40 Weeks Today!!

I cannot believe I am 40 weeks today. I'm so, so excited to meet sweet baby Trey but I am so sad that this pregnancy is almost over! (Is that weird?) I have loved being pregnant and I still smile when I feel him move like it's the first time!! Since I don't have a picture to go along with this weeks survey, because well, I look a mess and we're just going to leave it at that. I thought I'd share some from the past 40 weeks instead.

Total Weight Gained?: Too many. We can just leave it at that.

Maternity Clothes: Yes! And I wish I had gotten some maternity pjs... I feel like it's too late now!

Stretch Marks?: My skin HURTS! I can definitely tell it's being stretched to it's limits.

Sleep?: Ehhh, I'm up pretty late most nights... at this point I can't tell if it's anxiety and excitement or just not being able to get comfy. Probably a little bit of everything.

Labor Signs: Some cramping, some contractions and I'm 2 1/2 cm dilated but nothing that really makes me think he's coming any time soon. I'm thinking he's just really comfy in there!

Best Moment of the Week?: Finishing up projects, his room, his bathroom, things around the house. I just feel like we are as ready as we are ever going to be for him to come home and live with us!

Movement? He's still a rockstar. I know that it's supposed to slow down now, and it has a little but now when he really gets moving it's crazy!! Since he is so big my whole stomach moves and you can see actual feet when he presses hard - it's so cool!

Food Craving?: Haribo Raspberry Candy, Rita's Italian Ice and Fro-yo (aka the usual suspects)

Food aversions: None! I'm so excited to like coffee again.

Belly Button? Still in, my sister is still harassing me... (I think I'm sad to announce that it's never going to pop out)

What I miss? Nothing at all right now, but I am starting to think about how much I'm going to miss being pregnant and feeling him move. I of course, cannot wait to hold him and love him up but I know that these times of having him in my belly are precious and will soon be over!

What I'm looking forward to: Going to the Dr. on Monday to discuss my "options" as they say. When we went in last week the Dr. said that she thinks he is pretty big and we need to start discussing an induction. I'm not sure how I feel about this because I have heard so many horror stories about the pitocin and how bad it makes your contractions. At the same time, I really would like to avoid a c-section at all costs. In the mean time, I'm just going to hope that he decided to come on his own.

Weekly Wisdom: Just to enjoy these last few days of being pregnant!

Milestones: Hitting 40 weeks... today!!

Sweet Trey also recently got spoiled by two sweet bloggers - and I had to share with you the cuteness!


Rachel, from In No Simple Language got Trey these super cute Frog outfits and matching washclothes! I love the little frog on the back of the pants - too cute! Thank you so much Rachel, I can't wait to put these on him!! And I know that the washclothes are going to come in handy, I'm pretty sure that these are one of those things that you really can't have too much of!


And Whitney of Whitney Caroline Designs got this adorable sleep sack (which I hear are just fabulous for middle of the night changings) made for Trey with his monogram on it! I'm sure I squealed out loud when I opened it! I can't wait to put it on him!! Thanks again so much Whitney!

I hope that everyone is having a fabulous weekend! Hopefully I'll have some news for you all soon!!!

Birthday & Anniversary Recap

Last week I celebrated my 29th birthday and the hubs and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary! All of that and being 38 1/2 weeks pregnant can sure wear a girl out!

Everything was pretty low key - we went to dinner with the hubs' family, on my actual birthday we ran errands, had a dr. appt and went to my favorite lunch and dessert spots and then the next day I went to dinner with some of my girlfriends. Sounds boring but considering how big I am and how hot it is outside - it was perfect! (Sorry, no pictures to share... On purpose at that - I'm clearly feeling less than cute these days!!)

July 22, 2006

Our anniversary is two days after my birthday and sadly the hubs had to work so we just had a nice meal together at home that night. We exchanged cards, looked out our wedding pictures and talked alot about how much things have changed with the baby on the way and how excited we are. We didn't exchange gifts because we bought a Rebel T1i a few weeks ago and decided that it would be a great "family" purchase in lieu of giving each other gifts. (It's what we used to take the nursery pics - so far we LOVE it!)



