Its the last day of August today! The blows my mind. Hopefully this will be my last week of pregnant style files. I have about had it with dressing for pregnancy. The dress I wore yesterday was definitely a maternity dress. My regular dresses are starting to get so ridiculously short in the front. Its a little embarrassing. It’s a simple outfit. I think they will be this way now until after baby. I don’t really have a lot to write about it, other than pointing out my ridiculous swollen Cankle. Yep, I said it. I have a Calf Ankle. More like a calf stub. My foot is about as wide as my calf as well. I really haven’t had that much trouble with swelling but these past few days its been pretty bad. I am hoping its a sign I am at the end… (thats what I am telling myself anyways).
Have a great day!
My super amazing hubby planned a surprised birthday dinner last night for me. I really had no idea. I was so surprised and overwhelmed when I walked into the restaurant and saw 10 of our close friends there. I cried because I love all of them so much and was so happy to see everyone. Kev is the sweetest man ever! He knew next weekend might be taken up with other important things (yay baby!) but he wanted to make sure I had a party and felt special. I love that boy!
Can you believe we are at 39 weeks? I feel like we just posted our very first weekly photo. Granted we didn’t start till 16 weeks, but wow! Things are still going great. Healthy, baby is right where she needs to be (yep, she flipped back around!!) and we are moving forward as expected. Our official due date is this Friday, Sept. 3rd. Did you know that Sept. 4th is my 28th birthday? Crazy how she might be born on my birthday. Â I will say it is very hard to wait day after day for something so life changing to happen though when it could happen at anytime. Distraction is key. So I am trying to stay busy. This week I have booked up my days so I don’t sit home depressed and constantly thinking when this is going to happen. Tomorrow evening we have dinner with friends planned. Tuesday I have Breakfast plans with a friend from our church. My sister Amy is coming to visit from Rochester on Tuesday afternoon and then on Thursday my mom is coming out to hang out, and of course I would be happy happy if the baby decided she wanted to make an appearance anytime this week!
Dear Baby Girl:
It is almost time! The fear of giving birth is quickly leaving and being replaced with excitement and anticipation for your arrival. Daddy had a surprise birthday dinner planned tonight for me. Our friends were there that just had a baby and we got to hold him. He was so tiny and precious. I cant wait for that to be you. Your daddy held him too and I think it made me love him even more watching him hold that little baby. He had the biggest smile on his face. I know I will cry the first time I see him hold you. Everyone has been guessing your name lately. It has been so fun to hear all the guesses. We are so, so excited to announce to you everyone. We think your name is just perfect. Guess what? I made you doll the other day. It is pretty cute if I do say so myself. haha. I hope you will love her. Well its very late. its 2:45am. I couldn’t sleep so I got up to work on somethings, but momma is getting sleepy. I am off to bed. I hope the next time I write a letter it will be because you are in our arms.
Anxiously awaiting your arrival,
Your Momma
Hey Everyone! Are you Following me on Twitter? Follow us on this journey this week!! I will be tweeting as much as I can when labor starts then will pass the reigns off to Kev (@encrgothers) when things are getting a little difficult. He will keep you up to date until we can announce she is here!!
So whether you have kids, are having kids or just a kid at heart, who wouldn’t want to win one of these super awesome knitted dolls from blabla kids? We have gotten a bunch of blabla toys for the baby over the last couple months. I am addicted. They are so cute and so soft and well too adorable for words. Even if I wasn’t having this baby I think I still would have bought Prudence the Owl.
The kind folks at blabla are offering ANY mini doll to the winner of this giveaway. They have pages and pages of dolls to chose from. It’s totally up to you which mini doll you get to win. All you have to do to enter is…
1. Vote for us on topbabyblogs. Click the banner below and then click thru one more time.
2. Visit blabla kids, select the mini doll you would like to win and leave the link in a comment below
Simple, Simple!!
The giveaway will go now thru Tuesday August 31st. The winner will be randomly selected and announced on Wednesday.
Good Luck Everyone!
To perfectly honest I am in a grumpy mood today. I don’t know what it is but I just can’t shake it. I miss my sisters, I miss my mom, I miss my friend Laura, I want this baby to come! I am totally having a self pity party here at our computer desk. I decided that I would take myself out this afternoon and go get my hair cut, it’s been forever and it always makes a girl feel good. I just got my ends and layers trimmed up but I totally went for the full shampoo and conditioner before and not just a wet down. When else does someone scrub your head like that? It feels so good. hehe. It’s definitely good to have freshly cut hair. I am now planning on getting a mani/pedi on Friday with some girlfriends. Nothing like a little self pampering before you head into labor, right?
Although, I feel like this is the same outfit as yesterday. Skirt. Tank. Shirt/Cardigan. I like the laid back feel to this one. I feel like I need to be in maine in this outfit. We may be going this weekend. Well we were invited to a birthday bash but we haven’t decided yet if we should go or not. I want to go so I can do something to distract me from wanting this baby to come and see friends, but is it cutting it too close?? Well have to see.
I feel like every dress I own is now way, way too short in the front because of my giant belly. Even my maternity shirts, I feel like are doing that sticking out thing because there isn’t enough fabric to cover. If that doesn’t mean this baby should come sooner rather than later I don’t know what does. I was pretty excited to wear my new cardigan from Modcloth today though. I felt very back to school when I got dressed this morning, which led to wearing little peach colored socks and oxfords. I couldn’t help it. I feel like I just need some books in a leather strap and I will be all set. Which is fitting since I spent a good part of the morning reading one of my old art history text book. haha. I forgot how heavy those things are. We kept everyone that we got in school, so lets just say we have a shelf with about a million pounds of books on it. I just love art history though. Half way thru school I decided to minor in it because well, its just so interesting to me. You will find out soon why I was doing some art history research. I have some very special post coming up after the baby arrives!
