Belly love catch-up 29-31 weeks :)

OH MY WORD!!! How did another month fly by? and me not post anything about this little prince on the way?! I haven't even blogged about my wonderful baby shower.  That will be another post but instead of these belly posts in which I update you about my weight, cravings, gain weight etc....let's chit chat and just show you some pics k?

I will be 32 weeks tomorrow!!! I cannot believe this babe will be arriving SO SOON! and maybe even as early as July 3rd if he comes as soon as he is "full term" His due date is July 24th but he's more than welcome to arrive as soon as he's done cookin' in my belly.

We spent this weekend with the company of sweet friends and since they have a baby girl I have been envisioning life with a baby even more and just looking forward to the sweet moments that I get to witness with this sweet family.  If you saw how cute she was, you'd understand and do the same :) My friend Michelle was also kind enough to take some maternity pictures today, she is so talented... I can't wait to see them...Love you Michelle!

The presence of this belly is inevitable and I love it when people ask me when I'm due and what the sex of the baby is...it makes me so happy! He is coming people!! I have experienced the belly kicks but lately something magical happened.  The belly protrusions have begun...I feel so much shifting and can feel/see body part protrusions SO much more.  My husband has felt them and we aren't sure if we are feeling/seeing his knee or even a foot.  It is so amazing to see that my body is providing a home for our little creation.  I am so glad that all is well in the womb my little buddy :)

I also love getting texts answering my mommy questions and amazing advise from one of my oldest friends who is a mommy of 2 gorgeous little girls- Thank you Natasha! Love you for constantly checking on me and how I am feeling xoxo

Ok enough babble....let's see this belly k?

29 weeks

30 weeks

This is a sneak peak of the baby shower pictures- post coming soon!

31 weeks

Big happy smile because we cannot wait to welcome our BABY BOY! Until next time friends!

Belly Bumpdates week 25 & 27

I somehow skipped out on my week 26 belly photo....ooops!!! It is hard to believe that this Tuesday I will be 28 weeks along.  It is so exciting and at the same time a little scary.  Not in terms of the baby but because I want everything to be ready for his arrival and make sure the house is not only clean but sterile HA! I probably sound like a broken record when I say how many hopes and dreams we have for our little boy.  We cannot stop talking about family vacations and how Cooper will make the best furry brother.  

Let's talk stats!!

How Far Along: 28 weeks on Tuesday!

Total Weight Gain: I don't have a clue- I'll know on Friday when I go to my 28 week check-up.  I know I was up 12 lbs on my 25 week check-up.

Maternity Clothes: ALL maternity pants and shirts.  Although I can still get away with regular tops.

Gender: A sweet little prince!

Movement: Lots of movement. My husband cannot get enough of feeling him move.  He kisses my belly, rubs it and talks to him.  I just love watching him do that.  He's so in love.

Sleep: Sleeping through the night except for bathroom breaks.  There are times that I have a hard time getting comfortable and waking up for work is getting harder. 

What I miss: Running.  I want to tackle another marathon asap! AND I miss sushi & wine.  That will never change.

Cravings: None

Best Moment this week: Aside from people asking me when I'm due ( LOVE LOVE LOVE), getting more things for our sweet boy.  Every time we are out, we cannot help ourselves and have to get him something. Yesterday we got him swaddle blankets.   

25 week bump

27 week bump

                                                                     A little blurry

                                                       Have a great rest of the week!

24 week belly love

Happy Wednesday friends!


In case you missed our babymoon post...it's here

I hope you all had a happy Easter with your loved ones! I am actually 25 weeks as of yesterday.  YAY!!!  I feel like 2012 is flying by.  How are we almost mid-April? I remember when we found out we were pregnant, "next year" which is this year seemed so far away.  

I had a doctor's appointment on Monday for my 25 week check-up and had my glucose screening to test for gestational diabetes.  I passed with flying colors. I got my results today. It makes me happy that all is good in the glucose world.  I chose the orange flavor which wasn't bad at all... People have told me horror stories about how thick and sweet the drink is and how it tastes like syrup.  I know they have changed the formula and made it more tolerable.  In my opinion, it tasted like flat orange soda.  

Last weekend, my best friend came to visit from Charlotte. I felt SO spoiled when I came home from work to find my best friend there with these gorgeous flowers.  

Although it was a short visit, it was an amazing time because there is nothing like reuniting with a friend that is like a sister to you.  

We were SO spoiled this weekend.  She knows how much I love fresh organic food especially when it comes to breakfast.  My favorite meal of the day.  She got us delicious organic eggs- OH.EM.GEE! Can you please pretend to get excited from looking at eggs? HA! The yolks were HUGE! and the omelets were incredible.  She also knows that grits are my weakness and bought us some corn grits as well.

