It has been confirmed. Baby Branstad is a…
{password: december5}
C O N N E C T
F A C E B O O K
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C H E C K
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S E A R C H
Boy or girl?
The bathrooms have seen some serious progress since my last post and are scheduled to be done by this Friday!
[Still left to do: painting and light fixture updates]
Tomorrow is the day we’ve been (not so) patiently waiting for: Baby B’s gender reveal! I did a little set-up this past weekend and will share a sneak peek of the festive decor that is ready and waiting for the big reveal. Now let’s just hope that our little one cooperates.
STAY TUNED!
Posted in Baby, Decor, Parties
Tagged Baby B, bathroom remodel, Bauder's, gender reveal
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Out with the old
I’ve made a small dent in the gender reveal decor as you can see below:
[what will become the garland]
[card for the doctor to fill out and put in envelope]
I thought I was excited about the gender reveal (and I really am), but I might be just as excited about the newest update to happen in the Branstad household: upstairs bathroom remodeling time!
It is green-light-go time and things officially get underway tomorrow morning. I can’t wait to share the after images, so we’ll start with where we are at now:
Carpeted floors, 80’s dressing room bulbs, stenciling and more – OH MY!
Posted in Baby, Craft, Decor, Parties
Tagged Baby B, bathroom remodel, gender reveal
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I’m so excited
We had all sorts of fun over the long 4th weekend. Here are some of the highlights:
[nieces at Urbandale parade]
[patriotic mani]
[berry fantastic cake]
[my boys take a dip in the lake]
Sunday night recovery homemade pretzels (Paul Hollywood’s recipe)
With a little over a week left until we find out the gender of Baby B, I spent some time in the nursery yesterday getting the closet in order. I purchased the hanging organizer and drop down bar from Target, and snagged the super cute gray bins from T.J. Maxx forever ago.
[it’ll be full of goodies in no time]
I’m loving how things are coming together already! This snuggly gem in gray is also on its way to our house. It was a friends & family sale, how could I pass it up?
This week I plan to put the finishing touches on the gender reveal party decor. I’m thinking a garland or two is in order along with a few other things. Eeek – I’m so excited (Jessie Spano-style)!
Posted in Baby, Family, Holidays
Tagged Baby B, Fourth of July, manicure, parade, soft pretzels
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Let freedom ring
All sorts of stuff was accomplished this weekend. Here are the highlights:
[the Nomade sat alone post-downpour at the Des Moines Arts Festival]
[scored the perfect ice cream cups at TJ Maxx for our ice cream scoop gender reveal]
[Mr. Branstad was super dad this weekend and painted the nursery and bassinet]
With a short work week and a long weekend at the lake ahead of me, I am all sorts of excited to celebrate the Fourth with family. I foresee sunshine, fireworks and patriotic treats in my near future!
What are your plans? Hopefully they include a little red, white and blue!
top // scarf // sunglasses // tote // flip flops
Posted in Baby, Fashion, Holidays
Tagged Baby B, bassinet, Des Moines Arts Festival, Fourth of July, ice cream cups, Nomade
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Art’in around
We had another doctor appointment this afternoon to check up on Baby B. All is well. At 17 weeks and 1 day I am feeling great and our wee one’s heartbeat is hummin’ along at 150 bpm. Yep, still think it’s a girl.
I plan to enjoy the beautiful weekend ahead of me (temps are supposed to be in the mid-70s) by making a trip down to the Des Moines Arts Festival. I’m on the lookout for a small piece to frame in my bathroom, and I have a feeling I will be able to find something perfect.
Hope you all enjoy your weekend!
Little lair
After doing a lot of searching, I was able to find a few fabric options for the bassinet sheets my mom is going to whip up. I was looking for some cute, geometric gray fabric, and this is what I came up with:
Of course while searching, I came across a few gender specific bolts that caught my eye so I had to snag them too!
I also did this for the first time the other night at the mall. Not even mad about it!
Tomorrow I am officially 17 weeks along, and I’m definitely getting more and more anxious to find out whether Baby B is a girl or boy. Only three more weeks to go!!!
While I’m waiting, my mind is going into overdrive planning the perfect nursery. Here are two design boards that I created a while ago (i.e. before I was preggers) to give you an idea of how I’m envisioning Baby B’s new lair:
Soft sheeting
Warm it up update: I was in the midst of putting together my friends’ housewarming gift, and little did I know that at that very moment they were getting engaged! So happy and excited for you both Molly & Brandon!
[our housewarming gift – all items from Marshall’s]
[fresh peonies and celebratory champagne cake from The Bake Shoppe]
Earlier during the day on Saturday I had a chance to check out my friend, Kiley’s (of A Sequin Dress at Breakfast) newest adventure, Proper. They put on a pop-up event for us to get a sneak peek at some of the lines they will be carrying in the future.
[congrats Kiley – so proud of you!]
While my expanding belly kept me away from purchasing some sweet Baldwin camo pants, I was able to walk out of there with a new hot pink Sequin bracelet.
Sunday was laid back and started off with a delicious pancake breakfast and a cup of my new found fave, Tazo Decaf Chai Latte.
In the afternoon and evening I started to work in the nursery a little bit. I had purchased these rolls of gray/white drawer liner paper forever ago, and decided to use them in the baby’s room. I love how they turned out.
I also found this white wicker bassinet on Craiglist a while ago (i.e. before I was preggers) to go with the rest of the wicker furniture in the room, so I’ve been hanging onto it for Baby B. My mom is quite talented with a sewing machine, so the next project is finding perfect fabric to make a bassinet sheet out of.
[the perfect place for Baby B to rest his/her head]
Posted in Baby, Blogs, Friends, Parties
Tagged Baby B, Baldwin Denim, engagement, housewarming gifts, nursery, Proper, Sequin
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Warm it up
Baby on board update: With the weather finally starting to feel like summer, I headed over to the pool after work last night with a few visitors in tow and splashed around for a bit.
[Sid is ready for summer!]
We are invited to our friends’ housewarming party tomorrow night and I think it’s necessary to have a little something special for them. While I put the final touches on their gift, here are perfect examples of what to take to new home owners in the future:
Baby on board
BaByQ update: Invites are printed, sealed with polka dot washi tape and addressed. Now the countdown continues. Let it be known that I think we are having a girl and Marcus thinks Baby B is a boy. As it stands in the Haas/Branstad families- GIRLS: 6, BOYS: 0
I am just recently starting to show [as you can see in the above photo taken last weekend], but I have yet to bust out very much maternity gear. The nice thing about being pregnant in the summer is that fashions are so forgiving and easy to transition for the growing bump.
Inspired by a recent post on the blog 9 to 5 Chic, I have pulled the look below together from items in my closet to wear tomorrow. The Baby B bump is sure to be visible in this…
pearl earrings (similar) + John Wind Maximal Art bracelet
chambray shirt (similar)+ pencil skirt + Cynthia Vincent for Target wedges (similar)
Tomorrow's To Dos 