my pregnancy lifesavers!

mama bee belly butter + seamless racerback bras

this oscillating heater + strawberry applesauce

patterned socks + Liz Lange maternity leggings

1. Burt's Bees mama bee belly butter: i know they say that stretch marks are basically genetic, but i'd like to think that me slathering this on after every shower kept me from getting any of those lovely lines. and at the very least, it kept my belly super soft & i love the scent. i haven't quite used up the whole tub, so i will be continuing to finish it up post c-section!

2. Aerie seamless racerback bras: my boobs reached epic proportions within the first month of finding out i was pregnant. normally i don't wear bras to bed, but i quickly felt like these ginormous boobs were creeping south, so i started wearing these light and comfy racerback bras to bed. literally the only time my boobs haven't had support has been in the shower. i'm hoping this will help them bounce back (hehe) within no time!

3. Soleus Air oscillating reflective heater: holy crap this thing is amazing. i am a huge huge lover of fireplaces. we didn't have one in our apartment & then the condo, so pete went and bought me an electric one that is in cali & i miss it so much. here in CT, we make plenty of fires, but i am not the most skilled fire starter, nor did i want to go through the whole stack of wood in a week by burning one all day, everyday. so i invested in this heater. it's lightweight and i turn it on every morning & let my little toes get toasty warm. i love love love this product and it has been a lifesaver during this cold winter!

4. Applesauce: besides fruit, this has been my go to. strawberry is my favorite flavor, but i can put away a serious amount of cinnamon or berry medley. i go straight for the big jars, but these snack size ones have been the real lifesavor in the middle of the night when i'm awake and starving. they coat your stomach to get rid of any nausea & it's the perfect amount to make those hunger pains go away without packing on midnight munchie pounds.

5. patterned socks: these can be from anywhere, not just j.crew... they were a must have from start to finish, especially during a fall to winter pregnancy. they were long enough so they didn't fold under in my boots, warm enough for all aspects of the holidays, & became part of my morning & night routine. i would put some super thick ultra healing lotion all over my feet & heels, throw on a pair of these socks, & either head out for the day, or wind down in bed... always keeping my feet super soft.

6. Liz Lange for Target maternity leggings: these rock. they are thick enough so they're not the dreaded "see through", they are super long, comfy, & the waistband is low enough so that it's not uncomfortable as your bump grows. i'm hoping to be able to wear them at the hospital after my c-section... that could be total wishful thinking. and will def be wearing them still after baby. can't say enough about these awesome leggings. (i'm wearing them here in my 33 week post)

other things that got me through the past nine months: tylenol, pounding bottles of water, game of thrones reruns, making virgin daiquiris and pretending they weren't, pinterest, cough drops, & chocolate.

37 weeks!

as promised, here's some behind the scenes iphone snapshots from sunday...

 baby is the size of a mini watermelon!

14 days! and they're flying by! i go every week now to my check ups & meet with the surgeon doing my c-section. i was laying on the table & said "so he must be about 6 1/2lbs by now right?! at my ultrasound he was 5lbs 6oz and that was weeks ago!" he gave me a big laugh and went on to tell me that the ultrasounds high ball the weight and that there was no way i had an over 6lb baby in my belly at the moment. he put his hands on my stomach and said "your baby at birth will be mid 6's, maybe low 7's" ..... long awkward pause. here i am thinking i have a beast in my belly! that he wasn't going to fit in his newborn clothes & i was only going to get to use the mamaroo twice before he was too big for it! feeling much better now that i know that, but we will just have to wait and see how big he is come march 11th!

sleeping great, but exhausted during the day. baby has definitely grown a ton in these last weeks, and so have i! i'm finally feeling big and pregnant... and the groin pain is not fun. i am pretty nervous about the upcoming c-section after the nightmare i went through the last time i had a surgery... but having an amazing doctor helps. there is a slight possibility i may be put completely out for the birth. the hole that was left in my spine a year & 1/2 ago filled in with scar tissue and it may prevent the epidural from spreading effectively... in which case they would have to put me out and i would miss the birth. fingers crossed that doesn't happen! & on a positive note, little guy has "dropped" so i can breathe easy now! & i'm waiting on the cutest boppy pillow cover from etsy to come! & besides that, and a massive week of cleaning, i am ready for his arrival!

hope you all are having a great week so far! happy tuesday!

over the past week...

stark continued to be stark

i found a stash of some of my old books from when i was little...