Pearly in the Morning Cardigan: c/o Modcloth (only 4 left!! Grab one while you can!)
Tank: H&M
Skirt: Heritage 1981
Socks: Jcrew
Oxfords: Rockports (thrifted via Savers)
Necklaces: Forever 21
I don’t know about where you are from, but around upstate NY it has been gray out for days!! Its def. effecting my mood, my fashion and my eating. Yesterday all I really wanted to do was curl up, watch movies and eat soup. Well, I didn’t watch any movies but I did make some soup. I couldn’t resist when I saw this recipe in the latest Vegetarian Times magazine.
Creamy Cauliflower Soup with Apple, Carrots and Tarragon
and some warm homemade Corn Bread
Soup Ingredients:
5 cups chopped cauliflower
1 1/2 cups of unsweetened apple juice (or I used an apple carrot juice)
1 1/4 cups of veggie broth
1 small onion diced
1/2 tsp. group coriander
2 tsp. chopped fresh tarragon
1 pinch ground turmeric
1. Bring cauliflower, juice, broth, onion and coriander to a boil. Cover and simmer on medium for 15 mins.
2. Blend mixture in a blender with tarragon and turmeric until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Serve Hot
Corn Bread:
1 cup corn meal
1 cup flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg beaten
1/4 cup canola oil
1 cup milk
1. Preheat oven to 400. Grease Muffin pan.
2. In large bowl mix together corn meal, flour, salt, baking soda, sugar. Add egg, oil, and milk. Stir until combined. Spoon batter into muffin pan.
3. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 to 20 mins.
Life has been very busy and at the same time standing still lately. Its weird. Honestly I am feeling huge, disabled and quite uncomfortable these days. I, very much enjoy when I have something planned for the day to make the time pass quicker and keep my mind occupied. The days home alone while Kev is at work are getting a little harder and harder. I would have gone back to school this week which is also a little hard to swallow. It’s a little more real now that I wasn’t just on summer break but that I actually quit the job I loved. I want this baby to come so I can remember why and know that it was the right decision. I know as soon as she is here I wont be thinking I wish I was back in my classroom getting stuff ready for the 1st day. I am so anxious for her arrival!
Dear Baby Girl,
Mommy and Daddy are ready for you to come!! Please come and play with us. As I write this week 38 letter we are already closer to week 39 now than 38. The midwife told us you were head down but flipped backwards at our last visit which isn’t really the best way to deliver. It means a lot more discomfort for mommy. I have been doing yoga a lot and praying that you will make the flip. Come on little one- you know you want too!! Mommy and Daddy were talking the other day and realizing how many places you have already been thru this pregnancy. You are already a little traveler and you aren’t even here yet. You have been to Florida, San Francisco (for a few hours), Hawaii, New York City, Boston, Maine, New Hampshire, Baltimore, Cape Cod, Vermont, New Jersey, Washington DC. Ooh it will be so much more fun when you are here and we can show you these places in real life!
We are ready and waiting little one!
Love,
Your momma
Ok! The baby is coming soon and we are thrilled and so excited!!! So what better way to celebrate her arrival then a little GUESSING GAME GIVEAWAY!!!
Let’s make some bets!
This will be a 3 in 1 giveaway. There will be 3 lucky winners.
You are guessing…
1. Her Name (remember its a girl and I gave a slight hint last week in a post with some pictures)
2. Her Birth Weight
3. Her Birthday (remember my actually due date is Sept. 3rd)
To enter all you have to do is click the banner below and vote for us (takes just 2 clicks) for topbabyblogs and then leave a comment below giving your thoughts on 1. a name, 2. the birth weight and 3. her birth date. Anyone with the right answer for one of those will be put into a random drawing for a winner to be picked (you do not have to have all 3 right- just one to be placed in the drawing). There will be a winner chosen for correct Name, Weight and Birthdate. (if no one guesses her name, there will be 2 winners of birth date chosen instead)
Winners will receive a special care package from jenloveskev filled with surprise handmade goodies from Me!!! It might include something http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/3992171114/, http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4013271665/, http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/3681159683/, or maybe http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4155045890/, PLUS LOTS MORE!!!! Yay!!!
Let the guessing begin! Giveaway will run until baby is born!
Remember to Vote HERE first!
Well nothing says “extremely pregnant lady” like a pair of stretchy pants. haha! ok, ok Leggings. I just like saying stretchy pants because it reminds me of Nacho Libre, which by the way is one of my favorite movies. I never wear leggings. I mean I do of course but they are mostly restricted to: yoga, pjs, and late night walks with Kev. I do not really like them as an everyday wardrobe staple. I guess when you are 38 weeks pregnant you have to let go of somethings. I am feeling huge!
