Five on Friday

It's Friday!!!!!! Yay!!!!

ONE
I realize my last couple of Friday posts make it sound like all I do is watch TV, but I swear I do other things. But a little couch time with Andy and the pup in the evenings is really all I'm up for. Anyway, my newest obsession show is Fixer Upper on HGTV. Chip and Joanna Gaines are so entertaining as a couple and I almost always love the work that they do. I would love to fly them to South Carolina and have them redo our house, however I doubt that's a possibility.

TWO
This crazy weather, and pregnancy, is doing a number on my skin. It's been beyond dry, especially my hands. I've come to carry multiple tubes of Aquaphor around with me. I use it head to toe and my skin can't get enough. Anyone have any other suggestions?

THREE
I should not be allowed to grocery shop hungry, so basically never after work, which is when I usually shop. Anyway, I was running down the frozen aisle to pick up some fruit for my smoothies, I swear, and saw the store was having a special that made Blue Bell ice cream $4! Blue Bell is my favorite and couldn't resist. Since it was a steal I decided to grab something different and picked up the Century Sundae. I love sundaes in general and love everything in this. I realize it may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I love it.

FOUR
It's Super Bowl Weekend! Honestly I don't care about either team this year, but I love the hype and excitement around the game. The Skimm did an awesome guide for anyone who wants to have a little background on the teams here. I'm mainly in it this year for the commercials. I've already seen the Budweiser commercial with the puppy and I almost cried in my office. Oops.

FIVE
My other favorite part of the Super Bowl is the food. I have a random bag of Ruffles chips that need to make their way out of my house so I don't eat them all myself, so my plan is to make a dip. I want to make something new this year and I have some bacon, cheese, and some diced peppers and onions in my fridge that need using up as well. Any ideas? Here are some Pinterest finds.

 

Neiman Marcus Dip

 

 World's Greatest Onion Dip

 Feta Bruschetta

Have a great weekend everyone! And remember to link up with the lovely Five on Friday ladies Darci, April, Natasha, and Christina.

A Productive Monday Night

I'm linking up with  Natalie and Annie for Thoughts for Thursday. Of course my post is about Monday nights so hopefully that's okay. ;)

I find it hard to do anything useful in the evenings after work, but it's especially hard on Monday nights usually. After not getting to sleep in that morning and then the first full day back at the office, I'm wiped out Monday nights. But on Mondays Andy has a basketball game and I decided to take that time to be productive. I weirdly don't like cleaning when other people are around. Insecure about my clean abilities maybe?

We are currently using what will be the nursery as a guest room. It's painted hunter green and is packed with furniture and junk. So I decided it was time to tackle the closet. I cleaned out luggage and gift wrap and so many random boxes of stuff it was incredible. Of course now we have an even bigger mess with the Goodwill pile and the "we have to wait until we move the furniture around" pile. Hopefully this is the beginning of nesting and I'll get through all the closets this week. Fingers crossed!

 

Just the beginning of the Goodwill pile.

While I was going through the closet I had a fantastic soup simmering on the stove. I made the Pioneer Woman's Corn and Cheese Chowder years ago and just remembered that I really liked it. Well, I'm here to tell you that it's super easy to prepare, makes the house smell amazing, and is surprisingly hearty. I may think about adding shredded chicken the next time, but honestly it's heavenly just as it is.

 

Are you super productive when you get home from work or not so much?

19 Weeks

How Far Along? 19 weeks

Size of Baby: Tomato (6 in, and we were told that she is already 0.9 oz, which is big for this stage, does that mean she might be early?)

Gender:  Sweet baby girl

Maternity Clothes: I have officially become obsessed with maternity leggings. Since I’m part of the “leggings are not pants” club, I only wear them at home or under a dress or tunic. Good grief they are the most comfortable things ever! I have them in black, but I think I’m going to grab them in a couple other colors soon.

