Friday Five

Happy Halloween Eve. I don't know about you but I am looking forward to a weekend full of adorable trick or treaters and a cold glass of apple cider. Let's get Friday started off right with a quick roundup of a few favorite things this Friday.

{One} Genius Ikea Hack. We have been planning a trip to Ikea for months (yes, months). Finally we are headed to Charlotte tomorrow to grab some pieces to fill baby girl's room and out home office. I was surprised to find these beautiful overlays on Instagram that you can use to dress up Ikea's plain dressers. They are relatively affordable and can make a huge impact.

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{Two} Halloween Costumes. Neither Joe or I are big Halloween fans. However, that does not keep us from dressing up the pup. I snagged Charlie this adorable Ewock costume on Amazon. Since he already looks like a teddy bear I thought an Ewock was not a fat stretch. The trick will be making sure he keeps it on!

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{Three} Sweet Baby Girl Clothes. Oh boy, Etsy is the place to shop for adorable and affordable outfits. I am trying to limit my clothing purchases for little one as I know we will get a ton as gifts in the coming months. That does not keep me from browsing away though! If your looking for an adorable baby gift- go to etsy! 

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{Four} Give Grace Campaign. Scarlet & Gold has started a campaign in order to raise money to help with the cost associated with the journey of building a family and the struggles with infertility. 100% of the profits will go to fund IVF treatment and doctor bills for their co-founder Megan and her husband Blake. You can read all about the campaign here.

{Five} Christmas Cheer. Let's be real, Christmas is less than two months away and you have been secretly planning your Christmas as well. In order to not procrastinate this year, I have already scheduled our Christmas photos and narrowed our Christmas cards down to two different styles. Next step is planning what to get everyone! I love the idea of dressing up packages but never have the creativity. I think these would look adorable as To/From cards under the tree. 

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Top Petite Stores

Today I am popping in to share a few tried and true fashion favorites. Being 5'2" I find a lot of tops and pants to be a inch too long. If I really like an item I will pay to get it altered. However, I typically find myself shopping in petites to avoid a trip to the seamstress. 

Ann Taylor Loft
Let's start off with my all time favorite Petite store, Loft. This is my go-to for trendy pants, skirts and dresses. I love them especially for casual work wear. In regards to longevity, I find that the pants hold up their shape for much longer than the pants. I have a jacket from Loft that has lasted 6 winters. Always, always wait for a sale. I have rarely paid full price for anything from Loft as they hold sales so frequently.

Nordstrom
My favorite way to shop at Nordstrom is online. Their tanks by Halogen are my favorite. I hate having tanks that could be worn as a dress instead of a top because the length is too long. The petite shop online has the cutest selection of dresses and tops for church or work.

Banana Republic
When looking for suits or formal wear Banana Republic is my staple do to. They have great cuts on dress pants and suit jackets made just for petites. I love that their style is classic and don't mind paying more for items that I know will hang in my closet for the next 10 years. No joke, I have an amazing Banana Republic top that I bought 10 years ago that still looks brand new,

An honorable mention goes to Anthropologie as they have really expanded their petite selection. I also find their quirky styles to transcend trends.

I would love to hear- what are your favorite stores? I always love hearing where others enjoy shopping. 

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Pregnancy | Week 21

Size of Baby: The size of a pomegranate. She weighs 12 oz. 

Gender: Sweet, sweet baby girl! 

Weight Gain: Up 12 pounds. Woah baby. 

Maternity Clothes: I find that maternity clothes are 100% more flattering than trying to squeeze into my regular tops and pants. 

Nursery: Crib has been ordered and is on it's way to the house. We are headed to IKEA this weekend to pick up a dresser and a few other home items. 

Movement: Joe was able to feel her kick for the first time this weekend. I love falling asleep with her little flutters and kicks. 

Symptoms: Exhaustion. We spent Saturday at the state fair with friends and by the end of the day I felt like I had ran a marathon. My hips have started hurting later in the day as well. I have had some bad calf cramps at night. 

Sleep: Waking up a lot at night to change positions. 

Cravings: Loving bananas lately which I hope helps with the muscle cramps. 

What I Miss: Pepperoni, Salami & prosciutto

Exercise: I really, really, really struggled with workouts this week. I only got in one Pure Barre class. My aim this week is to get in my normal 5 classes. 

Best Moments: Ordering the crib in preparation for baby girl. 

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Friday Five

Happy Friday everyone! I am looking for another fun filled weekend. It seems lately that my weekends have been packed with events and hanging out with friends. Even though it leaves me a bit exhausted, I would not have it any other way. This weekend is no different as we are heading Saturday to enjoy the NC State Fair. I look forward to sharing pictures and stories on Monday. My goal for the fair is to finally watch a pig race. I hope you enjoy another Friday favorite post. This one features two of my current cravings that I must get my hands on ASAP.