The lovely Megan Nielsen was nice enough to donate one of her dresses to the Delightful Dozen to pass around and style. I was excited because it was something I could actually wear while being this pregnant. I have had to take a little bit of a back seat with signing up for swap items the past few months. I don’t know if I am just monstrously tall compared to the other DD girls but there was no way this dress was a dress for me. I had to wear it with something and well my bottoms selection are very small these days. It consists of jeans shorts, like 2 skirts and well these leggings. So leggings it was. I decided if I was going to wear leggings I should at least try to make myself look a little dressed up to even out that I was wearing what I think of as pjs. So I added an animal print belt, a really pretty necklace and my little cropped jacket from LOFT. I actually really liked how the whole outfit looked together.
I wanted to share some of my favorite things from my sponsors this afternoon… Wanna come a long for the ride?
Modcloth has the most unbelievably beautiful blouses right now. They are so perfect for fall! Can you imaging wearing these richly colored tops on a lovely fall stroll? I sure can. I think I would have a Hot Carmel Apple Cider in one hand and Kev’s hand in the other and I would be wearing some very pretty patterned tights.
I am starting to look for dresses that can be worn in these last weeks of summer and then carry right on into fall. I think these dresses from Ruche would be a perfect fit! Adding tights and cardigans are a perfect way to make a summery dress feel ready for fall.
Have you popped over to Roll and Tumble lately? Well you should!! They have some great new prints in the shop!! I am totally loving this Harmony Print as well as the Fetch one. Super cute and a great addition to your home decor.
Look at me go. I may actually get in 4 outfit pics this week! Remember when I use to take 5? Oh the good ol’ days. How is everyone’s week going? I can’t believe how fast this week is going by. Its already time again for my weekly midwife appointment. I feel like I have them everyday. It has been really humid this week and my hair is driving me CRAZY! I want to keep growing it out but it is just so blah and my bangs are getting in my face. I have been trying to grow them out because I keep seeing these super cute pictures of girls with middle parted hair and grown out bangs and I love it. My bangs are getting pretty long but they are at the awkward length that is to short to make it back when I put my hair up but way to long to just be left down. Whats a girl to do? I am not very experimental with my hair which maybe I should be? Today I tried some little prairie girl braids and its cute but I have a hard time looking at these pictures and feeling like myself because I never wear my hair like that. Its funny how one new hair style can make you feel so not like yourself.
Isn’t this dress from modcloth super cute? I love the little lace detail in the center. The fabric is super soft as well. I kinda felt like I am wearing my pjs, which I think is an excellent characteristic of a dress. If you can look nice and be that comfortable than thats a winner to me.
First off let me just say I just had a bowl of Capt’n Crunch with Crunch Berries and it was DELICIOUS!!! haha I normally eat very healthy cereal but I couldn’t resist yesterday at the store and it was worth every extra calorie and gram of sugar in the bowl. Mmmm
Ok, back to outfit post.
On Sunday, I had the pleasure of meeting up with the very lovely and genuine Jenny Feldman. Her family was in tow and it was great to meet everyone and spend some time getting to know each other. I had a fabulous time and an amazing brunch of Raspberry oatmeal pancakes. Can’t wait for our next hang out!
Last week in the mail I received my new Carpenter Bee bag from Spotted Moth. Isn’t it freakin’ awesome? It was packaged so beautifully I had to wait till Kev got home to open it because I wanted him to see the packaging for himself (we are nerdy like that). I was so excited when I finally torn it all open, its got so much room in it. I love the contrasting stripped fabric on the inside. For now it is just being used as my every day killer purse but when the baby is born I have decided this will be my new bad ass mommy diaper bag/purse. haha. How cool will I be? Nobody will want to mess with us.
This lace tunic is so not maternity. The lining is half way up my belly but at least the lace part I can pull way down. I sure do love this shirt though, I cant wait to wear it during the Fall. I love the lace paired with the chunkiness of this necklace. Its like the perfect match to me. I love all the different parts of the necklace intertwined.
I have been keeping myself busy lately sewing some little goodies, making a mobile for baby, redoing the Pram and sewing pretty pillow cases. I wanted to share some of the finished projects with you…
First off, our friends had their brand new beautiful baby boy last week and when I went to the hospital I brought along these 2 sewn animals for little Milo to play with. I like them both but I think the dino is my favorite. They both had felt backs in different colors with hand sewn details.
Next up was the Pram. I really hated the ugly design that was around the top of it. It was very dated and not very baby like at all. I decided to hack it off and redo it with some pretty lace. All I did was cut the trim, bind it with some white binding tape and hot glue some new cute lace around it. I love it! It looks so much better now!
There is something really refreshing about eating a fresh tomato and Mozzarella salad and a fresh pesto sauce in the summer. My mom brought me a bunch of tomatoes from her garden when she came to visit last week so I knew exactly what I wanted to make. Such a super delicious meal for summer.
Fake Chick’n (or I made Steak for Kev)
2 cups baby spinach leaves
1/4 cup pine nuts
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 to 2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
1/3 cup olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1. For the salad you just need to cut everything up and lay it on plate. I drizzled Balsamic vinegar over top of mine.
2. For pesto combine the spinach, pine nuts, lemon juice, and lemon peel in a processor. Pulse. With the machine running, add 1/3 cup of the oil, blend until creamy. Add salt and pepper. Pulse.
3. Scrap pesto into a bowl and gently mix in Parm. Cheese. Add more salt and pepper if you want.
4. Cook Meat however you chose.
5. Plate with salad and spoon pesto over the chick’n.
Mmmmm.
I have some art and craft related things to share later today. So check back!
