So I told you guys what I do for my kiddos (gifts for the hospital), I showed you my hospital favors (for guests at the hospital) and the other day I gave you my personal packing list for the hospital! Well...of course I can't leave out "D.O.D" aka Dear Ol' Dad!


Here is what I am doing for Paul. He is a cyclist so I bought him a current cycling magazine (figure easy for him to pick up and put down on quiet moments!). I found some new "slipper" style shoes so he can wear around the hospital! Snacks I bought trail mix and he loves Bugles (who doesn't right?!) and for some quick easy breakfast items I bought 2 of the "fill with milk" cereal cups (he has a secret love of Cinnamon Toast Crunch!) and a bought of Nutri Grain bars! I figured you can't go wrong with mints (I am a mean preggo and can't stand stale or bad breath near me right now!) Last but not least, I found an awesome insulated mug that he can fill with water, soda or coffee and not have to make multiple trips for himself with the teeny weeny cups they have in the Maternity kitchen! He has no idea about this so its packed in a gift bag (just like the kids!) and I will have a nurse stick on his bed (or shall I say the couch!) when I go into surgery!

Super easy! Just think about things your guy loves! Simple, yet sweet! Have a blessed day!

Now this is just my 2 cents on what to pack for the hospital. All of this is from my point of view only and what I do to make sure I am comfortable since I will be there for at least 3-4 nights after my c-section. Remember when you are packing to pack for yourself, baby and lets not forget poor dad!


When it comes to me...I am all about comfort! I make sure that I always pack the following in my suitcase for myself:

• Pillows and blankets (or my blankies as my kids call them!) I love to have at least 2 of my own personal pillows from home and yes I always have at least 2 smaller blankets that I can conveniently curl up with as well! Makes me feel more like myself and not in some sterile environment which can give you the willies!
• A trick my best friend Michelle taught me is to buy from Bath and Body works the wall plug ins and a scent you like! This way your room actually smells nice! Seriously...its the best! We also get our own hand sanitizer also from there so that my guests can each use "nice" "hanitizer" (what my kids call it!) before touching the baby!
• Clothing wise: sweats, yoga pants, lounge pants (I think you get the point there!) I am c-section so I need to have comfort! Shirts I like to have a few v-necks as I breast feed, tank tops and then a few nicer looking shirts that I can feel more like me in! For panties for c-section I always purchase a pack that is 1 size too big to be able to not be tight around my incision. NOTHING with tight waist bands...think Target and the $3 panties! These are key as I do not and will not wear the darn hospital "panty hose" panties they give you! COMFY bra's!! As I said I breast feed so I am hooked on Bravada brand bra's! They do not have under wire and they are so comfy! They have sleep bra's (important!) and night time bra's!! Soft fuzzy socks. Cardigans (easy to take on and off as you will go through hot and cold spells as your hormones start shifting!). Slippers. A light weight bathrobe. And last but not least a going home outfit for myself. NO these do not contain jeans but usually are a pair of yoga pants, comfy shoes (that I wear into the hospital!) and one of the "nicer" tops I packed!
• Activities. This sounds a bit crazy...but sometimes its nice to have a book, a few movies. Maybe your iTouch or even game boy with you! I like to have a few things on hand as it can help you to unwind if you are up late in the night feeding etc!
• Toiletries. Most hospitals will have some stuff for you to use. But lets face it...I want to feel like ME! I have a bag of small toiletries I pre-pack with a new toothbrush, floss, mini toothpaste. Face wash, body wash, a loofah I will toss before I leave. Shampoo, Conditioner, wet wipe style face wash (so I can keep by the bed if my face feels icky). Breath mints (believe it or not you cannot get up easily the first few days after c-section and some times your breath is kickin'!) Don't forget chap stick and a small bottle of lotion you can keep in your tray by the bed as well! I do pack my blow dryer (I hate the hospital one!), my curling iron (cause thats how I do my hair everyday!), a few hair ties and my little bag of makeup. I feel better if I feel like me. You don't have to be standing there is usually a stool in the bathroom or even a mirror in your bedside tray!
• Lanolin (I love Lansinoh Brand!), Breast pads (again Lansinoh brand is the best!) and request gel pads from the Lactation dept!! They will soothe and comfort you when you are breast feeding! Even if you are a pro you never know when you need them (I store mine in the fridge at home so they are cold!)

