28 weeks

My sister in law got my that shirt in the picture above, and I just love it! :) I know you can't read it because I am terrible at taking pictures, but it says "expecting adventure" :) So cute!

How far along? 28 weeks!!

Size of the baby? According to babycenter, "By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes. With her eyesight developing, she may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. She's also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world."

Food Cravings? I have been eating a lot of salads this week! Can't get enough!

What I miss: I have really noticed this past week that the small day to day tasks are getting a lot harder! Putting on my shoes, getting up from the couch, shaving my legs, you know..the things that you normally do without even thinking about.

 Stretch marks? I have a few on my boobs (TMI) but nothing major, yet.

Maternity Clothes? Shout out to my amazing mother in law for ordering me at least 7 new shirts from a few of her suppliers! They are so comfortable and are going to last a long time! She also snuck in a few things for baby girl, so exciting!!

Gender? GIRL!

Weight Gain? Had a doctors appt this past Friday, and I am up 4 more pounds, which is 2 per week. I have said it before and I am probably going to say it again but, I am not worrying about the number until after the baby is born. As long as I am staying healthy and the baby is growing like she should, I am not going to worry too much. (It takes convincing from my husband though, to stay in this mind set after every doctor appt! ha!)

Sleep? I have been sleeping alright. Besides getting up a few times to go to the bathroom now, I am doing alright. My hips have also been really bothering me. By 8am I have to get up because they are just throbbing.  

Best moment of the week? This past Monday was my sisters annual birthday shopping trip with my aunts and mom (every year since we turned 10) and since she moved to STL, I get to tag along on her trip also! I finally gave in and bought my first piece of clothing for baby girl! I am so proud of myself for waiting this long! Of course we had to get matching outfits for the little cousins!! :) 

Symptoms? My feet and hands are really swollen by the end of the night, especially if I have been super busy that day! 

Movement? It is getting stronger and more frequent and I am loving every minute. I can also feel little body parts when she stretches because sometimes its a huge lump and then sometimes its just a little knob like feeling, which I am assuming is her feet. :) Makes me smile. 

xoxo,

Erin

27 Weeks

sorry for the bad quality! Pete took a different one, but for some reason it won't load correctly! Red pants AGAIN! AH!

How far along? 27 weeks!!

Size of the baby? According to babycenter, "this week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with her legs extended. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. While her lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if she were to be born now."

Food Cravings? I really have been craving sweet things and that is so unlike me! I am obsessed with candy, but mainly sour candies, not sweet, chocolate candy and for some reason that is what I have wanted lately. 

What I miss: My mom and I went to Kohl's yesterday, and I walked through all the new fall clothes that are out and I can say that I miss being able to dress cute and have lots of options. I am not someone who finds 5 things they like and get it in every color and wear it all the time. I like to mix it up and not wear the same thing too often. Pregnancy has changed this about me, for the time being. I just do not have a whole lot of options and don't want to go spend the money on new things that I know I can only wear them a few more months!

 Stretch marks? I have a few on my boobs (TMI) but nothing major, yet.

Maternity Clothes? Like I said above, I have enough to get me by, but not as many options as I would like!

Gender? GIRL!

Weight Gain? Well...I only gained 1 pound in the past 2 weeks, so I was happy about that! I am currently up..drum roll please...28 pounds! I did have my glucose and iron tests and all the results came back totally normal, so I am just focusing on that good news and not on the number!

Sleep? I think I jinxed myself last week. Last night I felt like I was awake all night. My brain never went to sleep. Plus, my side is starting to hurt from always having to lay on it! haha.

Best moment of the week? Getting a good result on my tests at the doctor and just feeling baby girl move around. She took a few days off from the hard kicking and it really had me worried. I am happy in the past few days she is back to her busy self! Praise the Lord!

Symptoms? My feet always feel "tired" now and I am still pretty tired feeling all the time! 

