Easter Sunday, Belly Update, & Planning for TWO huge events!

Happy Easter!!

Last weekend David and I made the drive down to Land O' Lakes to spend Saturday & Easter Sunday with my mom & extended family! It was a nice, relaxing weekend.

So onto wedding stuff... Why didn't I know how stressful this stuff was before?
I've watched wedding shows on TLC for the past few years gathering ideas and marveling at the messes the brides have made leading up to their weddings. However, I never realized how much really goes into planning this one day, once-in-a-lifetime event.
This is a little of what we have so far. Surprisingly, David & I agree on a lot of the main things. He has basically said he doesn't care about the details, just about picking a good band.

What I want to get solidified before our baby girl gets here...

-Ceremony & reception venues booked
-A set date- we know the general month & even week we want the wedding in, but it really depends on the cruise when we'll actually have it.
-Cruise package picked & spots reserved
-Save the Dates sent out

23 Weeks Update

How far along: 23 weeks!
Total weight gain: 10 lbs
Maternity Clothes: loving loose dresses for this summer heat. It's only going to get hotter, omg.
Stretch Marks: Yuck. I'm keeping my fingers crossed & using lots of lotion!
Sleep: Still good!
Best moment this week: It was great this weekend when my mom got to finally feel her kick! She's an active little booger now.
Miss anything: A stomach that isn't so sensitive. Baby Girl doesn't like a lot of things...
Movement: Just about every day I'll feel her kick once or twice.
Food cravings: I really wanted Velveeta today, does that qualify as a craving?
Anything making you queasy or sick: Fried/ greasy foods
Gender: Female!!
Labor Signs: Not yet
Symptoms: My stomach feels very tight/stretched. I swear she has tripled in size in the past week!
Belly Button In or Out: More out than in
Happy or Moody: Happy!
Looking forward to: Having my baby showers & being able to enjoy creating her nursery. 

Side Note:

Here's the new beds our kitties got as Easter presents. Reggie (the gray one) is bigger & squeezes into the "hut" while Kit Kat, our little one, lounges in the big bed. They're so funny. :) 

Have a great week!

Back to School, Back to School!

Wow...These past couple of weeks have literally FLOWN by.

I didn't even get to finish that (extensive) Tampa recap before multiple other events hit me such as: Anna's Baby Shower, my first hot yoga class in Stuart, St. Augustine for some family time, and finally pre-planning at school this week.

On that note, School starts next Monday!! There have been a lot of changes & things that an internship cannot prepare you for as part of this job. More about all that later!

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I really will try to do justice to all the things I want to write about, but for now a summary to catch everyone up will have to suffice!

Let's start with Tampa Recap Part II.....
 A picture is worth a thousand words, right? Here is my photo recap. Enjoy!


Brenda's 50th Birthday- Spa, Channelside & Howl @ The Moon

Warped Tour & Other Outings with Kristin

Exercise- No pictures...Just know there was sweat involved. ;) 

The Breakfast Nook

Dinner Done 

With this event, I really wish I had taken pictures of the actual kitchen & foods we prepared. However, I was so involved in getting it all together that I didn't take my camera out at all! 

Anna's Baby Shower

My good friend Anna, as seen in my last post, is having a beautiful baby boy due in September. I was lucky enough to be able to drive over to Orlando to celebrate her bundle of joy. Did I mention Anna is absolutely beautiful pregnant? It's something about pregnancy that makes women just GLOW. 

Anna & her hubby, Brad @ the shower

On a side note, check out that diaper wreathe on the gift table in the background. Through a few online tutorials I was able to take note of how others created their wreathes & tweak it. It had diapers, pacifiers, a bib, a onesie, and a Mother Goose storybook. 

Maybe I'll add a short tutorial? Only if others want to try it out though so let me know! :)

Bodhi Hot Yoga

Though a bit pricey compared to Orlando Power Yoga ($17 a class vs. $10), this studio was AMAZING. By the looks of it, the studio is pretty new; they still had a paper sign in the window announcing they were open as well as their hours. 

Although I had to wait outside the door before the class, I was still about 10 minutes early to their 6:00pm class. The waiting, I found out, was because the later classes utilizes only one staff member in the studio, and they are obviously teaching the class. Therefore, they lock the doors during class to keep patrons' stuff & their own merchandise safe. 

The class was 1 1/2 hours in length. I was worried that it would be too intense compared to the typical 60 minute classes I'm used to, but the pace was slow & produced a great intense burn.  The instructor focused on core strength, and I literally felt my sore muscles immediately after the class. I would have signed up on the spot for classes if not for the cost & distance from my house.

For now, I will have to be content with infrequently attending classes at this amazing studio.

St. Augustine Trip 

Last weekend before the whirlwind of pre-planning started, I made the trek up the coast to St. Augustine. My Uncle Jeff rented a gorgeous beachfront house and invited my dad, nana, aunts, uncles, & cousins all to stay. With enough sleeping room for 12, we bombarded the house on Saturday afternoon & setup house. 

We were a bit obsessed with cheetos this weekend as evidenced by my Aunt Bonnie's cheesy hands. It's not FB Aunt Bonnie, just the blog! ;)

My little cousin Nathaniel was my helper & buddy this weekend. We colored, played games on the beach, and watched movies curled up on the couch.

My family loves to pull pranks. When I spoke with my dad before the trip, he told me of this entire bag of things he had planned to use on everyone. Oh boy. There were fart machines, talking toilet paper dispensers, noise makers, squirt guns, and shocking pens. The picture above is just after my cousin Justin was doused with water while peacefully sleeping on the hammock underneath the house. His dad, my Uncle Jeff, and Justin hugged it out afterwards, no hard feelings. 

