Exponential Growth

Do you see that belly, right there? That is a 34 week pregnant belly in size, at only 30 weeks of pregnancy. I weigh less than I weighed with Brigid, and yet...34 week belly. This is impressive, no?

And did I mention the part where I am going to be a bridesmaid in the wedding of one of my lovely former roommates from college on November 3rd? I'm going to see her this weekend for her bridal shower, and I am FULLY expecting her to take one look at me and say, 'Nope. I take it back. You're out.' Not that she would, or anything, but...holy aesthetic destroyer, batman. I am going to request that I stand behind EVERYONE during that photo session...
 

T-Shirt: Target

Cardigan: Banana Republic (outlet)

Skirt: Motherhood Maternity

Belt: Land's End Canvas

Bracelet: the beach

Shoes: Nine West

Giving In

Yes. That's right. I did it.

I jumped on the bubble necklace bandwagon. *sigh*

And yes, I'd be so super ashamed of myself for giving in to peer pressure, too, except that I kind of (absolutely, 100%, completely, totally, etc) adore this necklace.

I picked up one in pink and one in yellow, and it's taking every ounce of self-restraint left in my body to keep myself from going back and buy it in red and green and blue and turquoise and EVERY SINGLE OTHER COLOR THEY MAKE THIS NECKLACE IN because, yeah...
It's kind of pretty, you know?

Dress: Motherhood Maternity

Cardigan: Loft (outlet)

Shoes: Nine West

Necklace: ebay

Camouflage

If you need me, I'll just be over here, pretending you can't see my baby belly behind my extra large scarf.

It just felt like a good day to hide, I guess...

Dress; Motherhood Maternity

Cardigan: Gap (outlet)

Scarf: Cost Plus World Market (from Jess in her last scarf swap)

Shoes: Nine West

Belt: Land's End

No Filter

Yesterday, an assistant on my team who was out of the office last week took one look at my stomach and said, 'Damn, girl. I wasn't gone THAT long!'

(YES. THAT IS A DIRECT QUOTE. I SWEAR!)

This is the same lady who told me that she knew I was pregnant before I told her that I was because she could see that my hips were getting bigger.

Seriously.

I know she means well, but come ON!

My beach ball baby and I are just going to start working from home for the next few months, I think...

T-shirt/Tank: Target

Cardigan: Loft (outlet)

Skirt: Motherhood Maternity

Shoes: Nine West

Belt: Target

Countdown

It's August, y'all. Seriously.

 

August.

 

This means three weeks until my final Gulf Coast vacation of the year (and maybe next year, too, because who wants to drag an itty-bitty baby to the beach?). Four weeks until I can justify getting my Halloween decorations out (Yes, I decorate in September. No, I am not ashamed of it). Ten weeks until Brigid's birthday. Eleven weeks until my anniversary. Thirteen weeks until Halloween. Thirteen weeks and one day until I can listen to Christmas music. Sixteen weeks until Thanksgiving. Eighteen weeks until my due date. Twenty-one weeks until Christmas, itself.

 

And now, I've exhausted myself just thinking about it.

 

It's a good thing I love this stretch of the year!

Dress: Target ($8 on clearance. My favorite kind of purchase...)

Cardigan: Target

Shoes: Nine West

Necklace: J Crew

He's just lucky I love him...

My husband's comment when he saw me getting dressed this morning?

You look like the 1980s. Or maybe early 90s. I swear, I had a windsuit with those colors in it. But I mean that in a good way!

And this is why my husband should stick to 'you look nice' in the mornings, and leave it at that.

 

Blouse: Motherhood Maternity (outlet)

Sweater: Express

Skirt: Motherhood Maternity

Shoes: Nine West

Belt: Came off of a different maternity dress

Did you hear?

I announced it on my family blog and on Twitter yesterday, but if you aren't following either of those, then you might not have heard that we found out baby number two is, in fact...


A GIRL!!!

My husband is in for such a world of trouble around here, isn't he?

