For all my family that reads this, DON’T WORRY, I’m not about to get weird. I’m talking about paint shades!

On Monday, I went over to Sherman Williams to grab some grey paint swatches to try out in the nursery. When I got them home, I realized I was way off. Out of the 15 swatches (literally) that I brought home, I didn’t like any of them. So today, I ran over to Home Depot over lunch. I decided to stick with Behr, because I’ve had a lot of success with the paint and it’s cheaper. Plain and simple.

Anyway, at first I was picking colors on my own, and then I decided to enlist the Home Depot paint man. We’ll call him Fred to make the story easier. So, I showed Fred my “inspiration photo” and asked him if any of the 10 swatches I was holding were close and what he would recommend for a small room with moderate to low light. Surprise, surprise… I was way off again. After about 5-10 minutes of discussing colors, I decided to purchase two sample paint jars for $2.77 each. Here’s what I ended up with…

My “inspiration photo”… I just love how warm and simple this looks. While grey is usually considered a cooler color, something about the lighting, the ivory furniture and the white trim really warm it up to be so cozy.

GREY OPTION #1 (the lighter version)

Behr Color 790e-1

GREY OPTION #2 (the darker version)

Behr Color 790e-2

For the trim, I’m thinking just a plain old ultra pure white…

1850 Ultra Pure White

So, if all goes as planned, I’ll be able to slap these colors on the wall and HOPEFULLY get closer to picking a color by… THE WEEKEND! Yes, I want to paint this weekend. Maybe that’s unrealistic, but I’m up for the challenge, as is my hubs.

As for techniques, I learned a lot from Fred:

• Unless there is a semi-gloss or gloss paint on our current walls, it is not necessary to sand the walls before painting. If there is a semi-gloss or gloss, a light sand is recommended.
• For the trim, if there is a high-sheen coating (forgot the name), we will need to sand down to the bare wood. If there is just a stain, a light sand will do. He recommended this sander:

3M Pro Grade 2-1/2 in. x 4-1/2 in. Extra-Fine Sanding Sponge

• Fred recommended prepping the trim and walls first. Then, paint the walls, then trim. My husband and I have been debating this, as he things trim first and I think walls first. Fred said walls first… and I swear, I didn’t even prompt him.
• We have a louvered closet door. I had no idea that was the name, but essentially, it’s a slatted door. The closet door guy recommended that we use spray paint on the door because getting in the grooves is a pain in the rear with a brush. He recommended this spray paint:
  

  Spray Paint

  I’m not sure how I feel about this, but it’s something to explore. We’re also thinking about renting a paint sprayer from Home Depot, but this is TBD.

• Brush recommendation for the trim:

$12 option…

$6 option

• Roller recommendation for the walls:
  

  Cheaper version…

  

  More expensive version.

   

• Roller recommendation for the main nursery entrance door:
  

  Smooth

Productive lunch, huh? Hopefully with all this, we’ll be ready to sand and paint this weekend!

Symptoms

Yesterday, I had my first real bloody nose ever. All I can say is, “Woof!” I hate blood. Hopefully that doesn’t happen often. Otherwise, I’m feeling pretty good. Still pretty overwhelmed and emotional. The husband and I got into it yesterday (again) about the registry items/expenses/etc. and I’m not going to lie, the “discussion” ended with FULL sobbing. Actually, I was pretty much sobbing the entire time. I can’t remember the last time I cried so hard. I just felt so overwhelmed.

It ended with a good hug and I think we both feel better. It feels like we’re on the same page I think. With all the money being spent and the nerves of having another little life joining our family in 4 months, I think stress levels are just a little high. But, it helped to talk it out last night. Once I stopped sobbing of course. And today, I’m feeling really good. Excited to take on the nursery with my hubs. I’m sure the painting project will take way too long and will suck a bit, but for now, I’m excited to work on it with Mark. He’s pretty fun. AND, for all those worried about pregnant me and paint fumes, the room will be well ventilated. I think we’ll be just fine!

The other notable thing is that this sweet little love nugget is a kicking machine this week, and today especially. Mark and I joked that this is her way of saying, “no fighting or else mom gets kicked.” Or maybe she’s just feeling spunky today. Ugh, I can’t wait to hug her. She’s definitely getting bigger and starting to feel like a mini person moving around in there (versus feeling like gas or just a little poke). There is some full-on movement and I’m not gonna lie, it gets a bit distracting sometimes. Especially when she tries to rearrange my organs while I’m in a meeting… or the vagina pokes. Eesh.