When it comes to the baby...I am abnormal! I DO not want my baby wearing the hospital garments! I also do not want my baby wrapped up in scratchy hospital blankets! Instead I like to start "living" life with my brand new bundle of love ASAP! Above is Olivia Joy's bag. Packed and ready to go! Her blankies are in my suitcase as this is a smaller sized collapsible bag I fell in love with at The Container store!

• I pack baby wash and lotion (although I don't always use the lotion right away!) so that I have chosen what is used for her first bath etc! 
• Burp cloths
• Receiving blankets
• Soft blankets
• Car Seat (hospital will not let you leave with out it!!)
• Baby book (I usually start filling out all the details in the book during quiet moments. Also baby's feet will get stamped inside if you bring with you!)
• Hats (You all know I own my own business so head garb is a must for me!)
• Pj's (for each night)
• Onesies (for each day plus a few extra) These are long sleeved and short sleeved!
• A trick I like to have on hand for boys and girls is Baby Legs!! I will put a pair of these on with just a onesie and it makes it easy to snuggle skin to skin faster and to change diapers with ease!
• Nail clippers, comb, soft brush (for fuzzy heads!).
• Socks, slippers, booties and mittens for the hands (so they don't scratch their faces!)
• Breast pump. I bring this so that the Lactation Specialist can make sure its working correct!
• Baby wipes (I HATE the hospital ones! They are dry and scratchy and remind me of fabric softener sheets for my dryer!). I prefer Pampers Sensitive or Lansinoh Brand baby wipes!!
• And lastly...don't forget a special going home outfit!! Mine is below!

Now...lets not forget dad! I DO not pack my husbands bag for him. But there are a few items he always forgets that I be sure to have on hand:

• Spare blanket (for some reason the position the "dad bed" under the air vent! My husband freezes every time!)
• Have them bring a sleeping bag and a pillow from home!
• Magazines, a book, same ideas as for you regarding activities!! Surprise your hubby with something new! (more on this to come in another post!)
• Clothing...including comfies, slippers, etc!
• Snacks (remember they will be having to eat out or buy from the cafeteria!) Its always a good idea to have trail mix or something on hand! MOST hospitals (check with yours first!) will allow dads to access all beverages and snacks that are available to mom in the Maternity ward! But not all! So do double check!
• Toiletries (My husband stays the entire time so he showers in the room too!)
• Menus. This is something that most people forget to do ahead of time! Get a folder and ahead of time print out menus for the restaurants around the hospital! This is also nice for if you want something other than hospital food, dad can easily know in advance what you would like to eat! 
• A water bottle (so they don't have to make multiple trips for water!)

This picture was from when we had Emily Grace! We were SO UN-prepared!! We sure learned our lessons!!

Other things to remember is: hospital gifts for kids (if you plan on doing this!), phone chargers, lap top (most hospitals have free WiFi), Hospital favors (if you are a looney like me!) OH my fave gadget is called an Itzbeen Timer One of my fave inventions of all times!

When should you pack for the hospital? Well, I packed most of my stuff (except items I am currently using) at week 35. You are considered full term at week 37...so for me cause its my fourth I essentially could go into labor at any moment! I wanted to be sure I have the main items I will want packed in advance! Don't forget the convenience of Red Box! We already have downloaded the app to our phones so we can watch a movie each night! Dorks...why yes! Yes we are! But...we have done this a time or two! As you can see I do like to over pack a wee bit. But if it makes me feel more comfortable and at ease...why not! I think that is why most people are itching to leave so fast! They miss the comforts of home!  MOST IMPORTANT ITEM TO BRING: your camera! Extra batteries, charger etc! Do not leave home with out it! We have a Flip video camera I am thrilled we can now easily bring with us too!!

One thing I do for each time I am at the hospital is I always make sure I have something for my children each day that I am there. This may sound a bit excessive, but for me I have to have c-sections and it can be completely overwhelming when they walk into the room and see mommy not able to sit up on her own, hooked up to weird machines etc. SO after the baby is born, they each receive a special gift! This gift we tell them is from Baby. So in this case Olivia Joy has prepared the gifts!


