Home. Office.

With the addition of our son to the family, some changes regarding my work situation have occurred. The biggest is that I am primarily working outside of a professional office - local coffee houses, cafes, and a spare bedroom in our house are my new workplace. It's a work in progress, but I jumped at the opportunity to do a feminine (pink!) office. I wanted to create a space that is vintage/glam inspired, warm, peaceful, and where I feel like I am stepping away from the rest of my house in a way - that will hopefully trigger the creative bones in my body.

I picked "Gypsy Moth" by Martha Stewart for the paint color - it's sort of a peachy pink tint to an almost white color, and it's light and airy - I love it. The walls in this old farmhouse throw lots of shadows that create a challenge for the smallness of the rooms, so we've learned that lighter colors help prevent the rooms from feeling like they are caving in around us. And I confess, I partly picked the paint based on the name. Does everyone do this, or just me? I enlisted my husband to help me tackle this job, who has now earned the title "Mean Painter". Remind me to do this myself next time! A couple beers into the project he was in better spirits - thank goodness!

I promise it doesn't look this much like a band-aid.

Almost everything else was repurposed from other places in our house. Here are a few of my inspiration photos:

I have this desk and poster - and I love the addition of tan to the pink and white color scheme.

Love the oriental rug, and again - pink and tan. I also like the introduction of the soft blue, which the rug I bought has.

Our walls are similarly angled, so I think an inspiration wall like this - behind my monitor - would be awesome.

Pink and tan again, with bolder pops of blue...makes it a little funkier/more modern.

I still have a little ways to go but I'm having fun figuring out what to hang on the walls and how to generally spruce it up! I will keep you posted!

Dear Eddie | Three Months

Sweet Boy - you are 3 months old today! I can hardly believe the changes that have occurred in the last month. You have become so strong, and so social. When I hold up rattles or dangle anything in front of you, you get very excited and start jerking your little limbs around, and making little snorty noises. You've been enjoying putting everything in your mouth too - a favorite is knuckles! You also love to talk and make lots of noises - you've become very vocal! I absolutely love it and your dad and I do all we can to get you talking. (Perhaps we will regret this when we can't get you to stop talking, but for now it's lots of fun.) Your little voice sounds like a cartoon and you have so much expression in the sounds you make! The pediatrician said this next period - 3 to 6 months - is when things start to get really fun (he is right!)

Eddie the Knuckle Biter

Speaking of 3 to 6 months - I had to retire most of your newborn clothes. I was chatting with someone the other day, and I said that having a baby makes me simultaneously mourn and rejoice in each new day. I get so sad that you are getting bigger and aren't a precious little newborn anymore, but I have great joy that we are getting to know who you are as you develop! I never understood people being sad their children weren't small anymore, until we had you - now I do. But your dad reminded me to just be happy and remember that every day you get bigger it means you are growing strong and healthy, and for that I am grateful. But it was still sad to put away some of those tiny little outfits - definitely tugs at my heartstrings. One part of you that is still very small is your thumbs -oh do they do me in! You are getting some chunk on you, and your little thighs and wrists look like they have rubberbands stretched around them. But the pudgy little thumbs are the very best part. They are so mini!

Naked baby!

You are sleeping really well these days. Your bedtime has shifted to around 7 pm (usually), and you usually sleep for a good 5 or 6 hours for your first stretch. I love that 1 or 2 am feeding and don't mind it at all - in fact I will be sad when you outgrow it, it's such a sweet and precious quiet time with you. You are still waking up a few short hours after that, but now I just pull you in the bed to feed you and don't try to fuss with getting you back to sleep in your own bed. Your dad and I love to snuggle you and you sleep better and longer that way. Hopefully we won't regret this down the road!

Another new development this month is that we think you might have a food sensitivity to dairy. Your poops were starting to turn green and look like guacamole (yep - you get all the gory details!) but as soon as I trimmed out the dairy, they went back to normal. It could just be a coincidence but that might also have something to do with why you've always been so gassy. I'm going to keep it up for a little while and see how you respond. I hope you understand how much I love you by giving up cheese - this is very difficult! Remember, we live in Wisconsin... :)

I also went back to "work" as of this week. I'm working either at coffee shops or out of my newly decorated home office two days a week. Your Nana GiGi will be watching you. The only people in the world other than your papa and I that I would trust with you on a regular basis are my parents and your dad's mom, so it helps to be leaving you in her care. It's still hard though - up until this point it's been my full-time job to care for you - to feed and nurture you, figure out your schedule, love you up, and play and snuggle! I was so anxious about it on Sunday night, but realized I had to just give up some control and let your Nana figure it out for herself. After all, she raised my husband - the man I married! So she must have some idea what she's doing... Yesterday when it was a day off, I barely put you down. We cuddled and napped together and I smothered you with kisses all day. It made me realize what a sacrifice your papa makes every day when he goes off to work in order to provide for our family. Some nights he gets home and you are so sleepy, he only gets an hour with you. I know it is very difficult for him and he feels like he is really missing out. I suppose it's just a different way to take care of you, but equally as important as the way I care for you. We are still working on a plan that incorporates more flexibility in our lives so we can all spend less time apart - more time as a family. I'll keep you posted on that!

Hanging in one of your favorite places - your daddy's arms.

Sweet Eddie Boy - I love you more than I can say in words. My eyes sting with tears whenever I think about it, whenever you give me a big gummy smile, whenever I sing you a song, whenever you sleepily snuggle into my neck in the night. You are your dad's and my greatest joy. I can't wait to see what this next month brings!


Love,
Mama