Dylan Walter

Trent & I were overjoyed on Sunday to finally meet our son, Dylan Walter. He measured in at 8lb 12oz and 22.25in long. :)


Our sweet boy slept the entire car ride home from the hospital yesterday:

Taking a nap during breakfast this morning:

Mostly, we've been taking time for the 3 of us to rest and bond. I think I've slept maybe 8 hours now since Saturday morning, but it's been worth it. Little Dylan truly is a blessing.

Thanks to all for the many congratulations! :)

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hi card

Fun little card I made for a friend's son. :)


Supplies: Die Cuts with a View card; Cosmo Cricket die cut; Bazzill white cardstock; Micron black pen; Making Memories letter stickers; black stamp ink; EK Success corner rounder punch.

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Lists & Coupons

I learned the value of coupon shopping from my mom. Although, admittedly, I found them somewhat annoying to deal with until I had to pay my own bills. Funny how that works. ;)

These days I organize my coupons in a big 3-ring binder with a zipper closure. It makes it easy for me to flip through and find the coupon I want. I try to pull most before we head out to the store & stick them in a plastic pencil pocket in the front. Others I will grab as I need while we shop.

Realizing I will soon be juggling a baby in a carrier seat along, I don't want to even pretend to try and carry the binder with me on every grocery trip. Instead, I went back to a craft project I bookmarked months ago on Elizabeth's Covered in Crafts blog - an altered folder organizer. It struck me as a fun craft project and simple way to store my shopping list & coupons for a specific trip that I could easily just drop into my purse or the diaper bag.

Here's my completed project:

And the inside:

Supplies: manila file folder; Bazzill (white), Stampin' Up (green) and the Paper Company (blue) cardstock; TaDa patterned papers; QuicKutz Moxie font; American Crafts ribbon; Xyron adhesive and laminate/adhesive cartridges.

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Scrapping with Lori

I had so much fun scrapping with my friend, Lori, in January. We'd known each other for some time on Two Peas, but this was our first time meeting in person. :)


Supplies: Queen of Quirk's Scrap Canvas 5; Queen of Quirk's Give Freely mini kit; Tia Bennett's Free Pea Football kit; Rhonna Farrer's Celebration kit; Miss Mint's Plumberry Harvest paper pack; Amienne font.

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Baby Product Manuals

After our baby shower in May, I began to realize just how many product manuals we were accumulating. I didn't want to misplace any of them or related receipts so I grabbed some page protectors and an extra binder we had to organize them. This week I dug through my stash of scrapbooking supplies to create a fun cover for it:


In it's designated spot in the nursery closet:


Supplies: Avery binder; miscellaneous white cardstock; Die Cuts with a View patterned paper; Making Memories and American Crafts letter stickers.

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41 Weeks

How far along? 41 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Down almost 2lb from last week

Maternity clothes? Of course! :) And very few of those cover the belly these days.

Stretch marks? Same ones on my belly from last week. I don't think there are any new ones. The marks themselves don't bother me - it's the itching that has come up in the past week that I could do without.

Sleep: Not too well. I wake up a lot from hip pain and need to switch sides. I have started taking daily naps for an hour or two each afternoon.

Best moment this week: This week was the first time Trent had been with me to an OB appointment since the ultrasound at 19wks. It was nice having him along and both getting a chance to listen to the Baby's heartbeat. Trent later commented to me how cool that was to hear it again.

Movement: Lots of stretching and hiccuping still. Of course, the Baby initially played possum when we started the nonstress test on Tuesday and needed him to move!

Food cravings: None in particular.

Labor Signs: Plenty of Braxton Hicks.

Belly Button in or out? Flat.

What I am looking forward to: Meeting our little guy soon! One way or another, he'll be here in the next 7 days. :)

Milestones: Watching our due date come and go. LOL

Energy Level: Lower than past weeks. Maybe it's a prelabor sign? Maybe it's just me settling into a relaxed routine now that I'm on maternity leave?

