Wooden Blocks by Sincerely Abi

A while back, I commissioned my friend Abi of Sincerely Abi to make me a set of blocks to use in Little Guy's nursery. I headed to the scrapbook store to find six papers to match what I had envisioned for the nursery which included lots of grays and whites with some colors like teal and red thrown in.About a week prior to Little Guy's arrival, a package arrived at our front door with not just one but three sets of custom made blocks!I couldn't get over how adorable they turned out,
and to have three full sets was an awesome surprise!
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Because my pictures don't do justice, here's Abi's description of her blocks:
These pine blocks have been sanded by hand, and then prepared with an eco-friendly, non-toxic milk paint. The block edges are once again sanded for an antiqued finish. Patterned papers are applied to each side of the block (a different pattern for each side), and each block is sealed with a water-based, non-toxic finish. The blocks are packaged in a kraft take-out style box with kraft shreds(both the box and the shreds are recycled products.)
I bought a large glass jar at Target to display the blocks in......and now they sit on Zachary's dresser and I just LOVE what they add to his room.
(Look for a full nursery reveal coming soon!)
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Now through November 28, use the code THANKS15 to receive 15% off your order in Abi's shop!


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Insta-Friday

Happy Friday, everyone!
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I hope you all had a wonderful holiday with friends and family,
ours was very nice - very low key which is just how we hoped it would be!
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Here's a bit about our week...
Sunday morning photo FAILI bought these in a moment of weakness while at the grocery store. And now that Eric is reading this, he'll know that these are somewhere in our house...let's see if he can find them!
Pacifier in the toilet. And that's all I'll be saying about our Tuesday.
We dipped into our canned peach supply this week and they were so good! This was my first year canning and now that I know it worked I'll probably do a lot more next year.
The first half of the week, Little Guy would open his eyes right up each night as we were ready to head to bed. Late night chats are great and all, but so is sleep.He's now over late night chats and more into late night screaming. So this is what our evenings now look like between the hours of 9-11.
My Peanut Shell sling just arrived and I'm totally intimidated,
but determined to make it work!YUM!Thanksgiving afternoon nap
first Christmas gift purchased - Little People Nativity Set
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Have a great weekend!


life rearranged


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Pumpkin Bread

Inspired by this "Thankful for You" post by Mel of the Larson Lingo, Claire and I did some baking this week. We used Mel's recipe for pumpkin bread and made mini-loaves to deliver to Claire's teachers as well as some of our neighbors. What a great lesson for Claire of showing others that we appreciate them,
at Thanksgiving and any time.
This long weekend, why don't you consider showing someone just how much you appreciate them with this small gesture? (and be sure to keep one loaf for yourself, the bread is sooo good!) Head on over to Mel's blog for the recipe as well as the printable.
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Happy baking!


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Monday's 10 Things

Here's what I'm most thankful for, right now!
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1. Another week and feeling more settled in to our new normal.
2. Eric plus others who have paid special attention to Claire making her transition very smooth.
3. Watching Claire & Zachary together - she really does love him and it does this mumma's heart good to see.
4. Over 10 meals delivered to us by church, friends and family since Zachary was born, each one with enough for leftovers the next day. We've been eating pretty great around here!
5. A good report at Zachary's 2 week check up.
6. Our family is back to health again after a small round of colds and such.
7. Fun plans and surprises that Eric and I have in the works for our family this holiday season.
8. Seeing my pillows on display at Beneath the Tree - so fun!
9. A continued great relationship with Rebel, I feel very fortunate to have a small part in their awesome shop.
10. It's Thanksgiving week - I'm most looking forward to some low key days spent with family.
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What are you most thankful for today?