Let's talk belly! Week 24 has my bestie's special appearance :)


How Far Along: 24 weeks
Total Weight Gain: 12 lbs
Maternity Clothes: ALL maternity pants. Some maternity shirts.  I can still get away with some pre-pregger shirts but not for long.
Gender: BLUE!!! Sweet baby BOY!
Movement: Oh YES! I love it.  I can't get enough of it.  Kick away lovebug! Did you know babies sleep in 20 minute increments in the womb? 
Sleep: Bathroom trips 2-3 times a night & sleeping is getting a little uncomfortable.  I am cherishing it all. 
What I miss: VINO & SUSHI
Cravings: None.  I will never be the one that craves pickles and ice cream....never been a fan of neither.
Best Moment this week:  Aside from his movements, I have to say reaching the 24 week mark.  I have read that if something were to happen and he was born early, this is the stage that his lungs are almost mature enough that he can survive with extensive medical help.  Knowing that he's snug as a bug in a rug in my belly, makes this mama happy :) Stay in my belly and fatten up sweet boy.

I hope your week flies by and have a fantastic weekend!

HUGS

A Biltmore babymoon & belly love

Two weeks ago my husband and I went to the Biltmore Estate for our babymoon and we stayed at their Inn.  It was such an amazing experience.  We have so many hopes and dreams for our little boy.  We cannot wait for family vacations and showing him ALL of the places we frequent and vacation.  My husband and I love to travel and are so eager to take our baby boy along with us.  From the moment we arrived until the time we got back home, all my husband did was make me feel SO special and so loved and what was even more special to me was that our little boy was there the entire time.  How cool is that?! It is so amazing and such a blessing that he's cooking in my belly.

When we arrived to our room, all I did was look out our room window.  The view was breathtaking and I couldn't believe that we would spend the most magical 3 days in that location.  

We absolutely fell in love with Asheville.  We cannot wait to go back, hopefully this Fall with our sweet little bambino. Ahhh I cannot wait to see our baby boy in a baby bjorn strapped to my husband.  While I was in awe of the view, we heard a knock on a door and my husband had this huge grin on his face....I asked.. who is that? He told me to unpack and relax and then a butler YES a BUTLER came in with this:

My sweet husband wanted a "little bubbly" to begin the babymoon.  How I love my man! He is so unbelievably thoughtful.  I adore him.

We relaxed and drank Biltmore's best and of course talked about our baby and what he envisions for our little family.  We planned our activities for the next 3 days and we couldn't wait to hit the town. Before we went downtown, we went to Biltmore winery for some wine tasting.  My husband had so much fun tasting all the vino goodness while this mama drank grape juice and water.

 That's us outside the winery and in the distance is the Inn at Biltmore Estate where we were staying.

After many recommendations, we picked our dinner destination in downtown Asheville- Tupelo Honey Cafe.  We also heard that Paula Deen frequents Tupelo Honey regularly. 

Oh my GOODNESS!!! It was so yummy.  They are known for their sweet potato pancakes.  How could we resist? We knew it was dinner time but the server highly recommended it and that we should at least consider ordering it as an appetizer or dessert.  SO, we obliged.

I think he was a little too excited because after all this yummy goodness, came his meatloaf.

I cannot wait for this baby to arrive and be able to enjoy all the food awesomeness that come with vacationing.  I just LOVE feeding boys!

Later, after dinner we walked the streets of Asheville and soaked up every second.  I really cannot get over how COOL that city is.  My husband and I are HUGE beach bums but there is something about the serenity and beauty of the mountains.  Just beautiful.  When we arrived back at our Inn, my husband remembered that we didn't have our week 22 belly photo, so here it is:

 He is SO handsome! I cannot believe that I get to spend the rest of my life with this stud muffin.

My hubby has been reading all kinds of baby books including the one below.  He felt right at home in his Biltmore's robe and slippers.  It cracks me up every time I see this.

The next day we went to the Biltmore Estate to take a tour of the mansion.  OH MY GOODNESS! It was just breathtaking.  They didn't allow photography inside....booo! But, we did take some before going inside.

We were out doing the tour for a few hours. We needed to hurry and get back to the Inn for our spa appointment.  My sweet hubby had booked us an 80 minute couple's massage that afternoon.  Mine being a prenatal massage of course.  We have never gotten a couple's massage before, it was definitely something  nice for us to share.  He knew that it was in the middle of the afternoon and although we engorged during breakfast, he was so thoughtful to order us a little something.  It was such a nice surprise to walk into our room and see this.  Sneaky Sneaky.

My absolute favorite- fresh yummy fruit and delicious cheeses and crackers,  It was the perfect little meal before a massage and to hold us until dinner.  We got into our robes and slippers, got into the elevator, arrived on the spa level and the rest was BLISS!

After getting pampered, we showered and got ready for the evening.  We hit the town and ate at one of Asheville's top restaurants- Curate.  Everyone we have spoken to at the hotel, and the locals we met during the trip went on and on about this place.  It definitely exceeded our expectations.  Everyone told us to sit at the bar (which is also the kitchen) to get the whole experience and watch them make very cool drinks.  Again, we obliged.  The locals know what's up! Ha!

On day 3, we hit the town again for some brunch at another recommended place called Early Girl.  Y'all I think our baby boy enjoyed himself with all the food he got to taste.  It brings a smile to my face that as I am typing this post on the blog, I feel our sweet little lovebug kicking away :)

Yes babylove, you have definitely enjoyed yourself.

