I'm baaaaaack! Maui was wonderful and we had a great time. I'll definitely be showcasing it this week. :) We took a ton of baby bump pictures and had a very relaxing trip. Today we're back to reality and I'm a little sad about that. Much to look forward to though as my first baby shower is approaching this Saturday! All of my girlfriends are coming to town and I can not wait! Hopefully this week goes by quickly...

couldn't quite fit the chalkboard into the luggage...

Our second night in Maui M took this of me on our way to dinner. You will notice a theme with my attire. It's called "all I can fit into are maxi dresses." Good thing I have a few and they are still in style! 

AWESOME

-big grins I got from strangers who were admiring my bump

-an old man telling M I was just "beautiful and glowing"

-a lady telling M that I was the cutest prego she ever saw

-not sucking my stomach in once while wearing my bikini all week (the perks to being prego!)

AWKWARD

-looks of sheer disgust that I got from strangers (ahem old ladies above 70) who were appalled that my bump was getting some sun

-drinking virgin drinks that looked alcoholic

-having to make sure my belly didn't "run ashore" on the coral while I was snorkeling

-the lady who said "i'm guessing that's not a beach ball under your dress!"

 

one last shot 2 hours before our plane departed

How far along? 29 Weeks

Total weight gain: 16 pounds
Maternity clothes? still workin' some non-maternity tops and jackets (if left unzipped) but I'm wearing the crap out of my maternity jeans
Stretch marks? i think the one i previously freaked out about was already there and i never realized it
Best moment this week: all the sweet comments from strangers about my lovely bump
Miss Anything? missing raw sushi, and alcohol while on vacation. also missing the ability to move quickly. oh and not having to use the restroom in every store we go into!
Movement: all the time! and i still love it.
Food cravings: not really, lovin' everything and back to enjoying sweets...

Anything making you queasy or sick: nope
Gender: Girl - and I'm still over the moon about it!
Labor Signs: No, but in 7 weeks she will be fully cooked!
Symptoms: the back pain is kickin' in and i am NOT loving it, also it is REALLY hard to get up out of chairs...not to mention off the floor
Belly Button in or out? IN! it survived Maui without making an appearance.
Wedding rings on or off? on, it's winter and my fingers get cold and skinny!
Happy or Moody most of the time: excited but nervous... i am getting so close (and the room is not done yet!)
Looking forward to: going to her 3D appointment this Saturday with my BFF's. can't wait to see that sweet face in 3D!


Yesterday I was very happy because M installed B's handmade mobile above her bed and we purchased her pretty white ruffled curtains (after driving to 3 different Targets!). I can't wait to take down the shutters and install those bad boys this week! I bet M can wait... I was very proud of myself though because I purchased my curtains at Target for $19.00 a pop and very similar ones were at pottery barn for $79.00 a pop! Ouch!


I missed you guys while in Maui. It's good to be home!

Maternity Monday will be back in a week, along with the rest of the blog. Right now I'm Maui Monday. :)

what i'm doing this week. just add a 7 month prego belly to this shot...

One of my good friends suggested to me that I talk about some of the things that I DON'T want to do as a mommy. She promised me I would laugh about all the ideas I had while pregnant that never came to fruition as an actual mommy in the real world. Here comes a bunch of empty promises...

I PROMISE TO...

not make special meals for my kids. I refuse to be a short order chef.

not let stuffed animals take over my child's room.

not let my child sleep with me in the bed overnight

not let the dog sleep with my child...unless it's for a picture :)

make my own baby food with the magic baby bullet I got for Christmas

never let my kid wear Disney or decorate their room in Disney. unless we are at Disneyland.

have many people watch my child so she doesn't have separation anxiety

get out of the house and get dressed. do I dare say every day?

be a fun mommy who does crafts. this should be easy since i have taught Kindergarten and 1st grade...

get in running shape again while baby rides in the stroller.

be ever grateful that i get to be a stay at home mommy. this one i think i can do :)

Well, tomorrow is the day we are off to Maui! This makes me happy. The blog will not be in action while I am gone so I apologize in advance for being MIA. See you all in a week! Can't wait to fill you in when I get back! 

PS one of our offers was countered on one of my dream homes... keep praying for it to work out! YAY!!!!!!!!!

Some of you may know that I adore scrapbooking. I'm finding that it is harder and harder to find time to get my projects done though. :( This I imagine is only going to get worse once baby arrives. Therefore I am getting in one last hurrah and have created a pregnancy scrapbook. Baby #2 will be lucky to have one of these. Below is a snapshot of what I have been working on...

thanks to my blog I have great journaling!

sweet girl

watch me grow!

 I also bought a darling scrapbook for when Blair comes. Here's to being ambitious!

I should have titled this lazy Wednesday. I got home from my doctor's appointment yesterday with the sun having already set. So Work it Wednesday wasn't an option. Lucky for me I have a few maternity photos up my sleeve from my dear friend Carrie. :) I tagged along on a maternity shoot she was doing for another girl. She snapped a few photos of me for my upcoming baby shower (can't even wait!) to use as decor.

I was so not prepared for this shoot! When she walked in the door to pick me up I was scrambling to find something to wear. I thought that I was going to fit into my summer dresses no problem. Um, BIG problem...aka my belly. I made this little number work but promised I would be more prepared for the next time. :) 

 

We actually took these pictures in a pretty rural place so the cowgirl theme worked. :) And those were definitely NOT maternity jeans. It was fun wiggling into them and then trying not to expose my gaping open fly...

