bugaboo {13 weeks}

What a weekend!  I'm keeping the roads hot around here friends.  Seriously, I can't remember the last time I just stayed home for a weekend and took it easy.  It's all been fun stuff though, so I can't really complain.  This weekend I headed {by myself!} to NYC for my soon to be sister's Bachelorette party!

At first I wasn't sure how much fun it would be to be a pregnant gal at a B party, but it was a blast.  We ended up doing a spa afternoon {ahhhh...} then headed to a cool tapas restaurant for dinner.  Luckily for me baby bug is hungry these days and everything tasted amazing! 

Drew and Asher had a lot of fun while I was gone, of course.  I received quite a few pictures of boys getting dirty outside, then getting sticky from jelly donuts.  A good weekend was had by all.  :-)

Meanwhile, bugaboo keeps growing!  We reached 13 weeks together yesterday.  Since I had traveled all morning, then cleaned up all of the boys' fun remnants when I got home there are no belly pics.  Sorry.  Instead, here's another cutie photo of baby bug from our NT scan last week.  How adorable is my little bitty thumb sucker?!

{I labeled the baby parts, in case it's hard to tell what's what :-)}

I can't remember if I mentioned this last week, but our ultrasound technician commented right away on how big the baby is.  She thinks bugaboo is about a week ahead of my due date schedule growth-wise, which would put us closer to 14 weeks now.  No due date change, but watch for a Halloween baby come fall!

For now, we have a peach.  All of these baby fruit comparisons are making me very excited for summer and fresh produce - can you tell I'm hungry these days?  ha!

How far along: 13 weeks

Net weight gain/loss: down 3 pounds

Maternity clothes: none yet - although I did unbutton my pants after that awesome tapas dinner!

Stretch marks: no - hoping genetics serve me well again this pregnancy

Belly button: innie all the way

Sleep: up for a bathroom break 1-2x a night

Baby movement: I honestly think I've felt some flutters, but I'm sure it's too early and just my hopeful imagination  :-)

Gender: still a secret within

Food cravings: strangely enough, nothing specific

Food aversions: again - strange, but none.

What I miss:  having my normal energy

Looking forward to: being in the last week of my 1st trimester!

Best moment this week: seeing baby bug at the NT scan

Milestones: baby has vocal cords and fingerprints!

{phone dump friday}

We had an exciting day yesterday - I had my NT scan and got another peek at baby bug!

Not only did we get to see bugaboo, but {more importantly} we were told that all physical markers they expect to see at 12 weeks were present, so our chance of bug having a chromosomal disorder are relatively small. Of course, there's always a chance, but we're going to focus on the positive and be hopeful that everything's fine. :-)

Asher and I have kept pretty busy all week, actually. Last weekend when he was visiting his Grandma and Grandpa he discovered a new love for watermelon. Of course we had to pick some up at the store this week. Yum!

Last weekend he also was given a new best friend - dinosaur.  Loves him

This week was one of those great mixes between rainy afternoons and sunny ones. I don't know about you, but I hate staying inside to do chores when the weather is great, so I welcome the occasional rainy day to get stuff done. We manage to have fun outside, regardless of the forecast.

I'm leaving Ash and Drew to their own devices tomorrow when I head to NYC for Ali's bachelorette party. Can't wait to see what new tricks Asher learns while I'm gone! ha!

Happy weekend, friends!

when daddy's in charge

While I was at the shower last Saturday Drew was spending the day with Asher. I think it's so important for Drew and Ash to have days like this where I'm completely out of the picture and they can have their own fun. It's not totally clear what they do when I'm not around, but I got a pretty good idea when I saw this happen later that day.

 

ha ha!

Asher will now only eat grapes that are fed to him by T-Rex.

Well done, Daddy. Well done.

 

he has a smart brain

My parents like to tease me because as a little girl I would tell people that I had a "smart brain". I happen to think that's an awesome thing for a little one to brag about. :-)

Turns out the apple doesn't fall far from the tree because Asher has a smart brain too. Seriously people, this boy has been amazing me lately with the stuff he's saying and the ideas he puts together. Most of the time he'll repeat a concept I taught him, but once in awhile {and recently even more often!} he'll come out with a completely original thought.

