20 weeks!

How far along? 20 weeks (I do these a week behind as a recap of the previous week, so I'm actually 21 weeks today.)

Total weight gain/loss: At my 20 week appointment, I was up 3 lbs. total so far in this pregnancy.  I was a little concerned and asked my OB if this was not good or if I should try to gain more and she said I was perfectly healthy and that baby is growing great.  She said women's bodies are different and that some women just gain the majority of their weight later on in the pregnancy.  I eat constantly, so I guess my body is just doing what it needs to do. 

Maternity clothes? I'm wearing maternity pants and all of my other clothes are just my regular clothes.

Stretch marks? Not yet---I'm still using Belli's Elasticity Belly Oil and Mamma Mio Tummy Rub). I also recently purchased Mustela double-action stretch mark cream after reading about it on several blogs. 

Symptoms:  Lately I've been peeing like crazy. I drink a lot of water, but still.  Other than that I feel pretty good. I still get super tired some days after work, but that's to be expected.

Sleep: Still using my Snoogle and have been sleeping pretty well this week.

Best moment this week: Seeing baby at our 20-week anatomy scan. What an amazing experience.  Seeing baby's heart and brain and spine and kidneys was surreal. We actually saw all for chambers of the heart and the blood flowing through it...it was incredible.  I am thrilled to report that baby looks healthy and was moving a ton during the u/s.  Baby weighed 13 oz and was in the 75th percentile for size.  Oh, and the tech confirmed that baby is still a girl. I wanted them to check again to get the green light to buy some girl clothes. Here are a few shots from our a/s:

Baby giving the "thumbs up"

Baby's profile

Have you told family and friends: Yes!

Miss Anything? Not having to pee every 25 minutes.

Movement: I started to feel movement day and night.  It is more prominent at night, but I sometimes feel movement during the day too. In fact, I just felt the baby kick as I was writing this sentence.  I also feel external kicks daily, which is a very cool sensation.

Food cravings: Pizza, fruit. This isn't a craving necessarily---but every morning for the past couple of weeks I've eaten the same breakfast of oatmeal with a little brown sugar and topped with heaps of strawberries, blueberries and blackberries. Absolutely delicious! I didn't eat super well in first tri so I'm trying to make up for it now.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Grilled chicken and plain salads made with iceberg lettuce. I also haven't been able to order food from our favorite Chinese food takeout place. I tried twice after learning I was pregnant and felt sick each time after I ate it :(


Have you started to show yet:  Yes, though it largely depends on what I wear. In a fitted top, you can see my bump and in looser clothes no one would know I was pregnant. I am loving my little bump though.

The other day at 20 weeks, 5 days, I was in the cafeteria at work and a woman behind me in line kind of kept looking at me so I just smiled.  Then, a couple of minutes later she asked "excuse me, are you pregnant?"  Normally I think it is really rude to ask anyone that, even if they are clearly pregnant (because you just never know, so it's best to wait to see if they bring it up), but it felt kind of nice for someone to notice since I'm always getting asked "where's your bump?"  I wore one of my J.Crew no. 2 pencil skirts that day, and you can definitely see my bump in that skirt!

(another view)

This was at 20 weeks, 2 days- I was trying on a bikini because I was going to the spa. 

I didn't end up using the pool when I went, oh well.

Baby is a: Girl!

Belly Button in or out? Still in.

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!

Looking forward to: Hitting the 24-week mark. 

What I'm reading: I finished "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" and "Brining Up Bebe" and now I'm focusing more on pregnancy and newborn books---reading Mayo Clinic's Guide to Pregnancy, The Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy and Happiest Baby on the Block. I'm also reading Baby Bargians.  I haven't gotten to the chapters on birthing yet---so I am asking you ladies---did you take a birthing class or did you rely on learning from books?  We registered for Infant Care and Infant CPR already and I also plan to take a breastfeeding class offered at the hospital where I'll deliver.

Thank you for reading and for all of my pregnant readers, please feel free to check in below as well and let me know how your pregnancy is going :) I also welcome everyone's advice and comments about pregnancy!

Decorating with Words & Giveaway!

I love the look of framed prints to liven up walls and add a modern look to any room.  One of my readers, Stephanie, who is a print shop owner, blogger and photographer based in my hometown of Toronto has an online shop with her own custom-designed prints and she sent me one for our home:

I love the verse on this print and the pretty gold lettering---I think it would work well for our entryway since we currently have no artwork on the walls down there (and really, we are just now starting to hang artwork after more than a year in our new home). I still need to head to IKEA to get more frames---when I do finally hang all of the artwork in this house I'll take photos for another post!

While perusing Stephanie's shop, I also fell in love with these prints and totally plan to order one (or both!) for our nursery (or maybe the baby's bathroom, where I'd also like to do some art):

Stephanie has been kind enough to offer one of her fine art prints for a giveaway on my blog!  I know a lot of you ladies love to decorate your homes (and walls!) as much as I do.  All you need to do is enter below via Rafflecopter.  There are three ways to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Stephanie has also offered all of my readers a 10% off coupon code if you'd like to purchase one of her prints. Just enter the code BLUSH10 at checkout for 10% off your entire order.
GOOD LUCK!

