heavy heart

I am trying to distract myself from life's realities so here I go on this week's catch-up review :o)

22 weeks

23 weeks on Siesta Beach :o)

I am officially 24 weeks as of yesterday, which means we only have 3 months left until we meet our little angel :D I will definitely do a 24 week post this weekend at some point and take a picture amidst all of the fun we have coming up over the next few days.

We had a fabulous trip to Tampa/St. Pete/Sarasota, and I even got to sneak in a quick stop to Atlanta while returning north. I flew into Tampa last Thursday morning and picked Matt up at the hotel to head down to our house, which we hadn't seen since March. It was wonderful to be "home" and it was beautifully clean thanks to my mom who had visited a few weeks prior and done a scrub down (since Matt was the last one to leave, lol). We went to the beach in the late afternoon and even though it was overcast, we still had a great time. We topped off the day with dinner at the Lobster Pot and a visit over to our incredible neighbors to say hi. It was great to sleep in our own bed even though it felt very lonely at the house without the furbabies!

Friday, we headed back up to St. Pete and it turned out to be a rainy, lazy day. But this was perfect to catch up on emails and rebook my flight back to Baltimore since I had gotten word from my precious Lindsey that she had been selected to be on Say Yes to the Dress: Bridesmaids, and we would be shooting on Tuesday. It ended up working perfectly because I was able to fly into Atlanta on Monday night and just delay my trip home by a day. I was very excited to be able to see my girlfriends on such short notice! That night I went to the game with my family, and we it was so wonderful to see them. I hadn't seen my dad since mid-March, we shared a huge helmet of nachos to make up for lost time, lol.

The weekend was gorgeous, and I was able to get some pool time at the Vinoy pool, which is one of my favorite places to be. Since it was a day game on Saturday we were able to get dinner with my family which was a special treat. I got my hair done on Sunday (I'm blond again!...it was 2 months overdue, lol) and then I picked Matt up at the Trop to again head down to Sarasota since he had another off day on Monday (we were spoiled this trip!) We had dinner at our favorite restaurant, Madfish Grill, and relaxed at home on the couch with a movie. Monday we went to brunch at another fave, Sun Garden on Siesta Key, and relaxed on the beach for an hour before heading back home. Then it was time to head back up to Tampa to catch our night flights. It was a crazy-traveling weekend but well worth it!

I made it safely to Atlanta and my Lil P was able to pick me up at the airport :o) I crashed at Ashley & David's and we woke up bright and early to a home made breakfast by Chef Duncan! It was just what we needed for the long day ahead. We got to Bridals by Lori by 7:45 and it was so wonderful to see all of the girls :o) We had a blast during the day picking out a dress, with lots of laughter and fun memories. I had not seen Ashley or Lindsey since our New Years party, so seeing them was amazing. I am continuously in awe by my witty, intelligent, loving friends! It was too quick of a trip and I flew back to Baltimore that night and was welcomed by Omaha & Ducky at the door. Thankfully I get to return next weekend for my first baby shower, which is a whole other post of love and gratitude!

All of Lindsey's beautiful maids :o)

Wednesday, I picked up Millie bright and early at boarding and I was so excited to see my little girl. She is like a wiggle worm when I pick her up, haha. She was searching high and low for Matt when we got home, its always very hard on her with long roadtrips. This one was 12 days and she was more than ready to give him some puppy loving! I was able to volunteer that afternoon at the Maryland Food Bank with other O's wives and staff, which is always a humbling, rewarding experience. I spent yesterday cleaning, grocery shopping, working out, purging the email box and preparing for Matt to get home last night. 3 am arrivals are no fun, but we had a great morning and it is so wonderful for him to be home again.

This weekend is the Orioles Food Drive, so I will be heading off to work the opening gates tonight asking for donations/perishable goods, yippee! We have lots of wonderful friends coming in town for the games/visiting so it should be a great next few days. While I knew I had to re-cap of the past week and a half, I have a lot on my mind and will post about it later (call it a coping mechanism, if you will). If you could please just keep my Grandma and family in your prayers, that would mean so much. We also heard devastating news last night that our friends' 2 year old son's heart stopped beating. He is in ICU right now and his little heart has resumed, but he is not breathing on his own. They are an incredible family and such disciples of God. It has been incredible to see the outpouring of support and prayer that has wrapped around them right now. Please keep them in your thoughts over the next few hours/days. I will post again soon with updates, love you all. :o)

Playing catch-up

Happy Memorial Day! I hope everyone has had a blessed, relaxed, and fun-filled weekend. Millie and I had a great day, and started it off with a memorial ceremony at the waterfront park across the street. I heard music and we walked over to investigate, and ended up arriving perfectly for the start of the service. It was so touching to watch the color guard present the colors and hear Taps played, it stirs in me so many memories of my upbringing which I am so thankful for. Millie got a little scared during the gun shots, but she was a very good girl :o) Here is a shot I took during the ceremony.