Dress/Belt: Motherhood Maternity

Cardigan: Gap (outlet)

Shoes: Nine West

Bracelets: Mango Tree

On my mind...

Tomorrow, I go in for my second ultrasound, and if all goes according to plan, I should know if baby number two is going to be a boy or a girl. And it is LITERALLY ALL I CAN THINK ABOUT TODAY.

I should just go home and go to bed until my appointment tomorrow, right?

Dress: Motherhood Maternity

Cardigan: Banana Republic (outlet)

Shoes: Nine West

Jewelry: Kate Spade, Gorjana, Charlotte Russe

It's the little things...

Last night, the power went out in our neighborhood for about five hours. Considering what people in DC and the surrounding areas have been facing these last few days, I realize that I am incredibly lucky it was only out for five hours, because things could always be much, much, MUCH worse.

Perspective. I have it.

However, no amount of understanding could prevent me from swearing loudly at the tree that fell on our lines at 6:30PM or at Georgia Power for not having our power back up and running in an hour and a half, because do you know what happened to me last night?

I MISSED THE BACHELORETTE HOMETOWN DATES!!!

Perspective. It's hit or miss with me, really.

T-shirt: Target

Cardigan: Gap (outlet)

Skirt: Motherhood Maternity

Shoes: Nine West

Necklace: J Crew

Bracelet: Macy's

I hope you all have a safe and happy 4th of July!

Overactive Imagination

I thought I was dying of some crazy, stomach-on-fire disease this weekend, but it seems as though I just have indigestion.
So...I've got that going for me.

How was your weekend?

(And, uh, week, too, I guess, since it's Wednesday now. Seriously, how is it Wednesday already?!?!)

Dress: Motherhood Maternity (from Brigid's time)

Shoes: Nine West

Bracelets: Mango Tree

Baby Bump: Milk Duds and Pizza

Summer!

GUYS!! IT'S THE FIRST DAY OF SUMMER!!!! WOO!!!!

Well.

That didn't work at all.

I'm trying to get myself really excited about this season, because really, I LOVE the summertime. But I mostly love the summer because it means outdoor beer festivals and jet skiing on the lake and not changing out of my bathing suit for days at a time.

But this year, there is no beer. And there is no jet skiing. And as I have yet to find a maternity bathing suit that I actually like, well...there's not much of that, either. At least, there won't be once the ruching gives out on my Land's End non-maternity swimsuit, anyway.

(Please join me in a silent prayer to the powers that be at Land's End: For the good of my sanity, just let that suit last me until my vacation is over in September. That's all I need. Please. Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease.)

And, you know, winter will be bringing a baby with it this year, so I'm kind of in a hurry to get to that part of things, too.

Only six more months to go!

(Haaaaa. ONLY six months. That's, like, forever in baby-waiting years...)

Dress: Motherhood Maternity (also a Brigid-era purchase)

Cardigan: Banana Republic (outlet)

Shoes: Nine West

Belt: Target

Is it Friday, yet?

Between last weekend at my parents' place in Indiana, and this weekend at my in-laws' place on the lake, I think I have built up a pretty sizable sleep deficit. In fact, I might need to go to sleep this coming Friday evening and not wake up until Sunday afternoon, just to make up for all of those lost hours.

Steve would totally buy into that idea, right?

Related: I am TIRED. Blergh.

It's a good thing that my too-sleepy-to-dress-myself uniform of a cardigan and dress translates well into maternity wear, eh?

 Dress: Motherhood Maternity (from the Brigid days)

Cardigan: Banana Republic (outlet)

Shoes: Nine West

Jewelry: Banana Republic (outlet)

High Expectations

Did you know H&M does maternity clothes? Because I didn't, until I was in there a few months ago looking at the children's clothing for Brigid, and I came across the maternity section right there in the corner of the children's floor. So, I told myself that when I got pregnant again, I would most definitely be hitting up that store to spice up my nine-month wardrobe as much as possible.

And then I got pregnant again.

