Fave Baby Things so far...

So these are a few of my favorite things for baby CG right now.

Love the wubbanub.

This thing is a life saver! Having the lil' lamb gives it some weight so the paci doesn't just fall down in the crevices. Sometimes, she can even maneuver it back in her mouth due to the lamb not letting it "fall."

Gas drops.

These have been a LIFESAVER!!!!


BOWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A blog friend of mine introduced me to Lollies and Lace Boutique. I've ordered almost all of Caroline Grace's bows from here. I really like the quality, and the owner is super quick to respond to any questions. I've been really pleased:) The bigger the bow, the closer to God, right? ;)


Stylish Pacifier Clips

I may or may not have all the girl pacifier clips by The Beaufort Bonnet Company ;) The pink and lavender seersucker is embroidered with CG's monogram. I think they are so pretty to pair with her cute outfits when we are out and about. I have MAM clips which I really like for play clothes. 

Smocking Hot Mamas

If you're not a member of the facebook group Smocking Hot Mamas, you definitely should be. I've been able to pick up CG some very cute things either nwt or euc. This group has like 40K members, so things are posted all the time! Just know they run a tight ship a SHM, so make sure once you're a member that you pay close attention to the rules:)

Baby Stuff I wish I knew About...

These are 3 things I wish I had known about before I had Caroline!


1. Lucy Darling Shop
I wish I had know about her shop earlier. While I like my monthly stickers, I really would have liked to order the ones to match the Little Artist's Baby Book. I have a baby book by Carter's but the nurses got ink on the cover when stamping babe's hands and feet, andddddd I just happen to like this one better. So, I'll be ordering this one soon.

2. Vive la Fete!!!!!!!!!!! This shop has cute little smocked outfits and COLLEGIATE wear. I would have ordered this cute little number for newborn pictures. But, since I didn't know, I'm going to order her the bubble for the fall for football season:) #WDE!!!!!!!!!!!!

3. Jennifer Ann Style's blankets and onesies. I mean come on how cute is this blanket, and it even says Caroline. :) I definitely would have ordered these for her take home outfit! Right now, JAS's having a sale good through Sunday for 15% off. It's her last sale of the year. Use code 

JAStylesCoolKids

Hospital Bag for Mom to Be

So, this is my hospital toiletries bag. Yeah... I only used my face wash and the balm chicky balm balm lip balm. So, here's what I used for the 4 nights I was in the hospital.

FOR YOU: 

1. definitely face wash [makeup wipes if you use those], lotion, and chap stick
 **definitely do NOT forget chap stick. i read about lips getting chapped during labor, and it is so  
    true! i really like my balm chicky balm balm!

2. your baby book for hand/feet stamping

3. a loose pair of pajamas. i bought these because they were comfy, dark [in case you bleed on them], and something nice for when we had visitors. because when you have a baby, people ARE going to come see your little one:) Also, you might want to pack a take home pair of pjs. Make sure they are LOOSE. or make sure you pack some maternity pants to go home in.

4. nursing bras--i didn't end up using these, but they might come in handy if your milk comes in early. 

**make sure to pack a few nursing pads to go in the bra, just in case. i packed the samples i had 

    received from my welcome bags from various places

5. a boppy pillow--i didn't use one b/c i had my c-section, but i use it every day now at home. so, if you don't have to worry about that, it might come in handy for feeding:)

6. flip flops for the shower 

7. see if a restaurant delivers. saved my hubs. he didn't want to eat hospital food and Jimmy John's delivered straight to our hospital floor. 

8. pillow--i wish i would have packed my own pillow, but i forgot. 

9. phone charger and camera!

**take whatever the nurse will give you. we brought home extra mesh undies [loved these the first few days at home], pads, and the compression binder i wore in the hospital. 

