23 week baby bump

Soooo I missed weeks 21 and 22. OOPS! Time is flying and I've been busy with some projects I've been working on the side.  Since I've been MIA here are my past two weeks in pictures: 

 

{attended a baby shower, birthday celebrations, new items for our home, date night with the hubs, I put together some fresh florals for my Valentine's, and some shopping trips to Home Goods, Babies R Us and Target]

As of today I am 24 weeks + 2 days.  Here I am last week with a 23 week photo: 

                      {I really need to stop taking these photos at the end of the day - tired.eyes.}


How far along? 23 weeks  

Gender? Definitely a GIRL! My sweet baby Carter Jane 

Nicknames? CJ, baby Jane. Is it weird I already have nicknames for her and she's not even here yet?! 

Total weight gain/loss? 11 pounds since my last doctors appointment 4 weeks ago.  I have another today.  I think today will be a game changer in the weight department.  I feel huge!

Maternity clothes?  Yesterday I purchased two tops from Target while I was looking for a new lamp for our house.  I definitely like the more body conscious tops/ tanks with ruching at the sides.  I picked the two tops up without trying them on - 1 ruched and 1 baby doll style. Woah, the baby doll style does not work for me, makes me feel bigger than I am.  They have some super cute knit dresses out too, I wish it wasn't 1 degree outside so I could start wearing them with slip on sneaks or dare I say it, sandals!

Sleep? I haven't been waking up AS early as I was sharing with you all during my last blog post around 20 weeks.  So that's good.  Since I'm up multiple times a night having to go to the restroom, sometimes it's pretty difficult for me to fall back asleep.  I think they call this "training for when baby comes".  

Best moment this week? She's kicking! Well, not enough that I can share with my husband yet... Her kicks are VERY sporadic and sometimes I find myself staring at my stomach wanting her to kick again.  I hear from non-first time moms that will change soon.  

Symptoms? Emotional - I cried hysterically to the trailer of "The Theory of Everything".  Just to the trailer.  Take a look: ahhh. 

other symptoms: Mood swing-ish {sorry to my husband}, tired in the afternoons around 3-4pm it usually hits me.  

Food cravings? 

• Starbucks black tea/ lemonade unsweetened.  Very specific and very good! It's the most refreshing drink ever.  I wake up some mornings daydreaming about getting one.  
• Seafood.  I know I can't have a lot of it, but I've been indulging now and again.  My husband made one of our favorite guilty - pleasure meals on Valentine's Day... Peppered Shrimp Alfredo.  Delish! {Find the recipe HERE}
• Salads.  I guess that's not a bad thing! 

Food aversions? I've been getting better with eating chicken.  Nothing else in particular the past week or so, but sometimes that can change daily.  

Labor signs? x

Belly button in or out?In.

What I miss? Drinking multiple cups of coffee a day.  Decaf just isn't the same.  

What I'm looking forward to? Seeing CJ in an ultrasound on Thursday! Also my Mom and husband will be going with me so it will be fun to watch their reactions.  

Nursery? Well, we have the crib - yay! My husband, Darren put it together the day after it came as per my request nagging.  The nursery collection is growing.  I purchased a few things from Home Goods to pair up with some things I already own {two cute new mercury lamps with grey drum shades, three grey stitched baskets for storage}. They were typical Home Goods steals! I could literally spend an entire week's pay in that store.  I have to practice self control.  

Mood? Antsy! A friend of mine asked me yesterday if I was nervous / excited for Carter to come. Although we are no where near ready as far as having everything we need for her yet, I'm want her to get here already! I can't imagine how I'll be feeling at 30 some weeks.  Ha! 

I'll leave you with the CUTEST photo of my niece Brooke "organizing" her cousin Carter's clothing in the nursery.  break.my.heart. 

20 week baby bump

Hello! So... I've had a very busy week and am just getting to my 20 week baby bump update. {As of today I am 21 weeks + 1 day.} I couldn't not snap a picture, this is major! HALFWAY. wow. Time is really starting to tick now.  

   

{please excuse the tired eyes, this photo was taken after a day of work, and after being up since 4:30am!}

How far along? 20 weeks 

Gender? Definitely a GIRL! My sweet baby Carter Jane.

