{50 days?!}

The little floaty baby ticker on my blog says I only have 50 days to go until my due date. Oh my goodness. How is that even possible?

While incredibly tempting, I'm going to resist the urge to rattle off a long list of baby things we still desperately need to acquire before V arrives. Breathe, Danielle. Your shower is next weekend. It will be ok.

Craziness!!

{my new brest friend}

Yes, I said brest friend. Apparently "My Brest Friend" nursing pillows are a must-have for all breastfeeding moms. Who knew something with such a cheesy name could be so wonderful? 

While I was at prenatal yoga last night at Babies in Bloom, this adorable pillow caught my eye. Cute, right? Even though I'm registered for a solid pink MBF pillow on my Babies R Us registry, I couldn't resist the pink, orange, and chocolate polka dots. Can you blame me? :o) 

{32 weeks, 5 days}

How your baby's growing:

By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds (pick up a large jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, she'll gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next 7 weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb. She now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). Her skin is becoming soft and smooth as she plumps up in preparation for birth.

How far along? 32 weeks, 5 days

Total weight gain/loss: Not sure, around 15 lbs?

Sleep: Super sleepy during the day.

Best moment this week: Planting our fruit and veggie garden. Mmm.

Movement: Lots. 

Food cravings: Burritos.

Gender: Girl :)

Labor Signs: Nope!

Belly Button in or out? Still in.

What I miss: Mid-afternoon/evening energy.

What I am looking forward to: Meeting a friend's week-old baby tonight before yoga. 

Weekly Wisdom: Breathe.

Milestones: Felt V's hiccups for the first time on Monday!

{motherhood gene causes craftiness?}

I think my "mom gene" has officially been activated. I literally c.a.n.n.o.t. stop crafting. 

In less than two weeks, I've somehow found the time to make multiple sets of baby blocks and a couple dozen onesies. Today, I find myself in the middle of a headband-making extravaganza.

It's intense over here. We're talking huge piles of card stock, felt, fabric, Cricut cartridges, scissors, tape, glue, Mod Podge, sandpaper, buttons, craft wire, embroidery floss, and a cute new pin cushion. If you've even been to our house, you know how little space we have for... anything. Allow me to apologize to my husband now. I'm sorry babe. I'll clean it up soon. Love you bunches. :o) 

What's next, you ask? Probably the nursing cover I want to make with my new sewing machine!

{thank you, nice grocery store boy}

"Soooo, boy or girl?" -grocery store boy

"Girl!" -me

"Whew, it's always risky asking women that question! How far along are you? Five, six months?" 

"Eight, actually. I'll take that as a compliment. You just made my day."  -me, with a huge smile on my face

These days it's the little things, ya know? I've been feeling quite large lately- baby is getting big in there!

Hopefully the stranger comments will stay nice for the next two months. Seems like people lose all tact when it comes to discussing the pregnant form. :P

{cute mobile sustitute?}

While drooling over the million and one handcrafted things I desperately want from Etsy, I stumbled upon this precious Canary Yellow Lovey-Dovey Chandelier, $90. If our nursery was a tad bit bigger, I don't think I could resist hanging it somewhere in V's room. 

What do you think- would this make a cute mobile substitute?

{i have you}

{via my fav pre-preg blog, designcrush}

{felt and found}

WARNING: Very cute felt hair accessories! 

I want them all... 

{via felt and found, $6-14}

{yay for afff nursing pads!}

Not sure how I pulled it off, but I just score a 3-pack of Artsy Fartsy Foo Foo nursing pads! According the the Eco-Friendly Family community on The Bump, these reusable pads are the best money can buy, making them near-impossible to get. The creator of AFFF's Milk Maid pads only stocks her online store once, sometimes twice, a month with very limited inventory, so I'm completely shocked that my order went through. 

Yes friends, I am excited about nursing pads. Crazy how life changes so quickly, right?!

{dear little one}

V,

Hi precious. Mama has a small request- could you please stop kicking me in the ribs? Over the past few weeks, your jabs have gone from cute to annoying to, as of this morning, painful. Also, could you move around for your dad a bit when he puts his hand on the belly? He would like that quite a lot. See you in a couple weeks! :o) 

Love you bunches,

Mom

{via ffffound}

{right now}

Outside my window... it's gray and wet. We're having an abnormally cold May here in San Diego.

The time is... 9:57am.

Today I feel... lots of Braxton Hicks contractions.

I am thinking... about lunch, already.

At the moment, I am thankful... for our landlord {who installed a new oven in our kitchen yesterday.}

I am going... to register for the "Walk for Hope" on May 22nd.

I am wearing... jeans & a red/white striped shirt with a cardigan and boots.

