Saturday, November 22, 2014
38 WEEKS
How Far Along: 38 weeks
Weight Gained: 27 lbs
Nausea: I felt a little nausea Thursday night.
How Am I Feeling: I almost didn't make it to week 38; Contractions started Thursday night lasting about 2 hours, 10 minutes apart. But everything stopped around 11pm.
Maternity Clothes: Pajama pants are my jam. I’m even wearing them in this photo, thank you Lord for cropping.
Sleep: I’m sleeping well most nights, but to flip from side to side feels like way more of a challenge than it’s worth.
Cravings: After eating cake every single day this past week I've been eating as much fruit and salad as I possibly can.
Food Adversions: Pork and brussle sprouts.
Movement: My belly took the shape of a football quite a few times this week. I can feel the baby grinding its little head very low....not super comfortable.
Belly Button In or Out: Out! It popped immediately around 8 weeks.
Gender: Unknown.
Names: We consolidated our list of names and brought it down to five of each.
What I'm Looking Forward To: I'm excited to meet this little nugget! Any day he or she could make their debut!
What's Different With This Pregnancy: When my contractions started I became really sad thinking about how it won't just be Kensi and I anymore. I'm so excited for the adventure of a new baby and I know Kensi is going to be an incredible big sister, but it's a little bittersweet.
What I'm Missing: A glass of wine sounds soo good right now.
How Are We Preparing: We're trying to get as much stuff done around the house. I'm completely over fall decor so we pulled out all our Christmas decorations and we're slowly putting some up each day.
Monday, November 17, 2014
MY LAST TWENTY
I cried when I turned 20. Yes cried. And it was at work. I was upset leaving my teen years behind, knowing I was being fledged into full adulthood. Not to say my twenties haven't been good, but there's been a lot of highs and lows. Over the weekend we celebrated turning 29, my last twenty. It seems a little weird because for me it was one of those numbers you never really thought would come around, but somehow it's here and it's a little blurry how that happened. My loves made sure my birthday was anything but an ordinary day. I was greeted by Kensi first thing in the morning with 'happy bifday mama, I luv you'. That right there, made it the best twenty-something birthday. After literally rolling out of bed Kensi and Mike had flowers already in a vase, coffee made and a gift from Kensi wrapped. She was so excited for me to open it and insisted I didn't wait a minute longer. While unwrapping the paper our conversation was the sweetest....
Kensi: “Open present Mommy”
Me: “It this from Daddy?”
Kensi: “Noooo Mama! Me!”
Me: “Ohhh, do you know what it is? What is it?”
Kensi: “Ahhhh? Ahhh? Hmmm? I forgot!”
I open it up.
Me: “Kensi, it’s a scarf. It’s so pretty. Look at the beautiful flowers”
Kensi: “Oh, so pretty mama”
Me: “Did you pick this out?”
Kensi: “Ahhh....nope! Daddy did!”
Seriously?!?!?! I think 2 year old conversations are the best!
I was treated with breakfast at our favorite diner downtown, The Dixie Grill. Everything they make is mouth-watering amazing. We kept Kensi entertained by building towers with jelly and creamer. What kid didn't do this at a breakfast joint?
Later, I was completely spoiled with a much needed massage and a surprise dinner and dessert with our friends. The best part was dessert, a tuxedo cake. And not just a slice, an entire cake! This beauty is so scrumptious, it's ridiculous. A layer of chocolate cake, cheesecake and topped with chocolate mousse. Seriously ridiculous! I literally ate a piece every single day for 5 days in a row. Hello scale at the doctor’s office....what’s that gigantic number?
Regardless of my stubbornness of turning 29, I know it's going to be a great year. How couldn't it be after such a great start?
Saturday, November 15, 2014
37 WEEKS
How Far Along: 37 weeks....FULL TERM and my birthday week!
Weight Gained: 24 lbs
Nausea: Still dealing with some heartburn, I’m hoping this means the baby will have lots of hair.
How Am I Feeling: Still tired, but trying to move around and walk as much as I can.
Maternity Clothes: Pajama pants are my jam.
Sleep: I’m sleeping well most nights, but to flip from side to side feels like way more of a challenge than it’s worth.
Cravings: Fruit, peanut butter and Blue Bell Ice Cream. It doesn’t help that since been celebrating my birthday I’ve been spoiled with one of the most amazing cakes ever...Lemon-Coconut from our favorite local bakery....I’m pretty sure I died and went to heaven with every bite I took :)
Food Adversions: Pork and brussle sprouts. Chili nearly made the list this week because of the heartburn.
