Hey There!
Because things change so very quickly, I have started a new blog dedicated to my new life as a working momma! It’s mostly teacher stuff sprinkled with momma stuff! Even if you’re not a teacher, you could still click below, come on over & check it out! xoxo
I’m over 30 weeks pregnant!!!!
Translation: Holy crap, I’m getting big 🙂
I literally think my baby bump mountain has doubled in size in the past 3 weeks.
I clearly prefer this picture. It definitely should be framed in the baby’s room.
30 weeks pregnant means:
~ I can no longer squeeze into non-maternity sweats
~ We started child birth classes. Grossest thing ever.
~ We purchased paint for the nursery. Please be clear that we have not painted a thing yet, but we bought the paint. Bright green it is! Inspired by this bedding from Land of Nod:
~ We have begun the search for childcare! Fortunately, we don’t need it until August, but still something we must do!
~ Chaylee got her own Christmas presents this year (yay!)
From Aunt Denise
From Uncle Justin & Aunt Sasha
 From Uncle Chris & Aunt Julie
 Lots of great books from various people. The “Twas the Night Before Christmas” book was also from Uncle Justin & Aunt Sasha and it was one that they recorded their voices reading the books, alternating pages. I’ve made it to page 1 without crying. So very special.
~ We’ve definitely begun inheriting baby stuff from friends & it’s SO FUN. All these baby clothes (barely worn) make my heart melt! I swear Chay has enough to cloth her baby body for the next year at least!
Boppy? Bumbo? Changing Table? Diaper Genie? Swing? Vibrating seat? Baby bath?
Check. Check. And check… PLUS SOME Thanks to a wonderful friend!
In other news, we’ve been trying our best to train dog-face to quit barking like crazy when someone in the neighborhood jogs by, the mailman comes, or a leaf blows across the yard. She’s such a good dog, but very protective of us!
MOMMA QUESTIONS OF THE DAY (help!):
All Mommas please answer in comments! xo
Crib bumper vs. None? I think we’re leaning towards none…
Diaper genie. Love it or hate it? If hate it, what is your method of poop disposal?
Make your own baby food or buy jar food? We’ve had our eye on a baby bullet for 6 months now 🙂
Recommendation on best bottles? We inherited a lot of Dr. Brown bottles that are supposed to be awesome.Â
Warning: Super Sappy Post Ahead Â
Today marks 1 year that I’ve been married to the most wonderful man on the planet.
1 whole year.
1 year since we said “I Do”,
1 year since I spent the entire day with my 3 best girl friends getting ready to walk down the aisle,
1 year since we had Han Solo & Princess Leia cake toppers,
1 year since my mom woke me up with a necklace & a card reading, “dreams really DO come true,”
1 year since we rode in a limo to the airport in Pittsburgh,
1 year since my entire family got together to celebrate our commitment,
1 year since Nile ate Primanti Bros. for breakfast,
1 year since I committed my life & vowed to our sweet Lord above that I would be Nile’s wife, NO MATTER WHAT, until death do us part.
It’s been the best year of my life.
In our 1 year together we’ve relaxed in Mexico and blew money in Las Vegas. We adopted the best doggy in the universe and bought a perfect house to grow our family, start traditions, and make memories. We’ve seen some awesome concerts and explored our wonderful city. We’ve made some of the best friends that we know we can count on for anything. And most importantly, we have miraculously created a new life ~ and we get to meet her in 13 short weeks!
Dreams really do come true.
Speaking of, I have to admit something: I really am not a big fan of “the princess mentality” for little girls. Little girls who are spoiled rotten because they are CONVINCED they are a true princess and deserve anything they want. In the movies, Cinderella, Snow White, Belle, Â and Sleeping Beauty were women of good character, always putting others before themselves. Humble, honest, and sweet. How did that wonderful example turn into “the princess mentality” of spoiled, selfish little girls?????
Rant finished.
My point — I do, however, believe in hopes & dreams. I’ve always believed that Cinderella’s dreams that came true for her COULD REALLY HAPPEN in real life. I’ll always believe it because I feel that I am living proof that Prince Charming found me, swept me off my feet, and I am living happily ever after. Dreams do come true. Rock on, Cinderella.
Thank you, Nile, for everything you are to me. I love you so very much!
 Happy 26 (almost 27) weeks to me!
Time is going outrageously fast! I feel AWESOME ~ and only 1.5 weeks until THIRD TRIMESTER! Baby girl is moving & grooving like crazy. I love every second of it! I’ve started to count DOWN (14 weeks to go!) instead of counting the weeks up.
