Category Archives: pregnancy

food, home, mommyhood, pregnancy, random thoughts, siblings

Currently 

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Happy Monday! I hope y’all had a wonderful weekend! I’m joining Becky at Choose Happy again this week for her currently link up. Lots of pictures in store for you today – I hope you enjoy it! Leave a comment or join the link up and let me know what’s going on with you!

Loving || Our finished shower! We chose a dark grout (it matches the wall color we chose almost perfectly!) to offset the white subway tile, and I really like the effect. We don’t have a door quite yet, because our old one is now too big, so we aren’t able to use it till we get one. Otherwise, I’m really happy with it! We need a little paint touching up in a few places, but it looks awesome.

Still undecided on the mirrors… there are two of those and they’ll be almost touching. What do you think?



Eating || at the Honey Pot! It’s a local restaurant here, and the chef is actually a friend of Hubby’s from high school. It is AMAZING. The food is fresh, mostly local, and really creative. Most of all, it’s plated beautifully and it’s outstandingly delicious! (If you’re local, check out their website here.) I wish I had taken a picture of every dish, but it was too good to not just eat it immediately. However, this dessert – a Georgia peach tart, with basil crema, accented with tiger lilies (who knew you could eat them?!) – was so beautiful I had to take a picture. And folks, it was as good as it looks. Really.

Growing || tomatoes and peppers! I mean, we are growing other stuff too, but those are our most fruitful plants at the moment. We’ve had one eggplant and some cucumbers and an ENORMOUS zucchini (I talked about that here) as well. Here are a few pictures I snapped last night as I was harvesting…



  


 

Planning || A baby shower! My sweet friend from college Melissa is expecting her first baby (a little girl!) in a couple of months, and my friend Lauren and I are throwing her a shower. We had a planning session this afternoon, and I can’t wait to post with a bunch of pictures after we shower her with love on Saturday!

Enjoying || this little series of photos. The first picture is the night before I had J… EK sprawled across my belly, the tiny little thing that she was, in her mismatched Christmas jammies. I’ve always loved that photo, and so now while I’m not so far away from having baby D, I thought it would be fun to try to recreate the moment with my two older sweeties sitting on top of their little brother!


 

Well, that’s about it in my world. Just waiting on baby D to get here! I have a post coming soon about how I packed my hospital bag – look for it this week!

What’s going on in your life currently?

 

 

mommyhood, pregnancy, siblings

5 Predictions About Life With 3 Kids

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This post also appeared on My Big Jesus!
As I’m down to my last couple of weeks before baby #3 arrives, I am forced to think of what life will be like when he gets here. With a 3 year old, a 1 1/2 year old, and a newborn, I think it’s safe to say craziness is about to ensue. Here are a few more predictions of what might be happening:

There will be an (obvious) increase in laundry. I already do approximately one load per day with the four of us. That doesn’t necessarily mean that I do one complete load every single day… it often means I do five loads in one day, and take a few days off. But it would seem as though adding a person (no matter how tiny) will make it even more so. For instance, if this kid is like my other two, there will be one more swaddle per day to wash, and that’ll basically be an entire load a week of just swaddles. Sheesh.

There will be fewer showers/baths. I’m guessing I’ll cheat on the kids’ bedtime routine some nights (usually we do baths just before bed) and take baths out of the equation. I probably won’t shower as often, due to another person clinging to me. All around, that’s some water saved (that we’ll use on laundry).

We will be eating more takeout. What can I say? It’s just easier. Am I right? We can try to keep it healthy… you know… takeout salad and such.

I will be (even more) forgetful. I’m fully prepared to enter into the stage of “Did I brush my teeth today?” and “I thought I put my car keys right here!” and “When exactly is the last time I shaved my legs?” This pregnancy has been an indicator of that. It happens a little more with every kid, they say (at least I think they do). Pregnancy brain is nothing to joke about, but when I’m keeping up with three younguns, I just can’t be surprised that I’m still looking for the… for the… well, for whatever it is I’m always losing.

My heart will be too full to describe. Y’all, I already know this one is true. I’m already full-to-bursting with love for these little guys, so I can’t imagine what meeting the next one will do. I may just explode with happiness! You know, after I remember where I keep the coffee cups and wade my way through the umpteenth load of laundry. Love. It’ll all be about love.

food, food, home, mommyhood, pregnancy

Muffins For Days!

