Maternity pictures

Last week a friend of mine graciously gifted us a free maternity photo session. We got the gallery back over the weekend and I love them all! Below are some of my favorites.

Murphy is obviously the star of the family. I loved all of our pictures with him! Maybe even more than just the ones of me and Ryan. 

I was a little on the fence about getting pictures but I knew I would regret it if I went through this entire pregnancy and didn’t have any photos to show from it. I didn’t take the weekly bumpdate pictures, so I knew this would be a great way to get some nice photos of our little family before we add a new member!

My face and feet are a little swollen from this Kentucky heat (and ya know, being 8 months pregnant) but I am trying to focus on the crazy awesome things my body is currently doing and not on the extra pounds I’m carrying.

I had my 33 week appointment today and things are getting real FAST. I have one more appointment in July and then I see my doctor every week in August. We picked a pediatrician today and we have the car seat and stroller out of their boxes and assembled. 

THE COUNTDOWN IS ON. Less than 50 days until baby girl is here!

Did you get maternity pictures taken?

Were you early, on time or late with your first? Trying to guess when the baby will actually be here is driving me crazy!

Favorite maternity workout clothes

Even though my running has come to a screeching halt during pregnancy, I am still trying to get out and active every day. Early on in my pregnancy when I looking at other blogs to see what women were wearing during pregnancy + working out all I found were ladies who were several sizes smaller than me. While I’m not quite plus size, I am usually a size 10-12. So hopefully this will help anyone who isn’t a size 4 (no shame at all to those who are smaller! Yall are rocking it. I just want to put my experience out there and hopefully help other women who are a different body type)

My trusty Oiselle long rogas are literally the first thing I change into when I get home from work and I live in them during the weekends. I own five pairs and four of them are size 12 and one of them is a size 14. They are still fit great (though the 12s are almost snug, they are still comfortable!) I never found any true maternity athletic shorts that I liked so I’m hoping my rogas can hold out for another 7 weeks.

This maternity tank from Amazon. Loved it so much I ordered a second the day after one came in the mail.

My ProCompression socks! Swollen feet really started to affect me this week and I have been wearing my ProCompression socks nightly around the house. Thankfully I had five pairs from marathon training, but I’m thinking of buying one or two more pairs (the puppy love design and the marathon navys) to add to my rotation.

For my daily walks and on the weekends when I am about and about more, I always wear my Hoka One One Clifton 5s. So much support and they are wide enough that my swollen feet still fit comfortably.

For work, I usually wear some black Crocs sandals I snagged on a whim one day when looking for shoes. I sized up but they are still getting a little snug – this Kentucky heat and humidity is not doing me any favors.

What are some of your maternity workout apparel must-haves?

10 more weeks!

Holy moly I can’t believe I’ve reached 30 weeks in my pregnancy! And there is still so much left to do!

*Below is the latest bump photo I have in my phone. Haha! I texted this to my bestie because holy smokes I swear this bump grew so much overnight!

With the pandemic, I’ve just started to venture out into actual stores and I finally bought a stroller (and car seat combo for my vehicle) and a car seat (for Ryan’s car) last week! Honestly, I still can’t believe it’s real and after every doctor’s appointment, I tell my husband, “okay, this week we really need to get our $h!t together.”

My goal is to get some stuff for the nursery and finish up some other around-the-house projects. In July, Kentucky is allowing groups of 50 to gather, so I’m hoping to have a baby shower in the next month or so!

I had a doctor’s appointment on Monday and everything went great! Had an ultrasound, got to hear the heartbeat and I passed my glucose test! Thank the Lord!

I debated on whether or not I should get maternity pictures done, but figured I would regret it if I didn’t take a few. So hoping to knock that out after the holiday weekend. A friend of mine is a photographer and generously offered a free session as a gift! So now I’m on the hunt for a simple, flowy maxi dress (that’s not covered in some awful pattern!)

Running is out of the picture, but I have been going on LOTS of walks with Murphy. He is loving the extra time outside and I feel great being somewhat active.

This baby girl is already so loved and I can’t believe 2.5 months she will be here with us! So thankful for this blessing.

24-week pregnancy update

Holy smokes, yall — time is flying! It’s been almost two months since I posted our pregnancy announcement and since then — the world went crazy and I’ve been trying to keep my head above water. With COVID-19 we’ve been stuck in house and haven’t been able to do much of anything (like shop for cute baby girl clothes!) Obviously I know this will pass, but it’s such a strange time to be pregnant. I worked from home for almost 8 weeks and just started coming back to the office (there are only 7 of us on my floor). So things have been all kinds of crazy.

But, on that note, let’s jump right into what I’m experiencing at 24 weeks of pregnancy. I can’t believe I’m already 6 months in! So wild.

Current Pregnancy Symptoms

I swear I find something new every day. Random body parts hurt or I find a new blemish. I haven’t been sick since the beginning of April — thank the Lord. I was puking 5-10 times a day and I thought it was never going to end.