Movement? I think she has moved to a totally different position then she has been in the whole time because I didn't feel her kick hardly at all Saturday night and Sunday and then I started feeling little ones again on Monday, but they felt more internal. I know that sounds weird, but before her feet were very obvious and I could feel/see when she pushed her butt against my stomach and I can't feel any of that anymore. I will be ready to go to the doctor again next week so that she didn't flip somewhere she's not suppose to be! :S

xoxo,

Erin

It's OK Thursday

  It's already Thursday were did this week go! I haven't posted all week, but have no idea why! So busy with everyday life!   IT'S OK.....   That I haven't posted all week. :)   That I have only worked out one day this week, when my goal was 5. Maybe next week I start with 3! ha   That I still haven't finished a craft project that I started at least 2 months ago   That I didn't vacuum my house this week   To want something sweet everyday   That I realllllly enjoy root beer   That I still haven't hung any decorations on my walls, except one   That I still don't have a working kitchen so I cooked dinner out of the crock pot 3x this week   That I want it to be the weekend because I get to see my favorite little people!!  

xoxo,
Erin
 

It's OK Thursday

 

Hey y'all, it's Thursday, that means a link up with Neely, over at A Complete Waste of Makeup!

 So let's get started ITS OK.....

That I spent $5 on coffee this morning, when I have a perfectly good, new keurig at home

That I practically spent the whole day yesterday reading and learning how to change my blog look, and I still didn't get it how I wanted

That I do not want a dog for at least 5 years, not because I don't love them, but because I don't want to have that responsibility

That I almost bought my first piece of clothing for baby girl two separate times this week and couldn't let myself do it

That I didn't set an alarm this morning, even though I have a LOT to get done today

That I am a terrible speller

That I am eyeing new boots that are $450 knowing that I will never spend that type of money on material things like clothes, shoes, etc.

That we are not deciding on a name until our baby is born

That I am going to try to stay really focused for the next 3 hours so I can lay-out this afternoon..we will see how that goes



xoxo,
Erin

Lindsey's Big Day!

The next weekend after I got home from NYC, one of my childhood friends got married! Lindsey's and I were so close when we were little and she is someone who no matter how long we go between talking, we can always pick right up like it was yesterday! I cherish the memories we have as the "Pingtis" family! The Pingels (and a couple other families) and our family did A LOT growing up. They were the family that we took vacations with, watched the super bowl with, celebrated NYE's, "Family" Christmas dinner and pretty much any other "non-holiday" event, we were with them! I pray Pete and I find other couples that want to raise their children in such a Christ-centered environment; so my kids can have relationships like I did with these families. They are truly "family". On to the wedding!!!!

It all started on Thursday at a pre-wedding workout! I think it'll be easier to just post the pictures and tell what's going on as we go. I just have so many!

Before our workout!

Getting our steps set up!

Lindsey and her awesome vail!

Mrs. Rene (Lindsey's mom) planned out a workout for all us girls, a few moms, grandmas, aunts, etc! She also wanted us to learn the cupid shuffle, the electric slide, and a few other line dances for the reception! It was nothing short of a good time!

After the workout, we all went home to get ready and all meet back at Whitney's house (Lindsey's sister) for her Bachelorette/ Lingerie party!

Dinner at Saffron! YUM!

The group!

Playing one of the games! Whitney went above and beyond planning this party! We played a few games, but I think this is the only one that is "blog appropriate" ;)

Opening all her gifts! We had to write a piece of marriage advice and sex advice on a card and Whitney read them out loud to see who's gift Lindsey opened next, Lindsey had to try to guess who wrote each one! So fun!!

Friday morning we started early with mani's and pedi's! Mrs. Rene was so sweet and treated all of us!

After nails, we all headed downtown to a local bed and breakfast for a bridesmaid luncheon put on by Lindsey's aunt, cousin, and grandma! It was so delicious!!

After lunch we went to check out the reception hall before heading to church for the rehearsal!

Rehearsal! Mrs. Jewel (the church wedding chair person) and the videoographer (that was EVERYWHERE! That will be one good video :))

I didn't get any pictures of the rehearsal dinner, but it was so nice! Curt's parents rented the river view room above Buckner's and it was so pretty!

Saturday!!! The BIG day!!!

Doing our make-up

All of us girls in our robes! This was Lindsey' s gift to all us bridesmaids. It was such a thoughtful gift, and I have worn mine multiple times since the wedding! Love it!

Getting in the dress!

Lindsey and I waiting to go downstairs!!!

