Ellyse Rose

It's been a whole month since Elly came into this world. Labor and delivery was such a beautiful experience. 26 long hours of labor and I did it naturally. She was born August 26th at 2:54am and weighed 9 pounds and 1 ounce. I learned that it doesn't matter how many people you ask for advice about giving birth, NOTHING can prepare you for your own unique birthing experience. I'm so grateful for my wonderful husband and mother who were there with me every minute of it, helping me breathe, rubbing my back, feeding me ice, coaching me and keeping a positive attitude. Since then, there has been a lot of sleepless nights and it seems like all I do is feed her, change her diapers and try to get her to stop fussing. But we love her so much, more than we could have ever imagined. She has already began smiling, usually right when she wakes up in the morning. She's a little water baby, she loves her baths. She seems to sleep the best when there is a lot of noise so we usually have to have the fan or TV or some sort of music on. She is getting bigger and chunkier and it amazes me that everyday she gets cuter. I could sit and look at her for hours. I love my little family and can't wait for the days to come. Heavenly Father has been good to us. Life is wonderful.

Baby Shower

I'm excited to finally blog about my baby shower! My friend Jodie did such a great job. Everything was beautiful. The theme was tea party. It was decorated with tea cups, lace and lots of little birds and bird houses. I'm thrilled with how it turned out!

She hung pink pom poms and white lanterns in the tree! So cute!

Jodie made edible bird nests for party favors and stuck them in everyone's tea cup.

My mom came up with the adorable idea to have "Sweetie pies" "Baby cakes" and "Honey buns". So Jodie made chocolate cream pies, cupcakes and cinnamon buns. All were very delicious!

Here's the dessert table. So pretty!!

It was really fun and relaxed and I'm grateful for all that came. This was my dream baby shower!

Happy 22!

I can't believe it has almost been a month since I've blogged last. I have so much to catch you up on! Tammy (my mother in law) and I painted the baby room! I would like to post pictures but I don't want to do that until I get everything situated how I like it. She also taught me how to make this adorable baby blanket.

It was so much fun, and I'm getting more confident with my sewing skills.

I've also been taking walks with my mom on the Kuna greenbelt. She's nice to stay at my slow pace as I waddle along. I had to take a few pictures. It's absolut

ely beautiful, especially in the morning.

Last weekend was my birthday! Sunday the 7th to be exact. The day before was my baby shower! It was loads of fun and exactly what I had hoped for. My friends Jodie and Mary did a wonderful job and my mom and mother in law were a huge help also. I would post pictures but I didn't get any on my camera. So as soon as I get some pictures from Jodie and Tammy I will be sure to post them so you can see how lovely it turned out!

I saw this desk/vanity at Shabby House and asked Brig if I could have it for my birthday. It is now sitting in my living room looking fabulous under our tv. Don't mind all the messy cords, I'm not quite sure what to do about them.

Well that's all for now. I will work on finishing the baby's room and getting some pictures of the baby shower so I can post about it all soon.

How to throw a proper pity party...

No doubt about it, I've had a nasty case of the Pregnancy Blues the past week or so. Therefore, the other night I gave myself permission to spoil myself a little bit. I went to Albertsons to get something yummy and found a delicious piece of 5 layer decadent chocolate cake at the bakery. YUM! Then I spotted a sale on some flowers! Nothing cheers me up than than flowers, so I grabbed a few and headed toward the checkout. As I was standing in line I admit, I felt a little bit guilty. A piece of cake and a bouquet of flowers weren't exactly worked into our budget for this month. So as I was trying to come up with reasons to justify my splurge the man behind me in line said "You shouldn't be buying those flowers". I was shocked and confused but he continued on to say "Someone should be buying flowers for YOU." Slightly embarrassed, I let him know that they were, in fact for me. And then he looked shocked and thought for a second and said, "Well, good for you! It's nice of you to treat yourself and you look like you deserve it!" I thought it was so nice! And after that I thought, YEAH! I'm growing a whole 'nother person, the least I deserve is flowers and a piece of cake. So I didn't let myself feel guilty any longer and as I left he yelled out, "Enjoy those flowers!" I believe me, I AM! :)

So now the flowers are sitting in a vase on my dining room table looking gorgeous and putting a smile on my face everytime I see them. As for the piece of cake, the poor thing didn't have time for a picture before I devoured it. I kick myself, cuz this was a beautiful piece of cake! Enough to make anyone's mouth water. The rest of that night I sat and watched movies and read magazines that my dear friend Whitney had brought me. Isn't this a wonderful sight?

So three things that are crucial in throwing a proper pity party are: Chocolate, Flowers & Magazines. And if it weren't for the fact that it's summertime and I'm pregnant, a warm bubble bath would have just send it over the top.

Lavender Festival

Last Saturday I went to a Lavender Festival in Kuna with my mom, sister, her two kiddo's and my grandmother. It was so much fun! There was a lot to take in. Lavender fields, vendors, food and gardens. It was gorgeous.