In other news, we had our first big party at our new house over the weekend! We hosted the staff Christmas party for my co-workers at BGMS. It was a HUGE success! Gift exchange, music, cheer, and lots of awesome people! My parents & in-laws even took part in the merriment! Parties have always brought me joy and I am SO THANKFUL that we have a killer house now that we can have parties at! There were about 35-40 people that attended and all fit comfortably! Here are a couple shots of the party day!
 Ramona waiting for guests to arrive.
 Living Room
 BasementÂ
 Basement 2Â
 My wonderful parents drove in for the party!
 Best In-Laws in the world
&
The cutest bartender ever
 We even had a surprise visit from 4 guys from Ball State with sweaters & staches singing Christmas carols at my front door!! Perfect!
*You may or may not recognize Jacob Cooper on the far left* Â Â
Thank you to everyone who attended my party! I had so much fun being the host! I’m ready to have another party this weekend!! I’m feeling the holiday cheer!
Just a few gifts left to purchase & 8 school days left until my beloved winter break! It’s truly the most wonderful time of the year! xo
Today, I decided to begin blogging again for one reason only. To document this unbelievably awesome time in our lives so that it is archived forever. If you haven’t heard, we have had one BIG change in our life and another HUGE change yet to come.
BIG Change #1: We bought a house.
 And we couldn’t be happier. The house kind of fell into our laps aka an unexpected blessing from the Lord above & it all worked out! It is such a great feeling knowing we have a PERMANENT place to grow our family! Ramona-girl is particularly happy that she has a backyard to run around in!
 Speaking of “growing family”, on to HUGE news #2 (and the main reason I am bringing back the ol’ blog):
We’re having a BABY!!!!
A baby girl to be exact! I’m 25 weeks along & counting ~ due March 15th. Just a little over 3 months left! Here is a quick run-down of my pregnancy so far:
1. Her name will be Chaylee Ann Smith. Chaylee comes fro my mother’s side of the family. My grandmother’s maiden name is Ceglie (from Italy). Another pronunciation is Chay-lee…. we thought it was a great name 🙂
2. I had severe morning sickness from week 8 to week 22. They told me it would end after week 13 (bah-humbug!)
3. We still haven’t really planned the baby nursery. All we know is that we don’t want pink walls. Why limit little girls to pink? There are so many other pretty colors!! In fact, we’re looking at shades of blue! We’re being rebels. Our dream theme is Busy Town by Richard Scarry, but that stuff is hard to find, so we’re thinking of doing a lot of stuff with old Golden Books & stories. Thoughts?
4. I’m growing fast! My most recent “belly pic” is from 18.5 weeks along (wow, 7 weeks ago!?) I better take another one ASAP!
 18 weeks & growing (At 25 weeks, I’m even bigger now!)
I know I’m not the only pregnant lady in the world (even though sometimes I forget that!!), but I truly feel I could star in the next Steven Kroll book, “Biggest Belly Ever.” And it just keeps getting bigger! 🙂
We cannot wait to meet our sweet baby girl! The time is FLYING and I know 3 months is nothing, but March seems so far away! Until then, we’ll be enjoying the holidays and our last months of just Nile & I. It’s important to me that I document every step of the way from here on out so that I don’t forget! It is truly unbelievable how far we’ve come and how much God has blessed us in the past year! This Thanksgiving was a true THANKSgiving ~ I’m not sure I’ve ever been more thankful in my entire life!
 Jake, Mom, Turkey = Thankful
I can’t help but think that next year, we’ll have a 9 month old for the holidays!!! 🙂
Well, in case you haven’t heard, The Smiths have a new family member!
Meet Ramona Smith.
She’s about 6 months old, Hound/Shepherd Mix, and currently weighs in at 29 lbs (although we’re expecting her weight to double). We adopted her from a shelter (which I HIGHLY recommend)! We couldn’t pick her up until yesterday & she’s as sweet as pie! 🙂 We talked about changing her name all weekend, but ended up just keeping her as she is. I love the name Ramona for these 2 reasons:
1. Ramona Quimby (Who else loved her as a kid?)
2. Ramona Flowers from Scott Pilgrim (one of my favorite movies!)
Both Ramonas are equally AWESOME, but our Ramona is the BEST. I really think her name just fits her!