Total weight gain/loss? 10 lbs from the start of pregnancy.  

Maternity clothes?  I still haven't gone full blown maternity yet.  My favorite type of outfit consists of: my Ingrid & Isabel maternity leggings, a black cami, flowy cardigan and a scarf! {oh, kind of like my 20 week picture I shared with you!}  I did just purchase this cute top from LOFT today in size xl which will be good as my stomach keeps getting larger! I think this week i'll go ahead and order some maternity boyfriend jeans I've been eyeing up.  

Sleep? Still overall pretty great - especially since my doctor let me know I didn't have to sleep directly on my left side like I thought and that I do have the option to sleep on my right side if it feels more comfortable.  I'm typically up by 5:30/6am, this morning was 5:30am! HUNGRY. gotta love it!

Best moment this week? I'm an ultrasound - a - holic.  I love seeing my little girl on the monitor.  On Thursday of this past week I had my level two, 20 week ultrasound.  My mother-in-law and bestie came along to "meet" baby Carter and it was such an amazing experience to share with them.  Nothing is better than hearing that baby is doing well and everything is growing appropriately.  Carter is currently 13oz, just under one pound! little cutie. We saw the four chambers of her heart, looked at her brain and all of her little limbs were measured.  


Symptoms? Hungry very early in the morning, sometimes I'll also catch myself out of breath.  

Food cravings? this week I had a few interesting ones: 

• a hot dog, french fry, birch beer combo from our favorite pit stop on our way to our family cabin...aka no where local! 
• klondike bars
• creamed corn casserole {my husband has made a version of this before in the crockpot and I can't get it out of my mind}
• chocolate orange cookies {I think they call them "pillows"} from Tabora Farm - which I stopped to get this week and they were SOLD. OUT. break my heart! 

Food aversions? Chicken.  I used to love chicken, now I barely eat it at all throughout my pregnancy unless it's camouflaged in a recipe and not in huge pieces.  Strange. 

Labor signs? x

Belly button in or out?In.

What I miss? Nothing this week, I've been too busy to miss anything! 

What I'm looking forward to? More sunlight in the day.  It seems like its starting to not get dark so early, or maybe that's just my imagination? 

Nursery? My husband and I ordered Carter's crib two days ago and it should be arriving this week.  I plan to order her curtains this week or maybe next.  I found these super cute ones:

I've been shopping around and they are a steal at $26.99 per panel! We have three windows in Carter's room and I think to start I am going to order three panels and see how that looks.  I don't want overkill with ruffled curtains and I think one panel will be enough for each window.  We plan on also getting black out shades for each window so that will take care of keeping sunlight out at certain times of the day.  I also want to get to the antique store in town on one of my days off to peek around and see if I find anything cute for Carter's walls.  I've already started a small collection of items, I will share with you soon! 

Want to see my other nursery inspiration? Follow my Carter Jane's Nursery Pinterest board! 

Mood? Motivated!

baby wish list

Creating a baby registry can be SO OVERWHELMING, my gosh! So many small items that are just as important as the large, and being a first time mom it's very easy to get confused.  I can't imagine not finding out the gender, that would be even harder to make decisions!

There are so many great places to register: Target, Buy Buy Baby, Babies "R" Us, Pottery Barn Kids, Land of Nod, Rosenberry Rooms, etc etc.  It's very easy to get carried away!

I decided on two registries: Babies "R" Us and myregistry.com. I figured two were easy to navigate. Anything I didn't find at Babies "R" Us I could add to MyRegistry list.  If you install the "add to MyRegistry" icon on your bookmark bar you can literally add anything from any website to your universal list.  Fab! Cute items that I found at Anthropologie, Rosenberry Rooms, Layla Grace, etc could all be put on one list.