Movement: Baby movements fewer, but we still get some major kicks and punches.
Belly Button In or Out: Out! It popped immediately around 8 weeks.
Gender: Unknown.
Names: We consolidated our list of names and brought it down to five of each.
What I'm Looking Forward To: I'm excited to sleep on my stomach again, this whole side sleep business is becoming very uncomfortable.
What's Different With This Pregnancy: I feel similar to when I carried Kensi, things have just happened a lot quicker. I’m feeling more sore and stiff than I remember the first time around, but the Drs tell me it’s normal for a second pregnancy....is this really true?
What I'm Missing: Still missing my clothes especially now that its getting really cool outside. I feel at the point of not having literally anything to really wear that’s cute and flattering.
How Are We Preparing: The hospital bag is packed! Everything is washed, dried and reassembled. All we need is the baby!
Friday, November 7, 2014
THE CANDY FAIRY
This was the first year Kensi came back with a decent amount of candy from Trick or Treating and in the last week I have eaten waaaay too much, even for being preggo. We needed a way to get rid of it and we came across The Candy Fairy which is a spin off of The Switch Witch.
Kensi, Mike and I all picked out a few of our favorites, packed the rest of the candy into a box and put it on the porch. {Mike took it all into work}. Later that same day we did a little swap and Kensi had a package waiting just for her from the Candy Fairy, a trade for all the candy she sent. When the doorbell rang it was the cutest thing ever as Kensi jumped and started shouting 'The Candy Fairy! The Candy Fairy!' She was excited and it took all the leftover candy off our hands.
Found on Hol:Fit
Kensi, Mike and I all picked out a few of our favorites, packed the rest of the candy into a box and put it on the porch. {Mike took it all into work}. Later that same day we did a little swap and Kensi had a package waiting just for her from the Candy Fairy, a trade for all the candy she sent. When the doorbell rang it was the cutest thing ever as Kensi jumped and started shouting 'The Candy Fairy! The Candy Fairy!' She was excited and it took all the leftover candy off our hands.
Thursday, November 6, 2014
CRAFT PUMPKIN MAKEOVER
On my {what seems to be} weekly trip to Hobby Lobby I came across orange craft pumpkins in the holiday section in the front of the store all 50% off. Of course I didn't go for pumpkins, but I thought with a little paint they would be great for Thanksgiving.
My original thought was to spray paint them white and gold, but after looking at my leftover paints in the garage I opted for a combo of antique white and taupe. I painted the bottoms first then moved to the tops.
I also decided to paint my larger pumpkins and buy a few more later. I really love having the faux pumpkins on hand since they never rot and they can be used for a few different holidays throughout the fall season.
I arranged the pumpkins on our dining table and our around our fireplace. I love the simplicity of the colors and the fact they can be used all season long.
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
ON HOLD
Like so many moms out there I've struggled with trying to come up with a schedule for our home and family, stressed about spending enough time with our daughter, worried about not having chores done and asking when is it appropriate to ask for some ‘me' time. I've learned I'm also a people pleaser and I spend way too much time worrying about what the wrong people think and letting them get inside my head and being stuck in a rut of thinking im not good enough or capable. And I'm just tired, actually exhausted.
The hardest part for me is that a lot of this didn't come into realization until my third trimester with this second baby, but it’s been going on for far too long. Looking back I feel like I've wasted so much time worrying and not enough time just enjoying.
A lot of my frustration came from not exactly knowing where to go with my Etsy shop. I can't begin to explain the amount of frustration and lack of motivation I can have with it. I follow several blogger moms who also run shops and the illusion of them seeming to have it all figured out can drive me crazy. Why can’t I figure it out? Why?
I knew I needed to step back and focus on what was really important. My family. Not my parents, my siblings or my nieces or nephews. My little family. To some that may sound harsh, but I don't feel completely supported by everyone and I can't focus on that. That's what started bringing me down. I sew, create, cook and blog because of my little family. All I want to do is make them happy. I cannot worry about all the chores, my shop or the other blogger moms. I had to step away and refocus. I focused on spending time making memories and starting traditions that we wanted to make, not because everyone else was doing so. I don't feel like I have to share it with the world or blog about every minute of our lives.
I've had people ask me why I don't have many items in my shop or why my blog posts have been fewer than normal. I had to take a break and will continue to do so through the rest of this year. I'm not going MIA, just refocusing and prepping for our newest baby on the way. I appreciate all my readers who have continued to follow me and I will still be posting. Just stay tuned....a fresh start is coming.
