scenes from seaside.

the girls weekend trip to oregon 2 weekends ago seems like a dream. if i didn't still have all the laughter in my head from remembering how ridiculous we were in college (utah state university - go aggies!), i might think it was. we decided we wanted to make the girls getaway an annual thing. i really can't wait for the fun to come. there is just something irreplaceable about these girls who've known me from out of place virginia girl to hippy utah girl to the city politics obsessed girl i am now. love you girls! xoxo

whirlwind weekend.

you know those days you just want to lay in bed and the thought of being busy just makes you want to scream into your pillow? today was definitely one of those days.

we had a crazy weekend - it was really good, just really BUSY. and all the things i wanted to do, like signing up for baby classes, going to a baby stuffs store, formatting pictures from oregon, those things all got pushed to the side.

instead we:
1. went to jacksonville, florida for a quick pre-weekend work getaway. we have some interesting work opportunities that i can't really talk about yet, but hopefully i'll be able to share in another month or so.
2. drove up to northern maryland for the annual crabfest with our family. saw my brother rob and family who we haven't been able to catch up with in MONTHS. jodi is also pregnant and i'm so excited to have 2 new babies in the family, about 10 weeks apart. can't wait for the cousins to meet each other!
3. celebrated the new marriage of liz and dan at an intimate little shower in DC. they looked so happy, and it was a hoot talking about newlywed stuff with them. love them to pieces.
4. church and taught sunday school. i love our students so much.
5. took a 4 hour nap after church.
6. ate cupcakes with TH's family for cousin farewell to freshman year of college. so much reminiscing about going far away for school, and signing up for 7:30am classes (big mistake!)

and this morning we got to see baby again. it's getting quite crowded in there! we used to be able to see baby turn and flip and kick, but now we were just seeing big knees and tummies poking out. and it turns out baby is not that big after all, the doctor just had my due date wrong. oopsie. now moved up to the second week of november. excuse me while i go scream into my pillow. i'm not ready!!

3rd trimester. 28 weeks. last flight?

jetting off once again, this time just for an overnighter to join TH on a short work trip. beach, here i come!
i keep thinking i'm taking my last flight before baby, but so far that hasn't been the case. so, i think this is my last flight? i guess i still have 6 weeks or so to fly, but it's so uncomfortable these days i'm trying to keep it to a minimum. plus all that water i have to drink on the plane makes me use the airplane closet bathroom at least once every 1/2 hour. thank goodness for aisle seats.

have a fun weekend!

clothes conundrum.

i know that having a baby is a wonderful thing, but guys i am kind of vain and proud and i can't figure out most days how to wear clothes that are cute.

cue me last night, wandering through the mall for 2 hours looking for clothes that could be re-purposed after november. i walked by a few maternity stores and i was like "ew" so i just ended up frustrated in forever 21 with a Peanuts tshirt that i totally plan on wearing for the entire remainder of my pregnancy. so don't judge me if you see me in my charlie brown, it's all i can do to even wear clothes these days.

i guess i should just work on building up my shoe wardrobe since luckily my feet still love me.

this is the dumbest post ever.

seaside, oregon.

i had no idea how much i needed this past weekend in oregon. the oregon coast is so beautiful, the weather was perfect and refreshing, and the company was delightful. i feel refreshed, rejuvenated, and all those great things you are supposed to feel after a vacation! something about staying up late, laughing about the funniest old memories with your college girlfriends - just the dose of friendship i needed. thanks girls for an amazing weekend - here's to many more to come! xo

27 weeks. flying while i still can.

hey there lovers, i am jetting off for a long weekend to portland, oregon to catch up with some old college girlfriends. this is the first time we'll be reunited since our graduation over 5 years ago. i can't wait to see them! when i come back, guess who will be gone on his own trip? TH and i really need to learn to sync up our travel schedules a little better. No such thing as a quick 2 day trip - it always turns into at least a week apart.

This little bump of mine is not so little anymore. At our midwife appointment yesterday, my lovely midwife (and friend!) sneaked in a quick ultrasound so we could see little baby. oh my goodness, i am just falling in love with this kid so much! we can hardly wait 3 more months to see the baby for the first time. will it look like me or TH? will it be a boy or a girl? a maude or a claude? lucky for us we still have some time because we are not quite physically ready for baby yet. carseats, strollers, diapers have yet to be purchased. birth classes? not yet. but we're getting there. good thing we are not fruitflies with only 1 week gestation period. can you even imagine?

a few new things.

