10.31.2014

Happy Halloween + Tidbits



HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

I just love this time of year and seeing everyone's kiddos (and yes, I'm including dogs in that) dressed up. To think that next year we will have 9 month old to experience this holiday with excites me beyond measure! 

Our city does things a little differently...we actually had trick-or-treat last night. Whenever Halloween falls on a Friday, they have it the night prior because (from what I heard) they are concerned with the kids safety and people driving drunk/going to parties over the weekend. So, last night my boys got into character while I snuggled up in a chair next to them and watched them pass out candy :) 

We had A LOT of trick-or-treaters this year in our neighborhood, it was so fun to see everyone's costumes.

 {they looked pretty cute, no?}


Remember how I mentioned we had a 3D/4D ultrasound the other day?

Well, Camden was a little stinker! He had his leg up over his head, covering his face, for the majority of the session. He would briefly bring it down then lift the other leg (or an arm) up, so we didn't get to see him very much, but Ultrasona is bringing us back next week to try again! ha. 

We did find out from the ultrasound tech that she would estimate that he weighs 3.5 lbs and he is head down. 3.5 POUNDS! I can't believe how fast he's grown!! She also showed me how he's positioned so now when I feel him move, I can distinguish between a head and a butt or an arm vs a leg (which is nice because let's be serious, I had no idea before...)

{vest-here, top-similar (my style is sold out), jeans-old, american eagle}

Another big moment this week, that I briefly mentioned yesterday, was surpassing my goal of exercising 3-4 times per week until 30 weeks! 

 This goal was really something that I wanted to complete...not because I have ever been concerned about gaining weight, but because working out makes me happy and keeps me, and baby, healthy and strong! My doc gave me the go ahead to continue up until the day I go into labor, should I want to, and I plan to keep it up at least until 36 weeks or until I feel too tired to do so. I will definitely be celebrating with Billy tonight!


 We don't have much on the books for this weekend, for once. I hope to get some shopping in (for essential baby things) and have a date night with Billy since he was in Florida last weekend! 

Hope everyone has a fun (but safe) Halloween weekend! Someone please enjoy a pumpkin beer for me! :) 

10.29.2014

Reflections & Things I Love at 30 Weeks


I'm officially 30 weeks pregnant, as of today, with our sweet boy....
Only 70 days until my due date!

 I believe this is what they call the home stretch and the one that I've wondered about, and had so many questions about, for a long time. "How will I feel?" "How big will I be?" "What complications will I have?" "Will I feel ready?", were some of the those unknowns that popped up occasionally in my head. 

The truth is, you hear a lot of different opinions right when you become pregnant, and honestly most of them sounded like being pregnant meant nine months of torture and a long list of all the things you can't do. All the things you can't eat. All the crappy symptoms you will experience. All the things you have to miss out on. While I definitely appreciate the realness (it's nice to know what can be ahead!), rarely do you ever hear about the good times and the good things that come along with it!

So, today I wanted to focus on all the things that I have loved so far. 
All the little things that keep me going and have made me appreciate this experience...

+dreaming of cuddling up a snuggled baby, in a warm house, with snow on the ground outside
+becoming someone's mom
+having the energy to cross things off my to-do list
+completing my initial goal of running/spinning 3-4 times per week up until 30 weeks, and being able to go past it
+friends who ask you how you're doing and check in on you
 +leggings and huge comfy sweaters as I'm growing bigger (definitely)
+giving into those yummy cravings and not feeling bad about it
+rubbing my belly and feeling him kick in the same spot right after
+having a great workout after a stressful day
+billy kissing my tummy
+feeling that first flutter or kick
+being pregnant around the holidays, it's fun and makes everything much more meaningful
+folding little baby laundry (which says a whole lot because this girl hates laundry)
+hearing his heartbeat at doctor's appointments and seeing him grow
+being able to experience new firsts with billy
+decorating a nursery
+having friends that are also pregnant and can relate to everything you're experiencing
+warm baths
+the awesome leg/back massages that billy gives me (who would turn those down?)
+hearing family members express how excited they are to meet him
+imagining life with a son

These things are what life is about anyways, right?

That's not to say pregnancy is all rainbows and butterflies, but there are definitely some awesome rainbows along the way. :) We have our 30 week 3D/4D ultrasound today at Ultrasona...so pumped to see our little man! Sorry for all the cheese today, but I think it's important to talk about the AWESOME parts of pregnancy, too!


10.28.2014

Brie and Apple Tarts


Last year, I made the most delicious brie and apple tarts that I thought deserved a repost since they would be a great little snack when passing out candy to all your trick-or-treaters this week! They are oh so good and perfect for this time of year. If you missed the post last year or didn't get a chance to make them, now is the perfect time!