FOR BABY: 

1. pack a few outfits just in case. originally i'd only packed a couple of outfits but am glad i packed like 4 since i ended up in the hospital for 3 days. plus, if your hospital is like ours, they have a photographer come out and do a little photo shoot. plus, you'll want to post pics on social media so make sure you have your outfits so your little one can look cute when you introduce him/her to the world:) Also, make sure you bring any accessories such a hat, bow, receiving blankets, etc. the hat they put on her didn't really fit her head. so i'm really glad i had brought my infanteenie beenie with me. it was really cute, and i was very pleased with my purchase. i bought the flower beenie below. SO SO cute!!! also, i was glad i brought my own receiving blankets because they used one as a backdrop for the photo. Use promo code THANKS for 20% off. 

2. my hospital provided everything else such as diapers, wipes, pacis, etc. Literally, we only needed to bring the outfits. Not to mention, my hospital provided burp cloths and these little plain white kimono tops. 

3. another thing you might now think of but probably need to pack is mittens. baby caroline grace came out with some sharp little raptor claws. so having the mittens kept her from scratching herself AND me. 

4. socks. if you aren't bringing footies/sleepers for babe to wear, make sure you bring socks so his/her little feet don't get cold. 

This is just my experience:) 

Caroline: One Month

Caroline Grace is a month old now. I can't even believe she's already a MONTH. We can't imagine life without her:)

She loves snuggles, her lamb wubbanub, sleeping, and being close to her mommy!


** We aren't through with the nursery yet. Loooooong story. But when we are, I'll post pics:) **

Caroline's Birth Story

Well, I decided it's time to update the blog! Here's Caroline Grace's birth story before I forget it all.


Her due date, May 12th, came, and she just wasn't ready for the outside world yet. That night we went to Hobby Lobby to pick out props for the newborn photo shoot that my husband was hell bent on doing himself. [different post for a different day. my advice is just have them professionally done. end of rant.] Afterwards, we went to one of our favorite places to eat, J. Alexander's, as a party of 2.  That night, technically May 13th, I woke up to cramps. I'm a deep sleeper, like in a coma sleeper, and it woke me up out of a dead sleep. I was able to fall back asleep but 30 minutes later, cramps. Then, they started coming faster. This went on til about 7am. I decided to go ahead and get up and have a shower to be ready to call doctor as soon as they opened. Well, needless to say, the contractions stopped when I got out of the shower. I already had an appt for the afternoon and a scheduled induction to begin at 8pm that night. However, my doctor told me to go ahead and come in as soon as we could. They hooked me up to the machine, but I'd only had one contraction while there. My doctor looked at us and said why don't we just go have this baby now. We headed across the parking lot to labor and delivery. I was so excited to finally be meeting my baby girl!

We got all checked in, and they gave me pitocin to start the process. However, until I'd had my epidural, they wouldn't send for my ob to break my water. I was like let's get this party started! I was nervous, but the epidural was painless. I guess she still wasn't ready to come into the world yet. We started the induction around 11am-ish and it took until like 1am for me to reach 5 cm. Then, she stalled. About 2:30, the doctor came in and recommended a c-section. I just started crying. I really didn't want a c-section. I didn't want to have the lengthy recovery of a c-section. Caroline Grace was born at 3:01, so it was a rather fast process. As they pulled her out, I remember the first thing the doctor said was "that's a BIG baby." I kept hearing that throughout the room. I felt like she was an amazon or something. I wasn't able to see her yet as I was being stitched up.

The only bad thing about a c-section is I lost bonding time with my little one. I was so looped out on meds that I was afraid to hold her, my uterus "massage" took longer than anticipated, and they had to go ahead and take her up to the nursery while I was getting said "massage." Pssssh, don't let the word massage fool you. That massage is like buying oceanfront property in Arizona. I told hubs to go with her and leave me. He taped her getting her first bath and her measurements. I'm so glad I have that video. I've watched it more than once:)

And now almost 5 weeks later, I'm so in awe that she's mine. My Caroline Grace:)

A Letter to my Unborn Child

**I started this post on 6/6/13**

To my Unborn Child, I see mothers posting a post each month describing their babies and writing them tidbits. What a way this day in age allows us to keep our memories. I am not sure when I will meet you, albeit in my womb or from the arms of the mother who so selflessly gave you up for adoption to me. I guess I'm writing you this letter because I want you to know how much we have wanted you. Unfortunately, my body has not made this process easy due to having PCOS. The doctors have put me on medication that made me nauseated all day for a month til my body became accustomed to it. Not to mention, it gives me another side effect that I'm not even going to mention. I am doing all of this just by chance it will help me have you. And doing this by chance in the hopes it gives me answers. If I'm not meant to have children, it will allow me to know adoption is our path. You see I just want you to know how much I can't wait to hold you in my arms.