Ever have a dress you sometimes like and sometimes not so much? That is kinda how I feel about this dress. I have had it about 2 years. I do not wear it very often but when I put it on the other day it fit. So really I didn’t care how I was feeling about it. Although because it did fit, I felt good and thought it was a good choice for my dear friend Suzi’s bridal shower on Saturday. I am starting to not fit into anything anymore. Even my maternity shorts are getting super tight around my stomach. I refuse to buy anything else until this baby comes. I am so excited to get some new fall clothes that won’t have to fit over a giant pregnant belly. I have been drooling over the JCrew catalog for weeks.
I am making a bad habit of not posting these when I am suppose too. At least I get them up sometime. I hope you all got a chance to read the “Talk is Cheap” post last week. I really appreciated everyones sweet comments and personal emails you sent after that. Well this weekend was really no exception. We ended up packing up and leaving our place at 9:30 on friday night to drive out to central Mass. We stayed up visiting with my parents till almost 2am. Then fell asleep got up at 7:30 and headed to the Cape for the day. It was exactly what I described before, in the element, music up, wind in our hair, holding hands as we went off on another adventure. It was a great day. We laid on the beach, talked about the baby, and really enjoyed each others company. Yes, the baby is coming really soon but I am trying to not get all sad that, that means the end of just the 2 of us. I know the “2” of us will always be there. Now we will just have another awesome addition. Yesterday, was a very grey almost early fall like day. It made me so freakin’ excited. I LOVE FALL!! It is my favorite season. All day yesterday we were thinking of all the adventures we like to do in the fall and how amazing they will be to do this year with the baby in tow with us!! Ahh Apple picking, pumpkin patches, hayrides, fall hikes, Halloween, fall nights cuddled on the couch, I could go on and on. The thought of the 3 of us doing all this together makes me so happy I want to explode. haha that is a little dramatic but still it makes me so excited. We unpacked our new baby carrier the other day and Kev tried it on. I may or may not have put one of my childhood stuffed animals in it when he was wearing it to see what it would be like. haha. Our first thought was can we get the cat in there? Anyways, Kev looked so cute. I really can not wait for our little family adventures.
These pictures this week we took hanging out on the Cape.
Dear Baby Girl:
Mommy has been sharing a lot of pictures lately of Daddy and her and some of the things they have done over the last 4 years. I have been talking a lot about being adventurous and not letting life slow you down. I just wanted to say though that if you ever read those post not to mistake it for sadness that I thought it was coming to an end or that I was trying to force this new parenthood life into an old life that I didn’t want to let go of. That is not the case. I only get so excited about adventures with you because I want you to be able to experience so much. I want you to love life as much as we do. When you are grown, I want you to look back and think wow, what an amazing childhood I had. Daddy and me could not be more excited for you to come. We just want to share with you all the things we love in life. The thought of you experiencing something with us that means so much makes me get all teary. Its really easy to let life get you down. I don’t want that to be something you learn to let happen a lot. Yeah, everyone has bad days but there is always so much beautiful around to be grateful for and to enjoy. Even if its something small. I hope if there is one thing you learn from Mommy and Daddy it is to enjoy and love life. It is so short not to!
Lots of Love,
Your Mommy
p.s. Yes, your Daddy is wearing a Tank Top and No, he is not trying to eat you in the first picture. lol.
I’d sure appreciate if you could help me get to #3 again. It just takes 2 clicks. Thanks so much!!!
Get ready for a post full of pictures. I don’t know why but this morning I decided to log into some old photobucket accounts. We have 2 full accounts that we used before we decided to upgrade to flickr pro. I feel like those 2 photobucket accounts hold the treasures from the last 4 years of our life. I started looking thru them page by page. I love looking thru old photos. I don’t know why but this morning I couldn’t stop. I was getting so nostalgic about everything. We really have done a lot over the last 4 years of being married. Looking back to you don’t remember the hard or tough times, you just see the joy and happiness- there was so much. We have really had an amazing life together so far. Kev is truly my best friend. I can not imagine going thru this life with out him. We have really shared so many memories together. I guess maybe when you are about to go thru a major life change you get all sentimental about things. Thats how I am feeling today.
Since we started dating we have always had a little motto that was “talk is cheap.” We have always been the couple that hasn’t let things get in the way of going on adventure. I love that about us. I feel sad for people who just let life pass them by because things might be difficult or wait around for everything to be planned out to a T. Fact is, nothing will ever be planned out perfect, you might as well just get up and go try. I get really discouraged when people say things to me like “when you have a baby things will be different.” Yes, I agree things are going to be different. I do understand that but I am not going to let people burst my bubble either. I am excited for her to come and to join in on these adventures with us. I believe that you can make things work and that is what we are going to do. So, although I am feeling all sentimental about the past 4 years, it makes me even more excited about the next 4, the next 10, the next 20. Can you imagine all the adventures we will have gone on then?
I feel extremely blessed to have Kev as my husband. When I was looking at these pictures this morning my heart was full. We keep joking about how old we are lately. It’s like all of a sudden it started to hit us that we are a lot older than we think we are (not a bad thing of course) but if I close my eyes and think of the two of us. This is the picture that I see…
Wind blown hair, sun kissed skin, Sweatshirts, smiles, some sort of inside joke being laughed at and ready for anything. Usually it would be some very late night drive home from somewhere that we just had to go to that day. The windows are down in the car, the music is up real loud, I am curled up on the passenger seat of the Element and we are holding hands. It is a very vivid image. It has happened just like that on so many different occasions. No matter what age we are, I think that will always be my image of us when I close my eyes. Maybe now, it will include a little munchkin in the backseat, sound asleep from a day of fun with mommy and daddy?