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Fresh Start Sunday

Praise to the Lord, O let all that is in me adore Him
All that hath life and breath
Come now with praises before Him
Let the 'amen' sound from His people again
Gladly for aye we adore Him
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"Praise to the Lord, the Almighty"


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Insta-Friday

Happy Friday, everyone!
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We've got another week of adjusting to being a family of four under our belt and things are going well! Here's a bit about our week...the whole family was set to take Sunday afternoon naps and look who decided to pop his eyes open.
So he and I hung out on the couch instead, works for me!Look what just opened in our town,
way to go Grand Rapids!aww, baby's first trip to Target!
No really, he's thrilled.I've gotten off track with drinking water and it was time to fix that.
A new reusable cup seems to be doing the trick!My awesome parents took Claire to the children's museum on her day off from school and look at what I did! Since Zachary's arrival, I really haven't checked anything off of my on going to do lists, so this felt great!Yes, my two week old baby already cracks himself up and I love it!
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Have a great weekend!

life rearranged


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Indie Craft Holiday Open House

What :
It's that time again! Join us for a night celebrating the handmade. See what Dann and the other artists have been working on in anticipation of the gift-giving season. We will be introducing several new designs along with the roll-out of our holiday collection of handmade and altered accessories and gifts. We think your friends and loved-ones deserve something truly one-of-a-kind this season.

Where :
Rebel.Reclaimed
926 East Fulton
Grand Rapids, MI

When :
Thursday, November 17
6:00 - 9:00 PM

Hope to see you there!


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Insta-Friday

Happy Friday!
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Not a whole lot to report this week. November has arrived with it's dark, dreary and rainy days. A perfect excuse to just stay nice and cozy at home as much as possible.
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My week has been all about soaking up this...and this...and this...and this...and this...Hope you all have a nice, cozy weekend!


life rearranged



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Monday's 10 Things

(Monday's 10 Things, finally posting on Wednesday,
because that's how it goes with a newborn in the house)
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Here's what I'm most thankful for, right now!
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1. A full week with Zachary, we already can't imagine life without him!
2. A completely healthy baby boy.
3. A safe and non-eventful delivery plus hospital stay.
4. My doctor. I so appreciated him all through my prenatal appointments, and was so happy to see him walk through the delivery room doors as my contractions were becoming so strong.
5. Coming home to begin our life as a family of four.
6. Having Eric home for the entire week. He and Claire were best friends all week long making our transition go very smoothly.
7. My mom for putting in the hours with Zachary so I can take naps, or with Claire so I spend extra time with my little guy.
8. A very easy, mellow baby so far.
Think it'll last?!?
9. Getting a decent amount of sleep each night.
10. Watching Claire & Zachary together. She certainly loves him, and he perks right up to the sound of her voice.
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What are you most thankful for today?


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Fresh Start Sunday

"Great is Thy faithfulness," O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not
As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.
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"Great is Thy faithfulness!" "Great is Thy faithfulness!"
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided—
"Great is Thy faithfulness," Lord, unto me!
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Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above,
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.
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"Great is Thy faithfulness!" "Great is Thy faithfulness!"
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided—
"Great is Thy faithfulness," Lord, unto me!
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Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

"Great is Thy faithfulness!" "Great is Thy faithfulness!"
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided—
"Great is Thy faithfulness," Lord, unto me!



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Insta-Friday : Zachary Edition

Happy Friday, everyone!
Whew, what an awesome week we have had, take a look...We spent a better portion of the day on Saturday convinced that we were going to be heading into the hospital. By Saturday night all of our signs of labor had stopped and we were exhausted. I was feeling pretty discouraged (and very round and ready to be able to bend over to pick things up again!)I was happy that no labor meant we would make it to church on Sunday. One more week of using a jean jacket and scarves to pretend like my clothes still fit!I was woken at 2:30 Monday morning with very clear signs that it was time to head to the hospital, and at 10:19 Monday morning, we welcomed Zachary Eric into our family!I just can't get enough of him!And of course Zachary has melted his daddy's heart too.
Love my boys!
Ahh, going home!
and now I get unlimited snuggles with him,
and I couldn't be more in love!
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Have a great weekend, everyone!
Get some sleep for me, will ya?!?


life rearranged



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