But, we before we headed to brunch, we had to take some shots of our gorgeous surrounding.

                                                                      Our Inn

In the last picture, I am recapping our babymoon trip in the Biltmore's memory book.  It was nice to browse through the book and read about the couples and families that have come to the Biltmore for their special occasions- anniversaries, birthdays, weddings and yearly vacations.  This trip was PURE & SHEER JOY for us.  We will remember it forever and cannot wait to tell our sweet boy all about it.  Besides, this trip was all because of him- our baby.  We CANNOT wait to meet him.  

Oh- and as if this post didn't have belly love overload- this is me at 23 weeks.  I will be 24 weeks tomorrow!! Time is flying! It will be July before we know it.

                                                                     Have a great week friends.

   

Gender reveal & belly love catch up!

OMG! I cannot believe it's been almost a month since my last blog post especially when I have friends in both the blog world and real life that keep asking about the little babe and the belly growth.  In a nutshell, I have been working a lot, a lot, a lot! tie that together with 2 hours of Atlanta traffic round trip. When I come home, yes...exhausted....I have to squeeze in a walk or a workout prior to sitting down for dinner that my amazing sweet husband has been making the past few weeks due to my crazy work schedule.  Praise the Lord that this will all change the week after next. 

Anyhoo, whenever I pull a David Copperfield and disappear again, please know that it is ALL my work's FAULT! So let's chit chat for a minute k?

What in the world have I been up to?

Well, my mom and my aunt came to GA for my 20 week ultrasound appointment.  It was by far the most incredible experience HANDS.DOWN.  I am in awe of how our bodies work and how my body knows what to do.  How it knows to keep my baby alive.  Oh how I have gone through the entire physiology  behind it ( sorry that's the Biology major in me) About a week before the BIG DAY, there was a little something that every pregnant woman experiences and WAITS for....and that is the movement of our BABY.  

On Feb 27 at 8:25pm....I felt the baby move for the first time.  It didn't feel like flutters like I have heard described before....it felt like I had a little jumping bean inside me.  It was incredible and will NEVER forget it, but what was most memorable was what happened the next day at 7:05pm and that was when my husband felt our baby move for the first time.  His hand was on my belly for less than 2 minutes before our wee one decided to show off for dad.  It was the most amazing experience.  Our eyes filled up with tears of joy while smiling from ear to ear.  My husband had a twinkle in his baby blue eyes that I will remember and cherish forever.  At that moment I felt unbelievably blessed and extremely happy.  After feeling our baby more and more, I was convinced of the baby's gender.  I just had an instinct because I felt even more connected with our little peanut and even learned the baby's kicking routine.  I have a non-stop little wiggle worm after I eat lunch.

Where was I? Oh yes, the appointment!  We didn't have a gender reveal party because my family was here and his family is in Pittsburgh and our friends are scattered all over FL, PA & VA, so we made MANY phone calls after the anatomy scan ultrasound.  I didn't sleep the night before because I was anxious, worried, happy, just a pile of emotions were coming over me.... I was praying that our anatomy scan comes out perfect and that our baby is healthy.  My husband has been supportive, amazing, INVOLVED....just incredible through this pregnancy and reminded me that everything will be okay and provided me and my mind with so much comfort.  I don't know what I ever did before I met that man.  He is truly unbelievable.

We arrived and at our ultrasound and our tech Mary greeted us with excitement.  She is absolutely the sweetest woman I have ever met.  She made this experience so memorable and spent 40 minutes with us.  The baby was 100% perfect and healthy which made us grin from ear to ear.  The baby was moving SO much (I have watched our ultrasound DVD here at home a few times) Our little peanut is SO active.  Then, it was time for the gender! OH.MY.WORD.  She paused it just right and BAM! IT IS A........................................

                               

 BOY 

I was RIGHT! I SCREAMED "BOY" and Mary said "that's right! this is one perfect child with perfect crown jewels" HAHA! We are OVER THE MOON excited for this amazing blessing.  My husband and I couldn't keep our eyes off our little creation.  He held me while I layed there in awe and adoration over our baby BOY.  WE made this little bundle of baby goodness that we will soon be able hold and love on in just a few short months.  We fell in love with him all over again.  

So, now I am almost 22 weeks ( this Tuesday!) and I cannot wait until his arrival.... I owe you belly pics

Here is the bumpdate at 21 weeks:  We went hiking today so excuse the poor phone quality.

Bumpdate- 20 weeks

Bumpdate: 19 weeks

And there you have it ladies,  I will be back with details on our little bambino's stroller and furniture collection... OH MY GOSH....you guys!  It is gorgeous and it deserves a whole post and this coming week we leave for our BABYMOON! Details to come....

Thank you SO SO much for reading and sharing in our joy.  It truly means a lot.  I appreciate all your sweet comments and they don't go unnoticed. So, THANK YOU!

Have a great night and have a great week!

HUGS