It’s Thursday and what better way to celebrate than with an awesome Giveaway! Spotted Moth is generously giving away this gorgeous handmade necklace to a lucky Jenloveskev Reader. This necklace was handmade exclusively for Spotted Moth. It’s a gold fill chain beaded with sparkling Chinese crystals and pyrite. I love the color combo and then length of the necklace is just perfect. It was be the perfect addition to your new fall wardrobe.
So the time is getting close. I am feeling more and more ready (haha well, are you ever really ready?). I feel like we have all the details taken care of, all the “stuff” is here, washed and ready to go. It’ scattered about our apartment and some of the stuff is just too darn cute to not share. I can’t wait till it is all in use!
All her burp clothes, swaddling blankets, wash clothes, towel, etc.. are all washed & folded. Do you see some familiar fabric? The lovely Megan Nielsen made me a super cute baby kit with the extra fabric from my Maternity dress.
Kev and I are really not into all the patterned everything that is out there for babies. For blankets and things it’s one thing but for car seats, strollers, bouncers it’s just too much for us. We went with mostly black for all those kind of things. We really love everything we got and will work well for future boys or girls. We got the Chicco Keyfit 30 Carseat because it had good ratings and it was compatible with our stroller. This cute little white knitted blanket that is on the car seat is what my Mom and Dad had me wrapped in when I came home from the hospital. My mom gave it to me a little while ago and our little girl will be brought home in the same blanket. So special.
I am not a crazy wooden toy lady or anything but I do really like them. There are so many toys out there now a days and I feel like they take half the fun away of being a kid and exploring and using your imagination. They do everything for you. I love the basic sort of toys. Thats just me though. I know we will end up with both but for now we have some super cute Haba Toys for her and a crazy awesome alligator from Punky and Adam.
Have you been over to Blabla? They have the cutest, softest, most adorable dolls and rattles ever. I got a few things from there and I am pretty sure I will be getting a whole heck of a lot more. Love things knitted items!!
So I searched forever to figure out what kind of baby bouncer seat to get. There are so many out there and so many just dripping in ridiculousness. They were just not for Kev and I. I was debating getting one of the Bloom Rockers but I really wanted something that would travel with us. We travel a lot. So I decided on the Baby Bjorn Chair instead and we couldn’t be happier. It’s super easy to fold up flat when we are off to Grammy’s house.
We also have a few different kinds of cloth diapers to try out before we decided what brand we are going to use. Aren’t the colors so pretty?
Last but not least… I could take pictures of baby clothes all day but I just had to share these 2 I got yesterday. I have mentioned on more than one occasion Kev and I’s love of “hooded sweatshirt” walks. I think one of the things we are most looking forward to when the baby comes is going for these walks together as a family when she is here. Making homemade hot chocolate, bundling up and going out for our late night walks. I was at carters yesterday and I found this double lined fleece hooded little sleeper. It will be her own hooded sweatshirt to wear on these walks with us. Ahhh it is so cute and so soft. WE CAN NOT WAIT!!! Also, this little bathing suit was in the clearance rack at gymboree, too cute to pass up. I love the big coral bows on the shoulders. FL here we come!!
ahh why is all baby stuff so freakin’ cute? Alright little girl come on out and play!!
Yesterday was one of those days that you just can’t bring yourself to get on the internet. I needed a little break. I woke up- I sewed some stuffed animals for a Friends new baby boy and then I drove out to the hospital to go and visit them. I have to say sitting in the hospital room holding a brand new baby, talking with a friend about birth and life and just exciting things was really refreshing and totally enjoyable. Kev and I are so, so happy for our Friends. The baby is beautiful and the proud new parents are glowing. I also got to stop at the outlets for a bit and use a carters gift card I got for some adorable baby things. When I got home we had some friends come over for pizza, delicious salads and some games. I love game nights. Yesterday was a day that I am grateful for. Its always good to have days surrounded by good friends. Last night I was having some very uncomfortable contractions though. Kinda crazy. Kev rubbed my back for a long time, then I took a hot shower and relaxed on the couch and watched Rachel Zoe and ate a creamsicle. They died down eventually and off to sleep we went.
I really love my outfit in todays pictures but the photos and I were in a fight while we were taking them. I hate those days. Sometimes photo shoots go so easy (like 5 photos and everyone is a keeper) and sometimes like today they are so painful. Every picture is eh and it just gets worse and worse the longer you stay out there trying to take pictures. I had a few errands to run this morning so I woke up right after Kev left for work and got dressed. I have had this blouse for a while- its really flowy so it still fits good even though it’s not maternity. I love the ruffle around the collar. The skirt is not maternity either and if I was going to be out for a long time I would not have worn it. It doesn’t zip up the side anymore so I just pull one of my maternity tanks down over it to hold in place and cover it up. haha. oh the joys of pregnancy! I am hoping fall will come sooner if I just keep wearing outfits a little more inspired by fall than summer. Fingers crossed!
