1.26.2018

Friday Treat -- Valentine's Cookies!

Two recipes in one week....I know. I know. I'm practically a food blogger. What can I say? These cookies are so easy, so fun, and so yummy. I originally found them on Facebook. I made them at Christmas time but with Christmas themed sprinkles. Brian was super skeptical. He told me the other night that he initially underrated them. Imagine that!? I'm the one with the sweet tooth...I know better. Let's get on with the recipe shall we?

Ingredients
  • 48 Ritz crackers
  • 1/2 cup Marshmallow Fluff
  • 1/2 cup Creamy Peanut Butter
  • 1lb Melting Chocolate (Milk, Dark, or White)
  • Sprinkles

Directions
Lay out 24 Ritz crackers on a baking sheet. Mix together your marshmallow fluff & creamy peanut butter in a bowl. After thoroughly mixed, put a little bit on each of the Ritz crackers....just enough to cover the cracker. Once complete, top each with the remaining crackers. Now the fun part, melt the chocolate according to the package directions. I used dark chocolate on this time, and they turned out really good! Coat each "sandwich" entirely in chocolate and lay back on your baking sheet. Once all have been coated in chocolate, add your sprinkles. This might be fun if you have little ones who want to help. Once the sprinkles have been added, just pop the baking sheet into the fridge for 30 mins-1 hour so the chocolate can really harden. And you're done!



These are really tasty, and we ended up putting ours in the freezer when it was all said and done. Makes for a good crunch in my opinion. You can do these for ANY holiday or even for birthday parties. They would also be fun to give away as homemade gifts for the holidays. It's up to you. I hope you enjoyed this & let me know if you make them!



1.25.2018

Bump Date: 32 Weeks

Sweater: Old Navy (old) Similar | Shirt: Nordstrom | Leggings: Spanx Maternity
Boots: Rack Room/Franco Fortini (old) | Necklace: Laura Cox Designs 

How far along: 32 weeks today 

Due Date: March 22, 2018

Baby is the size of: Squash. He was 84th percentile in weight at the beginning of January...oh boy. Today he was measuring 4.11oz per the sonogram & was in the 74th percentile. He has some long legs per the nurse.

Gender: Boy

Name: Baby boy has a name! Praise the Lord! It's not a secret to friends and family, but I will keep it to myself until he makes his arrival.

Symptoms: Still moving around fairly well....except rolling in and out of the bed 2-3 times a night. Oh, and I can't breathe. Like it takes me 2 big deep breaths to help me satisfy my lungs or feel like I got enough oxygen. It makes for a fun time trying to get to sleep at night.

Movement: All the time!

Cravings/Aversions: Nothing crazy. I REALLY wanted a sub with sprouts and ham/turkey, mayo and WHITE bread the other day. I didn't get it...but that doesn't mean I still don't want it.

Missing anything: Still wine...and poke poke/sushi.

Maternity Clothes: Still rocking the maternity jeans & some maternity leggings. Not much of anything else. 

Nursery: Nada! At least until we get a house early/late spring. 

Brian's Thoughts: Still super excited & ready to meet him. Wonders what he will look like. I am hoping for a head of dark hair, blue eyes and long eyelashes like his Daddy. 

Looking forward to: Baby boy's arrival!! 
 
My Thoughts: I am really in utter shock that we are in single digit countdown and that all the rest of my appointments have been booked. We have our classes this week on infant care and childbirth as well as a tour of L&D. 

1.22.2018

Savory Monday: Crack Potatoes

Good Monday morning friends! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. Ours was mostly gray and overcast. We did a whole lot of nothing which I was totally fine with. We have been spending our days just soaking up the last 2 months of just us before baby boy arrives.

Let's get right down to it, shall we? I found this recipe from vlogger, Mallory Ervin/Dimeola. If you aren't following her on Insta, do yourself a favor, and GO. FOLLOW. HER. She is hilarious as his her husband. They keep me in stitches, and I wish she was my BFF in real life. HA! So this is a side that I have cooked probably 4 times in the last, let's say week and a half to two weeks. We call them crack potatoes because that's what they are. They are easy, and there probably won't be leftovers. #Truth


