The baby is a .......

 

 

Yep, Lallie is having a little baby sister and she is absolutely thrilled!  She never would tell us what she wanted, always saying "both" clearly knowing there was only one baby in there.  Of course, Lallie is a very diplomatic girl, never giving any preference to one thing or person over the other (except God...she loves Him more than anything, so I guess we're doing something right!)

 

BUT, on Friday, before we broke the news, I recorded this little ditty.  Ahhhhhh, the truth finally comes out!  :-)

 

Husband and I would have been happy either way, but once we found out it was a girl, I think we were both very happy and slightly relieved.  With most parents, as long as the baby is healthy, no worries.  But with us, having six years with a girl and six years worth of girl stuff....well, let's just say I could hear Husband's wallet breathe a sigh of relief and then happily SLAM SHUT!  Hahahaha! 

 

Poor Husband....doesn't he know that infant styles have changed in the last six years?  If not, he'll soon find out!  (wink, wink.  And I can hear his heart beating faster as he reads this.)

 

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I'm afraid I haven't been great about pictures lately.  Of Lallie, of maternity wear, of house progress as we prepare for baby....nothing.  But here's a quick snapshot.

 

1.  Lallie received all big girl furniture yesterday!  We shopped and shopped for the perfect white set she could grow into through college and found a sleigh bed, dresser, chest of drawers, nightstand and a vanity (which trust me, had Husband and I tossing and turning as we weren't sure an almost-six-year-old needed a vanity.  But she was SO adorable sitting at it planning out where to keep her lip gloss and nail polishes......Dear Lord, please watch over my carpet!)  I'll post pictures once I have all of her wall hangings back up.

 

2.  We started preparing the nursery by moving furniture (rather Husband moving furniture) from Lallie's room to the babies room.  We need to paint as well but that will come in the next couple (few) weeks.  We did go through ALL THE BABY CLOTHES up to the few things Lallie has grown out of in 4T.  It's amazing how much closet space we now have since we removed the stroller, high chair, pack-n-play, bouncer, mattress etc. out of the closet.  AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!  Love it!  :-)

 

3.  I did a preliminary wash and bleaching of clothes, toys, mattress etc., which I'm sure it will go through another round in the coming months but things up to 3 months are now delightfully sprucing up the closet.  Husband set everything up to run the ionic breeze as well to get any smells etc. out.  But in South Florida, we don't have attics or basements (thus the lack of closet space) so everything actually held up quite well in the air conditioning.

 

4.  We also bought new living room furniture, cleaned out the playroom and moved everything to Lallie's room and started turning that into a den.

 

5.  I started working on re-covering the glider.  The cushions are in great shape, but the fabric, no so much!   Years of spit up, drool and toddler snacks did not do wonders for the fabric.  I found an easy tutorial on line, so that's my next project.

 

6.  I also started on a few projects of my own in the sewing room.  But I can't divulge what they are yet as I started on some projects for Ashleigh's baby too and she hasn't received them yet. 

 

7.  Last but not least, I was approved by my wonderful, fabulous, family oriented boss, to work from home two days per week during the first year after baby is born!  This is such a huge relief to help me transition and since this is truly our last child, I want to spend as much time at home as possible and also have Lallie with me instead of at Extended Day after school, so the girls can bond.  I've worked for my boss for almost ten years now and I feel I've always worked hard (worked from home for 5 months with Lallie without a glitch) so we're going to try this out and see how it works!

 

I think that's it for now.  I did start buying a few things that we no longer have (udder cover, sling, baby monitor, diapers, diaper bag, diaper wipes, diapers, diapers and diapers).  I will show you the cute designs I purchased soon.

 

Happy Thursday Y'all!



Mother's Day Pampering By My 5 Year Old =)

This morning started out wonderfully!  My sweet kindergartner (soon to be first grader...ACK!) pampered me with a manicure, pedicure, massage, picture frame making, glamour shot and reading!  It was a wonderful morning, putting large smiles on both of our faces.  We are both certainly blessed to have each other!  