I think our favorite part was the catering by Sophie's Choice Designs. They looked adorable in their matching shirts and aprons and the goodies were amazing. Lavender cupcakes, Lavender lemonade (which was probably the best lemonade I've ever had!) Lavender jams, sugar, brownies (also amazing) and tons more. They did such a good job and were so nice to let me take pictures! You can check out their website. They do catering for all sorts of events.

There were a lot of other vendors selling neat hats, scarves, paintings and restored furniture.

Pictured above is my cute niece, beautiful mother and sister and a very pregnant me! It was a good day.

Doily Coasters

I found these really cute handmade doilies on Etsy and had to have them. They were only a few dollars! I decided to use them as coasters for my living room coffee table and it definitely added a classy, vintage touch. And as you can see, they look great with the beautiful glasses I found at at a store in Eagle called Ooh La La. They are just so much fun, I had to share.

Baby Update - 31 weeks

I'll let you in on a little secret.. I'm not good at keeping a journal. You were hoping for a more embarrassing secret, weren't you?! Anyways. I just want to take a quick sec and document a few changes in life since getting preggy. (Just so I can look back at this and remember) First, for anyone that knows me well, knows how big of a picky eater I was. HA! That has changed.

Things I hated and now LOVE are:

• Apples. - Crave them!
• Mustard. - Yes please, On anything and everything. ;)
• SPICEY HOT. - The hotter the better.
• Mexican Food. - So good but so bad. (if you know what I mean. haha!)

The other day my husband looked at me at dinner and said "Who are you?" I think my picky eating habits was one of the things he liked least about me. I'm glad that pregnancy has brought me ONE other good thing besides a cute little baby in a couple months.

Third trimester is throwing me for a loop. (I'm 31 weeks now.) I now am up at least 3-4 times a night. My poor bladder. And because I'm not working we are trying to save as much money as possible, this means opening windows at night instead of using A/C. TORTURE, I tell you! Last night the thermostat read "85" degrees and we couldn't open the windows because it was storming. So I broke down and turned on the A/C. Sleeping is impossible now and it makes for a VERY cranky Johanna in the morning. I hope these last 9 weeks go by fast. Never thought summer would become my enemy. Sad.

Our choice of baby name has changed. Which is why it was a good reason we were keeping it a secret. Who knows, it might change 3 more times! I'd really like to see her before we decide for sure anyways. I can't wait to bring her into this world and hold her and have a whole new reason for living. I'm getting more and more anxious but I have to remind myself to enjoy every little moment along the way.

Burns & Blisters

This is the latest of my fabulous creations.

I found some cute material and lace at the fabric store and voila! I now have an insanely cute shabby chic headband! Can you tell how impressed I am with myself? Mainly because it wasn't easy. Hot glue can be a cruel teacher. Especially for an inexperienced crafter such as I. I have the burns and blisters to prove it. ;) Anyhow, I like that I can wear it different ways as you can see by the pictures. I can wear it fashionably as the trendy hippy-style or functionally and keep the hair out of my face. Either way, so much fun! If you want one for yourself, let me know and I might just make you one! :)

Hello kitty!

Now, don't tell me that this isn't the cutest flat face you've ever seen. :) This is my little Persian. We got her when she was a couple months old and now she is 8 months. She has several names we like to call her. Miss Kitty Meow Meow, and Pretty Princess Fluffy Pearl are the 2 names she goes most by. She's the best. She acts like royalty and never gets into trouble. She looks sad all the time but that's just how her face is. I love her. She's such a good kitty.

My Summer Escape

Last month I quit a job I had worked for 3 years. I decided it was time to focus on becoming a mother and a better wife. I also wanted time to enjoy my pregnancy without the stress of work. After all, I haven't had a real vacation since the day I started working 3 years ago. I figure motherhood is a full time job in itself and I really need a break before the little one arrives. So what have I been doing with all my free time? WHATEVER I WANT. And I haven't been this happy in a long, long time. I wake up every morning with a great big smile on my face and thank the lord for all my blessings. I eat my breakfast, do the dishes, tidy up, surf the web and then some days I head off to my favorite place. The other day I took some pictures so I could share the beauty that I get to experience so often.

After being so wound-up and up-tight every day for the past 3 years, it's been nice to come here and completely relax and let go. This is my parents garden. They've worked hard on creating this sanctuary.

It's been such beautiful weather and I've been able to soak up the sun, get all my vitamin D and smell all the sweet aromas the lilacs and locust trees give off. The chickens are so much fun to watch! And fresh eggs beat store bought any day!

It's nice to get away from my obnoxious neighbors whose kids are constantly outside yelling at the top of their lungs, and come here where the only noise I hear is a tractor off in the distance somewhere or the many different varieties of birds singing. Life is beautiful. & I sure am happy.

