Baby Girl's Nursery

With our daughter due in less than a week, it's a good thing her nursery has been ready for awhile.  John and I love the way it has turned out (and I'm pretty sure baby girl won't really care one way or the other).

A basket of cloth diapers sits on our changing table/dresser awaiting the fun life ahead of them.

Blankets, towels, and toys are stored in the cubby.

The bookcase has all kinds of fun books - many of them about puppies - and the baskets help hide some random miscellaneous items for which we have no good place.

Hopefully our daughter will get plenty of rest in her crib without too many tears.

Don't worry, we'll remove the puppy doll before our girl gets any shut eye in here.

Not sure if this mobile will be very effective, but it's cute at least.

 

Nothing like Etsy to get the fulfill your every decorating desire.

This is the most comfortable chair I've ever sat in, and of course it's a glider.  John's college mascot (unofficial) is the black squirrel, hence the little buddy trying out the chair.

Gingham curtains with lavender lattice finials, naturally.

The bear was never really for our baby (it was Harper's), and has since found it's way to Goodwill.  We just don't have enough space in the room for giant stuffed animals our daughter won't really enjoy for years.

 Lots of books to give Mommy and Daddy some variety.

I can't begin to tell you how much cute clothes we have for our baby girl.  This is one of the 0-3 month drawers.

Sleepers and onesies with lots and lots of pink.

The closet houses the dressier outfits, most of which are for when she's a bit older.  I promise she's got something for every occasion, like every gal should.

This is the neatest the nursery will ever be, so I'm glad I managed to get some photos before all the craziness happens.  I hope you like the way it turned out!

A Ferry Ride

While John and I were in Sausalito, we decided it would be fun to take the ferry to San Francisco.

Typical San Francisco weather - it was a tad bit foggy on the ride over.  (It was sunny on the way back, but I was too lazy to take more photos.)

The Ferry Building in San Francisco is one of our favorite places in the city, and naturally, that's where the ferry takes you.  It also happens to be in a sunny pocket of San Francisco, which adds to the appeal.

We love walking around and scoping out all vendors and stores.

Naturally, I needed to have an organic vegan doughnut - how more San Francisco can you get?

John's favorite coffee place - Blue Bottle - has a location in the Ferry Building, so he loaded up on lattes and caramelized waffles.  We had a great afternoon there snacking and eating our way through the place and overall had a great vacation!

Hopefully soon I will get around to posting about the nursery - the baby is due in less than a week after all!

Rodeo Beach

While up in Sausalito we went to a couple of beaches with Harper.  It was beautiful and sunny but definitely jeans weather.

Rodeo Beach is one of our favorites because it's pretty secluded and really stunning.  (Not that Harper could enjoy the view with her hair in her eyes)

Unfortunately for Harper, the waves were intense that day.  The surfers loved it, but it was a little rough for us to let Harper go swimming.

That's Harper and John walking up the hill.  People with big bellies like mine don't go meandering up steep cliffs.

As you can see, it was a bit windy that day.

The books tell us that we're supposed to spend less time with Harper before the baby comes so that she gets used to less attention.  We've kind of been doing the opposite, because we want to do all her favorite things before we can't take the time anymore.  We aren't too worried about how she will handle the baby, so we're taking the spoiling route instead.  I'll let you know how it turns out!

Sausalito

I'm a little behind on posting, but I do have some more photos to share from our Sausalito vacation.  I love the above picture of John on the docks.

We got a great view of the boats since we had to park pretty far down on 4th of July.  I swear, parking on 4th of a July is a nightmare no matter where you go.

I've shared pictures of Cavallo Point previously, but the lodge is just too beautiful not to photograph (and post about).

John, Harper, and I spent a lot of time sitting in these chairs (well Harper didn't technically sit in the third chair) overlooking the San Francisco Bay and the city.  I finished the last Game of Thrones book (that is available) and read one and a half other books.  It was a great way to relax.

We stayed in the older rooms this time, which meant we were more centrally located and had a great view of the city.

Our strange hotel neighbors liked to sit on their porch in similar rocking chairs...in their robes.  One day we saw the husband get locked out of his room in only his robe.  He had to flag down housekeeping staff to let him back in.  People are crazy.

The Golden Gate Bridge is just over the mountain.  The renovated and rejuvenated Fort Baker really makes a picturesque place to vacation.

Based on some internet research, we (namely, I) found the most amazing restaurant that sits on a pier in Sausalito.

Simply called "Fish," it serves only sustainable seafood in all manners of preparation for you to enjoy outside on wooden benches.

How could I not order an Arnold Palmer when it came in such an adorable presentation?

The first time we went we got the crab roll (no we did not finish all those fries)...

And the fish and chips.  The second time we got clam pasta and fish tacos (and the best minestrone of my life).  It was definitely the best seafood I've had in ages, and I'm only aggravated we didn't know about this place during all our prior visits to Sausalito.  I can't wait to go back!

38 Weeks and Running Out of Room

I'm sure I'm not alone in feeling that by the time you reach 38 weeks, you begin to feel like you are running out of room for more baby.  Luckily, she's not supposed to be growing at quite the same rate she previously was growing, so I may be able to tolerate another half a pound of baby in between my lungs and bladder.

I'm 38 weeks as of yesterday, when I snapped this photo on my way to the gym.  I've run out of Grey's Anatomy episodes to watch on Netflix while on the elliptical machine, so I've taken to watching 30 Rock.  People at my stage of pregnancy garner enough attention at the gym, much less ones who are giggling to themselves on the elliptical about "working on my night cheese."

After my visit to the gym, I came home and cooked for several hours so we could host a poker night for John's coworkers.  I think some people may describe me as a glutton for punishment?

Maternity Photos by Anika

Not only did Anika fly out to California and throw me a baby shower, but she also took some amazing maternity photos for us.

Anika is a wonderful photographer and now owns her own photography business - Anika Steffen Photography.

We went out to Crissy Field one afternoon to capture some images with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background.

This is the Golden Gate Fam blog, after all.

I haven't posted a bump photo in awhile, partially because I feel like a whale!  Anika managed to take photos that I love (where I don't look like a humpback).

I'm 37 and a half weeks now, and the doctor says the baby could essentially come at any time now.  We are so eager to get our baby girl in our arms, but I wouldn't mind if she waited to get fully cooked before she makes her debut.  

Thank you again, Anika, for the lovely photos.  I'm so happy to have this time in our life captured.  Now I just need to figure out which one to put in our daughter's baby book!