Baby #2: 28...29 Weeks!

Well, I didn't want to admit it, but I'm one of those moms. You know, the kind that swears her second pregnancy/child will not lack the same attention that baby #1 received? Yup, I'm her. And I'm admitting it and accepting it.

So aside from not blogging every week, I also have taken ONE, yes, count it, ONE, bump picture...and it was a selfie! Maybe it's the third trimester nesting in me, but I may actually try to take more pictures and maintain the weekly updates for the rest of this pregnancy...I really desire to do so!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 28 Weeks 6 days

Size of baby: Butternut Squash

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 5 lbs {as compared to 20lbs with Our Darling Girl by this point!!}

Maternity Clothes: EVERYTHING - Old Navy Maternity jeans are my fave and Target sweaters

Gender: Sweet Baby BOY!

Movement: This little man is doing FLIPS! One moment I feel kicking up near my ribs and the next I feel kicks on my hip bones! He's pretty active in the mornings and evenings.

Sleep: I am really surprised at how well I'm sleeping! I wake up maybe once during the middle of the night - more so to check on ODG who has been having night terrors.

What I miss: Not really anything that I'm missing due to pregnancy...

Cravings: Salad! I craved it in the beginning and I'm doing it again!

Symptoms: A bit of heartburn has set in, but completely manageable and no where near as bad as with my pregnancy with ODG; definite ligament pain mostly in my hips

Best Moment this week: Every week ODG gets more and more excited about SBB coming! She kisses my tummy and hugs him and talks to him! She even uses needing to hug him as an excuse to getting out of trouble ;-) I think my favorite thing about this week or two has just been feeling like I'm enjoying being pregnant...which I don't remember feeling with ODG and definitely expect that with this pregnancy. Hoping this feeling lasts!

Find out what 28 weeks & 29 weeks were like with my first pregnancy here!

Hoping to be back next week with another update!! Until then...

Our little ham!

ODG has always loved being in front of the camera. When she was 9 months old, we were at a family wedding and girlfriend was CHEESIN' IT UP for the photographer. If the photographer's camera wasn't pointed at her during the reception, she would do something to get her attention or to let us know she wanted to move closer. She was fascinated! Fast forward 2 years and not much has changed!

At Disney World last November, after waiting for a parade on Main Street and watching the Disney Photographer snap people's photos for about an hour, she decided it was her time in the spot light just moments before the parade began. She hopped into the middle of the street (by herself) and told the fun photographer, "I want you to take my picture, please!" Let's just say about 100 pairs of eyes were all on her and she was taking it all in!

Again, not much has changed!

ODG loves to have her picture taken - I think that's fairly evident - but we don't do it often enough with "Daddy's camera" (the nice Nikon). It was a beautiful night last night, so we decided to get all dolled up and head to a cute little area down the street from us and take some snapshots of our little budding model. I'm so glad we did, because we had SO MUCH FUN make goofy poses (she didn't know they were poses, she just thought we were playing & being silly) and enjoying the night! Here are a few of my favorites from the night! 

If anyone knows of a good talent agent, we're in the market! ;-) 

Thanks for letting me share our little ham with you! I just wish you could all get to know her personally. She is SO incredibly creative, super smart (witty), and keeps everyone who spends time with her laughing...or plugging their ears from hearing her talk so much :-) 

Foster Care Update: Our licensor asked to postpone our first home study until we get back from SCENTSY FAMILY REUNION (AHHHH! Excitement in & of itself!!), so I'm a bit bummed, but we won't be having our home study until after July 13! Would love some prayers for patience for that :-)

Lately...

....we've been busy! I am thankful for the busy times, but I wish I had more time to blog about life as it happens instead of big photo dumps every couple of weeks. This shall do for now :-)

April was a whirlwind...we finally feel like we're settling in, making great friends, and finding out what "home" means to us in Washington. We celebrated Easter with the "F" family {who we know from Texas...see ODG < 3 ELF} and we are so glad to have them nearby -- it has made the transition quite a bit easier to have a piece of Texas here {even though neither of them are Texans...}

We stopped to see the tulips after church before lunch. ODG felt like a ballerina in her Easter dress!

Anlee has better pictures I'll post later, but this is the only pic of ODG & ELF that I got the entire day!

In April, we discovered the "touch tank" where you can pet starfish, crabs, and have so much fun!

ODG points with her middle finger at everything....no matter how many times I correct her to her pointer!

April was the opening of our local farmer's market! It's every Saturday and if we're free we head out there for an hour or so and see what all our locals have to offer. It has been so fun! From good food, to balloon fun, to fresh produce, we are loving it!

