For Christmas, John got us a night at the Gaylord Hotel in National Harbor. Even though we decided to take it 'easy' this Christmas to save for our vacation and to splurge on AJ, John still found a way to spoil me (which made me feel bad for not doing the same!). I also got a pair of Louis Vuitton shoes :).
The big night was Friday. He had booked us a beautiful room with a balcony overlooking the atrium. If you haven't visited the Gaylord, I recommend you do! It's a huge hotel with the most beautiful atrium I have ever seen.
We had dinner reservations at a seafood restaurant called Moon Bay. While we are used to the hole-in-the wall seafood restaurants where you can put on a bib and make a huge mess, this resturant was first class. The food was amazing, although the portions smaller then what we are used to. We still managed to stuff ourselves silly.
We walked around for a bit before going back to the room to watch a movie. It might seem like a waste, especially since we weren't drinking and could have driven home, but let me tell you--it was SO relaxing to be somewhere other then home and alone with my husband. We really enjoyed ourselves. It's so important to stay best friends despite having children in our lives. One day the kids will leave the nest and we will be left with each other...and we intend to work hard to save time for each other in our busy lives.
The next morning we slept in (till almost 9!). Ok, I actually got up before 8, but I went to the balcony and read a book while John slept. We had breakfast in bed and then finished watching the movie we fell asleep to the night before. Then John went to work out while I got a prenatal massage.
The massage was amazing, just what I needed actually. Since I am not really showing, the therapist had a hard time finding me because she assumed I wasn't pregnant. She had this new thing for pregnant woman all set up to allow for you to lay down on your belly and even said I might just fall through. Sure enough, I did, but to be honest, it felt great nonetheless and I told her I wanted to lay on my belly for the massage. It was amazing to have my back really worked on since it's my problem area.
Afterwards we went to pick up our little boy. We met them at Kayla's basketball game and AJ wasn't as excited to see us as I had hoped! When we were leaving the game, he actually didn't even want to come with us. Apparently he had too much fun with grandma. We went back to their house...and....well, let's just say AJ threw A FIT when we were getting ready to leave. He DID NOT want to leave Grandma's. It did hurt my feelings, but it makes me feel great that he enjoys his grandparents so much. It makes me feel comfortable and less guilty for leaving him.
So, a great night for all three of us!
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Friday, January 14, 2011
It's official!
We are going to Europe in April. We just bought our plane tickets and can't be more excited. Even AJ says, "let's go to Paris!".
We usually take a trip once a year (see Jamaica from last year), but haven't been to Europe since literally two weeks before we got pregnant with AJ. Obviously the plane ride is not only very long, but the tickets are super expensive. This year, however, we saved up for a trip back to Europe for quite a few reasons. For one, it's John and I's 5 year wedding anniversary. That is really something to celebrate! AJ is at a really good travelling age and is so flexible that we feel good about taking him for the first time ever. We are also having a baby as everyone knows in July, so we know it is one of the last times we will have the opportunity to go to Europe for a long time! It's too expensive to fly 4 people and it's impossible to take a kid when they are free (up until age 2). Not like it's comfortable to fly with a kid in your lap anyway, but you get the point.
So, we are very excited to go!
We usually take a trip once a year (see Jamaica from last year), but haven't been to Europe since literally two weeks before we got pregnant with AJ. Obviously the plane ride is not only very long, but the tickets are super expensive. This year, however, we saved up for a trip back to Europe for quite a few reasons. For one, it's John and I's 5 year wedding anniversary. That is really something to celebrate! AJ is at a really good travelling age and is so flexible that we feel good about taking him for the first time ever. We are also having a baby as everyone knows in July, so we know it is one of the last times we will have the opportunity to go to Europe for a long time! It's too expensive to fly 4 people and it's impossible to take a kid when they are free (up until age 2). Not like it's comfortable to fly with a kid in your lap anyway, but you get the point.
So, we are very excited to go!
When Mommy is away...
..the boys have fun without me :(.
I like to tell myself that I'm kidding but maybe not! Wednesday evening I had a work dinner that I didn't get back until really late (AJ was already in bed and I was really sad). Daddy and AJ had a date night. We seem to have one-on-one dates with AJ every so often and AJ loves it. When John had to be somewhere one time, AJ took me out to dinner (he even said he had monies to pay for it--I'm raising a gentlemen! Of course I gave him my debit card to give to the waiter :)). AJ loved taking mommy out on a date and even told the waiter we were on a date. It was precious. Another time we went to Starbucks on a Saturday morning for muffins and something fun and non-caffinated for AJ and something to keep mommy awake.