Seeing her dad for the first time!

I didn't get any pictures of the actual ceremony, obviously. But here are a few at different locations after! So Fun!

The newly married couple

First dance

Doing our dances!

Sparklers as they exit. It was so pretty :)

That wraps up another wedding weekend! One more to go!!

xoxo,

Erin

26 Weeks!

It seems like the weeks are flying by! We finally have the nursury looking like a baby room and I could not be more excited about it! It is turning out exactly as planned! :) My sister's bff, Kelley, offered to make me the big thing with her name on it, and since Pete and I have decided (as of yesterday) to wait until she is born to choose a name, that will not be here before she is born. Owell, I just need to decide what I want to do on the other walls and focus on that! The room is pretty small, so I do not want it to be too crowded, but I have a few ideas :) I will do a whole post on a nusury update soon!

This was at 25 weeks and 5 days! :)

How far along? 26 weeks!!

Size of the baby?

Food Cravings? Anything and everything! Ha, I honestly have been trying to eat better the past few weeks so everything "bad" that I don't want to eat sounds delcious. Go figure.

What I miss: I am honestly not missing too much these days. I am really enjoying being pregnant and all that goes with it! I have felt so blessed lately that God gave me the opportunity to have children. It is such an amazing thing and I don't want to complain or miss too much, because some people never get this feeling and that makes me really, really sad.

 Stretch marks? I have a few on my boobs (TMI) but nothing major, yet.

Maternity Clothes? My sister gave me a bunch more dresses (shirts for me ;)) that I have been wearing with the 3 pairs of shorts that I have. I have also been wearing the same 3 maxi dresses like crazy (SO unlike me). Old Navy was also running a sale and I got those red jeans in the picture above, which I love! I love that they are coming out with stylish maternity clothes, it honestly is a great confidence booster. I also bought a pair of maternity leggings (in order to get free shipping) and I am sure I will get plenty of use out of those in the coming months.

Gender? GIRL! Like I mentioned above, Pete and I were talking about different things yesterday and I made him have the name conversation. He finally expressed that he wants to wait until she is born to pick between Eleanor or Zetta. He said either one will be perfect, so why rush it. ;) Such a man, but I do not mind to wait either, it is such a hard decision for me and honestly probably won't even know when she comes out. Even though everyone says we will just know when we see her. That comment is so weird to me and I guess it's one of those things you can't picture saying/doing until you are actually experiencing it. Reguardless, it's still weird.

Weight Gain? Yikes. We are gonna leave this one blank until I go to the doctor Friday. :)

Sleep? I have been sleeping great!! I am becoming pretty tired throughout the day again though, so that is not too much fun. I have been going to bed pretty early, but I have also been waking up around 7:30-8 every morning without an alarm. Well, a noise alarm, I do have a different kind of alarm in my belly, that's for sure!!! :)

Best moment of the week? I didn't post last week, so my best moment's of the past few weeks would be that my mom and MIL got to feel her kick and Pete and pretty much feel it anytime he puts his hand on my belly! When we were at our check up, she was listening to the heartbeat and baby girl was moving so much she could barely get a read on the heartrate! She is very active! I also love that my MIL brought over the dresser she finished and it looks SO AMAZING and my parents brought over the crib so the room is no longer empty. Also, Pete and I were at Lowe's walking through all the lights and I pointed to the chandilier that I wanted and he said that he wants something that sits closer to the ceiling and didn't think we needed a chandalier. I said whatever and dropped it. Well, I came home the other night and there was a big box is the room...it was the chandalier :) I was super excited! He is going to have no shot when she is born. She is going to get anything she wants because she will figure out real quick that daddy cannot say no to his sweet girl! :) At least he admits it. hehe.

Symptoms? Not too much. Tired and hungry, but I feel like that is normal when I am not pregnant. haha.

Movement? I think I already answered this in all my super wordy responses above!

xoxo,

Erin



Ashley's Wedding!!