And you know what? That maternity section, at least in my store, was a massive disappointment. I managed to find a $17 blouse that I liked, but nothing else. And I had such high hopes! Unfulfilled shopping expectations are such a bummer...

Blouse: H&M

Skirt: Motherhood Maternity

Shoes: Nine West

Bracelets: Mango Tree

Hippy

I fully intend to do nothing but reverse mirror shots throughout this pregnancy, as that mirror makes me look much, much, MUCH more skinny than I actually am in real life. And what better time to flatter myself than right now, right?

Seriously, I had someone tell me today that she thought I might be pregnant because she thought she could see it in my hips. Not in my stomach, which currently looks like I am about 5 months pregnant, instead of the three months that I actually am (which I'm pretty sure I can thank Brigid for...and don't think I'm not adding that to my guilt stockpile for when she tries to out-brat me as a teenager...), but in my hips.

IN MY HIPS!#$!%*!

I knew this, of course, because I have a couple of stretchy skirts that I thought would get me through the earlier stages of my pregnancy, but which started to do a weird, pulling thing across my butt well before I was ready for it, but still...

Nobody wants to hear that, you know?

 

Blouse: Banana Republic (outlet, probably? It was a gift from my MiL when I was pregnant with Brigid)

Sweater: Gap

Skirt: Motherhood Maternity

Shoes: Nine West (from Macy's)

Shoe Shopping!

So, since I'm officially all pregnant and whatnot (Thank you guys so much for all of the sweet thoughts and congratulations, by the way!!), this means that even when I do get the urge to lift my shopping ban for something fun like the Memorial Day sales at the outlet mall, there's not much I can buy at this point in time.

But, do you know what fits, even as my stomach gets bigger?

Shoes!

Especially $14.99 clearance rack shoes at the Nine West outlet...













(Ok, that last pair wasn't on the clearance rack. But I love them anyway. Plus, at $70 for three pairs of shoes, I'm not going to argue with that...)

Hope you all are enjoying this lovely holiday weekend with your families and friends!

PS: Don't forget to enter my eShakti giveaway by 5/31!

Crunch Time

You guys! Christmas is, like, a week away! Seriously!

How did this happen?!?!

Any chance we can all get together and agree to push it back for a couple of weeks? I know that would really help me out, right about now...

Thanks.

PS: Can't you feel the tension in these pictures? Rudy Cat (as Brigid calls him, anyway...he used to be plain old Rudy, but he's been renamed by the two-year old...and it's kind of ridiculously adorable) really, really, REALLY wanted to get his hands (paws) on that darn necklace I was wearing. I'm lucky there are no holes in my sweater after this attempt.

Sweater: Loft (outlet)

Skirt: Loft (outlet)

Shoes: Nine West

Tights: Hue (from DSW)

Bracelet: Kohls

Necklace: Old Navy 

Don't forget, eShakti is offering $20 off of any order through the end of the year, when you use the promotional code NOTAHOBBY0811.

The discount code is not case sensitive. Only one gift certificate can be used per order. The code can be used any number of times until the validity period. This discount code is not applicable on our Overstock category. This cannot be combined with any other offer / discount that may be active during this period.

Also, you can find my post about the skirt the company sent me to review here.

Plaid

I don't know why plaid is making such a comeback right now, but I kind of think I like it. I gave my husband a hard time when he started loading up on plaid shirts once fall hit (in fact, I think my exact words were 'when did it become 1996 again?'), but then I fell in love with this little skirt at the thrift store, and I decided maybe Steve was on the right track.

AND THEN! And then, when I was doing my post-Thanksgiving, pre-detox spending spree at the outlet mall, I came across this skirt at the Loft outlet, and...well...gray and purple plaid?

There was just no saying no to this one.

(And that's why I put myself on the shopping ban...

The clothes were winning, my friends. The clothes were winning.)

 Cardigan: Gap (outlet)

Skirt:Loft (outlet)

Shoes: Nine West (outlet)

Tights: Hue (from DSW)

Necklace: Charming Charlie 

Don't forget, eShakti is offering $20 off of any order through the end of the year, when you use the promotional code NOTAHOBBY0811.