So Wednesday night John had a whole night planned for the two of them. He started with a haircut immediately after he picked him up. Here is AJ during the haircut, below. John said all of the ladies at the barber shop loved AJ because they speak about the same amount of English. John cracks me up.
Afterwards John was going to take him to see Ju Jitsu practice but had to feed the monster first. He realized it isn't so easy to tote around a toddler who is always hungry. He made dinner and of course AJ takes FOOORRREEVVEEERR to eat so they missed practice. By the time he cleaned up (John even managed to clean up!), it was bedtime. I think John realized how much time it takes to do simple things for the first time. I'm usually there to dictate our schedule, and John was on his own. He is on his own sometimes, but it was different this time.
All in all, they still had a great boys night! AJ told me the next day that it was 'Guys Night Out' and 'No girls Allowed, mommy!'. I think he enjoyed himself to say the least!
I hope we can continue the date nights with #2's arrival!
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
My New Favorite Blog
Mommy has a new favorite blog called "Rants from Mommyland". I especially love this blog entry. My favorite quotes:
"Mommy + Variable X = Raging B", with variable X equalling any number of things (lack of sleep, thoughtless comment from husband)
"Inebrients = Real Housewives"
So anytime any mother out there is feeling a little down, I HIGHLY recommend reading this blog--it will make you literally roll on the floor laughing :).
"Mommy + Variable X = Raging B", with variable X equalling any number of things (lack of sleep, thoughtless comment from husband)
"Inebrients = Real Housewives"
So anytime any mother out there is feeling a little down, I HIGHLY recommend reading this blog--it will make you literally roll on the floor laughing :).
Thursday, January 6, 2011
NT Scan--pictures of baby #2!
We had our NT Scan on Tuesday. Baby is measuring great! The radiologist said everything looks very normal and even though we still have the blood test to get back, he said he would be surprised if it showed anything abnormal. It was so great to see the baby! He/she is a mover and a shaker.
No guesses on gender just yet. Although, after looking at this baby, I'm thinking it's a boy. Look at this picture, is that something between his/her legs? John and mom say it's the cord, but after seeing this, I'm thinking boy more then ever.
It's funny how when I look at the screen I think I'm pregnant with AJ. It's so weird to me that there is ANOTHER baby in there that isn't AJ! All I know as a mother is my little boy, so I realize I'm having a hard time thinking of life with two. But I'm so excited!
It's wild how just a few weeks ago during our last ultrasound the baby looked like a dot with a flickering heartbeat. Now it looks like a REAL BABY. It's incredible how much changes so fast.
Here is our baby, with a prominent nose and a huge head :):
No guesses on gender just yet. Although, after looking at this baby, I'm thinking it's a boy. Look at this picture, is that something between his/her legs? John and mom say it's the cord, but after seeing this, I'm thinking boy more then ever.
It's funny how when I look at the screen I think I'm pregnant with AJ. It's so weird to me that there is ANOTHER baby in there that isn't AJ! All I know as a mother is my little boy, so I realize I'm having a hard time thinking of life with two. But I'm so excited!
It's wild how just a few weeks ago during our last ultrasound the baby looked like a dot with a flickering heartbeat. Now it looks like a REAL BABY. It's incredible how much changes so fast.
Here is our baby, with a prominent nose and a huge head :):
We showed AJ the pictures and he is really excited. He gets very giddy looking at the baby. He also compares himself to the baby, "I have legs too!". I know he is going to be a great big brother!
I can't wait for next month when we have the next ultrasound and find out the gender!
Monday, January 3, 2011
Front Roll!
Look at what AJ can do! He has been able to do it for a little while now, but he is really, really good now! Sorry that it is sideways, it was taken on my phone and I have no idea how to rotate it...but you get the point :).
Sunday, January 2, 2011
13 weeks (and some days)
We are officially in our 2nd trimester! I keep thinking that the first went by so fast, but since we didn't know until 4 weeks, of course the first is going to go by fast!
