lovely week

we had a lovely visit with mom! it is always so sad to see her go and so hard too...but this time i couldn't help, but realize what her next visit will be like and the ones from now on. i will be a mommy too...oh how this little man will adore his lala!

we worked hard this week getting his room together and we made amazing strides! wait until you see the before and after! a few things are left on the to-do/must-find list in order to call the nursery complete...

• find shelving for the wall above his changing table {hoping to find something vintage this weekend at one of our favorite spots...if not, i might have to settle}
• waiting on his rocker to arrive...a couple more weeks {such a sweet surprise from hubby!}
  
• finish the lamp we are making out of an old unique vintage piece...such a group effort this one!
• mom is currently sewing his cord cover for the chandi {are you surprised he will have one in his room...bet not!}, and the blanket and pillow we dreamed up and designed.
• complete the pad and cover for the window seat
  

and what we accomplished in just one week...a whole lot! ...see...

mom painted his room...

...she and hubby assembled his crib

...we got his bedding on his bed...all handmade by his lala...her gift for the little mister...and its gorgeous! the curtains {also made by lala} were hung! thank you so much mom!!!

...mom and i explored a local little town that i have been wanting to check out...sewickley. we found the cutest little shops along downtown...

selling the most unique things...we ventured into this one shop that had all kinds of colorful notions and yarns...

mom treated me to lunch at the best little eatery i have found in pittsburgh {or the greater area!}...the sewickley cafe.

we ate outside in their garden. it has a beautiful tent right in the middle of it with open sides and a ceiling of gathered silk and a chandi right in the center of course!

the menu had lots to choose from and the food was fabulous!

mom had a raspberry walnut salad with amazing dressing & and i had a scrumptious chicken salad sandwich with a fabulous side salad... {yes...i cleaned my plate...yes i eat more preggo than i ever have...and yes, i was still hungry again in 2 hours!}

and then for dessert...homemade tiramisu...oh my so yummy!

...my MUCH anticipated stroller arrived! thank you so very much mom!!!!

...i celebrated my birthday with my 2 favorite people and the {GROWING} bump...hubby treated mom and i to dinner at the cheesecake factory...we love this place!! we were much too full {me mostly from their fabulous brown oat bread} to have dessert...so mom fixed the most amazing chocolate chip cheesecake you most certainly ever tasted...yumm!!

after dinner we spent time exploring some neat shops and took in a bit of the live tunes too!

...mom finished up his cradle bedding...love it!!!

...we explored a local conservatory with 17 botanical gradens...such a gorgeous place i have been anxious to see!

...and our last outing was to one of my ob appts! so lala got to hear the little mister's heartbeat...live!

it was such a lovely week and this nesting momma-to-be feels so much more at ease now that preparations are coming together for the little man's arrival!! we are in the single digits now...less than 9 weeks until due-day!

queen is comin'

guess who's coming to town! and we-are-so-excited!! hubby has his menu requests and i have a long list of must-dos! mom will be here for my birthday and she's coming with the little mister's bedding in tow! she has been working like a busy busy lala since i left texas and she has finished his bedding and curtains! i can't wait to see it all put together!! we are going to spend this week putting the nursery together...this will be fabulous for my overwhelming current nesting phase! not to mention i am so anxious to see his room ready!

26 wks 2 days

i am so thankful to have spent the last week+ in texas surrounded by friends and family. it is always so different going home without hubby...i always miss him so very much. but we both agreed it would be so "weird" {for lack of a better word} to never go home pregnant and come home with a baby! i so enjoyed to begin sharing our little babe with the family as they feel his kicks, growing bump, see his thumps and for him to be introduced to their voices and feel them mashing on him!

i can only imagine that when he makes his visit to texas it will feel more so...but to walk through my house that i have grown up in, to sit in my backyard that i spent hours upon hours playing in, to spend time with my siblings that i have grown through all life's quirks with, to see my parents anticipate becoming grandparents, and to drive the streets that will always look familiar...all knowing he is with me and kicking around in my belly...its been amazing. amazing because in those walls i dreamed of what it would feel like to grow up, marry, and be pregnant, i spent many a times wondering what my first child would be...a boy or a girl, and i spent many a prayers for the father of those children...so to have those answers now and to be inside those walls again...such an amazing gift!

{ pics are a couple weeks behind now...i am now 28 weeks...and growing! }

texas dirt

say its funny and say its pointless and not important, but even before we were with child i have been aware and concerned that our firstborn will not be born in texas. that is something that is very important to us...and he WILL always be...a texan! my parents gifted us with something few will appreciate...but those who know us will understand...a poem written just for us and...dirt! texas dirt from the backyard i was born and raised in. it'll be going to the hospital with us so that this babe can always say he was born over texas soil!!! needless to say...the composure of this emotional momma-to-be was shattered at that point in the gift opening process...and not easily regained. this meant so much to me!

