a break from the absence

Hello Bloggers!

Sorry I have been so absent lately. 

Things have been busy around here and my pregnant body is really telling me I need to slow down.

I'm just not sure how.

But I do know that I vacation will help. Doesn't it always? Especially a vacation with an extra day tagged onto the end to re-coop at home. 

That's right - my time off at work was approved.

I'll spare you the boring details, but it's been a crazy bust two weeks and it came down to the wire. My time off literally didn't get approved until the morning. 

And we're leaving tomorrow.

Yep, tomorrow morning E and I will be leaving rainy KY and heading south to {hopefully} sunny SC! 

We're planning on packing out cooler full of drinks {not too many for me or I'll have to pee a million times} and cuties {baby clementines}. 

So tomorrow evening I should be here ...

We have no plans for this vacation. 

I like it that way.

We can do whatever we want.

And I'm going to soak it in because this will be our last vacation before baby Parker arrives and then I hear the "do whatever we want" theme no longer fits.

My hopes for the trip are:

quality time with my husband

no back aches

the ability to relax

&

that my nasal cavities would open up.

...

you know how I mentioned that I was sick several weeks ago {like 4} 

well it just keeps hanging around.

I started out thinking it was a cold, but now I'm convinced it must be something else bc surely no cold lasts for a month.

I've read online that congestion can be associated with pregnancy, but I also have an on and off sore throat so who knows.

I'm just praying that a vacation will be the right medicine.

Anyways,

I'll be back soon with more updates on the nursery. I haven't updated ... well ... because there is nothing to update you on. We've painted the walls and trim & and now all of the furniture has been sitting in our living room for about a week now. Oh well, that's how things go sometimes.

Also, I'll be back soon to share more on the pregnancy diaries. I didn't get any pictures this week so I didn't do a 28 week post. Hopefully I can get E to snap some on the trip. I will go ahead and say that my body is sending me all kinds of signals that the joys of the second trimester are officially over. Signals like this achy back.

That's about it. I'm off to start packing!

tulips, painted walls, socks the fox, and my favorite pillow

Hello Bloggers!

It's almost Friday - can you feel it?

 I am so ready for the weekend. Even more ready then I usually am. 

This week has been crazy busy at work. I worked 11 hrs today and still feel like I am behind - 11 hrs is way too much for a preggo lady :)

Since coming home from work - I've been lounging in bed ... enjoying the quietness of the house. 

E's out for the night, so I've done nothing but eat pizza in bed (don't judge me), read blogs, and "watch" baby Parker move around in my belly.

 I absolutely love feeling and watching him move around in here. What a miracle it is to carry a baby.

Since I'm spending the night in bed, I've also been enjoying the tulips E got my for Valentine's Day. I have to keep them on my bedside table because the cats literally eat them. E gave them to me on Vday, we went out to dinner that night, and when we came home 2 were gone!

I just have to say that I have the best husband in the world. 

E is so good at celebrating holidays and making me feel special. He's so observant and great at giving gifts. He not only gave me flowers, but also - chocolate - ingredients to make chocolate covered strawberries - a homemade card

 - made reservations to p.f. changs 

and bought something for Parker.

 Ok, it's definitely more of a gift for me - but I'm sure Parker will love it too.

Meet Socks the Fox

{Jen, I know you're judging me}

I can't wait to see Parker cuddle him and carry him around the house. 

Thank you E - for being so amazing.

Baby Parker is really going to love his dad.

I also received another fabulous package in the mail.

This one I picked out, and Anna from For the Love of Joy created it!

{Anna also creates amazing camera straps, mug rugs, embroidery hoops, boppy covers, and coffee sleeves. I desperately want one of her boppy covers!}

I am in love, and the scripture means so much to me after all we went through before I became pregnant with Parker.

Someday soon I hope to write a long blog post on how prayer led us to this baby growing in my belly. 

Someday soon.

Since work has been so busy and I've been a little under the weather, E and I really haven't made a lot of progress on the nursery.

But we're getting there.

Not a lot new, but I figured I'd share a few updates anyways.

We're SLOWLY in the process of doing the board and batten details on the walls. 

Hopefully the walls will soon look like this:

That's about all I have to share for tonight.

 I'll keep you updated on the progress we {slowly} make.

pregnancy diaries - 26 weeks

Hello Bloggers! 

I'm back with a short pregnancy update. 

how preggo am I?

26 weeks 

(I'll be 27 weeks on Tuesday)

Almost into the 3rd trimester. 

The weeks seem to be going fast, and slow at the same time. 

I feel like it's been forever that I've been pregnant, but then again I can't believe that before I know it I'll be 30 weeks. 30 weeks seems like a milestone for me. I guess because I can count down from 10 at that point.

gender:

a baby BOY

name:

Parker John Ridd

maternity clothes:

I'm wearing maternity clothes 100% of the time. I feel like my shirts are starting to get a little short. I know I'm getting bigger, but I also feel like I am carrying baby Parker pretty high. I can't wait for the weather to warm up so I can start wearing more cotton dresses. Speaking of warming up outside, I realized the other day that I have a pretty good inventory of long sleeve maternity shirts, but I only have like 5 short sleeve ones. I think I'm going to make a trip to Gap for some stretchy t-shirts.

movement:

Baby Parker is moving around like crazy. His movements have gone from feeling like someone is stirring up my stomach, to feeling like my belly is twitching, to currently feeling like someone is poking me. The pokes are not painful, but are definitely getting a lot stronger. He's still the most active when I'm sitting on the couch at night, in bed at night, or just waking up in the morning. A couple of nights ago was the first time that I just laid there and felt him moving all around. It didn't really keep me up, but I just kept laughing because he was moving so much.

