october is one big question mark

*24 week bump (can't believe this was 3 months ago!)

Well here we are, in the 9th month of my pregnancy. Things are getting a bit uncomfortable now... with moving like a turtle, heartburn that makes me feel like a fire-breathing dragon, serious back aches, all the peeing, a lack of sleep, and the waddling. Oh and getting myself dressed is usually accompanied by a tune of grunts and groans. But we're happy and loving that Baby Girl is coming soon! There's only about 5 more weeks that she can possibly stay in there, so I'm starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel.

My due date is October 29. My mom had me 3 weeks early and my brother 4 weeks early. And my doctor did say that may lead to me going into labor early. So I kinda feel like October is one big question mark. We don't have many set in stone plans, except working and little outings. We're just waiting now. Waiting for Baby Girl to make her debut. Everyday, Bryan asks me if "today's the day". And everyday, I have to tell him I'm not really sure. But feel free to come whenever you are ready, Baby! We're so excited to meet you! :)

happy birthday, momma!

Today is my mom's birthday. And while I won't say how old young she's turning, I will tell you that with each year, she gets a little more special to me. I'm not sure if it's her age that's making her special to me. I'm pretty sure it's my age that's making me appreciate her for all that she is to me. I'm certain there is no one like her. I love her for all that she is and all that she does. My mom has constantly been there for me, always. And I'm so blessed to have her as my mother.

Happy birthday, Momma!

the corn maze

This past Sunday, Bry and I drove up to Lyman Orchards to go see what this Yankees/Red Sox corn maze was all about. Bry and I are super excited for fall {as we always are} and are trying to do anything and everything fall this season, at least, things that I can do these days. I didn't think a corn maze would be that strenuous so we checked it out. The maze had Yankees and Red Sox logos carved into them, and there were trivia questions to "help" us navigate through. Well, we got lost a few times and I had some Braxton Hicks contractions, but we made it out alive. We even were given some stickers that said, "I Survived the Maze". Afterwards, we got ourselves some apple cider and people watched. I love Sunday afternoons with my hubby.

thanks, bonnie!

Hey, it's been quite a while since I've blogged. And it might be a little bit on and off these next few months while we're gearing up and adjusting to baby. But I'm here now to say thank you to Bonnie. Bonnie and I went to college together and she blogs over at feeling bloggy. She nominated my blog for the Versatile Blogger Award- and I need to say thank you! I'm honored!

All I have to do to accept this award is share 7 things about myself {most of which you'll probably already know}. So here goes nothing...

1. I love my hubby. Like alot. He's probably my favorite person ever!

2. Most of my closest friends live far away from me, which makes me sad from time to time.

3. I'm not sure I could live anywhere except New England. The four seasons are way too much apart of what I love about life. 

4. I hate bare toe nails on my own feet- my toenails are always painted. 

5. I'm trying to be a good housewife, but on many occasions, I fail. The dirty dishes and I don't get along too well and just avoid one another...

6. The beach is one of my happy places. So peaceful and pretty!

7. Our baby girl is coming in October! Yaaay!!

If I were going to nominate anyone for this award, it'd have to be my friend Brit's blog, A Journey Down Twenty-Something. Brit stopped blogging for a while, but maybe this will get her to start up again :) Also, if I could, I would nominate my sister-in-law's blog, which should be getting created asap. Kels, get on it- hint, hint! You've got too many great ideas and projects not to share!

Thanks again, Bonnie!

evening walks

Evening walks have become our favorite activity. We just walk and walk and it counts as exercise in my book so we've got a win-win. And most of the time we just chat about whatever we feel like- meal planning, baby, to-do lists, family, finances, the future. Anything really. And we love that we can just go outside and walk rather than sit in front of the tv and not talk. Even if Braxton Hicks contractions make their typical debut, my walking buddy always offers to stop and wait {and I always refuse the piggy-back ride}.

I am a little sad that the days keep getting shorter and in only a matter of time, we won't be taking evening walks because it'll be too dark. However, sometime around then, we'll be welcoming our little babe into this world and after the cold winter passes, we'll be out walking with a stroller. A little family of three. Aaahh, I can't wait! :)

30 weeks

30 weeks means 3/4 of the way there... holy cow!

Going to the doctors every two weeks now.