Ingredients
  • One bag of small golden round potatoes
  • One whole bulb of garlic
  • 2-3 TBS butter
  • EVOO
  • Salt
  • Pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 375. While your oven is preheating, boil potatoes WHOLE for about 10 minutes until they are tender (you can stick a fork in them easily). Once done boiling, drain and cut them in half and place on lined cooking sheet. You can use a baking liner like this one or just some parchment paper will do as well. Take your whole bulb of garlic & cut off just the top so the cloves inside are exposed. I usually will also peel off some of the extra skin too. Place that on the baking pan as well. I then drizzle about 2 TBS of EVOO over the pan, sprinkle in some sea salt & pepper and make sure all the potatoes are evenly coated. It doesn't hurt to get a little EVOO on your garlic bulb either. Then put those bad boys into the oven for approximately 35 minutes. Once they are done baking, put your bulb of garlic in the fridge so it can cool. I usually let it sit in there for about 5 minutes or so. Put your 2-3 TBS of butter in a small bowl and melt in the microwave. Once melted, pull that garlic bulb out of the fridge and squeeze the garlic cloves into the melted butter. You will take a fork and mix that butter/garlic combo together and mash the cloves even more. Pour over your potatoes, coat evenly and VOILA! You can thank me later. It may sound like a lot, but I PROMISE it's not

Let me know what y'all think about this when you try it. It was an INSTANT favorite in our house and I am sure it will be in yours too. Enjoy!

1.15.2018

Monday: This & That

How was everyone's weekend? We were super lazy this weekend since coming off the holidays & a visit from friends last week. Doing not a whole lot was just what we needed...especially when we are almost to single digit countdown until baby. I'm asking myself how did we get here so quickly?!

Friday was pizza date night at one of our favorite places. We picked up our stroller after dinner along with a couple other things. I may or may not have practiced strolling it through the apartment. Just a tad excited! #firsttimemom Saturday & Sunday were easy going & ended with church, lunch, and Sunday grocery shopping. I'm curious, when do y'all grocery shop? B and I always go together. It's just tradition I guess? We have always done it this way, and I right enjoy it. I am seriously contemplating pick up groceries though once the babe gets here.

I did a poll on Instagram recently asking what y'all would like to see. Overall, the conclusion was more lifestyle and a definite yes to RECIPES. I've got two coming your way...one this week and probably another next week. Another request I had was some of the best drug store hauls: foundation, mascara, contours, and lipstick were requested. If you're not following me on Insta, please do! And if there is anything you'd like to see, leave me a comment and let me know.

I'll leave y'all with some good sales going on today! Be sure to check them out. I am holding off on buying all the spring clothes until baby arrives. It. is. killing. me. I want all the pastel pinks and blues. Oh and ruffles...never enough ruffles in my life.

S A L E S

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Up to 50% off storewide
 
Gap 
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40% off  No code needed!


1.10.2018

2018 Goals

Well, we're ten days in to the New Year, and I am officially writing out my goals. That doesn't mean I haven't been thinking about them for the last two weeks. 2018 is a BIG year for us and I want it to be the most successful. Without further adieu...



{1}
Run my 3rd half marathon post baby. This is high on my list because I just haven't been able to run like I used to. Mainly because I can barely catch my breath due to being pregnant. I also think this will be a good goal to sign up for, train, and help me lose this baby weight.

{2}
Be a good mom. Everyone wants to be a good mom right? OF COURSE. I just want to try and not stress or freak out and be that #firsttimemom. I want baby to be happy as well as Momma & Daddy. There are some things, that to be quite honest, have really freaked me out. We are on the homestretch, and I just want everything to go as smoothly as possible.

{3}
Become active in church. Our church has decided that they will start having real flower arrangements on the altar each Sunday instead of silk flowers. I really love flowers and arranging so I am thinking of volunteering to be on this ministry. I'm not the best at arranging, but I think it would be a lot of fun.

{4}
Keeping up with my daily devotional. I have done everyday so far this year. Last year I started and fell off the wagon. I am determined to keep up with it for 365 days!

{5}
Buy a house! We are looking to make moves right after baby is born. We are over the apartment life and expect to be in Texas for the foreseeable future. I cannot wait for more SPACE!

What do you want to accomplish this new year? By writing this list down, I want it to help hold me accountable!


1.04.2018

Patience: Journey to Baby.

This post has been a long time coming. It has been something I kept quiet on for a long time. I think most people who go through this would say they feel the same way. They keep quiet or only tell a select few. I won't beat around the bush.

You know how it goes....you date, you get engaged and then married, you have your fun with just you and your spouse for a year or two and then babies come along...at least in the South. So easy right? Not for some & definitely not us.

Our journey to have a baby started back in early summer 2014. I remember exactly where B & I were....we were eating Mexican (I can still picture the booth in the restaurant.) and were talking about it. You've heard it before, "Oh, let's just see what happens." We hadn't been married a year, but I was antsy. B was hesitant but knew how badly I wanted a little one. He agreed and in my mind I was thinking....oh this is going to happen so quick!!! I was so excited.

Fast forward 10 months (January 2015)...still no baby. I was deflated & irritated. I made an appointment with my doctor to talk about it. She decided to do some blood work and see what was going on. On the outside...everything was "normal" for me. No issues. My levels looked slightly off and she told me she thought I wasn't ovulating. She prescribed me Femara, 2.5mg. I would take it on certain days and then have my blood drawn on cycle day 21 to see if it helped me ovulate. Still nothing. She upped my dosage, 5mg. Nothing. This went on for about 9 months or so.