When we were visiting my parents in NC last week we'd drive past a lot of farms and Asher always wanted to see and point out the neigh-neighs {horses} that would graze in fields beside the road. Just yesterday we were driving through Fairfax and he started saying "neigh-neigh, neigh-neigh". I tried explaining that we were in the city and there weren't any horses around, but he wasn't having any of it.

Once we stopped at a red light I looked at him and saw that he was gesturing out the window. I followed his pointing and saw this...

"mommy, rock neigh-neigh!"

I was shocked. The apartment complex had this horse head sculpture out in front of their building. Asher not only saw it from within our car, but also recognized that it was a horse made from rock.

See, I told you - smart brain. :-)

wordless wednesday - it's a bird

See him? :-)

 

showered

I mentioned yesterday that I spent the weekend celebrating my soon-to-be sister, Ali at her bridal shower.

Isn't she so cute?

Seriously, almost too cute. She's one of those girls who can pull off any and all trends effortlessly. Think I'm exaggerating? Ponder this one. Rather than the traditional hat made out of bows from the gifts, we decided to make Ali a belt and she. rocked. it.

 

Honestly, who can make a crazy bow belt look enviable? ha!

We had a wonderful afternoon of eating, drinking, gifts, games, and chatting. I love bridal showers. :-)

A couple of the other bridesmaids {there are 6 of us and we all live in different towns} are super crafty and put together these gorgeous centerpieces and 'thank you' favors. Ali is all about natural things and these fit her personality perfectly.

This coming weekend I get to see everyone again by heading to NYC for a girls' day Bachelorette Party - can't wait! Busy, busy!

 

bugaboo {12 weeks}

Over the weekend Drew, Asher, and I traveled to New Jersey for my future sister-in-law, Ali's bridal shower. I didn't get a great belly shot this week, so this photo of me with Ali, Lisa {sisters-in-law} and my MIL will have to do!

Not much belly to see in this dress, but trust me - it's under there. It still comes and goes a little throughout the day, but my doctor wasn't kidding when she said I'd show earlier this time around. Last November we ordered our bridesmaid dresses and I'm in the middle of some serious stress over whether I will be able to get mine to zip in another month. Cross your fingers for me! :-)

Bugaboo is the size of a plum this week. I'm so excited to be moving out of the first trimester and into the second. Seriously hoping my chronic tiredness will be moving out as well.

How far along: 12 weeks

Net weight gain/loss: down 3 pounds

Maternity clothes: none yet

Stretch marks: no

Belly button: still an innie

Sleep: lots of weird dreams and bathroom breaks

Baby movement: not just yet - can't wait!

Gender: nothing for sure, but a couple people guessed boy this weekend

Food cravings: hmm...nothing specific this week

Food aversions: coffee, yuck.

What I miss: mimosas at the bridal shower on Saturday :-)

Looking forward to: looking less like I simply ate too much and more like I'm pregnant

Best moment this week: getting to see our extended family for the 1st time since announcing bugaboo is on the way

Milestones: moving into the 2nd trimester this week

 

{phone dump friday}

Asher and I were down south visiting my parents for most of last week. We had lots of fun - but didn't take many photos, for some reason.

One of A's favorite things about visiting his Grammy and PopPop is throwing rocks/sticks/grass in their pond out front and visiting with his duck friend.

{can you spot the duck sneaking into my photo? Ha!}

His other favorite thing is going shopping with Grammy, who almost inevitably finds a surprise or two that Asher really loves. This time around it was a giant purple ball. Ash's favorite color right now is purple, so when he saw this ball it was love at first sight.

"Big ball! Purple!"

He insisted on carrying it in his lap on the ride home from the store. I thought of it as a built in toddler air bag. :-)

In other exciting news - I ordered a new couch! Yay!

It looks just like the one above, except in the following gray color. Drew and I are planning to put it with a rug we bought a long time ago and haven't been able to use. By the time the couch arrives we should be able to rearrange and put it all together.

And because a random picture post isn't complete without the bug - here's a gem of Asher beating up on his little brother/sister. Poor guy can't even escape the womb before it begins. This was suppose to be a sweet pic of Asher hugging my belly {which he was doing seconds earlier} but then he decided treating it as a drum would be more fun. Ahh, boys.

