The Little Things

As my 'small' belly becomes a 'small soccer ball' it seems the little things are getting a bit more difficult..things I have taken for granted or never really paid attention to.

With something hard and round attached to your front side, it makes some things a bit interesting. Not pregnant or even in the many weeks prior to now, I haven't had an issue doing my every day/week things.

When you bend over with a hard baby belly, nature lets you know real quick that your belly needs somewhere to go, therefore your legs spread. I didn't even realize it until I caught myself in this very strange stance! Quite amusing I must say.

As I was getting ready to go home last weekend for a wedding and baby shower, I figured I needed a toenail polish! Well, as easy as that seems to be or have been, I can safely say I think the days of painting my own toes are behind me..that is until my little soccer ball is no longer:) I am grateful the polish got where it needed to be and actually looked good, but Matt had to hear me huff and puff the whole time!

Now, this week, as I get ready for our big fundraiser on Thursday night, I figured I might as well shave my legs while I have some time. At least Matt and I have a built-in seat in our shower, but man...It kind of wore me out trying to reach all around!! This should make for an interesting next 9 weeks of shaving (or lack there of). Matt, sorry in advance if I go a little bit between shaves:)

So, as we sit here and watch my belly and Mollie grow by the day, it's a constant reminder of the miraculous feat our bodies endure when a woman is pregnant--just fascinating and a true miracle. All those little things I can or cannot do seem so silly now...who needs to bend over or shave anyway, right?!!

Surreal Moments

I wish I could write this blog daily..but sometimes life gets in the way! I have all these post ideas and 'lightbulb moments' that come to me, but really, no time to write them! I will try to be better.

This past week I was involved with the Family Circle Cup Tennis Tournament here in Charleston for the 5th year in a row. The Center for Women is the chosen charity, so we must have a presence there for all 8 days and in addition, we do two wonderful events out there. One was Tuesday night and one was Thursday day. ALSO, Matt and I have a friend/colleague who runs all of the food & beverage out there for the tournament and other concerts, so of course we both love to work for her when we can, so that came a few nights this week, too. Whew.
We ALSO had our great friend's wedding in Charlotte this past weekend, congrats Lawson & Katie for such a fun and beautiful day! These pregnancy hormones sure did get the best of me multiple times!! Not to mention we have my dear friend Brant's wedding this upcoming weekend in Alabama! 'Tis the season and we cannot wait:)

It is so amazing to meet up with people that you have not seen in a while for such a joyous occasion as a wedding and at the same time actually SEE the love they have for our unborn daughter already. It was too surreal at moments to see this little flower girl toddle down the church aisle and realize that when my sister's get married, that will be Mollie! It was even more surreal to see sweet Katie dance with her dad and think about Matt one day giving Mollie away to her husband..I am literally tearing up as I write this! Ok, preg hormones, cut me a little slack please!!!

As I realize that we only have less than 10 weeks left before our due date, my mind wanders in all different directions. I am overwhelmed at times with excitement of meeting this little person inside of me and can hardly stand the suspense of seeing her for the first time and figuring out her personality, who she resembles, etc.

Matt and I go home this upcoming weekend to be with some of my most favorite people in the whole world and some of the BEST friends anyone could ask for. A wedding and a baby shower, not much more we can ask for. Alabama friends and family...here we 3 come!!

Milk Factory

This past Saturday marked Week 28..3rd Trimester- WOOHOO!! It's so hard to believe that much time has already gone by and now we have less than 12 weeks before Mollie's due date.

During all those weeks that have passed, I've read and are still reading, some baby books, subscribed to a number of baby/parenting magazines and attended a baby preparedness class, with two others to come. There seems to be SO very much to do and learn before this little one is born and at the same time you (or I!) feel that I cannot do enough before she comes.

Tonight was our 'Breastfeeding' class at the hospital & Matt and I had a few good laughs and nervous eye exchanges, that's for sure. He was a great sport & came along to keep me company and learn more. Glad I had him there to make funny tv show references (i.e. The Office) or that hard chair and powerpoint could have gotten really old! I cannot even begin to express how overwhelming the breastfeeding info seems to be. I mean, according to my 'Babywise' book -which is FABU as a side note and recommended by many friends, and then this class, I will breastfeed every 2-3 hours during each 24 hr period, for about 30 minutes each time. Is it just me or does that math not factor in any time for the mom (ME) to sleep?! Will this baby constantly eat and me constantly feed?! Ha, a milk factory may be my sole purpose in the beginning and I am willing to accept that:)

We want to breastfeed for sure and I will definitely put the time and effort needed into it. That's a commitment I  will make and will need support and encouragement to keep it. YAY mom for being in town for a bit after Mollie comes!! As she said, 'we'll take it one day at a time and get through it- it's well worth every bit of it!' Luckily she has had us 3 girls and breastfed with each, so knows the drill...as for Matt and I, we are in the total dark over here. But willing to learn and excited about the process:)

Inspirational Women

One of the most memorable moments of my wedding day, other than marrying my best friend of course, was looking around the room at ALL of the people whom I love dearly and who love Matt and I back enough to support us on that amazing day...that love and support was overwhelming in a wonderful way!

The feeling was somewhat similar as my Center for Women co-workers threw me a super sweet baby shower a few nights ago. These 20+ guests took turns around the room saying how they knew me, maybe an impression I made on them or something about me in general. All comments were so very dear and loving, that I looked around the room, again wonderfully overwhelmed!

