White Onesies, or The Sky's The Limit

With plenty of down time these past few weeks until the baby comes (now it's only 2 more days until Baby Wesley is due!), I've taken to a fun new project! I had originally purchased some white onesies for him and decided that decorating them could be really enjoyable! 

The best part about blank, white onesies is how much freedom one can have in decorating them! I decided to do some hand stitching and patchwork to turn these boring white onesies into works of art (mind you, works of art that will soon become original Jackson Pollocks, thanks to Baby Wesley). 

Hold me (it's a fermata, for those non-music nerds who don't know), as well as a play on the Google homepage

A cute lil' Yoda, as well as a tribute to Italia (since we LOVE Italy)

How To: 

Wondering how I went about creating these onesies? Well, here's a little 1-2-3 of the process, at least for the Yoda onesie:

I also did some simple stitching of text to create the other three onesies. Again, it all started with

Here are a few more of my Pinterest inspirations for this onesie decor project

Pinterest where I found some very unique onesies. Then, I decided which ones I wanted to make (that was a hard decision because I only had a few onesies to decorate!). Next, I printed out the designs straight from Pinterest on regular computer paper, making sure that it was the right size for the onesie. Those papers were then placed inside of the onesie so that the design showed through the front. I was then able to pin the design pattern to the onesie and sew away! After sewing, I simply ripped off the paper pattern and smiled at the beautiful design I had created!!

Now that I've successfully completed all of my sewing projects for Wesley, I'm kind of out of things to do. So, hopefully in the next few days I'll find other things to do with my time while I await labor and delivery. I've got a few books I can read, and of course I always have Netflix. :)



Thanks for reading! 

Baby Bumpdate: Second-Hand Sewing

Everyday, I turn on my desktop computer and it pulls up a countdown for Wesley's due date; today it says 5 DAYS! That's pretty insane because it just seems that time has flown by. Yes, I know that most first babies don't come on their exact due date, but my doctor said she doesn't want me going too far over my due date (because they anticipate Wesley will be pretty big!). So, I basically have between 5 and 13 days before I will definitely be induced for labor!

Other than that, here's a bit more about how I've been doing recently:

How far along am I? I'm currently 39 weeks and 2 days. The due date is just around the corner now!

How much weight have I gained? 34 pounds

What food do I crave? Pears. They have been on sale lately at Sprouts Market, plus they are really tasty and juicy during this time of the year!

How's Wesley doing developmentally? As far as we know, he's still a big baby but he is completely on track developmentally. At the last ultrasound, we even got to watch him as he practiced breathing.

How is my GD affecting Wesley? My blood sugar levels are completely managed, so I've been given the thumbs up from my nutritionist--Wesley shouldn't be negatively affected by my GD diagnosis after all.

What have I been up to lately? Besides just patiently waiting, I've tried to keep busy with a few more craft projects. The biggest of those projects was a quilt I wanted to make for Wesley. It's not necessarily a "baby" blanket--in fact it's very large--so it will most likely be used for when he gets older. But, while I had the time during this pregnancy I decided to put it together!



It all started with a request from Matthew: he remembers having a large blanket in his childhood and wanted Wesley to have one of his own, too. While my mother already made Baby Wesley an AMAZING baby blanket (check it out HERE, it really is awesome!), I decided to design a 5 foot, square quilt for him to grow into over the years.

I bought all the fabric for the quilt at Savers, a second-hand store, for only $15--that means that the quilt is made up entirely of repurposed pillow cases and a duvet cover. Then, I purchased a thin quilting batting on sale at Michaels for only $7. A couple spools of thread later, and the total cost of the quilt was only $32! I was pretty happy that it didn't cost too much in materials.


But, what I didn't spend in money, I definitely spent in TIME! I cut out and sewed together 162 triangles to make the quilt front. Then, I put everything together using a top stitch (stitching "in the ditch")--that was another 36 straight seams! After all of that, I sewed on the green trim by hand and....VOILA! The quilt was done!


I'm happy that Wesley will have this momentum to use throughout his life. Hopefully this can become a tradition for any future kids I might have, as well.

Thanks for reading! 

Baby Bumpdate: The Nursery

I seriously CANNOT believe how time flies. At this point in my pregnancy, labor and delivery feels like it's just around the corner. Matthew and I have been taking birthing classes, packing hospital bags, and getting ready for the big day (as much as one can prepare for something like this). It's been a journey so far but I have no complaints, especially since I'm still keeping active, getting full nights of sleep, and finally feeling like I have all the physical necessities for Wesley's arrival. So, hopefully you'll enjoy reading today's baby bump update (bumpdate) featuring Wesley's fun, fishy nursery!

Here's a bit about how I've been doing recently:

How far along am I? I'm currently 36 weeks and 2 days. This is gettin' REAL!

