Mural how to

Audrey's room has made me a lover of do it yourself projects. I have had a blast putting together her room and absolutely love spending time up there. Her room is a mash up of several different pins on Pinterest.

We knew wanted some kind of giraffe painted on her wall, so the searching commenced, me on Pinterest and Stinson on a super awesome app. called houzz. He came across a tree with book shelves put on a couple branches that we loved, and he thought it'd be cool to have a giraffe eating out of he tree.

Now that we had our idea, we emailed it to my super-talented Aunt Lexie, and she used her graphic design skills to come up with the mural. Next step was having her design printed on a transparency at Office Depot. Cost of that was $0.53. Once you have your transparency, you need an overhead projector to project the image up on the wall, so to obtain said overhead, you call a teacher friend who has been teaching forever and who you know has held on to their overhead even though they don't use it anymore.

Now that your image is projected on the wall trace said image onto the wall with chalk. Chalk is much better than pencil because it erases easily and is easily covered with paint. Then, using the paint color(s) of your choice, color inside the lines! We used left over white from her chevron wall, but you could purchase a paint sample for yours. It really doesn't take much paint, I did two coats and maybe used 8oz of paint total. I used a variety of small paint brushes I picked up at Michaels for less than $4.

Once the paint is completely dry, use a dry cloth to brush off any chalk that was not covered up by paint. Now your mural is complete! If you don't have a super talented Aunt Lexie or are not gifted with artistic ability, yo could find an image on the web you like to have printed on your transparency.

My total cost for this project was $4, but if you have to buy paint it'll be closer to $10. It is a bit time intensive. It took my sister-in-law, Sara, and I about 30 minutes to trace it onto the wall. Then we started painting after the babies were in bed for an hour and a half, and I finished the next day with both coats in about two and a half hours. The final product was totally worth the time!

Since I'm posting this from my phone I don't know how to insert the photos throughout the post, so here they are all at once.

2 Month Letter

Dearest little Audrey,
You are now entering into your 3rd month of life (how is that even possible?). The second month flew by as fast as the first one did. You are changing so much every day and I am loving each new milestone, big or small.

The biggest highlight of this month was when your rolled from your tummy to your back. I had just picked up the phone to FaceTime grandpa when you rolled over. We quickly put you back on your stomach and you did it again for grandpa to see. I told him we'd call him back so we could catch the big event on camera. You didn't disappoint, and we caught it on film. Of course, you haven't done it again, but I know you can, and that you will do it again when you're ready.

You like going for walks when the weather cooperates!

You still love your baths. One of our favorite parts is the face you make when we first put you in the water. It's like you're bracing yourself for what's to come and then 30 seconds later you're loving life.

Your strength continues to impress us. Standing has become one of your new favorite things. During tummy time you like looking all around and sucking on your fist. Just last week you figured out how to get your fist your mouth. You like to take little "tastes" of it at a time. You are starting to figure out how to keep it up there longer and you make the most adorable noise while you suck on it.

My favorite thing is our chats on the changing table. You give the most coos and smiles while I'm changing your diaper, I guess you love feeling fresh and clean. It has been fun to listen to all of your new noises and to watch you learn how to use your voice. You are starting to recognize your grandpa, grandmas, aunts and uncles' voice when we FaceTime with them. You look for your dad or I when we walk in the room and it warms my heart to see you turn and look for me. The dogs leave you alone for the most part. Jake gets concerned when you cry and always makes sure I check on you. They like to give you a quick sniff when we return from being out.

Hanging out with Uncle Brady after Aunt Jenna and I had you try on your swimsuit!

You've had a busy month getting out and about with me to meet friends and to go to mothers together. I always enjoy introducing you to new people. They all love your hair! You got to finally meet Aunt Sara, Uncle Kennedy, cousin Campbell, and Uncle Brantley.  They all loved giving you cuddles, except Campbell of course!  But he did help me burp you on his way up for a nap, and he loves seeing you.  He even started saying your name, it sounds more like Au-do than Audrey, but that's okay because he is only 14 months old. ;)

Meeting Aunt Sara, Uncle Kennedy & Campbell

These days you smile more and more. Your smile melts my heart, and I wonder how I am going to resist it in the future.  All of your smiles show us that you are one happy girl.  You smile especially big for your dad.  I swear your face lights up when he walks in the room.  I know that you two will share a special bond forever!

You had your 2 month check up and shots.  You did not care for the shots and you were not shy about letting us know about it.  Of course the Dr. confirmed what we already knew, you're growing like a weed! You've grown 4 inches since you were born, putting you in the 94 percentile for height.  I love that you're going to be a tall girl like your mommy!

I forgot to add that you still love your sleep.  You are sleeping 7-8 hour stretches at night and you are sure to let us know when it is nap time!  You are keeping yourself on a fairly consistent schedule, which makes life for us just a tad easier, so keep it up! :)

I love you baby girl.  I pray that God is shaping your heart to be one filled with compassion, love, and kindness.

Until next month,
Mom