Oh Italy.

Happy Wednesday!!

I woke up missing a trip that B & I went on last year with his family.. and since I can't get enough of our pictures - I thought I would share them with you! I don't have a single one up in our house.. again. I have GOT to get that gallery wall finished. Or started. haha.

We traveled most of May last year - it was the best trip ever! B's sweet parents were so generous to take us and I wouldn't trade the memories from that trip for anything in the world!

The pictures below are not in any order based on which areas we visited.. Blogger isn't that user friendly that I want to go back and rearrange them, you'll understand!

Venice, my love. I don't have words to explain how much I loved Venice. I never could have imagined how amazing it would be in real life - and I think it is for sure 1 place that EVERYONE must see! I am already dreaming about taking our kids back one day. It's a magical place.

Lake, Como. Again, no words. I never knew a place this relaxing existed. We rented a villa for the week and used it as a landing pad while we traveled to and from Venice and Switzerland. It was right on the lake and every night we left our windows open! We went to local markets for fresh produce and cheese - and the wine! Oh my the wine was amazing! We found a local cafe' and spent several mornings there enjoying latte's and croissants! I would go back to Lake Como in a second!
The family! I am so so blessed with an amazing sister-in-law and perfect in-laws! I think of B's parents as my own and love them dearly! We've always gotten along and I have always felt welcome as part of the family. I know it doesn't always work out this way - and I feel so so fortunate that we all have such a great relationship. I think of B's sister as my own sister - I'm much closer to her than my own sisters and she's always been amazing to me. Love her.

We took a day trip to Bellagio via boat - and had the best time! Shopping, lunch, wine.. and more wine!

Positano!
We took a train into Naples and then took a beautiful drive along the Amalfi Coast to Positano. Yall, I die. By this time in the trip the guys (B & his dad) had already spent almost 2 weeks with us and headed back to the states to run the family business.. its super hard to get B away from work for very long. So, B's mom, sis and I continued on to Positano, Florence, & Rome! We had the absolute BEST time!!! We took a boat ride along the Amalfi Coast, spent time on the beach, did an insane amount of shopping and drinking! Loved every second.

This is us in Sorrento! We were just able to spend a day here but I would give anything to go back for longer! Such a sweet romantic town! Right on the water - tons of sweet streets and shops! Dreamland!

Loved this! A sweet waiter left his "number" for me in my latte! I thought this was cute & sent it to B :) Told him I was staying in Italy with my Italian Stallion!

LOVED the Colosseum! It is so hard to imagine all of the madness that went on in that massive place. We hired a tour guide for the day and learned a ton!

Venice again - love these streets!

Florence was so so much fun! We bought some great leather goods, amazing art - and of course, had more wine then we knew what to do with!

Breathtaking.

I don't know when we will make it back to Italy - but I'm counting down the days!

That's just a few of my thousands of pictures from our trip! Seeing them again has me inspired to start on this gallery wall.. maybe this weekend!!

xo

love.

{ phindy }

Shocking - I don't have anything super excited to post about today..

I just love this picture of my dad & me just as we were getting ready to walk down the aisle :)

xo

Week 29!!!

How Far Along? 29 weeks! 77 days to go!!!

Baby girl is 1.3 ft in length and weighs around 3 pounds!

Maternity Clothes? Nothing new this week! I went to Francesca's hoping to find a few new dresses since jeans are not the most comfortable thing to wear anymore.. no luck!! I tried on a few cute things - but they just seemed so short since my belly pulls the front up! I'm determined to find some, so I'll just keep my eye out at Gap, Blush, and maybe still Francesca's! Its starting to get warm - and shorts are not nearly as cute!

Weight Gain? Today's weigh in said 20.8 lbs gained.. but last week said 25. I'm thinking it has something to do with the fact that I got food poisoning on Saturday.. so yesterday I only had a Gatorade and 1 slice of toast.. That just tells me maybe some of that weight is water, since I didn't have my usual 100 ounces yesterday. I'm back trying to eat today - but nothing looks good.. throwing up for 3 hours makes all foods look gross and scary!

Stretch Marks? Still a No! Fingers crossed!

Gender? Sweet baby girl! Addison Mae!

Sleep? I've complained every week - so you already know that sleep hasn't been good. I won't elaborate - but tears are sometimes involved. Its super frustrating not being able to get comfortable.

Food Cravings? Just seeing the word "food" makes me feel nauseous.

What I Miss? Not having heartburn 24 hours a day.

Symptoms? Nothing new to report!

Best Moment of the Week? My sweet husband putting together our crib all by himself while I was passed out yesterday! He took such good care of me and did tons of house stuff! Addison's nursery is coming together SO well! I only need a few more items and it will be complete!

Engagement Pictures!