Feeling bigger and less mobile everyday.

Averaging about 1-2 naps a day {and I'm literally so grateful to have a flexible schedule right now!}

Little Miss kicks me every time I lay down. Every. Time. And I love it.

Walking has become more of a waddle- and I'm embracing it because it's so much more comfortable to waddle.

Getting more and more excited to meet her all the time!

And falling a little more in love with my cute husband. Ahh, I love him so much :)

my baby shower

I can't believe my baby shower has come and gone already. It was about 85 degrees with high humidity. Meaning, I actually asked for a break opening presents because my thighs were sweating and I had to pee- such a pregger I am now :) That's why we all look like we're melting. It was a special day with lots of love for our baby girl. We are so blessed with such loving friends and family.

My momma & I

Britty made the trip from NY for me!

 Jacki got me the elephant blanky I wanted! Yay!

The cake was sweating, too.

Can you tell how excited I was by my raised eyebrows in all the pictures?

Love Jenn's present- a clothing wreath with all the clothes tied onto it.

Proud of her Auntie status!

And lastly, for the picture everyone seemed to love... Jacki took this and posted it on her Instagram and I stole it and posted it myself.

:)

Thank you to all who attended my baby shower and especially to those who helped. You all made me feel so much love for our almost-little family of 3. Love you all.

gabe's first birthday!

On Saturday, we happily attended Gabe's first birthday party! I can't believe he's almost a year old. It feels like just yesterday that I was holding him and he was 8 days old. Crazy how time flies! He had the cutest Veggie Tales themed birthday party. Jenn did a great job with all the decor and planning.

{Singing to their boy. Cutest thing ever}

Isn't he the cutest?!

Love you, Gabey baby!

do you like pizza and duckpin bowling?

Do you like pizza? Do you like duckpin bowling? If you like both, you're in luck! Even if you just like thin crust pizza and you live in the Fairfield County area, you need to try out the Pinner Lounge. Located right next door to the Duckpin Bowling Alley on Barnum Ave in Stratford. Even if you're not a big bowler, there's still great pizza, beer, and wine!

Oh, and my stepdad is the manager. :)

a busy, busy week

My, my! What a busy week this has been! Busier than most weeks now for me. This summer has been pretty relaxing for me, you know without much work to accomplish, it's just been me and my air conditioner while hubby is at work. However, my Jenni-Rae and her cute little family have been in town, so we've been trying to squeeze in every possible minute together. I've also picked up some tutoring hours, so we're back to commuting again. It feels like I've been here, there, and everywhere lately. And it's not slowing down over the weekend either. We have Gabe's first birthday party tomorrow and then my baby shower on Sunday so things aren't going to stop until Monday. However, it's all good busy-ness. All good things.

I'll be back next week with pictures from Gabe's party and the baby shower.. But here's an instagram of a gift that's already been sent to me...

Now if I only had someone who could sit in it already!

sal

Just a quick post to say...

Happy Birthday, Sal!

Love you lots!

the olympics & the distracting pup

We've been watching a lot of the Olympics with Kels and Jackson. 15 hours yesterday to be exact... I'm pretty sure Bryan wants to be an Olympic athlete in the next games. For which sport, you might ask? The decathlon. Dream big, babe!

Sometimes Jax distracts me because he wants to eat my popcorn. He's kinda got that whole beggin' doggy face down, don't ya think?

Happy Olympics-watching to all! :)

realizations & ramblings for your Wednesday

{26 weeks pregnant / pic from 3 days ago}

+ Inner tubes in the pool are God's gift to pregnant women in the summer.
+ I really want to go to NYC. ASAP.
+ Attempting to put on my makeup while listening to "I'm Already There" by Lonestar was the worst idea ever.
+ Grey's Anatomy is one of my favorite shows.
+ My husband is the ultimate fly swatter/killer. He rocks.
+ Speaking of, these flies are out of control this summer. What is going on?!
+ I loathe washing the dishes. LOATHE.
+ Forgetting to take heartburn meds is another bad idea.
+ I have been on an organizational kick lately. Organizing is time well spent!
+ I'm craving fall. Changing leaves, yummy candles, and cool evenings made for snuggling.
+ I miss Bry when he goes out on Wednesdays.

I'm off to watch Grey's and hog the bed. 