How much weight have I gained? 28 pounds

What food do I crave? Lately, a big glass of crushed ice really hits the spot; I really enjoy munchin' on the refreshing frozen ice.

How's Wesley doing developmentally? We have another ultrasound next week, just to make sure things are going smoothly with Wesley's growth. So, for now, I don't have any new news.

How is my GD affecting Wesley? As far as I know, I'm keeping my GD well under control using my diet and blood sugar level monitoring. So, Wesley isn't being negatively affected by it!

What have I been up to lately? During the long 4th of July weekend, Matthew and I took up the project of refinishing an old dresser for Wesley's room. After that, I've spent most of my days getting the rest of the nursery put together. It's been a super fun process, and now I just can't wait to hold my little baby in the nursery Matthew and I have put together for him. Check out all the fun details below!

Matthew and I refinished this old dresser--with a little bit of primer and some fun paint colors, this piece found NEW life in Wesley's nursery. 

Some fun touches I painted for Wesley's room. 

A look at the crib and book nook in Wesley's room. 

We love fishies! 

This mobile was a group effort, put together by the lovely ladies who attended my baby shower. Isn't it fabulous?! 

Some fun fishies floating!

The book nook--where I intend to spend many moments reading to Wesley. 

I bought this book display from Wayfair.com (http://www.wayfair.com/KidKraft-Sling-28-Book-Display-14221-KK1688.html) for $55. 

A place for all his fun toys! 

The fish mobile that hangs over Wesley's baby swing.

Hope you've enjoyed taking a sneak peek into Wesley's room! I'm telling you--I'm getting ever more excited to actually have Wesley in his room. Patience, patience, patience. Until then, I'll just keep blogging, as well as preparing myself emotionally and mentally for this whole delivery thing! :)

Thanks for reading! 

Baby Bumpdate: Sewing in my spare time

Despite the fact that I was diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes, my entire pregnancy has been nothing but smooth sailing. Through my first trimester, I didn't deal with any morning sickness or other typical pregnancy symptoms. The second trimester came and went, as I was busy with student teaching and lots of travel. And now, in my third and final trimester, I'm enjoying the anticipation that is awaiting the arrival of my little one: Wesley Hase Young.

Here's a bit about how I've been doing recently:

How far along am I? I'm currently 34 weeks and 6 days, so I'm just coming up on 35 weeks!

How much weight have I gained? 25 pounds

What food do I crave? Probably everything with sugar in it, but since my GD diagnosis I've been laying off the cake, ice cream, and pie! But, one thing that I can eat (and often crave) is peanut butter toast. Mmm!

How's Wesley doing developmentally? According to the last ultrasound (taken at 33 weeks), Wesley is already 5 1/2 lbs. They anticipate that at 40 weeks, Wesley will be a BIG BABY--coming in at 9 lbs 10 oz. Since I was 9 lb 14 oz, and Matthew was 9 lb 1 oz, that's not too out of the question.

How is my GD affecting Wesley? So far, the doctors aren't too worried about my gestational diabetes having a negative affect on Wesley. The widest part of his body right now is actually his head, which likely means that Wesley isn't gaining any unnecessary weight from my body's blood sugar levels. That's good news!

What have I been up to lately? Aside from buying baby clothes, setting up baby Wesley's room, and researching tons of pregnancy stuff, I have kept busy with a few little sewing projects on the side. It all came about because of our recent move from UT to CA. When Matthew and I were packing up our things, we threw away a lot of our old clothing that we no longer wear; one thing that we were going to toss was an old suit of Matthew's and a few unworn ties. But, we decided that up-cycling the old clothing might be a better way to use the fabric. Here are a few of the fun things I've been able to put together for baby Wesley using Matthew's old suit, an unworn tie, and some old khaki pants:

While I did have to make some minor adjustments to the patterns in order to make the following items of clothing in 4 month size, you can find the original patterns for these items at the links below:

Suit Vest: http://prudentbaby.com/2012/02/baby-kid/reversible-baby-vest-tutorial/ (12 mo size)
Tie: http://shwinandshwin.blogspot.com/2013/10/10-min-tie-with-free-pdf-pattern.html (little boy size)
Dress Pants: http://www.make-baby-stuff.com/baby-pants-baby-pattern.html (0-3 mo, 6-12 mo sizes)

Suit vest made from an old suit. The tie and pocket square are made from an old tie. 

Suit vest and pants made from an old suit. The tie and pocket square are made from an old tie.

Suit vest made from an old suit. The tie and pocket square are made from an old tie.

Dress pants made from old khaki pants; they still need a little hem before they are ready to be worn! 

Dress pants made from old khaki pants; I loved getting to add the little pocket detail on the back!

Hope things are going well with all of you! And, perhaps this post will inspire you to up-cycle. If you have any old clothing that you are looking to toss, think twice about whether the fabric could be remade into something else; I'd love to see what you come up with! 

Thanks for reading!