On Saturday we packed our coolers, picked up our friends and headed out to The Saratoga Raceway for the day. Kev and I had never been to the racetrack before. I really didn’t know what to think, but it exceeded everything I thought. It was beyond fun!! I seriously felt like I was in a disney movie half the time. Which of course I loved! It was like the scene in Mary Poppins when they are in the chalk drawing and are at the Track. There was lots of food, bands, they really make that trumpet noise, all the horses, the grandstand, the giant hats on super rich ladies. I felt like a little girl, I was so excited all day to be experiencing something I had never done before. Those are def. some of my favorite moments in life, when you get to do something new. I try to never take them for granted. Even the betting is a whole fun game in itself. Carrie schooled us in all the lingo and how pick bets, I was so nervous the first time I went up to the window to make a bet. Haha. We only were betting like $1 but still it’s so fun. Now, I know there is a method to the madness behind betting but for me I threw the odds out the window and bet on horse that had cool names (usually if they had some things to do with cats…ex: Magnificent Tiger) or what they were wearing. It always listed what color patterns the jockey was wearing. I usually always went with the Jockey that had a Pom-pon! Yay for Pom-Pons. Which by the way I didn’t know what they heck it was for the first half the day until I wikipedia it and found that it is actually the correct way to say pom-pom. Doh! I had no idea. I thought they were just trying to make the word pom-pom sound more masculine for the jockeys. What a good day!
I really wasn’t sure what I was going to wear but Carrie came over on Friday night and we made our hats. I just used a thrifted straw hat I had from the goodwill and added a ribbon flower, some tulle and some ridiculously long feathers. Since it was going to be so warm I ended up wearing a nice, flowy, cool dress from Heritage. I had to wear bike shorts underneath because my belly is getting so big it lifts non maternity dresses up a little too high in the front sometimes. haha!
Dress: Heritage
Necklace: NY&Co.
Hat: Thrifted via Goodwill (embellished by moi)
Tie Espadrilles: Nine West (thrifted via Clothes Mentor)
We are half way thru week 36 now, on our way to 37. Time is seriously flying by so fast and then at times seems to be standing still. We went to the hospital last week to see our friends brand new baby boy. When we were walking in, I asked Kev if he had ever been to the hospital to see a baby before. He said he hadn’t. I think it took both of us back when we walked in that room and saw the beautiful little 1 day old baby. That was going to be us in 4 weeks. It def. put a lump in my throat. He was beyond perfect. We are so happy for our friends! We are about as ready as we are going to be I think with baby stuff. We got our car seat last week, the extra car seat base for the other car, our baby bouncer, sheets for her pram/bed and all her little things are getting washed as I type this. I also got all the things I needed for our hospital bag. The time is coming fast.
Dear Sweet Baby Girl
It’s almost 2am as I sit here typing this. Your daddy is sleeping in the other room. I can not sleep. I have not been sleeping a lot lately. Mommy is getting pretty uncomfortable and you make her have lots of strange dreams that she doesn’t really like having. I know its not your fault but it makes me not be able to sleep. My mind is also racing tonight. It is getting so close and I am excited but I am also scared. I hope that I can be everything that you will need me to be. I don’t know how to be a mom yet. Is it something that comes naturally after you are born? Sometimes I feel like I haven’t even figured out how to take care of myself yet- so how will I be able to do a good job with someone else. I am going to give it my all, but I worry sometimes at night that I wont know what to do. I hope you will just know how much we love you and that we really are so, so excited for you to come. We went to the Race Track yesterday and the whole day I kept wishing you were there with us. Enjoying the summer, the sun, and a nice picnic. Sometimes now it feels like we are missing something when we go and do things. That missing piece is you. We are ready for you to come on out and be a part of us. You are welcome to come out any time now. (hehe) We will be here anxious, excited and a little scared but filled with love and open arms.
We love you little one.
Your Momma
The baby post will be up sometime by monday. This week has been sort of up and down for us. Its been hard to have time to take the pictures together for the baby post during the week nights. So whats the best way to bring up your spirits? (or well mine anyways?) Getting up, having a yummy breakfast and then playing dress up in your closet till you find something that makes you feel good. I love this dress. Its the prettiest subtle pink (pictures don’t really get the color very well). I kept this outfit pretty simple, no real accessories other than my socks, shoes and belt. I liked it that way. Now I just need Kev to come home from work and take me on a nice date. hehe.
Dress & Belt: H&M
Socks: JCrew
Heart and Sole Wedges: c/o Modcloth
Yay! Guess what? We are going to the Horse Races tomorrow in Saratoga!! I am super excited. It’s my first time. My friend Carrie is coming over tonight so we can make ridiculous hats to wear!! Now I just need to figure out what I am going to wear with this hat!
Yay!! A giveaway!! Want to win a $35 dollar gift certificate to The Ardent Sparrow? I sure would! I was trying to pick just 2 images to use for this post but I couldn’t even pick my 2 favorites, there were just too many beautiful pieces of jewelry!! Haha I ended up having to make this 9 picture grid because everything is too pretty!!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4864085775/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4864085619/
To enter this $35 gift certifcate giveaway all you have to do is go and visit The Ardent Sparrow and pick your favorite piece and leave the link here in a comment. Simple as that!
Giveaway will be open from now until Tuesday Evening. Winner will be randomly chosen and announced on Wednesday.
Good Luck!
So This is my first specific maternity I’d Wear That I have done this entire pregnancy. Crazy huh? Anyways, if you are not pregnant I am providing alternatives to each maternity piece so you can achieve the same sort of look. I got an email from Cara the other day explaining how she will be quite far along in her pregnancy during the Fall and Winter months and how she was worried about what to wear while still looking cute. She even questioned if she could wear tights or skirts. Well there lady- the answer is yes!! The more I think about it, I wish I was going to be pregnant thru fall and winter as well. It seems like it would be quite fun to dress in warm cute layers while still being pregnant. I decided to make not just 1 look but 2 fall maternity looks for her. One with tights and one with jeans.
