Ellie's Second Birthday Party

This weekend, we celebrated Ellie's second birthday with our family at her kitty cat party!

 I knew I wanted to incorporate a few cat-related items without going crazy, so it was simple but the birthday girl loved having her favorite people all in one spot which is the most important part. :)

 In my Pinterest search, I came across this "Party Catz" print and absolutely loved it.  I emailed the artist (like the creep that I am), and she so kindly sent over a high res image for me to use for the party!  I edited it a bit and Tyler printed it as a poster - so easy and cute!  I had also seen tons of adorable kitty cakes, but knew I'd probably end up wanting to run the cake over with my car if I attempted making one myself.  I decided to DIY some cat toy cake toppers instead, using styrofoam balls, different kinds of string and bamboo skewers.  Again, super easy!  Of course a kitty party isn't a kitty party without cat ears, so I grabbed a handful of these ones for the party guests to wear. :)

It ended up raining on and off most of the afternoon unexpectedly, but we still had lots of fun and we have a very happy, spoiled + exhausted two year old on our hands!  Thank you to everyone to came to the party and to those who sent birthday wishes from afar!! XO

Ellie is Two!

Our sweet girl turned the big T-W-O yesterday!  For the most part, it seems like time has been flying, but on the other hand, it feels like she's been such a big part of our lives for such a long time now.  One thing's for sure, the second year definitely went by even faster than the first did.  As cliche as it sounds, I think it's totally one of those "time flies when you're having fun" kind of things. :)

Weekday birthdays aren't always the most exciting, but we were happy that Tyler was able to take the day off from work to spend the day with his girls!  As soon as Ellie woke up in the morning, we brought her balloons + presents into her bedroom so we could kick off the festivities!  

Since I knew we'd soon be up to our eyeballs in birthday cake, I decided to do a "donut cake" for her instead after breakfast.  Ells loved blowing out her candles, and while we haven't given in (yet), she has repeatedly requested that we light up some more just so she can blow them out again. :)

Our original plans for the day got rained out and I was struggling to think of something fun to do indoors.  I remembered we still had Toys R Us gift cards saved up from her first birthday, so we decided to take Ellie on a little shopping spree!  She has more toys than we know what to do with already, but it was SO much fun (for all three of us).  Ellie loved running up and down the aisles, picking out a few new toys to bring home and touching all the things along the way. :)

We quickly stopped to visit my dad at work (Happy Birthday, Grampy!!), took the birthday girl out to lunch, grabbed some stuff for her party and spent the rest of the day playing with all of her new toys.

The birthday celebrations continue this weekend with Ellie's kitty cat birthday party and we can't wait!  Me-ow! :)

33 Weeks

How far along: 33.5 weeks.

Gender: Girl!
Belly button in or out:  Out.

Maternity clothes: Of course.  The day I fit back into my regular jeans again will be a very happy day.

Stretch marks:  Nothing yet.
Sleep:  Sleep was actually decent this week, which was much needed.
Best moment of the week: Beautiful weather today after a handful of not-so-great days.  We had fun kicking off Ellie's birthday week + grilled for dinner - always a favorite!

Miss anything: I'm not big drinker by any means, but I am looking forward to the occasional drink out on our deck this summer.  I have a feeling I might need it too? ;)
Movement:  Yes, lots of big movements lately - hands, feet, knees and elbows would be my guesses!

Cravings: Fruit, peanut butter and way too many chocolate eggs.
Queasy or sick:  Still feeling good.

Looking forward to: Celebrating our sweet Ellie girl this week!! TWO whole years old,  I can hardly believe it!

Bumpin' the Second Time Around

I know I've already said it quite a few times before, but this pregnancy has gone by so much faster than my first.  While it is a little strange to think that I've actually been pregnant since way back in September (this whole growing a human thing takes a really long time, huh??), time has been flying and I have a feeling the rest of this pregnancy will too!

My first trimester was so similar this time around compared to when I was pregnant with Ellie.  I was exhausted, in bed as early as possible, ate lots of bland foods + had quite a few food aversions.  But other than one episode of actually getting sick (too many baby carrots, who would have guessed?), I just kind of had a constant carsickness feeling for about two months.  It wasn't the most pleasant time, but I really can't complain too much.

