Auntie Juju Birthday Time!!

This past weekend Baby bump and I went to Raleigh to celebrate my Best Friend and Auntie-to-be's Birthday! I had a wonderful time and I think the Birthday Girl did too!

I was able to drive down Thursday afternoon, Julia's day of birth, to celebrate! We celebrated with Julia's sister Aimee, and her niece Gretta and nephew Cody, and homemade tacos. After the fam left Ju and I walked downtown for a loco concert. We arrived later than planned so the fun was over shortly after we arrived, but that was okay because we were having some great quality time. 


Friday we woke, made breakfast and smoothies for the ride, and got ready for a day at the mall. Now, this is not a super treat for either of us, we would both rather be at the flea market or fun little craft store around town but the mall was going to provide Julia with a free bday gift from Sephora, and a party dress of sorts for her Birthday Dinner that evening. We had Moe's for lunch, of course, and wrapped up our shopping adventures just in time to shower for the evenings festivities. Naturally, dinner was at a Mexican restaurant, of which I could not pronounce the name. We were accompanied by 11 of Julia's closest friends in Raleigh. The food was delightful and the bday girl got a Jumbo Margarita. This mama-to-be was sad not being able to partake in this portion of the dining but by now has gotten used to it. After dinner we went back to Ju's apartment for some quality time with friends and the completion of a Birthday Mad Lib created by Ms. Kristi. Quite entertaining!

Saturday was our day in the sun! We started our day off with some breakfast and another smoothie for the road! We went to the Ero River Quarry! I was a little wary of the quarry because of the potential bacteria but this was a naturally made quarry with a river and creek near by so I felt confident that we were safe. There were also multiple children in the quarry with their families so this comforted me, and besides, the 20 (well 30, with my slowness) minute hike in warranted a dip in the cool water. After the quarry we showered and then rested a bit before heading out for the night. We ended up at a friends house for a delicious cookout, with tacos! It was a nice time meeting some new people and eating great food. Afterwards we were pooped from the day so Julia and I had some quiet time at home followed by a quick trip to Krispy Kreme! Hot doughnuts!

Sunday we had a cutie pancake breakfast and then headed to the flea market. We didnt get to do our usual Flea Market looking but we got what we went for and then some. After that I headed back to Norfolk. It was very very sad to leave my most precious friend that day. The thought that I probably wouldn't be back in Raleigh until 2013 and then when I did make it back I would be with child left me with mixed emotions. Very weird and very sad.

I am glad that we were able to have such a wonderful time together and make some more BFF lasting memories. Until we meet again Raleigh!

Here are some fantastic photos from the trip! Yay!

Smoothie and bump

inner-tube bump!

The quarry

no caption needed

most regal niles

hannah montana "tattoo"butt

we are friends

Mr. Nutty's day in the sun

no words

besties and the bump

inner-turd-face, i mean tube-face

berfday drank

hike to the quarry

hot app!

Michigan

Two weeks ago Josh and I, and the bump embarked to Michigan for a family reunion and memorial services for Josh's Grandpa. The trip started with a drive to Baltimore, arriving at 12:45 AM at Kyle DS's house, in which he had to go to work by 5AM, and we had to be up and gone by 6:30AM. Needless to say being only 30 minutes from the airport was the smartest thing we could have done. We were able to park at a hotel for the week for only $5 a day, had a shuttle take us to the airport,  got through check-in with ease, had breakfast, and then almost missed our flight. Whoops. We forgot that normal boarding begins 20 to 30 mins earlier than the actual flight, so we were coming in right before the plane was about to take off.

The flight to Grand Rapids was a quick hour and a half but we still had a visit to my Aunt and Uncles in Holland and a 4 hour rental car ride to the farm.
By the time we arrived in Holland my feet had swollen up more than ever before, I attributed this to the flight, but figured they would go down with the car ride to the farm.
We arrived at Aunt Marilyn and Uncle Nate's house where we received a quick tour of the house, a welcome sign, a bottle of water, and a Sophie Baby teether! Presents are always fun especially when they are most unexpected. Josh and I were given a car tour of the beautiful city of Holland, followed by a delicious lunch on the water, and a trip into downtown Holland. Aunt Marilyn and I went into Tip Toes, a baby boutique, while Josh and Uncle Nate went to the Brewery next store. Tip Toes was where Marilyn purchased Sophie for us so she wanted me to see more of the store and possibly pick out an item or two. We left with A&A swaddle blankets and a teething bracelet. All very cute and practical. By the end our of short shopping trip my feet were more swollen than ever, for real this time. They were cutting into my flip flops like nobodies business. It was about that time to go and with my feet the way they were it was even more appropriate to get on the road, so I could put them up.
I felt very spoiled by my Aunt and Uncle and wished we could have stayed longer to repay them in some way. Never get to see family enough, its pretty sad.

We made the treck up to East Jordan, with my feet still swollen and slightly budging, and arrived by 7PM. It was so wonderful to see Mum and Dad Nowell, hugs every chance we got, and lots of talk of baby and their soon-to-be Grandparenthood.

Our week in Michigan had officially begun.

The week flew by, like most vacations do, but we were able to spend a lot of quality time with family and extended family. Ping-pong tournaments, ATV rides, target practice (no picture was taken of this but there totally should have been), 4th of July Fireworks, AMAZING food daily, lots of laughs, lots of canines, old old old home videos of the 5 Sanderson's and cousin Sandy growing up (I watched it twice), and so much more!!