Below are just two of the actual maternity photos she shot that day for her friend. How beautiful is she? And TINY!!!

her belly button looks just like a real button! the first outie where i can honestly say is adorable

What should I wear for my "real" maternity photo shoot when I'm ready to pop? I definitely would love to do soft colors or whites but I'm just having a hard time picturing my outfit in my head. If this is my biggest dilemma during pregnancy then I'll be pretty happy... :)

Although it is ironic that I be posting about weight loss at this point in my life I realized it could inspire others. I've been meaning to share my story about weight loss and Weight Watchers mainly because it can be amazing! I enjoy reading about other people's success stories and seeing their before and after photos so I thought, "hey, why not."

Tis the season to be losing weight after all with all those new year resolutions. That is how it all started for me. On January first of my junior year of college (2005) I decided it was time. My mom had had great success with the program so I decided to give it a try on my own without the meetings. I'll never forget losing those first three pounds during the first week of the program. I was stoked! 

2003 packin' heat

summer 2004, looks like i'm smuggling acorns in my cheeks!

the week I started WW...3 pounds down. :)

While my roommates insist that I was never "fat" I surely was not comfortable where I had ended up...a whopping 145/150 pounds! At 5'4 this does not look cute. I wasn't comfortable with my body and wanted to look back at my college pictures and have them be the best pictures of my life, not the worst. M was supportive and slowly (and I mean slowly) the weight started to come off. About five months after I had been "counting my points" I was able to be more confident at my 21 birthday. I will never forget when some guy friends of mine asked me if I had lost weight at my birthday party. Best present EVER! I was so excited they had noticed.

5 months into WW...not quite there but getting closer!

By the time Halloween rolled around that year I was ready to show off my new self! And every girl knows that in college Halloween is practically a religious holiday. ;) Not that I'm totally proud of my "sexy cave girl" costume but I was darn proud of all the weight I had lost! 

after losing about 25 pounds, weighing in at 122

 

Even though I'm not a representative for Weight Watchers it really helped me get on track to a healthy lifestyle. I finally figured out how to exercise and eat right to maintain a healthy weight. I just regret that it took me till my second half of college to figure it all out. 

I have been pretty good at maintaining my weight (minus being pregnant) at 125 for the last 6 years. It is definitely a conscious effort that I have to make every day when making choices about what to eat. I have loved learning how to run to stay in shape as well. It's cheap and is such a great full body workout. Finally, here I am on my wedding day. The happiest day of my life (so far) that is until baby makes three...

117 on my wedding day...I did it! 

I will say that I just about DIED when I went to the doctor at my last appointment and the scale read 143! I have officially returned back to my pre WW weight. The only difference is now it's because I have a baby in my belly. :) So I guess I'm OK with that. When I got pregnant I was at 129 so that's a total of 14 pounds gained so far. I'm hoping not to go over 25-30 pounds gained total. Do-able? I sure hope so! Time will tell...

It will be interesting to go back to WW post baby. How many points are in half a box of Kraft macaroni? Ughhhhhh I don't even want to know!

PS today I go to the doctor again. Can't wait to get on that scale...

It's official... I am in the crazy "nesting" mode. Anyone but my husband would have killed me this weekend. On Friday night I packed for Maui and then Saturday I got really crazy and cleaned out the ENTIRE guest room/office. Then on Sunday morning M painted all the baseboards/picture rails in the office since we never completed that when we moved in 5 years ago. Here is what the room liked after...

empty with fresh paint on the trim

After we painted we went to pick up the baby furniture that came in this weekend. We were quite the sight driving down the road at about 35 mph. M's truck was loaded sky high and I was packed full in the SUV behind him. I've never felt like I fit in more in Riverside than I did then with our precarious load...

And then the craziness ensued with my brother's help of lifting/unpacking furniture that weighs more than I do (and that's saying a lot now-a-days!). M put together the entire crib, which was no easy feat, and unpacked the dresser, glider, and nightstand. I helped by neatly folding all of Blair's clothes and adding details like throw blankets and pillows. :) Here is the crazy nester herself...

I did manage to take this photo in the middle of our moving furniture

This is the first week where I thought to myself, I'm starting to get so big that it's not cute anymore. Um and I have 13 more weeks to go?! Are you joking me?

AWKWARD:

-the pain that's starting to occur more frequently in my lower back. Boo. 

- the way that some of my bikini's and sundresses fit. I had a mini fashion show for M while packing for Maui and he had to kindly tell me some things just weren't covering cutting it.

AWESOME

-getting my hair done

-getting another pre-natal massage (half off!)

-still rockin' an innie!

-so looking forward to Maui this Saturday!!!!

 

I can't wait to show you some of the progress we made on the nursery but I'm funny about things being done before I reveal. I'll have to post some snippets this week but I am far from being finished. Here is my "to-do" and "to purchase" list...and hopefully some of these things are purchased and received at my upcoming showers! A girl can dream, right?

to purchase

chandelier

large rug

bumper/bedding

curtains

changing pad covers

baskets/organizers

to do

install mobile

install chandelier

install curtains

hang Blair's name (ordered from Etsy)

learn how to take care of a baby :)

Sigh. Lots to do but SO much to look forward to! I have another doctor's appointment tomorrow to see how Blair is doing. It's been a productive and crazy weekend to say the least. On Sunday we were working on her room from 8am to 9pm. I'm one insane mama!