Exhaustion: Some days I am dog tired by 6 p.m. and some days I am up and going until midnight. The second trimester has been a lot better than the first in terms of how much energy I have.

Bump: You can definitely tell I’m pregnant. It always grows over the course of the day though, so at night, it’s larger than when I woke up.

Don’t get me wrong, there are still days where I feel like a giant balloon walking down the street, but now that I truly look 24-weeks pregnant, and not just bloated, I’m starting to love it.

PREGNANCY CRAVINGS & AVERSIONS

Cravings: These come and go and are so random. Some of my recent cravings have been corndogs with lots of mustard (SO random, I hate hotdogs), peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and milk.

Aversions: Like my cravings, my aversions come and go.

EXERCISE 

As of now, exercise is hit or miss. I take daily walks but sometimes I’ll throw in a pregnancy yoga video from YouTube or do some strength training — anything to help break a sweat and get the endorphins flowing!

I do miss running though … A LOT. I’ve tried some light jogs on the treadmill but I feel like bounce too much and it’s just not comfortable.

WHAT I’M EXCITED FOR

The possibility of having a baby shower in the next month or two. With all the pandemic craziness, who knows if we’ll be able to, but it’s fun to think about all the gifts for baby R and getting to be all my friends and family.

Baby Kicks: Baby girl is a kicker at night! After dinner, while I’m on the couch watching tv or catching up on work, she goes crazy rolling, kicking and punching me. I love it! It’s weird but in a good way and it makes me feel so connected to her.

Nursery: We have a crib, dresser and changing tray … and that’s it! We still haven’t decided on a theme and it’s so hard shopping for what we want online (since all the retail stores are closed)

Who knows when I’ll pop in for the next update — but until then thanks for all the well wishes and prayers for me and baby R. Ryan and I are so excited for her to be here in August!

 

The reason for my radio silence…

Holiday gift guide for the runner in your life

Struggling to find gifts for the runner in your life? This gift guide has you covered with gift ideas ranging from $ – $$$.

Books — 26 Marathons: What I Learned About Faith, Identity, Running, and Life from My Marathon Career by Meb Keflezghi, Stronger by Kara Goucher or a number of other running books. 
Oiselle mug — I mean someone can never have too many coffee mugs, right?!
Trigger point foam roller — hurts so good.
Winc wine subscription — Uhm, yes please. Different wines hand-picked and delivered to your doorstep? Sign me up too.
Run stickers —
House shoes — These from LL Bean have been on my wish list for weeks!
Yeti — coffee mugs, bottles, coolers, etc. You can’t go wrong. 

What did I forget? Leave your favorite gifts as/for a runner in the comments below!

Adventuring in the cold and what to wear on those cold runs

Anyone else already over this cold weather?! I know it is so easy to stay inside during the winter months, but getting out in the sunshine (even in the winter) is SO important!

Not only am I trying to avoid the treadmill, but I am trying to take Murphy out in the cold so we can both burn some energy. The fresh air is good for both of us!

What to wear when running in the cold:

• 30 degrees: 2 tops, 1 bottom. Long-sleeve base layer and a vest keep your core warm. Tights or shorts, depending on your preference.
• 10 to 20 degrees: 2 tops, 2 bottoms? A windbreaker over a base layer, and two pairs of tights or wind pants over the tights.
• 0 to 10 degrees: 3 tops, 2 bottoms. Two tops and a jacket.
• Minus 10 to 0 degrees: 3 tops, 2 bottoms, gloves, something to cover your face.
• Minus 20 degrees: Hop on the treadmill.

Simple berry, honey and cinnamon smoothie recipe

Kindness

Shouldn’t it be easy to show others kindness? I know it can be hard, so I like seeing a reminder to just be nice and give some grace. Instead of getting mad while driving, I just remind myself I don’t know what the other person is going through and it’s going to do me any good to get mad.

So I hope you see this and are reminded to show some kindness today, tomorrow, this week — forever!

Soaking up these outside runs

Yesterday it was in the 60s – today it’s in the 20s. I am so glad I had the chance to run outside yesterday before this nasty and cold weather moved in (I feel for the parents who are out with kids trick-or-treating in this weather).

These fancy flora rogas from Oiselle are so fun! 

Between working three jobs and a somewhat demanding travel schedule for work, outside runs have been few and far between lately. Taking time for yourself IS NOT SELFISH (something I’m still learning). Getting outside in the fresh air is good for my soul and my mind. I’m going to be bummed when the weather forces me inside on the treadmill. Until then, I’m sneaking outside every chance I get.

Low light and self-timers ^^ #DoItForTheGram

How is the weather where you are? Some of my friends are seeing SNOW already — uhm, no thank you. I will take my crazy Kentucky weather over snow in October. Next week it should feel like fall again 🙂