From Chauncey's Viewpoint

I have decided to start my own little feature on my blog and it will be about Chauncey and his photography. He is, slowly but surely, learning to use my DSLR camera and he's not so bad! :) So, I told him that if he took photos and I found enough that I deemed awesome then he could have his own blog post.... amazingly... he did just that! He has a different style of photography than me, but beautiful. I love the feeling behind some of these that really vibes with simplicity.

Enjoy! :)

I am excited to see where this goes and how Chauncey progresses with his own style of photography.
I told him that I'd like to feature this on here at least once a month, so we will be back soon enough with some more of his photos! :)

23 weeks!

Well, I just keep trucking right along. Since last week's big scare there hasn't been a whole lot going on in my world. I am feeling this baby girl move SO much! I can even see it on my stomach when she kicks and it's so surreal. It's seriously the weirdest thing I've ever experienced. Even now, as I type this blog she is kicking up a storm. *Wondering if she's got some serious dance moves to teach me...*

Her nursery is ALMOST done! Just a few final touches from Ikea when we go in July, and a dresser and she'll be set! :) I am so so so excited that things are all settling into place so well. I also feel so blessed by my employers and their willingness to open a way for me to work part time and from home so that I can be a stay at home mama and keep this baby girl from daycare early on. Blessings are pouring out from every which way!

Another blessing? We got a brand new breast pump from my registry list. This may not seem like a big deal to some, but there was no way I could afford $170 for a breast pump new and buying used would have been my last resort. I put it onto my registry, just in case, and BAM.. someone bought it for us and I seriously felt like crying because I felt so blessed and happy! :) I feel so appreciative and happy!!!

Week: 23
Weight: 154 (Not really a 4lb gain, I just guess-timated last week!)
Weight Gain since Pregnancy Started: 18 lbs
Mood: Overall pretty good, my mood swings seem to be dwindling and I don't feel so overly emotional anymore. I am feeling a bit chunky nowadays and that might be getting to me more than anything but for where I am at in this pregnancy I really don't feel so bad about the weight gain. I have heard far worse horror stories about weight gain and I think I'm on a good track. I still fit in most of my clothes (and t-shirts) so I am happy that I am not blowing up but I still miss my size 4 skinny jeans... *sniff sniff*
Food: Doesn't matter really. I don't really like eating meat still and I feel as if that feeling is intensifying. I don't really want meat unless it's a hot dog or chicken nuggets. I don't know... I'm starting to feel queasy when thinking about certain foods again and I'm hoping that the nausea isn't returning. I am always hungry, always. ALWAYS. I could talk about food for another 10 lines.. I'll stop now. ;)

Remember last week's post with Chauncey's HUGE elephant ear? These are the baby ears that are coming up! They weren't even sprouted AT all last week and here they are making their adorable little appearance! There are 3 more in a different spot, but they are so darling! I couldn't resist posting a photo of them and my super supportive husband! :)

In other exciting news I have been adding a bunch of new stuff to Flourish! I have a few new bracelet sets (the neon is my FAVORITE!!) and even some really cute handmade moccasins that I have added! I will be holding my first giveaway this week sometime, so check back to enter! :)

Flourish is expanding!

It's not typical for me to jump into something super duper fast, so it's no surprise that it took me over 2 months to finally get up the nerve to post my moccasins on Etsy! :) I am so satisfied with the look, the photos and everything that has to do with all that went into this. I can't wait to make them in more colors and with more designs! But, starting today I am definitely starting "somewhere"!! :)

Check out my new mocs in my Flourish store!

22 Weeks!

Today was stressful to say the least. At least, this morning was very stressful.
This morning I found myself bleeding a WHOLE lot... I mean.... heavy period style bleeding. I know it's gross, but all I could do was stare at the toilet paper in shock, as if it weren't happening. It was such an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach. Unfortunately it was SO early this morning that my OB wasn't open yet, so Chauncey and I rushed to labor/delivery at my hospital. They checked baby girl for fetal heart tones and then checked everything else... she is fine and so am I. I guess I had a blood vessel burst (which is common in pregnancy due to blood flow increase?!) and it was just bleeding like a fountain. I felt so thankful and so relieved at the fact that it was nothing serious, but the drive to the hospital was awful. I don't think I've ever been so scared or nervous!! I am glad that's over with, and I'm ready to face week 22 with head held high and not a fear in sight! :)