Spring has officially sprung in our town and it is beautiful! As if the views we've seen haven't been pretty enough, they just keep getting better!! The rainy days are more scattered apart and the flowers are in full bloom. 

And in addition to all of that....we have FINALLY hung curtains! We didn't even hang curtains in our old house we lived in for 2 1/2 years, so I'm quite proud of this accomplishment! Hopefully I will do a picture walk of our house soon...stay tuned!

In other exciting news, I'm scheduled to be a guest blogger on a local gal's blog here in the next couple weeks! I'm so excited to share the top 5 things I love about our new town over on BellingFAM. I'll post a link when it's available!

What was your favorite part of April? Anything you're looking forward to in May?

It came...

I knew it would come, I just didn't know it would come like this or when it would come.

I first want to preface this post. I am not whining. I am not complaining. I'm not even wishing we hadn't done this. I'm not looking for pitty. I'm not looking for "I told you so's." I'm just sharing my mind. Getting it off my chest, so to speak. Those who have moved away from "home" before know this feeling...and knowing I'm not alone, nor the first person to move away from "home", helps me. But so does venting :)

Today it hit me that I miss home. That's part of the problem...I think. When I'm talking to people I say "back home" often. If the saying "home is where the heart is" is true, then I've obviously left my heart in Texas. The problem? It's really not in Texas, it's physically in Washington. I am LOVING it here. I am loving the people I have met, the parks we have visited, my new favorite coffee shop. Seriously, I love it.

But what happened today made me miss my friends & neighbors who were our extended family, I miss CCDC friends who were also more like family than I could've ever imagined. I miss being able to have some one to talk to and now have to worry about the time difference.

I feel like I have been on such a rush moving here. Meeting new people, enjoying our new town, making a new home. Each & every moment has been a blessing. But, today, when things got real, I missed Texas. I'm making a commitment to not call it home anymore...starting now. Washington is home. The place where I make meals, play games with ODG, enjoy movies with Hubby at night...that is home now.

Vent over. I am home now. But I am still, and always will be, a Texas girl, because...."You can take the girl outta Texas, but you can't take the Texas outta the girl" ;-)

Family movie night snuggles with ODG

Who knows what movie we watched?

A Day in the LIfe of a 2 1/2 year old

I have several friends who write blogs who have written "A Day in the Life" posts, but I don't think I've done one since ODG (Our Darling Girl, if you're new to the blog) was an infant...and honestly, I can't even remember if I really did it or if I just thought about it!

Since we are beginning to feel settled in our new town, I thought I'd share a little about our day. Some days are more exciting than others, but today was just an average day, and I like average!

~9:00am {we slept in WAY late this morning} I got up to get dressed to go on a walk outside on this gorgeous, sunny day!

~9:30am ODG finally wakes up, we do our morning routine (play in the crib for a few minutes, diaper change, get dressed)

~10:00am ODG ate 2 scrambled eggs, 1 bite of beef bacon, and 1 whole gluten free blueberry waffle. I ate 2 scrambled eggs with a little bit of cheddar cheese and 2 strips of beef bacon. We both took our vitamins :)

Yes, she does have 3 choices of drink in the morning (juice a friend gave her that we've hung onto for 3 days, coconut milk, and water in her princess cup)

~11:00am After breakfast, ODG requested a dance party. We had a blast! I love dance parties with my sweet toddler!

~11:15am We headed out the door to go to the park...only to realize Daddy had forgotten to finish putting the carseat back together {it had been washed} last night. So while we got that taken care of, ODG talked to "Thump, the Cat" {our neighbor's cat who takes care of the mice} and played on our playground!

"Thump, the Cat" as ODG calls him

Playing on our playground outside our front door

~11:45am We finally finished fixing the carseat issue and decided we better grab lunch before heading to the park!

~12:45pm On to the park! 

Ready to go for a short walk before playing on the playground. She is happy to have her new snack tray attachment for her stroller!

This is the view at the park we went to. It's a lake named after our county, which I assume was named after an Native American tribe...I should probably research that :)

~2:30pm We made it home from the park and it's time for nap time...I decided to catch some Zzzz's while ODG napped, too, after I did a little cleaning up down stairs!

~4:45pm We woke up from naptime and are ready to enjoy the gorgeous day when Daddy gets home from work. He just got a new bike so he was riding home from work for the first time. Our community is very bicycle friendly and we're excited for this opportunity to save money on gas & car insurance! 

~5:30pm I had planned on making Spaghetti Squash & Rotisserie Chicken, but since it was so gorgeous outside we just wanted to get to another park ASAP, so we stopped at a local bakery/sandwich shop for dinner. ODG got a turkey & cheese sandwich, which she devoured, and I got a grilled veggie sandwich with pesto-goat cheese spread...YUM! 