I love the contrast between the sweet cream dress and then the edge the shoes and black tights give it. When it comes to neutrals I always choose black. Its what I feel the most comfortable in. I think I need to recreate this outfit for myself for the fall.
Maternity Cream Dress: ASOS | Non Maternity Alternitve #1 and #2
Black Eva Cardigan: Delias
Jeffrey Campbell 99 Lace Up Wedge: Need Supply
Med-Owl-ian Ring: Modcloth
Watch out for Number One Bracelet: Modcloth
Maternity Tights: Topshop
I am in love with these boots. I also love the 2 tone denim. Just make sure you are choosing 2 denims that aren’t close in color. This works because the tunic is much light than the bottoms. I love the whole adventurous spirit of this outfit. Also a look I want to recreate this fall non pregnant.
Maternity Demin Tunic: Gap | Non Pregnant Alternative: #1
Maternity Skinny Jeans: Topshop
Jeffrey Campbell Bradley Brown Boots: Lulu’s
My Everyday Adventure Bag: Ruche
Carrie Sunglasses: Fred Flare
Gold Cuff: Forever 21
We are going with a laid back summer look today. Nothing super fancy but its my staple kinda look for down days. Jean shorts, a tank, hair up, long necklace and a cardigan for evening walks with Kev. I think I would have liked being pregnant into the fall ( I don’t want to go longer- just for fashion reasons). I would have enjoyed the light layering that comes with early fall. I found these dexter shoes at goodwill last year and have been in lots of style files but they really are the most comfortable shoes- like slippers especially when I don’t tie them up.
Like my crazy headband? haha I love it! I got it in the mail last week from modcloth and I have been wearing it non stop. It has wire in it so it stays in whatever position you put it in. Its like the most ingenious idea ever. I don’t know why I haven’t owned something like this before. Any bad hair day can turn into something super cute with this thing.
So did you know I had gauges in my ear? I have never said anything about it before, or taken a close up but I have been getting a lot of emails about them. I guess some of you are starting to catch on. I have had them since I was 18. I tired once to take them out because I thought I was enough of a “grown up” to not have them, but it lasted like a couple months and I felt so much not like myself I had to put them back in. I am not sure when I will finally take them out but it’s def. a part of me for now. So to answer some of the questions I have gotten. They are a 00g. I stretched them myself slowing. It did hurt just a little when I would stretch them. No, I didn’t have a punch taken out of my ear. I don’t know if they will ever close all the way back up and I usually just get my earrings at Hot Topic (haha I know cool right?) Yes, I had them as a teacher- I did not hide them and The kids would whisper a lot when they would find out and then ask a lot of questions. It is not for everyone I know, but to each there own, right?
Hope you all try to have a laid back relaxed kinda day today!
Through the Wire Headband in Roses: c/o Modcloth
Boyfriend Cardigan: Banana Republic
Key Necklace: c/o The Refinery Boutique
Tank: Maternity Tank from Target
Shorts: Liz Lange for Target (maternity)
Shoes: Thrifted Dexters from Savers
Kev eloquently named this dessert “A Grilled, Rum-Soaked Hot Mess”
So what goes better together than rum, pineapple, melted chocolate, pound cake and whipped cream. Umm the answer is nothing!
When we were over Adam’s house after the swap on Saturday we decided to make some delicious grilled dessert. We came up with this mess of a dish. It may not look like much from the photo, but boy is it tasty. I may have gotten carried away with dripping the chocolate on this one. I wasn’t thinking photo pretty, I was just thinking more chocolate for my belly!! Mmmm
1. Cut pineapple in the slices, place in bowl and pour bottle of rum over top. Let sit for a while. I dont have a specific time- I think we did it about an hour.
2. Slice pound cake.
3. heat Grill.
4. Place Pound cake and pineapple and the grill and grill till you see fit.
5. Melt chocolate in a double broiler or microwave.
6. Pile it all on a plate, drip chocolate and top with whipped cream.
I think one of my new favorite things are  clothing swaps and no one does it better than the duo behind The Swapaholics. Punky and Melissa are awesome and know how to run a good swap. I look forward to them everytime. This one was especially fun because Kev came, Julie and Chris came and our friend Adam was there. Want to hear a funny store. Adam is high school/band mate best friend of Kev and he is actually the one that introduced me to Punky. He kept telling me that I should met his friend Punky because he thought we would have so much in common. Well he was right and now we are all a happy friends family. The building the swap was in was this amazing old factory. I think Kev could have moved right in and died in photography heaven. He got some really great pictures that day.
The sweetest reader came up and introduced herself to me. It was super nice to meet and I am glad she came out to the swap and that we got a picture together!!
After the swap we all hung out all afternoon outside on a porch laughing, bbqing and enjoying the beautiful weather. It was a really great day!