First a foot rub with silky soft lotion.

Next, sparkly and clear nail polish.

I love  my toes and promised to keep them sparkly all weekend!  

Next, a back massage, head massage and shoulder massage.  I also received my Mother's Day gift; a card sharing Lallie's favorite things about me (quite enlightening that she thinks broccoli is my favorite snack, that I'm pretty as a diamond and that I'm 25 years old!!) along with a jar of homemade lemon sugar scrub.  We can't wait to try it out tonight.  =)

Next, a hand massage (with LOTS of lotion!!)

And of course, sparkly and then clear nail polish.  

The finished product.

We also read the book I'll Love You Forever (which nearly had me crying right there in the classroom) and then we found a nice little private spot in the quiet corner and enjoyed some more reading together.

It was a wonderful morning, more wonderful memories to store for decades to come. =)

Happy Mother's Day Y'all!

Weekend Getaway and Maternity OOTD

This weekend, Husband, Lallie and I scooted up to Disney for a couple days.  We headed up Saturday morning and arrived at Hollywood Studios at 9 am and spent a few hours there.  We then headed over to Epcot for the evening and ate a wonderful buffet style meal in Germany.  Lallie LOVED the food and the entertainment (especially the chicken dance!) 

Sunday, we headed to the Magic Kingdom until about 2 o'clock when we headed home.  But not before hitting our FAVORITE Disney restaurant, The Plaza.  They seriously have the BEST CHEESEBURGERS IN THE ENTIRE WORLD!   If you ever go, you MUST make a reservation and eat there.

At the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground

In front of the recently opened decorative and restroom stop portion of Fantasyland.  This was all still behind walls in February.  Of course, Lallie HAD to get a picture with Rapunzel's castle!  (I have no idea why I'm on my tippy toes!  I guess to get as tall as possible for the castle!)
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I love, love, LOVE this maternity dress.  It's from Pink Blush (via Zulily) and I love the teal chevron pattern.  I love a teal and coral color combination so it goes perfectly with my Essie nails (Guilty Pleasures???).  Complete with an Ann Taylor cardigan, Stella and Dot necklace, earrings and bracelet and my Old Navy J. Crew knock off flats (seriously, they were $13.99 on sale and I get told ALL the time how much people love my J. Crew shoes!) SCORE!  :-)

PS - I think I could keep this dress after maternity as well, not sure.

I think it's funny how my belly is smaller in the morning than at night right now.  I feel so tiny at first and then as I go through the day eating and drinking 200 ounces of water and I'm huge by the end of the day!

Doctor's appointment yesterday went well. Listened to the heartbeat that's all (which I do periodically anyways on my fetal monitor, at least until I really start feeling baby move, which I can a little now when I'm sitting still).  My specialist appointments are so much more fun.  Next one is May 24th and I can't wait because that's when we find out the sex of the baby!  Yay!

Happy Thursday Y'all!

Matching hospital gown, layette and pillow case!

Ummmmm, yes.....you will see baby and I in one of these sets come delivery day!  :-)  Found at Baby Be Mine Maternity!  SO adorably cute!!! 

The gown and pillow case sets are $41.99 and the baby layettes are $29.99.

Happy Tuesday Y'all!

Cupcake the Pony, Baby's First Pictures & PSA from Ashleigh

I missed one picture from yesterday.  A boat picture that was on Husband's phone.  Lallie hasn't taken a nap in three years.....well, unless we're on the boat!  It never fails, she falls asleep in my arms on the way back into the dock from wherever we've been for the day.  I mean full on drooling....out....dead asleep to the world! I rather like it as I never get to hold my sweet baby while sleeping anymore.  

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Granny and Grandaddy have been promising Lallie a pony for years (or rather, Lallie has been asking for one).  As you know, Husband's parents have a farm so they have plenty of room for animals.  Lallie did have a Donkey named Clem, (short for Clementine when we discovered she was actually a HE!) but Clem has "gone out to pasture" and the pony is it's replacement.  

