In a couple weeks I’ll be sharing a full house tour, but we recently upgraded our bedroom and wanted to show you some pictures of it. Almost 9 (!) years ago on our honeymoon, Jared and I bought a seafoam color quilt set from a quaint quilt store in the Berkshires of Western Mass. that we were just starting to get tired of. Especially since our good news, I’ve been itching to re-decorate and start fresh. Plus, for a temperate climate like California, it just didn’t make sense in combination with our down comforter. I wanted something darker for this room to feel a bit more masculine so I went with a gorgeous new navy set Serena and Lily sent me. I love the feel of our nice new bedding especially the pickstitch navy quilt which is the perfect weight in my opinion for the temperature here.

Keep reading for a couple more shots of the room and the sources!

Navy sheets, Navy border frame duvet + shams, Navy pickstitch quilt, Navy Kuba throw pillow: all c/o Serena and Lily
Polka dot pillow c/o Proud Mary
Oval table lamps c/o Euro Style Lighting
Yellow ombre pillow and Printed Mosaic pillows from Target
Art by Michelle Armas
Moroccan headboard from West Elm
Vintage bedside tables from craigslist

So, when we went up to Aracata for the shoot I had to pull the film crew aside and explain to them that I was a ‘tiny bit pregnant’ and if they were willing to do a little creative editing to make it seem like I was doing more than I actually was. HA! Luckily they were totally down (David Crowther and Casey Peterson you are the best!). I did end up climbing the tree a bit as you can see below, but then came straight down and they ended up doing a really incredible job editing it especially the zip lining parts which I didn’t do at all.

You’ll have to check it out again below to see what they did, and when I did climb it looked like I was a lot further up than I actually was. Yeah for fantastic video editing and perspective!
 

Hyundai Redwood Tree Climbing – Epic Playdate from Liz Stanley on Vimeo.
Keeping on reading to see how we tried to hide the baby bump and my massive weight fluctuation from the Old Navy shoots…

My poor photographer, Tiffany, from the Old Navy shoot a couple weeks ago about white jeans! She is so great to work with but she totally had her work cut out for her. Not only were we shooting in mid day sun, but I popped out kind of early (I think I was 12 weeks in the photos) and was NOT fitting in those white jeans. Plus I had to do a pretty serious suck-in job while trying to hold a natural smile which totally did not work, as you can tell in this image below we didn’t end up using:

There were a couple points where Tiffany asked me if I felt comfortable in the clothes because I looked like I was in pain, and I kind of was! I vowed after that, no more fashion shoots until after I announce!

Also, the first Old Navy shoot about the spring tees? Oh man I was sooo sick. It was right before I found a medication that worked but I was throwing up multiple times a day and down 11 lbs by 11 weeks of my pregnancy. I looked pretty sickly in the shoot (below) in my opinion. Three weeks later was the white jeans Old Navy shoot above and I had gained a whopping 15 lbs between these two shoots! HA!

I’m so relieved to be able to let my belly hang out now and not have to hid this pregnancy any more! Hooray!

(maternity shopping yesterday, 15 weeks)

First of all, I’m completely overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and excitement you all shared yesterday here on the blog, on twitter, on instagram, etc. Thank you so much for joining me in this exciting step for our family. I’ll still be nervous until I get this babe in our arms safely, pregnancy is the scariest! Yesterday was such a fun day and I teared up reading so many of your loving comments, and especially those that shared a snippet of your own journeys in infertility. Apologies if I didn’t get around to responding to each and every one of your kind words, but know I loved every one.

Next week I’ll talk a bit more about what we’ve been through and the emotional journey for me. On Monday I also have a fun post prepared about the behind the scenes of a few recent sponsored posts (like the Hyundai tree climbing video?)–and the extent to which we were trying to hide the pregnancy! HA! I’ve been wanting to share with you these funny details and now I finally can!