I'd say shortly following the halfway mark through this pregnancy is when I noticed things being a little bit different than the first time around.  I'm still always pretty tired, partially due to a toddler who has hit or miss sleeping habits (though they have definitely improved since moving her into her big girl bed), and partially due to the fact that I frequently lay in bed thinking about all the things I could be doing if I wasn't laying in bed.  I really didn't have trouble sleeping when I was pregnant with Ellie, but I remember feeling so uncomfortable all the time.  I'm not saying that I always feel fantastic or anything like that; but generally speaking, I feel a lot better than I did back then.  I think being able to be up and on my feet as opposed to sitting at a desk all day long has a lot to do with that.  It's also helped me gain less weight this time around, which of course is an added bonus.  Seeing the numbers creep up on the scale is arguably my least favorite part about being pregnant, and while I try not to go too crazy in the food department, I definitely have my little toddler tornado to thank for helping me keep the weight gain somewhat under control.. ;)

I'm not one of those ladies who loves being pregnant or feels all kinds of gorgeous carrying around this growing bump, but I've felt a lot more appreciative of it during this pregnancy and am trying to enjoy these last weeks.  I'm so, so curious to see what my labor will be like this time around as my labor with Ellie was not at all what I was expecting it to be.  Mostly, I'm curious to see if Willow will stay put long enough to let me get an epidural (fingers crossed!), but I'm also not going to complain about a quick labor because obviously no one wants that to drag on forever.

As cheesy as it sounds, I cannot wait for the moment I get to meet our baby girl face to face for the first time.   Going into it knowing what that is like makes me approximately ten million times more excited for that experience than I was when I was pregnant with Ellie.  Of course I was excited then, but I had no idea what it would be like when I actually got to hold her, see her, kiss her, smell her sweet little head... 

Seven weeks to go and the countdown is really on.  We cannot wait to meet you, Willow Grey!

Easter 2017

We had a beautiful Easter weekend with lots of fun and good food!  Tyler had Good Friday off, so we colored eggs first thing Friday morning before his mom grabbed Ellie for most of the day.  We were able to get Willow's nursery in really good shape, there are still things that need to get done (like iron curtains and organize her bureau/closet), but it's looking pretty good and I can't wait to share more soon! :)

Saturday morning, we took Ells to our town's Easter egg hunt.  There were tons of eggs but also tons of kids, so the hunt lasted all of thirty seconds but Ellie didn't seem to mind.  I wasn't sure if she would get too caught up in people watching to participate, but she loved it and was so proud of her collection! :)  She also got her first ever taste of Skittles, which may have put her love of chocolate to shame. ;)

The Bunny woke up early Sunday morning to set out Ellie's basket and set up a little egg hunt in the yard.  She seemed to like everything in her basket and took her sweet time examining each thing before moving onto the next (something she definitely gets from her daddy, at least that's how he opens gifts as an adult).

While she did like her basket, she LOVED the egg hunt we did!  I grabbed a package of cute egg hunt signs in the Target dollar section, which ended up being totally worth it - they kept her on track, she liked to collect them with the eggs as she went, and we can reuse them every year.  I filled the eggs with candy, bunny fruit snacks and a couple other small Target dollar spot finds. 

We spent the rest of the day visiting family, eating way too much food and of course dipping into the year's supply of candy we currently have in our house.  The struggle was very real trying to get any kind of decent pictures, but we kind of got a few?

I also snapped my 32 week picture on Sunday.  While my gut tells me that Willow won't come quite as early as her big sis did, there is of course a chance that this was our last major holiday as a family of three which blows my mind a little bit.  We have some family members rooting for a Memorial Day weekend baby, so we'll see what happens. ;)

Hope you all had a very Happy Easter! :)

31 Weeks

How far along: 32 weeks tomorrow (although this picture was taken timely for once!) and headed to my last monthly doctor's appointment.  A couple bi-weekly appointments and then we're already down to weekly.  How is that even possible?!?!  Time is FLYING.

Gender: Girl!
Belly button in or out:  Out.

Maternity clothes:  My leggings are starting to get holes in them - an indicator that they might get worn a little too often?

