Monday, Monday

It's amazing how hard it is to pull myself out of bed on a Monday. I go to bed with the full realization that the weekend is over, yet I still find myself surprised when the alarm goes off on Monday morning. The past two weekends have whirled by in a flash, so I wanted to recap before I got to another one.

Two weekends ago, I went on my last solo road trip before the baby is born. I was really looking forward to the trip, but let me tell you... it was a killer. My feet swelled up to three times their normal size, and I had to stop every couple of hours to relieve myself. Amazing how a "quick" 5.5 hour drive can turn into 7+! The temps were quite a bit warmer in UT than they were in Steamboat, and my body wasn't enjoying it. Even with my legs elevated overnight, the swelling didn't go down. I found myself covering my face with a wet washcloth that I'd stuck in the mini-fridge's freezer in order to make my nose (and entire face) look like it hadn't been stung by a poisonous insect. It was rid-on-culous. But... c'est la vie. Eventually, I got over my Humongo-girl negativity and headed to the letterpress class that Sycamore Street Press was holding. I had a great time learning about their press and how they run their business. Eva, one half of the married duo behind the company, is due with a baby girl just two days before me... so it was fun to hear the two of them answer questions from everyone about their upcoming "addition" to the team. While I was there, I couldn't help but pick up a few fun pieces for the nursery, as well as a 2011 calendar for a friend who happens to have an obsession. (Maybe I should change my obsession... hers seems much cheaper than cowboy boots!) I would show you a picture of the calendar, but it's not yet in their shop. Cyndi got an extra special early edition... at least that's what I'm telling her. ;)



After the class, I drove onward to meet my friend, Stephanie, at Ikea. We were there for 3 hours! Of course, some of the items that were on my must-get list were out of stock yet again. I was really bummed at first, but I decided to make due with some alternatives... after I'd already checked out. I just couldn't drive all that way and go home without shelves. You can't find decent shelves in Steamboat anywhere, and those you can find are much more expensive. So, back in I went. By the time I checked out again, it was late, so we jetted off to dinner and then back to her house. She and her hubby were nice enough to offer me a place to stay for the night. I returned the favor by keeping her up until 1:30 in the morning griping/venting. I don't know how I suddenly contracted verbal diarrhea, but Steph suffered the consequences! Sorry, Steph! The next morning, I was off to make the trek back. Amazingly, it seemed to go by quite a bit faster than the drive out did.

This past weekend, J and I had plans to put up the shelves and finish some much needed home projects. On Friday, I was sidelined with a nasty migraine that lasted until midday Saturday. Even though I had a residual headache, I was determined to bang out a few items on my ever-growing to-do list. While J was cursing and banging his head against the wall trying to hang the shelves in the nursery (apparently the studs in our house are curved because there was no consistency whatsoever), I put the newly purchased artwork in Ikea frames. I also added this print from Sparkle Power that I won on Tales and Trials (another Abby blogger friend) and the prints that I had already purchased from The Wheatfield.
We got so much done in the nursery. It was refreshing to see it all come together. I'll show pics as we get a bit closer. It's actually getting me so excited.

Yesterday, while J painted the deck railings, I spent most of the day following your advice from this post. I feel like this almost deserves a post for itself, but because I didn't take pictures of the process, I will spare you. Earlier this month, I decided to listen to you all and actually go through my magazine stash after getting the urge to purge. I honestly don't know how many I had to begin with, but it was gross. Amazingly gross. Over the course of three weeks, I got rid of 250 of them. Yesterday, I got rid of another 100. Are you sicked out yet? Here's the worst part... I'm not even close to being done. J asked me if he could "help", which I knew meant handing him the entire stack without perusing so he could head straight to the dumpster. I let him know that I needed to go through the process. It is helping me realize that I really, really don't want to end up on the show Hoarders. Please don't stop following me now. I promise I'm not a complete whack-job.

That's it for the update. It doesn't seem like much when written down, but I am feeling so free! What's on the agenda for this week? I have many more to-dos to tackle, but the most exciting item on the agenda is the visit to the birthing rooms at the hospital tonight. In ten short weeks, our to-do list is going to get a lot more complicated!