I had these amazing "ergo look alikes" made for my girls! They are specifically sized to fit them! AND I got them at an incredible price too! You can check out the shop on Etsy called Pollywogs By Viki! She is a local mama who has 2 adorable boys! She calls them O1 and O2! I was thrilled! I found some fabric online that I fell in love with and she easily found it and made them up for my girls! She asked me to measure from shoulder to hip...and then around the waist! That was it! I cannot wait to see them on! The shirt is from H&M for Noah...I am still going back and forth on if I should freezer stencil brother underneath the Superman symbol! I bought it cause it has an attached cape and figured my little superhero would love it! These are their gifts for day 1!



For day 2 I found these reusable sticker books at Barnes and Nobles for under $5 each! I thought they would be perfect. It would help to entertain them and they can play with them over and over again! I simply wrapped with tissue paper and pulled out my Pick Your Plum goodies to decorate the outside with washi, ribbon and yes even some good ol' twine!! Pick Your Plum is an affiliate of mine and if you look on the right side of the page you will see the deal changes daily! I have purchased everything from crafting supplies to even clothing from them. Ummm...as I type I am wearing a cardi I can't wait for them to put more of online! AND whenever I wear my maxi skirt I recently bought from them I get tons of compliments!! I highly recommend checking out the link daily! You never know what you might miss out on for a beyond reasonable price!!



And lastly I put together a bin of goodies! Do not be fooled it did not cost me a fortune! Almost each item in the basket was only a dollar! I bought 2 different coloring books for each kid (yes a total of 6!), 3 separate packs of color crayons (Target has a whole section of these really neat colors with different names on them!), a pad of plain paper, a package of stickers, micro mini cars, Squinky toys and last but not least...a movie! It was on sale at Target for $4 and has multiple episodes on it! To me having a movie on in the background is a key distraction! I have 3 kiddos under the age of 6 (with the newest on the way making it 4!) it is inevitable that I have a child or two that is board and ready to leave! This helps to "smooth" the waters and makes everyone comfortable! I also pack snacks in advance (fruit snacks, crackers etc) so that if they are hungry I can give them a snack just like at home! This bin of goodies will be out from day 1!

A tip...when at the hospital make nice with your nurses! I always ask if I can get an extra "hospital" water bottle (like you will have) for each one of my kiddos! We just use a sharpie and have their names on them then if they need to step out of the room at all, daddy can take a walk with them to get fresh ice. Pick out a juice or fill up with some water in the kitchen! All the new items (except the bin you see up top of stuff, the water bottles and the snacks) will go home with the kids the day they visit! If you are a 2nd time mom and you are about to experience life with 2...just know it is completely normal for your oldest to act out, act afraid or even completely avoid you and the baby all together. They will come around I promise! We always make sure that I am holding the baby and the gift to give to my children each day. This makes it so they HAVE to make eye contact with me and take a peek at their new sibling! My son was thrilled to bits about having his baby sister (when Ava Faith was born) but when it came time to actually being at the hospital...it was extremely stressful for me as he acted like he didn't love me anymore! I now know...this is normal!!

Stay tuned for a few more hospital tips/tricks as this is a topic I get regular emails from my readers about! I LOVE answering and helping where I can! Hopefully you can pick up a nugget or two (and if you don't all of a sudden get a post from me...check my Facebook page for the blog...means I very well could have been blessed with our sweet #4!)

Well everyone! The time has come! To share my FINISHED room with you all! You saw the before pictures HERE and have seen a few of the items I made for my room but how about the finished project?! I told you all that I was on a budget! We budgeted out for paint and the furniture which we purchased at Ikea (I LOVE it!). Anything extra I sold items around my home or in my room to be able to pay for.