Anyway! It’s the weekend, hooray! Henry is having a sleepover tonight for all the kids graduating to kindergarten. After a graduation BBQ they’ll be playing flashlight tag, having dance parties, flashlight bug hunting, and story telling. Then all the kids will crash in sleeping bags with plenty of adults sleeping over as well. Henry ran in this morning and woke us up yelling, “Today’s the day of the sleepover!!!”. He’s a bit excited. I think we’ll be checking out the Maker Faire tomorrow as well with some friends from Palo Alto (she and I have the same due date- I love when things work out like that!).

Hope you’re up to something fun, Have a great one!

Babble links:

How NOT to dress like a tourist in NYC (love this post of Becca’s–made me laugh out loud! The fedora thing is so true…)

15 of the BEST picks from Ikea right now

All about white denim for summer

10 pretty wallets under $20!

10 clever spring cleaning tips

The most adorable baby shoes

Friends! I have the most wonderful and amazing news to share with you all. After almost 4 years of dealing with infertility issues I’m so excited to announce that we are (finally!) expecting a second child the first week of November. Hooray!!! I’ve had the hardest time keeping this a secret since finding out, but with so much difficulty and heartache getting to this point I’ve been too terrified; and also been in complete shock now that things are so far progressing healthy and happily.

I haven’t really talked much about our infertility issues here, which has felt disingenuous to you all and I apologize. I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve drafted up posts in my head, wanting to reach out and share with you all our journey. As much as I wanted to connect with others for support, I also was feeling too desperate and vulnerable to open myself up to advice.

Pregnancy is a funny thing, we don’t completely understand what all happens on the cellular level, and may not ever know why it doesn’t work, or one day after years of treatments and trying, it does work. Our doctor told us once after yet another failed fertility treatment that they don’t understand 90% of how conception happens. 90%!! And this was from one of the most respected practices in No. California! I wanted to feel confident about the path we were on in our treatments and feel good about the care we were being given so it was something I decided to keep private from the internet until we were on the other side of it. I hope you understand.

And here we are! On the other side! Finally pregnant and happy and wonderfully grateful for this little miracle for our family. However, the sting of years of devastating loss and disappointment month after month (let alone the financial costs) is still raw and tender to me, and I’m spilling over with things I want to talk about regarding infertility, and particularly secondary infertility as I feel like it’s a whole different package of unique struggles and challenges. My heart just aches for any of you in the middle of a similar journey for a child and I just want to sit with you, eat a big bowl of ice cream and have a good long cry together over the ridiculous of it all.

So! This post is the first in a series of 3 posts I’ll be sharing over the next couple weeks about our journey with secondary infertility. It will be a good way for me to process what we’ve been through and perhaps might be interesting to some that are going through a similar process, or know someone that is.

I’ve been more excited to start talking about my infertility journey than even announcing the pregnancy so hooray for being able to do both! Today is a good good day.

PS Thanks to my friend Liz of Cotton and Curls who snapped these photos after our fabric shopping yesterday

And as you if didn’t need another excuse for a coffee break…these are the prefect 3 pm treat…

Crust:
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup butter, diced

Topping:

1 cup raspberry jam
2 cups unsalted mixed nuts (I used almonds, pecans, walnuts) chopped
3 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

5. Leave to cool, then slice into bars or squares.

Jumpsuits seem to be a hot item for spring/summer and I have to say I’m totally on board! I say that having never actually tried one on…so my feelings could change but I love the look none the less. I love how effortless they feel and how you can dress them up or down. I picture wearing one on a slow bike ride to the farmers market and then adding heels and some bright lipstick later for a date night.  Are you a fan of jumpsuits? Where would you wear yours?

Neutral Loose Jumpsuit | Floral Jumpsuit | Denim Jumpsuit | Gathered Jumpsuit

1 floral skirt/chambray shirt/striped tee/ coral flats

2 coral blouse/polka dot shorts/metallic sandals

3 striped tunic/pink jeans/cobalt flats

4 floral dress/coral flats/dot cardigan

Happy shopping!

With Memorial Day around the corner bright whites are entering our wardrobes again. Do you own a pair of white jeans? I love how beachy they are, and they feel special since you only wear them in the summer (like that amazing sequin dress you pull out only during the holidays).

