Someone needs to remind me...

... that I have a baby coming in 2 months!

I mean, obviously I haven't forgotten that I only have 10 weeks left until Baby H makes his debut... this big belly is enough of a reminder.  However, I should be reminded that having a child is not cheap!

The past few weeks I have been DYING to shop and blow some serious $$$.  I don't know what has gotten into me.  Just a few months ago when Jason asked me what I wanted for my birthday, I couldn't think of even one little thing.  Well, if he were to ask me now, my list would be longer than a kid's letter to Santa! 

Everyone keeps telling me not to buy baby stuff because we have all these showers coming up.  So instead, I decided to treat myself to a few goodies.  I deserve it, right?

Alex and Ani expandable bangle bracelets in Russian Gold.  I have been looking everywhere for bracelets to fit my tiny 5.5" wrists and have FINALLY found them!  I love them so much that I ordered another set in Russian Silver!  Thanks to Pink Lou Lou for posting these on your blog!

I have spent the past month cleaning out every closet, nook and cranny in our house to make room for the massive amount of baby stuff we will soon have.  What I found was that if I never went shopping again for makeup or toiletry items, I would still never run out!  Did that stop me from dropping by Sephora yesterday and picking up this expensive fun eyeshadow palette?  Nope!  It is the NAKED Palette from Urban Decay and is AMAZING!

Everyone I know that has a pair of TOMS shoes loves them!  After going through my fall clothes, I decided I needed a new pair of comfortable, casual shoes without a heel.  Most of my shoes for fall and winter have heels and that is not practical when I'm 8/9 months pregnant or hauling around a baby in a car seat.  So I went online and ordered a pair of these... only to find out when they arrived that I ordered the wrong size.  : (  Now I have to mail them back and wait for a new pair. Ugh!  At least TOMS is a good company - with every shoe purchase they provide a pair of shoes for a child in need.

With the sudden cooler weather, I had to stop by Yankee Candle and get some  new fall fragrance Car Jars.  Apple Cider is the one currently hanging in my car and smells delish!  Jason thinks it smells like an old lady's car.  I also picked up Spiced Pumpkin and Cranberry Chutney. 

That wasn't so bad, was it?  My mommy friends all tell me that once babe gets here, I won't buy things for myself anymore, so I better enjoy doing it now.  Well, that is one piece of advice out of the millions I have received that I am taking.  : )

New Blog Design!!!

I am ecstatic about my new blog design!!!  Shout out to Jenn at Munchkin Land Designs for doing such a wonderful job and being so easy to work with!  http://www.munchkinland-designs.com/

I think the "Family Makes A Home" theme is very fitting for my current place in life.  This past year has been full of ups and downs, gains and losses.  I lost my mom and gained a son.  I have had to change the priorities in my life and let family be my main focus.  

I have lived in Lexington for 10 years now and have resided in 7 different places (dorms, apartments, townhomes, houses, etc.).  That is the typical  life of a college student and young professional.  I know that our current residence won't be our last, but regardless of that, as long as I have Jason, Baby H and Lucie, I will always be "home". 

4D Fetal Photos!!!

Jason and I are using our 4 day weekend to get ready for our little babe's arrival in less than 3 MONTHS!  It finally feels like there is a light at the end of the tunnel.  I am so excited to finally meet our little guy, but would be lying if I said I wasn't terrified!  Mid panic attack, my husband reassuringly says "It will suck for one day and then it will be great."  What would I do without him?

To start the weekend off, we went to have 4D Fetal Photos taken at Lexington Fetal Photography.  Baby H had several people anxiously waiting to get a glimpse of him... Aunt Deanna, Aunt Nicky, Grandma Adele, Great Aunt Cynthia, Cousins Peyton, Cooper, Katie and Therese and of course Mommy & Daddy!

Here are a few of our favorite shots.  

We were able to get most of his body in one shot b/c he was so squished up.  His feet were up over his head and his hands are cupped over his ears.

My favorite shot - with his little hands over his ears.

Look at that cute little nose.

We didn't get to see much movement... it was his nap time.  Not sure how he slept through the jolt of sugar I gave him after drinking a bottle of orange juice.  Maybe I should have tried a Dr. Pepper and Candy Bar like my sister suggested.  Here is a video of the most movement we were able to see.

I can't wait to meet this little guy that likes to kick me all night! 

26 Weeks Preggers... 14 to go!

I have been so bad about  updating this.  Sorry! 

BUMP... 26 Weeks!  Lucie wanted to be in the pic too. :)

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 26 Weeks

Size of baby: Eggplant... at our ultrasound last week he was measuring at almost 2 pounds!  We've come a long way since the poppyseed at 4 weeks!  :)

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Since becoming pregnant I lost approx 13-15 pounds and at 26 weeks I have finally gained it all back.  And... can you believe my jerk of a doctor told me I might be gaining TOO much weight! 

Maternity Clothes: I have several maternity dresses that I wear often.  I can still wear my pre-pregnancy pants with the bella band, but it's not very comfortable.  I do love showing off the bump, so I have been opting for form fitting shirts instead of the "tent" shirts.

25 Weeks... visit to Boyd's Orchard

Gender: TEAM BLUE!  We've had a few ultrasounds since the gender determination one at 16 weeks and there is no doubt Baby H is a boy.  He proudly shows himself at every ultrasound.

Movement: This kid never stops moving!  I LOVE IT!  Pregnancy has been really miserable rough, but those kicks/punches/rolls/dance moves are the best feelings in the world! 