I also received some super-duper sweet birthday gifts that I just have to share with y'all and say thank you to some awesome friends for!

My sweet friend, Andrea from My Chihuahua Bites sent me this cookbook that I have been wanting for a while now! It seems so great - healthy & easy. Perfect for after Trey gets here!! I can't wait to try some recipes out and share them with y'all! Thanks so much Andrea!!!


The fabulous MRM from Preppy Girl Meets World sent me this KJP headband I have been lusting after forever and super cute Lilly notecards from the ever-amazing Preppy Princess who included this pocket Lilly Pad - which I am loving to keep in my purse. I have baby brain like crazy, and notebooks are my bff's lately!


Last weekend I was able to catch up with the lovely Whitney from Whitney Caroline Designs and she gifted me with this adorable picture frame! See those cute little summer accesories? Well they're actually magnets and you can change them out each season - so fun!! Thanks Whitney - you know I can't wait to put a picture of sweet little Trey in there!!


And last but certainly not least - I came home one day to a box on my front porch with my favorite summer scent in the whole wide world courtesy of Jules from Chic N Pink! See how the shower gel looks like it's missing some? Yea, that's because I have been using it ever since it came and just got around to taking a picture yesterday!! Thanks again Jules - I just love them!!!

I'll be back tomorrow with a baby update and some baby gift thank you's!

Nursery Reveal

After months and months of trying to figure out what we wanted for sweet Trey's nursery we are finally done! I'm so excited to share with you the pictures we took this weekend of his room.





We found the crib and changing table at JCPenney.com, we changed out the hardware on the changer with cute pulls that we found at Lowes. The rocking chair and bookshelf are from Pier One Imports. We were able to find the rug at Home Goods and the ottoman is from Target (it has storage inside and the top flips over to become a table! His name on the wall is from Pottery Barn Kids and the Picture ledge full of the hubs' old books (and a few new) is from Pottery Barn. We found the bedding and changing pad cover at Carousel Designs (I luckily found them after Calico Corners sold us bedding that had been discontinued - it was a mess!) they have a great selection of great quality, plain bedding. We made the artwork above the crib ourselves and the fun twilight turtle was a shower gift.

Now all we need is for Trey to show up!! I have an appointment today at noon - so fingers crossed!!

No news yet...

I need to just text this to all of my friends & family....

{Source}

Painted Wine Glass How To

Here's another crafty how to re-post from my old blog:

Ok loves, here is the post that some of y'all have been waiting for! How to paint wine glasses!!! I apologize that these are from two different times - I forgot to take all the pictures the first time around.

I have always loved the Lolita hand painted wine glasses and see all sorts of other different painted glasses when I am out and about at little gift shops. I often see the non-Lolita ones being sold for $20+ and to be honest, a lot of them aren't all that cute.

Luckily a good friend of mine invited me over a couple of months ago to show me just how to make them at home and I'm passing my crafting knowledge over to you now, perfect for holiday gifts!!

First you need to get some Acrylic Enamel paint. This is often really hard to find. I went to every craft store near my house and none of them carried this. I did find it for a great price on Joann.com and I realize now that I should have just went ahead and ordered every color!! You may also want an enamel pen (I did find that at Micheal's) for writing names and monograms. And assorted paint brushes are great - depending on what you'd like to put on your glass.



You also need to pick up some wine glasses - you can use any size. I got these at Wal-Mart - $4.88 for two of them.


I like to write out what I'm going to put on the glass ahead of time and use it as a spacing guide.


Then you will want to do your monogram/word/name first - the first time it will show up very light - that's ok - once dry you can go back over it to thicken up the letters. If you happen to mess up - no worries! Nail polish and a q-tip work perfectly to remove the paint before it has set.



Make sure you let each layer of paint dry completely before going back over it.


To make the polka dots all you need is paint and a pencil with an eraser at the bottom.

You just need a smidge of paint on a plate.


Then dip the bottom of the eraser lightly into the paint.


And press gently onto the wine glass - and ta da! perfect little polka dots!! (Pardon the Kroger sales flyer!!)

Once you have your wine glass completed set your oven to 350 degrees (no need to preheat).


Place your wine glasses upside down on a cookie sheet or pan.