Keep reading for two ways I styled my white jeans, one is casual and one is more dressed up: What do you think, will you be wearing white jeans this summer? Are you a fan?

Photography by Tiffany of House of Tong

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

This post was sponsored by Old Navy. Check out Old Navy’s latest fashion lineup in store or online at oldnavy.com.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

Look 1: Beachy. My favorite way to wear white jeans is on a beach vacation or outing. I always find myself wanting to buy a new pair of white jeans pair before I leave on a tropical trip. Here I styled the flirt white skinny jeans from Old Navy (only $19 right now- what a steal!) with a polka dot chambray shirt (similar) from J.Crew, this pastel satchel from Fossil (on sale!), sandals from Bernardo, and a straw hat.

Look 2: Neons. I’m a huge fan of white paired with all shades of summery neons. Here I wore the flirt white skinny jeans from Old Navy with a knitted neon sweater from Forever21 (similar), neon pumps from Urban Outfitters (similar), a neon tote from Old Navy (similar cross body version), gold chains from a flea market.

Remember the days of strawberry fruit roll-ups in your lunch bag? We’re bringing them back, my friends. Ooooh yes.

I mentioned on Friday we were making strawberry fruit leather this weekend since it’s peak strawberry season. Actually, someone once told me that Mothers Day marks kind of the end of strawberry season, sadly, so it’s time to hustle!

I love that you can control the amount of sugar you put in this homemade strawberry fruit leather, the thickness (the thicker the better!), and the size/shape of your final roll-ups  It would be cute to cut them out in hearts, stars, letters, etc.

Keep reading for the easy recipe…

Slice a bunch of strawberries into a pot.  I cut about 2 lbs. The more ripe the strawberries the less sugar you’ll need to add later!

Squeeze in a whole lemon and about add about 1/2 cup of water

Stew them for about 15 minutes until they’re really soft and delicious smelling.

Blend them up and add about 1/2 cup of powdered sugar (more or less depending on your taste, ripeness of the strawberries).

Then pour them onto a cookie sheet that’s been lined with plastic wrap and sprayed with cooking spray on top of the wrap.

Fill the tray with your strawberry liquid. Remember the thicker the better so you might want to use a small cookie sheet or even something smaller- next time I’ll probably use a 9 x 11 pan.

Now you’re going to let it dry in a warm over for about 6 hours. You’ll know it’s ready because the top will be slightly sticky still, and it will easily come off the plastic wrap when tugged at.

Cut into shapes with a pizza cutter or cookie cutter shapes. Wrap up and store in a plastic bag for an easy snack!

Have a wonderful weekend, guys.  It’s peak strawberry season so today Henry and I spent the morning made strawberry freezer jam, strawberry butter (above- I shared the recipe on instagram), and plans to make strawberry fruit leather tomorrow morning which I’ll share next week. We also made my grandma’s homemade honey wheat bread as well while singing along to the Sound of Music soundtrack (somehow he’d never been introduced to it!).  I’d love to spend every morning like that with Henry. I’ll be a little sad when he starts kindergarten in the fall and I lose my mornings with him. Hope you’re up to something fun, and happy Mothers Day! Here are a few links to explore (Alt for Everyone winners at the bottom of the post!).

Pretty breakfast in bed printables for Mothers Day

Giant popsicle pinata DIY for a summer party

Gorgeous red spring dress!

Hurry up and grab a spot in the Oh Happy Day Commission Project for Fathers Day

Additional 30% off sale items at J.Crew through the weekend!

Delicious Mothers Day brunch ideas

Love this pair of Madewell’s shiny coated jeans

Adorable DIY polka dot umbrellas

For a Mothers Day cup of tea DIY  on Julep

Also,

What to wear to the SF MOMA (part of the Coast to Coast Sister Style series!) and to NY’s MET

10 Beautiful Mother’s Day card picks

Decorating Color Crush: Aqua

10 clever spring cleaning tips!

And the five winners of the ALT for Everyone tickets are…

Congrats winners! Email me at liz (at) say yes to hoboken.com