Sleep: Getting better at sleeping on my side.  I still have to make several trips to the bathroom through the night, but am able to get back to sleep quickly.  I usually go to bed around 9:30 and sleep til 6:45ish.  Haven't experienced much tiredness during the day, but that is probably b/c I get so much sleep at night.  I really hope that doesn't change.

What I miss: I gave in one day and ate Jimmy Johns... it was fabulous!!!  I miss being able to eat spicy foods.  They make my heart burn so badly!  No amount of Pepcid or Mylanta help!

Cravings: All of a sudden I have a sweet tooth!  One weekend morning I had to get out of bed, drive to Kroger in my pj's (t-shirt and sweats) and get a box of Fruity Pebbles.  I then proceeded to eat half the box!  Yummy!!!

Symptoms:  Still have all the symptoms from before, but have learned how to manage it better with medicine and diet. 

Best Moment this week: Every time I feel him move is the best moment!

BIRCHBOX - August

If you love trying out new beauty products, you need to subscribe to Birchbox!  Each month you receive, in the mail, a cute box with 4-5 deluxe samples of beauty products for only $10/month!  I imagine the company spends all of that $10 on the beautiful packaging.

 Here is what August's Birchbox looked like and what it contained...

1. June Jacobs - Papaya Purifying Enzyme Masque... it smells really good!  I haven't tried it yet, but I haven't met too many face mask's that I didn't like.

2. Ouidad - Climate Control Heat and Humidity Gel... if this works, it would definitely be something I would purchase.  I typically straighten out my curly hair b/c it can get pretty frizzy, but if this stuff works, I could wear it curly more often, meaning it would take shorter time to get ready in the morning and my hair would be less damaged from the flat iron and blow dryer.

3.  Shaveworks - The Cool Fix... I am giving this to my husband b/c it smells too strongly of mint and makes my stomach turn.  Since being pregnant, I can't handle minty tastes or smells.  I even have to use children's toothpaste.

4.  Smashbox - Photo Finish Foundation Primer... probably my fave product in the box.  I have already used it a couple times and love it!  It makes my skin look more smooth and my pores less visible.  

5.  Twistband - Hair Elastic... These are a hot item now, but I just don't see the point of having a big knot stick out the side of your ponytail.

The best thing about Birchbox is that each month I get to look forward to receiving a  pretty package in the mail with products that I can use to pamper myself... something that I will get to do less of when my little babe gets here in 3.5 months.

If you are interested in subscribing to birchbox, go to their website, register, fill out a survey about yourself (skin/hair type, beauty interests, etc.) and choose whether you want to do a month by month or annual.  If you want to know more about it before you sign up, there are a ton of video blogs on youtube about it.  Just search for "birchbox august 2011" and you can see what other people got.

Baby Moon in Miami

For those of you who haven't ever heard the phrase "Baby Moon" before... it the last vacation a couple takes before their family of 2 becomes a family of 3.

I had my heart set on taking a baby moon, but had been so sick up until a few weeks before that we weren't sure if we were going to be able to go.  I really wanted a nice, stress free trip to the beach before baby came and our trips became all about hauling baby equipment around and life-size cartoon characters.  Not that I don't look forward to traveling with our little babe eventually.  :)

Anyway... the flight to Fort Lauderdale (by myself... Jason was already there for a conference) was smooth.  Thank goodness!  I was so nervous about the possibility of getting sick on the plane.  Thank you Zofran!  Once landing, I met up with Jason and our friends, Mona and David, for a fun day at the beach.  

Virgin Pina Colada

The next morning we had the best breakfast I've ever had... french toast and ham at The Floridean.  Prior to the trip, my "morning" sickness had caused me to have a limited appetite.  That all changed the week of the trip.  I became a bottomless pit!  

 

 

 

I devoured all but 2 pieces of the french toast!

After breakfast, we headed to Miami for the rest of our trip.  Jason found us an awesome condo on 1st Street in South Beach for less than $150 a night.  That is unheard of in Miami... the Hilton hotel that the condo was in charged over $300 a night.  My husband is awesome at finding vacation deals!

View from our condo in South Beach.

We had a great time in Miami, with near perfect weather, but honestly, it isn't a place I would want to come back.  Traffic was horrendous!  It took us an hour to drive 10 miles away.  The city wasn't as upscale or clean as I imagined it would be... neither were the people.  Plus... it was too hot to walk anywhere, so you had to drive or pay for a cab.  We spent most of our time on the beach... which was fabulous!  I totally rocked the bikini, since currently I am all belly.  It's actually really cute.  I do have some baby bump pics on the beach, but I'm not brave enough to let those go public.  :)

Our last night in Miami, taken on the beach, minutes before a nasty storm rolled in.

Baby Bump - 21 weeks.  How cute is this cover-up?!

We did take an afternoon/evening and drive down to the Keys.  We were on a mission for Key Lime Pie and found some at a great beach side fishers market and restaurant in Islamorada.

Driving to the Keys... water on both sides of the road.

 We are lucky to have great friends, who kept Lucie for us while we were gone.  Here is a cute pic of Lucie and Willy on their way to the dog park.  Something tells me she didn't miss us too much!

Now that this vacation is over, I can't help but start thinking about the next vacation sometime next summer or fall.  Hmmmm... where to take a 6-9 month old????

The Help

I loooovvvved this book!  It isn't the type of book I normally read, but I had heard so many people talking about it, so I decided to give it a shot.  Immediately, I was hooked and finished it in no time.

I normally don't like movies after I have read the book, but I gotta say... the movie looks pretty good from what I've seen.  I'm a big fan of Emma Stone and think she will make a great Skeeter.  It comes out on August 10.  For those of you who haven't read the book... go get it today and believe me - you will have finished it by the time the movie comes out!  It's THAT good!