This has been my first job since college and these women have become my extended family..especially since my sisters and parents live in Alabama. I've said it before and sure I'll say it again & again, but I am so grateful to have these inspirational women in my life. I knew all of them through work in one capacity or another, but we have reached a greater level with each other than just colleagues. Mollie has NO IDEA what is coming her way..I can't wait for some of these women to be in her life and show her what REAL role models are, not the television or pop star kind.We all know better than that..hopefully!

Thank you friends and colleagues for such a wonderful time and a night I will never forget!

Me? Slow down?!

All of this fantastic energy that I feel blessed to have sure does have it's downfalls. I don't know when to stop sometimes until I am BEAT! I did experience common fatigue in the early weeks of pregnancy, something like I have NEVER felt before & hard to explain to those who have yet to feel it, but since I got past that stage I have felt amazing!!

The problem with this much energy and feeling 'normal' is that at times I forget I am as pregnant as I am. Still no real big belly, but now that I am a week away from the 3rd trimester, I need to start taking that into consideration and slowing down a bit. I want to be myself and energetic, but at the same time, need to know when to say no to some things or  just take some breaks between activities & recognize my boundaries.














We had a wonderful few days this past weekend! Friday night my sister, Jane, was in town and we attended Charleston Fashion Week. So fun, but I've yet to be 'out on the town' later than 8pm (ha!) and in heels for a while.

The next day Matt and I were up bright & early to make Lowe's and Home Dept runs, do yard/patio work and plant our veggie/herb garden for the year. I always underestimate the time all of that takes, and energy, to say the least. We both love doing it so at the time it's wonderful--at 6 months pregnant your body starts to not feel the same after multiple hours of manual labor. Sunday was no different...back out in the yard for the morning before we got caught in the rain. Sunday night and Monday I was paying for the weekend fun and hard work. - Yayyy new patio and roof! Cannot wait to enjoy summertime out there:)

I am trying to still act like and perform my usual hobbies and duties as before, yet the difference now is that I am growing a little girl inside of me! As I approach week 27, I can feel myself slowing a bit naturally, so I guess that's God & Mother Nature's way of helping me make that choice:) I hope I continue to feel as good as I have in these many weeks prior, just need to take it a bit more easy some days, as to not wear myself down. I really don't want to change my ways, but at the same time, I already feel I'd do anything in the world for Mollie...so...taking it a BIT slower, I will:)

Nesting or just a planner?

I recently received a surprise gift in the mail from my friend and author, Stacey Crew. Her book is titled The Organized Mom. Of course, I started reading it that night!

It is truly fantastic..not only does it discuss new baby needs and to-dos, but other house organization techniques room by room, as well. There is a entire section on storage and what goes where i.e. hall closet, guest closet, kitchen cabinets, etc. This is always a battle in any household and it feels so good to have pointers written down!

I have had a multiple days (& late nights) where I have been in total organization mode- I am led to believe it's nesting, but really think it's a bit of me thinking 'Ok, so we're going to have a new family member in this house in less than 100 days and I want to get all this done NOW, not later.' I have gone on total organization overdrive when I was not pregnant...this is nothing new, but the new part is that now I'm doing it for someone else, in addition to me & Matt:)

 After spending some time a while back with my mom washing new baby clothes and organizing them by size/season, I realized there is a still a ton to do for me to feel prepared and organized. Stacey's book has helped me find my starting points and make them manageable. In addition to a new baby, there is just a TON of stuff that will come with that lil peanut & I am quite sure I don't know the half of it! One suggestion was to use an over-the-door shoe holder to store those little baby items and just another place for storage. So happy I have a ton more space, but so far in designated pockets (that have yet to be labeled, but will be!) I have washcloths, bibs, pacifiers, extra socks, and of course some cute, tiny shoes and room for more as any girl would have it!

I came to the kitchen basics section in the book on Saturday that discussed the bottles, nipples, pacifiers, etc and where one should keep all of that. Hmm good question. Hint: near the sink and dishwasher. Sunday, after returning from the grocery store with more stuff, I got in de-clutter mode. Matt and I pulled everything out of our (huge) pantry and started over. Some things got tossed, but mostly things got a permanent home for them that made sense. For example, all canned goods went onto 2 shelves sorted by use/item and that freed up our entire lazy susan next to the sink and dishwasher for baby goods! I didn't even know that much  room existed until I really spent some time sorting.  The new found space is great, but grouping all like items together really makes you see what you have & what you need to stock up on when it goes on sale. Not to mention you'll be that much more inclined to use it!*Any great recipes using canned creamed corn anyone- Why do I have 4 cans?!

If you or I do want to think of this as nesting, then bring it on! With 3 months to go until Mollie arrives, who knows what's next on the agenda! If not nesting, then I just welcome this kind of organized chaos in our house anytime it wants to rear it's lovely head:)

She has a name!!!

Who knew a name could be so hard?! This Lil G finally has one..so let the monograms, etc begin:) Matt and I are excited to share with you, Mollie Bess Garrett.

“Never cut a tree down in the wintertime. Never make a negative decision in the low time. Never make your most important decisions when you are in your worst moods. Wait. Be patient. The storm will pass. The spring will come.” --Robert H. Schuller

Even though this quote has more of a negative spin than what we have been feeling of course, when I read it, it made sense. I got so flustered with not easily deciding on names we had tossed around, but really, all we needed to do was 'Wait. Be patient...The spring will come.' We had a few good names chosen and in the end, we came full circle with the first full name we ever had discussed. Guess that is meant to be. Funny how that works out, huh?!

We both love Mollie and then Bess is Matt's moms maiden name & so precious we think.While she was once an 'it' then a 'she' now 'Mollie,' it feels more complete. We can't wait to meet her and see what unimaginable joy this little girl is bringing our way!