Nesting and Prepping

In the weeks leading up to Elliot's birth there was a lot of nesting and prepping going on at our house.  And there was even more planned that we didn't get to since he made his arrival earlier than planned. But we got the main things done that I wanted, and my mom was kind enough to finish prepping and freezing the last of the meals that I had on my to-do list but hadn't had time to do.  So, we crammed some projects into those last few weeks.  

I made thank you cards for a dear friend of mine's baby shower (who was due three and a half weeks before me, but ended up having her sweet boy only three days before I had Elliot) and for my own shower.  They were simple but turned out well.  

Then it was on to the main event, prepping and freezing meals.  I may have been a bit over ambitious with this project as I planned for 32 dinners and 14 breakfasts. We divided them and started with the dinners, so after three days my mom and I had made all 32. It took a day of shopping and two full evenings of prep. To ease some of the hassle, I picked only 16 recipes and then made two of each recipe. This is by far one of the best things I did to get ready for baby's birth, it is so handy not to have to worry about or think about what is for dinner, just to be able to grab it out of the freezer and throw it into the crock pot.  Which reminds me, did I mention that all 32 dinners are slow cooker meals?  They are!  And, it cost less than $10 a meal and each meal has at least 4 servings.  So, to recap, under $10 to feed a family of four, two days of work, and 32 meals ready to go. I am so thrilled with this that it left me wondering why I hadn't done it long ago. I am certain we will continue to prep freezer meals simply for the ease of it! 

Here is the first batch of meals prepped and ready to go in the freezer.

And because I think this is a wonderful way to do meals, here is a list of all the recipes we used and links to them:

- Slow Cooker Meatball Vegetable Soup

A wonderful recipe.  Would love to make a huge batch this winter and can it.  Very easy too.

- Crockpot Honey Dijon Pork and Green Beans

- Taco Chili

Delicious.  I highly recommend topping with cilantro.  

- Boneless BBQ Ribs

- Crockpot Meatloaf

This came out amazingly well.  We will make this again for sure.

- Slow Cooker Stuffed Pepper Soup

Always a hit at our house.

- Slow Cooker Ranch Chicken Tacos

- Big Mess

Very tasty.  One note though, if you are breastfeeding, you may want to leave the jalapenos out.  My little guy had an upset tummy after having this with jalapenos so we will leave them out next time (or put them on the side for those who are so inclined).  

- Chicken Verde

- Slow Cooker Fiesta Chicken Soup

- Slow Cooker Honey Mustard Chicken Sandwiches

Yum.  New favorite at our house.  The chicken comes out moist and flavorful.

- Slow Cooker Cheesy Enchilada Quinoa Bake

Delicious.  Very good with sour cream and cilantro.  

- Texas Chili

This was a great recipe as well, another that we will repeat in the future.

- Shredded Beef Tacos

Some of the best shredded beef tacos we've had.  This recipe is a keeper!

- Sloppy Joes

Great sloppy joes recipe.  Cooks fast in the instant pot.  

All the meals ready to go

A freezer full of meals

Many of these we cooked in the instant pot when we took them out of the freezer.  If you don't yet have one of these in your kitchen, you should!  From frozen to ready in under an hour for all of these meals and just as good as if they cooked all day.

We did not get to making the breakfasts before he was born, but my mom made and froze them for us after he arrived. These are the breakfasts:

- French Toast

Freezes well, and then toasts well right from the freezer.  My mom was even nice enough to make a gluten free batch for me & a regular batch for my hubby.

- Pancakes (with fruit)

These also toast well from the freezer and are easy to make in large batches.  

- Ham Cups

Always a hit at our house.  These freeze great and can be microwaved from frozen in about three minutes.  Great for breakfast or when you're up with a little one in the middle of the night.  

- Breakfast Bowls

Yummy.  One of our new favorite breakfast recipes.  I'm certain that we will be making these again!

- Tater Tot Sausage Breakfast Casserole

Great breakfast casserole recipe.  Another we will use again.  

- Frozen Yogurt Granola Bites

Tasty for breakfast or just a frozen treat.

- Baked Banana Oatmeal Cups

Very good.  These freeze great and microwave fast from frozen.  They are tasty warm.

The rest of our getting ready was miscellaneous house projects, laundry, and loving on the dog. We had play time, extra trips to the lake, and lots of snuggle time.  I am glad we had time to get these things done first, and since we ended up with several hours notice before we went to the hospital we even got all of our laundry caught up!  

Aria and her toys

Aria snuggles

Playing at the lake, taking both toys

More snuggles

Play time

Hanging on the deck

Last snuggles 

Next Up: The Birth of Elliot Michael

Nursery

Wow, this post is long overdue. It's been sitting in my draft box for a long time now. Guess that's what happens when babies come a few weeks earlier than planned.

We put a lot of prep and care into the nursery for Elliot. As soon as I learned I was pregnant we ordered the crib bedding set and then I got to dreaming and planning the room around it. 

In the winter we emptied the room of its contents and set up the crib and dresser. 

Then when my folks returned from their winter hiatus, painting was priority number one (at least for this mama it was).  So my dad obliged and painted the ceiling and all the walls. Then furniture went back in and decorations went up on the walls.  