{warning: using the registry gun is so.much.fun. I could have scanned the whole store!}

Here are some of the perks of creating a registry with Babies "R" Us

• Babies "R" Us host FREE new parent classes.  You are given a hand out of upcoming scheduled classes at the store in your area.  Newborn basics, successful breastfeeding, classes for Dads, there are many options.  
• Online buying guides and advice.  They have a tool called "R" registry builder where you can look at example registries based on gender and personal style: bargainista, spotlight on style, classic focus, disney baby.  I like this feature because I took a few things from each style, and got an overall idea of what to put on my list.  
• 1 year for returns! From your baby's expected date, you have a full year to make returns.  
• Price match guarantee.  Hello! This is great... take an ad in from Target, Amazon etc! 
• Get up to 10% back on your nursery registry purchases! 
• 5% back ($1 to $300) ex: you'll receive $15 back for your first $300 in baby registry purchases
• 10% back ($300.01 & up) ex: you'll receive $85 back if you reach $1000 in baby registry purchases  

Here are some of the photos I snapped of my trip! Note: super cute 10 year old in some photos is my youngest sister, Sammy!

stroller options. OMG there are so many! We liked this one -

Graco Modes Click Connect Travel System Stroller - Downton {okay, Lady Mary!}

$399, $499, $599 - there were many cribs that fell in this price range.  Yikes.  With all of the other baby gear I know that I am interested in, NEED, I'm not sure that I can justify that price.  Also - none of the cribs pictured above spoke to me like the one I ended up choosing.

which is THIS ONE! {so cute!}

This crib is perfect! It has that charming vintage feel that I want! After I found the style I was looking for, I was shocked at the price - $199! I've read in reviews that some people that have purchased this crib have taken off the wheels at the bottom.  They are definitely staying on there, anyone that knows me knows I love gold accents!

Since I know I will have some pieces of furniture in the room that will be mis - matched, I picked out a changing table that would compliment the crib.  I also am a fan of the size, not too bulky or overpowering for the room.  

Here are some of my other favorite things on my registry list: 

Bunny Pierre and Stars Lagoon Traveling Play Pad by Blabla

Skip Hop Diaper Bag Duo - Special Edition - Aztec

Welcome Baby! {keepsake book} 

Ergobaby Four Position 360 carrier - Grey

Dot & Stripe Chamois Stroller Blanket, Pink 

Carters 3 pack assorted mittens

LulyBoo Baby Lounge To Go 

Classic Tiny Herringbone Slip-On Toms 

Motorola MBP43-2 3.5" Color Video Monitor with Pan/ Tilt/ Zoom

I'm sure there will be many more trips to Babies "R" Us, and a lot more adding and subtracting to the list, I'm pretty proud of myself that I got this far! 

Good luck to all of the new Mommas out there creating a registry for their first time! 

18 week baby bump

Before 16 weeks hit I didn't really take many belly photos because well, there wasn't really much to see!  It was that confusing "did she eat too many cookies?" phase that is now definitely over. Below are photos from weeks 16, 17, 18.  

I'll be more consistent with photos from here on out, I promise! {Plus, I'd like my husband to start getting familiar with our new camera before baby CJ gets here}

How far along? 18 weeks

Gender? GIRL! My sweet baby Carter Jane. Here is her latest photo, she's waving Hello!

Total weight gain/loss? +8 total (from start of pregnancy)

Maternity clothes? I've purchased some maternity leggings, a few tops.  LOFT has so many great long flow-y tunics right now that are a perfect fit.  Many more maternity clothes will need to be bought in the next few weeks i'm sure! Especially pants!

Sleep? I am having the CRAZIEST dreams I have ever had! 

Best moment this week? Feeling more flutters and tiny movement.  I also broke down and bought just a few pieces of clothing for Carter.  I was having the "itch" so I picked up some goodies at Target.  I couldn't say no to some of the clearance bibs and swaddle blankets! Yikes, with how much I love prints, i'm not sure if this little lady will ever own anything solid. lol! 

Symptoms? My nausea came back! For two days straight everything I ate came right back up.  It was 10 times worse than in the beginning of my pregnancy.  After two days I felt amazing again, energy was back up. 

Food cravings? sweets. still! My gosh, I need to calm down with that. Also veggies: salads and veggie sandwiches.  

Food aversions? Some days chicken and any type of meat.  

Labor signs? x

Belly button in or out?In.

What I miss? Not having food aversions. lol!

What I'm looking forward to? Darren being able to feel the baby kick! 

Nursery? I've picked out some of Carter's bedding, I'm excited to share that in another post ... stay tuned for my nursery inspiration board!

Mood? Excited!