21 Weeks!

How Far Along: 21 weeks!  

Size of Baby: A pomegranate, a banana, or bok choy, depending on the app!  Approximately 10.5 inches and 12.7 ounces.

 

Maternity Clothes: Yes.  Just ordered some from Destination Maternity.
 

 

Stretch Marks: None yet.  Already using coconut oil twice a day.  Up about 8-9 pounds so far, and hoping to keep the gain slow and steady.
 

  
Sleep: Very uncomfortable but the Snoogle pillow helps a little bit.  Hopefully the arrival of our brand new bedroom set this weekend will also help!
 

Best Moment of the Week/Past Month:  Finding out baby's gender and having my 20 week ultrasound and getting to see the baby wiggle around for a while.
 

 

Movement:  Lots of kicks and somersaults, and can even see some of them outside my tummy.  Chad seeing the movement has been a huge highlight as well!
 

 

Cravings: None, really, but still love fruit, fruit and more fruit.
 

 

Gender: A precious baby BOY!
 

Anything Making You Queasy or Sick: Not in quite a while, thankfully!

What I Miss: Wine and having the endurance to workout hard.  Also missing sushi and sleeping through the night without incident.

What I am Looking Forward to: My bump continuing to grow and getting closer to meeting our little man.

Nursery: We are working on it.  It is a sailboat theme - walls are a pale yellow, furniture is an antique white and we have an Annie Sloan Provence Chalk Painted crib.  Bedding is navy and white and we just ordered the cutest blanket and mobile from Pottery Barn.  I'm working on some DIY artwork, too.  Love personal touches!

Emotions: Pretty much exuberant, joyous, happy, excited, and a little mix of anxious and nervous - especially as we get closer to baby's birthday! 

Dear Baby...

Although I am only 10.5 weeks along, I could not wait any longer to tell friends and family about you and your upcoming arrival!  I am overjoyed to have you growing inside me, and I cannot wait for the day I get to feel you move and kick.  I cannot wait to hear your heartbeat and see your sweet face and know that you are really there.  The fatigue and nausea are there, which make me feel more confident that you truly are growing inside me, but without seeing you or hearing your heartbeat, I fear the worst always.  Every little cramp or strange feeling sends me into a panic, but then I stop, breathe deeply and try to relax - I do not want to cause you any stress, sweet babe. 

You are due December 29, 2014 - and I apologize now if you have to share your special day with Christmas or New Years, but know that Christmas is my favorite time of year, and you are going to be the best gift I've ever received! 

I love you so much already, my little love bean, and I know your daddy loves you just as much.  It warms my heart when he rests his hand on my very small, only noticeable to me baby bump, and when he asks me how I am feeling.  He has been so helpful with changing the cat box for me, and helping more with cooking and cleaning, and doing lots of yard work to make sure our home is ready for your arrival.  I feel so blessed and lucky - even when I am not feeling well physically and when my moodiness is almost too much to bear - I just thank God for your life and for blessing me with the opportunity to be your mama. 

How Far Along: 10.5 weeks!  

Size of Baby: A sweet kumquat!  About 1.25 inches long.

 

Maternity Clothes: Not yet, but I did just get a belly band for my jeans, which are getting a little uncomfortable when buttoned!
 

 

Stretch Marks: None yet.  Already using coconut oil twice a day.  I'm only up about a pound, so hopefully a gradual gain will prevent them.
 

  
Sleep: Up often to pee and with the doggies who are restless at night, but dreams have been vivid and strange.
 

Best Moment of the Week/Past Month:  Looking forward to Friday's first ultrasound!  And the excitement from all of my co-workers, friends and family when I told them my news!
 

 

Movement:  None for several more weeks.  :(
 

 

Cravings: Fruit, fruit and more fruit.
 

 

Gender: Won't know for a while, but we will be finding out.
 

Anything Making You Queasy or Sick: Going more than 2 hours without food.  The Bath and Body Works candles I just bought a few months ago, and any fragrances in the home.  Lavender Chamomile lotion I just got, too.

What I Miss: Wine and having the endurance to workout hard.  The exhaustion makes working out difficult and I am beat by the middle of Jillian Michaels, and I wimped out on Zumba, since that tired me out before baby!

What I am Looking Forward to: Seeing baby in the ultrasound and hearing baby's heartbeat!

Nursery: Planning in my mind what I want, but it will all depend on baby's gender!

Emotions: Happy, sad, joyous, angry, excited, scared, worried, jubilant...it is a mish mash of hormones over here.  Lots of tears, both happy and sad ones! 

Ending Worry and Living Life - thanks to Mr. Dale Carnegie

So, my brother got me what is sure to be a life altering book for Easter this year.  "How to Stop Worrying and Start Living" by Dale Carnegie, first published back in 1944.  I'm only two chapters in, but so far, I have taken away so much.