ODG telling Daddy about her cheese. Hubby wasn't hungry, so naturally he got a cinnamon roll for dinner ;)

Towards the end of dinner, ODG decided it was time for another dance party, so she began singing and dancing to one of her favorite CCDC chapel songs, Stand on the Rock!

~6:45pm We headed to our FAVORITE park! It is right on the bay, has a great walking trail/boardwalk, and beach area...as well as the best coffee shop in the area! Hubby got some coffee to stay warm and ODG & I headed to the beach for some "sand castle building" with a gorgeous sunset backdrop!

Her hair was all over the place because I forgot her bow ;)

~8:00pm We headed home and Hubby bathed ODG so I could type up this post. Before she headed upstairs I asked about her day...I typically like to ask what her favorite part of the day is and LOVE hearing the things she remembers :)

~9:00pm Now she is all clean and ready for bed in her Minnie Mouse robe and night gown. On sunny days & bath days we tend to stay up later. Her normal bedtime is 8-8:30pm :) 

She was saying cheese with a mouth full of oranges (her bedtime snack)

P.S. Before we go upstairs, ODG decided she should sing "Herman the Warm"....thanks for that one, Ms. Mindy...she hasn't quite got all the words down ;) 

If you have done a "Day In the Life" post, share the link! I'd love to read what your life looks like!

So, what do you do?

I have been asked this question many times over the last few weeks. Mostly because I'm meeting new people and that's a natural question to ask, but others have asked me this in the form of "Now that y'all have moved, what are you going to do for work?" {side note :: when we moved, I left one of the most amazing places I've ever worked...I taught preschool literacy to 3 & 4 year olds}

I get SO excited to be asked this question now and even more excited to answer this question because, y'all, I love my job!!

I sell all three Scentsy family brands! I am officially a full-time work at home mom {WAHM for short}. I get to experience the best of both worlds -- being at home to be the best mom I can be to ODG + making an income that helps our family work towards living a debt free life! Back in May 2012, I posted on my business blog about Why I Do What I Do. The reason hasn't changed, it just continues to evolve into specific needs for our family and here is my story :)

My Scentsy journey began a little different than most, but very similar to all. I would say it began serendipitously through seeing a friend post on Facebook about this new business she had started. I’ve heard the direct sales gig before - sell a product, convince others to sell it, make some money. Not for me. And that was the end of that. 

Fast forward 6 months or so…just a month before I was to graduate from college, I realized the job market was slim. I was newly married and my husband was working as a bank teller providing just enough for us to scrape by. I realized really quickly that I was going to end up in a job that did not fulfill my desires or use my gifts appropriately, yet again.  

On Monday, November 15, 2010, the administrative assistant at the school where I was student teaching had recently joined Scentsy as a consultant. She brought these containers of smelly wax (I felt like there were a 100), catalogs, and order forms up to school. I had seen a warmer used in a classroom, so I understood the basic workings of the Scentsy system of a small lightbulb melting wax in a lid, but that was the extent of my experience with the product. I began smelling these containers and scent after scent I just couldn’t get enough! I was amazed by the variety of warmers, the warranty provided with each warmer, and the vast spectrum of scents & warmer styles available!  

I took a catalog home to my new husband. Going back to my fear of not finding a job where I was truly happy, we began looking at the affordable way to start our own Scentsy business. We began to research the company - find out how old it was, where it was located, what the company income was like (to make sure it was a stable investment) - and discuss how Scentsy could be a blessing for our family! That night on November 17, 2010, we decided I would join as a consultant. Three years later, that was one of the best decisions we made early on in our marriage, and by far the best $99 ever spent!  

My original goal with Scentsy was to make enough in commissions each month to pay for a tank of gas. Very quickly, that goal grew. A month after joining Scentsy, we found out we were expecting our first child (Our Darling Girl). My goals quickly changed to making enough money to save for our daughter’s arrival. Due to Scentsy, we have been able to keep calm when electric bills were higher than our budget allowed or buy groceries when doctor’s expenses overwhelmed us. I have now been using my Scentsy income to pay for my daughter’s preschool tuition, and we have even bigger goals of living a debt-free life, purchasing a home, and eventually living mostly on the income Scentsy provides! 

Scentsy is not just warmers and wax anymore. About 2 years ago, Scentsy added to their family. They did something unheard of in the direct selling industry. Scentsy "birthed" Velata and Grace Adele, but kept them all under the same "roof" of Scentsy, Inc. So now, any consultant can sell and recruit for all or any of the three brands, without dividing the company or the consultants! {not all consultants choose to sell all three brands - you get to choose} May sound confusing, but really, it is so simple and I'd love to explain it more if you comment or email me!