1. Currently Craving. I have always loved Ambrosia Salad at the holidays. Yesterday, I had this crazy craving of this fluffy marshmallow salad. One serving and I know the craving would be fixed. Unfortunately, the recipe serves 12 and I don't want to waste all that food.

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2. Delicious Drinks. This one hit me last weekend while we were out to eat at a Mexican resturant. Unfortunately, they did not have the makings of a Mango Margarita. I found this simple recpie on Food Network which only requires mango and Sprite. I am looking forward to making one this weekend and will report back.

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3. Looking Forward To. Serial Season Two. I am thrilled that another series of Serial will be released next month. I really loved listening to the first one on long drives or when I was running. Maybe the enjoyment of a podcast will get my booty off the couch and outside for a walk! 

4. Skin Care Love. Glycolic Acid. This is one of the few pregnancy safe acne treatment ingredients. I have found my breakouts are 100% worse due to pregnancy hormones. My skincare routine has become quite minimal focusing on cleaning and spot treatment. I love using toner to help tighten and clean my pores. Glycolic acid has also been proven to help with ingrown hairs and aging spots. 

5. Happy Birthday! Yesterday was my amazing mother's birthday. I am thankful my mom and I are so close and I know she is going to be an amazing grandmother. Even though we were not able to celebrate together, I look forward to celebrating next weekend when my parents are in town. Mom was able to spend it with her mother in Georgia. I hope to visit with her sometime soon! 

What are you looking forward to this Friday? Any must-do activities for the State Fair?

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Linking up with Tiff, Clare, Karli, Amanda & April .

Pregnancy | Week 20

Size of Baby: The size of a pomegranate. She weighs 8.5 oz. 

Gender: Sweet, sweet baby girl! 

Weight Gain: Up 10 pounds. 

Maternity Clothes: Maternity pants are amazing! I can still wear my regular pants using a rubber band to expand the waist but I find it digs into my belly by the end of the day. Maternity pants are 100% more comfortable. 

Nursery: 

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Movement: All the time! Especially when I am falling asleep. If I lay still, I have started to feel her kick from the outside. Joe still has not caught her in action yet though. 

Symptoms: I am much more clumsy. I slipped down the stairs in our garage last week which left an awful bruise. Thankfully, no harm to little girl though.  I also drop thinks much more easily. We went out on a date night Friday and grabbed some cookie cake afterwards (my current craving). Unfortunately, I ended up dropping it on the way to the car. 

Sleep: I am struggling in this department. Going to bed early helps with the intermittent sleep. 

Cravings: Still loving dessert every night after dinner. I really wanted some cookie cake recently but thanks to my clumsiness I has to settle on a bite of Joe's. 

What I Miss: Pepperoni, Salami & prosciutto

Exercise: I really struggled with my workouts this past week. I got in 3 Pure Barre workouts. 

Best Moments: Loving every little kick and poke from baby girl at nights. 

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Weekend Snapshots

This weekend we had the pleasure of hosting two parties at our new home. Friday night, we invited the young adult group from out church over for a cookout and to watch football. Then Saturday afternoon, Joe and I had our group of friends from college over to see our new home. I loved having our home filled with friends and laughter. This was the first time we have hosted anything since moving from Wilmington two year ago. It was such a great time that I am already planning the next time we can have people over!

Unfortunately, I completely forgot to snap pictures of our cookout spread. But I did remember to take a few of our new fall decor. Hope you enjoy this little sneak peak into our home!

Sunday we braved Babies R Us to create our baby registry. Thanks to amazing friends and good research ahead of time, I was not too overwhelmed. Thankfully, you can access the registry online easily and can edit or add things as you think of them. I don't look my best in this photo but it is an honest recount of how I felt after the experience- exhausted!

Other scenes from this weekend- Saturday morning barre workout & exhausted pup from a full weekend. 

What were your weekend plans? Please share your baby must-haves. 

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Pregnancy | Weeks 18 & 19

 

I hope everyone is having a great Monday. Today, I am sharing a quick pregnancy update. Last week's ultrasound appointment went amazing. Each time we are able to see little one on the ultrasound screen, I am amazed at how truly blessed we are to be expecting our first child. 

Toward the end of the screen, the ultrasound technician was able to confirm the sex and told us I am carrying a little girl! I think both of our jaws dropped as I had been telling everyone I was convinced we were going to have a boy. Knowing that there is a little miss hanging out with me has made everything so much more real. 

We were able to see Baby M has grown tremendously since the first trimester. Based on little girl's measurements and previous ultrasounds the doctor decided to move up my due date to February 27th. This is not a huge shock as February 27th was the original date calculated based on my last period and estimated conception date. So today, I am recapping weeks 18 & 19 to get everything back on track. 

Size of Baby: At 18 weeks, baby M is the size of a sweet potato and weighs 7 oz. Now at 19 weeks, baby M is the size of a zucchini and weighs 8.5 oz.

Gender: Sweet, sweet baby girl! Thrilled and shocked that we will be having a girl. She is going to be one loved little one. 

