Real Life

And it’s a …..

Design + Build

Crafty Projects

Business + Life

Holidays

The Weekender Series

As Seen on TV

Room Makeovers

All DIY Projects

Search...

blog Categories

hey there! I'm monica 

I pride myself on making amazing style and design accessible for everyone, regardless of location, budget, or ability! My design philosophy is rooted in authenticity + attainability - If I can do it, you can too! My work has been featured in countless publications, but I take the most pride in homeowners that have been personally inspired by my DIY ideas and have tried something in their own homes!

learn more about ME + MY BIZ

A few weeks ago, I announced that I’m expecting baby #3ย )ย early this Fall (it’s a pretty funny story actually, if you’re int he mood for a laugh) ! It came as quite a surprise to us but we’re looking forward to meeting this new little one that God has chosen to give us in His perfect timing. With my first two kids, we chose not to find out the gender and waited until they were born. However, with this baby, I really felt like finding out ahead of time would help me connect with him/her and plan appropriately. And so, without further ado, our new baby is a…..
Woohoo! I can’t believe I’ll be holding another baby boy in my arms in a few months. Crazy!! I did NOT want to find out the gender in a doctor’s office with no excitement or hoopla, so I called my go-to photographer friend, Stacy, and asked her if we could come up with a way to capture this special moment for our family. Of course, with the help of Monica who was the ONLY person who knew what the gender was, she delivered big time. Take a look at what we did…

Monica created this awesome huge box and dressed it up really cute. Check back tomorrow for how she went about setting this whole thing up. She’s awesome. ๐Ÿ™‚
And then we opened it up and…
My parents couldn’t be there, so my sister face-timed them in. It was so fun for them to “be there” and I’m so glad Stacy captured that moment. Thank goodness for technology!!
Stacy does an amazing job getting great family pictures. I’m in love with so many of them!
The boys are pretty psyched about adding another boy to the family. Uh-oh, Campbell and I are outnumbered.
Campbell isn’t so sure about it….
Isn’t that backdrop adorable? Stacy and Monica set it all up and it looked so cute. It helps that my parent’s have a gorgeous property they allowed us to use for all these photos, too! ๐Ÿ˜‰
BLUE!
Two blue balloons and one pink.I’m still not quite believing that I’ll be mom to three kiddos.
I HIGHLY recommend Stacy of Salvortori Photography for all your family pictures! Remember Monica’s day-in-the-life photo session? That was downright awesome too, so no matter what your “theme” or event, Stacy is your girl. ย  Thanks so much for capturing this exciting time for us, Stacy!
I want to know: are you a fan of finding out the gender before the baby is born, or do you like to wait until the delivery? Do tell!

The comments +

  1. Katy says:

    We found out with all three – too much type A personalities to not find out because we wanted to plan! I’ve always admired people who keep it a surprise–what patience!

    btw, gender is a social construct and sex is biological. You actually found out the sex of the baby, since his gender won’t be developed right away! Just a little psyc 101 for ya! People prefer to say gender because it can be awkward to say sex ๐Ÿ™‚

  2. gina says:

    Congrats Jess! You look amazing!! I love the shot of you and your hubby with the confetti!

    I found out with both – for me its a surprise either way – at the u/s or at birth – plus I am a planner and am not a fan of gender neutral stuff so it was a must to find out for me!

  3. Right now we are having our 2nd. I would live to have it be a surprise, but my hubby wants to know. I think because we have a girl and he really wants a boy. ๐Ÿ™‚ find out at my 20 week appointment in 3weeks. ๐Ÿ™‚

  4. Congrats! We have two of each. With our youngest I really wanted to wait but my hubby said it would be easier to decorate if we knew so we found out. Although we had to do some construction and the nursery wasn’t done till after our son was several months old.

  5. gina says:

    What a great way to find out the gender! The pictures are great!

  6. Judy says:

    What a great way to share your surprise with everyone! Great job Monica! Stacy’s photos are the best. When I had my children, finding the gender was not an option (I’m not THAT old!), so both were a sweet surprise. There is something about that element of surprise that adds to the excitement and anticipation of a new baby. On the other hand, creating a nursery, buying baby clothing, only being faced with having to come up with one baby name and receiving gender specific shower gifts are out of the question when one does not know. When we had our first, I was twenty-one, still in college, my husband was working wild hours and neither of us had really grasped the reality that we were actually going to have a baby, another whole person. She came three weeks early and NOTHING even resembled a nursery, we didn’t even have the crib put together! Fortunately, my parents arrived within hours of her birth and together they created the sweetest, most welcoming little girl nursery ever! Whew! Congratulations to the four of you and God bless that growing little baby boy.

  7. BOY U TEE FULL ! CONGRATULATIONS. GREAT WAY TO FIND OUT. May you and your beautiful family have much joy as this little person grows within you and may your hearts rejoice when you finally meet him in person. Much love, your fan in CA
    Jackie

  8. Erin Holmes says:

    With both of my sons, we found out in advance. I guess I am really Type A that way. I have to have my ducks in a row asap!
    Both times though, I found out at the scan. What a lovely idea, that you didn’t even find out until everyone else, and that you got to document it like that!

  9. I didn’t find out with either of mine… one boy, one girl. I’m def NOT type A in any way (wish I were a little more sometimes, ha!). I love to be surprised and go with the flow. ๐Ÿ™‚ Congrats on your new bundle!!!

  10. Meghan says:

    Congrats & what a great way to tell the news!

  11. Kim Wilson says:

    How awesome Jess! I’m so happy for you! By the way, I swear you look absolutely GORGEOUS!!!! I think I was totally green with every pregnancy! Congrats on the new little dude!

  12. […] of amazing photos and are in the area, you need to call her! She took family photos of us as we revealed the gender of baby #3 and this one of my son is a total gem that I will love forever. She’s totally booked for […]

  13. […] actually joining the EC2 team- more info to come on that!) and was taken during the Jackson family gender reveal photo shoot in May. But, it was in April that Jess first mentioned to you about her surprise ย bun […]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Make a Kid's Mud Kitchen and Produce Stand

DIY PROJECT

Work From Home Corner Office Makeover

VIDEO MAKEOVER

Yard Game Ideas ASO Live! with Kelly + Ryan

DIY IDEAS ON TV

Today Show Nursery Makeover

MAKEOVER

Outdoor Living Space Makeover : Home Becomes

VIDEO MAKEOVER

Must Reads

Get updated on what we're working on

Follow along!