 There was many days spent on the lake and just lounging around but there were a few days where Josh and I were able to go into both Boyne City and Charlevoix for some quality time with each other. In Boyne City we were able to go to a Craft Fair where Josh bought me a Ammonite necklace, we stuck our feet in a creek, well river, and we went Antique shopping. That day both my feet and hands decided to swell. That made me sad because my rings had to come off, for the first time, and apparently not the last. In Charlevoix, we rode the ferry over and back, walked the strip and did some window shopping, had a delightful meal on the water, and went to the light house and ended our day with a rhubarb pie a la mode. 


We ended the week with a Memorial services for Grandpa Sanderson which was beautiful in more ways than one. So many wonderful stories were shared by Dean, Mike, Lisa, Jason, Heidi, and Grandpa's cousin Parker. The Sanderson clan is an amazing, loving and caring family who I am so very very blessed to be apart of.

Monday morning, bright and early at 530AM, Josh, Aunt Jan and I embarked to Traverse City where Aunt Jan was to catch her flight home. This was a lovely drive! We had non-stop conversation which not only made the ride go by quickly but we were able to spend some extra quality time with an Aunt we rarely see. It was truly a blessing and a wonderful way to begin our long travel home.
We arrived in Grand Rapids and actually  had to wait to board the plane for a while. Had another quick hour and a half flight, and before we knew it we were back in the car homeward bound. The trip from Baltimore to Norfolk was a lot longer this time, and we made the mistake of stopping to eat lunch in NOVA so we didn't arrive home until 7PM instead of 530PM. That wasn't too bad considering we did stop to eat for almost an hour. Oh, and this trip, my feet were only slightly swollen...maybe it was that Michigan air?!

All in all the week was a perfect vacation and just what we needed...before Little Bean arrives.

Below is a recap of pictures from the week! Enjoy!

Lake Time!

The Family

The Tree

Bump by the Lake/ Papa Josh in the blow up canoe

Swollen in Holland

Charlevoix

Boyne City River

waiting for fireworks!

craft fair sweet drinks!

The works!

Bump by the light house

Grandparents-to-be

Mom and Dad came to visit two weeks ago. We planned to go to a Tides game as a belated Fathers Day present but the heat wave changed our minds.

Mom and Dad arrived around 10am and joined us at church at Alethia in Norfolk. Afterwards, we had lunch at Jason's Deli and did a little shopping for maternity clothes for yours truly.

We saw Brave instead of attending the Tides Game. It was a cute movie and left this mama-to-be in loads of tears.

We ended our day together at our favorite restaurant...AW Shucks. We got to see my precious Kendall which completed the day perfectly.

Almost forgot to get photos with the grandparents-to-be again, but we managed to remember just in the nick of time. Guess we should have thrown daddy-to-be in one of those pictures, huh!? whoops

I love the one with all of our eyes closed!

4 weeks later

How far along? 27 weeks. 3rd Trimester!
Total weight gain/loss: glad our scale doesn't work. 
Maternity clothes? i received some maternity clothes from my niece a few weeks ago. i was able to get a pair of capri jeans, several shirts and tank tops, and some dress shirts (just in case). my dear mother has also purchased several dresses and shirts for me <3 
Stretch marks? asked my mom if i gave her stretch marks and she said "no", so i think i am in the clear as long as i stay hydrated and moisturize.  
Sleep: weirdest dreams of my life. have started sleeping on my left side as much as possible and may have to perminantly switch sides of the bed with josh soon because i avoid getting up to pee even though its not until morning. 
Best moment this week: father's day josh felt the baby kick for the second time while in church. this made me cray especially since our friend bryan immediately said "happy father's day" after seeing the excited look on josh's face. the baby has been moving so much that josh was finally able to see my stomach move. josh is also becoming more comfortable with touching my bump on his own accord. this makes me smile.  
Have you told family and friends: a stranger rubbed my belly two weeks ago so i think the word is out. 
Miss Anything? i have had a few odoul's  over the past few weeks so this is curbing my alcohol desire. i guess i miss soft cheeses from time to time, other than that i am not really missing anything in particular. 
Movement: more and more every day. some have even caught me off guard to the point they have made me jump. being able to see the movement is the craziest thing.
Food cravings: had a lot of sugary treats last week while in michigan but i think they weren't so much cravings as they were being placed in front of me.
Anything making you queasy or sick: if i dont eat regularly i feel hunger pangs a little stronger than i used too. i am praying that the queasy and sick feelings of first trimester will not rear their ugly heads this last trimester.
Have you started to show yet: baby is 2 lbs now..hard to hide it. however, if i take a straight on photog it appears that i am just a little thicker.   
Gender prediction: we have three girls names and only one boy name nailed down as viable options. i assume by this we are having a boy.  
Labor Signs: tightness in my belly from time to time but most of the time labor free for another 13 weeks.
Belly Button in or out? i am amazed how much smaller my inny becomes each day.
Wedding rings on or off? i am swelling more from the extreme heat and humidity...my hands have fell victim to this a few times and i have had to remove my rings because of it. luckily, it is not a constant thing and i am able to still wear them. it makes me feel weird when they arent on.
Happy or Moody most of the time: i have had my moments but for the most part i am happy. the lower right part of my back has been aching a lot more lately so this leaves me in a grumpy mood by days end.  
Weekly Wisdom: God is good all the time. 
Looking forward to: fixing up baby's room is next on the agenda. i am looking forward to baby being here but i am also enjoying these last few moments as just husband and wife.