1. new stability ball at work to replace my office chair. my lower back and i are completely loving it. trying not to get caught bouncing around to my music.
2. attended first prenatal yoga class yesterday. hello perfect fit! there is just something about being in a room with 15 other pregnant ladies, hearing the instructor tell us to "stretch to make room for our babies to breathe" and "as your breathing deepens, the baby grows calm". it's really cool learning about ways to take care of your fetus that aren't just related to how much broccoli and kale you can ingest in one sitting.
3. these shoes. i've only dared to wear them 2x so far because they are tall and i am getting more pregnant every day.
4. my growing belly. yesterday i woke up for the first time feeling heavy. feeling a sense that this baby is getting bigger! we ran into a friend last night on our walk around the Hill and he couldn't help but touch my belly - i don't blame him, it's sticking out rather far these days.
5. my love for trader joe's black bean taquitos with a slice of avocado and salsa. yum!

working + parenting.

NPR is having a series right now, The Baby Project. It's amazing and inspiring!! Nine expectant mothers have come together to discuss birth, parenting, and right now the topic is childcare.

Childcare. Ugh.

You guys, this is going to get a little more personal than I'm used to, but this has honestly been on my mind for about 15 years. And a little more so in the past 5 months. I never knew what I would do when I had a baby - continue working or stay home. I never made the decision because I think it's innately personal and requires a decision made at the point in your life you have children. I never knew the point I'd be at in my career when the babies came along. Now that the time is drawing near, I'm planning to continue working. And it's painful to even think about it. It's all so new to me and thinking about leaving my baby with someone else for 8 hours every day, not to mention learning how to work a breast pump and hoping baby takes a bottle, and all the worries that come along with that - gosh! it's so exhausting!

One of the most comforting things for me is to hear others experiences. Not that I'm clamoring for others advice on how to parent and juggle the work/life balance - but it's helpful to know that other people do it every day. If they can do it, I can do it, too. I'm really looking forward to the series today as it continues talking about childcare. Yesterday the Swedes talked about their parental leave - the parental unit combined gets 480 days per child (to take until they are 8 years old). Per Child. I get a fairly generous maternity leave (16 weeks), but that pales in comparison when you think you could stay at home with your baby the first year of its life.

Can you tell I'm conflicted about this? How do you working moms and dads out there handle the pressures of balancing work and family?

fleeting summer.

now that summer is almost over, i guess it's finally time to enjoy it right? this past weekend was one of the first we were both back in town, so we set out to soak up the last remaining hot sticky weekends.

sure, there was mostly cleaning and purging of unneeded furniture, and trips to fill up the house with baby stuff, but oh! those summer nights!

we had dinner al fresco with friends in arlington on friday and enjoyed the perfect summer night weather, complete with peaches and homemade ice cream. saturday we had friends over to make panini's and play music, not to mention talk all things baby. it's so nice having friends who can give some sound advice on being first time parents.

i still have so much on my list to do before summer is over. our last summer as just the two of us is filled with mixed emotion, but with all the little kicks and movements i feel from this little acrobat baby, i can't wait for it to be the three of us next summer.

cookbook obsession.

i mean, come on. i'm powerless most of the time in anthropologie as it is. put a scalloped page dessert cookbook in my hands and it's impossible to say no.

i've picked out a few recipes to try already, but i have to admit i kind of just want to make this my new coffee table book instead of a cookbook. it has completely gorgeous photography and is so beautifully designed.

and something about turning a scalloped edge page makes me feel like the kind of girl who doesn't have dish pan hands in the first place.

new music.

last night i bought the new buddy holly compilation. some of my favorite artists - julian casablancas, modest mouse (where have they been?), lou reed, and she and him sing old buddy holly songs. it is such a fun summer album! you can stream the album here.

lessons learned.

1. when attending a concert 6 months pregnant, it's important to call ahead to have someone reserve you a seat. (thanks TH!)
2. after concert is finished, it's important to celebrate your friends birthday at Ben's Chili Bowl, but not as important is eating a ton of cheese fries. which leads me to lesson #3.
3. never eat cheese fries after midnight while 6 months pregnant, especially when you have to be at work early the next morning (what was i thinking?!)

what we're now referring to as our potentially last carefree rock show, Bon Iver really delivered at the 9:30 club last night. the first 10-15 minutes he played, my mouth was kind of agape as i considered what it would be like if i were super talented + super dedicated. because that's what makes you a superstar, right? i'm only kind of in both of those categories. it makes me want to step it up and be really really great at something. just...what?

monday night.

we left work early yesterday to go pick up our new license plates for the Tiguan.
afterwards, a stop by Target for all the essentials.
then a trip to Harris Teeter to stock up on groceries.
finally, home to make dinner and do some laundry.

and there's nobody else i'd rather be with while doing all this boring life stuff. he makes me laugh so much my stomach hurts. i love being his family.

speaking of family, this morning i couldn't even get out of bed because baby was kicking and moving around so much. it was so cool to watch, and was totally worth being an hour late to work.

sunday night cookies.