You can find the recipe here.

The only requirement is that if you make them, you make sure to let me know how much you loved them (and if you didn't, you can tell me that too, but I might just think you're crazy! ;)) 

Meanwhile, I'm over here getting Rocky into the Halloween spirit....


He loves me so much right now.

Have a terrific Tuesday! 

10.27.2014

Weekend Happies


Happy Monday! Did everyone have a good weekend?

Billy has actually been in Florida the past 4 days (yes, another time this month...lucky guy) for his families annual guy vacation so the fact that I'm completely exhausted this morning doesn't really add up...

I don't think he had much fun at all, do you? so jealous of their zip lining adventures!

Before he left I told myself this was the perfect time to rest up and lay low...and yup, that didn't go as planned due to hardcore nesting, the OSU game at my parents, running a million errands, and a girls pumpkin carving night.  Not complaining too much, though, because it's all been fun things for the most part! Did I mention lots of baby laundry? Oh yes, got ALL of that done this weekend too.

Here's some things making me happy lately:

-Girl time. 

My best friend Lindsay brought me Starbucks and baby clothes that she had bought for Camden over on Saturday morning, which was so sweet! Then last night my girlfriend Leslie hosted a pumpkin carving party where everyone brought an appetizer or dish to share (I brought this pumpkin dip that I'm obsessed with) and we carved pumpkins, it was so much fun. 

I attempted to do a preggo pumpkin, but forgot to bring the baby pumpkin to go inside so it didn't look right until after I got home and could finish putting the "C" baby pumpkin inside mine, ha.

 

 -This is a BIG week...

 I will be 30 weeks pregnant (what?! cah-razy), we have our 3D/4D ultrasound, and it's Halloween! That's a lot to love. Really excited to see that sweet little boy of ours again on Wednesday!

(sidenote: I thought the purpose of buying all the candy for our trick-or-treaters in advance was to just be prepared, but really it's been more like let's see how much I can eat and will have to replace before the night actually comes...)

-A pillow we had designed for Cam's nursery came in and also the cutest pom pom throw blanket that will sit on the glider! (now we just need that glider to come in any day now...)

Cortney at FaithHomeLove has the cutest custom pillow designs and I saw this one and knew right away it would be perfect for his room.

*use code 'KEEPCALM' for 10% off any order from her shop!

She even included this cute personalized note on the back of it for us...
l.o.v.e.

-Nesting. You never really understand it until your pregnant (at least I didn't) and whoa...no wonder why there is a specific term for this crazy behavior.

Basically what it's looked like for me lately is organizing and re-organizing Camden's room every other day, washing all his clothes and blankets, cleaning like crazy (and then reorganizing everything again), making lists of things we still need, and just not sitting still. EVER. In turn, I am truly exhausted

Hoping this doesn't last the whole third trimester and that soon I can take a chill pill....can we all say a little prayer about that? ;)
 How was your weekend?

Halloween is right around the corner!
I'm a huge fan of all holidays, but Halloween has always been at the top!

10.23.2014

8 Current Favorites


Untitled #62

Kate Spade Classic Weekender 
Dolce Vita Graham Boot (also comes in a tan)
Pom Pom Throw (love this shop!)
TRESemme Shine Serum (this won a bunch of beauty awards-I've been using it for a few months and am obsessed!) 
Benefit POREfessional 
Pearl 360 Studs (my favorite earrings are back in stock-also wanting to buy these
Tassel Poncho 
Bucket Bag

Just some current favorites of mine! Those earrings? Probably my favorite ones that I've ever owned. They don't bother my ears (usually my ears are really sensitive) and look so pretty.
 What's your favorite?
Happy {almost} end of the week! 

10.22.2014

Week 29 Bumpdate {Third Trimester!}


The details:

*Baby K is now the size of a squash!
*I'm up 18.5 lbs and am officially in the third trimester!! It occurred to me the other day that at this time next week I only have 7 weeks left until I'm considered full term.
*Craving Rita's Italian ice a lot lately (or any ICEE for that matter) and lots of sweets.
*Belly button still hasn't popped yet...
*Lots and lots of Braxton Hicks! 
*I PASSED my glucose test! Hooray! This was great news to get. I did also find out that dau that when they tested my blood that my platelet's are a little low (just below normal), so they will be monitoring them from here on out.
*Feeling really good overall (no back pain lately), working out is still keeping me sane, and I'm sleeping really well with no trips to the bathroom in the middle of the night! The sleep thing is funny though...once I get in bed, I'm out really quickly but it's the part about actually getting to bed that I'm having issues with. It's like a flip switched when I hit the third trimester and I feel like I have to constantly be doing something productive to prepare, so I've been going to bed later and later. Must work on forcing myself to go to bed earlier, and that the tasks will get done eventually!

