14 Week Bumpdate

How far along: 14 weeks, 5 days today

Weight gain: back to pre-pregnancy weight (gained ½ lb since last week)

Maternity clothes: None, yet. I’ve been tempted to try out some, but I just feel silly at this point. I’m still not looking ‘pregnant’ so I’m going to enjoy my skinny jeans as long as possible.

Best Moment this Week? The best ‘moment’ would have to have been having a three-day weekend. I didn’t get to sleep in because Quinn is an early-riser but I did get to nap on Saturday (THREE HOURS!) and still went to bed at 9:00 p.m. (not even sure how it’s possible to be so sleepy…) We enjoyed a weekend that was pretty much just Joe and I, and Quinn and Aubrey – but, on Saturday we took our nephew to his first Phillies game which was fun despite the guys playing absolutely terribly.

Sleep: I’m pretty sure that the previous answer covered that – I CAN’T GET ENOUGH! I’m really looking forward to the whole second trimester = more energy thing… any day now!

Gender:  This week, I’ve been feeling like the baby is a boy… I won’t admit that to Joe though :-p

Movement: I could be out of my mind, but I’m 99.9% positive that I felt the baby on Friday. I felt this light pulsation that I have never ever felt before and after some weird Google searches came to find that it might have been hiccups… who knows?!

Looking forward to: Still looking forward to my appointment in two weeks BUT I got incredible news on Saturday that one of my best childhood friends who is expecting their first baby THREE WEEKS BEFORE ME will be coming back to PA for a visit on the 21^st. Now, that’s what I’m super looking forward to. I haven’t seen her since my wedding in 2011!!

Food cravings: On Friday and Saturday I had a hankering for Chick-Fil-A nuggets – like a ‘I need to have them or I’m going to die’ hankering. I didn’t give in on Friday and made chicken at home but it didn’t quite hit the spot so Saturday we had an early dinner there. Other than that, still loving fruit, yogurt, and vitamin water.

Anything making you queasy or sick: A lot of food. Yesterday we stopped to grab some quick bites while we were working on the fixer upper and to my surprise, I grabbed a veggie platter. I still don’t crave vegetables but it was such a relief that I could eat something that I used to love and that’s super healthy for me. I think I also had my first bout of motion sickness on Sunday – on our way to the Phillies game I was almost positive I was going to get sick in the car but thankfully a granola bar helped to ease my stomach.

Labor Signs: Absolutely none

What I miss: This weekend was actually the first time I’ve missed alcohol. I was never much of a drinker but Joe had a hard iced tea and maybe I was just super thirsty, but I was so tempted by it. Obviously, I didn’t give in but it was surprisingly difficult to fight the urge.

Symptoms: HEADACHES! I feel like I’ve had one every day for the past 2+ weeks and nothing seems to help. I also still get queasy at night but these headaches make everything worse.

Nursery: We are no further this week than we were last week but, we have plenty of time so I’m not stressed :)

Belly button in or out? Definitely still in

Wedding rings on or off? On

Mood: Eek – I have been super irritable this past week. I’m not one to be a grouch or to complain too much, but I can’t seem to stop myself lately. I feel terrible about it too so hopefully it won’t last.

Workouts: PFT. Nothing major this week. I’ve even slacked on Quinn’s long walks this week which might account for the weight gain. Have I mentioned that I’m really looking forward to my energy levels increasing?!

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Welcome to the Fixer-Upper!

If you follow me on Instagram, you know about our awesome fixer-upper. Is it weird that I have yet to refer to it as 'home'? I always call it 'the house.' I wonder when the transition will take place... Anyhow, we've been working on the house for about a month and a half.

I was/have been terrible about 'before' photos. Everything has happened so fast! I wanted to share a bit of the progress we have made over the next few weeks but can't do that until you know what we got ourselves into.

Wonder no more! Also, lemme just say that most of these photos are from after we got our hands on it... so you can imagine how much worse the original situation was. We filled an ENTIRE 20-yard dumpster to the brim and are planning on getting another one!

the first photo I ever took of the house... oh, the potential!

this is what the exterior is looking like today

The house looked oh so small in comparison to our current home, but lemme just tell you - LOOKS ARE DECEIVING. It's not a traditional rectangular rancher; it's much more of a square with additions.

Are you ready to venture inside? I would suggest you put down any food or drink you might be enjoying... It's that bad.

First stop - the future mudroom. EEK!

When you enter the house from the mudroom, you'll go right into the kitchen. It's not much better in here, folks.

the real winner in the kitchen? These floor to ceiling windows! #swoon

From the kitchen, you enter into the dining room. The whole house was the absolute dingiest wall-to-wall carpeting. Thankfully, we were blessed to discover fabulous hardwood underneath. You can also see a peek of the old kitchen wallpaper that we've already removed.

Don't mind the desk sitting in the middle of the room... I'll be refinishing that baby! I discovered it in our master bedroom. It's filthy but the color, the shape, the storage... be still my heart!

From the dining room, you enter the living room. 

These first two photos are from after our first day of work - clearing out the garbage and tearing up the carpets. From these photos, I'm sure you wouldn't be surprised to learn that we found a long-dead cat :(

We have two wood-burning fireplaces in the house - one is at home in the living room and the other is in the finished basement (along with the laundry room, bar, full bath, storage, and cedar closet).

This is where we are at today. We've removed all of the carpet, tack strips, and rubbish. I've given all of the walls a good cleaning so Joe can start priming. 

Then, we move into the den/family room. 

We've since started to prime the panelings and walls. Feel free to wave goodbye to that horrid, dated wet bar. I'm still trying to convince Joe that this would be the perfect spot for the washer and dryer. HELP!