Nursery: I cleaned out the closet in the guest room, which was full of luggage and gift wrap, which is a start. I think we are going to move the current furniture out this weekend and start prepping for paint!

Movement: I feel her only sporadically and only when I’m lying down at night being really still. It feels like a bubble rises to the surface of my belly and then pops. I’m still wishing for the more defined movements.

Symptoms: We took a quick road trip this weekend and my lower back ached for the next two days. Is this a symptom of pregnancy or am I just old?

Sleep: Still great and praying it continues. I’m getting a little worried though, because I always start on my left side, but always wake up on my right. The body pillow I keep talking about, but still haven’t purchased may help with that.

Cravings: Nothing really. I’m still enjoying my kindergartener lunch of a peanut butter sandwich, a (reasonable) handful of Pringles, and some kind of fruit or yogurt every day.  Is it a fresh salad with a lemon dressing? No. But it’s all I really want and it keeps me from buying lunch every day.

What I Miss:  Sushi! A couple girls in the office asked if I wanted to go to lunch with them and when I asked where they were going they said a sushi place. I know I could have gotten a stir fry, but it’s not the same. I also know that some doctors say it’s okay for pregnant women to eat sushi, but honestly it’s not worth the worry I’ll do afterward, so I’ll just hold off.

Best Moment This Week: Andy and I had been looking at a couple cribs and furniture sets for the baby here in Columbia. We found out our favorite store had a discount warehouse in Charlotte, so after church we spontaneously decided to ride up and check the place out. We assumed there was no way they would have our top choice discounted, but we figured we could find something similar. There were only about two dozen random pieces of furniture in the warehouse, but low and behold if our dream crib wasn’t sitting in the corner at half price! We checked to make sure nothing was wrong with it, but they explained they just got a newer model for the show room and nothing was wrong with this one. It was packed in the car 30 minutes later and we were on our way home. It’s nice to know that even if we get nothing else, our baby will have someplace to sleep.

Looking Forward To: We will be halfway through the pregnancy next week and hopefully the nursery will start to take shape.

Five on Friday - Birthday Edition

It was my birthday on Wednesday and I had a fabulous day. Here are the five best things about that day. Remember to link up with these ladies Darci, April, Natasha, and Christina.

ONE
I celebrated a day early with my mom by having high tea at our favorite little tea house Laura's Tea Room in Ridgeway, SC. I've talked about this before, but it really is a wonderful experience. The food is great, the tea selection is impressive, and every detail from the tea cups to the table settings are planned to a T. (pun intended.)

TWO
I had my nails done and just couldn't take anymore dark colors so I decided to go with Essie's Mademoiselle. I love it! It's a really light, delicate pink and so pretty. I've also been using Burt's Bees Almond Hand Cream and it's amazing!

THREE
If you live in an area with a Cupcake store, then you know you get a free cupcake on your birthday. I stopped by after work to pick mine up and oh was it good.

 

FOUR
Andy really hit it out of the park with the birthday present this year: a prenatal massage! I don't think I've ever been so excited about a massage in my life, which is saying something because I'm always excited about a massage. Question is: should I use it now or wait until I'm big and achy? 

FIVE
I got the very best present of my life the night before my birthday, I felt my daughter move in my belly for the first time. I wasn't sure if the little bubble was actually her, but it was and it was amazing. I just laid in bed, smiling from ear to ear, and thanking God for such a wonderful blessing.

18 Week Bumpdate

 

How Far Along? 18 Weeks and 1 day

Size of Baby: Sweet potato (5.5 inches)

Gender:  Sweet light girl

Maternity Clothes: I can still fit into most of my normal clothes, however I have been rocking my maternity jeans a lot lately because they are so much more comfortable! They are still a little big and I have to hike them up, but it’s worth it to not have those angry red indentions in my belly at the end of the day.