The second weekend in July one of my best friends, Ashley, got married! She currently lives in New York and her husband is located on a military base about 6 hours north of her. They planned the wedding in Ocean City, Maryland, about 4 hours away from the city. I met one of my other best friends, Emily (who lives in Columbia) in St.Louis Wednesday night and we stayed with my sister and flew out Thursday morning. We landed and just went to Ashley and Lauren (another one of our best friends) apartment and hung out until they got off work. Ashley had a few last minute errands to run before we got on the road early Friday morning.Because Ashley and I have are bad influences for each other, we decided to get eyelash extensions on Thursday night when we were running errands. I have been wanting to try them out, but didn't want to spend the money. Plus, not to brag, but I have pretty thick and long eyelashes to begin with, so I am not sure what look I was expecting. Let me tell you, I hated them!!! I think the mistake was that I didn't really want them for the extension part. I was more interested in the thickness, not length and the lady misunderstood. Therefore, they were super long, and when I looked in the mirror I just wanted to rip them all out! Besides that, they were heavy, itchy, and you could see them all the time! Here is a few pictures of what they looked like. To give you an idea how long they were, when I got home, my brother asked if they hit the windshield when I was driving! Seriously, if my brother noticed, they had to have been bad! Needless to say, I went and got them removed the next day and 10 more dollars later.

Seriously, terrible picture, but I wanted to show my sister how long they really were!

We spent the rest of the time in Ocean City, enjoying the beach and catching up!!

Dinner on Friday night!

Bachelorette Party-with our non-alcoholic beer ;)

The best friends a girl could ask for! xoxo

One of Ashley's friends had this drive by the beach Saturday afternoon, it was so fun!!!!

          The flowers, before I wrapped them :)                                  The "cake" 

                            The wedding spot, so beautiful!!!!

                                                    

                                                           The Bride and I before the wedding!!!

The boys

The girls, in our unplanned, matching attire :)

The ceremony

 A few pictures after the wedding! One of Ashley's friends had an awesome camera and she was our personal photographer the whole weekend! She took over 800 pictures and uploaded them all on shutterfly for us to share, so sweet! I couldn't narrow it down anymore than these! Everything was SO beautiful!!

I was going to try to do all 3 weddings in one post, but I think that will be the world's longest blog post! Therefore, I will post Lindsey's wedding festivities tomorrow!

xoxo,

Erin

Sunday Social: Fall Favorite's

1. What is your favorite fall activity?
Gosh, there are so many good ones! Decorating my house, drinking pumpkin spice lattes, bonfires, s'mores, football games, and so much more!

2. Do you follow a football team? If so, which one and why?
 MIZZOU! My husband went to Mizzou and his group of friends are obsessed! It is going to be fun dressing baby girl up in all Mizzou this season!! :)

                                                

3. What is something fun about fall in your area?

The Pioneer Market in our little town always has fun mazes, hayrides, pumpkin picking, petting zoo, etc. Also, the town shuts down on Friday nights to go watch the high school football team. Even though I don't have anyone close to me playing anymore (I'm too old!) it is still fun to see the team have the whole town's support!

4. Fav Fall outfit staples?

Fall is my favorite season to dress for! Seriously-scarves, boots, leggings, cardigans are my everyday attire!
                              
                                 

Can you tell that I like stripes? Ha!  I think my attire will be a little different this fall though! Being due November 13 is going to throw a wrench in my cute fall outfits!

5. Thing you are looking forward to the most about this coming Fall season?
Besides having our precious little girl, my mom's side of the family takes a trip to Sam A. Baker State Park every year. They have been doing this since my mom and her siblings were kids and they have carried on the tradition with my cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, etc. We rent out the cabins and just spend the weekend sitting by the fire, taking a hike, and eating as much puppy chow that we possibly can.
I can easily say, this is the weekend I look forward to the most the entire year. It is so nice to just know we are going to go there and hang out with family and relax with no interruptions! I will be 36 weeks pregnant this year, and I am praying all will still be going good so that I do not have to skip!

                               


                               


                               


6. Favorite Fall Holiday? Traditions?
Thanksgiving, obviously! I love all the food :) I know Sam A. Baker weekend isn't a holiday, but it is my favorite tradition. I also love carving pumpkins with my siblings and having my mom cook all of the seeds!! There are so many things I love about Fall. I am sure my sister could come up with a lot more traditions than me! :)

xoxo,
Erin