'the jolly pocket postman' and 'the king, the mice, & the cheese' are two of my all time favorite childrens' books available here & here

two of my best friends both got me sophie for my baby shower so

i'm going to figure out a way to tell them apart & let the turf war begin

i got the sweetest pen pal gift in the mail: a keepsake book from Paper Source!

i can't wait to fill it in with all things baby!

my mom crocheted me some sweet mittens in one of my favorite colors

i call it "in your face green"

and then she went on to crochet a fox basket (how to here) to hold some of baby boy's toys!

i have no patience for knitting/crocheting so obviously i think she is the most talented person ever

and then this happened:

i was sitting by the fire when i heard a knock at the door... i come around the corner to see Renee from Iron Scissors, the girl who did my hair & makeup for my wedding, standing on my porch. i open the door & she goes "SURPRISE!!! i'm here for a mini photoshoot!!" i wish she got my face on camera because i was stunned. 10 minutes later the photographer from our wedding, and one of my close friends, showed up with all his cameras & was ready to go. he planned the whole thing. even my mom was in on it. Renee did my hair, makeup, & helped make sure every strand of hair was in place while Kris did what he does best... take gorgeous photos. it was an absolutely amazing day, one i will never forget, & i am so blessed to have such amazing friends in my life. my cheeks hurt from smiling.

thank you Kris & Renee! from the bottom of my heart.

*the photos will take a week or two, but i'll post a few behind the scenes snapshots this week & in the meantime, check out Kris's website!

36 weeks!

baby has reached bowling ball status!

21 days left! (not that anyone is counting) ... sleeping great, chugging water, & had the worst craving for mcdonalds yesterday so i obviously drove in the snow to get some :) i feel great & anxious to finish last minute things before march hits. like clean out my car... yikes... so that i can set up the car seat! & wash all of his clothes... all that fun stuff! 

he is so active these days. he's going to be such a little athlete & if he takes after his dad, he'll be skating on ice in no time. all he does is move around. i went to my appointment last week & my doctor goes "so, are you feeling daily movements?" ...literally as he says that baby boy goes 'womp' and either shoved an elbow or kicked his leg up to be seen. story of my life. he is constantly moving, constantly adjusting... i just hope this isn't an indication of a bad sleeper!!

21 days & i'll be holding our little baby. i can't believe it. this must be a first time mom emotion, but it's just crazy. it's one thing feeling him & getting to know him in my belly... i just can't imagine the feeling of seeing his little face and holding him in my arms... so so soon!

over the past week...

we celebrated my mom's birthday with a massive amount of chocolate

(this doesn't even include the chocolate cake & chocolate covered fruit... we were chocolate wasted)

 i got balloons for her that turned out to be a painfully bad idea when you have cats.

they either tried to eat the strings or were scared half to death of them

this was the view out of my car traveling home from my 35 week appointment.

thank god i have a jeep & for my dad who insisted on driving. thank you!

my mom surprised me with a crocheted baby hat she made for the hospital

we wanted to figure out the sizing so i tried it on Stark. 

the first couple times he shook it off his head, until he finally gave me this look like "fine, just take the damn photo"

i celebrated valentine's day with my little bump,

some gorgeous roses,

and some of my favorite people.

& operation pen pals has officially begun!

i sent out my valentines & got this too sweet gift from my girl over at sap&sea.

hope you all had an amazing week & happy sunday!

