Merry, merry! {Christmas 2013}

Oh my goodness! Christmas just blew past me this year! The week after Christmas is always kind of a bummer. The decorations just lose their twinkle, the music isn't as magical, and all the Christmas treats just don't taste as good. Wait. No, I take that last part back. ;)

We had a great Christmas this year...

Our last one as a family of two!

We all went to the Christmas Eve service at church and then headed back to my parents' house for dinner, presents, and a visit from Santa!

He made a drive through their neighborhood on a fire truck. We knew when he was scheduled to come and we told Vanna to listen closely because she was going to like what was about to happen. Her first thought? The ice cream truck! :)

Here he comes!

 Look at that sweet, excited smile!!

After we saw Santa, it was time to open presents!

Even the baby got some presents!! These little footie sleepers just own me. I can't even stand the cuteness.

Christmas morning for Daniel and I was probably the most laid-back that it will be for many years! We slept late, had a leisurely breakfast with coffee and hot chocolate, and then opened presents.

Daniel made bows for every single one of my presents. I love that.

He was especially proud of his "tri-color" bow and will be oh so happy that I featured it on the blog. ;)

This was Daniel's big gift this year. He was very surprised to open it and find...

One boot! I wrapped them separately because I knew he would know exactly what his gift was if I wrapped the box they came in! I figured a little trickery was in order. Remember what he did to me on my birthday with the PowerAdes in my present?

Stockings have always been one of my favorite parts of Christmas presents and Daniel did a great job on mine this year. Just a few of things in it were Oreos {of course}, Fudge Rounds {my mom is shaking her head}, nail polish, and the big stocking stuffer...a gift certificate for a prenatal massage. I can't wait to use that in a few weeks!! Oh, and both of our stockings had something in common.

Reese's trees!! Why are they *so* much better than regular Reese's cups?!

I'm always sad when Christmas is over, but we're anxiously and excitedly looking ahead to 2014. We know the best is yet to come!!

  

28 Weeks

Click here to see my other weekly pregnancy update posts.

Click here to see my step-by-step chalk art tutorial.

How Far Along: 28 weeks and 2 days, I cannot even believe I'm in the third trimester!

Size of Baby: According to The Bump, the baby is the size of an eggplant, is about 14.8 inches long, and weighs about 2.25 pounds.

Total Weight Gain: Last time I went to the doctor, I had gained about 20 pounds. I'm going again today and I'm going to make sure {nicely, of course} that the nurse who weighs me knows that I *will not* be looking at the scale and there is no need for her to announce my current weight! It's the day after Christmas...nobody wants to know how much they weigh!!

Gender: It's a girl!!

Maternity Clothes: Pretty much everything!

Wedding Rings On/Off: On

Stretch Marks: None yet. I'm still using cocoa butter lotion almost every day.

Sleep: I am sleeping great!! It has been so nice to sleep in a little bit this week since I'm on Christmas break. I'm taking lots of naps, too...during which my husband gets on cleaning frenzies, so I think I'll keep it up with the naps. ;)

Cravings/Aversions: Nothing really noteworthy. Just food in general here lately.

Symptoms: Funny story. So, I'm out on Christmas break and I have literally had maybe 5 Braxton Hicks contractions in the last 5 days. Yes, days. I was having at least that many every single day last week. I think it's pretty clear what's causing them. :-/ I've really had no symptoms this week, not even much ligament pain. It's been wonderful.

Movement: Still tons of movement every day. She doesn't really move much unless I'm being still, though. Feeling her move has been one of my favorite things about being pregnant!

Mood: Happy!!!

What I Miss: I'm really not missing anything at all!

Looking Forward To: We're going to the doctor today and getting a 4D ultrasound! I can't wait to see her sweet little face!!

Best Moment This Week: Getting to spend more time with Daniel and my family for Christmas! We've also made some progress on the nursery. We have a glider and we've picked a paint color! Can't wait to see it all come together!

  

Jammy Cocoa Christmas {2013}

We went out last night for our annual Jammy Cocoa Christmas tradition. Basically, we got in our jammies, got Starbucks and a cookie, turned on some Christmas music, and drove around looking at Christmas lights.

We had to get a baby bump picture next to our Christmas tree before we headed out. I'm barely getting away with these non-maternity jammies. ;)

Gingerbread latte and oatmeal raisin cookie for him...

Peppermint mocha and chocolate chip cookie for me... Oh, and the cookies from Panera are proof that we followed the Jammy Cocoa Christmas rules and actually went inside Panera with our jammies on...slippers and all! {We did go through the Starbucks drive-through, though. It was cold!}

One of our favorite houses of the night. They had this pretty nativity scene with the word "JOY" in lights beside it. Loved it. We also loved the houses that had their roofs outlined in lights.