I really want to take weekly pictures, but I haven't yet. I hope I can get my act together now. I can't believe I'm doing this, but I'm really going to post belly shots with no shirt. I always think it's cute when others do it and you can really see the changes when the belly is bare. I personally think a pregnant belly is one of the most beautiful things ever.
I do plan on posting belly pics here and there on here, but I should warn you that I have stretch marks from when I was pregnant with AJ. I have the cheap Irish skin. They could be much more worse, but they are there. At first I was really depressed about it, but I finally embraced it about a year ago. It's like when a rapper gets shot, he is proud of his bullet hole. I am proud of my 'battle wounds'. I have a beautiful little boy to show for it. Sorry if it offends you, but it doesn't bother me and that is all that matters!
I finally have a small (very small) baby bump! It was pure bloat until now. I think I'm showing way earlier then AJ because I'm smaller this time and it's my second time! It's true what they say, your body remembers being pregnant! Sorry for the poor picture quality, still no replacement lens (working on it though!):
I'm also feeling really great (right now at least)! Except for the pregnancy symptoms that are totally manageable like heartburn, shortness of breath, and tiring easily, it's been great for almost a week. I did have a severe migraine from Christmas Day to last Wednesday, but it went away.
I have now gained back the 4 pounds I lost (not sure how I lost them considering I'm eating so much these days). So now my total comes to 7. My breasts already grew over a cup size, which means shirts are getting shorter on me. I am a ways off from wearing maternity pants (not even wearing a belly band yet), but I might have to switch to long and baggy shirts or I risk showing everyone my belly!
Other then our NT scan on Tuesday, that is it! Thanks for reading!
I really want to take weekly pictures, but I haven't yet. I hope I can get my act together now. I can't believe I'm doing this, but I'm really going to post belly shots with no shirt. I always think it's cute when others do it and you can really see the changes when the belly is bare. I personally think a pregnant belly is one of the most beautiful things ever.
I do plan on posting belly pics here and there on here, but I should warn you that I have stretch marks from when I was pregnant with AJ. I have the cheap Irish skin. They could be much more worse, but they are there. At first I was really depressed about it, but I finally embraced it about a year ago. It's like when a rapper gets shot, he is proud of his bullet hole. I am proud of my 'battle wounds'. I have a beautiful little boy to show for it. Sorry if it offends you, but it doesn't bother me and that is all that matters!
I finally have a small (very small) baby bump! It was pure bloat until now. I think I'm showing way earlier then AJ because I'm smaller this time and it's my second time! It's true what they say, your body remembers being pregnant! Sorry for the poor picture quality, still no replacement lens (working on it though!):
I'm also feeling really great (right now at least)! Except for the pregnancy symptoms that are totally manageable like heartburn, shortness of breath, and tiring easily, it's been great for almost a week. I did have a severe migraine from Christmas Day to last Wednesday, but it went away.
I have now gained back the 4 pounds I lost (not sure how I lost them considering I'm eating so much these days). So now my total comes to 7. My breasts already grew over a cup size, which means shirts are getting shorter on me. I am a ways off from wearing maternity pants (not even wearing a belly band yet), but I might have to switch to long and baggy shirts or I risk showing everyone my belly!
Other then our NT scan on Tuesday, that is it! Thanks for reading!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Happy New Years!
Happy, Happy 2011 to everyone! Cheers to a fantastic 2011!
It's no secret that in this past year we have had incredible tragedy. We lost two special people this year, Grandma Nelson and my Dad. My mom and I both lost a parent this year. While we will continue to miss them terribly, my mom said it perfectly-- "let's be thankful for what we DO have and not for what we don't." So I decided to remind myself of how wonderful 2010 was for us as a family. I was reading back through blogs from this past year and it was, indeed, an overall great year.
I am really thankful for so much. My family and our health for one. If one thing has inspired my own mother, it was the loss of my dad. Realizing life is too short, she actually scheduled herself a doctor's appointment (if you know my mom, that is something she scarcely does because it's very time consuming!). Thank goodness she is healthy and let's pray she continues to put herself first sometimes. In addition, John and I are very lucky that despite this economy, we have both managed to stay employed. John even switched jobs midway through the year and we both are making more money.
Looking back, we had some really wonderful times. To start the year off, my best friend gave birth to a beautiful little girl, McKenna. My nephew turned 1 a few weeks later. We were lucky to be surrounded by family and friends to celebrate.
