Maternity Photo Shoot

Finding a photographer is rough.  I totally respect all photographers and understand they have to make a living too, but dog I just can't afford a lot of them.  I think if I didn't take a billion smart phone pix a day myself and didn't have a nice camera I might be more inclined to pay $200+ for a photo session.  I'm sure those photos are totally worth it and the quality and time they put into editing them is worth every penny, but my budget will not allow for that.  I have been so lucky to have found several great and affordable photographers since we got pregnant with Avery.  My favorite one moved to Texas, so I've been using different ones since then.  This go round I decided to ask my friend at work who teaches next door to me. She has an art major and a photography minor and a personality sweeter than fresh ripe strawberries.   She agreed to take our pix this time and I am soooooo pleased with the results.  She was so patient with Avery.  Speaking of Avery she did amazing.  I was shocked when she listened and placed her hands and stood exactly where Katie told her.  Of course her time stamp was up before we were actually finished, but for a 2 1/2 year old, she did amazing   That's why we let her have her way when she wanted to go out for "mekacan" (Mexican) and not Mellow Mushroom afterwards.

Here are a few ton of my favorties:

Addison's Nursery

Addison's Nursery has come together so nicely.  It is a very small space, but I absolutely love it.  When we did Avery's Nursery a friend of my aunt painted beautiful murals on Avery's walls, so there was really nothing I needed to do except add her furniture and bedding and it was done.  The main difference for me in Avery and Addison's nursery is I put a lot of my own blood, sweat, tears, creativity and I think this makes me love it even more.

To begin with I knew we were using Avery's crib and I knew we did have enough room for a big dresser.  I've been wanting to refinish a piece of furniture for a while so I decided why not try a changing table.  I searched online and Craig's List for a used changing table and found this perfect piece at a local children's consignment store for about $30.

 I will admit this was a much larger project than I was expecting, but luckily I started several months ago, I took my time and got it done with plenty of time to spare.  I followed the proper steps of sanding, priming, paining, and glossing.  Ugh, just thinking about it all now makes me tired.  Honestly, I think a dresser or cabinet doors would be a lot easier because of all the spindles on this piece made it very challenging.

primmed

I used the same pink we painted the closet doors in the nursery to ensure a perfect match.

painted

I still have completed this look because I want to find a gray changing pad cover.  This is actually harder than you might think.  I think gray is a popular color right now.  I also have not finalized what baskets I will use.  My aunt found some great ones for me in Maryland and she's coming soon to visit so hopefully I will have that done soon.  The sign above the changing table is also from Hobby Lobby.

finished

these are coming soon :) 

Finding a paint color for the walls was also a challenge.  I consulted my aunt's friend who did Avery's walls for her expertise on colors.  I never realized there were so many different gray colors.  The ones I was choosing were too "black/gray"  The bedding actually needed a taupe gray.  That was a bit hard to imagine because at first it looked too brown, but of course it Chris knew what she was talking about and it was perfect.

we went with functional gray

I made several trips to Hobby Lobby to get supplies for my "craftiness" that I was embarking upon. First project was a monogrammed canvas.  I also purchased chevron frog tape at Lowes to help with this project.  I used the gray paint from the walls and the pink paint from the closet doors again to be sure the colors matched perfectly.

before

after- bam!

I also envisioned this amazing gallery wall over the bed.  After hours of pinning on Pinterest I began buying and making things I thought would work. I layed it out several times on the floor and of course when I put it on the wall I changed it up some and actually only eneded up using on of my painted frames.

painted old frames mom gave me 

"chevron-ed" letter A
painted an old mirror 

wooden elephant bought @ Babies R Us
"LOVE" sign bought in dollar spot at Target

TA- DA--- LOVE how it turned out!!

To add a pop of color we decided to paint the closet doors pink.  Joe did a great job painting them and they add the perfect amount of pink into the room.

My fabulous father put crown molding up which made Joe and Grammy's painting job a little easier because they didn't have to trim out the top.  I cannot find a finished pic of the molding, but we didn't leave the gray section in the middle gray.  We painted it white to give the illusion of a bigger piece of molding.  It looks perfect.  I will try to find a picture later of take a new one.

Here are few pictures of the finished pieces.  The only things left to do is get a ceiling fan and have Pop Pop install it and get the bumpers put in the bed.  Our bed has very thick rails, so it makes tying those bedding pieces quite tricky .  That is a job for Grammy during one of Avery's naps this week.