The following quotes have stayed with me and I am trying to repeat them, learn and live them:

"Every day is a new life to a wise man." (p. 10)

"My life has been full of terrible misfortunes, most of which never happened." Montaigne (p. 13)

"Today is our most precious possession.  It is our only sure possession." (p. 13)

"This is the day the Lord hath made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

The first step in ridding your life of worry is to "Shut the iron doors on the past and future.  Live in Day Tight Compartments." (p. 14)

Failing at Blogging

So, I haven't posted in quite some time.  A LONG time.  Work gets in the way.  And then there are my friends, Junior League, my husband, my doggies and kitty. Yard work, house work, working out. 

Next weekend the husb'd and I are heading to the Desert to go to Coachella.  I should have some AWESOME stories after that!

Until then, my current obsessions that have kept me away are: Nashville, The Vampire Diaries, Game of Thrones, Jillian Michaels' fitness DVDs., Zumba at the gym, planning a community garden for a Junior League project, lawsuits and clients, The Voice, increasing my go to recipes for din din.  Oh, and reading all kinds of amazing blogs and wishing I was working on my own!

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January Cara Box Reveal

For my very first Cara Box exchange, I got to partner with two awesome ladies, Ashley over at  Mrs.Mama and Karie over at Carrot Cake and Jeans.  I first have to say that these are both extraordinary women, with absolutely precious sons!  I am totally envious, as I daydream of little bitty Snyder babies running around our house...but I digress!  Well, I send Ashley my first Cara Box, and you can check out her goodies over at her adorable blog. 

From Karie, who happens to be in the same field as me career-wise, I received some very useful, sweet, thoughtful items.  One of my resolutions is to get back in shape, and she got me her go-to snacks, that are low on the Weight Watcher point scale!  I am defintely excited to try her favorite snacks!  She also learned from my blog that I am a newlywed, and she got me a dry erase board to leave messages to my husb'd!  So thoughtful!  I am always looking for new, sweet ways to surprise him, since I usually leave for work before he does, so leaving him little messages will be a nice way to mix things up in the morning!

As a woman after my own heart - she also sent me some HOMEMADE salsa from veggies in her own garden!  In addition to my own babies, I also daydream often about my own garden, which will be in the works THIS SPRING!  I cannot wait to use her salsa! I am just drooling over thoughts of it on my scrambled eggs, dressing up a simple quesadilla, and on top of a tuna stuffed avacado, one of my favorite lunch items. 



She also threw in some glittery items that I simple love.  A sparkly, twinkly, PINK water tumbler, and some glitter polish.  The girly-girl in my is sighing with happiness.  I mean, what girl doesn't absolutely LOVE glitter?!

Low-Cal, low point breakfast pastries, low-cal snack, glittery pink tumbler, HOME MADE Salsa, dry erase board for notes to my hubby, a great motto, and glitter polish!  Awesome!!!  Ready to tackle my weight loss resolution, and to cook with some homemade salsa. And leave my husb'd love messages (and hopefully get some in return!)!

So, not only did she get me some super thoughtful, very useful goodies, but Karie also wrote me the sweetest note.  And she sealed it in an envelope with a great motto that she left for me, which I want to reprint here: "She turned her cant's into cans and her dreams into plans."  I love this.  I try to live my life "can't" free, but sometimes negativity bubbles up and refuses to go away. 

My first Cara Box experience was nothing but great!  I am looking forward to keeping in touch with Ashley and Karie, and hopefully meeting new amazing women next month as I continue my blogging journey!

Newlywed Date Nights

I still haven't gotten over the fact that I will never be picked up to go on a first date, ever again.  My dad will never answer the door with a stern look and a frown, telling a young man he better have me home before 10 p.m.  If I'm really being honest, it has been quite some time since that has happened. We're talking over a DECADE!  {Man, I'm OLD!}  I digress... My mom will never sit down with me the next morning and ask me how it went, or force me to pull weeds super early the next morning for getting home past curfew.  But I guess while I was single, I constantly whined about how much I hated dating, and how much I wanted to settle down and be married.  To not have to worry about dating anymore.  It has also been some time since I have actually "dated."  Chad and I have been together for nearly 4 years, and before that, I was a serial long term relationship junkie, with intermittent periods of dating random guys.  But now that I have found "the one" and we are happily, newly married, I miss the element of surprise and excitement that comes with a new suitor.  Maybe role playing is in my future?

Of course I adore living with my husband, and the fact that I get to go to bed each night and wake up next to my best friend every morning, but sometimes all I want to do is go on a date.  Not even a date that requires getting dressed up and going out to a nice dinner or a show.  The surprise element is gone.  No guessing what he will be wearing, or whether he will be on time, or what he will have planned.  I suppose I could send him out while I am getting ready, or we can get ready separately and "surprise" each other, but that also ruins the best element of going on a date with your husband.  He is already your husband!  

Sampling of Date Night Photos

Office party

Fresno State Football Game

Holiday Party

Brewery tour

So, besides the basic dinner and a movie dates, sporting events, wine/beer tasting, or staying in game night dates, what other dates nights work for newlyweds?  What are some budget friendly options?  I need suggestions, ideas that have worked, and those that haven't, for fun, practical, exciting, and different date night ideas.