It's a....

We were soo excited to go to the doctor to find out the gender about a month ago.  We went to the doctor on a Monday but the small gender reveal party we had planned wasn't until that coming up Sunday. Let me tell you, that was a long week trying to keep our little secret! I think it was even longer for our poor parents who felt tortured not knowing. The ultrasound tech seemed to take forever to get to the part we were waiting for. Then all of a sudden a blob of what looked like nothing we could make out came on the screen and she typed "It's a GIRL" for us to see. I looked at Blake and we were both beaming. His initial response was "My mom is going to go nuts." I think the pictures of her reaction below say it all!

Here are some pictures of our big reveal!

We have since been busy registering and starting on the nursery! Luckily I had the help of a few amazing mommies when registering which made the process soo much easier and less stressful. I can't wait to pay if forward someday :) 

As for a nursery update, we have the room painted and ready to be put together! It is a very neutral beige color and we are doing pops of coral, peach, gold and teal throughout. It will have a more vintage feel to it. So far we have a dresser that we got off Craig's List and the crib and glider have been ordered. I can't wait for the furniture to come in so we can start turning it into a nursery! 

We have gotten so many clothes from friends that her dresser is FULL. We are so grateful for all the hand-me-downs! Baby girl is going to need another closet soon :)

Other than working on the nursery we are also researching pediatricians and childcare. Soo much research when it comes to babies! I am trying to get as much done as possible though while I still feel great.

I am almost 24 weeks along and cannot believe how quickly it has flown by! She is moving like crazy and it is such an awesome feeling. Blake has started feeling it too and last night we even saw my belly move! My belly is definitely growing!

How far along? almost 24 weeks

Total weight gain: 15 lbs
Maternity clothes? Mostly maternity pants at this point, although I am still able to button a few pairs of jeans :)
Stretch marks? Not yet
Sleep: Sleeping well so far
Best moment this week: Making progress on the nursery!
Miss Anything? Still missing sushi like crazy!
Movement: She is an active lady, especially at night
Food cravings: Nothing out of the ordinary
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope
Gender: Girl!!
Labor Signs: no
Symptoms: nothing major
Belly Button in or out? It is out in full gear!
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy

Looking forward to: Getting the nursery put together!

17 weeks

I am 17 (almost 18) weeks along and doing great! I had my 4 week doctor appointment on Thursday and everything looked and sounded great. The heart rate is 144 which is good and healthy. Hearing the heartbeat never gets old. It's so amazing!

The most exciting part of this appointment was scheduling our ultrasound to find out the gender! That appointment is currently scheduled for the week of July 21st. We are planning on having a very small gender reveal party with immediate family and a few close friends on the 27th. We will probably find out before everyone but that could change. I just have a feeling we won't be able to say no to finding out when I am at the doctor's office getting my ultrasound. I am so ready to start planning out the nursery!

Once we find out the gender we will start registering too. We already have some of the big ticket items picked out (crib, car seat, stroller, etc.) but let me tell you, it is overwhelming how many items a baby needs and all the options! I really want to be a very practical mommy so that is why I will be recruiting the help of some very dear new mommy friends to help with the registering process.  I am so grateful to have amazing people with experience and great advice. I can't wait to pay it forward with my knowledge someday.

One exciting new development is that I am starting to feel movement! It feels like a little flutter in my stomach. It is the coolest feeling! It's still so surreal that a human being is inside of me and I don't feel pregnant at all, mostly bloated, so feeling the movement is reassuring and makes it even more exciting!

How far along? 17 weeks

Total weight gain: 7 lbs
Maternity clothes? Not yet, but certain clothing is definitely more comfortable
Stretch marks? Not yet
Sleep: Sleeping well so far
Best moment this week: Scheduling our ultrasound appointment!
Miss Anything? A glass of wine
Movement: Yes! Such a cool feeling
Food cravings: Anything salty
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope
Gender: Appointment is scheduled!
Labor Signs: no
Symptoms: nothing major
Belly Button in or out? Starting to stick out a little more but still in
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy

Looking forward to: Our next doctor appointment so we can find out the gender

Hello Second Trimester

At 13 weeks I had my second doctor's appointment. I was anxiously waiting this appointment so I could hear the heartbeat again and shortly after, tell more of our friends and family. I accepted a job offer at Equifax around 11 weeks and wanted to make sure my little secret didn't slip out to my new employer before I had the chance to tell them. Luckily I was got the chance to tell my new manager before I started the job and they were soo nice about everything. Such a relief!!

 My 13 week appointment was pretty quick. The heart rate was 143 which is good and healthy.

 As you can see, the bump is starting!

 

I will be doing the little chalkboard tracker every 4 weeks as opposed to every week. As I get further along I may opt to do every other week.

At almost 15 weeks we made the big announcement and it was official!

We have felt so much love from everyone and could not be more excited! 

How far along? 15 weeks

Total weight gain: 5 lbs
Maternity clothes? Not yet, although I'm sure it's only a matter of time!
Stretch marks? Not yet
Sleep: I have been waking up every night to go to the bathroom and seem to be waking up earlier than normal.
Best moment this week: Sharing our exciting news with everyone!!
Miss Anything? Jimmy John's!
Movement: Nothing yet but I hear this could happen in the next few weeks
Food cravings: Jimmy John's, ugh!
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope
Gender: We should find out around 20 weeks :) 
Labor Signs: Gosh I hope not yet
Symptoms: Same as before. No morning sickness, woo!
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: So happy to be able to share our news with everyone!

