30.5 weeks! I'm late…I know I know!

Hey people of the world! I hope you're having a great week. Sorry I'm late on posting I have been a busy chick. Mace man  has been busy making new friends where we live and it makes me so happy! It's amazing how getting him involved in a few groups has changed him from shy guy to mr. personality. I am loving it :)

Over the weekend we went to a Halloween Church event that our new neighbors invited us to. It was a lot of fun! The kids walked around in a circle and got to do carnival games to earn treats. The other weird thing was I ran into someone I knew in college who was also invited by my neighbors…small world! We are all going trick or treating on Friday with our kids which should be a fun time. I'm glad we're finally meeting some people around here. 

Today Mason and I went to the zoo with my friend Meghan and her daughter Charlotte and son Jack. The winter animals were loving the weather today! The kangaroos were going wild and so adorable! Mason was within 2 feet of a mama kangaroo and her joey. His favorite exhibit is definitely the prairie dogs though. He just giggles and says "doggies eat apples hehe". We love going to the zoo with our season pass. It's a little exhausting physically doing it at 8 months pregnant and lifting him in and out of his stroller, but worth it to see him so happy!

Tomorrow Mason gets to dress up and pass out treats to his library group. The kid is literally OBSESSED with Halloween! All day he talks about it and he begs me to talk him for walks around the neighborhood to see all the decorations. It's pretty adorable! It's funny how cartoons, commercials, and stories can really get a kid excited for holidays. 

Tomorrow I have my 30.5 week appt. I don't think it'll be very exciting but I am going to talk to my doctor about some pains I've had the past week or so. My braxton hicks are way more intense than they were with Mason so they may check to make sure i'm no dilating. I feel for the most part good right now though! I will update you this weekend and let you know how it goes.

I know I've talked about this before, but I am proud of myself for being more positive the last few months. It's almost been 2 years since I lost my mom and I look back the past couple years and realize how much of a sad place I was in. I know my mom wouldn't want me to ever be in that place, and I try hard to be as positive as I can! My heart still hurts, I still get sad and cry over dumb things, and I pray that my mom is somewhere watching over us, but I am finally in a place where I can start to think of her and smile and not completely break down in tears. I don't think I'll ever feel like the "old" Christi ever again….but I am a stronger, kinder, more forgiving person since this has happened to me. I see things a lot differently now and don't sweat the small stuff as much. I also feel like the most important thing in life is just being happy! Whenever people get mad over little things or upset with people over something small I want to shake them…because life is too short to be bitter or mad! Be happy and make others happy along the way.

I want to leave you with some photos. Some of you may have already seen on instagram (sorry!). I will use my camera this weekend to take some fun photos of Halloween festivities. xoxo

29 weeks! Enjoying Fall with my little family

Wow! The weeks seem to be cruising by! Does anyone else feel that way? geesh. This week has been pretty relaxing for all of us here. Mason and I have been signing up for a lot of library groups and classes to keep him nice and busy this fall before baby arrives. I want to make sure I spend as much quality time with him as I can before baby girl is here!

Brandon and I are discussing babies room a little and I feel a little bad I haven't done much for her yet! We are debating whether to have her right next to Mason's room or close to ours. I like the idea of her being right by ours so it's a little easier to hear her. We have also decided on her name which is so exciting! Her name is going to be Amelia and "Mila" for short. I feel strongly that she is going to fit this name really well…I have been obsessed with it since the moment I found out I was having a little girl :) What are your thoughts on the name? For a middle name we are debating between Rose and Ann. 

Brandon's dad and step mom came to the house over the weekend which was really nice. The guys were able to watch football while Mary and I went and shopped a little. I had some returns and wanted to get some stretchy yoga pants so it was nice to get out on a dreary day! 

I had an appt. for baby and my doctor wants to see me every 2 weeks now. The only thing he doesn't like is my iron levels. My mom was super anemic with all her pregnancies and it seems like that is happening with me as well! I take iron pills, eat lots of food with iron, and my levels just aren't changing. The hardest part about low iron is the fatigue I feel. It's been a lot harder getting up and I feel like I'm going to crash after lunch everyday! I try to keep myself active with things to do in the afternoon which helps give me some energy and motivation! My neighbor and her kiddos also go on walks with Mason and I a lot so that helps this mama stay active too. 