Everyone seems to be posting about Just a Touch of Gray's The Ultimate Wedding Week Link Party - I've never done one - so I thought I'd play along!

Today the post is about Engagement Pictures!

My last blog had a post about our Engagement Pictures.. but my new one has none! So, here they are!

We had our Engagement Pictures taken in Nashville in September 2009. We hired Phindy Studios (Phil and Mindy), who were amazing to work with!

{ I almost forgot that I used to have a waist!!! }

B & I met in August of 2007 on a blind date and didn't get engaged until May of 2009 - I was WAY ready! We had a year Engagement and married May 2010.

Seeing these reminds me that we only have 1 picture of us up in our house!! Sad! I think I'm going to have something done with that 1st one.. back to that gallery wall... I need to knock that OUT!

I actually was able to sleep pretty much all night last night - it was glorious.
I'm looking forward to tonight!!! We are meeting some friends at Hooters and then going to watch the Preds play! I haven't been to a hockey game all year and I can't wait! Dreading the kind of heartburn that I'll get from the fried pickles.. fingers crossed!

You guys have a great Tuesday!!!
xo

28 Weeks!!!

How Far Along? 28 weeks!! 84 days to go!!
Baby girl is measuring about 15 inches in length and weighs around 2.5 pounds!

Maternity Clothes? I've picked up a few new tops at TJ Maxx - none are maternity, just women's mediums.. which seem to work great! I also finally found a dress for my baby shower!! I decided to check out Nordstrom - and just go up several sizes! I love what I picked - and hope it still fits in 4 weeks!!

{ this }

Weight Gain? 25 pounds. I feel like this is the time that I should start lying to you guys.. and, I guess if this gets all crazy - I may start :) But - I want to keep it real and honestly - I really don't care a ton about how much I gain. My mom gained a zillion pounds with me.. seriously like 60.. and she was back to her usual 120 lb self within a few months. I am really just focusing on enjoying this time and eating what I want - along with a ton of fruits and veggies! If we have a 2nd baby - maybe then I'll be a weight freak.. but for now I'm just having fun!

Stretch Marks? Still a No! Fingers crossed!

Gender? Sweet baby girl! Addison Mae!

Sleep? I feel really guilty saying anything negative about being pregnant.. mainly because I honestly didn't know if B & I could get pregnant.. but you guys. I CANNOT SLEEP. I was a sleeper pre-pregnancy.. I love my 9 hours. This past few weeks has been really really hard for me. I had to miss work on Friday because I truly could not get out of bed - I bet I slept only an hour that entire night. Its a combination of severe heartburn and a backache that I can't even describe. Again - I don't want to be negative about any part of what it takes to grow our sweet baby because in the end it will all be worth it... but my back seriously hurts :( Sweet Brent has no idea what to do - he can try and massage, but usually I'm in so much pain that I'd rather not be touched. He tries, bless him! Hopefully it gets better..

Food Cravings? nothing new.. cereal and fruit!!

What I Miss? Besides being comfortable in bed - I don't miss anything! I've gotten over the missing wine stage.. I'm sure that could come back once we start going to the pool and everyone has white wine besides me.. but so far so good!

Symptoms? Heatrburn, backache.. and a very very active baby girl! She moves around so much!! I'll really miss it when she starts to run out of room! She prefers my left side, which I think is so cute! Brent is a lefty :)

Best Moment of the Week? Brent and I hung the drapes in her room! I forgot to take a picture, but they look so pretty! He and I will NEVER hang drapes again - btw. It never goes well.. next time we are hiring someone. Thankfully, we only had to drill once - so we don't have any patching to do.. but hanging 1 rod shouldn't take anyone over an hour.. I think we spent almost 2. Drapes are not our thing!

Our furniture is in! Hooray!! So we plan to go get it on Saturday - I'm ecstatic!!!!!!

Random!

It has been sunny and 80 in Nashville the past two days.. makes me very eager for a vacation!! Last May Brent and I were fortunate enough to get to go to Italy with his family for almost an entire month! Sadly, we will miss this year's France trip because... someone.. is with child :) I wouldn't change that for the world, of course - but a girl can dream of a vacation!!

I'll think of my maternity leave as a really long vacation - where I'm fully planning to spend a lot of time poolside with Miss Addie Mae in her pack-n-play under the shade (again, a girl can dream).

Yall, get this! That pretty tree that you see behind my handsome husband..well, its dying. The builder of our house hit it with some type of equipment and I was told by a tree guy that I would be lucky to get 2 years out of it.. that was last year. I thought he was crazy, but I can now start to see that this tree isn't budding nearly like the others in the neighborhood. I'm so sad! It is a huge gorgeous tree.. and honestly to replace something of that size would be expensive. No thanks!