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The Waiting Game

I would never list patience as a characteristic of mine. The last few weeks I've been quite surprised at how calm and patient I was waiting on the little guy to make his appearance. The more "normal" me began showing up last week around his due date wondering when the big event would finally come. I did stop and laugh at myself on Friday - why did I suddenly think our son would show up on or before his due date? I had joked with Trent since we first learned I was pregnant that he would most likely inherit my stubbornness and be late. Clearly, I knew what I was talking about better 8 months ago than I did now.

Yesterday Trent & I went to the OB's office so the baby could have a nonstress test (NST). Basically, the doctor was checking to see that the baby is still happy where he is. He passed with flying colors. In the meantime, the doctor checked the induction schedule at our hospital and learned it was fully booked for the next week! Honestly, I was happy about both things. It was good to have that reassurance our little boy is fine and I really don't want to be induced so knowing there are no slots was a plus. This buys us more time to let our son make the decision. And, if he continues to stay put, he'll have another NST on Friday to check again that all is well.

So, we continue to wait...

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Fav childhood Cartoons

Fun layout for my childhood scrapbook album - a few of my favorite cartoons growing up:


Lots of inspiration here: Sande Krieger's A Beach is a Beach layout in the July 09 issue of Scrapbooks Etc; Two Peas weekly challenge Angular; Terri's Scrappin' Mojo stash challenge; Journaling Junkie challenge #60; and Mix It Up!!! mixer 24.

Supplies: Stampin' Up cardstock; Scenic Route patterned paper & labels; Fontwerks labels; EK Success threading water punch; Sharpie and Micron pens; staples; scrap ribbon from receiving blanket packaging; Making Memories brads and letter stickers.

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Bucket List

For Leigh Anne's circle journal, she asked each of us to share our Bucket List. Honestly, I'm not sure I'd given this much thought before now. Here's what I came up with:



Supplies: Cosmo Cricket patterned paper; Making Memories paint and letter stickers; miscellaneous ribbon; Heidi Swapp journaling spots; Scenic Route labels; Micron black pen; black stamp ink; Fiskars threading water punch.

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Boppy

I bought a Boppy a couple of weeks ago to be sure we had it on hand before the baby arrived. Several friends have given me positive feedback on the helpfulness of using it while feeding the baby and to help them prop up. What I didn't expect was how much I would enjoy it before the baby arrived.

As my belly has gotten larger and the baby dropped, I started wedging a pillow under my belly when relaxing on the sofa in the evenings. This took off some of the weight & pressure making me much more comfortable. Watching me fumble with one of the sofa pillows one night, Trent suggested I instead try the Boppy. Honestly, I thought it would be too thick but decided to give it a shot anyhow.


True, it doesn't completely fit under the belly - but it does support it enough and gives my arms a spot to rest as well which means a much more comfy and happy me.

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40 Weeks

How far along? 40 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Up almost 2lb from last week bringing me to 12.5lbs over my pre-pregnancy weight

Maternity clothes? Yes. And so ready to switch to my old, boring pre-pregnancy clothes. LOL

Stretch marks? Amazing how many of these darn things have popped up in just the last couple of weeks - all around my belly button too. I really think the kid believes that's the way out as much as he pushes and pushes on it.

Sleep: I wake up every couple of hours now, but can usually fall back to sleep fairly easily once I switch to the opposite side. My hips can each only take the pressure for so long now. So looking forward to back sleeping again soon!

Best moment this week: Laughing while Trent stuck his ear against my belly to see if he could hear the baby and the baby repeatedly kicked his ear! LOL

Movement: Lots of stretching and a bit of hiccuping.

Food cravings: None in particular. I still have moments where certain foods sound better than other options, but no strong "must have" cravings.

Labor Signs: A few false alarms over the weekend while out at the baseball game and the movies. Both times I had a few contractions - stronger than anything else I'd felt previously and they did not ease up with walking. Both times I joked with Trent that even if it was the start of labor, we should continue on with our plans. After all, it could be a while so why not enjoy the game and movie? And, both times they were false alarms which made me even happier we continued with our plans.

Belly Button in or out? Flat.

What I am looking forward to: Meeting our little guy any day now. :)

Milestones: Hitting the 40 week mark.

