34 weeks...

Only a mild case of heartburn & a stretch of 4 hours sleep.
Baby is low (my 'region' is constantly sore).
A little girl said to me,

"Wow, that baby is ready to POP right out" (her mother turned bright red, I absolutely loved the little girl's inhibition to rub my belly and say wonderful child-things)

All the dad's at my work keep saying i'm huge.
All the mom's keep saying how small i am- "you are all belly." & "you've stayed in such great shape."
(Keep it coming ladies...super confidence booster when you have very few normal clothes that fit!)
I'm a little more hormonal than I'd like to be- crying at commercials & getting my feelings hurt over petty things, but I'm trying my best to be confident, loving, kind, & not whiny.

34 weeks was also TASTY!!!!

 

Kogi's food truck was nearby...

he is using the couch as a table.

 the couch table usage is okay bc it was 11 PM on a work night.
& he was being polite.
sitting with me on floor pillows with my legs in a straddle sit (thank you gymanstics years!)
((this is my second favorite position, behind the yoga ball squat!)

& Kogi's = most AH-mazing Korean BBQ from a food truck.

Way better than eating a lame spaghetti dinner at 7:30 PM.

is that a baby or my dinner?!?!

ignore my fat face & adore the baby bump!!! (no really, talk to it & rub it)

Notice the blank wall in the background?
it is going to turn into a wedding collage of photos and when Aiden is here we will frame some pictures of his adorable little fingers and toes too!
Any suggestions on where to buy some affordable, vintage-y looking frames?
I'm thinking 10-12 in various sizes (hurry & help me before Joel changes his mind on letting me hang that many!)

From this Day Forward,
Mac-cries at everything (out of happiness, mostly!)

Too pregnant brained to write SO enjoy some pictures from the past few weeks.

a view of my own.

didn't want to get dressed day so my sister came over and MADE me get dressed.

OWL cupcakes...YUMMY!

 

Handmade Owl stuffed animals (there are 6 and they are so going in Aiden's room)

Creepy Cat Lady Photos:

coco takes over everything, but gosh she is cute.

How much is that kitty in the window?

"Leave me alone, I'm sleeping!"

p.s. .  I don't like cats, but I ♥ this cat. don't judge me.
p.p.s. Before, During, & After pictures of baby Aiden's room coming soon! (pinkie promise, sealed with a kiss!!!)

From this Day Forward,
MacraZie for my cat child

Steppin' Out #2- Val's Graduation

This Weekend was full of 'Nesting'. The Hubs and I finally got around to (almost) printing out our wedding photos- yes, it's been almost a year! And even though we didn't actually get the pictures for the frames or the canvas print printed, we picked out the ones we wanted and are going to order on-line this week (promise!).  We DID, however, accomplish anchoring bookshelves, building the crib, moving the fish tank, and hanging the tapestry (Thank you to our handy-man friend, Jack).

Then in the middle of framing pictures  and straightening the rug for baby Aiden's room, we got prettied up and took our friend out for a little celebratory dinner-She graduated with a BA in Mathematics (yikes) all while raising the most adorable son on her own **AMAZING MAMA POWER**.  We are so proud of you VAL!

Handyman Jack and Graduate Val!

all prettied up!

Steppin' Out #2- Val's Graduation dinner at the Yardhouse.

Necklace: Vintage
Dress: Marshal's ($15!!)
Jacket: Nordstroms (from 6 years ago)
Wedges: Steve Madden

From this Day Forward,
McLovin'

33 weeks.

33 weeks equals...

• 7 more weeks to go (potentially more, hopefully less).
• heartburn from just smelling spicy foods (that I want to eat...but have had a little self control)
•  i want sushi. the RAW kind- sashimi.
• i want a bottle of red, red, wiiiine (insert completely off-pitch, squeaky singing voice here) all to myself.
• if wine is not available, i'll take a beer please.
• we must assemble the crib and start organizing the nursery (it will help me sleep better...hahaha (insert evil laugh here))
• my tummy is huge, LIKE, I didn't think it would get THIS big huge. (and i have 7 more weeks of growing to do!)
• i have forgotten what sleeping longer than an hour and half feels like.
• my tanks and tees are now Homer Simpson status (even the ones i just bought!)

From this day forward,
Macrae is too tired to think of a quirky name.

Steppin' out #1

This is the outfit from my Introductory Mother's Day.