I can't wait for Brandon and Mason to meet little Amelia. Brandon is going to be such an amazing dad to her! He is so sweet and caring I know she is totally going to be a little daddies girl. I think every girl deserves a dad like that! I've already warned him that I had a very awkward phase with bucked teeth, big nose, big eyes, big fuzzy hair..and it's SOOOOO important for a male role model in that little girls life to make her feel as beautiful as ever even during those tough times. Mason will also do a great job protecting her too so I feel like she is the luckiest girl in the world! 

I hope you all have a great week! Here are some photos of our fall fun. Excuse how nasty I look….my neighbor volunteered to take a picture and I realized I had no make up and probably 2 days without a shower! whoops. xoxo

Third Trimester-28 weeks

Hey friends and family! So it seems like Tuesday is the magic day to update my blog so I guess I will try and make that a habit from now on. After having a crazy time two weeks ago it's nice to finally have a normal week. Mason attended his two library classes again and he LOVES it! The teacher makes him go up and put his colored bear on the wall as soon as she says the color and he thinks it's the greatest thing in the world. I love how much he likes doing group time with the other kids. We were also able to spend some time with our new neighbors which was great. We took our kids to the pumpkin patch and had playdates at each others houses. It's nice to walk about 20 steps for a playdate! She and I are looking forward to the winter time to keep each other company when we are feeling trapped in the house!

My nephew Landon turned 2 over the weekend and my step dad had a birthday on Sunday so it was nice celebrating with the two of them. Landon and Mason were so cute playing together! We stayed at the party until almost 9:00pm to tire the boys out. It was great seeing all the family and catching up with everyone! 

On Sunday, I took some engagement photos of my friends at Kensington Park. The weather couldn't have been more perfect for a fall photo shoot! Those of you who know me know how much I am obsessed with my camera and someday I hope to do something with it! I have been building up photos for a couple years now so who knows maybe I can turn my hobby into something fun someday :) I am really happy with how the pictures turned out.

So I was thinking about all the things I've shared on here since we moved into our new home and looking back I totally feel like I went through a late 20's crisis! lol. I missed working part time so much I was almost at desperate measures to be part time again no matter what the costs! I think some sense has finally been knocked into me that right now is just not the right time for me to be full time or hourly. Brandon and I know the costs of childcare now, our scheduling conflicts, and the time just isn't right…for right now. I also am loving being able to take care of Mace man full time…he is my best buddy! I am not eliminating jobs that I can still do from home though!

I went to a jamberry nail party online and ordered from a good friend of mines sister. She is a doctor in Indiana and was like a big sister to me growing up. I bought a few nail wraps from her then brought them home to try. I seriously fell in love with them! When I researched the company I decided this would be a great opportunity for me to sell them until I am able to go back to work full time. Even the little extra Christmas money and baby money could go a LONG way right now. My medical bills have REALLY started piling up between my emergency room visits and baby appts. I know my mom would have loved these nails because they're perfect for nail biters or people like me who always get chips or hate the drying time. I have my first party this Thursday with just family online to share them with everyone. I know they will become as obsessed with these as I have!

Sorry that was a novel on my current life right now. I have been pretty occupied with Mason lately so I apologize if I have been bad at keeping in touch with any of you! I am looking forward to a lot in the next coming months and can't wait to update you all on baby girl! xoxo

Engagement photos Danielle & Zack

I'm so happy they turned out!!

 Had lunch with my pommel friend Becky from Midland! It was nice catching up

Mason and his new neighbor friend James

Not the best picture but these are what the Jamberry nails look like I'm selling! They last 2 weeks for manicure and 6 weeks for a pedicure. They look like polish but they're a vinyl sticker. I finally like having nice nails again!

27 weeks!

Hello everyone! I am feeling SOOOO much better the last few days. I feel like a whole new woman! I was in so much pain last week that it is all kind of a blur to me now. I will try not to give too much information but lets just say the stone is GONE. Well, one of the stones is gone at least. I still have 4 more but the great news is they are not moving right now woohoo! If anyone is a weirdo like me and would like to see a picture of the actual stone let me know but I will save you the disgust. It was not pleasant that's for sure!