Happy Wednesday!

to the clothes that make me cry

See these coral skinny jeans? They are my new fave from JCrew {lots of love to my sis-in-law who got them for a fraction of the price for me}. I just got them 3 weeks ago knowing that I would grow out of them but thinking hoping I'll get use out of them post-baby. Now, let me paint you a little picture. Got out of the shower the other day and tried to put them on... I grunted. I yelled. I even cried. I did stretches I didn't know were possible in attempt to get these on. They're now a no-go.

I'll be honest, other clothes are not as cooperative either. Shirts are too short, exposing the elastic-rigged regular non-maternity pants. Bras, well, they don't do what they are supposed to do. Shoes feel tight. It doesn't help that it's 1000 degrees this summer and making everything blow up even bigger. So... To the clothes that make me cry, you're shelved for several months. We can't keep doing this because I'm too frustrated and you're not forgiving enough. We can't squeeze the baby too tight. That said, I'm off to do a bit of maternity shopping. Hoping I find some things that fit and that my hubby and bank account approve of. 

loose change

I've been reading the blog Lovely Little Things for quite some time now. I can't even remember how I found it. But I liked how Jessica had a schedule for what to expect on her blog. On Mondays, she puts up a challenge called Smell the Roses, which basically encourages you to do something to "smell the roses" and enjoy life a little bit. I always read the weekly task, but do I ever participate? No, not really.


However... this week's task was: Collect all of your loose change and either donate it or use it to do something fun.


I decided to actually do this one. I am going to collect all our loose change in the apartment and put it into baby's college fund that we've started. I've already gotten a piggy bank and we've opened an account for her college fund, so why not start putting it away now? Even if it's just a few dollars here and there, it can't hurt! Plus, Bry always mentions that we're gonna need an additional "wedding fund" for this little bebe... Wait, didn't I just get married? How are we already saving for our daughter's wedding? Jeepers, I better get some more change!

if you really knew me...

Last night, I read a post by one of my favorite bloggers Casey Wiegand, titled "if you really knew me" and I loved it! She is, again, one of my favorite bloggers who bares her soul and honestly writes what's on her heart. Her post inspired me to write one of my own... so here it goes.

If you really knew me...

You'd know that I am absolutely ecstatic to be a mom, and I am feeling like time is moving in slow motion awaiting this sweet little girl's arrival.

You'd know that turning on my TV this morning to the news of the Aurora, CO shooting literally broke my heart. And makes me not want to go see the new Batman movie.

You'd know that I love to drive with the windows down and the music blasting.

If you really knew me...

You'd know I require a lot of sleep to function normally. And part of me wonders how this new little babe is going affect that.

You'd know that I have a fear of losing my close friends and family. I also know that you can't live life worrying about this kind of thing, but I still am afraid of loss.

You'd know that I kind of love that Bryan and I are high school sweethearts. And I don't feel vain in loving that about our relationship. We've grown up together and it's shaped our relationship very intricately.

You'd know that when someone hurts me or one of my loved ones, I lash out and become very upset. You'd also know that I am not necessarily thinking this is the best strategy, but it just happens.

If you really knew me...

You'd know that I could live at the beach. And that I would be in my happy place forever.

You'd know that last week, I panicked after posting a "6 months pregnant in a bikini" instagram. And that I, in no way, posted that photo in an attention seeking way. I worry about what others think and this is something I struggle with daily.

You'd also know that writing a post like this scares me as it can easily be criticized at any point. But that I am trying to write for me, not for anyone else.

If you really knew me... you'd know there are only a few people who really know me and what makes me who I am...

the big gender reveal

As promised in this post though almost a month ago, I wanted to post the pictures from our little gender reveal BBQ. We had both of our families over so everyone was here to find out the big news together! We didn't take any of these photos though, these are all from the parents' cameras. Everyone {see the mustache sticks} thought we were having a boy! Only the moms chose the lips, and even Bry's mom admitted she just chose a girl because she wanted to be different than everyone else! My mom had gotten the so-we-thought inside scoop on what we were having at my 12 week ultrasound, as the doctor told us then that he thought it was a boy. All signs were kinda pointing toward boy, but the last few weeks before we found out, both Bry and I unknowingly switched and our guts told us it was a girl. We couldn't be happier or more grateful.