Stretch marks:  Nothing yet.
Sleep: Hit or miss, had a couple not so great nights this week but a few really good ones!
Best moment of the week: Nice weather and making some progress on the nursery... or at least some decisions!  Can't wait for a few things to arrive this week so we can decorate and really put everything together.  Tyler finished painting the bureau last night, and while I was a little nervous about painting a family antique, I'm so happy with how it came out! :) 

Miss anything: My love handles are starting to grow love handles.
Movement: Always a ton right before I get ready for bed.

Cravings: Ice cream seems to be back this time around, it was definitely one of my biggest cravings with Ellie.
Queasy or sick:  Feeling good.  Lots of Braxton Hicks contractions, but I've had them since the second trimester (I did last time around too, I just didn't know what they were ha).

Looking forward to:  Easter weekend festivities!!!  I'm so excited to give Ells her basket and see what she thinks of it all this year!

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday!  A few favorites to share today, first up is the weather forecast for next week - finally a stretch of spring days in a row!  We're planning to dust off the grill on Sunday and I can't wait until we can set up the deck furniture for good... as soon as we know it's definitely not going to snow again.

Hands down my favorite (affordable) swimsuit for little ladies that I've come across so far this season.  I can totally picture Ellie wearing her floppy sunhat with it, too much cuteness!

I know I've mentioned them more than a few times, but there is a big spring launch at June & January tonight (9 p.m. EST).  The swing dresses are my most favorite ever, but the new peplum tanks + bloomer combo is crazy cute too!

Love these jammies for summer so much.  Ells had a similar print last year and I have a feeling she would actually like them this year. :)

So many fun things in the new Emily & Meritt line at PB Kids.  I know someone who would love this chair, and this pillow is so pretty!

A good screen print tee is one of my favorite things to find, and this one is no exception!  I think it would make a pretty perfect Mother's Day gift.  That and a sparkling clean car (inside + out).  Hint hint.  ;)

If you're looking for a new recipe to try this weekend, or maybe for Easter brunch, Ellie and I made these chocolate chip muffins a few weeks ago and they are really, really good.  I'm usually a boxed muffin mix kind of girl, but they were super easy to make!  Definitely under the "dessert for breakfast" category, not that I'm complaining.

Lastly, some of my favorite hair accessories are on sale this weekend - 20% off using code "EASTER". Shipping is always crazy fast and they'll arrive on time for Easter baskets, outfits or both!

Hope you all have a good weekend! :)

Life Lately

I almost feel funny saying that we've been really busy lately, mostly because I spend most of the time hanging out with my little girlfriend while Tyler does most of the actual doing... regardless, things seem like they've been busy around here these days and I have no idea how it's April already!  Wasn't it just Christmas??

Willow's room is painted (trim and walls) so I am so excited to be able to actually put things in there now.  We still have to paint her bureau and I can't wait to finish going through Ellie's old clothes and get them all put away.  I've been looking for a couple new things to add for decorations, but will definitely be re-using some of the things we had in Ellie's nursery too.  I told myself I wouldn't buy another one because ours is kind of beaten up (very well loved), but I grabbed the same rug we have in Ellie's room to add to the nursery - it's currently 20% off and I couldn't resist the price!  I'm a little bit in disbelief that we'll be meeting our tiniest baby girl so soon - we'll be in the single digit weekly countdown tomorrow!!  She is seriously going to be here before we know it and I can't hardly wait to see my two girls together for the first time.

 I'm also in disbelief that Ellie will be two in just three short weeks.  While I'm trying to keep it simple, we're planning a kitty themed birthday party for her and I've had fun finding some cute ideas on Pinterest!  I'm sure she will start telling me all kinds of obscure party theme requests starting next year, so while I obviously had a hand in picking the party theme this year, I really wanted to pick something that Ells would love too.  I'm sure she would have also loved puppies, unicorns, birds, fish, pigs... you get the picture. :)  Of course I'll be sharing more from her party and am looking forward to seeing what she thinks of it!   Most importantly, I know she is going to love being the center of attention and having her favorite people there to celebrate her!  Don't be surprised if I'm crying in the corner thinking about just how big she really is these days.



After a snowy weekend, we got glimpse of spring weather earlier this week which was so nice.  I think Ells and I both have a little bit (or maybe a lot) of cabin fever and are so eager to be able to play outside more.  I'm hoping she doesn't think she's too big to go for walks in the stroller once the snow is melted.... and I'm hoping I'm not too big to go down the slides with her at the playground. ;)  Spring, we are so ready for you!