Since the new baby arrived it has been extra challenging sitting down to write any posts, but I just had to get one up today for Father’s Day. I’m still in the thick of life with a newborn and didn’t have a chance to run out to the store to get a card, but if I had, this message pretty much sums up what it would have said…. Continue reading “A Message to My Other Half on Father’s Day”
It has been exactly a week since our little girl graced us with her presence. Last Wednesday, May 30th, we welcomed Emmy Scarlett into the world and officially became a family of four! She’s perfect and we feel so incredibly grateful. Even though this was my second time going through delivery, it was still a surreal experience. It’s so crazy to think I went into the hospital with just my husband and left with another little human that we’re now responsible for. It’s both amazing and terrifying! But mostly amazing. Continue reading “She’s Here! The First Week with Our New Baby”
Exactly one week from today we’ll be meeting our little girl. That is, unless she decides to make her debut early! I have a c-section scheduled for next Wednesday, at which point I’ll be 39 and a half weeks, so there’s a chance I could go into labor beforehand. Since I’ve been so on the fence about whether to schedule another c-section or try for a regular birth, I decided to schedule the surgery a little late (they usually do them at the 39 week mark) to give my body the opportunity to possibly go into labor on its own. If it does, I’ll try to let nature take its course and deliver naturally. As of right now though, I have no signs of early labor, so my guess is that won’t happen. I’m just going to go with the flow and see what happens. Either way, I’ll be holding a baby in my arms very soon and I couldn’t be more excited! Continue reading “The Final Countdown”
Although we have a three bedroom home and have space to put the baby in her own room, we really want to keep a dedicated spot for guests to stay, especially when our parents come to visit. So our plan is to have Jackson and the baby share a room for as long as they can. There are obviously pros and cons to having them share a room, and my biggest concern is if their sleep will suffer, but I’m really hoping we can make it work. Plenty of people do! If not, we always have the option of separating them down the line. Either way, it’s not something we’re really going to have to worry about for a while because I plan on having the baby in our room for months. Jackson slept by the side of our bed in our bedroom for the first seven months or so, and I anticipate keeping the new baby in our room for about the same time. I know this isn’t for everyone but I’m more comfortable that way, and it makes nighttime nursing sooo much easier. Continue reading “Creating a Shared Kids’ Bedroom”
Now that I’m a mom, I have a much better sense of what I really need for a new baby and what I can do without (you can see my list of must-haves for the first six months here). With Jackson, we accumulated a ton of stuff, so what I need to buy this time around is fortunately very minimal. This is especially true since we decided that we want the baby to share a room with Jackson after she’s no longer sleeping in ours, so we have no need to buy any new nursery furniture. I went all out with a high-end crib and dresser/changing table combo the first time and although I love the set and it has served us well, I’m very glad we can save this time around by just sticking with what we have. Our plan is to keep the baby with us in our room for at least the first six months, possibly closer to a year like we did with Jackson, and at that point, we will have transitioned Jackson out of the crib and into his regular bed, which is already set up. So the baby will just take over his crib when we move her into the kids’ room. Sharing a room may not work out well, who knows, but that’s our hope. We will see how it goes!
On April 21, I turned 35. It feels odd because the years keep ticking by so quickly but I don’t feel like I’ve changed all that much. Sometimes I almost forget how old I am! I guess that’s what happens when you become an adult. Although the year seemed to go by in a blur, I like to reflect on the past 365 days each year around my birthday to remind myself of all the good in my life. It’s easy to get caught up in all the things you didn’t accomplish in a year, or think about how you’re not where you wanted to be in life by a certain age, so I find that taking a moment to acknowledge all the blessings is really useful. I’m making a concerted effort to focus more on gratitude, and while it’s definitely a work in progress, things like this help. With that in mind, here’s a rundown of what I’m most grateful for over the past year:
This past Saturday David and I spent the night in New York City while my parents took care of Jackson. Having grandparents close by is the best! It was a rather spontaneous trip that we decided to take as kind of a “last hoorah” before the baby arrives in about six weeks. Being in between both of our birthdays, it was also an excuse to celebrate and just enjoy each other’s company one on one, which is something we don’t do nearly enough of these days, admittedly. This was actually the first time that we have both been away from Jackson overnight at the same time since he was born!
As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I regularly shop at a few different grocery stores to get the products I want. I usually alternate between Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, and Costco on a given week depending on what I need to pick up. Between these three stores, I’m able to buy the kinds of foods I like while also keeping costs at a reasonable level. I already shared my current favorites from Costco and Trader Joe’s, so today I thought I’d round up the products I’m currently loving from Whole Foods. As with my other lists, I didn’t include much in the way of produce here because I’m focusing on items that are unique to Whole Foods (where I live, at least). That said, I do buy lots of fresh fruits and vegetables from Whole Foods on a regular basis. Anyway, without further ado, here are the Whole Foods products I’m loving right now: Continue reading “Current Whole Foods Favorites”
I know I say this every time I write about something pregnancy-related but I can’t believe how quickly this pregnancy is going by. Seriously. I’m 31 weeks right now and that means I have only a little over two months to go. I’m not sure if I’m ready! Anyway, here’s what’s been going on since my 25 week update….
A few months ago my sister introduced me to the hummus brand, Delighted By. Have you heard of it? Delighted By makes dessert hummus flavors like Brownie Batter and Snickerdoodle that are absolutely delicious and made with clean ingredients. Dessert hummus? Now why didn’t I think of that?! You probably don’t associate chickpeas with chocolate or anything else sweet for that matter, and it may strike you as gross, but trust me when I tell you that you’d never know chickpeas are the main ingredient in this dip. Seriously, my mind was blown when I first tasted it. Continue reading “Fudgy Chocolate Hummus Dip (Vegan & Gluten-Free)”
Wholesome Homebody 