Push the Little Baby and Make it Come Out

Sorry for kind of dropping off the face of the earth for a while, but if you haven't already figured it out, I had a baby. This post is going to be a bit wordy, so feel free to skip to the pictures if you want. They are pretty cute. Can't say that I would blame you.

For those of you who enjoy Baby Story on TLC, here's what happened: Wee Baby X was born on August 3 at 9:24 pm, which is a far more civilized hour than his big brother Ike chose (3am -- thanks, bud!). Everything went swimmingly in the labor department, because apparently I shoot babies out like a potato gun. Everything did not go so swimmingly in the naming department, because as we all know I have commitment issues and choosing a name for a person to use his entire life is a little more stressful than choosing drapes (barely). And so Baby X remained nameless until the very last minute...

The minute at 2am when a random doctor woke us up and took our baby to another hospital's NICU.

Not to be all melodramaculus, but watching a bunch of people wheel my baby away in one of those plexiglass boxes filled with IVs and tubes was possibly the worst moment of my life. And to top it off, they weren't exactly sure what was wrong but suspected he would need major intestinal surgery.

We decided we better name the baby, and so he became Luke O'Connor Roy.

Now, I had this in mind when we chose his name:

Cool Hand Luke will beat the shit out of any obstacle that stands in his way. Also he can eat 50 eggs. Also also, he is very hot.

Meanwhile, I think Ben had this in mind when we named the baby:

Hmmmmm.

Anyway, to make a long, sleep deprived and tear stained story short, after many crappy tests and poking and prodding my days old baby, they decided he had pyloric stenosis and required laproscopic surgery. By this point we were just glad to know what the problem was. They scheduled surgery immediately and a few days later Luke came home with us.

And then this happened:

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Awwwwwwwwwwwwwww. My hormones are working overtime and I want another one already.

(Not going to happen)

We're all happy and healthy now, and Ike is adjusting to the new situation fairly well... except that he keeps commanding Luke to start walking and talking.

I'm going to take a few more weeks off before returning to the blog, at which time you may find that an alarming number of posts about chocolate cake have replaced decorating decisions

Nursing makes you hungry.

If you've sent me an email lately and I haven't replied, I apologize. But know that I have soaked up each and every one of your well wishes like a virgin pancake soaks up maple syrup.

Hungry.

Love you all and see you soon!

XO,

E

Finished Project Sneak Peeks!

Hi guys -- no baby yet, but my mama sense (and my doctor) say evacuation is imminent. I really wanted to bust out mega shoots of the rooms I've finished up, but I'm just too tired and uncoordinated. Like, I am physically unable to bend my body into the positions necessary to photograph small spaces.

So instead of trying to make some House Beautiful spreads happen (I wish), I told myself I could shoot just one sneak peek shot of each room. And I did. And now I feel all crampy and I'm racing just to type this before a baby shoots out of my bajingo...

In other words, this is going to be my last post until I show up with a bunch of sappy photos of a newborn baby. Let's jam.

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The front room/playroom is finally finished... mostly. Is anything really ever finished? Anyway, here's my source list:

Paint color is Benjamin Moore Dark Harbor.

Couch is vintage Danish rosewood and wool boucle. You do remember Alexis, right?

Painting was thrifted long ago in California.

Rug came from Overstock, but the price has gone up since I bought it.

Chinoiserie etageres were purchased from Room Service and custom painted to match the walls by Matt. These were by far my biggest splurge -- about $550 for the pair.

Sconces were $2.99 each at a thrift store, but I had to buy harps and scored some ultra fancy shades at TJ Maxx for $15 each.

Bengal Bazaar pillows came from Etsy.

Everything else is vintage thrift.

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I was kinda convinced I would have the baby before I could even move a crib into the nursery, but we actually got a lot further on this room than I thought we would. It's still missing some art and bedding, but it's 90% there. Source list:

Paint color is Benjamin Moore Frappe.

Chair is vintage Milo Baughman that I had recovered in Togo fabric. This was the big splurge for this room -- about $450 total.

Curtains are super cheap Ikea Ritva onto which my sweet MIL spent two nights sewing ribbon trim... LOVE THEM! Four panels cost $65 plus time. Can't beat that.

Mongolian fur pillow came from the West Elm outlet for $5.

Light fixture came from Ebay.

Vintage Raoul Dufy screenprint came from Room Service for $28. I cut a new mat for it.

Bookshelf is Ikea Expedit.

Sheepskin rug is old news.

Everything else is thrifted.

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And last but not least is Ike's room. I think that I complain every time about how hard it is to shoot rooms in this house, but this room really is tough. I can't wait to shoot it with proper lights, but not now. Mama is tired. Source list:

Paint color is Benjamin Moore Deep Secret.

The big boy bed was the major splurge here. I got it off craigslist plus I paid Matt to paint it, so about $450 total.

Light fixture and rocker are both vintage and appeared in Ike's old room.

Rug is vintage and used to live in our old dining room.

Curtains are Ikea Aina.

Bedding is a super cute Ikea seersucker stripe that didn't photograph well.

Blue velvet pillows are Ikea.

Sheepskin is Ikea.

Leopard pillow is TJ Maxx.

And that's what I've been working on.

I'm not really sure when the baby will come out -- I'm not actually due for another week. But I think I need a few days to myself before the main event, so I'm signing off for now.

Please add DC to your google/RSS feed so you'll know when I'm back with baby pictures and more room reveals. Or you could just come and visit the archives. I used to write some pretty sweet posts before I got knocked up and my brain turned into jello.

It won't be too long before my triumphant return... pinky swear.

Until then, I'll miss you guys.

Be awesome.