...and if you remember this post and the promise i made to our little mister...you will see that his lala surprised us with little red boots before i left!!!! oh my how cute our little buckaroo will look in his little red boots and his diaper!

a shower of texas love

in early july the bump and i headed to texas to love and be loved on by family and friends {doctor hubby wasn't able to make the trip} ...we braved the texas heat and i was sure i would be returning to pa waddling back with kankles! we made it back last week and have much catching up to do...

first off...the most precious & special baby shower i have ever seen! {so i'm a little biased!}

my mom's dear friends and 2 of the most precious and creative gals i know threw us a gorgeous, love-filled, most thoughtful, oh boy baby boy shower...in texas!!

{ the lovely hostesses ... ms. rebecca and jennifer with the mommie-to-be }

the shower was so lovely and no detail went without thought...from the so sweet vintage loved decorations...

to the so tasty boy bootie baby cake...

to quite the spread of tasty eats...

and the so very thoughtful and generous gifts for our little mister...

to the precious friends and family that spent the morning loving our little boy on the way...

{ momma-to-be with the mister's lala and noni }


{ kensi and her new baby sister harper - 3 weeks and so tiny! }


{aunt chichi, mommy, and lala }


{ "hubby-side" ladies ... and the mister }

it was so special to have so many near and dear friends & family there that i don't get to see very often...so many of them have played such a vital role in hubby and my life. so to have them celebrating with us as we grow into a family of 3 was such a blessing!

a pound!?

24 weeks...is.going.by.so.fast! the mister has gone from a mustard seed to a bit over a pound now {according to the books}...and that...blows.our.minds! i remember the week it felt like a triumph to find out he had made it to the size of a brazilian nut! he's tipped the scale! one pound...so tiny but at the very same time so big! ...and to think he will double in size over the next 2-3 weeks!

this pregnancy has been far beyond what i could have ever imagined. i used to wonder what it would feel like to be pregnant...it is so much more. i look down at my growing belly...and i realize that somehow all at once my "foundation" dreams...are coming true. all i ever wanted was a god-fearing, humble, caring, and over-protective husband to raise a family with...how can i be grateful enough to have been blessed with these dreams and yet so much more.

i know he has a lot more growing to do...that the miracles of it all are just beginning...and we have many more prayers to give for him. prayers that he continues to be healthy, that he always has a thirst for the word, that he always has a heart for the lord, that he has a sense of humor, his daddy's smarts, his momma's patience...and that he doesn't have the colic! ;) ...among many things!

i don't ever want to forget... the feel of his kicks, the feeling of never being alone, his head/feet/arms/elbows from outside my belly, the amazing closeness of God's hand, and what it feels like to be growing a miracle. i'm so blessed to be carrying him...and that isn't something i take lightly or for granted each and everyday.

really pregnant

"you're really pregnant!" -my hubby...in almost a question form! needless to say from his reaction coming home one day last week...i have popped {again!}! i always get a kick out of those moments from him that it seems to further sink in that we are having a babe! it is such an innocent and so very sweet reaction. reactions...that i never want to forget on the realizations that its becoming more and more real...for us both!

a recap

we've been busy enjoying the summer with friends, parties, and family!! since i can't seem to bloggingly keep up with it all {yes...i made that word up and added it to my dictionary!} i'm gonna just recap a few of the highs over the past week and few days! i hope everyone is enjoying their summer!

- hubby had a wonderful to-be-father's day! i can't wait to watch this man take on the role of daddy to our little mister! and to top it off he received news of his first published paper!!!! so proud!

- we had a final party for the 3rd year residents and a farewell to our precious friends moving on to practice! we are so blessed to have all these friends as family while we are so far from our own!

- we welcomed hubby's parents for a few days and showed them the town! it was so nice to spend some time with them! hubby had to work half the time they were here...so they were such troopers as i dragged them around town showing them our favorite spots!

hubby was able to join us over the weekend and we took in a pirates game {my first!}

- to top off the month...hubby just completed a very strenuous 2 month rotation...trauma! i am most proud of him taking on this second year rotation at the last minute as a first year...and excelling with flying colors! his days started at 4:30am and lasted anywhere from 6:30-9pm {and a few times even later}. i am most excited to spend time with him again and he is anxious to catch up on his zzzzs!

- one year down!!! hubby transitioned from 1st year resident to 2nd year resident today! so many congrats to all our other resident friends on this transition up the totem pole!!!