Energy Level: Pretty good. I have my tired moments such as last Saturday night when all I wanted to do at 6:30pm was go to bed! But otherwise, I've had a reasonable amount of energy throughout the day.

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Happy Birthday!

Card I made for my friend, Kim. Hope she has a wonderful day today!!


Supplies: Die Cuts with a View card; Cosmo Cricket patterned paper; Making Memories paint & tiny alpha letter stickers; Fiskars threading water punch.

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Betcha Didn't Know

Yesterday I received Pat's circle journal, Betcha Didn't Know, in the mail. She asked us to share at least 5 things about ourselves. I started on my list a week ago thinking it might take a while, but once I got going, I ended up with a list of 17 things!

Here are my pages:


Supplies: Stampin' Up (blue) and Bazzill (white) cardstock; black stamp ink; Prima flower; Making Memories brad & tiny alpha letter stickers; Crystal Wilkerson's Inked Edges template #1; Micron black pen; EK Success border punch; miscellaneous photo corners & Mickey head eyelet; Gilligans Island, Jenkins v2.0, 2peas Blocks - Scrapbooking, and Walt Disney Script fonts.

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weekend for 2

A wrap-up of how Trent & I spent the holiday weekend...


July 3rd * Mellow Mushroom pizza for dinner * Durham Bulls vs Charlotte Knights baseball game * Fireworks

July 4th * Went to the movies to see UP * Cookout for two - hot dogs, baked beans & chips

July 5th * Lunch with Rianna and Tommy at The Flying Biscuit Cafe

Supplies: Archiver's (blue) and Bazzill (white) cardstock; Scrapbooks Etc Quick Collage Template 114; Signo Uniball white pen; generic office supply number stencil; acrylic paint; Establo and Futura Bk fonts; Making Memories eyelets.

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39 weeks

How far along? 39 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Up a little over 1lb from last week

Maternity clothes? Yes. And some of the maternity tops are now too short to cover my belly.

Stretch marks? Yes. And I should be careful what I wish for. I now have matching stretch marks on the other side of my belly button. LOL

Sleep: Waking up a little more frequently.

Best moment this week: Trent's "conversation" with the baby on Tuesday night. I was standing next to the couch where Trent was sitting, he leaned forward and said to my belly, "Hello? Anyone in there?" I told him to let me know if he got a response - not realizing that Cali was standing on the coffee table immediately behind me. She meowed loudly. Trent, with his ear by my belly, said, "I hear something." LOL Cracked me up. I'm still laughing at the memory.

Movement: Still plenty of stretching and pushing out. Hiccups at least once a day.

Food cravings: None in particular. I continue to have a huge appetite and eat 5-6 times per day.

Labor Signs: None.

Belly Button in or out? Flat.

What I am looking forward to: My prenatal massage this afternoon and one more weekend of relaxing.

Milestones: Definitely having a July baby now. Just a matter of when.

Energy Level: Pretty good. I'm not full of energy, but not completely worn out either.

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Mixed Emotions

7 days...
until the big due date. Of course, there still could be a few more - depending upon our little guy and his plans.

After all these months of waiting and anticipating, I am in a bit of shock that we are that close to the end of one chapter and the beginning of the next.

Not too surprising, I've been thinking about our son's arrival throughout the entire pregnancy, but so much more in the last month as we've gotten closer and closer to meeting him. I think about labor some, but in only a positive light. I see it as this journey that will bring our little boy to our arms and it fills me with happiness.

But I also keep wishing it all out there just slightly. As much as I want to hold him in my arms, I want to enjoy the last little bit of having him all to myself. That fun squirming in my belly. Watching it roll. Knowing that no matter the time of day or where I am - he's right there with me.

I've had a very blessed nine months and am so very grateful for that.

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Congratulations...

to all the winners in the Scrappin' Mojo Summer Soiree Blog Hop!

And a special congrats to Monica for winning my Blog Hop challenge RAK! :)

Supplies: Archiver's cardstock; Cloud 9 patterned paper; EK Success corner rounder punch; American Crafts rub-on sentiment and ribbon.

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