February brought on a much needed vacation to the warm country of Jamaica, after one of the biggest blizzards of our lifetime. That was a very memorable family vacation and AJ discovered his love for Sesame Street.
March came and it was soon my birthday, where I was able to celebrate with my husband and baby boy. John had surgery, but he came out healthy! Late in the month, my best friend Clare gave birth to a beautiful little boy, Daniel.
April came and brought on spring, it's always nice to ditch the coat.
April and May were hard months with my grandmother's stroke. AJ turned 2 on May 30th and we celebrated with a fantastic birthday party.
June was another tough month, as we lost my fabulous Grandmother. We had a wonderful celebration of life and I know that she is finally with her soul mate in Heaven. John and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary and we were lucky enough to eat at DC's #1 restaurant, Komi.
July brought on the best weather yet--HOT! We celebrated 4th of July in PA. Little did we know that we would be either parents of 2 or very close to it the next time this holiday rolled around!
August was exciting with a Pocono trip the first week and Daddy's birthday later on in the month along with a day trip to the beach.
September brought on my 9/11, apple picking, apply cooking, and lots of apple eating! Daddy and Mommy took their first vacation away from AJ when we visited my best friend Maggie in LA.
October was a very exciting month with a trip to PA to celebrate Leah's 2nd birthday, visit to the Renn fest, picnics with Grandma, and Pumpkin Picking! We concluded the month with a very successful Halloween and finding out we were expecting an addition to our family!
November was a great month--with AJ meeting Santa once again (and loving it this time!) and a very Thankful Thanksgiving in Philly. We announced we were expecting to our family and I was given a promotion.
December was one of the hardest months of my entire life...but there was a lot of good. Christmas brought on so much happiness to our family. It was nice to celebrate Jesus's birth with the ones we love. Then last night we rung in the New Year together as a family with our friends Clare, Josh, Kevin, and Suzanne. We had a really great time playing taboo and watching the ball drop. They say how you ring in the new year has a lot to do with how your year will pan out. I must say, if that is true, we will have a very wonderful year in 2011.
I have learned so much this year. I grew up a lot. Life is always going to give us curve balls and every year, no matter how hard we try, something is going to try to bring you down. It seems as though you learn the most when life throws you curve balls. It's not what you did or what happened, it's how you come out of it that makes you successful in life. It's hard to focus only on what is going on at that very moment. It's hard to see a light at the end of the tunnel when you are going through a hard time. But, what is important is to reflect on what you have and to focus on the positive. That is my New Years resolution every year from here on out. FOCUS, FOCUS, FOCUS. As the great personal trainer and former Redskin Eddie Mason says, "GET YO MIND RIGHT!", which is actually adapted from the greatest book ever written, the Bible, into his own words of course
Now on to looking ahead to this year. I'm sure this year is going to give us it's share of challenges. Some are unknown, but some are very well known. I have a lot to sort through still with my dad. I know that it will challenge me as a person in ways I can't even know. I'm fully expecting to not sleep the last half of the year, which I'm sure is going to be very trying on all of us. I also know that I'm going to struggle going back to work after maternity leave. When I had AJ, I didn't have to go back into the office full time and now I do this time! Not only trying to get out of the house with two children, but also leaving my precious little fragile new baby to another is going to be really hard. BUT--challenges are created to overcome. WE ARE ADDING TO OUR FAMILY! We are going to have a beautiful new baby in our life. AJ is going to become a brother for the first time! I will have three whole months without work to spend entirely with my two beautiful children. I'm really looking forward to that precious time and I am going to soak in every single moment this year has to offer--be it good or bad.
In conclusion, I hope everyone had a wonderful 2010 and an even better 2011! Thank you to everyone in our family's life--we appreciate and love you all.
It's no secret that in this past year we have had incredible tragedy. We lost two special people this year, Grandma Nelson and my Dad. My mom and I both lost a parent this year. While we will continue to miss them terribly, my mom said it perfectly-- "let's be thankful for what we DO have and not for what we don't." So I decided to remind myself of how wonderful 2010 was for us as a family. I was reading back through blogs from this past year and it was, indeed, an overall great year.