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Y’all… I’ve been losing my mind. I’ve not necessarily been any busier than usual, but I’ve been the most forgetful I think I’ve ever been, and the most distracted. I can’t seem to get my normal rhythm going. And on top of that, today I had the pregnant rage of a total crazy person. Poor family. Anyway, sorry for the blog lapse. It was unplanned, accidental, and so sad! But here’s a good one… now on to what I’m actually talking about!

A couple of days ago, I finally acted on my idea to make several batches of muffins so that lots could be frozen, and I could use them as easy breakfasts for the kids and me when baby D gets here. I chose several different recipes, including one adapted by a friend. They’re all gluten free, and fairly healthy – no added sugar! I’m not a very good food photographer, or else I’d have taken some awesome pictures. I apologize. There are pictures that accompany the original recipes that I’ve linked for ya.

Strawberry Shortcake Muffins

I first found out about these on my friend Melissa’s blog (One Mother to Another) although they’re originally a Dashing Dish recipe. They. Are. Delicious. I basically just made these because I wanted them. I wasn’t sure how they’d freeze, so I only froze a few from the batch and will let you know how they warm up later. (By the way, I did what Melissa did in her original post about them, and instead of a dry sweetener like stevia, I used 1/2 cup of honey and just cooked them a minute or two longer than the recipe suggests so they were cooked through. STILL DELICIOUS.)

Paleo Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins

These yummy little guys are actually mini muffins, so I doubled the recipe for good measure. Hubby had just picked a HUGE zucchini from our garden (we lost it underneath the squash plants that were growing all around it) and I had to figure out how we could use it. He grated it and we are adding it to basically everything. So naturally, I googled around a bit for a recipe! I wanted muffins instead of the usual zucchini bread because I wanted them to freeze well. I let Hubby choose between two recipes, and he obviously chose the ones with chocolate! (By the way, I didn’t have any grapeseed oil, so I used coconut oil instead. It worked just fine!)

Carrot Cake Muffins (adapted by my friend from Against All Grain’s Black Forest Cupcakes)

These babies have shredded carrot added in, and some cinnamon instead of the cocoa, and they’re delicious! Technically they’re cupcakes, but I didn’t ice them and I figure they’re so healthy I’ll just call them muffins and eat them for breakfast! Also, if you like chocolate, I suggest making the originals, too!

What are your favorite muffin recipes? What else do you stock your freezer with?

books, food, home, mommyhood, pregnancy, random thoughts

Currently

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I’m linking up this week with Becky at Choose Happy for her Currently link-up! If you’ve never joined us, you should! I love reading what everyone is currently up to. What’s going on with you?

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Reading || I actually finished The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton! I’ve been working on it for an embarrassingly long time… but I’m done! I loved it, I just didn’t have much time to be reading. Anyway, I’ve just started the first book in the Maze Runner series. So far, it seems like the Hunger Games or the Divergent series in that it’s a dystopian society and there are a lot of weird things going on. It was on my “recommended books” list from Amazon based on what I’d read, and was rated pretty well. I’ll let you know how it is!

age of innocence

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Watching || The Harry Potter movies! We finally got them out of storage and are watching them! We’ve watched the first two, and my withdrawal is finally satiated. Hopefully we’ll get through the eight movies before the baby gets here, but who knows!

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Loving || the new tile in our bathroom! Everything is supposed to be finished and put back together by the end of the week, so naturally I’m really excited to use my own bathroom again. It’s been interesting either going to the hallway bathroom or all the way downstairs (to the newer, nicer one of course!) to do everything, and I’ll be glad to be back in my regular routine… upstairs.


Preparing || our freezer and our nursery! I’ve got everything to make two recipes worth of muffins, and enough frozen fruit to feed 1000 people breakfast smoothies! I wanted to at least have some breakfasts taken care of so that the morning routine with the kids wouldn’t go awry if I could help it. Having a healthy breakfast is a priority for me, and starting the day smoothly helps the rest of the day stay along the same lines. When my kids are throwing their breakfasts in the floor or refusing to eat them (because that obviously happens sometimes – FOR NO REASON AT ALL) it can throw my mood off. I planned for smoothies they love and muffins they devour that are also healthy! I’m excited about it. The nursery is now clear of bathroom stuff (even if our closet isn’t) and has been rearranged. The floor is super clean, the drawers are full of clean clothes, and I even have some diapers! I call that progress! Now if I could pack a hospital bag, I’d really be in business.

