Checking off the to-do list

We have reached 26 weeks and our sweet girl is steadily growing... see below! :)

We have marked a lot off of our to-do list at this 26 week milestone. Painting the nursery, putting up the crib, hospital visiting, etc. It feels great to be so productive seeing as how our little sweetie pie will be here in less than 14 weeks now!! Unbelievable!!
We decided to take my craft/scrapbook room and turn it into the nursery. I had been working on a big project for Brad's brother's wedding for months, so the room was a complete mess with my scrapbook stuff scattered EVERYWHERE!!! I can't believe I'm brave enough to share pictures of this craziness, but we have to have a "before" picture. So, here you have it:

 AAAHHHH.. I tried to warn you... complete craziness!! And yes, there is some baby stuff mixed in with the scrapbook madness as well, so that made it even harder to keep straight.
Anyhow, I started to organize, clean up and move this stuff out last week while I was on vacation. After it was completely empty, I started to paint on Friday. Then Saturday morning, Brad and Sam helped me finish the painting by reaching the areas that I couldn't. We painted the ceiling bright white and painted the walls a neutral greyish-brown color called Blowin' In the Wind. Here is our final result:

Of course after the paint dried, we had to put the crib together right away... yay!!! Here is daddy working on the crib, along with the final product:

Love it!!! We don't have the mattress yet, but I put the crib skirt on and just kind of laid the blanket on the rail just to get an idea of what it will look like. We aren't quite ready for an "after" picture, but here is what we have so far:

I am SO excited!! We have a long way to go, but you have to start somewhere!! I can't wait to keep rolling along and get everything ready for our little one's arrival!!
We have also visited both hospitals that my OB delivers at. Now to make a final decision about that, and then we will pre-register and mark one more thing off of the list. It feels good to watch that list grow shorter and shorter. It just means that we are that much closer to meeting our little angel!!

HELLO!!!

My poor blog probably feels abandoned seeing as how I haven't been on here in MONTHS!!! It's crazy how there has been so much to blog about this summer, but I haven't had time to get on here and do it. What an emotional roller coaster it has been!
It started in May with the great news and announcement of our little bun in the oven. We were so excited to learn that we were about to start a new journey and phase of life together with a precious baby!!!
Then in June, my sweet Pepaw suffered a major stroke and was in the hospital for over a month. Brad and I drove down to visit him as much as possible during his hospital stay. Unfortunately, he gradually got worse and eventually passed away in July. I miss him so much, but I find comfort in knowing that he is with my Memaw and they are celebrating together every day!!
August rolled around, and we found out that we are having a baby girl!!! We are both so excited and have been thinking about names and planning for the nursery since then.
And most recently, my baby sister turned 21 and Brad's baby brother got married and is on his honeymoon as I write this.
So, like I said plenty of ups and downs  and happy moments and sad moments this summer!! I hate that I haven't made it on here to blog about each event in more detail, but I'm back again and I'm hoping to stay on top of things from now on!