A must read for every prego (or even if you're not)

Since becoming a Mom, the importance of nutrition just keeps climbing higher and higher on my list of parental priorities. It's kind of funny, because most Mom's become more laid back with each additional kid they have, but I am the total opposite. With each kid I get more and more uptight. It doesn't really help that the older I get the more of a control freak I get, but we can just save that topic for another day :)

When I was pregnant with Gracen I really did not pay attention at all to my eating. I was more focused on surviving the pregnancy (yes I know I'm dramatic). Granted I had a very difficult pregnancy with her including low fluids, a breach baby and bed rest, but still I thought as long as I took my vitamins everyday I was good to go. With Hadley I had started cooking from scratch more, and since I was feeding a toddler, meal time in our house had drastically changed - for the better. However I still didn't place as much emphasis on nutrition as I probably should have.

Fast forward 4 and half years (holy cow how has it been 4 and a half years?!) And this time around with a million mommy blogs, food blogs, and Google in general at my fingertips, I feel like I'm much more informed than I ever was. I would call myself half a hippie. With so much information on the ol interwebs, I feel like I'm making better decisions every day - like growing my own food in a garden not only to save money, but so I'm 100% sure what goes on it. Not to mention my obsession with coconut oil (especially while prego - amazing moisturizer for my ever expanding bump, naturally helping protect against stretch marks!). Seriously it's a miracle. It's my windex! (My Big Fat Greek Wedding anyone?) Got a problem? Get the coconut oil. My other recent obsessions include apple cider vinegar (with the Mother) and organic gelatin. Amazing. Let me know if you're interested I would love to bombard you with information :)

 

 

Organic ACV found here



Organic Gelatin found here

But anyways, on to the must read! I found this book through one of the blogs I read, and immediately put it on the top of my list in my Kindle. It TOTALLY BLEW MY MIND. Basically you can forget everything you ever thought you knew about food. The science behind food is FASCINATING. I seriously read this in one sitting. I have just about every other page bookmarked, it has that much incredible information. This book totally changed a lot of my views on food. Not just because it's "bad for you" or it's the latest "food fad" but because it proves exactly how your body uses food, how we're educated about food, and the saddest part - how backwards the US is regarding food and nutrition.

 

Read a preview on Amazon here

It's geared towards pregnant women, but there is a TON of info that's beneficial just in general for women. Let me know if you read it - I'd love to hear your thoughts!!

20 Week Update and a PSA

Officially hit the half way mark today! While I do feel like this first half has gone by really quickly, really only the last 6 have gone by fast. The first 14 were awful with morning (all day) sickness. The next 20 weeks seems like an eternity, so I’m hoping they go by just as quickly. The girls ask at least once a day if it’s time for the baby to come out yet J  Oh, and everyone who told me i looked small at 16 weeks, go ahead and tell me again, because I have definitely "popped". Mama is starting to feel like a whale.

 

I’ve been feeling much better nausea wise, but I still get terrible headaches and am just overall exhausted. Every morning is a battle to get out of bed. Honestly I’m not entirely sure how I’ve already had 2 babies (and technically this is my 5^th pregnancy). Insomnia has also hit, but only in spurts. I usually head to bed around 9 at the latest, but it takes me good hour or two to actually fall asleep. The past few weeks I’ve been waking up around 2 am, and am up until about 5. Guess I’ll be fully prepared for those sleepless nights ahead! Although it’s a lot more bearable with an actual baby!

And just in case you’re a hermit and didn’t see on FB or Insta we’ll be welcoming one more princess into the world! A lot of people asked if we were disappointed, and while I understand where they’re coming from, all we wanted was a healthy baby! And really I think the Mr. is glad I won’t go crazy buying all new boy stuff ;)

I will tell you however it’s incredibly difficult to name a 3^rd girl. We’ve barely begun the name discussion, but already it’s proving to be hard. The Mr. and I have very different taste in names, and it was hard enough to name 2 already. So any suggestions please send them my way, otherwise this baby could be born and still not have a name. I guess it’s a good thing I still have 5 months to go!

One more last little tidbit, and PSA on behalf of all prego women really (or most of them). DO NOT TOUCH A PREGNANT WOMAN’S STOMACH. I know that some women are ok with it, but I am definitely NOT. It is not ok. And honestly my gut reflex is to punch you in the nose, and no I won’t apologize. If you’d like to ask permission, go ahead, but the answer will always be no. And most of the mommy to be’s I have asked all say the same thing – DO NOT TOUCH THE BUMP. Thanks J

Valentine's Day Special!

We just added some adorable new onesies and pink headbands to our etsy shop, perfect for Valentine's Day!! We're also running a special on our shipping, so head on over and check it out :)
www.etsy.com/shop/plaidandpaisleyshop

I'm not going to lie, the pink glitter one is my fav!! But they're all perfect for a little princess!

I love monograms, and I also love glitter if you couldn't tell! And the paint splatter onesie is definitely one of my new favs! www.etsy.com/shop/plaidandpaisleyshop

16 Weeks

Yesterday I officially hit the 16 week mark, and of course posted our announcement via FB. If it was up to me, I would have just waited until the peanut was born, and kept it all to myself. After 2 misscariages you don't want to jump the gun to early, and I kept saying after my next appt. I'll tell everyone.