First off when you walk into my room...you will notice that I repainted the walls AND the moulding! Goodbye wood moulding! I do not miss you! I used paint from Valspar (carried at Lowe's) and was highly impressed with them! I have always been a Kelly Moore Paint snob and unfortunately we do not have them in Oregon any longer so had to find something new! I tried lots of paint samples from various places and the quality and lack of smell from the Valspar Ultra paint and primer was unbeatable! It took a gallon and 1 court of Egg Shell based in the color Fountain Mist (I used my paint from my bathroom which is called True Turquoise and decided I wanted a light version of it so the rooms would flow nicely together!). The moulding (only took a quart and we have PLENTY left!) a Semi-gloss in the color Bistro White. In the picture above you will see that I added a mirror to my door ($5.99 at Target IN store...noticing online price is WAY higher!). And the picture above our door says Aleisha & Paul always kiss me goodnight. My sister special ordered it from Walmart of all places!


OH how I LOVE my new dresser from Ikea! I for once in my life can easily open a drawer and have LOTS of extra drawer space! It is a women's dream! (link to dresser is HERE) The green vase on top I already had and I bought the white decos you see at Ikea as well (HERE and HERE) One holds a votive candle and the other is holding some primroses!


 My desk I purchased at Ikea and it saves me 6" in both directions! I cannot tell you how HUGE of a difference that actually is! I love this desk (found HERE You will notice that we built our hutch to have the shelves on the opposite side)! Its not gorgeous by any means but when we added the hutch on top we have so much room that it decluttered our entire desk area! Drawers and shelves galore! The down fall was our printer no longer fit our desk so we bought a larger shelf (HERE and the brackets are HERE) and it now holds my Silhouette Cameo and the printer! Its really nice to have it out of the way since they are both not used regularly! We got rid of our folding chair (or shall I say retired it to the garage with the rest!) and purchased a new desk chair. (HERE) It has made a huge difference for comfort as we sit!


I LOVE these little storage bins from Ikea!! They are magnificent!! (found HERE) The little glass jars I had originally found at Anthropology for $10.99 each. I wanted them SO bad but could not for the life of me chalk up the dollars for them. To me $33 for little glass jars to hold staples, change and paper clips didn't make any sense when I was on a budget. Low and behold. I went to Michael's Craft store and was walking around and what to my wondering eyes did I see?! YEP! Identical. I mean totally identical little glass jars for $3.99 each! I combined with a 50% off coupon and the rest is history! I love them! We had to get rid of our desk calendar as it was too large. But the back of the hutch is dry erase and magnetic! So I now have my lists and a small weekly calendar attached!


My desk feels uncluttered and organized! The shelf on the top of the hutch currently has empty picture frames that I will add pictures of Olivia Joy into!


We used the nightstand I already had (we purchased at Ikea and I no longer see it online) and the lights we had purchased years ago as well from Ikea. The star I purchased used and painted it the same white I used on the moulding! I paid a total of $5 for the star!


As you know I made the headboard (tutorial HERE) and I bought all new bedding! The bed skirt was $27 from Target. The throw blanket was $29 from Target and the duvet and 2 pillow cases that match were from Ikea for $39 (no longer seeing on the website). The throw pillows we already had!


My poor dear husband has a very small space in between the wall and the bed. We had a plant stand as a night stand for many years but I was sick of killing myself every time I made the bed as he leaves his books and magazines on the side of his bed! Solution? I had a friend of ours that is a builder and does an amazing job with making furniture build me a shelf from scraps he had from his own home remodel! I painted it myself with the Bistro white I used on the moulding! (took 3 coats) I also bought a small basket from Ikea to hold all of his randoms at the bottom of the shelf!



I love how bright and cheery my room is now! The curtains clashed with the paint color and the moulding we had in here before and I honestly cannot get enough of my room! The shelf I bought at Ikea (HERE) It contains adorable containers I found at Target to hold all of Olivia Joy's items! Clothing, diapers etc! It is PERFECT! Since this picture I added 1 more thing to it.


Isn't the chevron basket PERFECT??! I love it! It now holds all of Olivia's blankets (and as you can see we have officially filled the baskets!)

That's it! That's all she wrote! I find my room to be so cozy and its such an oasis for me! I now officially have room for the co-sleeper and we can move around freely without bonking into each other! Also the furniture we chose has a wide enough space to vacuum under the furniture! HUGE for me!! Its amazing! Now all we need is our 6th addition to our household!!