**Finished on 5/12/15**
It's been almost 2  years since I started this post and a lot of things have changed. The medicine did nothing, yet I stayed on since it regulated something my body doesn't normally do on its own. So, in that respect, it did something. It just didn't do what I wanted it do-- give me a baby. So, we had to go through the IVF process to have you. I was nervous and scared and emailed someone I know that had gone through it before me. I remember in her email she said during her in vitro process she just kept thinking it has to work. It has to work. And I made that my mantra. It has to work. I'll never forget going in on the day of our transfer. I was more than nervous in that moment than any other in my life. And being 34 at the time, I'd had lots of moments. I had St. Gerard's prayer brought up on my phone, and I said the prayer for motherhood several times. During the transfer, I just clutched my patron saint, Saint Gemma Galgani, pendant and prayed. And, I just prayed.  The next step was just to wait... I'm not the most patient person when it comes to wanting to know something. Waiting makes me wonder if purgatory is real, how do those poor souls do it. How do they just wait? HOW.DO.THEY.DO.IT. But, they just do. And, that's what I did.

I tested early even though I wasn't supposed to. I'll never forget the first two tests were negative. I knew it was still early, so I didn't let it get me down *too much*. Then, I'll never forget that first time I saw the faintest second line. The next day it was darker, and then, I knew. I knew. I knew you were here. And I cried. I cried because I was so happy, I cried for all the women like me who felt defeat month after month, and I cried because now it was a whole different type of being scared. I cried because I didn't want to lose you. And, now here I type the rest of this letter on May 12, 2015, your due date. Obviously, you take after me on punctuality as you are just happy as a lark in my womb with no evidence of showing up today on time. But that's okay, I'm always late, and if you are too, we'll just both be late--together:)

I can't wait to meet you, Caroline Grace! You are already more loved by me than I have loved anything or anyone in this world.

23 Weeks

my bump finally popped out. what a difference 3 weeks can make. 


how far along: 23 weeks [in this pic 23+3 days]

size of baby: grapefruit

gender: female

belly button in/out: in-ish. ha

weight gain: around 10-11 lbs

maternity clothes: yes

stretch marks: no, and i hope it stays that way

rings: on :)

nursery: waiting on swatches for bedding

movement: kicking, moving around 

symptoms: none, feeling good

sleep: having to go to the bathroom more

best moment last week: feeling her move around in there

cravings: salad, sour candy

aversions: pb&j, bananas, grilled cheese

what I miss: coloring my hair, goat cheese, chili cheese coneys, subs, crab cakes, etc. i'm sure you can tell i'm hungry right now. lol. also, i miss little things like sleeping on my stomach, bending over with ease, getting in/out of the car easily, etc. 

looking forward to: getting things picked out for her nursery. looking forward to time flying by so we can meet her:)

22 Weeks Bumpdate:)

**before work. my husband HATES taking my blog pics so i was lucky to get him to do this. lol! i didn't dare ask for a retake for this bad pic**

how far along: 22 weeks

size of baby: size of a papaya

gender: female

belly button in/out: in

weight gain: 8 lbs.

maternity clothes: yes, had to go shopping this past weekend

stretch marks: no

rings: on :)

nursery: haven't started yet, but bedding has arrived. 

movement: feeling kicks but mostly only in the morning and at night and a few times throughout the day. 

symptoms: still a little tired, get irritated easily [chalking up to hormones!]

sleep: still getting up a couple of times to go to the bathroom; woke up several times last night due to being uncomfortable. oy vey. 

best moment last week: actually having enough energy to stay up til midnight on NYE!

cravings: chips, sour candy

aversions: still pb&j --- not sure i'll ever be able to eat it again in my life. ha!

what I miss: having highlighted hair, when brushing teeth didn't make me sick, eating goat cheese!

looking forward to: the rest of the months flying by so we can meet our baby girl!

