What's Up Wednesday

What We're Eating This Week: Ummmm, a bunch of random. Because, pregnancy!!!

What I'm Reminiscing About: Life this time last year. I was heading out to visit Sportyspice after my lil niece was born and getting ready to celebrate my 35th birthday. Life when we found out we were pregnant back in August. Also just reminiscing about all the fun Le Husband and I have had togehter, just the two of us. We will be THREE in just a few short weeks.

What I'm Loving: All the baby movement. Working with Le Husband to get the house ready. Knowing this is my LAST WEEK AT WORK!!!

What We've Been Up To: Trying to get the house ready for baby. The guest room is almost completely cleaned out and we are slowly adding baby stuff daily. Le Husband has been working hard to build the clothes dresser & crib and I'm helping with the painting outside.

What I'm Dreading: Birth happening while Le Husband is away this weekend. Baby isn't due until the middle of April, but you never know right? Le Husband has a big conference and is leaving later this week to be there. My mom is coming into town the same night he leaves so I won't be alone, but the possible logistics make me nervous.

What I'm Working On: My birth playlist, breathing exercises and visualization. I know labor isn't a party so I'm trying to be as prepared as I can. I'm also trying to get small organizational things done around the house.

What I'm Excited About: BOB making his/her appearance and all the family coming into town for the birth.

What I'm Watching/Reading: Catching up our favorite shows right now during dinners and I'm reading birth books during the day and then easy reads at night before I go to bed.

What I'm Listening To: Calming music, pregnancy podcasts, Les Mills music.

What I'm Wearing: Maternity and my husband's clothing.

What I'm Doing This Weekend: Attending my Tennessee baby shower & I'm so excited :)! My friends are so sweet and I'm super happy my mom will be here to meet some of my closest people.

What I Want To Remember {March}

We MADE IT! 36 weeks, aka technically term. Obviously a safe birth can never be promised, but all of my doctors have told me 36 weeks is the GO time where they would feel comfortable with baby making an appearance. So YAY! Hello, 36 weeks :)! 

Things I want to remember:

+ Making it to 36 weeks. Seems silly, but there is still so much unknown about birth and why women deliver early and why there could be complications so I'm thankful to get to the 'safety zone' persay. Baby could come at any time now and it wouldn't be a bad thing. HOLY MOLY!

+ My surprise baby shower with Le Husband's family. He and the rest of his family had me convinced I was helping them pull off a surprise party for his mother, but ha, joke was on me. It was such a sweet lil shower and I felt so loved. We also got our carseat and stroller which had me thrilled!

+ Getting my Mommy Mobile. We did this quite a bit later than expected, but sales people were stupid so whatever. Le Husband found a great deal and drove the car from Ohio last week. Not going to lie, I'll miss the zip of my lil sports car, but this is quite possibly the best reason to get a new car, right?

+ Our mini BABYMOON in Chattanooga last weekend. Since Le Husband drove the car down from Ohio after a work trip, his car was at the Chattanooga airport and obviously we couldn't just leave it there. So, we packed up Friday afternoon, drove my sports car for 15 hours south [YAY SPEEEEED], had a delicious dinner, walked around town and stayed the night in a hotel as our last lil get away. The next morning it was breakfast, easy chill time then drove home to get other things taken care of on Saturday. It wasn't much, definitely nothing compared to what most people do for a BABYMOON, but it was still a sweet perfect trip. Our LAST lil trip just the two of us. 

+ My last full weeks of work. Next week is it, y'all. I'll be working days here and there in April, but nothing I HAVE to do and I honestly can't wait. The past two months have been a lot harder on my body than expected and I'll be so glad to not HAVE to be on my feet for seven to eight hours a day. Maternity leave is ALMOST HERE!

+ All the changes with my body. They aren't fun, but they are necessary. Belly is SOOOOO big. Thighs have gotten bigger. Feet are now really tired and hurt. Not a lot of swelling, but a bit. I've gained 29 pounds and I can feeeeeel it all now, especially in my back. Sitting, standing, laying down, I feel my low back. Scheduling another prenatal massage for April to get some help. I can also see the plumpness in my face, too. All good things for baby, so I'm not complaining, just noticing, ha. 

