Just thought we should mention that we recently welcomed a new member of the family.
On Friday the 14th at 5:57pm, Clara Kenley Petersik was born with a paint brush in her hand weighing in at 7 lbs 10 oz and measuring 20.5 inches long. We’re insanely in love with her. And she and Burger are already best buddies. Seriously, he thinks it’s his job to stand guard next to her at all times.
Clara was named after John’s grandmother on his dad’s side. And her middle name, Kenley, is an homage to my dad (Ken) with John’s mom’s maiden name worked in there (Kelley) along with a reference to my great aunt on my mom’s side named Lee. Gotta love rooms and names that multitask.
We’re all home from the hospital and happily settling back into life here at Casa Petersik (there’s nothing like a four day hospital stint to make you miss your house like crazy). Yes, we actually had an extended stay due to a pretty terrifying scare during Clara’s birth (an unexpected placental abruption paired with an umbilical cord prolapse had a slew of wonderful doctors and nurses performing an emergency c-section in under three minutes to ensure that Clara was a-ok). But although her delivery was anything but restful, we’re both over the moon that she’s 100% healthy and 1000% adorable (not that we’re biased or anything).
And now that we’re all back home, Clara really seems to be enjoying her new surroundings. In short: we feel like two of the luckiest people in the world. And we’re so thankful to be able to share this amazing time in our lives with such wonderful readers. Thank you all for the well wishes that you’ve passed along throughout our big journey to parenthood. We can’t wait to detail all the ways that our house grows and changes to accommodate a little person and we promise to share all the organization, storage, and simple living tips that we pick up along the way (while tackling even more DIY adventures and cheap-o room makeovers of course).
But now back to our regularly scheduled blogging. We have an awesome house tour to share, so stay tuned…
Psst- We’ll also be announcing the random winner of the big baby pool (and a $100 West Elm gift card) tomorrow, so stick around.
Alexis says
Hi John and Sherry,
Congrats again on your little lady! I have a kind of random baby/ house related question. What do put Clara into when you bathe her? We registered for and received a GIANT baby bathtub. The reviews are very good, but it is HUGE and we are having trouble figuring out where to store it when our little one is not splishing and splashing. I was wondering if you had a more space saavy recommendation. Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
We have one of those cushy foam bathing pads (it’s thick and yellow and even has a temperature guage to tell us if the water’s too hot). We got it from Target after John’s sister (a mother of three) recommended it and so far we love it. It’s definitely a lot smaller and easier to store than a big plastic tub (ours tucks right into one of our baskets in the doorless linen closet). Plus it was only around $7! Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Alexis says
Oh, that’s so good to know! I will be returning the monstrous tub this weekend!
Sherry says
Wow Congrats you guys! I feel like we’re living parallel lives in cyberspace! We moved in our home the same time you did and have been following your blog as we decorate. We got preggars around the same time, followed your nursery progress as we decorated ours AND we both had baby girls!! You guys are going to make great parents!!! Congrats again,
Sherry in Austin, TX
Haus says
Congratulations! She’s beautiful – so glad the delivery went OK despite the scare.
Haus says
Oh! The real reason I commented – we had a WashPOD and our little Annabel LOVED it. Look for one and see what you think. My sister-in-law gifted us ours, and I was dubious at first. But once Bel could hold up her head a little better we started using it, and she was in 7th heaven. :^)
sarah says
Just stumbled upon your site looking for ideas and tips to refinish our kitchen cabinets. Love your style! And, I have a baby girl born May 16, only a couple days after your adorable Clara was born. I look forward to following your blog! :-)
Kira says
I have been reading your blog for awhile now, and knew your daughter was around the same age as mine- so I went back and saw in your archives that she was born 1 day after my daughter. May 13, 2010 even though my due date was May 14th. It’s so much fun to read your adventures while taking care of your baby girl too. I just started a mom blog in addition to my daughter’s own blog, so I can make sense of being a new mom:) I am new to the blog world but so far I love it.
Keep up the good work, I really enjoy seeing all of your transitions!!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so funny! Congrats on your daughter – aren’t they at such a fun age right now? We’re loving the 8+ month developments. Something new every day!
Happy blogging!
xo,
s
j says
sorry this might be super old but today i got all sappy baby crazy so i decided to re read this and some other blogs. did anyone notice that GIANT needle next to your head?
YoungHouseLove says
Hahahahah, I didn’t even notice that!
xo,
s
Emmitt Patlan says
That really is the cutest baby ever! Awww . I would love to feature angel on my site!
Cindy says
Great photos. A bit too late to congratulate you. Been reading your blog. Great DIY work
Amanda says
OH MY GOSH!!! (Me again, ha!) Looking at Clara’s birth announcement: https://www.younghouselove.com/2010/05/so/ 4th picture down of Clara in her crib, and look at little Teddy’s instagram photo to the right! Twinsies! lol
YoungHouseLove says
Totally twins, right?!
xo
s
Elisabeth says
Hi Sherry and John!
I was just looking at Clara’s birth announcement.Comparing the 4th picture down of Clara in her crib and little Teddy’s instagram photo to the right:
They are sweet little T W I N S :)
So happy for you!
Elisabeth
YoungHouseLove says
They look so similar, right?! We see it too!
xo
s
Jenny says
Congratulations on the birth of baby Clara. What a joyess blessing!!!