I mean, it’s coming along, right?
Messy but it’s happening!

Coveting || this Lily-Jade diaper bag. I saw it on Instagram a while back, and have been looking at it again and again ever since. It’s beautiful, flexible, and well-made, but totally out of my price range. The SALE PRICE is $295 and I just can’t justify it. But it sure is one beautiful bag!

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Celebrating || the Fourth of July! We had a day of eating red, white and blue donuts, and spending time with friends! Not many photos, but it was a good day! We even let the kids stay up for the local fireworks, watched from the elementary school in our neighborhood- the perfect spot!  IMG_1716

This girl loves donuts!
This is J’s only patriotic swag. (Sorry Hubby, for posting this photo bomb, but I was only trying to get the photo of J!)
If you’ve got a couple of toddlers, you know how tough it is to get a family photo!
The only photo from the fireworks… J sleepily snuggling my friend Lauren and loving his glow sticks! They are a must for fireworks, am I right?

Well, we’ve had a busy week, and things just keep getting busier as we prepare for our little guy! What has been going on with you? What are you preparing for? Link up and join us!

mommyhood, pregnancy, women

Third Trimester Problems – My Second Post on Scary Mommy!

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I’m super excited to be on Scary Mommy today, talking about third trimester problems. If you’ve been there, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about!

You’re pregnant?! Congratulations! And also buckle up, because this is a long ride. Once you’re past the first trimester’s nausea, exhaustion and fake drinking in front of your friends, and the second trimester’s cute bump and nesting phase, you’re not out of the woods. You’ve got 12 (Who are we kidding? 14!) more weeks of a whole new set of problems….

Click here – Third Trimester Problems – to head over to Scary Mommy and read more!

mommyhood, pregnancy, random thoughts, siblings

Currently: One Month Left!

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Happy Monday, y’all! As usual, I’m linking up with Becky at Choose Happy for another Currently! We love to know what’s going on with you, so link up and join us!

currently button

The biggest thing going on in my life right now is obviously the preparation for baby D. As of today, I’m one month out from my due date! My abs are sore just from living, my feet are swelling a bit, and I’m less and less able to breathe normally. I’m praying for him to drop soon so that he’s off my lungs a bit! Anyway, here’s a regular old Currently for you!

Feeling || Excited, nervous, huge and uncomfortable. It’s a lot of feelings. I’m also feeling a little sentimental for my big babes… I know that as soon as Baby D gets here, they’re going to seem HUGE to me, and so grown up! I’m treasuring the time with them as much as I can.

Eating || Mexican food and ice cream! Last night, we had family night at our favorite Mexican restaurant, and then we went out for ice cream! The kids had a fun time eating outside and enjoying their ice cream. My kiddos love some sweets!

I’m so glad we got that silly hat from Tweetsie. He loves it.
This gal’s chocolate ice cream face is unstoppable.

A cute little story: at the ice cream shop, the cashier asked if the kids were twins. We don’t get that too often, but that wasn’t the first time. They’re just close enough in size now that I guess people see them and think they might be. Their hair is the same color, their features definitely favor, but EK is taller and lankier, and J still hangs on to most of his baby fat. They just look so different to me, and obviously I know how much farther along developmentally EK is. It’s hard for me to think they’d be twins, but hey, I just know them too well!

Going ||  to the movies! This morning, we went with some friends to see Inside Out. It was the kids’ first movie in the theatre, and EK passed the test with flying colors. J ate some popcorn, ran around a bit, and Hubby took him to Home Depot for the last hour. Soooo the movies will be a special treat for just EK for a while longer. But the movie was awesome! I definitely recommend seeing it!inside out

 

Shopping || for a new (to us) car! This sounds fun and exciting, but really, the pressure is on. We’ve been researching to find a non-minivan place for three car seats (aka a third row), preferably some captain’s seats, not terrible gas mileage, and no prior problems. Sounds pretty much impossible, right? It kind of is. It feels like it’s consuming me right now and honestly I’ll just be glad when we’ve found something and bought it. Sheesh! If you’re driving something you love that fits the bill, feel free to tell me about it!

Well, that’s what’s going on in my life! A little glimpse into the summertime, pre-third-baby rush! What’s going on with you?

mommyhood, pregnancy, random thoughts

Summer Goals: Tired Kids

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This week’s mission: wear out the kids. 