+ People in my fitness classes cheering me on at every class. Their support is so lovely and I've even heard from a few me still teaching inspires them with their fitness, which is the biggest compliment. I still am so tired it's hard to get to the gym, but when I teach I feel so much better. 

+ How supportive people have been. Family, friends, members, coworkers and complete strangers are all so kind to me. It's like this lil tribe with women and the men who are kind just say the nicest things about how fun it will be once baby is here. I've dealt with a few "wow you're big" comments, but water of the back for me. Knowing I'm a month out has people excited and I'm so lucky. 

We are just a week away from BIRTH MONTH and my BIRTHDAY MONTH, I am so excited :)!

Weekly Wins {The Ides of March}

Hey, bunnies! Happy Friday. Or Ides of March if you are a history buff. It has been quite a busy week here, and man oh man, we are edging closer and closer to baby time. Let's count down some wins this week, shall we?

+ Last weekend Le Husband and I drove to Ohio for his mother's surprise birthday party. Which had been planned since November. Which actually turned out to be a surprise baby shower for ME! It was so sweet, so fun, such a lovely, lovely time. I'm so lucky.

+ Finally bit the bullet and bought me a mommy car. Say hello to my new whip :)! Ain't she a beauty?

+ Cooking dinners has become a hurdle after work. My body just is so tired after work that I have to lay down and rest for a bit and then you know the deal, getting up is tough. So I found some yummy frozen meals that aren't too high in sodium and are natural and are quite delicious.

+ Le Husband and I agreed we didn't need to go on a full BABYMOON because of his and my crazy work schedule. Taking time off is really tough right now and he's trying to get everything done so he can have full paternity leave once BOB arrives. Well, he decided to use a work snafu as a way to get us a short lil Babymoon. It's not far away, but will be a lovely little jaunt just the two of us.

+ Later this weekend Le Husband and I will be doing lots of work in the nursery and I'm excited to see the room start to come together. Getting so so so so so close :)!

C U R R E N T L Y {MARCH}

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scheming: on how to get someone in the house to deep clean everything. nesting is HERE!
reading: baby blogs, pregnancy instagrams, Babywise and positive birth affirmations.
buying: the most random food things, I can't even write them out here, haha.
making: lists on lists on lists. so much to do.
accomplishing: lots of purging, gifting and lots of naps.
loving: how sweet everyone is being to me and BOB. seriously, the support is the best and I'm so lucky.
praying: for a healthy baby and an uncomplicated delivery.
watching: the normal shows and some breathing videos.
hoping: to find some energy in the next few weeks so I can help finish things around the house.
feeling: lots of baby kicks, but also feeling heavy. and as graceful as a hippopatums.
anticipating: labor. family coming into town. a baby being born. labor. bringing a human home. labor.

Show Us Your Books: March

Linking up with Steph for Show Us Your Books in March. I've been trying to read a lot because I know reading will be taking a back seat in the coming weeks. Once again my authors and lead characters are female and I really enjoyed all books which is always nice. Can't wait to see what everyone else is reading.

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Normally I import book pictures randomly then write their description. Not so, this time. I have purposely put this book first because IT.WAS.THAT.GOOD! Think 'Lilac Girls' & 'The Nightingale' both wrapped up in WW1 & WW2. Women resistance in both World Wars has become one of my favorite genres, even if it's heartbreaking to read. This book follows two incredible women and melds into one big story of resilience and revenge. I randomly put a hold on it at my library and I'm so glad I did. I had no idea it was such a big read and I highly suggest you put it as your next TBR.

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Oh, what a story. Hannah has been known to write quite a bit of doozies and this one checks all the boxes. It is a story about family. The kind you are born into. The kind you marry into. And the kind that doesn't have to match. It is about the sadness of infertility and the choices of unplanned pregnancy. It is beautifully written and every character {except one in my mind} is someone you can hope and cheer for because everyone is JUST trying to do the right thing by them. I felt this story deeply as it dealt with pregnancy and wanted to reach into the book to give the two main characters a big hug. Incredibly moving, perfectly written and gripping.

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Another WW2 book about women and one I truly enjoyed. One woman set in present day attempts to find the owner of a journal who was part of the ACK-ACK in WW2. There is mystery, strength, heartbreak, sadness, joy, betrayal and of course romance. I learned quite a bit about British women in the Army and truly felt my heart breaking for the main 1940s character. Fantastic read.