Have a blessed day!

I wanted to add a shabby chic, rustic element to our bedroom redo. So I found a whole bunch of various sized embroidery hoops at Joanne's Fabrics!


As you can see I had a very cute assistant! She loves to tag along! We also bought different fabrics. Including lace and a doily for extra added affect!




You are first going to lay out your fabric and set your center portion of your embroidery hoop down. You will then flip it over and put the top hoop layer over the top portion (see middle picture!) Tighten the clasp up tight and you will then...



Cut around the fabric leaving only a small amount (this does NOT apply to the lace! Cut the lace as close as possible!!) and then using a glue gun glue the edges down inside of your hoop! Its that easy!! Have a blessed day!

As you know I have been making sure I stay within a certain budget for the redo. Any extra after the furniture was to be taken from items I have sold on the Get er' Gone page I started (read the blog post HERE!) One of the things I really wanted to was to update my bedroom walls. The art wasn't really my style anymore! I have seen on Pinterest canvas' where they take wooden letters attach and then spray paint it white. Always its white! But I wanted something to go along with my room! So I used the paint that started the whole "color change" for my room from my master bathroom and created what you see above!



You will start with a bare canvas (I went with the 16x16 size I found at Joannes for $9.99. I then used a 50% off coupon!) I covered my counters with parchment paper and then painted with the bathroom paint I have left over a total of 3 coats. Letting each coat dry in-between. The paint is a semi-gloss sheen.






OK...so I had a preggo moment and deleted a photo of my placing the wooden letters onto the canvas! Oh yes, my daughter took it and you could see the big ol' belly hanging over as I worked on the floor!  GAH! Don't laugh too hard would ya! Anyhow...you will attach your wooden letters that are plain...wood (I bought the fancier ones at Michael's I want to say they were like $4 for a package and I used 2 to get all the letters I needed!) To attach the wooden letters I used trusty ol' E6000 glue. I added a heart too as you can see!  My fave go to for every craft project glue! I then let it dry a few hours before I painted just directly over the letters (making sure I got in the cracks really well etc!) And voila! there you have it! A very reasonable piece of art work for your wall! Have a blessed day!

Well here is a tiny glimpse into what I have been doing for my bedroom re-do! I LOVE it! I will tell you a new headboard was NOT in the budget! Even if I was to sell like a ton of stuff around my home it was just not going to be possible! So...I thought outside of the box! I have seen so many great fabric tutorials but wanted something simple. Easy. Something I could do with little to no help from my hubby, cause I dunno about you but if I want to do a project and it involves my husband...he probably is not going to be on board! He is the brainy one...I am the crafty one! We complete each other! This ENTIRE project cost me $53.50 which personally I thought was NOT bad! Especially since ones I were looking at online to buy were going to be a few hundred, on sale!


I found the most awesome person to help me at Lowe's! I was completely thrilled with his customer service and how he went above and beyond! Even dealing with a preggo with NO brain! I swear my brain has VANISHED! HA! Anyhow, I found the 1x4x10 boards. I asked him to cut them to be 53 1/2" per board length wise. This would make it exact for my Queen sized bed! I decided I wanted to really be able to see the boards above my heap of pillows...I am known as the Queen of pillows! I bury myself in them while I sleep! I needed 6 boards to achieve this!



I did have Paul set me up a "staining" station in the garage (so then the kids were asleep, I would have no distractions and we DO live in Oregon...so its raining!) I went with Cabot Wood Stain in Ebony. You will need the smallest can for this project as you will only use about 1/4 of the can! I also bought a sponge at Lowe's. I could have saved $3 by purchasing an entire package of sponges at Target or even Michael's but I wanted to just have everything I needed on hand at once! I wore cleaning gloves that were long. I did 2 coats of the ebony on each board. I wanted the natural color to peak through each board too. I love the look of the knots in the boards. The natural streaks etc. (also before you stain make sure you stain the side that has NO writing on it!). I also chose ebony stain so it would match my new furniture! Which you will see in the reveal!


I let the boards stay as you see above for 24 hours to completely dry! Torture when you want to finish SO badly!!



