My favorite time of year.

I love FALL, but even more than fall...I love christmas. On November 1st the halloween decor came down and I began decking the halls. I have a million Pinterest projects that I am working on (every time my son takes a nap). I even cancelled a trip to Italy to catch up on my home and my life this weekend. My favorite project so far: A let it snow shadow box :D. Stay tuned :p

Storage Shelf: I am in love.

The husband spent a few hours of his (much needed) four day weekend building me a huge shelf. He's not the handiest but it turned out wonderfully nonetheless. We made the shelves large enough to fit 15-20 storage bins. I'm so happy with the shelf I literally go in there just to stare at it. Now all it needs is some organizing (when I'm not being lazy). Pictures and how we (okay he) did it coming soon :D

Cloth Diapering Day #2

I think it's safe to say baby loves his new cloth diapers, I think he knows how cute he looks. I've only received 3 of my 15 diaper order so I'm using both cloth and disposables and I already hate using the disposables. So far I've noticed:

-they don't stink, normally I know instantly that he needs a diaper change even from across the room. With cloth diapers there is no smell, a completely soaked diaper has no noticeable scent even after taking it off of him. 

-he doesn't mind them as much. Every diaper change is a battle with this one, he is an active STRONG little man. Every time I've put a cloth diaper on him, there has been no fight, maybe because it's so comfy on his little butt?

-cleaning them is much easier than I imagined. When using liners to throw away "solids", it is very easy to wash them. 

I think I may be converted to cloth! :)

Cloth Diapering Day #1

I recently decided to switch to cloth diapering for my ten month old son. A lot of thought and research went into this decision (some of which I will be sharing soon). Part of me really didn't think I could handle it. The thought of poop in cloth is not very appealing. However I discovered there are many methods of avoiding the majority of the grossness. I just received a few of the diapers I ordered and they are SO much nicer than I imagined they would be. The diapers I received today are thick and comfy feeling, not to mention adorable. I think I'm going to like cloth diapering. I put a bright green all in one on him almost as soon as they arrived. He looks adorable, and comfy. So far this is going great :D Can't wait to try all the different styles and see him in the adorable designs! <3

While recovering...

The last few days have been boring...and painful. After spending days in a recliner watching movies with baby boy today I decided to stop being unproductive and started some photo editing projects, here are a few that I love :) Photography is not my intended career (I am a Psychology and Political Science major) but I absolutely love it. This is most definitely my favorite hobby <3

View of Landstuhl, Germany from the castle ruins 

My son enjoying the outdoors :) 

Little man is as pale and red-headed as his mommy! 

Happy Baby <3

My husband and son <3

Definitely going to be out of commission for a few days.

I definitely expected a little laproscopic gallbladder surgery to be nothing. I was even going to sign up for a Sunday class until my husband talked me out of it.  I must say this feels TERRIBLE. The incision is fine, the gas is a nightmare. My shoulder blades and my belly and the area where my gallbladder used to be are in agony with gas pains. I just want to cry and send my husband to buy me a second heating pad. My poor 10 month old son doesn't understand why mommy can't hold him or breastfeed for a few days. The husband took him upstairs with a bottle of mommy milk to attempt to calm him down and let him sleep. Being around me makes him more upset and angry. & I thought my husband would get a chance to finish up some projects this weekend, he'll be lucky if the kid lets him get a shower ;p

This weekend: Doing nothing that will involve removing my heating pad :)

Baby Gate....almost done!

Our almost finished baby gate :)

Still needs a few finishing touches. 

(Excuse the hideous staircase, I really need to figure out what to do about that)

Later this week I'll be fixing the crooked hinge and painting them a bright blue to add some color to the grey room. It's much heavier than we expected and our German walls are not handling it well. I'm hoping some wall anchors will solve the problem. I also need to figure out some kind of protection for the railing but overall I love how it turned out!

Tonight: Husband is building us a few storage shelves for our utility room. Can't wait to get our new home organized! 

Project #1 Baby Gate

The doorways and staircases here in Germany are much different than what we're used to in the US. After many unsuccessful attempts using store bought baby gates my husband and I decided to turn to Pinterest. We originally decided to try the "barn door baby gate" that is so popular on Pinterest. However we quickly realized our unique situation was going to force us to wing it. My 10 month old son has quickly learned to climb stairs and was really starting to scare his mommy so this project had to be quick. We ran into SEVERAL problems while creating and installing the gate but I absolutely LOVE how the baby-gate turned out and will soon be posting pictures and what we learned along the way. :) 

Inexperienced blogger

I'm definitely over-thinking this whole blog thing. I keep worrying if anyone will care about what I'm writing, but the real question is do I? This blog is for me, not for everyone who stumbles across it. If people enjoy reading what I have to say great, if not that's fine too. Life get's so crazy and this mommy needs an escape. Somewhere to document my success and my failure, and somewhere to be as corny as I'd like without the worry of judgment(at least from anyone who actually knows me). I'm always worried about being judged and it keeps me from sharing but the main topic of this blog will not be me, but my attempts at becoming a professional housewife and mommy. However since I am very far from that goal, for now it's about me. 

Today: Visiting a Castle with my adorable little family and taking lots of pictures for my photography project. :D (My son is also officially 10 months old today!)

Homemaker?

Ever look at your life and wonder, what happened? Last time I checked I was a 17 year old high school senior, accepted into her dream school with law school ambitions.What happened? I met a boy, who then joined the Army. After a semester of college I left to marry him and move to the California desert, to one of the least desired duty stations in the military. Before I knew it I was a housewife, stuck at home all day, sometimes for days at a time. My husband and I spent three years in the desert before having our first child. Almost immediately after he was born the Army separated us. His father spent 5 months away before relocating our family....to Germany! 

Don't get me wrong, I have a wonderful life and a beautiful family. This just isn't what I pictured for myself, and my domestic skills need work. The first thing I've learned since having my son almost 10 months ago: being a stay at home mom is hard. Much harder than I could have ever imagined. Being a mom and a student: feels impossible sometimes. The house is a mess, the baby rips my textbooks, and the husband can be pretty lazy. Today begins my transition from sloppy mommy, to domestic goddess. This should be interesting.