Backtracking a bit, I visited the oldest wooden schoolhouse in downtown St. Augustine!! I arrived in town earlier than everyone else Saturday and spent the afternoon amusing myself & getting inspired looking at the teaching conditions of old. 

This is the view of the back of the house, facing the river, from the wraparound porch. My cousin & uncle spent lots of time fishing from that dock & the beach. 

Nathaniel walking out to our private beach from the walkway by the house. 

 The view early morning from the front porch. It was so peaceful and calm! We posted up right past that wooden walkway with umbrellas, snacks, & games. My cousin caught a baby shark the first night, and we even saw dolphins playing out in the water!

And the best for last... That little nugget on the left is my cousin Micah with my very tan dad, Darrell. Micah is such a good sport, and he loves to play pranks. Must run in the family! Part of the running list of jokes this weekend involved speedos. They talked about wearing them this weekend, so this was the infamous fashion show. 

 Anyone else see Dash & Mr. Incredible from the Incredibles? 

 Sorry dad, I know you won't mind the attention!

It is now past my bedtime! 

My next post will definitely involved LOTS of school related experiences; hopefully I'll be able to post about pre-planning before school begins!

Also, some recipes are overdue! I've tried out quite a few awesome ones that I really want to post about. Soon enough!

Home Sweet Home

Wow it's weird to be living somewhere new....
& I just realized I haven't shown off the new house since we moved in!

David & I are finally nice and settled into our cozy place. Apparently, living in PSL makes us "Pizzle Rats" according to our friends in the area, but I could care less. With a cheap place to live 10 minutes from the beaches in a gated community nonetheless I'll settle for being considered a "rat"...for now. :)

Here, in pictures, is our place before & after.

Before:

The living room & dining room

Our porch

Another angle of the living/dining room...kitchen kind of in view!

Oh how I'm glad this is over!

Guest room/office

Our room

Pond in the back

After:

Still a little plain, but CLEAN.

Don't mind the random beer!

 & Pay no attention to my dirty dishes.... ;)

That cute little table was a steal for $45. Thanks mom!

Spare room/office

Master bedroom

Right now our house feels like a hodgepodge of things. Most of the furniture is mine, and it seems I had a bit of a thing for black furniture in college. However, now I would really like to lighten up at least the main living areas. The bedroom furniture is only a few years old and won't be changing for quite awhile!

David & I are going for- what else- a beach theme. I've always considered it pretty corny, but I think in the right doses (cute local art vs. terrible hotel style paintings) it will work out.

I also would really like to try to make some of this stuff. We're collecting shells on our bookshelf that we add to every time we go to the beach, but I would like to create something out of or inspired by the local terrain.  Any ideas for cute & fun beach crafts??


Speaking of art, I am SUPER excited for this Wednesday. It's my mom's (& her twin's) 50th birthday!!! To celebrate we're getting all her girlfriends together to paint & drink wine. I have heard amazing things about Painting With A Twist so I can't wait to try them out. Afterwards, we're going out to Cheesecake Factory for some dinner & dessert.

Stay tuned for a full post on my Land O Lakes trip...should be interesting spending 10 days back home!

Life is a Beach

*This was written about my day Thursday, June 23. *

Today I was supposed to be in Tampa visiting with my mom and a few friends from home that I haven't seen in awhile.

My mom & I

However, due to the craziness that is moving David & I had to drive to Jensen Beach last night for an appointment with the Home Owners Association. Apparently this is vital to do before we move in, and this is the only time they had this week if we wanted to move in Friday. Therefore, I am currently sitting at a Panera after exploring my soon-to-be new home.

On to the beaches!!

This morning, I dropped David off at his office down here and headed to Jensen Beach which was a quick 10 minute drive. I came prepared in my workout clothes, hoping to make up for missing my workout last night due to our unscheduled drive down.

After my run I took my shoes off to cool down in the sand & surf.

Arriving at the beach soon after sunrise, I set out with the goal to reach "those really small buildings in the distance". I felt like they stayed in the distance the entire run! Holy cow were they far away!

Finally, through semi-soft sand, I managed to reach my destination and turned around to run back.

See those blurs in the distance? That's what I ran to!

Feeling accomplished I headed to the next beach on my list: House of Refuge.

This historical site boasts the oldest building in Martin County as well as the only Refuge House left standing. These coastal homes were meant as havens for survivors of shipwrecks and other such disasters in the 1800s. Now, a maritime museum is hosted in the quaint looking house for a minimal entrance fee.

Bypassing the museum, I headed to the beach behind it to enjoy the view, test the waters, and explore the rocks!

This beach was completely empty save myself and a fisherman's boat in the distance.

The last beach I explored was Bathtub Beach.
Aside from the funny name, this out of the way beach is known as a great family spot where parents feel secure allowing their kids to explore because of the relative safety afforded the beach by a living reef that essentially blocks the area off to sharks and other such wildlife.

The water is beautifully clear- I felt like I was in a spring, never have I seen such crystal clear water at a beach!

There were also little areas sectioned off by posts meant for sea turtles nests! I researched it a little, and different community centers (http://discovermartin.com/events/) host educational nights where people are taught about the turtles' habits and then escorted to local nests to observe their nesting rituals and hopefully see the baby turtles' fated trek to the ocean.

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As far as the eye could see was a stretch of pure white sand untouched by litter despite the popularity of the beach. This beach is an amazing example of humans peacefully coexisting with the natural wildlife.

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At this point I was exhausted after spending an entire morning & afternoon in the sun so here I am at Panera waiting for David to get off work!

I can't wait to visit more of the small local beaches to discover each and every intricacy, nuance and that little something that makes them unique!

Friday will be full of moving the large stuff down to Port St. Lucie and then finally finish up my weekend of moving with a garage sale Saturday & some final cleaning to our empty house on Sunday!