This is what I actually looked like when I went to work. Right now, I'm just putting weight on in my stomach, and I hope it stays that way.

OOTD: Teacher Style
top: cardigan-NY&Co.; top-INC
pants:Motherhood Maternity
shoes: gap city flats [not pictured]
jewelry: pearl earrings-from market; necklace-Verona Accessories

21 Weeks:)

how far along: 21 weeks 

size of baby: the size of a pomegranate

gender: female

belly button in/out: in

weight gain: 7 lbs

maternity clothes: TBD... I'm out on my Christmas Break and while my jeans are getting a little too snug, I haven't tried on any work clothes in the past week. But I have been wearing leggings and yoga pants which are super comfortable. If only I could wear them to work. Ha!           

stretch marks: no

rings: on 

nursery: still pinning ideas

movement: still feeling kicks. will be glad when she has less room so they aren't so sporadic. 

symptoms: feeling good! been able to stay up later and watch tv:)

sleep: so far so good. just have to get up a couple of times to go to the bathroom

best moment last week: baby kicks

cravings: chick-fil-a chicken sandwiches with cheese, nachos 

aversions: pb&j, bananas

what I miss: being able to highlight my hair. it's a hot mess! i know most say it's okay in the 2nd trimester, but i'm just gonna wait. why stop the trifecta i got going on? ha!; being able to get a sinus cocktail shot

looking forward to: finally deciding on her name, picking out her bedding, my next ultrasound

20 Week Update

This is my first "belly" pic. I didn't take them before this point. If you've read my blog for awhile or if you're new, it's been a long road to get this baby. I felt scared to say I was pregnant out loud, to post it on social media, etc. I thought if I did that, it made it real that it could all just go away. But the doctor assured me the risk of losing this baby is low since we are this far along, and he reassured me that it's okay to announce it. So, from now on, you'll get the cliche posts that every soon-to-be-mom blogs about! I am eternally grateful to the good Lord above that I am able to even type this post:)

size of baby:  baby's the size of the banana

gender: girl

belly button in/out: in

weight gain: around 7 lbs.

maternity clothes: not yet, but i did get some on black friday for when i'll need them

stretch marks: no

rings: on :)

nursery: looking for inspiration pics such as pinterest, blogs, etc. 

movement: kicks

symptoms: first trimester is over so feeling pretty good. no more morning sickness, more energy, etc. 

sleep: i wake up a couple of times a night to go to the bathroom, i'm a stomach sleeper so sleeping on my side has been an adjustment. 

best moment last week: feeling my baby kick. i have been waiting for the "flutters" to come as most people and sites describe them, but i haven't gotten them. instead, mine are little pokes from the inside. feels like a finger is just poking my stomach from the inside. 

cravings: pickles, clementines [halos], chick-fil-a chicken sanwiches, bacon

aversions: sugary cereal, pb&j sandwiches 

what I miss: soft cheeses like goat cheese and gorgonzola, having my steaks cooked medium, etc.

looking forward to: picking out furniture for the nursery and getting that done, deciding on a name, getting to meet her:)

OOTD: 20 Weeks

top: Vineyard Vines 

scarf: Lilly Pulitzer Riley infinity loop in amuse bouche

jeans: SFAM original bootcut

shoes: Sperry Topsiders

jewelry: Kate Spade multi glitter earrings

It's a Girl!!!! :)

Guess it's time to explain why I've been gone from my little space on the interwebz for awhile...

I haven't been able to blog much due to being moved to a new subject this year, helping chair our yearbook club, working an afterschool program, not to mention going through my first trimester where all I wanted to do was catch some ZzzzZzzzzzzzzzzzs. 
I plan to be back with the cliche weekly bump-dates! It's been a long road but SO worth it!