Dreaming up a home office

My house has 3 bedrooms. One is our master, one is obviously reserved for our little cupcake and the other was occupied and labeled as my dear husbands "Man-Cave". Recently, I got tired of the sound of loud speakers resonating through our walls and not to mention what an eye sore it was. (Huge TV, every type of gaming console your could ever imagine, wires running everywhere & blue BSU turf as a rug is NOT my idea of the quaint little home I had always wanted.) Therefore, I agreed to let him move his dreadful "Man Cave" to the garage. Problem solved! He gets to call the garage his own and I get to dream up an office for our now vacant room. The previous owners had painted the walls blue and green and on one of the walls there is a mural from the movie "Cars". Kinda cute if I had a little boy, but I don't. So it needs to go. I would love to give the room a fresh new look. I have been searching for inspiration and came across a website called HomeOfficeDesignBlog. There I found this -

I love the idea of a simple, fresh yet chic home office. No, I could never get my office to look exactly like this but I could try to replicate it the best I could. Those who know me best know that I have a slight.. (who am I kidding) HUGE obsession with shades of white and grey and everything shabby chic. I think this picture incorporates a lot of that. Oh, wouldn't it be wonderful if I had a million dollars and could spend my days creating beautiful spaces and arrangements in my home!

And they were all yellow

This whole gardening thing has proven to be a bit of trouble for me. However the past week has been very rewarding. My Irises are blooming! The previous owner had planted them and so it was a mystery what color they would turn out to be. They are a cheerful yellow! I personally would have preferred white or purple, but I have to admit that the yellow looks great and does provide a smile on my face every time I see them.

Having SEW much fun!

Last week I started working on a little sewing project. I picked up a cute pattern for a baby outfit at JoAnne's and found a lot of material at Walmart for only 1.50 per yard! I decided to go with Teal & Black and White Polka dots. Thank heavens my mom was there to help me. She knew exactly what she was doing. Good thing, 'cuz I hadn't a clue! The package the pattern came in said "Easy". I disagree, although it is my first try. I guess it will just take some practice and a lot of patience. It is still a work in progress, but I thought I would share how it's coming along! I gave my husband a little sneak peak of the nearly finished product and he seemed to be impressed. WooHoo! I'm getting this whole "house wife" thing down. ;)

Little feet

I had a great memorial day. Brig, my family and I went to the Kuna cemetery to pay our respects to my grandparents, and then we had a BBQ at my parents house. We got to hang out with my Aunt Donna who is visiting from California. Then Brig and I spent the rest of the night watching Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Today I went thrift store shopping, hoping to find some neat treasures. I found a shabby chic picture frame for .99 cents. Not bad at all! It will look great in the baby's nursery! When I came home I was tired, so I layed down for a nap. The baby however was wide awake. It was fascinating how I could actually see my stomach moving and I could actually feel her little feet. It was crazy. It hit me that that was MY baby, my little girl and it never seemed so real to me before as it did right then. It was beautiful. And speaking of little feet, I came across the cutest Etsy shop. LippyLouShoes. She makes adorable shoes for baby girls. These are definitely on my wish list.

All of her designs are amazing. I wish I could afford to buy one of each! You can check them all out for yourself here.

Tomorrow I'm going to attempt my first sewing project with the help of my mother! Wish me luck, I will keep you posted.

xoxo johanna

Life since then...

Since I am just starting this blog, I will first fill you in on whats been going on the past 6 months. Like I said earlier we bought a home in December of 2010 and proceeded to make it our own which consisted of lots of painting and decorating. Now that it has started warming up we have ventured out to take on our ugly yard filled with patches of dead grass and garden beds full of weeds. We love our little starter home and can't wait for the day to come when we can stand back and look at all of our hard work paid off.

Now, let's just say that after a month or two after we got married I began to feel a lot of "changes". A "+" sign revealed that we would be expecting a baby. The first few months of my pregnancy was beyond awful. My diet consisted of popsicles and pickles, if I was lucky enough to keep them down. I recall at one time laying in bed fighting a migraine and the flu at the same time. I wanted to die! I felt like I would never feel good again. After 3 or 4 months the symptoms finally faded and I gained my appetite back along with most of my energy. I am feeling great now and the only problem I seem to face is now getting larger and more uncomfortable. On April 13, 2011 we found out that we are going to be having a little girl. I couldn't be more excited! People are always asking us what we plan to name her, but Brig and I have decided to keep it our little secret until the day we can properly introduce her to the world which is expected to be August 30, 2011. Her kicks are getting stronger everyday and leaves me wondering what body organ she will kick next. She's my little angel and I already love her so much and can't wait to meet her. I really hope that I can be as good of a parent as my parents were and continue to be. Here are a couple of pictures that were taken just the other day. I am 26 weeks along!

I can't believe how fast time has gone and that I am already 6 months. Our little cupcake will be here before we know it!

You may call me Mrs. Lowell

November 27, 2010 was the day I began my life and journey with my best friend and the love of my life. Shortly after we said our "I Do's" we moved into our own little home in Kuna, Idaho. We are loving life and all it's little surprises and taking every day one at a time. I'm so grateful to be learning all the new levels of responsibility, patience & unconditional love. It's been challenging at times but I wouldn't trade these experiences for anything.