Looking forward to: Finding out the gender!

We're expecting!

So I am way late to the game on starting blog posts on this subject, but better late than never, right?

Blake and I were so excited to find out back in April that we are expecting! Blake actually read the "stick" before I did and I honestly thought he was joking with me when he said it was positive. I rushed into the bathroom and sure enough, there was the plus sign. I am a bit frugal when it comes to some things and so I had been opting to use the dollar store brand pregnancy tests. I insisted that we go out and buy a "legit" test just to be sure. Sure enough, the second test was positive too! I found out I was pregnant at 4 weeks and the doctor won't see you until you are 8 weeks typically. I wasn't able to get in to the doctor till 9 weeks. Talk about the longest 5 weeks of our lives! During that time, we told our parents at 6 weeks, along with a few very close friends.

That first appointment was soo exciting. Hearing the heartbeat and seeing our baby on the screen was so surreal. We both were grinning from ear to ear and couldn't keep our eyes off the screen. The heartbeat was 173, which is great and healthy! Here is our little bean at 9 weeks :)

Answers to FAQ's:

1. How have you been feeling?   
• I have been feeling great for the most part throughout the first trimester. I started taking my pre-natal vitamins in the morning and taking them on an empty stomach was a mistake. It was making me nauseous and I was thinking I was experiencing morning sickness when really it was just the vitamin. I switched to taking them at night after a few weeks and have felt much better since! This is one thing I have been telling all my friends since no one told me!               
2. Do you have a preference on gender?
• We really do not have a preference either way. Blake claims he has no idea what to do with a girl but I know he will be happy either way. We just want a healthy baby!
3. Are you going to find out the gender?
• Yes! I am too much of a planner to not find out. I respect people that can wait. I think it would be a fun surprise, but we are both dying to know! I am glad we are on the same page about finding out.

And here is a little list of questions I will answer every time I post. I am answering this set of questions according to being 9 weeks along.

How far along? 9 weeks

Total weight gain: None yet
Maternity clothes? Not yet
Stretch marks? Not yet
Sleep: I have been waking up every night to go to the bathroom and seem to be waking up earlier than normal.
Best moment this week: Finally seeing our baby and hearing the heartbeat!
Miss Anything? Sushi!
Movement: Nothing yet
Food cravings: Salty, vinegar based things. Salad dressings, sauces, salt & vinegar chips, etc.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope
Gender: ???? 
Labor Signs: Gosh I hope not yet
Symptoms: Sore, bigger breasts and having to go to the bathroom all.the.time.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!!

Looking forward to: Telling all our friends and family!

Leaf Wreath

Happy fall everyone! Fall is my favorite time of year and seems to go by the fastest out of all the seasons. For that reason, I got a little excited this year and made my fall decor back in August, ha! I cannot claim this idea as my own, but I can give pointers if you are wanting to do it yourself.

I saw a monogram leaf wreath on Pinterest (shocker) and had to make one of my own!

Supplies:
-Paper mache letter
-Hot glue gun
-Packs of leaves (I bought about 6 packs from JoAnn's)
-Ribbon to hang

I started off using Elmer's spray adhesive as I had read from another blogger and ended up one big, sticky mess. Not only that but I found that the adhesive worked well at first but over time the leaves were falling off. I would definitely recommend using hot glue as that seems to have stood the test of time.

Unfortunately I did not take pictures of the process, but it's fairly straightforward. Just hot glue your leaves onto the letter, making sure to cover all the paper mache. Once the letter is completely covered, you can add your ribbon of choice to the back for hanging purposes.

...and voila!

 

 

I love adding holiday/seasonal decorations to our door and seeing them as I pull in or out from our garage. Have you made any fun fall decorations?

Finally!

I have been wanting to start a "DIY/new projects/our life" blog for awhile now. Blake & I's life has been a bit of a whirlwind the past year, so this definitely was put on the backburner. Let's recap, shall we?

 

-Moved into apartment in May 2011

-Blake got a new job in July 2011

-Got hitched on 9/3/11

-Moved into our house on 12/9/11

 

 

 -Julie got a new job in February 2012

-Added a new addition, Millie, to the Eaker home in March 2012

 

Whew! That makes me tired just reading this! If you are new here, you can pretty much gather that we are young, newlyweds who are learning as we go with this whole "owning a house" thing. Blake will be the first to admit that he is not the handiest of men, so you will probably see my very handy dad in some, if not most, of the projects that we take on (the perks of living down the street from my parentals).
 

Since March we have been getting settled in our "new" home and making changes and updates along the way. I am so excited to start documenting the process! Our 1970's home was move in ready for the most part but definitely needs some modern updates.
 

Just to make sure everyone is up to speed, since moving in December we have:
 

-Painted the front living/family room BM's Coventry Gray and the bottom wainscoating white (I'll have to find some before & after pics of this to really do it justice, but trust me when I say it's WAY better than before)

-Got new charcoal gray couches for the front room

-Got a new navy Moroccan trellis rug for the front room

 

-Added modern, patterned navy, green, and turquoise pillows to the gray couches

-Painted our kitchen and back "den" area Restoration Hardware's Silver Sage
 

The next project on my list is painting our interior doors white. They are currently a mid-brown color and I just think white will brighten up our house so much more! Look out for a post on that with before & after pictures.
 

I cannot wait to let the fun projects begin and I hope you enjoy following us along on our journeys!