I am really thankful for so much. My family and our health for one. If one thing has inspired my own mother, it was the loss of my dad. Realizing life is too short, she actually scheduled herself a doctor's appointment (if you know my mom, that is something she scarcely does because it's very time consuming!). Thank goodness she is healthy and let's pray she continues to put herself first sometimes. In addition, John and I are very lucky that despite this economy, we have both managed to stay employed. John even switched jobs midway through the year and we both are making more money.
Looking back, we had some really wonderful times. To start the year off, my best friend gave birth to a beautiful little girl, McKenna. My nephew turned 1 a few weeks later. We were lucky to be surrounded by family and friends to celebrate.
February brought on a much needed vacation to the warm country of Jamaica, after one of the biggest blizzards of our lifetime. That was a very memorable family vacation and AJ discovered his love for Sesame Street.
March came and it was soon my birthday, where I was able to celebrate with my husband and baby boy. John had surgery, but he came out healthy! Late in the month, my best friend Clare gave birth to a beautiful little boy, Daniel.
April came and brought on spring, it's always nice to ditch the coat.
April and May were hard months with my grandmother's stroke. AJ turned 2 on May 30th and we celebrated with a fantastic birthday party.
June was another tough month, as we lost my fabulous Grandmother. We had a wonderful celebration of life and I know that she is finally with her soul mate in Heaven. John and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary and we were lucky enough to eat at DC's #1 restaurant, Komi.
July brought on the best weather yet--HOT! We celebrated 4th of July in PA. Little did we know that we would be either parents of 2 or very close to it the next time this holiday rolled around!
August was exciting with a Pocono trip the first week and Daddy's birthday later on in the month along with a day trip to the beach.
September brought on my 9/11, apple picking, apply cooking, and lots of apple eating! Daddy and Mommy took their first vacation away from AJ when we visited my best friend Maggie in LA.
October was a very exciting month with a trip to PA to celebrate Leah's 2nd birthday, visit to the Renn fest, picnics with Grandma, and Pumpkin Picking! We concluded the month with a very successful Halloween and finding out we were expecting an addition to our family!
November was a great month--with AJ meeting Santa once again (and loving it this time!) and a very Thankful Thanksgiving in Philly. We announced we were expecting to our family and I was given a promotion.
December was one of the hardest months of my entire life...but there was a lot of good. Christmas brought on so much happiness to our family. It was nice to celebrate Jesus's birth with the ones we love. Then last night we rung in the New Year together as a family with our friends Clare, Josh, Kevin, and Suzanne. We had a really great time playing taboo and watching the ball drop. They say how you ring in the new year has a lot to do with how your year will pan out. I must say, if that is true, we will have a very wonderful year in 2011.
I have learned so much this year. I grew up a lot. Life is always going to give us curve balls and every year, no matter how hard we try, something is going to try to bring you down. It seems as though you learn the most when life throws you curve balls. It's not what you did or what happened, it's how you come out of it that makes you successful in life. It's hard to focus only on what is going on at that very moment. It's hard to see a light at the end of the tunnel when you are going through a hard time. But, what is important is to reflect on what you have and to focus on the positive. That is my New Years resolution every year from here on out. FOCUS, FOCUS, FOCUS. As the great personal trainer and former Redskin Eddie Mason says, "GET YO MIND RIGHT!", which is actually adapted from the greatest book ever written, the Bible, into his own words of course
Now on to looking ahead to this year. I'm sure this year is going to give us it's share of challenges. Some are unknown, but some are very well known. I have a lot to sort through still with my dad. I know that it will challenge me as a person in ways I can't even know. I'm fully expecting to not sleep the last half of the year, which I'm sure is going to be very trying on all of us. I also know that I'm going to struggle going back to work after maternity leave. When I had AJ, I didn't have to go back into the office full time and now I do this time! Not only trying to get out of the house with two children, but also leaving my precious little fragile new baby to another is going to be really hard. BUT--challenges are created to overcome. WE ARE ADDING TO OUR FAMILY! We are going to have a beautiful new baby in our life. AJ is going to become a brother for the first time! I will have three whole months without work to spend entirely with my two beautiful children. I'm really looking forward to that precious time and I am going to soak in every single moment this year has to offer--be it good or bad.
In conclusion, I hope everyone had a wonderful 2010 and an even better 2011! Thank you to everyone in our family's life--we appreciate and love you all.
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