We’ve been dog owners for about 24 hours now, and it has been wonderful. She gets in her kennel with very little push/encouragement. She slept all through the night in her kennel without making a peep. She hasn’t cried or barked ONCE. I don’t worry about her getting into mischief because she doesn’t leave my side. I taught her how to sit already… NO JOKE! She won’t do it unless I have a treat, but she caught on SO FAST it was amazing! I’ve also watched about 100 episode of The Dog Whisperer. I’m so thankful I have the rest of the summer with her at home!
 I’m already dreading having to go back to work next month & leaving her here…
 So that’s the latest & greatest in our home!
Hope you’re all staying cool!!
Blogging from my phone, so not sure how this post will turn out on a computer screen! Believe it or not, I left the computski at home so it’s mobile blogging for me while in the city of lights! We are currently in our connecting city of CLEVELAND. Can you believe that? CLEVELAND! Boo.
On a more exciting note, chef Anne Burrel from The Food Network just walked right by us in the airport in CLEVELAND! You know, the one with the spiky blonde hair! 🙂 Hopefully that’s the first of MANY celebrity spottings on our Vegas adventure!
Lastly, what is it about airports that make you want to EAT EVERYTHING? I ate a breakfast big enough for Goliath, yet I still want to get every sandwich, Burger, pizza, or piece of chocolate I see! Ahhhh happiness!
See ya in Vegas!!
I finished my pillow! It is SO PRETTY! 🙂 All fabric from Hobby Lobby! Going to make 1 more to even out the other side of the couch!
It honestly was not as time consuming as I thought! After I got the fabric cut out, it only took me about an hour (maybe a little more) to sew it all together! This coming from a semi-beginner! This is obviously not my own pattern. Someday I hope to be able to create pretty things & design patterns ALL ON MY OWN, but for now, I’m a stealer!
I used THIS TUTORIAL to help me out! You should try it!!
One of my favorite new things  are these fabric covered button kits! I got mine at Hobby Lobby for $2.99! Makes 2-3 buttons for the size I got!
 It takes approximately 20 seconds and you can use any fabric you want 🙂
 Well, today will be a day of PACKING! I have so many cute things (“Vegas clothes”) to wear!! Also planning on reading this book in the airport:
Every person I’ve talked to that has read it says it’s AWESOME!
 Vegas, here we come!!!
We’re so so SO excited we can’t stand it!!! We leave Saturday morning! I’ve been spending time at the pool, catching up on magazines, and doing laundry. WHAT A LIFE, I know!
Some other things I’ve been up to to kill time until Vegas….
Project #1: End table transformation.
 She’s a beauty (thanks Aunt Karen!). In fact, I loved the character of it so much I just thought about cleaning it up & replacing the knobs, no paint! But there are so many dings, holes, and scratches that it needs so love! 🙂 Will post a before/after when I’m finished!!
Yellow Toenails.
Nile said the yellow represents the coins & lights of Vegas 🙂
The Sound of Music vinyl.Â
There’s nothing better to me than “My Favorite Things” echoing through our humble abode while I’m home!
Project #2: Accent Pillows
Will let you know how this one turns out 🙂 I’m so happy to discover fabric covered button kits!
Watermelon consumption.
  It’s so YUM and SWEET and PRETTY!! You’d be a liar if you said you couldn’t eat this entire bowl!
TONIGHT’S PLANS: Celebrity softball game downtown at Victory Field. I can only hope Reggie Miller will be playing!!! I used to have his jersey when I was in 4th grade. As well as a Pacers Starter jackets. I was obviously really girly.
Have you been to Vegas? Where are some MUST GO places???Â
 How.Awesome.Is.This?
If you know me, you know I love nothing more than a good game of Scrabble or anything Scrabble themed! CAN’T WAIT TO MAKE THESE!
Here is the tutorial OR you can buy one from THIS Etsy shop.
 How many of you had an abacus growing up? Or remember playing with one in the waiting room at the doctors office?
This awesome DIY seems a little complicated at first glance, but I don’t think it’d be that bad… and totally worth it!
Can I just create a nursery in my apartment NOW? Or do I HAVE to wait until I’m pregnant? 🙂 Just thinking ahead, ya know?
This FREEEEE downloadable print from Collected Blog is so uplifting. Download to computski, upload to Walmart & order for like .50 or something crazy.
love Love LOve LOVe LOVE.
If you’re into sewing… I believe I’m going to make amends with Florence the Machine (my sewing machine) and tackle this tutorial. Such a love/hate relationship between Flo & I…. We shall see.
On a non-DIY note, how CUTE is the Richard Scarry GOOGLE logo today??
Brings back lots of childhood memories…. recognize any these? 🙂
Would be the cutest nursery EVER!
Vegas Countdown: 6 Days.
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