Introducing...

This post is a long time coming. Sorry for the delay. I've been kissing sweet cheeks and cuddling and baby-talking. In other words, I'm living a dream!!!

My husband and I prayed about it and decided that I am going to be a stay at home mom!

To be honest, I wasn't sure how I would handle being home all day long. But,

I don't have time to be bored or want to go anywhere.

That's why my sweet baby Hadley is ten weeks old today and I am just now introducing her.

We've had Father's day...

We've been on a little mini-vacation...

We had to give away two of our furbabies. :-( This was a very difficult decision that we didn't make lightly.

Zorro, our black schnauzer, he went to live with my mom before Hadley was born. He started marking her stuff, so we realized that he wouldn't do very well with her.

Then Aubrey, this was one of the hardest choices I've made. We got her on our honeymoon over four years ago. But, I worried about her with the baby and I also was overwhelmed and not giving them the attention they deserved. My cousin offered her a nice home and she seems to be happy there. This was our farewell trip.

On a happier note, there's also been some shopping, a lot of cuddling and learning and loving and some church that have wrapped up these past two months.

Now, if you'll excuse me...my sweet angel is waking up from her nap and I'm seeing some cuddle time in the very near future.

Thank you for reading!!! :-)

Candi





PPR: 36 Weeks...Tomorrow (Pictures!)

How far along? 36Weeks tomorrow

Baby Size:18 1/2 inches and almost 6lbs.

Total weight gain: 16lbs

Maternity clothes? Yes!
 

Sleep: Not very good at all! It's hard to get comfy 
and once I do, I have to pee. :)
  

Best moment this week: Finally starting to put her room together! We've got gold 
polka dots on the walls, the glider is in the room, a ceramic elephant side table (I painted it pink, 
but it will probably be painted turquoise). Her pink chandelier should be here today. My mom
made the crib skirt, I bought two bumpers (one pink damask with green trim, the other is purple damask with brown trim), and her closet is looking like a little lady's closet, full of precious little clothing. 
 

Miss Anything? Medium-rare steak...still. As soon as I have her, the plan is for someone to run and 
get me a steak! HAHA 
 

Food cravings: Applesauce! Sweets! Random things throughout the day.
 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!
 

Gender: Little lady!
 

Labor Signs: Braxton Hicks...daily. The more I'm up moving around, the harder they seem to be.
Completely bearable, just uncomfortable. 
 

Symptoms:  My poor, poor feet and hands balloon out. It's pretty uncomfortable. Also, 
tiredness has kicked in. Finding the energy for anything is hard!

Belly Button in or out? It's flat. Not in, not out.
 

Wedding rings on or off? Off
 

Mood: Still really excited! I can't wait to meet this little girl!
 

Looking forward to: Finishing her curtains on one window, installing a roman blind on the other. We have
a shower coming up this Saturday for Friends and Family. This is the last one...we've had a work shower and church shower. We are really blessed! Also, we are going to try to finish the antique sideboard that we are using as a changing table. 

Now...for the maternity pics!

We are so grateful for this miracle! God has truly been good to us!

PPR: 32 weeks

How far along? 32Weeks

Baby Size: 16 1/2 inches and 3 3/4 lbs.

Total weight gain: 9lbs

Maternity clothes? Yes!
 

Sleep: About the same. 2-5 hours a night! 
  

Best moment this week: Hearing that heartbeat at my dr appointment this morning. 154bpm
 

Miss Anything? Medium rare steak! :)
 

Food cravings: Milk and sweets!
 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!
 

Gender: GIRL!!! Hadley Addison!
 

Labor Signs: Nothing on the horizon!
 

Symptoms: Back aches, side aches from growing, swelling of hands and feet.

Belly Button in or out? It's flat. Not in, not out.
 

Wedding rings on or off? Off
 

Mood: So excited!!!!
 

Looking forward to: Meeting my little Hadley!

PPR - 28 weeks (7 MONTHS!!!)

I missed a few weeks, sorry about that!

 

How far along? 28 Weeks

Baby Size: 14 1/2 inches and 2 and a 1/2 lbs.

Total weight gain: .9 

(I didn't lose weight, I just wasn't adding it correctly. I 

lost 16lbs in my first trimester, I have gained that back, I am not .9lbs

over my start weight.)

Maternity clothes? Some - strectchy skirts and loose

shirts are my go-to choices.
 

Sleep: Not so much this past week. When I do sleep, it's hard.

But, I'll wake up and be awake for a couple of hours.
 

Best moment this week: Last night, my husband and I were lying in bed, and I was on

my side. She was kicking and moving a lot and we were watching my tummy. Then, these 

little knots came up on each side of my belly, I guess she was stretching. It was precious!
 