I wish... our family lived closer.

I am reading... "The Blue Jay's Dance" by Louise Erdrich {one of my amazing Mother's Day gifts from Dad & Mel}

I am working on... thank you cards.

I am hoping... for a big, healthy baby.

I am hearing... tummy growls. Time for a snack.

I bet you didn't know... that a small belly doesn't necessarily mean a tiny baby.

One of my favorite... TV shows is Modern Family. Too funny!

Phil's response when his son Alex asks what Jägermeister is...

“You know how in a fairy tale there’s always a potion that makes the princess fall asleep and then the guys start kissing her? Well, this is like that except you don’t wake up in a castle — you wake up in a frat house with a bad reputation.”

{xo, danielle}

{31 weeks and I can't see my toes anymore}

How far along? 31 weeks, 3 days

Total weight gain/loss: Not sure, around 15 lbs?

Sleep: Getting up at least 2x a night. Grr.

Best moment this week: Passed my glucose test. So excited.

Movement: She's getting big and moves a ton.

Food cravings: Sweets. Pretzel dogs. Mac&cheese. Mmm.

Gender: Girl :)

Labor Signs: I've had some practice surges this week. Fun, fun.

Belly Button in or out? Still in.

What I miss: Dairy. I've had to eliminate it to get my colitis under control.

What I am looking forward to: A nap. I'm completely exhausted today.

Weekly Wisdom: Enjoy every single moment, because time slows for no one.

Milestones: 32nd Anniversary Sale @ the feed store went great, passed my glucose test, we're getting a new oven today, and oh yeah- I can't see my toes anymore! Belly is officially that big. Yikes. :P 

{i passed!!!}

I've got very good news- I passed my 1hr glucose tolerance test! Happy dance, happy dance. I am sooooo relieved. No gestational diabetes for this mama. Yay! :o)

{had my 1hr glucose test today...}

...and it wasn't bad at all! The one-hour glucose tolerance test, which screens for gestational diabetes, is given to all women at around the 28-week mark of their pregnancy. Due to my nasty colitis flare-up a couple weeks ago, I took mine today- at 31 weeks. 

Most women go on and on about how terrible the glucose test is, so I'll admit that I dreaded taking it. I planned on going last week, but I put it off. How do you decide which day you want to torture yourself with a nasty medical procedure? Little did I know that my worrying was completely unnecessary! 

 {image via cafemama}

Thankfully, my amazing OB, Dr. Biter, recommended that I take a "breakfast glucose test."  Instead of the typical fasting and nasty, sugary, gasless orange soda-drinking one drinks before the blood draw, I was allowed to eat two eggs, two pieces of toast with butter, an 8oz. glass of milk, and an 8 oz. glass of OJ. Then, an hour later, I had blood drawn by Marisol, who I am convince is an angel. She is the first phlebotomist to get a vein in my arm on the first poke in at least a dozen blood draws. I heart her, and I will go back to her with every lab slip I am given from this day forward. I was at the lab for less than 30 minutes, there was no nasty orange drink, and I only have one teeny band-aid on my arm. It's the little things... :P 

The glucose tolerance results take 2-3 days, which means I'll have to wait until at last Monday or Tuesday to find out whether or not I passed. I'm super hopeful that I did, especially considering that I'm pretty dang sure there isn't a "3-hour breakfast test!" Fingers crossed. :o)

{oh yeah, japan pics!}

How sad is it that we've been back from Japan for over a month and I'm just now looking at our pictures?!  Shutterfly sent us a "50% off any photobook" coupon code a couple days ago, so I'll be creating a cute little "First Anniversary in Japan" memory book tonight. Finally, hehe! :o) 

One of my favs so far... 

{renegade craft fair}

I don't know much about the Renegade Craft Fair, but I can tell from the name that I desperately want to attend! Unfortunately, this year's fair arrives in LA the week after my due date- July 24th-25th, so I'll either be a: at home with a newborn, or b: luring her out of my belly with those air traffic controller wands. For those of you who won't be otherwise occupied, please enjoy it for me! 

{super cute maternity dress, anyone?}

I don't think I could say enough good things about the Momzee Noella dress, $78... I adore it so much that I'm actually ordering it in another color as we speak. Mmhmm. It's so comfy and incredibly flattering to my ever-expanding pregnant figure.

If any of you are looking for a great shower outfit, definitely consider ordering this dress...

{for bigger, better pics, click here or scroll to my 30 weeks post}

{30 weeks}

Happy Mother's Day, mommies and mommies-to-be!

Evan & I are about to grab some yummy brunch, but first, a new belly pic. Here I am on my first ever Mother's Day- 30 weeks, 2 days pregnant with our sweet little girl.