Pop them in the oven for 30 minutes.


And be careful when you remove - everything will be extremely hot!! Let glasses cool - and voila! You're all done!! Just make sure to hand wash.



I hope you all have enjoyed the wine glass "how to"!! Please e-mail me with any questions at BeachBumandBaby@gmail.com

38 Weeks... Really??

My little sister is obsessed with Trey!! :) She's going to be an amazing auntie!!

Ahhh!! I cannot believe I'm 38 weeks now! It felt like just yesterday I was taking a pregnancy test! I'm so excited to meet the little guy but also in kind of a daze how quickly everything is going by!! Who knows... this could be my last weekly survey!

Total Weight Gained?: I plead the 5th. I'm sure you'll here all about it once I join weight watchers, or get a trainer, or both...

Maternity Clothes: Yes and even some of those aren't covering up this crazy bump so well! I will say my dress in this weeks picture is a Cynthia Rowely non-maternity! And that my friends, makes me smile!

Stretch Marks?: Still doing great, sometimes a little itchy but then I just go grease it with more belly balm!

Sleep?: Insomnia is back - it did allow me to stay up to check out the Nordys sale though! It was weird as soon as I checked out the Tory Burch, North Face and purses I immediately headed over to the baby section! :) A lot has changed around here!

Labor Signs: Some contractions, some contractions, nothing too crazy - yet!

Best Moment of the Week?: A small early birthday dinner last night at my favorite Mexican restaurant with the hubs' side of the family

Movement? Yes, he's still moving a lot - the dr. says that he is head down now and ready to go - so the movements are a little weird and sometimes almost hurt

Food Craving?: Mexican, smoothies & Haribo raspberry candies

Food aversions: Still not dying for coffee.... I hope this goes away once he's here!!

Belly Button? Still in, my sister is still harassing me...

What I miss? Feeling like I had so much time to nest! We're getting down to the wire!

What I'm looking forward to: My birthday on Tuesday :) the hubs is off to hang out with me!

Weekly Wisdom: Not pregnancy related but it's been an emotional week with the passing of the hubs' grandma. Make sure you tell your friends and family how much you love and appreciate them. Life is just too short.

Milestones: Almost getting to the point where we feel like we are 100% ready for him to be here!!

The 5 S's?

The title of this post might as well be "We're Idiots"....

A few weeks ago the Hubs and I ordered The Happiest Baby on the Block DVD via Netflix. Tons of our friends had been telling us how helpful it was with thier new babies so we couldn't wait to watch it. During the video Dr. Karp goes over the 5 S's - swaddling, side/stomach positioning in the parents' arms, shushing, swinging, and sucking. He says that these actions mimic what the baby was experiencing in the womb and will help if the baby is fussy for no apparent reason (ie has been changed, fed, slept, etc).

UM... WHAT?!?!

Where did the Hubs and I miss this? He's going to cry for no reason? (Well, of course he is but we just hadn't really thought about it...) We were baffled. We stared at the screen - eyes wide and jaws dropped. How the heck in all of the classes/books/dr. appts/talking to other parents did we blatently miss that yes, our sweet little Trey may just start crying and not stop for a lengthy period of time? We sat there and watched very intently and have continued to talk about it ever since.

So what did I do to help the situation after we watched this eye opening video? Oh the same thing any other new, freaked out, parent-to-be would do. I went on a swaddle blanket shopping spree.

(Just a small portion of my crazy swaddling obsession spree! And yay for finding two of those SwaddleMe's at TJ Maxx!! Clearly an obsession like this can get expensive quickly... Like those Aden & Anais Blankets - but aren't they just SO sweet!?)

I've bought Halo SleepSacks, SwaddleMe blankets, Aden & Anais Blankets, Swaddle Designs, and yep, I'll probably have a Miracle Blanket on it's way to my house any second now! The Hubs thinks I'm slightly crazy but when I remind him of the 5 S's he quickly quiets up and lets me continue on with my crazy obsession!