Outfits Lately...

This is just a quick post to share some of my latest outfits!

Zara jacket, Target tights, J.Crew scarf, Kate Spade heels (I wore a 

black Banana Republic dress under the coat)

J.Crew sweater, Banana Republic blouse, GAP maternity pants, Zara heels, F21 necklace

Target blouse, F21 necklace, GAP really skinny maternity pants, Tory Burch Reva flats

GAP shirt, F21 necklace, GAP really skinny maternity pants, Tory Burch Reva flats

J.Crew blouse and cardigan, GAP maternity pants, Kate Spade heels, Stella & Dot necklace, c/o

and of course, your weekly dose of Lulu adorableness!

Happy weekend to you all!  Tomorrow Candice and I are heading to the spa 

together for a little post-holiday relaxation! Hope y'all have a great weekend!

19 Weeks!

How far along? 19 weeks (I do these a week behind as a recap of the previous week, so I'm actually 20 weeks today.)

I took these photos of H and Lulu over the weekend and they are just so loving together. It makes me feel all warm in my heart and teary when I think of how he will be with our daughter.

(this is seriously how they sleep, not a posed photo)

Total weight gain/loss: I should find out at my next appointment tomorrow. Baby now weighs 13 oz, so I'm assuming my weight has gone up as well over these last few weeks.

Maternity clothes? I am still wearing my GAP maternity pants and the rest is all just my normal clothes. I've kind of been slacking lately and wearing pants nearly everyday and mostly black. I don't know if the gloomy weather is drawing me to darker colors or if I just needed a break from all of the brights of spring and summer. I can't wait for the weather to warm up a bit.

Stretch marks? Not yet (still using Belli's Elasticity Belly Oil at night and Mamma Mio Tummy Rub). 

Symptoms:  I experienced some reflux in week 19.  I thought I was getting a sore throat initially, but it never got worse and I often had an acidic feeling in my throat/esophagus. I read that this is pretty common in pregnancy. It's not too horrible, just a bit uncomfortable and sometimes causes me to feel a bit nauseous, but nothing like the nausea in first tri. Other than that I have been feeling pretty good.

Sleep: Still using my Snoogle which is wonderful. I am still having mornings where I'm waking up really early and having a hard time falling back asleep. I have heard that a lot of women have "pregnancy insomnia" and I seem to be able to fall asleep but sleeping through the night is another story. Maybe my body is trying to prepare me for what's to come, haha. I have been trying to sleep in on weekends since we might as well enjoy it while we still can!

Best moment this week: Feeling baby kick every night, even if it's just a few times.  It was also pretty cool to feel like I have a legit bump on Saturday. My husband even commented that my bump was looking bigger than usual!

Have you told family and friends: Everyone knows :)

Miss Anything? green tea, cold cuts, not having to pee every 25 minutes.

Movement: I am feeling movement every night, sometimes from the outside too. It's usually just a few taps here and there but it's amazing every time it happens. 

Food cravings: Honey Nut Cheerios, eggs, pizza, fruit.

Anything making you queasy or sick: still grilled chicken and plain salads made with iceberg lettuce.


Have you started to show yet:  Though my belly still fluctuates in size, it is starting to look more consistently "bumpy."  Someone at work even noticed this week when I was wearing a more fitted top.

Baby is a: Girl!

Belly Button in or out? Still in.

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!

Looking forward to: Our anatomy scan---which went really well (it was today)!  Baby is healthy, we feel very blessed.

Thank you for reading and for all of my pregnant readers, please feel free to check in below as well and let me know how your pregnancy is going :) I also welcome everyone's advice and comments about pregnancy!

Outfits Lately

Once again, my apologies some of these are so dark, but I figured it would be fun to share some outfits I've been wearing lately, even if they're just iPhone snaps.

When I wore this outfit, it was the first time someone 

at work told me they can see my bump, haha.

WHBM blazer, Club Monaco top, GAP maternity modern bootleg pants, 

Kate Spade shoes, F21 Necklace

Zara coat, J.Crew shirt, GAP maternity really skinny pants, 

Tory Burch flats, Stella & Dot necklace c/o

Zara cardigan, J.Crew blouse, Stella & Dot necklace c/o, GAP maternity pants, Zara shoes

Express blazer, F21 top, GAP maternity really skinny pants, Tory Burch flats

19 weeks, 3 days, finally a little bump!

F21 infinity scarf, Lululemon tank and leggings, 

J.Crew factory sweater, Banana Republic jacket, Hunter rain boots (high gloss)

Messy hair after errands in the rain---but I kind of like it :)

Wishing everyone a great weekend!

