I decided to write this blog because today I became a follower of a few people's blogs that are having or have babies. I see all of their pregnancy pictures and I just want to dedicate this blog to them. I love being able to go through friends and other people's pregnancys with them because it is an oh-so-exciting time in a couples life and it is just amazing to know that you and someone else created a human being and it grew inside of your body. [I know i sound a little mushy but that's how I feel]. I strongly advise each mother to make a scrapbook for their baby. It takes time and it gets VERY expensive but in the end it will last FOREVER if you take care of it. My word of advice though, is START NOW before your little one is here. Take some time out and make some pages with the pictures you have of your belly. Another word of advice is check out scrapbook books and get ideas and think of a theme for a page you want to make BEFORE you buy the materials for that one page. I made the mistake of going out and and just buying everything that I saw that had baby or boy on it and all blue pages at first and then saw other pages and realized that not all stickers have to do with babies or boy and not all pages had to be blue to make it go well. So after spending tons on supplies I found myself still having to go back after I got a better idea of how I wanted my page to look.
So as some of you know, for my baby shower I got a beautiful scrapbook and I have made it not only a promise but my mission to make sure I complete it with original pages made by yours truely. Well during my maternity leave when I thought I'd have some time I decided to start shopping around for stickers and paper and all the materials I needed to start.
Well, who would have known scrapbooking can be so darn expensive. And when I say that I am not lying. $3.99-$5.99 per pack of letters [which by the way once u use certain letters you need another pack if u want the same font] $0.39-$0.99 per sheet of 12X12 paper, $1.99-$5.99 per pack of stickers depending on if they are flat, 3d, or glittered etc, $14.99-$25.99 for letter stamps [which by the way i dont have], some stamps with just phrases could be $10 each.
Then if you want to get really into it with buttons and ribbons and a bunch of extras it could be $7.99-$22.00 depending on what u get. SO basically it's not hard to see that everytime I go into the scrapbook store or Michael's I spend AT LEASt $60 each time. I have spent well over $400 on supplies I have thus far and that might be an understatment. 
Well the after product is well worth the money and it is something I will have forever as a memory of my son's first years. It is meaningful not only because it's pictures of him but because it was made by me, the woman who gave him life. [of course Justin was a part of that too] :) I made a scrapbook a very long time ago and it was nothing like what I am doing now. Before it was just cut and paste pictures and maybe write next to the picture what it was a picture of. Well walking through the scrapbook stores and seeing sample pages just blew me clear out of the water. I have nothing on some things that people do to make a single page it's incredible. Let alone the money to spend that much per page. But getting ideas and seeing how many different things you can do is definitely worth it when the after product is there. I had to get a special scrapbook book to get certain ideas for future pages. Well during my maternity leave I only made 3 pages and that was last June... now 8months later I began again making 6 more pages in the last two weeks. Mind you now it's even harder with a little one crawling around getting into things. BASICALLY i made this entry so I can share what I have done so far with you because I am oh-so-proud of myself. Click on them to see them larger and close up!
The pages I made for my pregnancy pictures was made mainly with a pregnancy kit I bought. It came with paper and stickers specifically for pregnancy. I also save my pregnancy test to put on the page. I didnt save it on purpose at first but after I found it I decided it was a good thing to save it for future memories aka my scrapbook. 
The packet also came with stickers that described what was going on in each month. I copied my ultra sound pictures and added them on there as well.
I also pasted some writing from an online journal I had throughout my pregnancy to decribe my feelings during the times these pictures were taken.I skipped page for month 5-6 because its the page I like the least but thats the page when I found out I was having a BOY!!!
My printer is now broken so I had to leave some parts of the page blank so I can later add more journal entries.
It's cool to look through these and see how my stomach grew over time. Over course during the time and living with it it's hard to see how much it really grows over time. Looking back is when you really notice how small it really was. I remember when I was 16 weeks I thought I was so big at that time and now I look at that picture and it was nothing compared to what came after that. The last month is when it grew the most and when I got all my stretch marks. So beware girls, just because you make it to 8 months, it aint over yet. The bottom picture on thhat top page was 6 days before Tyson was born. The last picture I took pregnant. I wish I would have gotten more pregnant pictures with my actual face it em but then again I didnt really have anyone to take them for me. I had to take these with the timer on my camera. 
This is one of my favorite pictures and pages that I made. I got the idea for the picture from another picture I saw. I love the made with love sticker because it is perfect for the picture. On the bottom I have a sticker with the definition of the word "create" since it similar to "made and on the right side there is a sticker with the definition of the word "love".
Now of course I skipped around and started making pictures with Tyson in them because I couldnt wait to use them. I still need to make pages for the hospital trip, my baby shower, and when he was smaller. This page is one of my favorite. I just love his little nakie booty.
I love the lettering on this page. The stickers that I used in RUB-A-DUB. They were perfect for the bathtime page. Also the stickers I used for "bath time" because they look like they are in bubbles. 
This page I got from an idea of out the book I bought. Of course with different paper and stuff but I got the complete idea from the book. I like the lettering and how its a picture frame on a wall. 
Since Tyson has been afraid of the tub lately, Justin took the opportunity to get in the tub with him. He's been getting a lot better especially since the swim lesson but it's like he still needs someone there so he doesnt get hysterical. It was a cute kodak moment to catch pictures of them taking a bath together though. 
The next day Tyson's friend Damien came over to play. They are sooooo cute together. They were matching in plaid. Damien is almost two and really has hardly gotten the chance toplay with Tyson so it was cute to see them interact. I can't wait to see them as they get older and show them these pictures. I know they'll be friends forever. It's so cute he already has a best friend!
We then had dinner again with all the family for one last time before we left and finally got to exchange some presents left over from the holidays. It was nice to see everyone again. I always feel so welcome when I go. We'll be back down in March so can't wait to see everyone again. 
