Back to Reality & A Birthday...

{our beautiful room at Kings Courtyard Inn}

We made it back safely from Charleston! 

We saw a lot. did a lot. walked a lot. ate a lot. and enjoyed ourselves a lot. Is there any other way to do vacation? I don't think so! This means, though, I have...a lot...of good things to share about. Travel posts are some of my favorite posts to write, so expect a recap in the next coming days once I sort through all the pictures {and thanks to those who have already told me they are looking forward to them-it definitely helps writing them knowing it will interest many of you!} and after I celebrate someone special today. I will probably split it into two posts even though it wasn't a week long trip, just because it's easier when having so many pictures.

In short, we are SO happy we decided to take this trip and cross off another city on our list. Charleston is gorgeous (hello 9mill mansions on Battery-I'm looking at you!) and didn't disappoint! Also, for those who are wondering about traveling with a dog here, I say go for it. Charleston is extremely pet friendly and we were able to take him to most places with us, including the beaches and restaurants. We absolutely love traveling with him and having him there with us (granted, he is the easiest dog in the entire world to travel with...he is pretty content if he's with us and is just the happiest dog all the time!)

Speaking of the little stud, it's his birthday today....

I can't believe our {first} "baby" is actually 7! SEVEN! Now I know what parents mean when they say time flies with kids because I feel the same way about him (yeah...yeah...it's true.) 

It's honestly hard to put into words how much we love Rocky. We can't imagine our lives without him, and don't want to. He is the sweetest, most gentle loving dog in the entire world. He wants to be wherever we are and is never not by our side. He has the funniest little personality and is so sweet with kids, strangers, etc. He makes us smile every.single.day and we really do think of him as our best friend. Not to mention, we think he is the cutest Pomeranian in the history of Pomeranian's! 

Celebrating him won't be hard...he's the best and will be spoiled rotten tonight. 

Be back soon with a full recap of our trip!

PS-There are still a few hours left to enter my Dr. Brown's giveaway (enter here!) and you can also enter to win a $100 Gift Card (here!) 

World Breastfeeding Week-Dr. Brown's Giveaway!

I would be lying if I said I wasn't intimidated about breastfeeding. Nipple covers....nipple creams....nipple shields...pumps! It's pretty much like a foreign language to me...

What I do know is that it's hard and takes a lot of dedication. I do plan to breastfeed with Camden and really want to give it my best effort since it provides the best and most natural nutrition for babies. I know it's not for everyone and situations can arise at any time so I make no judgement on those who choose not to. 

This year, Dr. Brown’s is celebrating World Breastfeeding Week (August 1-7) by recognizing the efforts of moms in celebrating breastfeeding. 

I've teamed up with them today before I'm off on vacation to celebrate all the hardworking breastfeeding mama's or mama's to be out there! 

The winner will be gifted a Dr. Brown's Gia nursing pillow, pillow cover of your choice, and an assortment of breastfeeding accessories. All you have to do is enter below! This giveaway will be open until next Thursday and the winner will be notified by email. Good luck!

*Interested in following our adventures in Charleston? Follow me on instagram!

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Week 18 Bumpdate {Camden James}

How Far Along? 18 weeks

Size of Baby: A sweet potato!

Weight Gain: I had a big growth spurt (Camden too!) these past few weeks and feel like I've officially "popped"! Before it looked more like a food belly, but now people are noticing an actual bump. Woo-hoo! Up a total of 9-10 lbs from my pre-pregnancy weight.

Maternity Clothes: Still using this band on my pants that I found at Target! My shirts are becoming more snug and I want to be comfortable in what I'm wearing everyday, so a maternity only shopping trip is happening soon.

Stretch marks: None yet (hoping it stays that way!)

Symptoms: My headaches are still happening and are really bad when they strike. During one, I was sensitive to light and it hurt to even keep my eyes open and head up, it was terrible! I haven't had one in the past 4 days though (knock on...keyboard?), so I'm trying to stay positive. Not really any other symptoms going on other than a growing waist!

Cravings: Nothing too crazy lately but I'm still loving any and all carbs...in particular waffles and Auntie Anne's pretzels. Can't even walk by or go into the mall without buying one!

Gender: BABY BOY! Camden James, or baby Cam as we've been calling him lately! :)

Mood: Grateful, thankful, happy, excited...you name it. 

Nursery: We have the color scheme decided! We're doing navy, white, gray, with some lime green accents. Navy is one of my absolute favorite colors so we went from there and like the combinations of all the others together. I have so many inspiration pictures and ideas in my head with these colors, and it's hard because I want to immediately start buying for it but I know I need to wait on some things and have it come together slowly. More about a theme for the room later...I have to leave something a surprise... ;) 

I'm not using these prints necessarily but these are the colors to give you an idea:

 

Also, Billy is finishing installing the board and batten tonight! He only has one small wall left then all that will be left to do is paint it, which shouldn't take very long but will have to be done after our trip to Charleston (yay!).