Other important things to note:

*Enjoying: Baby kicks, being able to sleep well, getting all the baby items from our shower set up in his room! 
*Disliking: I will get some acid reflux here and there but it's not terribly bad. I've also felt a little more emotional/in a hurry to get things done more lately, like I said above.
*Random thoughts: I can finally see the end of our once massive to-do list! I remember making it at the very beginning of the pregnancy and adding to it here and there, and now there's only 3 things we need to get done. It feels really good!
*The labor and delivery tour that at the hospital we did was great! I'm glad we chose to do it this early on and that we are delivering where we are. It was really informative and I know it made both of us feel more prepared about when the time comes.
 *Our rock and play is set up...the pack and play is ready to be assembled...and we just got our car seat! I plan to do a big product registry post with my favorite items soon. 
*Looking forward to: Seeing our little man this time next week at our 3D/4D ultrasound appointment!! We haven't had an ultrasound since 19 weeks, so we absolutely cannot wait to see him again and how much he has grown!


As I mentioned yesterday, our couples "Baby Q" shower was this weekend! My girlfriends did the most amazing job! It was at a facility called The Barn, which is the same place I posted about this summer where we had my girlfriends bridal shower at. It was the perfect spot for a baby shower and went really well with the "Baby Q" theme! 

The food...oh my word, it was so delicious. I could've ate for hours ;) There were burgers, mac and cheese, baked beans, pasta salad, regular salad, dips, and more. Cupcakes for dessert and my girlfriend Rachel made the most adorable favors - homemade bbq sauce in little mason jars! 

There was also a big pitcher of apple cider sangria for the ladies (YUM! I definitely missed being able to have some of that!) and beer for the guys...


My best friend Lindsay printed out some of my weekly bumpdate pictures and used them in a banner going across the gift table with some baby onesies and socks, which I loved! Now I have some of my bumpdate pictures already printed out to put in a baby book! :)


Did I mention that I really enjoyed having Billy there with me?! It was so nice that he got to be a part of it and that some of his friends were there, too. 

It was a really great day and one that I know one day I will be telling Cam about!!

10.21.2014

CURRENTLY...

Dress here (non-maternity and on sale for only $20! Love it)

Hey there! Happy Tuesday!

I'm showing up late to the blog party (for the second week in a row) this week, which is never a great look so I apologize. The past two Sunday's we've had baby showers and I've been so exhausted afterwards (and busy organizing!) so the Monday's have been a little rough and usually consist of me really, really missing some caffeine.

I decided since I did a baby shower recap last week that instead I'm just going to tie our couples shower that happened on Sunday into my bump date for tomorrow (THIRD.TRIMESTER.PEOPLE!)

Instead, today you get all the awesome ramblings in my head and current happenings! 

+We got the moroccan pouf ottoman for Camden's nursery in the mail last week (from here!) It's perfect for our space and better than I had imagined. Much softer than it looks, too! I wanted something that I could later transition to a different room in our house, so this is perfect for that.

moroccan pouf ottoman, ottoman, pouf

+I can't get enough of the blanket scarves, just like practically every other girl/blogger right now. I can't help it, I want them all! 

Recently, I came across this one (in some of the best color combinations) and fell in love. If some of you haven't found the Target one I posted about last week, these are a great alternative and at a great price! You're welcome. :) 

 shop them here

+We went to the Circleville Pumpkin Show over the weekend and I only had ONE pumpkin related item...a big pumpkin ice cream cone that someone (not to name any names) was drooling over. 

I was unimpressed with the selection of items this year (and it was SO crowded!) - but we did also get some pumpkin donuts for the following morning, which were delicious as always...


+A special delivery came yesterday from my favorite little Texan and her hubby! 

She absolutely spoiled Camden rotten and got him some of the cutest gifts! Not to mention, had these hilarious hash tags written all over the box...(and yes, she did mail me maxi pads...she had a big unopened bag leftover and knew they are in my future, unfortunately. And let's face it, I appreciate it because going to the store to buy pads isn't exactly at the top of my list. She also sent lots of newborn diapers, and some treats for Rocky from Oakley. Girlfriend had it all covered!) 