We certainly have had an eventful week, but one filled with quality time which was wonderful. Since my last post, Matt and I got to have dinner together on Wednesday night since there was a day game (we treasure day games!), as well as spend the entire day together on Thursday. It was the first off day in 20 days and much needed (we treasure off days even more! lol). Matt was such a great sport and allowed me to take him to a baby store to research/browse stroller options, as well as stops at Target and Babies R Us to look around. This was the first time we had really gone together in search of baby gear, and although it was a lot for one day, it was great to get his opinion and share some laughs together. They even had a fake baby (which weighed like 30 pounds, haha) for you to test out the strollers with in the store. Matt got a kick out of it and also my inability to make decisions while simultaneously getting everyone’s opinion about every possibility which just confuses me more. Sigh! Looks like online shopping might be the best option for us. On a positive note, we narrowed it down to 2 stroller options, the UppaBaby Cruz and the City Mini GT. We like the GT for biased reasons!

On Saturday I got another nostalgic dose when I drove up to Pennsylvania for a bridal shower. There is nothing like the rolling hills and good ole Pennsylvania dutch countryside! I also got to see my Sarah, which is always an amazing time. Her brother (little Saul!) is getting married at the end of June, so I got to join in on showering her future sister-in-law at the Grandinetti house. Although I can’t join in on the wedding festivities, it was great to see one of my second families and catch up. Sarah and I have been friends since 4th grade in Ft. Leavenworth, KS, and dedicated pen-pals since then! I can’t tell you how funny it is to go through our box of letters/momentos from throughout the years :o)

Matt had a day game on Saturday so I got to see him when I got back from PA. I really have been spoiled! We had a relaxing night at home and dined on pizza and snuggled on the couch, aren’t those some of the best nights!?! ;D He left for Toronto yesterday so I have commenced hibernation mode and been trying to get a lot of things done before I head out to Tampa on Thursday. I had meant to post a lot earlier, but for some reason my internet has been very iffy, so I have been frustrated with that. As well as my phone, darn technology!

Baby Mav is doing great :o) He is active as ever and has been recently having a dance party when I lie down to go to sleep at night. I have been starting to get a little uncomfortable in bed with trying to get situated, but I feel like I can’t complain at all because I’m sure its only going to get worse as I get bigger! I got one of those body pillows during our trip to Target, but I’m not really feeling it. Its easier for me to just put a pillow between my legs than have another huge, obtrusive object to compete with (in addition to my hubby and the cats!). 23 weeks is on Thursday, so I will take/post a pic of 22 over the next few days. I’ve been a little retroactive with my belly shots, I apologize! I have been really overwhelmed recently with the feeling of not being prepared. I think looking for things on Thursday shed light on the fact that we have nothing for the nursery/or any big items for the babe. I know that we will get them soon, but that means that I actually have to make some decisions, and be confident in them-- which I have been struggling with recently. Oy vey pregnancy hormones! It is comforting to know that all that we really need for when he comes is an infant car seat to take him home, some clothes, and a safe place for him to sleep, whether it is a drawer or a bassinet, lol. The crib/furniture/etc is secondary, so I need to stop stressing out. Minimalist! All that I can do is research options and if I see something that I love obviously I will order it and ship it to FL. So I’m off to google Eco-friendly cribs...wish me luck! Miss and love you all, xoxo.

21 weeks

Don't you love Millie's bowls in the background? lol

Happy Monday

Hi lovers, I sowwy I haven't updated sooner! I had a wonderful trip out in Nebraska with my family. It was truly a very momentous time to be all together and celebrating such a strong, beautiful woman. We had a birthday party for her on Friday night which was filled with good times, pizza, salads, spirits (6 pack non-alcoholic beer thanks to Maija!) and laughter. We continued the party on Saturday by going to the evening church service followed by dinner afterwards at a yummy restaurant. It was so great to just relax and catch up with all of my cousins & aunts, dote on my grandma, and soak in the gorgeous weather. We were surrounded by beauty the whole weekend while congregating in my grandma's apartment. I can't describe the feeling of warmth, travel, art, and family that resonate in her home. I definitely did not want to leave, although I did miss Matt and my little munchkins :o)

While we were on one of our many walks around the lake, my mom took a few belly snapshots with her phone. Here is my 20 week and a hilarious belly comparison with my awesome cuz, Mikael. He is a hoot!