 EK has been attending camp at our church every day from 9:30-12:30, and it’s like they put her in a hamster wheel and make her run for three hours. She comes home so excited but so exhausted that she can barely make it to 1:30 before she’s begging for a nap.

While EK is at camp, I’ve taken two days to take J to the pool with some friends of ours, and let him swim for two hours in between drop off and pick up. He’s so worn out that he almost falls asleep in the car on the way home. But it’s a great way to get a nice, long, early nap out of them, and still have plenty of playing and hanging time at the end of the day.

We’ve been so busy with something every day for a while now that I am excited this is a week with routine. Yes, it’s still busy, but it’s a similar thing every day. I crave routine, and I think the kids do, too. EK needed a week of socialization. J needed a week of less sibling time. This mama needed a week of having only one kid for half the day before I added a third one into the mix. It’s been SO FUN to have uninterrupted time with J where he isn’t vying for my attention. I often get to do things with EK because she’s easier to take around with me and easier to entertain in most situations. We get a little more girl time in one-on-one.

An extra perk to mom and the kids being out of the house in the mornings: Hubby’s getting a LOT done. Between deep cleaning and painting our bathroom, he’s been a rockstar on the home front while I’ve been keeping the kids out of the way. We knew we were up to our eyeballs in home projects (but really, though) so having time that the kids aren’t “trying to help” is crucial.

 Hubby took the kids after camp today to lunch and to the local produce store. They had a great time, and were ready to go straight to sleep when they got home. These early naps have been lovely. 

Now the question remains: How do I, as an exhausted mama, keep up the routine of a busy morning with them both, while it’s super hot outside, without boring myself? I can’t do the children’s museum every day. The park is so hot the kids won’t get on the slides. They love the grocery store, but how many times this week can I actually justify going there? Give me all your ideas!

mommyhood, pregnancy

35 Week Bumpdate!

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 Well folks, it’s getting close. At 5 weeks out, I’m feeling about as pregnant as I’ve ever felt. That’s saying something, as a woman who has actually experienced being 41 weeks and 4 days pregnant. Sheesh. Anyway, here is a little update about how I’m doing… I got this little list of things to talk about off of several other blogs I read, so I didn’t come up with them myself.

How far along: 35 weeks, 2 days

Total weight gain: Now, I normally wouldn’t say this because I don’t put a lot of stock in weight by any standards, but because I’m so far along, I will. I’ve gained around 18lbs right now.

Maternity clothes: Is this a question? Because duh. Obviously I’m wearing maternity clothes. The only things I can wear that isn’t maternity belong to Hubby.

Stretch marks: Thankfully none that I can tell. I haven’t had them with any of mine. *knocks on wood*

Sleep: Between 7 and 8 hours most nights, but broken. I’m waking up either to pee, or relieve leg cramps, or both.

Best moment of this week: Probably pool time with J with friends while EK was at camp! He’s doing so well and being in the water was SO MUCH BETTER than dealing with the heat! Not to mention being weightless was nice.

Miss anything? My body. I’m ready to be closer to my normal size! I love being pregnant – truly, I do! – but I miss not having the bulge.

Movement: All day long! Most of the time I love it, but he is big enough now that I am often uncomfortable or the movement actually hurts sometimes.

Food cravings: I haven’t had too many cravings recently, really. Right now, I can’t eat very much at one time, so it’s a lot of snacking.

Anything making you queasy/sick: Not really. Although I’m not a great pill swallower, so sometimes that makes me a little queasy (I’m looking at you, disgusting iron supplements.)

Showing yet? See “Maternity clothes”.

Gender: Boy!! 💙

Labor signs: Not yet, but I’m having some Braxton Hicks here and there.

Belly button in or out: Out. It’s been out for a while…

Wedding rings on or off: On! Still glad about that.

Happy or moody most of the time? To be completely honest, moody. Sorry, folks.

Looking forward to: Meeting this baby! Hopefully around 38 weeks… Because I’m so tired and uncomfortable!

Exercise: Ha! Ahem, I mean, I go to prenatal yoga once a week, and I chase my toddlers all day. Oh! Oh! And I’ve been gardening (read: shoveling dirt).

Additional symptoms: My feet are starting to swell, and I’m only comfortable when laying on my side. Yikes.

mommyhood, My Big Jesus, pregnancy, women

Things I’ve Heard at 33 Weeks Pregnant

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This post also appeared on My Big Jesus!