(still no stretch marks - yay!)

sleep:

My sleep hasn't been great, but that's because I've been a cold/sinus junk for about 3 weeks now. I also feel like the bigger I get, the more I wake myself up when I roll over from side to side. 

what I miss:

Being able to go into JCrew and buy a new outfit. I got their new Spring catalog, and loved so many things in it. I can't wait until I can wear normal clothes again.

I miss being able to get up and down quickly when I am sitting on the ground.

cravings:

CHOCOLATE ... and anything else that is sweet.

symptoms:

Well, I'm getting bigger and I'm starting to feel it. I'm getting a little achy ... especially my back. 

Lately, I haven't had the "I love being pregnant" feeling. I think it's because I've been so sick with this cold. 

I also feel like I've been more hormonal and "on edge" lately. Crying a little bit more. Not a lot, but more than I usually do.

That's about it. Just feeling kind of big, stiff, and out of shape. Can't wait to be able to run and be more flexible.

(check out that linear negra)

best moment(s) of the week:

E and I went back to the dr. last week to get some good pictures of his spine. Everything looks great! We're so thankful :)

E and I also finished registering at Babies R Us and Buy Buy Baby. I would have to say that Buy Buy Baby is hands down a better store. 

prayers:

Parker's health and development.

Also, please pray that things would work out at work so that I could take a couple of days off at the end of the month for our baby moon. We won't know until last minute and that really bothers me because I am such a planner. We can't even book our hotel because we don't know if they'll approve my time off. I have to get my productivity requirements in before I leave for vacation. It's been difficult to make the numbers lately because of various snow days. Please pray for no more snow days, and that I'd get all my numbers in. Sometimes work really gets in the way of fun :)
I'm putting smile at the end of this, but really I'm not smiling at all!

Sounds silly, but please pray that I wouldn't get stressed about getting Parker's nursery finished. I know we have a lot of time still, but I also feel like we have a lot to do. I just want to be really laid back about it. 

praise:

Remember that part-time job that I asked you to pray about??

I GOT IT!

Starting March 28th, I'll be cutting down to 28 hours a week. 

I am SO thankful for the position, and the ability to be home more with baby Parker.

I am also thankful that I will not be full-time for the last 6 weeks of my pregnancy - perfect timing!

The job is still working as a community mental health therapist with children and families, but I will have to move to our Frankfort office. Therefore, I will have to switch and get all new clients. Please also pray for this transition. 

That's about it for now. I'll be back soon to share some new pictures from Parker's nursery. 

buttons

Excited to make new necklaces and earrings from these lovely buttons:

I purchased all of these vintage rose buttons

&

the teacup, air balloon, sweet bunting, and bicycle from this set

I'll be adding new pieces from these supplies in the next couple weeks

Feel free to email me (rachel{dot}ridd{at}gmail.com) if you'd like to pre-order

love me some lace

A few new vintage inspired pieces in my etsy store:

I love the vintage lace and doily look. 

You can find all three of these new pieces here.

opinions, please ...

Which colors would you love to see in studs for the SPRING? 

I would LOVE to hear your opinions before I order new supplies!

tonight

The only proper way to spend a Friday night when you're home sick ...

cough syrup: check! 

(hoping this will help me get a little better sleep tonight)

new magazine: check!

pumice stone: check!

new grey nail polish: check!

laffy taffy: check!

facial mask: check!

eclipse & sex and the city 2: check!

1. I feel like a middle school girl all over again

2. I would've included a bottle of wine if I wasn't super preggo

&

3. Can you tell by my selection for the night that E is not joining me? Although I'm sure that he would also love eclipse and grey nail polish.

Hope you're also living it up this Friday night :)

indoor picnic

I don't know if you'd call it nesting or what, but I've been bit by the design bug lately. 

I feel like I have been flooded with sources of inspiration.

Not only inspiration for Parker's room ... but also our kitchen and living room.

I know I have to contain myself and focus on his room.

The main problem with all of this excitement and inspiration is:

1. I'm battling a huge cold - I can't decide if it's pregnancy or being stressed out at work, but I can't seem to kick this cold. And I feel like it is getting worse. 

&

2. I'm feeling bigger each day and lacking energy.

Maybe once I get rid of this cold I'll find the energy to work on a couple of projects.

For this morning, I'll leave you with a little inspiration I found the other day:

an indoor picnic

(found here)

enjoy!

still dreaming

Of being able to get new countertops (and backsplash ... and sink ... and lighting)

Since we painted our cabinets white, I thought that when we replaced the countertops we would go with butcher block. Now, I am also loving the black contrast in this picture. 

What do you think?

I guess I'll keep dreaming ...with a baby on the way now, and the prospect of cutting my hrs. at work I don't think I'll be remodeling our kitchen anytime soon. 

But I will keep collecting inspiration!

multiples

If I had multiples ... then I would draw up inspiration from this amazing room.

Inspiration found here