So…we are having a baby! Like…in a matter of DAYS! You can expect a little radio silence from us after this post as we adjust to and enjoy the next few weeks/months as a family of three. When we first announced that we were expecting in December of 2016, I wrote: “It is with boundless elation that we gratefully await the beginning of our next adventure. We are overwhelmed with love and at a loss for words; when they come, we will write them. Stay tuned.”

Those words haven’t really come yet. At least not in any cohesive manner worth trying to communicate at this stage. The reality is, Samantha and I knew an entire decade ago that this was our goal at this stage of our lives, should we be fortunate enough. We remained so ‘realistic,’ so worrisomely pragmatic as to never say ‘when’ and instead use ‘if’ we had kids as if we were trying our best to dodge some sort of jinx. To be where we are, experiencing what we are leaves us incredible thankful. I can only hope to be able to authentically articulate (in the future) the emotions that envelope us at this moment. So instead, we will turn the subject of this blog post to the few things we are changing/adding to the tiny house in preparation for our daughter’s arrival at the end of this month. [Some things are still being worked on so don’t worry when you don’t see a loft wall, stair gate, etc…]

And before you all jump on us with your profound opinion that we will need a bigger house, let me assure you that we have ordered one of those minimalist babies; you know the ones that come into this world naked, owning nothing, and seeking only love and nurturing and requiring only food, shelter and warmth all of which are abundant in our home. [Yes, that was a passive aggressive response to an assumption both spoken and insinuated often in the last few months. :)]

BABY STORAGE

While there is plenty of space in our gear room to store things that are not used hourly and daily, we finally re-designed & re-built our couch so that it offers 4 front accessed storage drawers. Because of how cumbersome it used to be to access the storage space under our bench couch it sat almost empty, which means that that these drawers add about 14 cubic feet of storage volume to our home, and you can bet it will all be dedicated to baby supplies. Not only is this an incredibly functional ‘renovation’ it is equally beautiful and to us, signifies the completion of our tiny house. [The initial couch frame was a last minute place holder during our final weeks before moving in and lasted 16 months before we finally got around to executing the original design! The number of photos probably makes it clear we are pleased with the result!]

BATHROOM COMPLETION

Ok, we lied. Kind of. Thanks to strategically composed photos you probably never knew that our mini-split refrigerant lines were just hanging out on our bathroom wall. While it is not directly baby related, it was one of those tasks we wanted to get done before she arrives. I mean, if it had lasted 16 months without getting done, then it would probably never get done after the baby arrived. For this task we did a pretty simple painted box-out with trim-less ceiling reveal and a tensioned cable ‘clothes line’ for the couple odd item(s) that cannot be machine dried. So NOW, the tiny house is officially done. 🙂

BASSINET CO-SLEEPER

We are currently designing the downstairs crib sleeping scenario but for the first 3-6 months we have built this nifty little side-mattress co-sleeper bassinet to allow our daughter to be near and easily accessible at all times throughout the night for the odd chance she wakes us up… 🙂

BABY SHOWER

How does a minimalist tiny house dweller have a baby shower? Place emphasis on the experience and showing of love and support. Samantha’s sister took charge of hosting what many would consider a non-traditional baby shower; and it was the best thing ever.

She tastefully steered the focus away from pink decorations and games to an all-gender gathering of friends with an incredible forest theme that would make even the most seasoned pinterest aficionado jealous. The photos only scratch the surface of what evolved into a nine hour day of sharing stories, memories, advice, gifts, laughs and even tears.

We cannot thank everyone enough for making us feel completly loved and supported through this continuing process of becoming first time parents. It is not often that an object embodies the ephemeral characteristics of love and community so I wanted to shed light on this particular gift we received (photo below).

Each different color of this blanket was knit by a unique, thoughtful + amazing woman and then united by love (and mountains). And while it was this beautiful hand knit ‘object’ that was gifted, it was the outpouring of love and support that has been received. Thank you; for both

Accompanying the blanket were amazing process photos of the places this piecemeal project was worked on as well as encouraging words of love and support, including the following:

“When I was first asked to help knit this blanket, I was so excited to be a part of such a creative and loving project. As I started to knit, doubts and insecurities crept into my mind. I’m a novice knitter and could tell that my rows weren’t perfectly neat, and that my gauge was messy. I think that also happens in parenting. You worry that you are doing something wrong or that your child will somehow be worse off because you weren’t a perfect parent. On those days I want to remind you that, similar to this blanket, if you do whatever you do with love, the end result will be beautiful.”

MATERNITY ROAD TRIP GETAWAY

Road trips to new places are one of our favorite things in the world so we decided to sneak one last one in as a family of two.  A couple weekends ago, with the new car seat installed (just in case!) we headed to the Oregon coast for one last road trip get away that doubled as a maternity photo shoot opportunity with stops to Portland roof tops, coastal forests, sand stone capes and ocean front accommodations.

It has been an amazing, educational and memorable few years. These words mark the end of an era, and the beginning of another. next time you hear from us we will be writing with new perspective and we couldn’t be happier.

Cheers,

R+S