Lallie named the pony, Cupcake (after much discussion as to why the pony.....and the baby, for that matter, could NOT be called Rapunzel  or Flynn Rider).  We're pretty sure Cupcake will actually walk when Lallie is riding it unlike Clem the Donkey.

Cupcake is 12 years old and is a world champion in some sort of pony competition.  The friend that Granny and Grandaddy received the pony from said Lallie can come take a picture with the trophies next time we visit.

Cupcake the Pony

Clem the Donkey (it would stretch its neck out to get the carrot but would NOT move it's legs!)
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Yesterday, we had an ultrasound and were able to see Baby SLPS on the big screen for the first time!  Lallie was able to join us which made the moment even more special.  She loves the baby even more now, kissing my belly multiple times a day and constantly telling us how much she loves her family and writing little notes to express the same.  

I know it looks just like every other baby ultrasound picture out there, but that doesn't make it any less special for us!  All went well with the appointment.  The baby is growing perfectly and was an absolute jumping bean!  The baby would barely sit still, waving its hands, kicking its feet, sticking out its tongue and even managed a couple of flips.  I'm pretty sure I felt it moving yesterday for this reason but I haven't felt it since.  Very soon I'll be feeling it in my ribs daily!

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After yesterday's Maternity Work OOTD, where I clearly posted that I needed to find a better way to take those pictures, Ashleigh started giving me a hard time (in good fun) about my stance and lack of smiling.  Here's Ashleigh, at 23 weeks, demonstrating how to take a belly shot....with a big smiling face.

I will try to do better next time.  :-)

And just for kicks, here's her sweet baby at 23 weeks via 3D (or 4D maybe?)  I wonder if Husband and I will have this option?

Happy Thursday Y'all!

Sandbar Fun and Maternity Work OOTD

This weekend, Husband cleaned up the boat and we were able to head out to the sandbar for our first outing of the season!  We're a little later than most folks, but better late than never!

It was very windy, don't mind the hair!

No Lallie does not get to eat Doritos's often (and no longer will they be allowed on the boat!  Orange fingerprints were everywhere).  We went out right after church, so we swung through 7-11 and Doritos's and M & M's is what results when Husband goes shopping!  Lallie and Daddy were clearly in cahoots!
Isn't the water gorgeous?  It was so clear and the color of emeralds!  Love it!

We also headed out for a family date night.  Here's Lallie's choice of attire.  She LOVES her big sister shirt and wants to wear it everywhere.  It is a little too big, so she tied it up in a hair tie, threw on some sunglasses (which later became adorned with red and yellow ribbons) and yes, that is a headband on top of her hat.

I love Lallie's sense of accessorizing!  However, I did "school" her a little on this topic, so after a shoe change, sunglasses and hat removal and little shirt work, we headed out to dinner and then for frozen yogurt. Chocolate, thus the brown toothy smile!

Now onto the Maternity Work OOTD.  I really need to find a better way of getting these pictures!

Pink Blush skirt, plain white tee from Nordstrom's, Lia Sophia necklace (retired) and caramel colored wedges.  

And a belly shot!  13 weeks!  Ultrasound today, YAY!!

Happy Wednesday Y'all!

Tea Kick

Since I've been having such horrible morning sickness with this pregnancy, I've started drinking hot teas specifically with ginger in order to help calm my stomach.  Of course, only using non-caffeine blends, I have been drinking three to four cups of hot tea a day and the relief has been fabulous!  Not to mention, I'm getting a little extra water nourishment along with the other 64 ounces of water a day I'm trying to drink (ehem....keep down).  I'm hoping this feeling is starting to go away so I can get back to regular function on a daily basis.  

The two teas I find I like the most are Twinings Lemon and Ginger and Tazo Green Ginger.  I love the lemon and ginger flavor combination and chose lemon due to research showing that tasting and even sniffing lemons can help reduce queasiness.

What about you?  Are you a tea drinker?  If yes, what type/kinds of tea do you prefer?

Happy Thursday Y'all!