+Speaking of Rocky. He's over here still being overly attached to his mama! It melts my heart! When he slept on me like this, I just kept imagining when the day that Camden is finally here and being able to see both of them together. I honestly can't wait for that!

and I definitely need to print this first pic for Camden's baby book!

+I've been using this Kate Spade planner for over a month now and couldn't recommend it enough. It's probably my favorite planner that I've ever had (which has been A LOT!) It's the perfect size and the weekly day pages are large enough for all my random to-do's!

+My girlfriends who hosted our couples shower this past weekend gave us one of the cutest gifts! They filled a really big basket with "post baby" items and had cute tags with explanations on each item. For example...this post baby date night wine, a candle, and some others! You all probably know how excited I am to crack open this wine, right?!



I can't believe that tomorrow I will be sharing my first third trimester bumpdate!

It feels crazy to even type that. See you tomorrow!
 

10.17.2014

Fall, Weekend Links


October 17th...how the heck has this happened?! Halfway through one of my favorite months already. Time can slowwww on down, preferably starting today!

I've been off my blogging game the past few days because I came down with a little cold (or could just possibly be my allergies acting up again) so I've got the whole stuffy nose, sore throat thing going on. I have some really great things to share next week, but in the mean time, here's some recent favorites // things happening (that I know you are so interested in):

+Buying this cardigan was a fabulous decision. It's adorable, OSU colors, and only $40. No brainer. *Update: I had some requests to for a full body shot of the cardigan...here you go!


+Bought this vest (but in the camo that I don't see available right now) back at the outlets when we were in Florida and LOVE it. Cough...on sale, ladies..cough.

+My glucose test was yesterday. That orange drink everyone tells you is terrible? Wasn't bad at all, in my opinion. It tasted like a thicker style Gatorade to me! I'm hoping to get the results back today and if I pass, these Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies are being made to celebrate.


+Fall is in full force over here! I can't drive anywhere without wanting to take a million pics of all the gorgeous trees and leaves! I need to soak it all up before winter, so tonight we are going to the Circleville's Pumpkin Festival. Billy says for as long as we live here, we will be going yearly. ha. I can't pass up pumpkin chili...or pumpkin donuts...

+Lusting over this quilted crossbody.

+Second baby shower happening this Sunday! My girlfriends are hosting it and it's a couple shower, so I'm thrilled that Billy will get to be involved and be there with me!

+Who's tried this foundation? I've heard great things about it for the longest time, but haven't pulled the trigger. Thinking it might be a good purchase for our little mister comes along.

+Also, has anyone ordered a glider from Buy Buy Baby and had it come in earlier than the expected time frame?! Please say yes? :)

See you all next week! Have a great weekend!

If you're wondering what big sales are happening this weekend: J.Crew Factory 30% off Clearance, Code: YAY30, Old Navy 25% off, Code: TREAT, Gap 25% Off, Code: HAPPY.

PS: You know those Target jogger sweats everyone has been ga-ga over (including myself)? Here's a really cute pair if you can't find the ones from Target. 

10.16.2014

To-Do List: In Review

Sometime back in the summer, I posted a lengthy to-do list to keep this pregnant brain of mine on track for the remainder of the year. I think I should make lists more often because I THINK I did pretty good at checking most of the items off our list...let's take a look...

+Take a road trip (Charleston is looking like a good possibility...)  

Check! Charleston it was! Happy that we were able to escape there for a long weekend. Recap here

+Put wainscoting up in the nursery 

I was just the supervisor on this project, all credit to accomplishing this goes to that husband of mine.
 
+Paint and decorate nursery (this is more like a must-so excited about this and all the projects we are contemplating for it!) 

Oh yes, almost finished! It was hard for me to not be able to help paint (fumes galore!), because a. I love to paint and b. I hated to sit back and just watch. I often sat outside the room in the hallway and played DJ on my phone while Billy painted...haha. And of course, put in my two cents here and there... ;)


 sneak peek (not of the paint obviously, but the decor...)

+Buy new patio furniture (possibly at the end of the summer when the sales are happening)

thank you, World Market for putting a great set on clearance! 



+Go on weekend morning bike rides with Billy at the Metro Parks  
Eh, we actually haven't done this as much as I would have liked but we have had a lot of fun Saturday morning exursions, so that counts, right? 


+Get a refrigerator (with a big freezer) to put in our garage  

Fail. We haven't done this yet and haven't really talked about it at this point. If we do, it might be a spur of the moment kind of thing. 
+Spend a Thursday (or 2) at Columbus Commons Downtown Live Concert Series (free music and food trucks!)
  
Yikes, another fail. No excuses for this one other than I completely forgot about it. 
 