This weekend we're hitting the road {again...} so I can go to my future sister-in-law's bridal shower. As a bridesmaid I don't want to miss it! Happy weekend, friends!

 

mark it up

Last week when my sister came to visit she brought Asher a super special Easter bucket filled with goodies. One new treat for Asher was...markers!

Erin is one smart cookie - she knew that Asher would like markers

and mommy would like Color Wonder. :-)

We loved seeing you Aunt Erin and really love our new markers and Cars coloring book!!

{total boo on me for not getting any photos of all of us together!}

 

easter visitors

Well, Easter was over a week ago and I'm still working on our recap. Better late than never. {?}

We were lucky and had some good friends come in from out of town to visit. Asher loves having people over - especially the kind that give him lots and lots of attention. :-)

Drew and I have a kind of fun, unique shared experience in that our college roommates ended up marrying each other! We were all friends at Bucknell and now we get an easy way to visit together almost 10 years later {whoa - forget I typed that date...}

Welcome to DC, Bret and Betsy!

On Saturday we all headed into town to visit the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum.

Everyone who reads this blog knows how much Asher loves planes, so I thought seeing them up close would be a slam dunk. He liked it well enough, but wasn't quite as excited as I'd expected. Maybe because they weren't flying around?

Oh well - you can't win 'em all. :-)

Asher favorite part of the whole day was riding the carousel on the Mall. Of course I didn't get a photo of that. sigh.

Lucky us, I did get some shots at his second favorite stop - the fountain!

It took all 3 of us adults to keep him from jumping over the very shallow lip and into the water.

We all celebrated Easter Sunday together the next morning and had a yummy ham lunch. I don't know about you, but Easter just isn't Easter without ham. ha!

So great to see you, B&B. Let's make it less than a year between visits next time!

 

 

bugaboo {11 weeks}

Asher and I are in Raleigh visiting my parents this weekend, so I had to make due with a reflection phone pic for 11 weeks. Must be pregnancy brain already - I forgot my good camera at home - bah.

At 11 weeks I'm still feeling the first trimester symptoms full steam ahead. I've actually been a lot less sick, but still SO exhausted. I'm really hoping this passes soon and I get some energy back. This is how it was with Asher, so I'm sure {well, hopeful} once 13 or so weeks roll around I should be feeling a lot better.

Must have something to do with growing a lime. It's pretty exhausting work.

There has been a lot going on around here - it feels like we're running nonstop - so the blog has been taking a shameful backseat. I'm hoping to catch up on all of our goings-on {and yours!} soon.

How far along: 11 weeks

Net weight gain/loss: down 5 pounds

Maternity clothes: not yet - although I did unbutton my pants after dinner yesterday :-)

Stretch marks: no

Belly button: still innie

Sleep: up 1-2 times each night to use the bathroom

Baby movement: not just yet

Gender: no clue - anxious to find out in a few weeks!

Food cravings: I had the BEST garlic knots at a pizza place on Friday. Still thinking about them, yum...

Food aversions: coffee, yuck.

What I miss: having a nice cold beer with those awesome garlic knots

Looking forward to: seeing Drew's family at Ali's bridal shower this Saturday!

Best moment this week: sharing our news about the bug with more friends

Milestones: fingers and toes are no longer webbed - go bug.

 

easter sunday

Our Easter morning dawned bright and early. Asher likes to rise with the sun these days! We had some breakfast and got ready for church. Even though everyone was in their Easter best some chores can't wait until later, so Asher helped Drew get the dishwasher running.

This is his favorite chore. Every time I put something in the dishwasher Asher comes running, saying "soap, soap!" Love him. :-)

After our jobs were completed we headed out to celebrate our risen Savior! We had such an amazing service - Asher even enjoyed being in his class. Yay!

I decided to wait until after church to give Asher his Easter basket. Good thing, too, because a couple items really got him excited!

He's the funniest gift opener - Ash isn't one to dig through everything at once. He looks at one piece at a time, plays with each toy, then goes back for more.

His basket is still on the kitchen floor. There are a couple things he hasn't touched yet - ha!

I don't feel like rushing it, so we'll just see how long it takes him to realize there is more than a flashing ball, coloring book, and Lightning McQueen race car. :-)

My sister, Erin, came to see us on Thursday, then Drew and I had some college friends over for the rest of the weekend - more photos and stories from our time with them to come. Hope you all had wonderful Easter celebrations too!