I wanted EASY to get my clear coat finish. The reason for the finish is so I can wipe if needed! Also then it would seal in the stain and I wouldn't snag blankets etc! I used the cheapest one I could find in a spray can! Double checking it could be used on wood of course! The picture below the spray can looks like I missed as spot with stain but I assure you I did not! I sprayed only one coat over each board (don't forget the sides and ends!) I did leave the unstained back completely bare! Let dry a few hours and you are ready to hang!




I bought 4 packages of the heaviest duty command strips I could find at Target! I should have bought 5 packs as the lower two boards only have 2 on them...the other boards have 3 strips! I stuck my strip up to the board and needed to cut a small portion off the end so wouldn't hang down! I put them about a hands length away from the ends...and then one in the middle, following the directions on the package!



Figure out where you want your first board to start. I wanted it JUST at the top of the bottom pillows I keep on my bed! Use a level on your first board before sticking (as per directions to stick on the package of course!). You will then lay on your other boards directly on top!

I know! I can hear you now, thinking WHAT in the world is Leish talking about?! Well. I am such a nerd that I make a hospital favor for my friends and family that come in and visit at the hospital! I give one to my nurses and I am actually making a necklace for the doctor that is delivering me! May sound goofy to some but this is MY way of saying...thank you. For without those surrounding me...I would be lost! Normally I bake something. Emily Grace I made butterfly cookies I frosted with light lavender frosting and wrote Emily in cursive with light pink frosting! Noah and Ava Faith I made chocolate chip cookies. And this time...well. You can see above! I had the honor of working with the most incredible graphic designer I know! Her name is Carrie of Ink & Mouse and she is ALSO the mastermind behind the design of my blog (I hear she has great things in store for the future of my blog!! I love her!). Well I asked her on a whim if she would be interested in designing my tags for my bags! I told her what I wanted it to say "Our hearts (with a heart) have been filled with Joy (Olivia's middle name!)" She said SURE! She had them to me within 1 day! When I opened up the email I literally SQUEALED out loud and clapped my hands like a little kid! I was SO happy as they were PERFECT! She said this inspired her and she will eventually...not yet...but in the future be making these sort of items available on her website! YAY! Each bag is hand stamped (as you will see below!) and contains 6 dove chocolate hearts (we are becoming a family of 6!).



First thing you are going to need 3x5 muslin bags! I found a ton of great stuff on Etsy at Sugarbsupplies. They were wonderful and set up a special order of 30 bags for me! I kid you not I got them in 2 days! EEK! I was thrilled! I will definitely be using them again in the future! The heart shape stamp I found in a cheap bin of stamps at Michael's Craft store and the KEY to stamping these bags is CHALK ink!! I found mine at Paper Source! I picked Berrylicious for the heart and then I used a charcoal gray for her name!



Excuse the photo quality...took me like 2 weeks to realize my settings had been bumped on my canon! Way to go me! Anyhow, you are going to CAREFULLY stamp the heart shape onto the middle of each one of your muslin bags. I set them aside and made sure I had all 30 stamped before moving on. Next you are going to take your name stamp...I found my clear blocks and letters at Target a few years ago. I have also seen a ton of these at Michael's. The thing I love about the clear blocks is I can stamp...and then see below what/where I am stamping. For this project it was ideal! I placed Joy inside of the heart on purpose...hence why the tags read as they do! After you are done here...I couldn't get a picture as it was near impossible by myself but you are going to take an Embossing Dryer (also called a heat tool) and be careful as it gets HOT...go over your stamped area for a few seconds. Yes...not minutes! It will dry fast!


I bought 4 bags of Dove Chocolate Hearts. I had EXACTLY enough to put 6 hearts (symbolizing each one of us in our family!) into 30 bags! I then tied the tops into a bow.



Next came the tags! I had them printed on heavy card stock paper at Staples. I only needed 2 sheets! I then cut each one out and used my fancy Martha Stewart hole puncher (find info on it HERE!) using the middle sized punch I punched a hole in each one! (Emily Grace took the picture of me punching!! Not bad for a 6 year old!) You will then attach to your bags and voila! Hospital favors! Have a blessed day!