Movement: Yes! I always feel him at night when I'm laying really still on the couch. It's noticeable enough for me, but not enough for Billy to feel quite yet! I can't wait to be able to feel him more! 

Sleep: Still sleeping great.

Workouts: On the days I don't have headaches, I can get a workout in and it feels so good! I'm going to the gym about 3 times per week now, and trying to do something active whether it's walking or bike riding with Billy on the weekends.

What I Miss: The only thing I can think of would be a good run. I'm not really missing anything, but my workouts are less intense and since I enjoy fast paced workouts I'm not really having those anymore because obviously I don't want to wear myself out. 

Belly Button in or out?  In

Wedding rings on or off? On

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Nothing!

Best Moment This Week:  
 
1. Having our 18 week appointment at the doctor's to find out that Camden IS really a Camden, is healthy, and right on track! It was a major relief since this was a really important scan where they look at the brain, spine, heart, etc. We are so thankful! 

2. Sharing all about baby boy, his name, and celebrating with our family and friends. 

 {his first gifts from friends!}

Labor Signs: No

Looking Forward To: Going on vacation to Charleston, SC SO SOON!!! What's better than that?! I'm really excited to get away for a bit to relax, unwind, spend time with Billy, and head to the beach! 

Wondering about finding out the gender early / 3D ultrasounds?

I've been really looking forward to sharing about this whole experience. I can't recommend doing a 3D ultrasound (at Ultrasona for you Columbus gals!) enough during a pregnancy.  No offense to the standard monitors/ultrasounds at normal doctors offices, but seeing your baby in 3D (and able to count fingers, toes, and see it's mouth move up and down!) on a HUGE flat screen TV completely blows them out of the water. You can't even compare it. 

The experience was much more personal and comfortable than being in an office! In our specific location, the room was massive and even had a sectional to fit family members in case you wanted to bring them along. Our tech who was doing the ultrasound at Ultrasona was so informative and made the experience that much better for us by answering all our questions and pointing out all his features without rushing us. You can see your baby's features way more clearly (which in turn leads to better peace of mind for momma!), and most of the time you can get a CD or DVD included in the package. On our DVD they included our whole session on it and put a cute background song to it...I absolutely love watching it and it's nice to have to show our families! We loved it so much we plan to go back around 28 weeks to see him again when he's bigger, and I heard that around this time you can get a really clear picture of what he/she looks like since all the features are developed and they're much bigger! So neat. 

If you're wanting to find out the gender early or just want to see your baby in more detail or in a special way, this is what you'd want to do! 

*Week 15 Bumpdate
 

IT'S A....

{blocks from here}

....BOY!

"You'll be his first kiss, his first love, his first friend, you are his momma and he is your whole world. He is your little boy"

Phew...it feels JUST as good as I thought it would, if not more, to finally be able to share the news! I have a SON!!

A little info...

Our sweet little boy's name is Camden James. James is my Dad's middle name and we really wanted to name our son after him in some way. My Dad not only raised me as a single parent after my Mom passed away, but he has been the biggest support system for me my entire life and we look up to him in so many ways. He has always supported our relationship and is one of the best men I know. Camden was actually one of the only boy names that both Billy and I truly loved from the beginning. I wanted a name that you don't hear everyday, is strong, and has the option for a good nickname. Me and Billy have been calling him baby Cam lately and we love it. We could even call him C.J for short if we wanted, but we're still deciding our thoughts about that. ha.

Last night was so special. After our 18 week appointment (more on that tomorrow), we went to my parents house for a little celebration + dinner with 15 of our closest friends. It was so fun to be able to tell them the name and gender all together. Every person that was there has shaped my life one way or another and I'm so thankful for how supportive they have been.

 

 {my girlfriend Rachel made these onesie cookies! how adorable? she is so talented!}

It's crazy how much more real it is now that we can call him by his name. I find myself day dreaming about what he looks like (mini Billy please!), what his personality will be like, and playing sports in the backyard as a family. I'm so excited to be a boy mommy!

I have to say that my favorite part during this journey (have I said that a lot? I feel like I have) are the words Billy spoke to me after finding out a few weeks ago that we were having a boy. He told me, "God and your Mom gave us a boy so that now you have two boys to love you unconditionally and to protect you forever."

Mark that down as the first of many tears that will be shed now that we know it's a boy. Billy, I love you so much for that comment and basically for everything else and just being you. I hope our son is just like you!

Tomorrow on my bump date I will share more about finding out early via 3D ultrasound and our amazing experience at Ultrasona! And also, whoever says there isn't any cute clothes for baby boys is wrong. I have found some of the cah-utest baby boy clothes and am loving every single second of it. Just sayin'.

*We want to thank you all of you for the love, support, and kind words sent our way. They truly mean so much to us, and I am so so so thankful and grateful. Camden thanks you too, of course! If this post seems all over the place, forgive me, it probably is and it's because I'm on little sleep and my head is going in all different directions right now! :)