I got home Tuesday night and was able to relax/catch up on a few things before Matt got home on Thursday night. Had a massive cleaning session (you should have seen the state of our place when I walked in the door, lol), unpacked & repacked for DC, caught up on laundry, met up with some awesome ladies for a girls' night/study session (we are reading "What's it Like to be Married to Me" by Linda Dillow...its awesome!), volunteered at the Helping Up Mission where we served lunch on Thursday, worked out, ran errands, etc. It was soo good to see my honey after not seeing him for a week.

We woke up on Friday planning to head to DC around 11. This was in hopes to beat traffic/check into the hotel since we were bringing Millie and I didn't think I could valet car/get all bags out and up into our room/checkin and handle her by myself (can't wait to add a baby to that mix, lol). Lets just say its funny how things work out sometimes!!! From the second we woke up Friday morning, everything seemed to go wrong. First off, Millie had massive diarrhea. This is highly unusual for her since her stools are always normal. (Yes, I am discussing dog shit in my blog!) She had had a loose one the morning prior and I thought it was very odd but at night it was normal so I thought nothing of it. Well we started freaking out. Definitely didn't want her crapping in the historic Mayflower hotel over the weekend, lol. After numerous calls and a last minute vet trip, we were finally on our way after the most tense, rushed morning. And let me say that both Matt and I do not do well being rushed in the AM. Add pregnancy hormones on top of that and it was not pretty.

We made it down to DC in about 1.5 hours where I checked into the hotel, where I had to go retrieve Matt's ID from the car since my name was not on the list. Had he not been with me I would have been shit out of luck. We then proceeded to go the 4 miles to the Nationals stadium so that I could drop him off at the field. Well, this took 45 minutes. Needless to say, I did not have a happy husband. And then I was hungry again, so I was emotional. This became an emerging lesson of the weekend. I have never been able to go lengths of time without food in the past (note irritability, weakness, fainting), but these last few days have proven that to the extreme. If I don't eat a full meal in the morning *right away*, things are going to go downhill FAST. Poor Matt is so patient but it has been frustrating for me as well. I even snacked before we went out to get food, but it wasn't enough. Lesson learned the hard way!

The weather was gorgeous all weekend, but due to some late nights and what seemed like a rain cloud over us after Friday's events, we were very overwhelmed during the trip. I don't know if I got a taste of the baby blues or what, but I spent a lot of the days in the hotel room in bed (ok, so more like mornings). And then feeling guilty about it. Sigh. I did have a great time with the girls at the games, and Millie and I's walks were fun. I also indulged in dessert every night :o) The sun was shining and we won the series, so all in all it was a good weekend. I think lack of sleep and silly nuances dimmed it a bit, but its over and we are glad to be home!

On a lighter note, it is Matt's Birthday today :o) Happy Birthday to my amazing honey! There was a light drizzle all day, but I think it was almost necessary. It was a great opportunity to snuggle and catch up on a lot of things when he headed to the field. Slow the pace down a bit. I got a great workout in and got to go pick up some goodies for Matt to surprise him when he gets home :o) I got a chocolate covered cheesecake for him at Whole Foods and had them write his name on it, hehehe. I also picked up some blue irises which are gorgeous. Who says you can't spoil men? I hope that everyone had a great Monday :o) Love you all and write more soon!

Milestones

I am officially 20 weeks today, where has half of my pregnancy gone? lol. I am so excited for the second half and the preparation/nesting for little Maverick to get here :o) I had my 20 week appointment on Tuesday, and it was about 15 minutes. I wanted it to last longer! My doctor said that I am healthy, baby is healthy, and all is going wonderfully. She said the next few appointments might be a little "boring" because he and I will just be continuing to grow. In a way I was a little let down because there wasn't any new, revealing news. As I walked to my car I couldn't believe my feelings! I should have been praising God that all is well and that he is working wonders. Talk about convicting! Humbled and asking for a heart of gratitude, because each day and healthy kick is a precious gift. So keep me positive, girls! These hormones often have me overlooking the big picture, and that is to wake up each day thanking Him :o)

I've been a little delayed with my pictures, but here is a shot from 19 weeks :o) I opted for just a belly shot!