+Plan a "babymoon" 

Success! We even went on it ;) Now if I could just rewind some time and make me back there for the week sippin' on nonalcoholic fruity drinks, instead of having to have my glucose test in an hour...


 
 +Continue working up our savings account

This one is super exciting for us! We hit our goal of what we wanted in our savings before baby K comes and now we are well over it. So happy and proud about that.

+Organize our basement (this is going to the biggest task of all-we have so many things we need to get rid of and we need to seriously organize all of the rest...it's a complete mess right now)

This was the task I was absolutely dreading! I put it off for a while but we finally got it ALL cleaned out and completely organized a few weeks ago!! Everything has a "place" now and it just looks 50x better, not to mention we got rid of so much stuff that we actually have a lot of space for baby items now without it looking too cluttered. We both felt so relieved afterwards, and I'm making a personal promise to myself to never, ever, ever keep so much stuff that I don't really need. Woof. 

+Put things we don't need on Craigslist or donate it! (all that stuff mentioned above that need new homes) 
  
We donated 3 car loads full of items to Goodwill! 
 
+Plan our annual cabrewing trip with friends! (minus the brew and add the sparking water for me..)

Sadly, this didn't happen. We got so busy with our schedule and so did everyone else, and them bam, the weather changed on us. That's what Ohio (and having a baby) will do to ya.
 
+New carpet in our upstairs 

We decided against this for right now. We might re-visit the idea later down the road but right now leaving it how it is! 

OK, soo what I've learned from this: I missed out on some of the smaller, fun events I had high hopes of us doing, but instead rocked those home projects and went on two trips. I'll take it! We still did get some other fun things squeezed in that weren't on my list, so I have to say overall I'm pleased and proud with what we've got done! I feel like a whole new woman, actually, and way more prepared for Camden's arrival!

Cheers (of water) to that.

10.15.2014

Our First Baby Shower


This past Sunday my stepsister, step mom, and my two stepbrothers wives (are you following? ha) hosted our very first baby shower at my parents house! It was such a surreal moment being at my own baby shower, it almost still didn't feel real until I was the one sitting in the front opening up the gifts! (which, by the way, is so nerve-wracking..I hate having all eyes on me!)

I really couldn't have asked for a better shower, they went above and beyond with everything they did and made it so special. The colors they used to decorate are Camden's nursery colors, which was such a nice detail because many of things they made/used they gave to me to put use in his nursery one way or another. Loved that idea! They served mimosas and Arnold Palmer's and used adorable mason jars with name labels for the drinks, which as you probably know I was a big fan of. For the food, they had cute ham sammies, pasta salad, salad, spinach dip, fruit kabobs, etc. Everything was so delicious!

The people in attendance were all of my aunts (on my Dad and Mom's side), cousin, coworkers of mine, family friends, my step nieces, and Billy's mom and sister even drove in for it. So basically, a lot of my truly favorite women in the same room-it was awesome. 

I really wish I would've taken more pictures, but obviously my first priority was just to soak up every minute and try to not be behind a lens the whole time! Here's some snaps of what I did get...

 

 
{the beautiful hosts-my dress is non maternity from Francesca's!}

One of the requests, that they had put on the invitation, was for everyone to bring a children's book instead of a card, with a note for Camden inside. It was so fun to read through what everyone wrote him and to have these to keep forever. Especially, all the notes from my little nieces that they wrote themselves about how they can't wait to meet their cousin. Oh, and not to mention, Camden already has a great library collection going!

{how grown up are all the little girls in my family?! I guess I can't say little anymore! They were all such a big help and I loved having them there. Camden has some great babysitters already! :)}
 

Camden is already feeling the love, that's for sure!! I feel (and still feel) so thankful for everyone that drove in to spend the day with us, and my family for planning such a thoughtful, beautiful shower! We had so much fun going through and organizing all his new things in his room that night...

 

I have to share a few of these personalized gifts! My stepmom made Camden this rocking chair and quilt! Amazing, right?! They couldn't look any cuter in his nursery, I love them so much. And that whale? My stepsister Mandy sewed it herself. My maiden name is Whalen, so naturally whales are pretty popular on my Dad's side of the family! That book? Completely customized for our little boy...heart was melted.

Once we get settled in at home afterwards, I went through this album they put together for me that had everyone's "Wishes for Baby" inside! I love that we have these to keep and look back on...

 
Couldn't have asked for anything more. Special thanks, again, to my family for hosting and everyone who took time out of their day to come if you're reading! :)

PS: Offically in the THIRD TRIMESTER as of today! Is this for real? Woo!