it's a . . .

We are so excited to meet this little lady in September!  I shared this video on Facebook and Instagram in May, but am just now getting around to posting it here (sorry for the really bad quality!  It was the only way I knew how to compose a small video).  As you can see, I've already started shopping for girl clothes.  I'm trying to resist the temptation but they are so cute!  Just this week, I started on her nursery and I'll share the progress here soon.  H loves hanging out in his sister's room.  He can now identify a baby when he sees one.  When we ask him where the baby is, he either lifts his shirt up and points to his belly or lifts my shirt and point to mine.  So we're not really sure if he fully understands what's going on here. 

I'm currently in my 28th week and feeling huge!  I swear I'm a lot bigger this time around.  I'm more tired and seem to run out of breath more easily these days.  Baby girl is kicking and moving around comfortably in there which makes it hard to fall asleep sometimes.  But an active baby means a healthy baby, so I don't mind at all. 

September will be here before we know it!

H at 11 months

Well, I really had no news to report on this little guy's progress this month, until this Tuesday happened.  I gave him Cheerios to try for breakfast, then next thing you know, he started itching his eyes until they were swollen.  I froze and didn't know what to do.  I grabbed the Cheerios box from the pantry and there, in the tiniest font read, "peanut butter" *insert swear word of choice here*.  I was thinking, "I don't remember reading stuff about allergies."  Paul and my sister had to tell me to give him Benadryl.  DUH!  I made an appointment with his pediatrician just to make sure he was ok.  Aside from his eyes looking all beat up, he was happy and healthy.  I took him to get his blood work done yesterday and just got the confirmation that he IS allergic to peanuts.  We'll find out more on how extensive his allergy is tomorrow.  Our hearts sank.  It's yet another thing to worry about along with a gazillion other things.  He'll be deprived of so many delicious treats, like PB&J, pecan pies, Reese's pieces, and possibly Nutella.  Not Nutella!  Poor baby!  So lesson learned:  read food packages carefully!

H's first birthday is just around the corner and I'm already getting emotional.  One time, we were "slow dancing" to one of his songs on his playlist and for some reason, I started crying because I was imagining our mother/son dance on his wedding day.  I AM GOING CRAZY!  Time, slow down, will you? 

And if you're due for a good cry, watch this.  I will warn you now that you will ugly cry but it is so worth it.  This video is just beautiful.  I feel like I took those long, sleepless nights for granted after watching this.  How lucky was I to have been able to take my healthy son home after just a few days' stay at the hospital?  Some mothers have to wait for months to hold their child and bring them home (I'll stop here because I'll start crying again).  Babies truly are miracles and a blessing.  I will definitely hold my little guy extra tight when he wakes up in the morning! 

first mother's day

My first official Mother's Day began with Paul letting me sleep in (and by sleeping in, I mean, for 30 minutes) as he played with the Little Man.  He also made me breakfast and let me eat in peace, with no disruptions.  He also bought me a gift card to Massage Envy.  I'm not going to lie, I've hinted to him several times that I needed a massage!  I can't wait!  Then we had "lunner" (late lunch, early dinner) with my family at Spoons. 

As a new Mom, I've gained so much more appreciation and respect for my Mom and all moms out there.  I feel like we've come full circle, having my son, and my Mom becoming a grandma for the first time (que The Lion King's "The Circle of Life").  I'm looking forward to many more celebrations like this one with my little family. 

[My, how thing's have changed since last year!  I was about 6 or 7 weeks pregnant then.]

I hope everyone had a beautiful Mother's Day!

a diaper bag, made well

I prolonged buying a diaper bag because I wanted something that was stylish and didn't scream, "Hey, I'm a new Mom!"  After searching far and wide, I ended up with the Transport Tote by Madewell. 

I've been seeing it on this girl's blog lately and I thought that it was so big and versatile, surely it would be perfect as a diaper bag!  For my birthday, Paul let me pick out a diaper bag, so I took the risk and purchased this online.  I even got my initials monogrammed.

 
This tote bag is very spacious.  It holds an extra burp cloth and my diaper changing kit, complete with extra diapers and baby wipes.  It even stores a small clutch where I keep my wallet, car keys, etc. and still has plenty of room for other things, such as bottles, a light sweater, an Ipad, and shopping bags (hehe).  The only drawback is that it only has a small pocket on one side, and it doesn't come with a long strap to wear it across your body. 

I've also considered this Ikabag on Etsy which is probably just as comparable.

I even ventured out to the nearest Coach Factory Outlet and bought their diaper bag, but returned it after one week because I couldn't handle the "C"s that can be seen from a mile away.  Please don't mind my sweats.