35 weeks!

little bumble bee weighs 6lbs & is bigger than a coconut!

well, today is the 11th. & little man will be born on the 11th of next month... four weeks! eek! i can't even believe that the last 28 days is here. i know i say it every week, but the time has just flown by!

this week has been the most uncomfortable pregnancy wise & i expect it to continue over these last weeks. it is a lot harder to breathe... i'm out of breath just walking up the stairs & it takes me about 10min to recover. & then there's my ribs. when i was a gymnast i broke my left ribs landing on my stomach on a release move on bars & baby boy has decided that under those exact ribs is where he wants to be... always. & the hiccups! we are up to 3 times a day now & he just loves to have them as soon as i try and fall asleep ;) other than that & the usual spine pain, i feel great! i can't get enough fruit. it is all i eat. i hope to stick to that after he is born because it is the most fruit i've eaten in my whole life. that & candy. and i always knew about snickers ice cream bars, but have you tried the twix ones?! oh my god.

hope you all are having a wonderful week so far, looking forward to more snow on thursday... mhmm. & then hopefully winter will just end for good so we can all spend more time outside. that and i seriously need a tan!

 happy tuesday!

over the past week...

kai has resorted to pushing himself up as close as he can to take his cat naps since i can't lay on my back anymore 

+ i've had my fair share of valentine's day candy already... but easter?

i made these blackberry pie bars that served as breakfast all week! 

they are sooooo good. (recipe here)

i found the most amazing book of my favorite artist at the local bookstore!

my brothers came home for the weekend so we naturally went to Modern Apizza

(best pizza in connecticut)

& you always leave with leftovers that taste even better the next day!

i had coffee & breakfast with an old friend

and got going on my valentine's day cards!

one of my new year's resolutions is to send more mail... i used to have a pen pal when i was younger & i want to do the same thing now, except a slightly grown up version! so what better way to kick off the first pen pal letters to my two favorite girls in cali (this one & this one!) than some pretty valentines!

easy bookshelf makeover

i had a few requests from friends on how i did the dresser & bookshelf makeovers for the baby's room & i figured i would show you real quick how to do them... because it is that easy & that simple, i promise! 

my bedroom has always been muted pastel colors & i had this urge to redecorate with all things bright for the spring & summer, so what better way to kick off the bedroom makeover than some insanely bright magenta shelves?! 

i found another bookcase in my basement & got to work. it was totally gross & had a huge oil stain on the bottom shelf as you can see above. so i grabbed some windex & paper towels & scrubbed the shelves top to bottom... not too shabby.

then, i folded a piece of sandpaper around a block of wood & sanded down the whole thing. you have to do this with a finished piece of furniture in order for the paint to have something to grab onto.

 it ended up looking like this:

 then my dad (because i get nervous getting too close to these kinds of chemicals being pregnant!) sprayed a coat of stain blocker onto the oil stain to seal it before painting. 

3 coats of high gloss paint in your favorite color...

and bam. talk about brightening up a bedroom! it is all still pretty bare bones & pastel all around it, but nothing a few paintings, some orange pillows, & a lamp shade can't tie together! it is an instant smile on my face everytime i walk into my room now! & just in time for my favorite holiday: valentine's day!

ice, ice baby.

well, they warned us & we listened. everyone & their mom was out at the grocery stores last night preparing. what they didn't tell us was how effing heavy this snow was going to be!!!! i tried to contribute to team shovel-the-driveway & i looked like a wimp trying to lift just one scoop of snow. so i played with the kittens & made some snowballs instead.

 the path i made that they refused to stray from & rocking Revlon lip stain in "smitten" 

(does the trick of making the day that much less cold!)

he's getting big!!

VEST: Burton

HOODIE: Kohl's here

GLOVES: Anthropologie

PANTS: Old Navy maternity (available in store)

for those of you on the east coast: enjoy the snow day & stay warm!