I think it’s high time for a visual post. I think I’ve been too wordy and boring with these posts. So here are some pics. They aren’t very exciting pictures, but I’d like to share a few of things that have helped me along in my pregnancy.
My hero, Aaron
Aaron has been a total trooper. He has done a million things that I’ve asked of him and a million more without me even asking. I can’t imagine going through any of this without him — and I don’t want to.
Gracie
There are not words to express how great Gracie has been. She comes to my side (or, more accurately, my belly) every time I cry after a bad day or have a mini breakdown, worrying about how everything will get done. She sleeps beside me at night and cheers me by bringing me a toy every morning. She is truly the greatest.
Body pillow
In November, my friend Andra gave me her pregnancy pillow, which was a Boppy Total Body pillow. The Boppy preggers pillow has quite a unique shape; it’s sort of serpentine with two differently-shaped pillows on each side connected by a very thin, long layer of pillow. If that makes any sense at all. Anyway, within hours of Andra giving me the pillow, I took just about the best nap of my life. I hadn’t slept that well in months. But something strange happened…as I worked my way into the third trimester, the pillow’s magic started to wane. I panicked a little, rearranged other pillows, tried flipping the pillow ends, tried wrapping the pillow all around me…Nothing seemed to work. I was uncomfortable again and there seemed to be no good solution. Until I bought the above-pictured body pillow from The Company Store. Cue music. Hallelujah! Heaven. I had had an excellent prenatal massage the day after my birthday and the masseuse had me use a similar body pillow. I felt like I could have fallen asleep on the table. After the massage, and an excellent lunch at La Baguette, Aaron and I popped in The Company Store to find a gargantuan body pillow on super sale. We bought it, took it home and I again had one of the best naps of my life. I don’t really know what to attribute the new comfort to, except maybe how much larger this pillow is and how it’s not been beaten down by my pregnancy body so it’s still fluffy and big. Whatever the case, I love this pillow.
Prenatal yoga
Prenatal yoga has been dreamy. I don’t always want to go, and sometimes I just do it from a DVD at home, but whenever I am done with it, I feel so much better. I know that everyone says that, but it’s true. It’s not pretty to watch my form (even calling it ‘my form’ is a stretch – pun intended), but I feel relaxed and looser after I do it. I just recently read an article in the New York Times Magazine about just how dangerous yoga can be. Of course, the article seemed to highlight moves involving headstands and crazy neck-stressing moves, and not the cat/cow poses I love so much, or the squats that hurt and the pelvic moves that help alleviate pain, so I don’t think I have much to worry about on that front. My hope is to do some postnatal yoga, as well.
Cupcake
This gorgeous cupcake was served at the Great Roe/Lund Baby Shower that was held last Sunday and it was even more delicious than it looks. I haven’t eaten a lot of cupcakes while pregnant, but I have eaten many more sweets than I would usually. I’m not sure if I have an actual increase in craving sweets, or it’s just that I let myself have cookies and ice cream far more frequently than I ever did when I wasn’t pregnant. In either event, though, I have enjoyed the sweet treats I’ve had. Yum.
Maps
Etsy. And Pinterest. Both of these sites have given me countless ideas for the nursery, and the rest of our house, and have made me feel more organized and less stressed about cute-ify-ing everything. I bought four of these maps off of Etsy and put them up in the dining area, replacing some ad hoc hangings we had there previously. The two maps shown are Madison and London (not shown, Florence & Rome). I just love the way they look — they have brought a crisp, clean look to a wall that had been really annoying me. I believe buying things like this fits in the category pregnancy-watchers like to call ‘nesting.’
Nursery corner
Decorating our make-shift nursery has been mostly super fun. Here is a picture of a lamp I love (bought from Urban Outfitters), a great radio my mom and Severa got me for Christmas, an adorable rattle from Land of Nod, courtesy of the awesome Tammy, and unbelievably cute mini-Chuck Taylors from Maggie (she had them sit atop the diaper cake she made us for the aforementioned shower). Oh! And a table from West Elm that was almost half-off with free shipping. Although we are limited on space, I think we have done well with what we have. I can’t wait to show you more pics. And that chair that you see in the pic? That’s just a glider placeholder — don’t worry, I will tell you the second the glider arrives.
Olivia and her tooth
This is a picture of my cousin Olivia, who was one of the greatest shower guests ever, helping us open all of the presents we were so lucky to receive. But I mean for the picture to represent my family in general because they have been indispensable and unparalleled in their love and support. We are so very, very lucky.
life and puppies 