apart from church yesterday, we didn't leave the house for one minute yesterday. what a lazy, lazy sunday. we bought a memory foam mattress topper and after 2 nights of blissful sleep, i can officially state that it has officially changed our lives. officially. it's divine. (and it was so affordable, too!)

after a day of laying around, we decided to make late night chocolate chip cookies. i tried a new recipe that included 2 types of vanilla and 3 types of chocolate. hello favorite cookies ever. plus TH helped and he never helps me bake, so i am going to say that making cookies with love always makes them better.

then i spent the evening watching that dumb bachelorette show - i cannot wait for it to be over so i'm not addicted anymore. total waste of time.

and i started the elegance of the hedgehog for the 3rd time. maybe 3rd times the charm?

hooray for sundays and hooray for houses being full of love.

summer of travel = over (almost).

phew.

we (nearly) did it. this summer has been so exhausting from all the travel we've been doing and emotionally exhausting from trying to figure out how to get ready for a new baby. so all in all, it's been kind of a rough past couple of months.

but. TH comes home tomorrow from London! then we get to hang out for the rest of the summer (minus a short trip to Portland for a girls weekend getaway). i can't believe how much i've come to rely on him being there as a support to me. it's true what they say that distance makes the heart grow fonder. it has made me realize how much more i want to do for him to show love. i have a sneaking suspicion that life will never stop being busy, and it's so easy for me to forget to say and show love for my man. i try to be so independent - i think it has to do with getting married after being on my own for so long, making my own decisions. but after these past few months and with what we have ahead of us, it's time to step up the love-fest. time to really be a team.

go team! here's to TH coming home tomorrow!

jess comes to town!

jess comes to visit tonight! i cannot wait to see my nyc bff!
i love this girl so much and i can't believe she's leaving nyc for greener, west-coaster pastures. now we'll have to be bi-coastal BFF's. are you sure you don't want to stay in DC, miss jess?

we had so much fun living in NYC together. we were both newbies at the same time and she got me through the tough times so much. dates at lalo, shopping, trader joe's, laundry dates, the list goes on and on. it was never a dull moment. she is also an amazing seamstress and designer and helped me with my wedding dress. i'm so lucky to have a friend like her.

but my very most favorite thing to do in the world with jess is go to shows and DANCE. do you think we can go to a show with my little baby bump? and dance around like crazy people?

we go a-travelin.

well, well we are just little travel bugs over here lately. a little sad, a lot exhausting, but also really funny to see the pictures we take for each other. like i take pictures like this last week in LA

(look at your 24 weeks pregnant wife!)

and he takes pictures like this

(hello from the great wall!) - complete with peace sign

i love him.

new furniture.

like i said yesterday, i've been going a little bananas this past weekend getting the house ready. last night i picked up 2 more things - hollywood regency X benches to replace the blue coffee table and a little baby bassinet for little baby.

we put the bassinet next to the bed, and when i went to bed that night, i just kept looking over at it. looking down at my belly. feeling baby kick. making the connection that in just a few short months, baby would be laying in that sweet little bassinet, kicking it's cute little legs. (minor panic attack! breathe...breathe...) it seems like it's all happening so fast lately.

it's a hot hot hot hot world.

it has been 3 days straight with temperatures over 100 degrees. that is crazy nuts. and what did i do the whole weekend? well, i spent it outside shopping my brains out! not the smartest thing i've ever done, but i did have my mom with me to provide comfort and cold water (and the VW to provide blasting AC).

we went to lucketts to check out antiques, leesburg to the outlet malls, where i scored this sweet little french oven:and i found some amazing new-to-me furniture stores in quaint little Takoma Park, too.

Modern Mobler - all mid-century modern furniture at a reasonable price and ridiculously friendly staff (a nice change from the shops on 14th and U street).
and Trohv - a sweet little furniture boutique with lots of cute and quirky gift ideas. i'll definitely be returning to check it out.

so that was my hot weekend. let's just say that the nesting has officially started. how did you stay cool this weekend?

dazed and confused.

taking a red eye from LA to DC while 5.5 months pregnant is one of the dumber decisions i've made in life. of course i couldn't get comfortable and of course i couldn't fall asleep and of course i was hungry and thirsty the whole time and of course i had a window seat so i had to wake up the guy next to me one time when i just couldn't hold it any longer.

i came home and slept basically the entire day, woke up long enough to eat a bowl of cereal and watch the news, then fell back asleep. right now i'm incredibly hungry, completely exhausted, and really wishing TH was here to take care of me. TH - say hello to the queen mum for me! and bring me back something from borough market!

do you have any secrets for surviving long flights, especially red eyes? (my flight out to LA was fine - but then again it wasn't a red eye!)

on opposite ends of the world.

lately, every other month we have to spend a couple of weeks on opposite ends of the earth. this time, me in LA, him in UK. it's exciting to travel and share stories of successes and failures in our jobs, but this time around it's exhausting with baby kicks and crazy dreams about having a baby. and missing sharing this experience with my baby daddy - it makes my heart hurt.