Week: 22
Weight: 150
Weight Gain since Pregnancy Started: 14 lbs
Mood: Pretty good. I am generally happy if I'm fed and well rested. All I really need is a full tummy and a good night's sleep and I am seriously really happy. Still wondering when that "2nd trimester burst of energy" will hit....
Food: JUNK, JUNK, JUNK. All I want to do is eat junk. SO MUCH. Pretzel M&Ms, hot dogs, bacon egg and cheese biscuits, donuts, chicken mcnuggets, salty salty foods and I am starting to crave spicy foods. MMMMM!!!! *Can't wait for dinner!*


*Don't judge me, I didn't wear makeup today and look really tired in these photos... I just never had time this morning!*

This is Chauncey's elephant ear that he's growing. He's got 2 more that are in the yard (brand new plants) and they will be beautiful! I can't wait until they are huge! :) He's also got a really cool kumquat tree and it produced a ton of little tiny kumquats this year.

Have a lovely week everyone! I have a big surprise coming to my Etsy store this weekend. :) I can't wait to share it with you all!

Bohemian Collective

Oh my goodness! Isn't this gorgeous? Laura from Violet Bella and a handful of other talented designers have teamed up to create a drop dead gorgeous Lookbook for the new blog: The Bohemian Collective.

About a month ago, I received an email from Laura. Flourish Leather (my little ol bracelet store) was asked to be a part of this exciting collaboration. Today was an amazing day to be able to see the results of Laura's dream and all of the artists coming together in style and photography. Just beautiful.

If you haven't yet seen the Bohemian Collective, please go check it out. There are some seriously amazing pieces in the lookbook and the photography is just breathtaking!

The artists and companies in The Bohemian Collective have joined efforts to create a place where we inspire creativity and giving through our art and vision. This rotating collaboration of artists will orchestrate inspiring, seasonal lookbooks featuring our handmade clothing, jewelry, and home accessories. Our desire is to share the love within our community as far as we can! This is where you can help. We invite anyone to participate by making a donation in any amount you choose which will be allocated to a specific charity each season. All proceeds this summer will benefit To Write Love On Her Arms, a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. To read more about their organization, please read here.

21 week update!

Well, here I am... past the halfway point. It feels good to have come so far and have experienced very little discomfort yet I am seeing the days fly by so quickly. I am feeling more and more urgency to clean, clean, clean! I want this house ready! :) Things have been going pretty smoothly though. We bought our baby crib this weekend and a cute bedding set. It was a fluke that we happened to go by Walmart on a day they were having a 50% off sale and just HAPPEN to have adorable white cribs for only $50! :) This momma is a happy camper!

We have very little left to buy before she gets here! It will be nice to have everything taken care of and just relax as I get bigger and bigger... and not have to worry about doing this stuff later... how will I be expected to organize a house??? Especially if I don't even want to put on shoes!! ;)

Week: 21
Weight: 149
Weight Gain since Pregnancy Started: 13 lbs
Mood: Things seem pretty positive lately. I don't seem to feel nearly as down as I did last week. The only thing that's getting to me a whole lot is weight gain! I'm still fitting in my pants (with the help of my belly belt extender)... and all my shirts still fit (pretty cute at this point)... but I'm getting ready to enter a new phase where things that I am wearing now won't fit anymore and I'm scared of the depression I might experience from that. I am just hoping that I will be realistic and by living in such a positive household and having Chauncey be so uplifting towards me that I will be able to deal with it and smile. :)
Food: Cereal is pretty much still high on my WANT list. As long as I eat 3 bowls in the morning, a snack, big lunch, another snack... and another snack and dinner (with dessert?!)... I am okay. If this momma is fed and well-rested then she is happy! :)

 

Also! It's official! We have picked out a name! :)

I have posted the name on my Facebook page and there it will stay until she is born. If you'd like to know what the name is you are more than welcome to friend me on Facebook, but for now I think I will keep the name private! :) Picking out a name is hard work!  Hope you all have a great week! :)

Our trip to Eureka Springs!

Last week Chauncey and I went to Eureka Springs, Arkansas. It's not too far from where we live and we had a fun day meeting up with some distant relatives and enjoying the beautiful spring weather.

I don't have much to say about the day, but here is what I did in photos: