Busy, Busy, Busy!!

Yep! That is what Alex and I have been. We are busy preparing for the arrival of our precious bundle. We decided to leave everything baby related until after the wedding was over, and now after realising we have less then 8 weeks to go till my due date, we have been spending every free moment preparing. I have had a pretty good idea of what I wanted for bubs for a while and have been doing a lot (and I mean a lot) of research into the best products for the best prices. We are slowly getting there and have all the major furniture and equipment bought (photos coming in another post). It is now down to the decorating and preparing all the small stuff.

As I have talked about before, I really want to try and do a lot of home made things myself for bub. I plan to make the cot bumpers and sheets, room cushions, wall decorations, toys, burp cloths, home change mat covers, travel change mats, bibs, cotton nappy covers, shoes, clothes, hats and reusable wipes.

Today I have been busy getting started on crossing off some of that sewing list. I haven't sewn in over a year so it took a bit of practice to remember what to do and what settings to have the machine on, but I got there in the end, and am quite happy with my progress.

I decided to start small by tackling the reusable wipes and getting them out of the way. I have done a small tutorial of my wipe making process down below if you are interested in taking a look. They are pretty easy to make and without all those harsh chemicals found in the disposable wipes your delicate babies bum will appreciate it.


Reusable Cloth Baby Wipes Tutorial -

What you will need -

*fabric of your choice (I used flannel as it is soft and absorbent)
*sewing scissors
*sewing machine
*thread
*dress making pins

Cut out squares of material to the size you want. I did 7x7 inch squares.

Pin two bits of the fabric together with right sides facing each other

Sew around the edges of the fabric leaving a 2 inch hole to be able to pull the fabric back through

Pull the fabric through the hole you left so the fabric is now right side out

Flatten out material so seems are aligned. You could iron these flat if you wanted but as these ones are just for personal use I didn't. Now sew around the entire edge of the square.

This is what it looks like close up with the edge sewn.

This is the finished product. All you need to do is wet it under warm water to wipe baby's bottom or have a small water spray bottle close by to the change area and give it or bub's bum a few squirts then wipe away!

I'm Married!!

After almost six years of being together Alex and I finally did it! It was the best day of my life. I still look back trying to relive the day over in my head, though it seems to be a little fuzzy round the edges. It feels like it was a dream, the best dream I have ever had. We both had sooo much fun and thought the day went really well, even with it's stresses and problems due to last minute changes and unforeseen circumstances. Looking back now I don't think I would change a thing :)

My Wedding Day Story -

I stayed over at my Mums house the night before the wedding to follow the tradition of the groom not seeing his bride before the big moment. I had a really nice night just sitting around the table talking with my Mum and brothers about the next days festivities and doing a few last minute things. I still didn't feel like I was actually getting married the next day, I don't think it had hit me yet. We tried to all go to bed at a descent time so we could all get as much rest as possible. I think it was about 10.30pm or so when we all turned in. I spent the night drifting in and out of sleep. I think I eventually got about 5 hours of sleep in total which wasn't too bad considering.

I woke up at 5am so excited that it was finally the day! My Mum gave me a big hug and I think I danced around the house for a bit singing "I'm getting married!". We were a little worried as it was drizzling outside at the time and there was a fair bit of grey cloud cover in the sky. The worst possible thing that could happened on the day would be for it to rain as the ceremony was outdoors and we had everything planned perfectly for a sunny day. Trying not to let it worry me I said "it will clear" and went about getting ready.

I had some toast and tea for breakfast, even though I wasn't really hungry, I knew I had to keep my strength up and also think about the little baby in my belly that needed the food too. After that I showered and got dressed then waited for my Matron of Honour Melissa to arrive to start my hair (Melissa is a hairdresser). Mel arrived at about 7.

Melissa working on my hair

The back of my hair

Melissa got most of my hair done then we headed down to the plaza for our makeup to be done at 9am. It felt so weird being out in public with no makeup, casual clothes and a beautiful hairstyle. I had a few people staring probably wondering what I was up to. The make up went really well and we were really impressed with the job they had done. I couldn't have asked for better. The makeup artist used 'Young Blood' mineral makeup and I can say even through all the tears and stress it didn't move or smudge all night. I was worried because I had never tried mineral makeup before, but thankfully it was really good and the coverage was perfect.