 

wordless wednesday - getting long

I'm not sure what to do with Asher's hair. He got such a horrible, terrible, traumatizing hair cut last time that I've been letting it grow for awhile.

It's starting to get to that weird length where I either have to let it go further or cut it short again.

Thoughts? Opinions?

 

bugaboo {10 weeks}

I don't think I mentioned this last week, but we've also been calling the baby bugaboo. Drew has called me 'boo' for as long as we've known each other. Not sure why, he just does. Since the bug has taken up a temporary residence with me, it seemed natural to expand the name. :-)

Hello there, prune-sized bug-a-boo!

There isn't much bump to see just yet, but I wanted to start the weekly photos and pregnancy recap survey. This was so fun to do with Asher - the bug deserves the same!

How far along: 10 weeks
Net weight gain/loss: down 5 pounds
Maternity clothes: not yet
Stretch marks: none so far
Belly button: innie
Sleep: 1-2 bathroom trips each night
Baby Movement: none yet, but I can't wait!
Gender: I've had dreams about both a boy and a girl, so who knows...
Food cravings: anything with ice crystals - Coolatta, Italian ice, etc. I need to crunch ice!
Food aversions: coffee
What I miss: getting through the day without needing a nap. I am SO tired! {makes the coffee aversion particularly unfortunate}
Looking forward to: hearing the heartbeat at our next appointment - that will never get old. :-)
Best moment this week: seeing the bug on our surprise ultrasound!
Milestones: bones and cartilage are starting to form and arm joints work

 

{phone dump friday}

We had some really nice weather this week, so Asher and I spent a lot of time outside blowing bubbles. This boy loves him some bubbles! Bless his heart, he tried so hard to blow them himself but just never got the hang of it {yet - we continue to try}.

We're having some guests for Easter this weekend {my sister is here now - yay!} so Asher and I stopped by Trader Joe's to stock up on some essentials. We love TJs - me for the goodies, A for the stickers. After Joe's we swung by a bagel shop to grab a dozen and Asher insisted on having a piece to snack on. He cracked me up sitting on his throne covered with stickers, noshing on a bagel. :-)

Speaking of snacks, this boy can't seem to get enough. Every time we go to the grocery store Asher asks for a "nanny" as soon as we pull into the parking lot.

Hmm...I'm sensing a theme this week. I made some banana bread and the boys have been sharing a slice each morning with breakfast. Asher is such a mommy's boy in the morning that the lure of "nanny bread" is the only way Drew can get him to leave my lap. ha!

Hoping you all have a wonderfully blessed Easter weekend!

easter {preparing our hearts}

Thanks for all of your encouraging comments about what a great big brother Asher will be. I hope you're right! ha!

----------------------------

Easter is absolutely one of my favorite holidays. I'm so excited that it is this Sunday! It's always so awe inspiring to me to think about what Jesus did for us all. To make himself covered in sin - my sin - but then not to let death have the final word by rising again. It's amazing!

As a parent, I feel like my greatest obligation is to ensure that Asher knows all about Jesus and what he did for us. We do lots of things to incorporate God's word into our daily life, but Easter gives us an extra opportunity to tell the story of Christ's overwhelming love and sacrifice.

One way we do that is by using Resurrection Eggs! Asher loves them!

{I first heard about these last year and thought about making my own, but by the time I priced it all out it was cheaper just to buy the kit. You can find them here.}

Each day during the 12 days before Easter you open an egg revealing a symbol that goes with a part of the Easter story. We still have a couple days to go, but so far we have been opening the eggs, reading the story, and placing the symbols on our Easter tree.

Asher is obsessed with the eggs. We probably open and close the eggs 5 times a day {if not more}. He certainly doesn't understand the story yet, but I'm a big fan of speaking scripture, regardless of what he seems to understand or not.

This is going to be a yearly tradition for us - might as well start now! :-)

We still love candy, egg hunts, and all the spring animal aspects of Easter too. I just think Asher's "What is Easter?" book says it best...

Okay now I get it,
The Easter bunny is okay,
And Easter eggs are fun.
But Easter's not about that stuff.
It's all about God's son!