Nursery: I’m so ready to get moving on this room, but it’s still a guest room at the moment

Movement: I was lying in bed reading the other night and I felt something like an air bubble rise to the top of my very low abdomen. I didn’t think much of it until it happened again, but a little stronger. I totally freaked! Andy had just come into the room and I yelled “I think I just felt her move. I’m not sure, but I really think so!” I quieted back down, smiling from ear to ear, and felt it one more time before I fell asleep. I called my mom the next morning and she said her first movements felt exactly the same. I am thrilled and now every night I lie really still and concentrate really hard in the hope of feeling her again.

Symptoms: I think I’ve started having pregnancy brain. I’ve started stories and forgotten where I was going in the middle and I’ve left the room and forgotten what I was headed to get. It’s so frustrating. Also I’ve had developed potty and nose blowing breaks. The runny nose is out of control. TMI? Not sure if it's due to the crazy changes in the weather or pregnancy though.

Sleep: Still sleeping great and so thankful for it. I really need to start training myself to only sleep on my side, but every morning I wake up partially on my stomach.

Cravings: Nothing really. I’ve had the same thing for lunch every day of this week and last week and weirdly have not minded a bit. I’ve been really trying to incorporate smoothies into my diet for breakfast for a fruits and veggies boost and that’s been great.

What I Miss:  Nothing really, I’ve been pretty content this week.

Best Moment This Week: Hands down the best moment was feeling my little girl move in my belly. I wish it was a more defined movement, but I know that will come in time. I’m sure when she is kicking me in the ribs or bladder I’ll look back on this time and laugh. Also, Andy and I went and registered this week. I had walked around the store with my mom and then with a friend who is a new mom recently so I felt pretty prepared. I was really excited that Andy went with me as well, he has a calming effect on me when I get overwhelmed. And he has no intention of being a backseat dad, so he needs to know what all this stuff is as much as I do.

It's My 29th Birthday!!!!!

 

Yay for the last year of my 20's. I'm so blessed and thought this would be a great time to reflect on that last year.

- I traveled to:

College Station, TX

Orlando, Florida

Charleston, SC

Greenville, SC

Charlotte, NC

Raleigh, NC

Greensboro, NC

Atlanta, GA

Winchester, VA

Washington, DC

Baltimore, MD

Lancaster, PA

- I went to Disney World: Epcot for the first time in my life. It's always been on my bucket list to go as an adult before we had kids.

- Celebrated Camden's 1st birthday.

- Went to four Gamecock football games and saw tons of friends.

- Visited another SEC school campus when I went to a conference at Texas A&M.

- Celebrated two years in our house.

- Rode on a private plane, which was way scarier than I thought.

- Spent 4th of July at the beach with friends.

- Welcomed two new members (babies) to our close circle of friends.

- I stood by a dear friend as she became a wife.

- We joined a church.

- Andy and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary with a trip to Greenville, SC.

- Saw snow TWICE in South Carolina.

- Watched and actually cared about the outcome of the World Cup.

- Read lots of fun books.

- Eat at a vegan restaurant and liked it so much that I've been back multiple times.

- And the biggest thing to happen was: Andy and I found out we were expecting and a daughter is on the way. What better way to get excited about the upcoming year of life than a new baby?

I'll leave you with some of my favorite sayings about birthdays and getting older.

Five on Friday

Yep, I'm doubling up on my posts today because, well, I was behind on my bump post and I love Five on Friday, so there you go. Make sure to link up with these lovely ladies Darci, April, Natasha, and Christina.

ONE
I am ashamed to say that my fruits and veggies intake lately has not been good. Who knew Pringles were more satisfying than carrot sticks? So I have made a deal with myself that I need to bring back smoothies for breakfast. I love the idea of assembling little packages of ingredients in the freezer and then pulling them out when needed. What do you put in you smoothies?

TWO
Speaking of food, I am weirdly excited to say that I have plans to make The Pioneer Women's Tomato Soup tonight for dinner. I love soup but very rarely make it from scratch. I have great intentions of serving it for dinner tonight and then freezing the rest. I love stocking the freezer.