At this stage the rain looked like it was going to clear as there were a few rays of sun breaking through the clouds. I kept a positive attitude that everything was going to be perfect and just the way I had planned it, but by the time we got back home it had started raining again and the clouds had closed up again. The weather went on like this for the rest of the time we were getting ready giving us a ray of hope then quickly dashing it with more rain. It was only lightly drizzling and I still wanted to proceed with the wedding outside. I was also hoping that over at the park it was perfect and sunny.

Once Melissa and I got back home we ate a quick lunch and then Melissa started working on my Mum's and her own hair. I was worried because it looked like we didn't have much more time left to get everything we needed done. Time just seems to speed up on wedding days. The ceremony was to be starting at 1.30pm and the limo was picking us all up at the house at 1.15pm. It was close to 12 when Melissa started again on my hairs finishing touches and we still weren't dressed yet. I was starting to really stress and panic. I think it was about 12.30 when I stepped into my dress and put on my veil, shoes and jewelery. I was happy to see that bubs hadn't decided to grow more since the last dress fitting. My Mum and I were worried about my belly lifting the hem anymore, because during the dress making process that's what was happening!

I think we all just managed to get ready before the limo driver was knocking at the door. The house looked like a crazy mess with stuff thrown everywhere. We quickly ran around locking up the house, making sure everything was off and that we had everything we needed with us before we finally got outside, took a few pics and then jumped into the limo. It wasn't raining at all and I was happy that I was so close to marrying the man of my dreams.

Me in the limo, ready to get the show on the road

We only got a few meters down the road when the phone rang! It was Alex telling us that the park was absolutely flooded and the rain was bucketing down over there :(

PANIC STATIONS EVERYONE!!!!!

I called the reception venue, as they were our "just in case of" venue if it did rain. They said they could have an area set up for us in 45 mins. I called a few people to let them know the venue had changed and to head straight to the reception. I was pretty upset at this stage, but seemed to be keeping it together as we drove to our new destination. My Mum was keeping in contact with my Grandparents who were already at the park. They told us that Alex and his brother/best man Josh were soaked to the bone from trying to pack everything away. That's when it all hit me and I began to cry. I was so upset to think of them out there in the rain, and I knew Alex would have been worrying about me. I felt so stuck not being able to see or talk to him. I tried to just think of our baby and keep calm for her.

We drove around in the limo for a little while, killing time so that everyone could get to the new venue. Then we got the message that it was time to begin! I can not describe the emotions I was feeling at this point. I was so excited and happy yet nervous and scared.

Emotions were running high in the limo as we approached the venue. Everyone was so excited and letting out little squeals as all the guests came into view. All my sadness disappeared and I knew what truly mattered. All our friends and family were there for us to celebrate our Marriage. I felt truly blessed.

As I stepped out of the Limo, I could feel the tears welling in my eyes already and start trickling down my face. I could see Alex and he could see me. I couldn't wait to be beside him. My Mum walked me down the aisle past all of our guest's smiling faces, towards this wonderful man that would soon be my husband.

I was so honoured to have my Mum walk me down the aisle

Alex whispered to me how beautiful I looked, I wiped away a few tears, then the ceremony began.

Wiping away my tears

Me, Alex, our best man Josh and our ring bearer Aaron

The whole bridal party



Alex saying his vows

I was a blubbering mess through my vows. I even had the celebrant in tears, lol.

We included the ancient Celtic tradition of hand fasting in our ceremony.

You may now kiss the Bride!

We're Married!!

Me singing our marriage papers

Alex signing the papers. I think bubs must have been moving in this pic, lol

It was a beautiful ceremony and despite all the troubles I am so happy with how it turned out. There are many more photos yet to come so I will post pics from the reception once we have them.

I just want to thank everyone who was apart of our special day and for making it so wonderful. It wouldn't have been the same without you.

Love to all xoxo