“Help! I’ve fallen down on blogging and I can’t get up!”

Hello to any reader who may have stumbled across this. If you’ve been waiting for me, I apologize. I honestly don’t know where the time went…but I didn’t intend to be absent this long. A thousand pardons. I hope the pictures in this post will absolve me (at least partly) of my guilt…

The truth is I’ve been busy. And when I wasn’t busy, I was exhausted. And when I was exhausted—I slept... or tried to, anyway. (I haven’t quite gotten the hang of multitasking on limited amounts of rest yet. So, I hope you’ll hang in there with me while I continue learning how this whole “mommy business” is gonna work. )

These past few weeks have been a flurry of crafting, working, cleaning, working, crafting, baby showers, working, mental breakdowns, and working.

I am happy to announce that we have finally assembled all the essential elements for the nursery! The walls are painted. The floor is vacuumed. The windows have been washed. The furniture is in place… It still looks a little Spartan because I have yet to put up curtains, or assemble bedding, or sort clothing and toys into their proper homes. But I freely admit that I was a bit overwhelmed by the realization of how much one little person can add to the laundry rotation, and I balked. Ahem. I mean, “took a step back to calm my nerves.”

Still, if we were suddenly faced with bringing baby home tomorrow, we could survive. I’m just hoping for a little more time to set up shop before that happens. (Not too much time, mind you. After all, I don’t want to be this big much longer…but a little more couldn’t hurt, right?)

I want to take a moment to send out a big karmic “Thank You!” to all the lovely ladies who came (or sent their love and support via another) to the Garden Tea Party/Baby Shower on the 4^th. You are amazing! Patrick and I don’t know what we would have done without you. Really. Because of you, we are now better prepared to clothe, feed, and nurture the little bundle of joy heading our way. You gave us the furniture she will use, the clothes and diapers she’ll wear, and the toys she’ll love and play with. She’ll come into the world surrounded by love. Thank you—from the bottom of our hearts. (I’m still tracking down addresses to thank you all individually, but in case it takes me longer than expected, I wanted you to know right now how much your support means to me.)

Without further ado, I would like to present you with some pictures of said fabulous day! (Please note, these were taken by the very talented Elizabeth Hansen—whom I’m eternally grateful to, because we might not otherwise have pictures—everyone was so busy enjoying themselves! I have borrowed just a few of my favorites from her Facebook page so you can see how awesome everything was.)



What's a Tea Party without a "Fabulous Hat Contest?"



Me and the other States Ladies. (That bulge under my hand is the much anticipated "guest of honor!")



Table display of all the handmade items waiting to be loved. The blessing gown was designed and sewn by my sister.



Such yummy treats...and so elegantly displayed!

 

Handmade prizes for the Hat Contest and Shower Games. There's a rag quilt themed "Kim's Garden" in honor of my mother, a handknit Alpaca lace scarf, and flower pots stuffed with a bouquet of soap and handknit washclothes.



First Place Hat, worn by my cousin Lauren.

Second Place Hat, worn by my friend Susan.

I was overwhelmed by the stack of gifts placed in front of me! As you can see from the picture, we were quite literally showered with adorable outfits and assorted baby essentials!

In the meantime, I’m doing my best to take things one day at a time. Today’s goal (after making it through my work shift of course) is to get one load of laundry and all the dishes done. I really hope to have made visible progress before 10 pm…Wish me luck!