In other milestones, I get to celebrate and be apart of an incredible one this weekend :o) My beautiful grandma is turning 80! I am flying out tomorrow to Nebraska to be with her, my momma, sister, and incredible aunts and cousins for what is sure to be a fabulous time :o) I can't wait to see her, since the last time was in mid January right before we found out that we were expecting. For those of you who have met my grandma, you know how special of a lady she is. There will be lots of hugs, smiles and happy tears. I'm so glad I will be able to spend Mother's day with my mom as well, and with the women who inspire me the most :o) I'm sure I will have lots to write about when I return from the good ole midwest!

Us celebrating her birthday 3 years ago. Her favorite color blue making an appearance on the table!

Commence hibernation mode...lol

I am home! And had a fabulous trip to Boston :o) Oftentimes when I an en route to a destination I have a wave of thankfulness that overcomes me, just for the simple act of being able to travel. I'm able to go and see my husband or dear friends and family, and that is a huge blessing. Safety is a blessing as well, and I praise Him for getting me and my loved ones from point A to point B. With the fast pace of this life, I feel like its so easy to take the little things for granted and not acknowledge the greater picture. I feel so fortunate to be able to have the means and the time to visit, explore, and experience new cities and places. It is something that will never grow old to me. Even frequenting cities I have visited before, there are always new things to do and sights to explore, leaving you with a new perspective. Ah the joys of traveling!

The reasoning for my title is that I often go into "hibernation mode" when I return from my trips. Call it a way to recharge the batteries. I like to go in my cave for a little while and be a hermit, or else I definitely get worn down from the hustle and bustle. This time is precious for catching up on tasks, relaxing with the furbabies, and just honing in on goals for the future. So I guess these next few days will be full of just that!

Matt and I had a lot of fun in beantown, and I even got him to go on a walking food tour on his off day. If you know my husband, you know that he isn't a big fan of walking (especially on his day off from squatting for 3+ hours), but I was hoping the food part would compensate, lol. We had a great time and would highly recommend it if you are up for some good grub and a history lesson along the quaint South End neighborhood :o) We relaxed in the hotel room following our foodie-ness and then enjoyed more food at dinner together. I figured if I can't enjoy the local Sam Adams beers, at least I can make up for it in the food department, lol. On Friday I got to spend almost the entire day with Tara, and we had a blast. It was yucky weather all weekend but made great time for catching up :o) We walked/shopped, explored surburban Newton where they are living this season, and had dinner at the EMC in Fenway while watching the game. I am so thankful we play the Sox so much so that I can get my Tata fix! Although I hope the 13 and 17 inning games of this weekend don't become a trend, lol. On Saturday I had a bit of a loungy day since we were up so late the night before. But it was awesome because I got to facebook chat with my sweet friend Jackie who is stationed in Afghanistan. With the time difference and her busy schedule (defending our great nation!), time to live chat is precious and rare. Definitely one of the highlights of my day, as well as our second win of the series and a yummy dinner with B & D! I think I was just spoiled this trip with great conversations :o)

I got home today safe and sound and got to love on the kitties, unpack & clean before I went and picked up the crazy monkey aka Millie. I turned on the game to watch around 2:30, hoping that we would possibly sweep and that the guys would be on the road pretty quickly after the game. Well, there were definitely other plans in store! I kept on delaying walking Millie, eating dinner, etc since I thought that someone (anyone!) would break the tie and end the extra innings. I finally succumbed to my hunger pains and walked to go get my favorite takeout (Jasa Kabob, lol) and our neighbors were actually doing the same thing, so they invited me over to watch what now had been a 5 hour game. They are so awesome and I'm so glad that I was able to celebrate the 17 inning victory with them and their adorable 18 month old twin boys :o) We have the best group of people in our neighborhood, its such a blessing. And way to go O's! Talk about an incredible game and series. Now we are all waiting for Matt to get home, which is hopefully very soon. I am pooped and ready for bed! I will upload pictures to facebook soon :o) Nighty night! xoxo

Hamming it up

Click here for your daily laugh!

My mom sent this to me, I think she is just a tad excited to have a grandson :o) I'm not going to lie, I think I could watch this everyday and it would still make me smile! I hope Maverick has half the moves of this little dude! Enjoy!