Miss Anything? A full night of sleep. But, I'm told I better get used to this! :)
 

Food cravings: Still milk. Adding in sweets, mostly ice cream...but anything!
 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Allergies are not fun.
 

Gender: GIRL!!! Hadley Addison!
 

Labor Signs: I have felt a few cramps which are considered Braxton Hicks, I think.
 

Symptoms: Back aches, side aches from growing, swelling of hands and feet.

Belly Button in or out? It's flat. Not in, not out.
 

Wedding rings on or off? Off
 

Mood: I'm ready! Can't wait to meet this precious little girl!
 

Looking forward to: Next weeks appointment and getting to hear her heartbeat!

Design for Less: Dining Room Design with Windsor Chairs

First of all, let me just say - Praise God! I passed my gestational diabetes test!!!

Now, here's a room I saw on Elements of Style Blog this morning:

[source unknown]

chairs

table (DIY)

table (buy)

light

or 

light (more expensive)

*Cat optional! ha

[source unknown]

chairs

settee

end chairs

table (DIY)

light

or

light (more expensive)

PPR: 25 Weeks

How far along? 25 Weeks

Baby Size: 13 1/2 inches and a pound and a half

Total weight gain: +3   

Maternity clothes? Some
 

Sleep: Good, mostly!
 

Best moment this week: Getting to hear that little heartbeat this morning. 156 bpm

Also, the 'swoosh' noises of her kicking. The nurse was having a hard time getting the heartbeat because she was moving and kicking so much! lol
 

Miss Anything? Nope!
 

Food cravings: Still drinking my milk every night. I did find a food that is wonderful!!! Almond Joy Cupcakes...they're awesome!
 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nothing.
 

Gender: GIRL!!! Little Miss Hadley
 

Labor Signs: None. Let's keep those away for another 2-3 months!
 

Symptoms: Back aches while sleeping, still and some swelling in my hands.

Belly Button in or out? It's getting close, but in right now.
 

Wedding rings on or off? Off
 

Mood: Excited!!
 

Looking forward to: Getting a phone call this afternoon telling me that I DO NOT HAVE GESTATIONAL DIABETES!!!! And, I am so happy to have that test over with! :)

***

Also, on a side note: I emailed Joss & Main and asked them about the rug and they're sending me another one and letting me exchange the one I have. So, fingers crossed, that it will be a bit more gray and tan!

Monday Ramblings

The GOOD: We hosted a Young Marrieds Valentines Party at our house Saturday night and it was great!!! We laughed hard and had a lot of fun with friends. Pictures are on Instagram (candiussery), follow me!

Also, I am involved in our Children's Ministry at church and I am planning a service, beginning to end, for this Sunday. I am so excited! I have never planned an entire service, from beginning prayer to dismissal! Thank you Lord for new opportunities and growth!

The BAD: Well, we got our rug in for Hadley's nursery and what do you know...it's red! Not even close to the gray-tan that was advertised. I am so disappointed. I knew when I bought it that I couldn't get my money back (they do take returns for store credit). And, being fair, it does say colors vary, however, when they say it is handmade, why would they not hand-make it a little bit more like the picture advertised and a little LESS reddish-brown. What irritates me the most, is that I could have purchased a rug of that color for less money than what I did this one, I paid more because I "thought" I was getting the gray hide.

Lesson learned. Don't buy cowhide rugs online.

Now, I'm back to square one and have to find a rug for Hadley's room, because the rug I bought will not work in there now.

Oh well...first world problems, right?!

And The UGLY: Now, on the home front...we have to sand some sheetrock where we added a wall and add crown molding and baseboards to the master bedroom and nursery, then we'll be ready to paint the inside of the house.

All rooms are going to be painted Benjamin Moore White Dove. Can't wait! It's going to look so great with our dark hardwoods.

Also coming up, I'm going to be applying a faux marble paint job to our existing laminate countertops to make sure that I like the white countertops. (We will not be doing real marble when we get new countertops.) And, new tile floor in the kitchen, dining, and laundry room.

 More GOOD: Because I don't want to end on a bad or ugly note: I hope everyone had a great weekend! We got our kitchen cabinet doors painted and installed, pictures coming soon.

I have my doctors appointment in the morning, I'll be 25 weeks! Pregnancy Progress Report, tomorrow. This is a big one. I have to do the sugar test to make sure I don't have gestational diabetes. Looking forward to getting that part over with. I'm not a fan of needles (who is?!?!) but I also don't want to have diabetes because that's not good for the baby or me. So, I'm just praying that all will be fine!

Hopefully Craigslist will work in my favor and I won't lose any money on the rug.

As soon as the house gets painted, I will start working on getting the nursery furnished and decorated. I can't wait to document all of that here!