For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been getting some really interesting comments from strangers. When I say really interesting, I basically mean that they’ve, well, overstepped their boundaries a bit. Here are a few of the things I’m hearing from folks nowadays…

You’re ’bout ready to drop any day now, huh? This is a verbatim quote from a man who worked at Costco, who obviously was also a medical professional. You can tell by his eloquence, and how he stated my condition in a very official way. And no, I have six fairly miserable weeks left.

Haven’t you been pregnant for, like, forever? Why yes, in fact, I was born into this world pregnant. I didn’t even have time in between my children that I wasn’t pregnant. I live in a perpetual state of pregnant.

That’s the cutest belly I’ve ever seen! Well, thank you! I love that my belly is the first thing you noticed about me, and I love it even more when random people comment on it!

Should you be doing/eating/drinking that? Why, you’re right! Thank you so much for your concern. The truth is, I shouldn’t be bending over cleaning the floor or carrying that toddler. This cup of coffee isn’t a necessity, and this donut will kill me. Thanks for the reminder.

Is this your first? Nope, it’s not my first rodeo. I must look like a rookie though, because I get asked this a lot.

Wow! You’re having your third already?! This question is asked as often as the one above, and mostly when I’m out alone with the kids. No, my children weren’t surprises and yes, all three are indeed mine.

And my personal favorite, that I’ve heard unprompted, but also as the next line in a conversation about “how much longer I have left”:

You look big. Well, you look like a jerk.

Add these items to your list of things pregnant women probably don’t want to hear.

food, food, home, mommyhood, pregnancy, random thoughts

Currently – Thank Goodness It’s Summer!

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Hey y’all! I hope you had a great weekend, and happy Monday! Can ya’ll believe today is the first day of June? It’s blowing my mind that 2015 is half over, I’ve got less than two months till baby #3 gets here, and that preschool is over and summer is in full swing!

I’m linking up again this week with Becky at Choose Happy. It’s her twentieth week hosting the link-up, so join us to celebrate!

currently button

As for me, this is what I’m currently up to:

Watching || Movies! It’s summertime, and TV has come to a halt. I’m catching up on movies that have been out and I haven’t seen them yet. Let’s be totally honest: all you parents know that going to the movies is an expensive date night, since a movie ticket these days is anywhere from $12-15 right off the bat, and that’s not counting snacks or dinner, or a babysitter! So naturally, we don’t go very often. We love to just catch things when they hit Redbox or Netflix. Anyway, the two I’ve seen most recently are Wolf of Wall Street (totally awesome movie but not for the faint-hearted, due to sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll), The Duchess (historical fiction, Kiera Knightley, wonderful costumes, enveloping story, and winner on Netflix), and Big Hero 6 (so much awesome that I can’t fit it into a description). I really enjoyed them all! What’s something that’s come out in the past year or hit Netflix recently that I should see?

Eating || Tomato sandwiches! This is my favorite summertime staple. Of course, my favorite way to do it is go out to the garden and hand-pick the tomato is like on my sandwich, but since we aren’t quite there yet, I’ll settle for heirlooms from here and there. Delicious!

Pretty soon these babies will be sandwich ready!

Excited about || This coming weekend! Hubby’s cousin is getting married up in the mountains, and so we are packing up, totally kid-less (thanks, Mom!) and spending Friday and Saturday in the mountains, celebrating and relaxing! It’ll be the only time we “get away” without the kids before baby #3 arrives, and so I’m really glad that we had an excuse (and a good one at that!) to get out of town, even just for one night. And it’s really nice that my mom was able to come up here and stay with the kids… that way they’re at home in their comfortable space, and with someone they know really well.

Preparing for || baby #3’s arrival! I guess I’m always doing this off and on (well, I’m always cooking a baby), but this week I’m really planning on doing some work in his nursery and with the clothes, etc that I have for him to use. I’ve already got some size 1 diapers (leftover), crib sheets (shared from J) and clothes (hand me downs, of course!) I need to get organized and put away. It’s totally coming soon – less than 9 weeks till my due date! – and I want to be ready if possible. Also, with my third, it’s a little more likely that he’ll be a day or two early, so I want to be ready for that, too.

Feeling || energetic (finally!) and productive. I have a long but needed to-do list (see above) and I want to do a few workouts this week as well. I’ve been enjoying working outside in the garden (having had a green thumb a day in my life) and calling it exercise, but I need to be walking, and visiting the Y also. Here’s to a great week ahead!

That about sums up what I’ve got going on. What about you? What are you currently up to?