22 Weeks Update!

How far along? 22 Weeks!

Size of baby? The size of a small doll or the length of a spaghetti squash!

Maternity Clothes? Yep! I'm about to invest in a few summer pieces... It's getting hot!

Stretch marks? None yet!

Sleep? Still sleeping good! Now that summer is here... I will be getting lots of good sleep! haha

New Symptoms? My sciatic nerve has been giving me a little bit of trouble the past couple of weeks. When I bend over or have to pick up my right leg a sharp pain shoots through my back! Also, when I'm sitting on our UNCOMFORTABLE couches it spazzes out a little too! I talked to my doctor and he showed me some exercises I can do to help relieve the pain! (This is just a MINOR issue... Seriously, this pregnancy has been a breeze... I'm not complaining!!!)

Fun Moments this week? The moment I have been looking forward to since August came this week... SUMMER!! It was very nice to wave goodbye to my students on Thursday afternoon and know that I will not be teaching them next year! (I've had a very difficult school year! Thankful for it to be over, and have the "first year" BEHIND ME... FOREVER!) It was bittersweet leaving Singer on Friday morning though! Not knowing if I'll be back there next year is hard! I have definitely made some wonderful friends who have encouraged me all year long! I am not ready to say goodbye to them!

Food Cravings? W.A.T.E.R.M.E.L.O.N.

Things I miss? D.R. P.E.P.P.E.R.

Movement? Lots & lots of movement!!! Nehemiah even got to feel Ella kick a few days ago!! It was a special moment!!! I'm so ready for it to happen again!!!

Weight Gain? Not too much! But I have gained some!

Exciting Accomplishments this week? I have a lot of summer projects that I want to get completed over this summer! Most of them include getting Ella's nursery 90% complete before school starts back in August. Some of my other projects are just fun DIY projects for around the house... including my first summer project that I finished up last weekend!

I found a tutorial for this Vertical Pallet Garden on my new favorite DIY blog... Tatortots and Jello! I loved the idea of doing this on my porch... but I put my own spin on it! 

 Here's my basic steps:

• Pallet. We got it for free from Nehemiah's cousin, Jeffrey. (He also hooked us up majorly with hay bales for our hay bale/pallet couches for our wedding!) Back to the pallet garden... I stained my pallet to make it look a little more polished and put together! Super easy and FAST! I wish painting was as easy as staining!
• Buckets or pots. I decided to go with galvanized buckets to put my plants in. I got them from Tractor Supply Co. I painted chalkboard paint on the front of them. I love this detail! So easy to see exactly what each plant is! (and very helpful, so I don't forget the names! haha) Nehemiah drilled a drain hole at the bottom and a hole at the top of the bucket to hang it from. We used "S hooks" to actually hang the buckets on the pallet.
• Plants. I bought all of my plants at  Lowes. I went with mostly all succulents! I just love them! There are so many different varieties to chose from and they add so much interest and texture to our porch! I used Miracle Grow Potting Mix and Miracle Grow LiquaFeed on my plants after I potted them! They are thriving on our porch!
• Hanging. On the tutorial, it said to hang the pallet with eye hooks and a chain. We had planned on doing this, but when we started hanging it, we realized we already had a screw right where we wanted it to go! So Nehemiah added a screw on each side of the existing screw for each support! Super easy! I do think the eye hooks/chain method would be very easy to do as well!

I was already obsessed with our porch after I added hanging ferns and rocking chairs, but now with the Hanging Pallet Garden, I could sit and stare at it all day! I love how it turned out! (I still have a few more projects to add to the porch!!)

Worries? Not worried about my job situation next year, but I am ready for some closure and to just KNOW where I'll be working and what grade I'll be teaching. I've been reminded time and time again not to worry about this and just be patient. I'm trying to remember it daily. Say a prayer for me on Wednesday morning... I'm going in for an interview at another school in our parish. I'm still praying for my position at Singer to open up! I really want to be there again next year! But I know God will put me exactly where I am supposed to be.

Looking Forward to?

• Working on Ella's bedroom!
• Galveston trip with Banjo, Lauren, & Jake!!
• Visiting Emilie, Ryan, & Karis, once Karis makes her debut!

Random Update?

Nehemiah and I love to work in our yard! It's something we both enjoy and also enjoy doing our own separate projects! Last weekend, while I was working on my Pallet Project, Nehemiah mowed the yard, weed-eated, cut limbs, worked in the garden, and made our yard look FABULOUS. Here's some pictures of the progress! I still can't wait to landscape!!!

                                     

Here's a few of the growth in our garden!!

                                                                               

 

Our garden looks much more impressive in person... Max just had to photobomb. haha

 And my GORGEOUS Hibiscus Tree!!! (I got this about 2 months ago at Lowes in Jasper, TX for only $7!!!! It was originally $28!! I'm so proud of it!!)

Here's a tiny little sneak peek of Ella's nursery!! I'm so excited about getting started on it!!!

Paint colors to accessorize with!

A vintage Cinderella book that I found at an antique shop! Ella's room doesn't have a "theme" but I LOVE that this book just happened to match the colors I picked out!!

BEFORE: Cheap frames I found at an antique shop!

AFTER: I am obsessed with how these turned out! They do look better in person!