The discount code is not case sensitive. Only one gift certificate can be used per order. The code can be used any number of times until the validity period. This discount code is not applicable on our Overstock category. This cannot be combined with any other offer / discount that may be active during this period.

Also, you can find my post about the skirt the company sent me to review here.

Sequins!

I haven't participated in an Everybody, Everywear challenge in a few months, but when I saw that the December prompt was sequins and sparkle, I definitely wanted to play along. Might not be a bad one to check out, if you're looking to add a little shine to the holiday wardrobe...

 

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Speaking of holidays, I started wrapping my Christmas presents last night, and if that's not the most time consuming activity right now, I don't know what is. Luckily, I sugared myself up on some eggnog for the evening, so I was able to power through a good portion of the gift pile.

That said, though, I think everyone is just getting gift cards next year. So much easier, you know?

(Oh, who am I kidding? Gifts for EVERYONE! I love shopping for Christmas presents for my family...there's just something about thinking you've found that one perfect gift, I guess.)

Tank Top: J Crew

Cardigan: Gap (outlet)

Skirt: J Crew (outlet)

Shoes: Nine West (outlet)

Don't forget, eShakti is offering $20 off of any order through the end of the year, when you use the promotional code NOTAHOBBY0811.

The discount code is not case sensitive. Only one gift certificate can be used per order. The code can be used any number of times until the validity period. This discount code is not applicable on our Overstock category. This cannot be combined with any other offer / discount that may be active during this period.

Also, you can find my post about the skirt the company sent me to review here.

A little cognac for a rainy day...

For other neutral ideas, you can always visit Megan Mae Daily to see other participants!

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So, last night, I found out that my hair lady (stylist? hair cutter? woman responsible for reintroducing me to bangs, but also keeping me from doing anything too drastic when I was pregnant and couldn't find any hairstyle that looked good on me?) is moving to Minnesota. She and I had moved to Atlanta around the same time, and I was matched up with her blindly while booking an appointment at a salon down the street from the house Steve and I were renting at the time.

Five years later, and she's the only person who has touched my hair in the state of Georgia. I realize this is a complete non-problem in the grand scheme of things, but still...

I'm going to miss her.

And I don't know if I have it in me to break in a new hair lady after all of this time.

PS: Sorry for the terrible, terrible post titles this week. I promise, I'll try harder in the future.

Dress (as top): Calvin Klein

Skirt: H&M

Tights: Hue (from DSW)

Shoes: Nine West 

Don't forget, eShakti is offering $20 off of any order through the end of the year, when you use the promotional code NOTAHOBBY0811.

The discount code is not case sensitive. Only one gift certificate can be used per order. The code can be used any number of times until the validity period. This discount code is not applicable on our Overstock category. This cannot be combined with any other offer / discount that may be active during this period.

Also, you can find my post about the skirt the company sent me to review here.

Gray Day

For other neutral ideas, you can always visit Megan Mae Daily to see other participants!

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Tuesday's Neutral Week challenge prompt is gray. Should be easy, right? I have a TON of gray clothing in my closet!

And yet, I absolutely missed the boat on this one, because throwing a gray sweater on does not a gray based neutral outfit make. But I'm going with it, anyway. I couldn't really find any gray bottoms that looked ok with the sweater, and I really wanted to wear the sweater. So, there you have it. My dressing logic...

Kind of frightening, getting a glimpse inside my head, huh?

 

Button-up: Land's End Canvas

Sweater: Gap

Skirt: Calvin Klein (from Macy's)

Shoes: Nine West

Tights: Hue (from DSW) 

Don't forget, eShakti is offering $20 off of any order through the end of the year, when you use the promotional code NOTAHOBBY0811.

The discount code is not case sensitive. Only one gift certificate can be used per order. The code can be used any number of times until the validity period. This discount code is not applicable on our Overstock category. This cannot be combined with any other offer / discount that may be active during this period.

Also, you can find my post about the skirt the company sent me to review here.