This window in the den will be removed and expanded into French doors framed by paned windows.

Don't shoot me! Joe hates the dark beams so we'll be painting them a light color as well...

Back to the living room, we head into the hall that leads to the closets, bathroom, and bedrooms.

First up - the 'pink bathroom.' You can see the remnants of the wallpaper that took me an entire weekend to remove from this tiny room. 

From there, we can head right over to the guest room. A lot of the junk has been cleared out but there's still a ton more to go... that wallpaper and those curtains. We'll actually be keeping the dressers and the bookshelf in the back for the baby's room <3

Speaking of the baby's room, let's take a peek in the future nursery!

Before:

As of right now:

(sorry, these got a bit blurry...)

That big white spot? Yep, used to be a window. I believe that this room used to be the 'master' bedroom and then they added on to the room next door which included adding the master bath on the other side of this wall. 

So, let's hit the master, shall we?

And the blue bathroom, complete with a blue tub, a blue vanity, a blue sink, a blue toilet, blue accent tiles and blue wallpaper. 

Back to the bedroom we have an entrance to the screened in patio and deck.

And we end where we started: outside. We have a lot of work to do (would you believe Joe already cut down more than half of the overgrowth?!) We have a couple of high school boys who are doing the labor out there so hopefully it'll be a little less wild in a few days.

This is the view from the den:

So, what's on our to do list?

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Tatertots & Jello | S3 | Classy Clutter | I Heart Nap Time | Mine for the Making | Flamingo Toes | Craftomaniac | Shabby Creek Cottage | My Girlish Whims | Stone Gable | Young and Crafty | Nifty Thrifty Things

13 Week Bumpdate

I'm not sure that I'll do a 'bumpdate' every week but I hope you won't mind if I do. I have a feeling that this time in our lives is something I'll want to look back on and I'll regret it every second if I don't start documenting the experience.

How far along: about 13.5 weeks today

Weight gain: down a ½ lb from pre-pregnancy weight according to my scale (down 5lbs if you're referring to the OB's scale)

Maternity clothes: None yet – everything still fits fine! I don't really think I'm showing. I tried the belly band this week, just because I felt like I had a bit of a muffin top. Halfway through the day I took it off because it is pretty annoying when you don’t have a belly yet. My sister-in-law and her sister gave me a TON of adorable maternity clothes so I’m just dying for my belly to pop so I can use them :)

Best Moment this Week? Joe and I have been so busy with work and the fixer-upper so it was SUCH a delight to take a break and snuggle on the couch all of Sunday afternoon. We even treated ourselves to some Rita’s ice and custard :)

Sleep:  I used to have a fairly ‘dreamless’ sleep and that’s not the case anymore… I fall asleep and wake up 10 minutes later and I feel like I already had one weird dream after another. I’ve also been getting headaches at night so it’s been fairly uncomfortable. I keep complaining to Joe that we need new pillows so I should probably just bite the bullet and get some.

Gender: I’m convinced we’re having a girl, but I’m concerned that it’s more of a desire than of a true intuition. The baby’s heart rate has been pretty high consistently (155, 165, and 163) soooo you never know!

Movement: I may regret this later, but I cannot wait to feel this sweet little baby inside of me.

Looking forward to: Our next appointment on the 10^th… despite having the baby so close to me, I constantly feel like I miss him/her. I cannot wait to hear the heartbeat again

Food cravings: Fruit (preferably apples and watermelon), yogurt, and Power-C Vitamin Water.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Um, everything? The grocery store is my hell on Earth lately. Vegetables gross me out badly… especially avocados (just thinking about them makes me gag), salsa, seafood (which is crazy because it’s my favorite), and anything ooey-gooey or greasy. Pinterest recipes are not my friend as of late.

Labor Signs: If I had any right now, I think we’d be having some serious issues.

What I miss: Coffee. I miss it a lot. Like, A LOT a lot.

Symptoms: Headaches, stuffiness, dry skin, exhaustion…

Nursery: Finally removed just about all of the wallpaper from the soon-to-be nursery at the fixer-upper. Once we find out the gender (cannot wait until July), we will start work on the nursery... so, as of right now, we have nothing yet.

Belly button in or out? Innie all the way

Wedding rings on or off? On

Mood: Cranky (just because I’m sleepy) but generally, I think I'm really nice. Last weekend the nurse at the OB commented on how much she loves to deal with me because I'm always such a pleasure to talk to (thank you for the good manners, Nanny!)

Workouts: Quinn and I go for a morning stroll everyday and on the weekends we’ve been having 2 mile morning and afternoon walks. I’m looking forward to my energy returning so I can spend some time on my fabulous treadmill which has been neglected for two months. 

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Just an Itty-Bitty Announcement

I'm beyond excitement at this point. To be completely honest, I'm simply bursting at the seams with happiness! I'm thrilled to finally announce Joe and I are expecting our first child in November!!! 

Yesterday we surprised our family with the announcement and without a doubt, it was probably the second best Mother's Day I'll ever have. Next year, I'll be holding a sweet baby and what can possibly top that? It's so wonderful to share this news with all of you and we feel blessed by all of the love we've already received.

Nevertheless, I feel like I must apologize for the lack of activity... I miss blogging (and all of you) so much, but on top of my demanding career and this incredible baby, we have also taken on a new adventure - remodeling a trashed 1950's rancher into our forever home. My free time is non-existent but I'm hoping that there will be some light on the horizon. In the meantime, stop and say 'hi' on Instagram (username: spool_and_spoon) as I'm always posting updates there. 

Sending so much love in your direction! XOXO

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