My mom was kind enough to help me wash and fold all of the 0-3 and 3-6 month clothes so that they were ready, what a wonderful thing this has been.  So, without further ado, here is Elliot's finished nursery. 

View from the door

Accent wall for his crib. My hubby stained the paddle for his name and one of his aunties made his yellow E for the wall. 

Closet wall

Window wall, which makes the room look dark when it's really not. 

Wonderful rocking chair and personalized quilt

Dresser/changing table 

And the closet, which I had been working on organizing for several months before the room was done.  

Love the way this turned out and are so thrilled to have our little man here and settling into this space with him in our arms.  

Next up: Nesting and Prepping 

The Last Several Months

The last several months have been a whirlwind.  They have been filled with a myriad of small projects, major life changes, and getting ready for all that's next.  

In September, my mom and I finished up some baby projects for two cousins of mine that were expecting babies.  My mom made a blanket and some onesie dresses and I made a tag lovie and a boppy slipcover.  

Blanket my mom made

Onesie dress

Tag Lovie I made

Front of tag lovie

Top of Boppy Cover 

Bottom of Boppy Cover

There were also of course some trips to the lake last fall, which the dogs loved.  Aria is a big fan of fishing and thinks catching fish is just about the best thing ever.

Watching for fish

Best buds in the boat

We also found out our biggest news this fall, that we are pregnant!  Couldn't be more excited and had a wonderful time sharing the news with our loved ones in the fall and making plans for our little one.

How I told Justin

The book we gave my folks to announce baby

In October it was my 30th birthday and my hubby and friends spoiled me.  My wonderful husband got me some custom made yellow chacos, they are one of a kind!  If you, like me, are a chaco fan (and why wouldn't you be, they are the most amazing shoes ever!) and you didn't know you could design your own pair, now you do.  Just go here, if nothing else, it's fun to see what all you can combine and create.  

My friends and I painted together for my birthday at Sip N Paint Studios.  It was a lot of fun, definitely an activity I'd do again!

Check out my awesome new chacos

My finished painting

The ladies and I with our paintings

We also got our first glimpse of baby in an ultrasound in October!

First ultrasound

Aria with her Halloween garb on

In November, we took a quick trip to Missoula for the Montana/Eagles football game.  It was a wonderful trip with dear friends and we won the game!  Can't wait to go again in two years!

Pregame 

We also got to have some of our family up for a few days at Thanksgiving, which was wonderful!  We had good food and company, just too short of a time as always.  Hopefully more of us can get together next year for Thanksgiving.

And in November we shared our wonderful news with the world.

Our announcement

As usual, December found us busy with Christmas projects.  Although this year, we didn't go all out homemade, there just wasn't the time.  So my husband and I just homemade our gifts for one another this year, and we made our cards.  We had a lovely Holiday Season, found out our dear friends who are having a baby in May were having a boy, took a quick trip to Montana for an early Christmas with my brother & sister-in-law, saw some extended family, and had a quiet Christmas morning at home.  

This year's mantle, complete with a baby stocking

The pups loved Christmas Tree hunting!

Front of this year's card

Inside of this year's card

Driving home from Montana

Pajama pants I made for Justin

Snow globe Justin made for me

Another snow globe Justin made for me

In January, my folks took off on a snowbird adventure down south so we took their dog in for a few months and worked on organizing things around our house.  I like things organized anyway, but with a baby on the way going through and thinning things out became an even higher priority.  So, on the weekends, we went through our entire house, reorganizing and thinning things out.  A ton of clutter was purged and everything has a place again, what a relief!

We also found out in January that we were expecting a BOY!!!  Had a small girls night with my closest friends & in town cousins for a gender reveal.  So, for that reveal, we made a pinata.  It was easier to make than I expected and fun to decorate.  

Baby's covering his face

It's a BOY!

Pinata we made for gender reveal

Through February and March we worked on several small projects, got letters for baby's name project in the nursery, worked on putting together his crib & dresser and picked paint colors.  It was a mild winter but went by quickly.  

Letter's for his name in nursery

Crib set up

Dresser set up

I also finished up a couple of Valentine's decor projects that I've had on the back-burner for awhile.  I think they turned out quite well!

Sign I painted

Valentine's Wine Light 

Baby's face at our February ultrasound!

And then there was more organizing.  We are so blessed to have friends who have boys and kept their clothes then passed them on to us.  They gave us an amazing amount of clothes and we are set for quite awhile!  So March saw clothes sorting and placing in totes for easy use later on.

About half the totes of clothes

Brandy & Aria 

Aria's Easter Bunny, it's almost as big as she is!

My folks returned just after Easter with baby things in tow and help for the projects on our list!  First up, my mom helped me finish a basketball blanket for a dear friend and dad jumped in on painting the nursery.  We've been keeping them busy since they got home.

Front of blanket I made for a friend

Back of blanket

Tag on blanket

We are continuing to keep busy with projects both at home and at my folk's to try to get as much as we can wrapped up before Elliot's arrival.  

Next up: Nursery