I have to say I am pretty excited to share these pictures. I have been meaning to do a post like this for a while. I am excited because I love our place and I love the art that’s up around it. Most of it is stuff that I have made, but it all has some sort of meaning behind it, so it makes it special to have it around. Hope you enjoy this little virtual art show…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855194625/This is our little letterpress. I bought it off a guy in Rochester for Kev’s birthday one year. I love this thing to death. Kev and I always say we fell in love in bookmaking class in college. That is one of Kev’s letterpress books he made in that class and that’s our last name in old type.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855195931/This is my tree. I made it in college in a mixed media class. I like trees a lot and they show up in my artwork a lot as well. The old photos I found on the side of the road in someones trash (yep, I like other peoples trash.) There was a set of like 12 of them. All of the same 4 people. I think they are from the 40’s. I have made stories up about each one. I am pretty sure it was a family that was at a photobooth. A Dad, Mom, brother and sister.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855808194/I like to sew little creatures a lot. I also like finding old/vintage fabrics to use for these little guys. Kev and I use to do a lot of art and craft fairs. We made handmade journals and screen print things to sell. We called our selves “Scaffolding Journals” I made some of these creatures for one of the fairs and we were trying to come up with a name for them. My mom suggested “scaffies” like scaffolding haha but it kind of just sounds more like an STD than a name for a soft little sewn cat.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855181013/This is my lovely wooden easel. Its from college. They were getting new ones the year I left school so I snagged one of the old ones. Here are some owl paintings I did and also 1 piece from the series I did for my art show last year.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855806704/This is one of Kev’s photos, we have a few of them nicely framed and hung on the wall in our office. This picture was taken in Boston.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855810544/I love making tunnel books. The one on the left is of pictures of Kev and I when we went to NYC for Christmas a very long time ago now. The one on the right is layered with tree cut outs. That one can close up into a complete box.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855812524/This is a shelf in our bedroom. I love the things that are on it.
1. is a intaglio print I made in college. Have I told you how much I love drawing anatomy? well I do. I always have. Some times I wonder if I should have gone to school for medical illustration. I had just had my wisdom teeth out when I made this print.
2. This was one of our very first screen printing attempts. We made a bunch of t-shirts that said “don’t be an art killer” with scaffolding journals underneath. I love those shirts. We still wear them.
3. This is the cd cover of the band we went to go see on our very first date. I will always love Silent Drive.
4. This is a picture of me drinking what I can only guess is mint tea at a bagel shop. Did you know that is my favorite?
5. This is a deer painting I made. It was part of a series of 6 paintings I did for an art show.
6. This is Bruins Cat. haha. He has a theme song and I am trying to get Kev to write a song for the baby about Bruins Cat that he will sing with our ukulele to the baby when she comes. We both love hockey and I found this super old Bruins patch at a goodwill one time and made this cat with it.
7. An old comic I found at a thrift store. It was just cute and its title was “I love you”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855809232/This is a close up on 2 items at the end of the shelf in the last picture. Every year I make books for Kev for different anniversaries or holidays. I just love making books. I also love book cloth!! I am really nerdy about. Here is a little collage book I made him and the other one is a book filled with artwork and funny notes and pictures. I made it for him for valentines day one year. I screen printed one of my favorite little sayings to him “now and forever more” on the front.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855194127/So this isn’t artwork but no house would be complete without a photo collage wall.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855193299/This is one of the newest pieces of artwork I made for Kev. I just made it for him for our wedding anniversary this year. Our wedding song was to a Mates of State song with the line “And I will be your anchor, drop me in the bay and watch me hold you steady” as the chorus. This painting only seemed fitting. It is sitting on our dresser in our bedroom.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855814494/Remember I wrote I love to draw anatomy? I also love painting flowers. I love making random paintings that just have mixes of items that don’t really have any relation to each other. I painted this a few months ago.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4855814904/These are some old screen printing screens we used. Did you know we have a 4 color screen printing press? its pretty awesome. We use to use it way more- but its very time consuming. Anyways, I love saving all the old screens that have all kinds of ghosted images on them. I made these mixed media pieces with different random junk. The parts are from our organ we bought the first summer we were dating. Â Do you see anything familiar in the piece on the right?? Look at the left corner of my site. Now see? Its the same pictures!!
Yay!! We have finished our virtual art show. Did you enjoy it! I sure did. I makes me all warm and fuzzy on the inside talking about all this stuff. It all means so much and is a big reflection of the place we call home.
Did you all have a great weekend? I hope so. We had a great weekend spent with good friends. Friday night we went over to our friends house for dinner. We had a fabulous time and the weather was so nice on Friday night! Saturday we drove out to Worcester to go to another Swapaholics Clothing Swap. It was awesome of course and the bbq hang out that followed was also awesome. More on the whole swap tomorrow. Here is what I wore to the swap. I just got this dress from Modcloth and I have to say it is super cute. I cant wait to wear it thru the fall with tights (and not being pregnant). There are so many belting options and ways to remix it. Perfect addition to my wardrobe. Also perfect is that it fits me pretty good pregnant too. It has the cutest black lace back, which we unfortunately didn’t get a picture of, but you can see it on the Modcloth site. I love the ribbon details on it. It makes it a little more special than just your average denim dress.
I do wish I didn’t have my hair up for these pictures but oh well whatcha going to do? Its summer and its hot and I am pregnant. Comfort is starting to take over fashion for me these days. As you can also see- I started off in some super cute wedges but didn’t last long and on to my trusty black flats I went. I can’t wait to share more pictures tomorrow. What a cool space that swap was in and what cute friends were there with me! Group photos tomorrow!
Welcome to my personal lifestyle blog. It features topics such as motherhood, family life, fashion, cooking, and all sorts of adventures. I hope you enjoy what you find!