Weight Gain: Up 10 pounds. I feel like this is a milestone. I would love to say it is all belly, but that is just not the case. Trying my best to keep by booty and arms toned with PureBarre. Just trying to keep in mind that I am right on track with my weight gain. Research has shown that there are more risks to baby when the mother does not gain enough weight vs gaining too much weight.

Maternity Clothes: I can still wear most of my non pregnancy tops. I can squeeze into my normal pants but they are quite uncomfortable. So, I am mainly wearing pregnancy bottoms just for comfort.

Nursery: This is baby girl's nursery inspiration. Can't wait to start purchasing pieces over the holidays! 

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Movement: I notice baby girl move the most at night. Especially if I have enjoyed something with a bit of sugar.

Symptoms: Horrible migraines twice this week. My old trick of taking a nap to make them go away no longer works. The only think that helps is tylenol and a diet soda. Also, my belly has grown exponentially this week. There is no hiding the fact that I am pregnant anymore!

Sleep: Sleeping well on my side with the aid of the snoogle (pregnancy pillow). Love wrapping the pillow around my back and tucked under my neck. 

Cravings: Candy Corn M&Ms are still my addiction. Funny how your craving change over the weeks. The first three months I would have never touched sweets. Now the grocery cart is full of chocolate covered pretzels, ice cream and pie. 

What I Miss: Running. I am wary of giving running a try again as I took the summer months off due to heat. I really need to bite the bullet and at least see how my body responds. I think I would be okay with continuing with long walks. 

Exercise: 4 Pure Barre classes and one long walk. Walking was off the table as it has been raining for the past 11 days. 

Best Moments: Finding out we are having a little Miss! Deciding on a name and starting to really plan for baby girl! Initials will be CGM but I am going to keep the name off the blog for now. 

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25 Things You May Not Know About Me

I'm switching things up today with a fun survey. I have noticed there are quite a few new faces stopping by so I thought I would share a little more about myself. Of course, I want to get to know each of you as well. Feel free to share some of your answers in the comments.

1. What is your eye color? Hazel.

2. Favorite Color? Turquoise.  I have to be careful or all the rooms in our house would be some shade of green and I would have a wardrobe to match.

3. What's the furthest you've ever been from home? Greece last year for our 2 year anniversary cruise.

4. Where were you born? Wilmington, NC

5. Favorite movie?  This one took some thought. I have always been a watch a movie once and never watch it again. As I child, I really loved musicals so I may have to go with My Fair Lady.
6. What is your middle name? Carole

7. What is your favorite food?

8. What is the last thing you bought? Went to Costco and grabbed a few essentials :) - an outfit for baby, chocolate sea salt almonds (amazing!), coconut shrimp, Chicago style popcorn and some Naked Juice.

9. Favorite smells? The Capri Volcano candle (Anthropologies’ signature scent) Our house currently smells amazing thanks to this candle.

10. When was the last time you cried? Last weekend. I was home alone and decided to grab dinner Friday night. Then I could not for the life of me decide what to get. I just wanted someone to make the decision for me. (Thanks, pregnancy hormones.)

11. What phone do you have? iPhone 5s. I dropped my phone last week and shattered the screen that plus the fact it does not hold a charge means I am upgrading ASAP.

12. How tall are you? 5 feet 2 inches

13. Can you cook? I try to cook dinner each night. I am not the most creative chef but I can follow a recipe very well.

14. What color is your car? Silver

15. Favorite item at Trader Joe's? Joe Joe’s Peppermint Oreos. I love these at Christmas time and they are 100x better than the Oreo variety.

16. Favorite way to travel? By boat. I love going out to the beach on the boat during the summer. We spend a lot of time on the waterway just enjoying the coast each summer. I also think that cruise ships are the best way to vacation as you get to see so many places all while enjoying the beauty of the Ocean.

17. What can't you sleep without? At least 2 blankets.  This summer, I ran our power bill up too much due to wanting to sleep under quilts but having to turn the temperature down low due to my personal heater growing in my belly. (Side note: This pregnancy has been the only time in my life that I have consistently been warm. I am typically freezing most days.)

18. Do you collect anything? I have started collecting Nativity Scenes from each country we visit.

19. If you were given 1 million dollars and you could only spend it on yourself, what would you do with it? I would pay off our debt and move our family nearby.

20. Have any magazine subscriptions? No. I would love subscription to Our State Magazine.

21. What were you doing at 12am last night? Sleeping. Snuggled up to my huge maternity pillow.

22. Any tattoos? No.

23. Favorite area restaurant? I love Nantucket Grill. It is my go to when visitors are in town and they have the best cake.

24.  Dream job?  Developmental Psychologist. I would love to work with young children and help provide early intervention to target emerging critical skills. I do a little of this as a School Psychologist but have the dream to work in private practice.

25. Biggest guilty pleasure? Diet Coke. I love them. Try and limit it to 2-3 a week. Plus sweets which I have a hard time limiting to special occasions these days.

What is your dream job or guilty pleasure?

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