In September of 2015, we announced we were moving to Austin, TX. Still no baby. All I could think of was, "Great. I get to start this process all over again with a new doctor." I did some research and found an OBGYN/Fertility clinic combo with great reviews for one of the doctors. I made the initial appointment before we even left South Carolina. I made sure all my records were sent over so they would have everything. We moved in late October and the week after I arrived, I met with Dr. Wang. She was amazing. She was kind, read my records, did some baseline blood work and kept me on my prescribed regimen.

She would have me come in to check my follicles, give me a trigger shot, and then wish us luck if you catch my drift. This didn't help at all. She suggested IUI. I remember talking to B about it. He was very against it. To this day, I think he hates the thought of it. He is a very religious person and had/has his own thoughts about it...which I have come to respect. We talked about it extensively and finally came to an understanding and decided we would do max of 3 rounds and then go from there. Guess what? Nothing. We did 3 IUIs (January, February, & March 2017), paying out of pocket $$$$, and not a one of them worked. Like no positive, at all.

After the third, Dr. Wang suggested surgery. She wanted to go in and see if there was anything that might be causing a problem. She didn't want to move any further with any type of fertility treatments until she was able to take a look around. On May 19, 2017 I went in for outpatient surgery. Not knowing what was going to happen or be found. I honestly remember thinking to myself, I hope she finds something so we have an answer. If everything looked good, I was really going to be upset. B was there with me & was as cool as a cucumber. At least, that's the way he appeared to me. My nurses were wonderful. Dr. Wang came in and gave me a quick run down of what she'd be doing. Next thing I knew, I was being rolled to the OR.

I remember waking up coughing from the intubation tube being taken out. Then, B was right there by my side. He had a handful of paperwork/pictures. I remember him saying "Babe, you had a bad fallopian tube and that was the problem. Dr Wang took it out." All I could hear was, I was minus one fallopian tube. I freaked out and started sobbing. Looking back, B says it wasn't probably the best thing to say to me coming right out of anesthesia. But I think he was excited that they found the problem. My tube had twisted multiple times on itself and then had little cysts around each twist. My doctor said she had never seen anything like it in her years as a doctor. The craziest thing about all of it was that I had ZERO symptoms. I had no pain. All cycles were regular. From the outside, we were all scratching our heads.

We found out in July 2017 that we were pregnant. We had no assistance as far as IUI goes. June 2017 would have marked 3 years of trying. To me, it's all so crazy. B is just ecstatic. And my doctor uses my case and tells other couples who are struggling with infertility our story (confidential of course). She always comes in with a smile on her face and talks about our miracle baby. And at 29 weeks pregnant, it is still so SURREAL to me that we are here...waiting on baby.


{Excuse the quality of this picture, the dirty mirror, and me....the hot mess express! But life isn't always perfect is it?} 

Our journey was long, not as long as others, but still 3 years long. It pales in comparison to others who have been waiting longer or who have been told "No" or have more extensive treatments like IVF or worse, even lost a baby. It is an ugly road. I was not a nice person. I was bitter. I was mean to my husband. I said things I didn't mean. We fought about it. I cried...a lot. I remember keeping face for others. I tried to appear strong. Some days I was strong. And other days, I wasn't.

I can't tell you enough that if you are going through this...you. are. not. alone. Find yourself a good great doctor. Do your research. Ask questions. Reach out to people you feel comfortable with. For me, none of my girlfriends had any extensive problems getting pregnant. They would pray for me/us and ask me questions about what was going on, but they couldn't really help me when it came to infertility questions. And that was OK. I don't wish it on anyone. To know the answers to these questions, isn't the most fun. But if you are going through it or are just curious, I am an open book.

Life isn't perfect, and I never ever want to portray that everything is roses. I think people have much more respect for those that are real & show the somewhat messy side of their lives. What you see on Instagram or SnapChat... it's pretty. But there's always something. This isn't reaching for sympathy but just real talk is all. I never in a million years would have thought that we would have to deal with infertility. Or that I'd be blogging about it...but here I am.

And as cliche and as easy as it is to say, try not to stress. Find things that make you happy. Distract yourself. Infertility is certainly the devil's work. He sneaks in and wrecks you. And he'll try to wreck everything else too. But be patient. Easier said than done, I know. Trust me. God gave us what we wanted...but it took 3 years. He never said no....just "not yet." Infertility made us stronger as a married couple. Living 1800 miles away from any family and having a new baby (in ~3 months) just us two....that's really going to make us strong. But we are ready and are more thankful than EVER. Do I wish I and B had to go through all of it? No. But are we better people for it? Absolutely.

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