 

I've been hauling this around everywhere I go.  This is something that I can use even after babies and will not go out of style.  This would also be the perfect carry-on when traveling.  And just to let you know, most of my purses are from Ross.  This is the first purse I've ever purchased over $50 so this was a definite splurge, and a thrill!  I just hope this doesn't start a new shopping trend with me, otherwise our bank account (and Paul) will be very upset.

around here

I'm still trying to juggle this whole Mom thing.  I have such a small window of "free time" in between feedings and naps.  I'm lucky if I can even turn on my computer.  Thank God for smartphones or else I'd be completely out of touch with the world.  Here's what's been going on these past two weeks:


On January 10th, I celebrated my 29th birthday.  Man, that sounds so old, I might as well be 30!  My Mom offered to look after the baby while Paul and I went out for dinner to celebrate.  It felt so good to be dining out again.  I had my first margarita in 9 months.  I think I got buzzed just staring at it!

{PS.  My Hello sweater was purchased here, although it was cheaper when I bought it about a month ago.  If you follow them on Instagram @helloapparel, they have sales every now and then.}

This guy turned 1 month old on January 11th.  I can't believe it!  He's got quite an appetite.  In fact, just this week, he graduated from newborn diapers to size 1!  I'm looking forward to his two-month well visit to see how much he's grown.

Bailey feeling right at home.

As if we didn't already have a lot going on, we officially moved to our new house last week.  I thought we'd be buried in boxes for at least a month but we've managed to unpack everything.  Now I can start decorating Little H's nursery!

I have so many things to write about, but so little time.  Once I get into the swing of things and find some sort of order again, I will hopefully be back with regular blog posts for you.  Thanks for hanging with me!

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to catch up on my blogs until the Little Man wakes up!

the day i became a mommy

On Tuesday, December 11th, 2012 at 5:46pm, our son was born.  He weighed 7lbs. 7oz. and was 18 inches long (although his Dad would argue that he was at least 19 inches).  

Little H (as we'll refer to him for now) is three weeks old and is changing every single day.  He's been keeping us busy day and night, but we just can't get enough of him.  We've received so much love from our family and friends.  It's such a good feeling to know that they are just as excited as we are and love him just as much.

It's hard to believe that we created this beautiful miracle.  Little H has only been with us for a few weeks and we already can't imagine life without him.  We are so honored to be his parents and he is everything we could have ever hoped for. 

brb

See you soon, baby!

labor day BLUES

I hope everyone is having a very fun and relaxing Labor Day!  Sorry for those of you who had to work today (like Paul).  I guess you would have the Labor Day blues =(  And speaking of blues, I wanted to share some good news with you.  We found out a few weeks ago that we are having...

A BOY!

We are over the moon with excitement!  We actually knew that we were having a little boy at 12 weeks when I had an NT screening, but we wanted to wait and announce it when we were absolutely sure.  During my 21-week sonogram a few weeks ago, they confirmed that it was still a boy!  I'm already dreaming of nurseries (pretty evident if you are following me on Pinterest) and hopefully I can share my ideas and inspirations here in the next few weeks.  Unfortunately, we won't have a house for me to start decorating a nursery just yet (this is another topic on its own), but I can start planning ahead - well, as much as I can anyway.  I really need to start our baby registry!

As for baby and me, we are doing fabulous.  Oh, and my due date really is December 20th (read more here).  Based on my last sonogram, baby is on track as far as size, so we were right all along.  I guess he was just a little late bloomer.  I will be 25 weeks this Thursday and am getting bigger and bigger every week!  I can finally feel him kicking and it amazes me every time!  We might have a little star athlete on our hands!  Paul is excited to teach his little rookie about sports, and the fact that he will no longer be outnumbered.  Let's face it, Bailey and I run the house!

So if you have any tips on how to raise a baby boy, let me know.  I'm all ears!  I heard baby boys are very sweet to their mommies.  I can't wait for all those hugs and kisses!

some saucy news

When in doubt on what to make for dinner for the week, we always fall back on spaghetti.  It's easy, and you really can't go wrong with pasta.  I usually get the one with lots of meat chunks or the three-cheese sauce, and I like to add some fresh mushrooms, oregano and thyme for extra flavor.  I have yet to try and make my spaghetti sauce from scratch though.  Does anyone have any good recipes? 

Here we are talking about spaghetti, and all I really wanted to say was, I'm...

!!!

I'm now 16 weeks pregnant and had a very good first trimester.  No morning sickness really, which I'm thankful for.  My clothes are fitting a little snug, and I'm constantly hungry, although no crazy cravings yet.  I've been taking weekly pictures of my belly with Paul's help.  We found out when I thought I was 5 weeks, but was really only 4 weeks along. 

Our "true" due date is Christmas Day!  I say true, because we originally thought it was December 20th, but we were actually 5 days off based on the baby's size.  Hopefully the baby comes a little sooner so he/she will have their own special day. 

We are so grateful for this little miracle that we've been blessed with!  Baby T has changed us so much already.  My Aunt did say, "savor every moment you spend with your child - this [stage] is the closest you'll ever be!"  She is so right (as always), and so far, I'm loving every minute of it!