Hubby

Sweater: Hand-me-down from cousin (Volcom)

Blue V-neck (under sweater): Target

Shorts: Izod

Shoes: Sperry Topsiders

Pregnant Lady

Necklace: Vintage

Dress: J-crew

Sweater: J-crew

Belt: borrowed from a friend

Boots: Urban
purse: F21


We enjoyed a nice breakfast and walk around La Jolla beach (even though the weather was a bit chilly).  We are so color coordinated. (Sadie Hawkins much?) 


check out some more pictures from that day...more awesome Intro. mother's day pics

Introductory Mother's Day

"I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where. I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride; so I love you because I know no other way." -Pablo Neruda

I imagine this is the love a mother feels for her children-I know I already love Aiden, I feel an incredible ache to meet him and at the same time a kind of selfishness because right now, he is all mine.  I feel this urge to just want to cuddle with him and smell him and have him to hold in my arms, not just in my belly. 

...

I had the most incredible weekend that started with a super fun gymnastics experience-one of my level 9 athletes qualified to Westerns (a championship competition consisting of the top athletes from the West-side of the U.S.).  My athlete had a great time and so did I!

Then my husband (I JUST LOVE MY HUSBAND) took me on a semi-surprise trip to La Jolla for the night where we stayed in a cute inn, ate delicious food, and spent some couple time together-cuddling, walking, enjoying the ocean view & watching the Pac-man/Mosely fight (Yes, I had fun watching boxing! It was something my husband wanted to do & he is like a little kid in a candy shop when these sort of events are on. For some reason, this makes me happy). 

Here are some pictures from the weekend (apologies for the quality-we forgot our real cameras and these were all taken with our phones):

The view from where we watched the fight. see our room?!?

Good morning, view from our room on my intro. mother's day!

date night.

oh hello, view from our breakfast table.

see my new shades? yup, my first mother's day present-Ray Bans!

La Jolla Beach

I just love my AWESOMELY thoughtful husband.

31 weeks 4 days

"Love, Love, here we are"

Hat shop fun (and yes I AM THE CAPTAIN, Joel is my first mate!)

 Today is my introductory mother's day, and I have been made to feel extra special by my husband, family & friends, from parents of my gymnasts, and from strangers (several people have stopped me today while we were walking around La Jolla to wish me a happy mother's day!).  I want to say Happy Mother's day to ALL mothers, to everyone's mother, but most especially to MY mother.

From this day forward,

Honorary Mom

31 weeks

I just re-read my non-fiction piece 23 and wanted to add to it, kind of...

You are 31 weeks pregnant.  You will visit the doctor every 2-3 weeks.  You don't mind because you get to listen to baby Aiden's heart beat and see his every growing self on the monitor.  You will be slightly disappointed when she doesn't print you 8 more ultrasound pictures to add to your collection of thirty, but she makes up for this by pointing to the screen and saying,

"Yep, there's still a scrotum.  Still a boy."

You will pee on your hand when they want you to pee in a cup because you cannot see anything past your belly.

You will feel like you are a cow when you step on the scale and the nurse says,

"You are still 4 pounds over the weight you should be."  

You will feel guilty for lying about doing the count kick card every night (you do track it most some nights!).
You will leave the doctor's office and sneeze/pee in the elevator, but you laugh because that's what your husband would do while cheering,

"Ya, buddy!"

From this day forward,
Mac-cow (haha, JK)

Staying busy...

Easter!

Early Mother's Day!

Opening Day!

I never thought time could move so quickly. The 'icky nauseous all day, every day' feelings finally went away. The 'I feel great and cute with my bump, let's go on lots of adventure days' have passed.  And even though I'm in the 'can't sleep, totally uncomfortable in anything but my birthday suit, waddling, achy hip, feeling all kinds of huge' months- My days still end too quickly (especially Sundays).  

I've been getting creative with my outfits...(same dress, different belt or sweater!) Or I just wear whatever isn't huge on me from my husband's closet.

Sweet gesture of the week:  One of my old gymnasts (now a co-worker) and her fiance got me some super adorable and comfy maternity clothes because they heard me complaining about how I feel like Homer Simpson in all my shirts!  These two are so thoughtful and sweet.  I am so excited for them on their upcoming marriage.  (Will post pictures soon of the super cute outfits!)

From this day forward,
Macrae