I choose Scentsy for many reasons. I choose Scentsy because it allows me to be a full-time mom. I choose Scentsy because it brings me JOY to get to know others and bless others with the opportunity of owning their own business. I am an extremely social person and thrive off of relations and Scentsy allows me to build relationships I probably wouldn't have been able to build without Scentsy being the catalyst. I choose Scentsy because some of my closest friendships have been formed or deepened through Scentsy in some way or another. I choose Scentsy because it allows me to feel useful when it comes to our family finances. I choose Scentsy because it began with humble leaders with a humbling story - the leaders have not changed and the company just gets better. If you have never heard of Scentsy, or never heard the history of Scentsy, I hope you'll watch and enjoy this video.

My desire with this post is not to convince you to buy a product, or host a party, or even start your own business. My job isn't about convincing anyone. My job is about sharing a product that I truly believe will enliven your spirit and inspire your soul. My job is about blessing other men & women with the opportunity to make a living by having fun. My true desire with this post is to be transparent and allow you a deeper peak inside of my life :) Welcome to my life...this Texas girl in Washington :)

I choose Scentsy because it allows me to put my family first and that makes me happy. What do you have in your life that makes you happy?

ODG *hearts* ELF

When Hubby accepted the job up here in the Pacific Northwest, we knew only 2 other people/families in the entire state....one on the far opposite side of the state that I haven't seen since I was 16 years old (maybe even younger?) but have kept in contact thanks to Facebook, and one who lived about an hour away. Even just knowing that two people I loved lived on the same side of the country was comforting, so when my sweet friend who lives on an island about an hour away showed interest in regularly getting together, I was THRILLED! We really do love the "F" family {I haven't really asked approval if I could mention them on the blog, so I'll keep them all anonymous for now :)} and are so grateful for their love & friendship and help getting us up here!

Did I mention how much ODG (Our Darling Girl) loves their little ELF?? Well...here are just a few pictures from the past few weeks...you decide for yourself...

ELF eating dinner while ODG holds him....because what 14 month old doesn't want to be held by a 2 1/2 year old while eating??

Oh, ya know, just watching "Boom Boom" in ODG language, or Veggietales to the rest of us

ODG holding ELF on the plasma car like daddy holds her :)

I'm pretty sure this was just a random moment where ODG "attacked" ELF with a giant hug and we naturally pulled out the phone to take pictures!

I'm absolutely certain there will be many more ODG < 3 ELF moments, so y'all be sure to stick around!

The Ides of March

Ok, I'll be completely honest. I remember learning about The Ides of March back in high school and I can't remember a single silly thing about it other than it's March 15...or I think it is at least!

Needless to say, we celebrated the day with attending the our town's St. Patrick's Day Parade! This is apparently the best parade in the area, so I was determined to go, rain or shine!

I'm so glad we went...right as we got out of the car to start walking to our spot, it started blowing cold rain on us, but we pushed through! Found a nice little spot under an awning & got comfortable. We were right in front of a new floral shop so it smelled LOVELY!

Thankfully, moments before the parade, the rain subsided and the sun poked through just a little bit! While we were waiting, a mother & daughter dressed up in green & gold from head to tow were passing out gold chocolate coins to bystanders. I know we're not supposed to take candy from strangers, but it was a parade, people! The mom asked if she could give it to ODG (our darling girl), which I thought was really respectful, and I of course said yes. ODG was SO THRILLED with her gold coin! She ate it later on as the parade was passing by.

Unfortunately, that's about all the pictures I got of the parade. I was taking Instagram video {follow me at 512smellme}, but Hubby was too busy enjoying the parade himself to snap any pictures on his phone, and of course we didn't have the real camera :) ODG's favorite part was waving to the numerous fire engines in the parade - every town within a 20 mile radius of ours had their fire station represented. ODG had a cute little "beauty queen" wave going on...I wish I could've snapped a picture, but I was holding her and couldn't get a good angle. It was precious & completely uncoached, I promise! 

After the parade, we bought a new stroller **YAY Christmas gifts!!** that I absolutely cannot wait to take on the trails around here, and went shopping for Hubby a new bike so we can save money on gas & car maintenance by him riding his bike to work {very common around here}. Both of these shopping trips were spurred on by the gorgeous weather we experienced last week...I'm told this is what it's like (plus about 10-15 degrees) come April-September -- I.CAN'T.WAIT!

The day the Lady Bears won the Big XII Championship! Sic 'em!!

Enjoying the sunny day at a beach!

Sunset that night - our view from our table at dinner {this picture was actually taken behind a window!}

The next day our view from a different park! 

 Now that Hubby has started work we are settling into a normal routine! Until next time...