Because of my history, I had a sonogram at my first appt. which was 5 weeks and 5 days. It was kind of a shock to hear the doctor say, ok so this is your 5th pregnancy. Still kind of crazy to think about. I read a lot about women struggling with infertility and the heartbreking journey that it is, but it's very rare you hear about anyone struggling after having 2 healthy babies. Who am I to be so heartbroken? I should be thankful to have my 2 healthy babies - which of course I am! But it still doesn't make the sting of a misscarriage any less. So at that first appt, she let me know that since you can't hear the heartbeat that early we would do a sono, and even with a sono we might not be able to see the heartbeat either.

But we've got an overachiever on our hands, and at 5 weeks, 5 days I saw that little heartbeat. And for just a moment, time stopped. And I soaked it all in. It seems like so long ago, and yesterday at the same time.

If you know me at all, you also know that I am not one of those women who I enjoy being pregnant. In fact I hate it. I was literally sick as a dog for the first 14 weeks, which made it incredibly difficult to hide, at least to me. I kept blaming it on the cold weather. See winter is good for something! My dear husband deserves a freaking medal, because besides going to work everyday I pretty much was useless. I would go straight to bed after getting home, because everything made me want to throw up. The worst part? I was taking my finance management class that whole time. I am really amazed that I survived, because let me tell you I cried. a lot. It was by far the hardest class I've ever taken, and had to do so while basically having the flu the.entire.time. The holidays? they were no help. At Thanksgiving I was only 8 weeks, and hadn't told anyone. The smells were indescribable. The car ride? Pure torture. I pretty much slept the whole time. Christmas was a little better, only because I had my 12 week appt. on the 23rd, and so after hearing that sweet heartbeat for the first time, I finally agreed to at least tell our family. I was so sick, and was a real grinch pretty much the whole month of December - again somebody give my husband a medal!

By week 14 I was at least getting my appetite back, but traded in horrible morning sickness for pure exhaustion and massive headaches. I told you I'm not one of those women who like being pregnant :)

After my 16 week appt on Monday and hearing that heartbeat one more time, I finally decided to let everyone know, that there's no need for a double take, I didn't eat too much over the holidays, just eating for two!

And while a few people commented I looked tiny (thank you!), that's only due to horrid morning sickness for 14 weeks. But don't worry I'll make up for it soon, both my girls were 9 lbs when they were born!

So for now, I'm literally counting down the days until July, and soaking up the few perks that come along the way!

Chevron Birthday Party

Last month my "baby" turned 4 years old. It's very bittersweet, but she is wise beyond her years. Girlfriend knows how to work the system, and isn't afraid to do so. Papa would be so proud! He may just get that lawyer in the fam that loooves to argue after all.

For her big day, we invited her friends from school to celebrate at the park. This is Hadley's first birthday party with school friends, so it was quite the occasion. We went with a chevron theme, and a lovely mix of homemade and store bought.

 Gracen may or may not have had a wee bit of birthday envy. But I don't blame her :)

I know there's a lot of articles out there regarding parents who go overboard on their kids birthday parties, but to each their own. If you love to craft, then by all means craft! If you love to bake, bake! Do what makes you happy. But don't make people feel bad for "going overboard" when it's something that they're passionate about. I by no means think I go "overboard" but just make sure not to ask the Mr. :) I'm going to continue planning their parties for as long as they'll let me!

Grand Opening: Plaid & Paisley

This past weekend we finally launched our Etsy shop Plaid & Paisley! Feel free to browse around and let us know if you have any specific ideas or things you'd like to see. We can customize pretty much anything. Even if you don't see it, we can customize it just for you!

Tie onesie found here

This is one of my fav, and can be made with pretty much any choice of fabric and stitching.

 

Headbands found here

I love the skinny headbands, and the color options are limitless!

 

Polka dot letters here

My sister's been hand painting these letters for 5 years now, and I'm obsessed. So glad we finally opened up a place to sell them :) Colors and patterns can match pretty much anything!!

 

Animal letters here

These animal letters would be perfect for any jungle nursery, or I love the ABC for a playroom!

 

Hand painted onesies here

I am a total sucker for anything monogrammed. And I love the vintage/antique look of these hand painted onesies.

 

 

Everything in our shop is truly one of a kind. No two are the same. We'd love for you to look around and let us know what you think. Pin away, and of course feel free to shop, the holidays are right around the corner -  Plaid & Paisley is officially open!



Baking Fail

I have a million things I'm getting ready to share, but this was just too funny to wait. Seriously it seems like sometimes the easiest of things turn out to be the most disastrous. This weekend was Hadley's birthday party, and amongst many treats I decided to also make rice krispie treats.

Please keep in mind I have made these many times before. So I have NO idea what happened. They require 3 ingredients. Seriously 3. I'm still confused as to how I messed these up. This picture does not do the wreckage justice.

See how there's just a big blob in the middle? I'm not sure if marshmallows go bad, I'm pretty sure we've had ours since Gracen's party in April.... or if there's a trick to using our new gas stove top? But whatever the reason I still don't know how it happened. The butter melted just fine, but when I added the marshmallows, they didn't melt like they were supposed to. It just made one giant marshmallow... and they looked like they were almost starting to burn so I just added the cereal anyways, and as I tried to stir them in made a giant mess in the process. Then I decided to try and put it in the pan anyways, and well you can see how that turned out :)

So now matter how much I think my culinary skills have improved over the years, leave it to little old rice krispie treats to put me in my place. Needless to say there were no rice krispie treats at Hadley's party!