Ok, I gotta go get some pancakes in this belly STAT. :P

{omg i WANT this dress!}

Thank you to Mommy Moreno over at Smooth as a Baby's Blog for turning me on to Asos.com. Talk about some cute maternity clothes!

This chiffon corsage babydoll dress... I die!

{chicco cortina double stroller!}

Evan & I won't have the need for a double stroller for a while, if ever... but there are a lot of mamas out there who have been waiting for this day. Chicco finally released their first two-infant carrier capable stroller, the Chicco Cortina Together! Whew, that just sounds like a lot of work. This bad boy can be yours for only $299.99. Woohoo. :P

{3/4 of the way there! 30 weeks!}

Hard to believe that today marks the 3/4 point of our pregnancy. We've only got 70 days left until our due date. 30 weeks down, 10 weeks to go. Well, more like 12... at least that's what I'm preparing myself for. I mean, feel free to come anytime after 37 weeks, baby. I just know that the odds are in favor of you being late rather than early. :P

Wow. Today is a big day!

{via kien tran}

{my first ever mother's day gift}

Evan surprised me with the most incredible early Mother's Day gift last night... these matching momma and daughter cupcake aprons from Paper Source. I am in LOVE! Aren't they precious? ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥



Apparently Charlotte and her daughter Lily can be seen wearing them while baking dozens of cupcakes in the new Sex in the City 2 movie, which makes me love them even MORE. I always knew I was a little bit Carrie and a little bit Charlotte {with a tiny bit of Miranda in there somewhere.}

Thanks for the best first Mother's Day gift ever, Ev! I love you to pieces.

remember this idea: mini pool

We get some pretty hot summer days here in sunny Southern California, so I can't wait to utilize this super creative, easy, and inexpensive mini pool idea from Prudent Baby. Too cute!

PSA: 40% off everything at smallbundles.com

Excited doesn't even begin to describe how I feel right now... Everything on Smallbundles.com is 40% off- all of their cloth diapers, Moby wraps, wet bags, etc. EVERYTHING. They are going out of business, so grab whatever you can before it sells out!

Evan & I were able to make a huge dent in our cloth diaper supply today, plus I grabbed the gorgeous Organic Eggplant Moby wrap I have been lusting after, and a super cute Snuggy Baby wet bag. Yayyy! I'm such a sucker for good sales.

Is that Dave Matthews? Le sigh... :P

GroBaby diapers in all four colors, all 40%!

Rumparooz!

Cute Snuggy Baby wet bag!

Who ever would have thought I'd be smiling ear-to-ear over a cloth diaper sale? Hehe.

{29 weeks}

How baby V's growing:

Your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 pounds (like a butternut squash) and is a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. Her muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and her head is growing bigger to make room for her developing brain. To meet her increasing nutritional demands, you'll need plenty of protein, vitamins C, folic acid, and iron. And because her bones are soaking up lots of calcium, be sure to drink your milk (or find another good source of calcium, such as cheese, yogurt, or enriched orange juice). This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited in your baby's hardening skeleton each day.

How far along? 29 weeks, 3 days

Total weight gain/loss: 12-15 lbs, not quite sure.

Sleep: I keep waking up to numb hands. Grr.

Best moment this week: A nice weekend with my Mom, and getting the Lincoln {finally!}

Movement: She enjoys kicking me in the ribs.

Food cravings: Turkey sandwich w/ extra dressing from Mona Lisa's. Mmm.

Gender: Girl :)

Labor Signs: Not yet.

Belly Button in or out? Still in.

What I miss: Looking like "me" in pictures. It's so weird to see myself all pregnant!

What I am looking forward to: Yoga on Wednesday. I've missed the last couple sessions.

Weekly Wisdom: Focus on the positive :o)

Milestones: It's May!! Time is flyyyying by. We really need to decide on a middle name. Hehe.

{diy nursery art idea}

Ok, so I'm just a little bit obsessed with Etsy. Mmhmm. I'm also a little bit in love with these adorable Memento Wall Hangings from A.E. Wilder's shop. After drolling over them all morning, I started thinking... I could totally make that. All I'd need is an embroidery hoop, a piece of burlap or linen, some letter/number stamps, ink, felt and/or buttons, a needle, and embroidery floss. I mean, easy enough, right? So there you go- my goal this week is to recreate this for one of the many empty spaces on V's nursery walls. {Her birth date will have to be added later... 10-12 more weeks. Crazy!}

Wish me luck!






If you find yourself not-so-craftily inclined, click here to purchase one for $20-35. There are a ton of cute designs, and shipping is only $2. :o)