.S. We will be having a new guest host every week! Want to be a guest host of the Mommy Moments Blog Hop? Send Faith a message at farmprincess14{at}gmail{dot}com. We would love to have you!

Friday's Letters

Playing with Mommy's iPhone

Dear Friday, My days are so messed up! You snuck up on me. I'm okay with that though. At least, I think I am. Dear Hubs, I don't like this new schedule, but I do enjoy our mornings together. Bug really likes eating breakfast with you. Dear Bug, Please stop growing already! You are getting so big. I do love the stage you're in, you're learning so many new things! Dear Football, I can officially say that you will be here this month! Thank goodness! I've been going through withdraws. The past week I have worn my football shirts, watched football movies, and talked football. Oh and next Thursday we're going to a preseason game! Go Falcons! Dear You-Know-Who-You-Are, AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! That is all.

6 Month Photo Shoot

I captured Bug's half birthday while we were in Texas.

This one is by far my favorite. I just love that little poochy lip!

And now for a quick comparison:

She's getting so big so fast! Can time please slow down! She's definitely developing her own little personality. I just love how it comes through in her pictures.

Christmas

It's July and I'm already thinking (and planning) for Christmas this year. It's going to be a special year: Bug's first Christmas. To say that I'm excited is an understatement. I already love the season, and now that I get to share it with my daughter, I don't know if I'll be able to contain myself! I know she won't remember this Christmas, but I will and I look forward to telling her all about it in years to come.

With a new baby, the hubs and I are starting new traditions, and continuing old ones. One tradition that we have is shopping for the Christmas tree. We go the Sunday after Thanksgiving, this way, we can enjoy the tree for as long as possible. This year we're adding to this tradition. To help make it more special, we'll be buying an ornament for Bug (we've actually already bought her ornament this year when we were in Disney) and letting her "open" it that same day. This way she has a special new ornament to put on the tree.

Another tradition will be with her presents. I don't feel like Christmas should ever be about presents. It's about the birth of Christ and the time we get to spend with family. In order to hopefully minimize future drama (I know I'm kind of dreaming, but maybe if we start early, it'll smooth things over) but we're going with four gifts: wear, need, want, read. (I believe I read about this somewhere on Pinterest, if you know where, please help me so I can give credit where credit is do!)

Wear: This one is self explanatory. Bug will get a new outfit every Christmas. In my mind, an outfit starts at the head with a bow or headband and ends at the feet with new shoes. We'll see if the hubs agrees with me.

Need: This year this is an easy-ish one. Sooner than later, Bug needs a new car seat. That being said, this will most likely be her "need" present this year, even though we'll get it before Christmas...she won't know the difference though.

Want: One of the two things Bug gets to ask for. This year we get to choose her "want" and at the moment I'm leaning towards getting her a teepee. She'll be 11 months at Christmas though, so I don't know if this will still be a relevant gift at the time. Any recommendations? I personally think it would be fun for her to have and she can grow with it, which is a bonus. I love gifts that can last.

Read: I'm a huge advocate for reading. For this gift, Bug can request a book (when she gets of age to pick out books). This year we get to pick out a book for her. 

I'm hoping to get an early start on shopping so that I'm not bombarded all at once. Plus, I don't think our pocketbooks can handle that much cash flow in one stop. 

Mommy Moments Blog Hop!

Hey mamas!
Welcome back for another great week of Mommy Moments Link Ups! Thank you for linking up and for spreading the word last week! We love all of the great posts!

 This week's most viewed link belongs to one of my personal favorite bloggers Paula from Beauty Through Imperfection! Her post 8 Reasons Childbirth is Easier Than Pregnancy definitely caught my eye in the link up as well!

It's such a hilarious post, especially for someone who is pregnant and dreading childbirth! I had a pretty rough pregnancy and labor and I honestly can't decide which was worse. I'm just happy to have gotten my baby out of it all!

Our guest host for this week is Jennie from The Diary of a Real Housewife!

I'm just now exploring Jennie's blog and I think I'm gonna like it and I'm sure you will too!

Now it's time to link up your posts! All you have to do is...

1. Follow Host: The Life Of Faith 

 Co-Hosts: The Not Quite Military Wife, Beautiful Family Affairs and The Mrs. 
Guest Host: The Diary of a Real Housewife

2. Link up your post!
Post can include anything related to mommy-hood, children, homemaking, pregnancy etc. If you aren't a mom yet, feel free to link up your preparation for motherhood, your journey as you try to conceive, or even a post that would be encouraging to the other moms in the party!

3. Add the Mommy Moments button to your post or blog so everyone knows where you are linking up!

4. Explore some of the other posts in the link-up and say hello to some new blog friends! 

5. Tweet or Share the link up on Facebook so we can all make even more friends!

Tweet

<div align="center"><a href="http://the-life-of-faith.blogspot.com//search/label/baby" title="The Life Of Faith"><img src="http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/k537/faithkonrath/mommymomentsbutton.jpg" alt="The Life Of Faith" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

P.S. We will be having a new guest host every week! Want to be a guest host of the Mommy Moments Blog Hop? Send Faith a message at farmprincess14{at}gmail{dot}com. We would love to have you!

Post-Baby Body Blues

There is so much stress women put on themselves to get back to their "pre-baby" weight. Even I find myself falling into this category, where I stress about getting back to my before baby body. But now I find myself with mixed emotions. I find myself getting upset with others who complain about all the weight they're gaining. I find myself thinking about all the women who long to get pregnant and can't, and it puts it all into perspective for me. Recently, a friend on Facebook posted a quote from Andreae Callanan. She put into words what I couldn't:

"If you ask me, our society is way too hung up on the idea of women getting their pre-baby body back. What’s wrong with post-baby bodies? They’ve made babies, for goodness’ sake! With all that we have to deal with in the early years of parenthood, do we really need the pressure of having to look like this whole baby thing never happened? And really, would we want that?

Having a baby is amazing. It’s something that changes your whole life. How could it not change your body? For every woman who feels terrible about her poochy belly and stretch marks, there is, no doubt, another woman who wants desperately to have those problems, and all that they signify.

And just think of what the quest for a pre-baby body says to that wonderful baby who gave you that belly. You may say the words, “I just want to get my body back to the way it was before you were born,” but how do you know that she or he doesn’t hear, “Mommy used to be so pretty before she had you”? What must that make them feel like?

When you look at your baby, you know with certainty that she or he is the most beautiful baby that has ever been born. It’s an indisputable fact.

You should know that, when your baby looks at you, she or he knows, with absolute conviction, that you are the most beautiful woman on the planet. Belly, stretch marks, and all."

I want my daughter to know that what's on the outside isn't what matters. It's what's on the inside that counts. I know that's cliche. But it's the truth. I want to be known as a loving mother, not as a skinny girl. Yes, there's a point to being healthy and fit, but why obsess over it? There is a new baby in the world that loves you unconditionally. 

I hope I haven't offended anyone with what I've said. These are my personal feelings, and I don't mean any harm.