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Another book I just so happened upon while browsing the library and one I'm so glad I picked up. Originally I thought the title had to do with the Titanic, but it ended up being about the Lusitania, which was a ship torpedoed by Germans during WW1 who's sinking ending up galvanizing Americans into the Great War. There are three different women narrators, two on the ship and the main character is set in the 2000s. She is an author looking for her next big novel and the journey takes her over to London to try and snuff out a public figure in the  middle of a scandal. Normally I don't enjoy multiple narrators or multiple jumps in history, but this book did it well so there wasn't any confusing and it all made good sense. Lots of twists and I honestly did not figure much of it out until it was all wrapped up. Great historical fiction read, I don't think many would dislike this book.

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This book was found last SUYB and one I really enjoyed so thank you to whoever recommended it. I admit, I found some of plot and writing a bit juvenile, but overall the book was fun to read. I very much enjoyed the heroine's point of view and her drive to want to help women writing into the column. Glimpses into the London WW2 life paint such a story and I truly enjoyed all of the little touches of history. Easy read for a quick trip.

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I wasn't quite sure about this book when I picked it up, but it was a pleasantly surprising read. A down on her luck woman helps to clean out her deceased landlords home and uncovers all kinds of letters, secrets and history inside the house. Many fun and not so fun characters and by the end you can kind of figure out what is going to happen, however I don't think that detracted from the story. I do admit some of the writing was much too flowery and some of the letters just seemed to go on and on, but overall the story did tie together nicely.

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Surgeon leaves the big city to help her father run a campsite and to escape a possible malpractice suit. She's tough, she's soft and she learns so much about herself while she's away. Of course there is a man involved and of course there is a push and pull, but the author did a great job weaving a lovely story even though you can kind of tell where it's going. Similar to a Nora Robert's book, but without some of her fluff. Would be a good pool or vacation read.

TBB Asks: Shop Till You Drop Edition

1] Top Three Shops? Loft, Reebok, Nordstroms

2]Where is the majority of your shopping done, online or in shops? Online if I shop.

3] What's your favorite thing to shop for? Shoes, shoes, shoes. 

4] What do you HATE shopping for? Jeans or bras. 

5] What's your most favorite thing you've ever bought? My LV Speedy. I saved up for it and it was so fun to buy.

6] Do you prefer to shop alone or with others? I prefer with others. It's just a fun party that way. 

7] Best Bargain? Hmmmm, I think LOFT has the best bargains going on, but Nordstrom's Sale is pretty fab.

8] Thrift store shopping: Yes or No? I would if I had the patience. But I don't. 

9] Best cities for shopping? Paris & Rome :)

10] Who's your style or fashion icon? I'm a big fan of classic so Audrey Hepburn but also LOVE Victoria Beckham, Jessica Alba, Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Garner. 

Weekly Wins: End of Feb

Afternoon! I know this post is late on a Friday and many won't read it but I want to document some of my weekly wins. Since I use this as a journal I try to make time for things I want to remember. 

+ I'm still on high after such a wonderful baby shower weekend. Seeing my family and my BOFF for three whole days was so lovely and I was so glad Le Husband was able to be there for the party. It was so fun just enjoying the weekend and I felt beyond loved. 

+ Sportyspice is still in VA and it's so fun seeing all the cute videos of lil bean with grandparents. 

+ I taught a barre class last night and it was so much fun. I didn't just wing it and I believe it showed. It was to a new group of women I'd never taught before so I was a little nervous since I teach different barre than most. After class I had THREE women tell me this was their FAVORITE format of barre {including purre barre and barre3} and then requested my teaching schedule. Such a great feeling.

+ I finally bit the bullet and bought a support band for my bump and am SO glad I did. It is making quite a difference in support and I'm hoping it will help me from feeling so sore the next day. Trust me, I'm still cleared to workout and everything is fine, this is just a bit of support for the bottom of the belly. I have quite a schedule in March and am beyond thankful I chose to purchase something because I KNOW I'll use it even after baby.

+ Spring is right around the corner. I cannot wait until the sun shines warmer. 

+ WE ARE IN THE LAST FULL MONTH OF PREGNANCY!!! BOB will be here in less than two months, oh em GOOOOOODNESS! I am excited, nervous, ready, not ready and just WHELMED ;)! Cheers to MARCH!