18 weeks

How far along? 18 weeks (I do these a week behind as a recap of the previous week, so I'm actually 19 weeks today)

(I keep this calendar at my desk at work to count down the weeks!)

Total weight gain/loss: I should find out at my next appointment as I don't own a scale.  I would venture to guess I'm gaining back the few pounds I lost that I had initially gained and maybe more.

Maternity clothes? All of my regular pants still fit, but since I'm at work for a large bulk of my day, I like to wear my GAP maternity pants because the elastic waist means no digging. I am still wearing normal tops. I noticed my GAP really skinny pants are a little baggy in the thigh area which is great because they'll continue to fit me for awhile as I expand.

Stretch marks? Not yet (still using Belli's Elasticity Belly Oil at night and Mamma Mio Tummy Rub). 

Symptoms:  Nothing new from past weeks.  I am feeling pretty good.

Sleep: Still using my Snoogle, but this week sleeping has been a little off. I have been waking up at 3:30 or 4 a.m. nearly every morning and struggling to fall back asleep.

Best moment this week: Finding out the sex of our baby and sharing the news with family and friends! 
It was also really fun to buy the dresser for baby's nursery! I had planned to get this one regardless of whether we had a girl or boy because the finish is a beautiful light gray. I am so glad we ordered it! FYI, Restoration Hardware Baby & Child is 20% off until Jan. 10th.

Have you told family and friends: Yes!
Miss Anything? Sleeping until my alarm goes off.

Movement: The most amazing thing happened this week--- at 18 weeks, 2 days, I was sitting on the couch on my laptop and I felt baby kick.  I told my husband and he placed his hand on my stomach and the movement had stopped. He started talking, saying "Hi little (future baby's name)" and suddenly the baby kicked twice, harder than usual and he felt it from the outside! It was such a surreal moment, I will forever treasure that memory. I've only felt exterior movement one time since then, but continue to feel random movements, mostly at night time on the couch or in bed. I can't wait for the movement to become more consistent!

Food cravings: Egg McMuffins for breakfast (hey, at least there's protein!), garden salads with balsamic (at restaurants only), pizza and fruit.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Grilled chicken is a no-go for me lately.


Have you started to show yet:  My stomach continues to fluctuate in size. I still have days where I don't look pregnant at all and other days I say to myself, wow, this belly really IS growing. I have to remind myself that my long torso is probably the reason I haven't really popped, because sometimes it does make me worry that my belly isn't bigger. I took the comparison shots below and I truly can see growth when I compare my stomach before I got pregnant and now.

(Before I got pregnant)

(a couple of weeks after I found out I was pregnant)

(18 weeks, 4 days)

Baby is a: Girl!

Belly Button in or out? Still in.

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!

Looking forward to: Our anatomy scan when I'm 20 weeks. We continue to pray for a healthy baby.

Thank you for reading and for all of my pregnant readers, please feel free to check in below as well and let me know how your pregnancy is going :) I also welcome everyone's advice and comments about pregnancy!

Master Bedroom Update: New Campaign Style Nightstands

Decorating has always been one of my biggest passions. I truly believe that coming home to a space you find beautiful and relaxing improves your day-to-day life. 

Having said that, our master bedroom has always been very blah to me (and still is). I don't love that it doesn't have a lot of windows and that overall is just feels really boring.  Part of the reason for that is because I never prioritized the space.  Because our kitchen, dining room and living room are all in one, large, open concept space on one floor, I prioritized decorating our second floor because we spend the most time there (though, I still need window treatments for the second floor).

Our master bedroom still has a long way to come, but we've made a small improvement by switching out our bedside tables.  I had H do a popular IKEA hack to make new bedside tables that were larger, brighter and more suited to the scale of the room and our king- sized bed.

He followed this campaign dresser tutorial from the blog Sequins & Stripes.  I didn't post step-by-step instructions on my blog because we followed that blog's directions and bought all of the same products except for the paint color (we used a different shade of white by BEHR and did not use a high gloss paint because it as not available in no VOC formula).

Here is what our night stands looked like before (also from IKEA):

See how they're so small you can hardly see them next to the bed?  They also didn't have a lot of storage and I like to keep books and magazines by the bed.

The new ones look like this:

I am really pleased with how they turned out. The project also means that we now own an electric drill. I told H to watch out---now that he completed this project, I know I'll have many more to add to his list.  

So, whats next for the master bedroom?  

• Artwork on the walls---I am thinking above the bed because that wall is so bare and could be a great focal point
• Mirrors above the nightstands (I just need to find the perfect size!) I'd love to do gold framed ones
• Possibly moving the tall, thinner dresser to another side of the room
• possibly adding a chair in one of the corners

I would just love to make our master bedroom a space I love walking into everyday, like our kitchen, dining room and living room.  

My next decorating focus will be the nursery, but I'd like to work on the master bedroom as well before the baby comes.  

Hope everyone is enjoying the first day of 2013!