Merry Christmas Eve!

  

Pre-Christmas Memories 2013

How can it be December 23rd?!? This business of there being less than four weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas is just NO GOOD. I feel like everything was so rushed this year. Anyway, we've still managed to squeeze in quite a bit of Christmas fun in these few short weeks.

Last weekend, some of the girls {and most of the boys stayed this year, too!} in my family got together for our annual cookie baking day. This is when we all go to my mom's house to bake and decorate {and eat} *tons* of Christmas cookies.

I'm pretty sure that in this picture I was laughing at Daniel's interpretation of a gingerbread man. Think red polka-dotted pants and purple puffy boots. Yes. :)

Christmas cards are another thing I love about the holidays. I decorated our mantle this year, so I had to come up with another place to display them. I printed out my "Joy" burlap banner, hung it on our pantry door, and added the Christmas cards as we got them. I love how it brings a little Christmas cheer into the kitchen. :)

Here's our Christmas card this year. I am already excited about adding cute baby pictures to our card for next year!

We also celebrated the five year anniversary of our first date last weekend. We went to this little Italian restaurant in Homewood called Gianmarco's. We went to a place called Leonardo's on our first date and went back for our first three anniversaries, but they closed a couple of years ago so we had to find a new anniversary spot. Gianmarco's is definitely our new place! It's small and family-owned, and the food is amazing {the SAUCE!!}.

One of our Christmas traditions is to buy a special ornament. I love remembering all the special moments when we decorate our tree every year. This year, we ordered this sweet "expecting a miracle" ornament from this Etsy shop. I just love it. I know it will make me smile {and knowing me, probably cry} every year!

Tonight, we're planning to cross another tradition off the list when we do our annual "Jammy Cocoa Christmas"! We've done this for a few years, but decided to call it "Jammy Cocoa Christmas" after reading this fun post over at Mix and Match Family. I mean, how cute is that name? I can't even imagine how much more fun this tradition will get in the next few years when we have a sweet baby with us!!

{via}

Wishing everyone a wonderful Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with your families!!

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

Isaiah 9:6

  

27 Weeks

Click here to see my other weekly pregnancy update posts.

Click here to see my step-by-step chalk art tutorial.

How Far Along: 27 weeks and 1 day

Size of Baby: According to The Bump, the baby is the size of a rutabaga, is between 13.6-14.8 inches long, and weighs anywhere between 1.5-2.5 pounds.

Total Weight Gain: I glanced at the scale at the doctor's office last week and it looks like I'm up about 20 pounds. Not great, but not quite as bad as I thought it might be with Thanksgiving and all the Christmas treats I've been eating lately.

Gender: It's a girl!!

Maternity Clothes: Oh yes. My mom got me a couple of new shirts last week and I'm loving this green one from the Gap. I think it will be perfect for Christmas!

Wedding Rings On/Off: On

Stretch Marks: None yet. I'm still using cocoa butter lotion almost every day.

Sleep: Sleeping great for the most part, although I'm having a little ligament pain which is making it a little harder to get comfortable. I'm taking lots of naps on the weekends, too.

Cravings/Aversions: Carbs, carbs, and more carbs...anything sweet and I'm pretty sure I could eat an entire baguette from Panera.

Symptoms: I'm still having Braxton Hicks contractions pretty much every day, although not as many. I did have one day last week that I had several and it worried me, but I'm really trying to stay off my feet as much as possible at work and I'm drinking *tons* of water. I probably only had 6-8 contractions all day today. The ligament pain is getting worse and I notice it the most when I stand up or sit down but sometimes it hurts just when I'm walking. I also feel like my energy is starting to take a nosedive here lately, too. I'm sure that's because I'm heading into the third trimester.

Movement: LOTS of kicks, punches, and rolls. They told us in childbirth class that if you shine a flashlight on your belly, the baby is likely to move toward it. Of course Daniel had to try it and it actually worked. His flashlight also has a strobe setting and he accidentally turned it on for a few seconds and it felt like she was knocking on my belly!

Mood: Happy!!!

What I Miss: The ability to move around quickly and easily! I'm much slower these days...and I know it's going to get worse! :)

Looking Forward To: Celebrating our 5 year dating anniversary this weekend! I can't believe it's been five years since I got that first voice mail from him. Anyway, we're going out to dinner on Friday night and then to a movie on Saturday night.

First year dating anniversary ~ December 2009

Best Moment This Week: Passing my glucose test!! I have to admit, I was half expecting to fail it considering the amount of sugar I've been eating. I did not watch it *at all* before the test because I wanted it to be as realistic as possible. I guess I'm a champ at processing all that sugar.