i'm just a couple weeks shy of the third trimester and my belly is definitely proof of that! i've been sitting in meetings all week and sit up so straight when i feel the sudden, strong movements of this little baby inside of me. last night i dreamed i had the baby and (a girl) and i was cradling her in my arms for so long, feeling so unprepared to take care of this baby but so happy to have her with me. it was sweet, but i woke up thinking "time to get ready. it is time!"

it's crazy how quickly the months have flown by these past few months.

dating in the district: lunch at ceiba

inspired by hannah and robbie, TH and i had a fancy lunch date today at Ceiba in downtown DC. the food was all incredible and my tastebuds didn't even know how to respond. i got a hibiscus lemonade that was so refreshing and so pink! we shared the guacamole to start, and i had the pumpkin seed tilapia served on mashed fufu (fufu!) and TH had the trio of tacos. the best part of Ceiba? they bring you complimentary caramel popcorn with the check. good heavens, my very favorite thing in the world for free? total total lunch bliss.

i loved lunching with my man, breaking away from our desks for an hour or so to chat about whatever (so what if most of it was about our work?), and be lovey in front of other people having business lunches. we're going to make this fancy lunch date a monthly thing.

have a super weekend, dears. i'm heading to LA tomorrow and will face the carmeggedon (i'm so nervous. bad timing, work conference!). hoping i won't have to sit on the highway for too long. wish me luck!

you and your sister live in a lemon world.

you guys, i am like SO crafty. i made this wreath in 10 minutes before TH's parents came over this weekend. i'd had the materials laying on my floor for about 3 weeks and guess what? i suppose the kind of crafter i am is a procraftinator. groan.

i kind of think it looks like something a grandparent would put on their door, but i'll leave it for awhile. i hardly ever make anything crafty so i'm pretty proud of myself. i'm totally going to be the kind of mom that wears the macaroni necklaces her kid makes her. be proud of the effort, not the end product, right? right?

summer + the pool.

i love the pool! especially when it has fun flags and a view of the washington monument. thanks to mayor fenty for sprucing up this pool and making it a fun (and free) community space.

summer + pregnant people.

i made this cherry pie for a dinner of pregnant people this weekend. i have 2 friends who are also semi-newlyweds and we're all pregnant, due within 3 weeks of each other. it is so funny and interesting to get together with these couples and hear about their pregnancies - the similarities and the stark differences (where are my cravings?), but mostly it's just really cool to be a in a room where all the woman have babies growing inside of them. because let's be honest, where does that ever happen??

this weekend was so fun. lots of friend/family summer time. even a trip to the pool, just like i had hoped. life is good and i love my husband quite so.

have a hot weekend.

it's hot.
it's really hot.
in between family gatherings tomorrow, i'd like to go to the pool.

TH's parents are coming for breakfast (crumpets, homemade strawberry jam, yogurt, strawberries and peaches), then we're meeting my mama for dinner to celebrate her 59th!

there's time for a pool visit in between the two, right?

summer of cooking.

while TH was living it up in Asia, i got to work in the kitchen. wooden spoon in hand, pots and pans everywhere, cookbooks lying around for days...it was all so nice. having an appetite is a wonderful thing. for example, i ate 2 sandwiches for lunch today. big deal. i'm happy to be pregnant and happy to be cooking and eating again like a normal person.

i've been experimenting in the kitchen, and ironing out some yummy summer dinners and treats. if you are looking for some ideas, you can find my rolodex (growing) here.

rain boots.

someday i want to own a house with a porch where i can put whatever i want on it. chairs, a record player, or even rain boot planters. feeling dreamy today.

photo by me. in homer, alaska.

our first family car.

so, we did it. TH returned from his 2-week Asia trip and the next day we bought a car! he will be forever revered as my car savior for shopping for a car on a 95 degree sunny day, pregnant wife in tow, with severe jet lag from being in China, Japan, and Indonesia for 2 weeks. seriously.

say hello to the new VW tiguan. we love it so much and best of all, i think a stroller will fit in the back much better than the MINI. hooray for our first family car!

red, white, and baby.

we packed so much into this weekend, i need another weekend to relax! pancake breakfast, dessert party, fireworks, sparklers, friends, church, baseball game, and BBQ. and on top of all that, we bought a new car! more on that later.

and i'll leave you with a picture of the 21 week bump. it's growing, people! (thanks to n for this festive picture!)

happy independence day weekend!

fireworks, watermelon, corn-on-the-cob (which i cannot get enough of these days. yum!), and being with the one i love to celebrate our love for this great ole country..
oh yeah, and also i always cry on the 4th of july. especially when i hear stars and stripes forever. i can't help it.
image found here.