We have several places that need intense mulching and replanting - which I usually LOVE to do.. sadly, this year Brent says I can't! I had to call our lawn people today to schedule the mulching.. sad that I can't partake.. I love getting my hands dirty in the yard!

.. I would love to have this stairway gallery wall finished by the time baby comes. I'm worried about trying to do it myself.. I know thats why people go to design school.. to make sure that I don't end up doing it twice! We'll see.. I need to get on it stat! I know that come summer I won't have as much time to look on Pinterest for hours on end gathering ideas.

Shot down stairs at gallery area...

Hope you enjoyed my fun rambling!!

Below is a good shot of this baby growth! Last night I begged Brent to take me for a walk, and finally he said yes! Usually by the time he gets home from a 10 hour day - the last thing he wants to do is entertain me :) But - I told him I've got to start getting some exercise in - and some SUNSHINE!!!

27 weeks!!!

{ After April 5th I should have much better pictures..
I've signed up for a Mom's With Cameras workshop and hopefully that will help! }

How Far Along? 27 weeks! 90 days to go!

Addie Mae is about 13.6 to 14.8 inches and weighs 2.5 pounds!
Now would be a good time to mention that I was 10 lbs 11 ounces at birth! ... I was nearly a month late, thank goodness they don't allow that anymore.. and - I wasn't a c-section baby! Bless my mother!! I was HUGE.

Maternity Clothes? Nothing new to report! I ordered 10 dresses from Asos.com in hopes of finding a dress for my Baby Shower.. no luck! Back on the hunt.

Weight Gain? my scale says 24 lbs. I swear it has to be wrong :) All of that water I'm drinking has to have something to do with it... right? ... either way - I'm really not that concerned. I'm growing baby! I still have super skinny arms.. trying to find a positive! WAIT! Maybe those Tums DO have a million calories? That's it! The Tums are making me gain all of this weight!

Stretch Marks? Still a No! Fingers crossed!

Gender? Sweet baby girl! Addison Mae!

Sleep? The usual.. back pain.. missing stomach sleeping - but somehow I fall asleep and pretty much stay asleep the entire night (aside from the 2 bathroom breaks!).

Food Cravings? Nothing unusual.. cereal is still my dinner most nights!

What I Miss? Again nothing! I'm loving being pregnant! I still have a ton of energy and usually have to make myself rest and take it slower. I'm sure this will change soon - everyone says the 2nd trimester is the easiest and that energy starts to go away in the 3rd.

Symptoms? Nothing to report! Still a small fire burning in my chest - but I actually think the Prilosec is helping.

{ excuse how bad we all look! We are awful about taking pictures.. I think because our time together is always so short :( This was at 11:30 at night and dad had been working all day.. mom and I shopping all day... we were exhausted! }

Best Moment of the Week? I went to Savannah to see my parents this weekend and had a wonderful time! Dad hadn't seen my stomach since Christmas and he couldn't believe it! Mom and I had a great time shopping, getting our nails done, and just hanging out! I love seeing them and I don't go nearly as much as I should! Mom will fly up next month for my Baby Shower - and I won't see dad again until Addie Mae comes!!!!


Speaking of Shower - I got my Shower invite in the mail last week!!!
I'm SO SO excited!!!
Here is a peek below:

Our nursery furniture should be in any day now - can't wait!!! And this weekend we are signed up for a 2-day class at the hospital to teach us all about how to care for our sweet baby!! I'm excited - everyone that I've talked to says the class is great and you learn a ton!

Hope you all have a great week! 3 days to go!

xo

My glider is here! My glider is here!

You guys!! My glider came today!!

If you follow me on twitter I'm sure you are tired of hearing

about it... but I couldn't be more excited!!

I try to shop local as often as I can -

but with free shipping and usually no tax - on top of

way lower prices.. its hard to stick with the local small shops.

I saw this chair at Plaid Rabbit in Nashville and fell in love!

They showed it in a gray fabric and I ended up choosing this

lime green paisley fabric.

I feel really awful about this -

but I didn't order my chair from the Plaid Rabbit..

I found it $280 cheaper here.

For $50 - $75 savings I wouldn't have taken the risk of ordering online..

and believe me - I was worried that some random chair would come -

or even better..

no chair at all would come and I would be out of $700..

Being cheap worked out in my favor today because

the correct chair was delivered..

I did save $280.. and it came 4 weeks sooner than I was quoted.

I am obsessed!!

The color is a brighter sweet lime color in person - and I just LOVE it!!!

So, for now, she sits in our downstairs entry until Brent

can find a friend to help him take it upstairs..

I'm off furniture moving duty for awhile!

26 Weeks!

How Far Along? 26 Weeks!! 97 days to go!!!!!!!!!!!
Baby is the size of a head of lettuce.. measuring 14.5 in and weighing about 2 pounds!!