 

THREE
To continue on the food theme, I have found my new favorite show. It's an odd one so prepare yourself, The Great British Bake Off. My mom suggested I record an episode off our local PBS channel and I'm obsessed. I love cooking contest shows anyway and the hosts and judges are so entertaining. Of course, you can't find the previous episodes anyway but Youtube, so I sit hunched over my laptop at home scanning to find them. The one liners from this show are pure gems.

FOUR
Alright, step away from the food pregnant lady! Moving on to a different obsession, man's best friend. I saw this print on Pinterest and love it. I've learned all of these things from our dog Camden and may have to hang this somewhere in our house.

FIVE
We are actually expecting 60 degrees and sunny tomorrow in Columbia, which will be the first nice weekend day we have had in a long time. We are planning to take Camden to a dog park and let him run off some of that energy and just get some fresh air after a long week of being inside.  

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

17 Weeks

How Far Along? 17 weeks and one day

Size of Baby: Turnip (What to Expect tracker says 5 in, 5 oz, but we found out last week she was at least 6 oz.)

Gender:  Baby Girl!!!!

Maternity Clothes: My mom and I went shopping for maternity bottoms last week and came home with two pairs of dress pants, a pair of corduroy pants, a pair of jeans, and a pair of leggings. I tried out a pair of the dress pants for work and they were SOOOOO comfortable. I may never go back to real pants.

Nursery: I dropped the ball last weekend and didn’t pick up the paint samples so that’s on my list again this weekend. Along with our maternity clothes shopping my mom and I stopped by Babies R Us, Buy Buy Baby, and the fabulous Baby Furniture Plus in Columbia, SC (which doesn’t sound special but quickly became my "baby happy place") to look at cribs.

Movement: Still nothing. Since the ultrasound tech said I basically have a pillow blocking all the little kicks I’ve convinced myself not to expect anything until around 20 weeks. However I would LOVE to feel something earlier.  

Symptoms: Just the usual, a little heartburn, a little nasal congestion, a few headaches, nothing to complain about. Since I've started the beginnings of a bump I've started with the belly lotion in the hopes to keep stretch marks at bay. I got stretch marks on my hips during my last growth spurt in high school, so I know I'm susceptible to them. Fingers crossed!

Sleep: I’m still sleeping great and through the night. I can’t tell you what a blessing this is. However since the weather has been getting colder, it’s been extra hard to get out of bed. I feel like I could sleep all day. Clearly I’m still waiting on that elusive second trimester energy spurt.  

Cravings: Plain Pringles. I mean really, who still eats Pringles? Well I do and would eat the whole can in one sitting if I let myself. I allow myself to have a small amount each day and then I have to put them away. And this seems to work 75% of the time ;)

What I Miss:  This sounds a little weird, but I miss Andy offering to let me try his drink when we go out. I don’t care about ordering a beer or drink of my own, but I’m so used to Andy offering to let me try his and it almost hurts my feelings that he doesn’t do it anymore. Of course I know why he isn’t offering, it’s odd, I know. Hey, I didn’t say it was the most rational thought I’ve ever had.

Best Moment This Week: A few days after we found out we were having a girl I stopped by a store and just had to purchase a couple little dress. I honestly couldn’t help myself. I shamefully told Andy about them when he got home from work. He laughed and said that he had also been out shopping that afternoon and happened to pick up some super sweet little girl clothes as well. I was shocked and so pleased. Our daughter clearly already has BOTH of us wrapped around her little finger.

Looking Forward To: We’ve got some of our very dear friends coming to town this weekend, who also happen to be the parents of a beautiful almost one-year-old little girl. I have every intention of racking their brains on all things baby, especially the baby registry. Am I the only one who is super intimidated by baby registries? I loved creating our wedding registry, but the baby registry seems to stress me out.