Monday, November 3, 2014
holiday eves
Every holiday our little family gets so excited. For as long as Mike and I can remember the eve of all holidays have been by far our favorite part of any holiday. Growing up Christmas Eve was and is my favorite day of the entire year. There's something about the anticipation of the actual day that makes Eves so much fun. This year we’re trying to figure out when we want to travel to visit family and both of us agree we most definitely cannot miss Christmas Eve with our little family. We love the anticipation of the holiday, but when the actual day comes we get a little sad knowing it’s all over.
When I was little I was in charge or wrapping all the gifts and I created my very own wrapping station in my parents bedroom. I had the best setup too. A table pushed up I'm front of their door that allowed me to close the door so no one could see all the presents. A variety of paper, ribbon, bows and gift tags to choose from and of course I charged $0.25-0.50 per gift. {Follow my All Wrapped Up Pinterest board for gift wrapping ideas }I still get an excited feeling in my stomach and goosebumps thinking about my shop. I still set up my own little wrapping station every year, but it's just not as cool as it was then. I can't wait to help Kensi set up her own shop someday.
I adore Mike so much because he made my favorite day of the year that much better in 2006 when he proposed. Not only did he know I would love to get engaged on Christmas Eve because of all it's magical festivness, but it was also the night my parents became engaged many many years ago.
We really love spending Christmas Eve relaxing listening to beautiful Christmas music and making a stop at Starbucks to enjoy our favorite peppermint white mochas. It's our time to slow down when the rest of the world is rushing through the stores doing last minute shopping. We usually make Italian wedding soup for dinner and our own Christmas fettuccine. We stole my sister & bro-in-law's Christmas Eve tradition she does with her kids. After Christmas Eve service the kids find a surprise from Santa’s Elves....a brand new pair of jams to sleep in that night. We did this with Kensi last year and even though she was only 6 months old, she loved her penguin jams. Such a fun little tradition especially when Kensi gets a little older and becomes excited to see what was left for her!
This Christmas will be very special for us since this will be the first Christmas we are celebrating on our own. We decided to stay home and do our own thing this year since we are welcoming Baby #2 in December and we wanted to be able to start our traditions in our own home. It stinks we have to choose between us and our family at this point because we live so far away, but the great news is my sister and her fan and my parents are all traveling to be with us a couple days later!
This Christmas will be very special for us since this will be the first Christmas we are celebrating on our own. We decided to stay home and do our own thing this year since we are welcoming Baby #2 in December and we wanted to be able to start our traditions in our own home. It stinks we have to choose between us and our family at this point because we live so far away, but the great news is my sister and her fan and my parents are all traveling to be with us a couple days later!
Sunday, November 2, 2014
ALL HALLOWS EVE
Our whole day was busy getting ready for our neighborhood party and doing last minute prep work for our costumes. We started with Halloween themed donuts and coffee that Mike was sweet enough to get at the crack of drawn to avoid the morning commuters. It made Kensi’s morning because she is a sugar-aholic and loves donuts. I’m assuming she’s like most other kids and only really enjoys eating the top with the sprinkles.
We finished decorating our front porch with carved pumpkins and cut out black bats hung from the ceiling with fishing line. We actually had a lot of compliments on the bats and I loved how they blew in the breeze. I can’t take credit though, this was all Martha Stewart, my go to for almost all my DIY. Did I mention this was our first year to experience trick or treaters? I think we were a tad bit excited.
We did the bee theme for our costumes. I remember seeing the bee hive hair on Martha Stewart years and years ago. I think it may have been the early 2000’s and fell in love it so I had no doubt about using it this year. Her website also had a cute bee keeper how to for Mike which made for a simple costume to make using painter's coveralls and hot gluing tulle to a hat with bees.
Kensi's costume was kept simple as well by wearing black leggings and a black shirt. We bought the bee wings and headband from Amazon and Michaels. I made her tutu with black tulle and yellow trim and created her striped leg warmers.
Our neighborhood had a Halloween party that included a chili cook off, music, hay ride and fire pit. All the kids had a great time celebrating, showing off their fun costumes and eating way too much candy! At the end of the night they passed our awards and we won best couple/family costume. I'm already brainstorming what theme to do next year!
As much as we love to celebrate the fun of Halloween, we are ready to pack up the decorations, get ready for thanksgiving and even possibly transition into Christmas a little earlier this year. Afterall we do have a lot coming up in the next few weeks :)
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