Maternity Clothes? So, about Burlington.. haha - I had to go return a pair of jeans and had to wait in the return line for over 25 minutes. Yall, I almost lost it! 1st of all, my speedy weighs about 16 lbs.. not to mention this sweet baby that I'm now carrying around.. standing that long was a struggle. BUT - Burlington is an awesome place for people watching, as you can imagine! I'm not sure the 25 minutes was worth the $12.99 credit that I got back for the jeans! Oh well!

Weight Gain? 18 pounds! I'm starting to not find food as fun! I've never let myself eat the way that I do now - and it was all fun for awhile.. but lately I'm over it. Maybe seeing that I'm closing in on the 20 lb mark has something to do with it..

Stretch Marks? Still a No! Fingers crossed!

Gender? Sweet baby girl! Addison Mae!

Sleep? THE WORST WEEK EVER. My back has never hurt like this in my life. Sitting at my desk all day at work is almost killing me. I swear my boobs must weigh 20 lbs - I'm not kidding.. & back pain doesn't stop when you finally lay down at night, it actually is worse.. I can't get comfortable.. laying on my side hurts.. and I've read that I shouldn't sleep on my back?? This is all SO fun! The snoogle isn't even much help anymore. Hopefully last week was just a fluke and I'll go back to normal back pain free!

Food Cravings? cereal still.. nothing else unusual! I did grab a bag of powdered dounts yesterday at Publix! Heaven.

What I Miss? Nothing at all! I'm LOVING being pregnant - even if it means back pain, no wine, going to bed at 7p, and heartburn that hurts so bad if literally feels like a small fire in my chest. I wouldn't trade any of it!

Symptoms? This week, thankfully - none! Belly is growing like crazy and Little Miss is moving around and having a grand time in there!

Best Moment of the Week? All of the movement! I love feeling her move around!!!

* Yesterday my sweet MIL and I went to the mall to check out some drapes at Pottery Barn Kids. I've pretty much known which drapes and rug I want - but have been putting off ordering.. Jan is always so great about getting me motivated - and thanks to her - Addie Mae now has drapes, hardware, and a rug on the way! I feel so good getting these things checked off the list! Basically all we have left is to get her closet built-out (carpenter coming this week to give estimate).. & then little things.. wall decor, lamps, etc. SO READY for her furniture to come in! Should be any week now! & HOORAY - my glider is supposed to be here today.. we shall see!!!

This is us waiting for the awful storms that came on Friday.. I never ever freak out about storm warnings - but I took this one very seriously! I rounded up the cats, our wedding album, my LV Speedy (can't have him blowing all around Sylvan Park!), jewelry, cash, any girl scout cookies that we had, and water!! Headed into the guest bathroom downstairs and camped out! Brent and Max stayed in front of the tv like big dummies :) I should mention that before I locked myself in the bathroom - I went around and took pictures of each room.. not a bad thing to do in case something bad really does happen!

See this small window in our master closet? & see how close the neighbors house is? I've been saying that I need to cover this window since we change in this room.. and they can see right in - IF they are looking.. I never covered it because I hate to lose the light that comes in.. Well, I've decided its time to be a good neighbor and cover the window! Not to mention.. no one wants to see whats going on with my body lately.. untanned 20lbs heavier.. not cute! Hopefully I can get a shade made this week!

& for fun!
Check out our boys playing at work!
Every day Brent brings Max to work with him and Brent's dad brings his boxer, Miller! The dogs have the best time playing and running all around the warehouse!!! Its basically a HUGE empty room with concrete floors - tons of toys - and plenty of room to run at 100 miles an hour!
Check out how big Miller is - he's a beast!!! Max is 67 lbs - and looks like a puppy next to that huge boxer!

Almost 2 years!

This May Brent and I will celebrate our 2 year wedding anniversary!

I still can't believe its almost been 2 years - time has flown by!

I hear that for some people marriage, especially new marriage,

is a walk in the park!

I wouldn't say that I entirely agree in our situation.

B and I have been together for almost 5 years now -

and I can tell you that every single day gets better!

We are always learning something about each other -

and in general better ways to work together.

I won't ever lie and say that we haven't had our share of fights -

believe me, we have.

But, through the down times you learn more how to appreciate the up times!

We've learned so much about each other - and how to do life together - as a team - from our friend Marie.

She runs Nashville Marriage Studio and we first met her to do our pre-marriage counseling.

I'm so so glad that we built such a great relationship with her than now - after the wedding - we can call her whenever we need!

She's a wonderful person to have in your marriage corner!

Even if you are not local, check out her blog!

You'll be glad you did!

She's wonderful and I learn something new each time she posts!

& if you want to read the cheesiness about

Brent and I and how she thinks we are a great team :)

Check it out here.