We really enjoyed having Brandon's grandma visiting this week! It was so helpful having her here while I was in so much pain. The morning of the day I passed the stone I was in such crazy pain I basically had a heating pad on me all day to keep from flipping out. Cheri was able to take Mason and play while I got some rest and took my medicine. Later that night, after the stone passed, I felt so much better and was so happy to have had the help. We were able to take Mason to Chuck E. Cheese on Sunday and FINALLY get out of the house after a week of being cooped up. I'm sad that I had to miss out on a baby shower and visit with friends but I am very thankful to have my health back that's for sure.

The weather has been getting colder and it makes me both happy and sad. It makes me a little bummed that we're not going to be able to do the zoo and parks like we love but I'm happy that we're getting closer to meeting our little baby girl! We are also lucky to have some awesome new neighbors that just moved in recently. They have a 20 month old boy and a 1 month old baby girl. They came over for a playdate today and Mason had a lot of fun. It was nice meeting another SAHM who lives so close. I'm hoping we will be able to do lots of playdates this winter when the weather gets really gross!

Next week I have my 28 week appt. to see how baby girl is doing. When I reach 32 weeks I will start going every 2 weeks. I can't believe I'm already in the third trimester next week! I have a feeling this baby is going to be a December baby and not a January baby. I guess we will have to see! I hope you all have a great week. I'll leave you with some funny pictures and a comparison of Mason and baby girl in my tummy at 27 weeks!

 Mason's new minion slippers that he calls "the guys"

 Mason at 27 weeks

 Baby girl at 27 weeks. I don't see much of a difference!!

 Rocco's new Fall sweater. Very GQ

"I want to go back to Phoenix!"-- Rocco

What a week! 14 weeks to go

Hi friends and family. This week has been pretty tough on baby and I so I'm sorry I am a little late with posting. Last Friday night Brandon and I were watching a movie and I started having some back pain. The back pain ended up getting pretty intense. The pain got so intense that it was actually starting to make me throw up and I knew right away it was a kidney stone. A month before I found out I was pregnant with Mason I had surgery to remove a kidney stone and was warned by my doctor that pregnancy would definitely bring them on again.

The pain got so bad that I actually told Brandon to call 911! he knew right away at that point he needed to take me to the doctor because I'm usually pretty tolerable with pain. This made labor pain feel like a breeze! When I got to the E.R. They were experiencing one of the busiest nights of the year according to the nurse. So it was 2 hours until I was able to get any pain relief. My tests showed that I had developed an infection and I was going to be admitted to the hospital. 

I was hooked on Morphine and antibiotics and was ordered for an ultra sound. The ultrasound showed I had 5 stones all on my right side. One is 7mm so I will have to get a lithotripsy (where they blast the stone with a laser!) after baby is born. I was sent home Sunday afternoon with pain meds to hopefully pass them. Normally I would have had surgery but with pregnancy my options are pretty limited right now. The pain is CRAZY intense. Every morning I wake up and feel like the pain is going to make me pass out. After taking my medicine I start to feel a little better and it makes getting through the day easier.

This is definitely one of those weeks where I need my mom BIG time. I don't think my friends and family realize how painful kidney stones are :( I had to cancel some things this week and was asked "You have stones I don't get why that means you can go?" It would seriously be like asking a woman in labor to "hang out" same pain!

Luckily Brandon's family has come to the rescue again for me this week! I honestly feel like my bad luck has to end soon! I am almost embarrassed to tell anyone what has been going on with me this pregnancy because it seems unreal. I really hope baby isn't effected by any of this. It scares me so much! She has had to experience a lot of different medicines between the hives and stones. Poor little girl! Brandon's mom and sister came down which was really nice. Mason had so much fun with them! Brandon's grandma is also arriving any minute now too! She is going to help me in the mornings when my pain is the worst. I get nervous to wake up everyday because it is seriously the most painful thing I have ever experienced! 

Besides all the poopy stuff I am feeling pretty good pregnancy wise. Baby is getting big and strong and I got to see her in ultrasound. one of my favorite parts of staying in labor and delivery over the weekend was hearing all the babies cries for the first time. The nurses were amazing and I am looking forward to seeing some of them again. They were so caring and sweet! 

I hope you all have a great week and I look forward to updating you with happy heathy news next week….hopefully!