So, any Moms or Moms to be - what do you know about this? Any advice? Thoughts? Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

Missing You

This morning my phone started ringing off the hook, once I got to it and saw the missed calls and texts that were coming through I knew something was wrong... The hubs grandmother passed away this morning. She is older but it was unexpected and is sad no matter what, as it is when any loved one passes. Since the hubs and I started dating in high school and have been together for 12 years now, it's been especially hard for me too, as her and I were very close.

Thought I would use today's post to share some pictures of grandmother m. -

My ornament bridal shower - December 2005

Christmas 2007

Thanksgiving 2008

Summer 2006

Grandmother M, we all miss you so much. We are all so lucky to have your sweet and kind spirit watching over us. xoxo

Thanks so much to all of my blog and Twitter friends for your sweet words, emails and texts - I can't even tell you how much everything means to me.

Cake Pop How To

(This is a re-post from my old blog, I had gotten a few requests for it so I thought it would be a great time to share it with everyone. Please let me know if you have any questions at all! BeachBumandBaby@gmail.com - I will also be re-posting the painted wine glass how-to and topiary how-to this week!)

From Last Fall:
About a month ago I fell in LOVE with Bakerella's cake pop's and have since made them 3 times. This past weekend I was making them for our trip down to N.C. with friends. (No cell phone reception = a fantastic relaxing time!). After many of you asking about them I decided to give a how to with my own personal tips for making the fabulous cake pops. You will be surprised at the reaction you get from these - everyone is always shocked at how delicious they are. And as always please email me if you have any questions and I will be sure to answer them. And don't be alarmed if yours don't look perfect the first time you make them - it personally took me a while to get the hang of making them.

Ingredients*:
1 13X9 baked cake (from a box cake mix or from scratch … any flavor)
1 can cream cheese frosting (I like to used the whipped frosting, and I only use about 80% of a container)
1 package dark chocolate melts (I like the Wilton melts from Micheal's the best)
1 package colored or white melts (Again, I only like the Wilton ones)
bowls for dipping
wax paper
lollipop sticks
sprinkles or something similar for top of cake pop
small plastic treat bags and ribbon to package the cake pops
Styrofoam block (VERY important!)

1. Bake your cake and let it cool completely - even overnight - just cover it.


2. Take your cake and place it in a large bowl and crumble into the finest pieces possible (This is very, very important). You can use a food processor but I think it takes just as long to do it by hand when you factor in getting out the food processor and washing it when complete.


3. Mix in the frosting - you can use the whole can - but I like to use about 75% - 80% of the can - I think it makes a perfect consistency. Then mix up well and put in the refrigerator for about an hour or the freezer for about 20 minutes (This helps a lot with the consistency) - then roll into balls of your desired size - usually about 1" balls work best.

4. I like to take a few melting chocolates and put them in a small bowl and then dip the ends of the lollipop sticks into the chocolate and then place into the balls. I then put the balls into the refrigerator or freezer for a little while before I place them in the final dipping chocolate all over - this helps them stay attached to the stick and not fall off into the warm chocolate.


5. Then melt your chocolate and stir it up really well. The suggested melting method is a double boiler. I prefer the microwave and then if the chocolate ends up to thick I just mix in a tad of shortening or vegetable oil. (Not healthy - but it makes a nice consistency and the chocolate has a nice sheen to it.)


6. Add your decorations to the cake pop while the chocolate is still wet and place into a Styrofoam block to let dry.



7. Once I am done with the chocolate and sprinkles and the chocolate appears dry, I place the cake pops in the refrigerator (not freezer - the chocolate sometimes likes to crack if you do that) until I am ready to put them into little bags and tie ribbons on them. You can keep these out at a party but they taste amazing fresh out of the refrigerator too!!

8. Sit back and enjoy the compliments on how cute and delicious the cake pops are!!

Here are a few "cake pop bouquets" that I have made in case you'd like an idea of how to present them!

These were for the hub's holiday work party - they are half cake pop - and half oreo truffle. I'll do a post soon on the oreo truffles - SO easy!

These were for my friend, M's graduation. They are half cake pop - half oreo truffle and all are GLUTEN FREE! (Hi M!!)

Housewarming party arrangement for a friend who loves red!

For a friend's husband who is a Redskins fan.

*Information was originally obtained from Bakerella and then tweaked to fit my own personal needs. I did not come up with these on my own at all! :)