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Highlight of the Week
Of course, the highlight of our week was the 4th of July! I remember years past where the holiday has fallen literally in the middle of the week (like this year) and it just always feels so weird! It was really wonderful to have Derrick home on a Wednesday though – Braelynn woke up & realized he was still home & asked why he wasn’t at work.
I wrote a whole recap of our holiday, so I’m not going to rewrite it again here (if you missed Thursday’s post, you can go back to read what we did & see some photos here).
I think the best part though was on Tuesday night – I had told Braelynn that we were going to go to Kennywood that night & since we’d be out late, I wanted her to take a nap. Naps aren’t exactly the easiest things to come by for my little active 3 1/2-year-old, so some bribery is always necessary. The knowledge of going to Kennywood was pretty good motivation to lay down for about an hour though, and when she woke up, she was super pumped up to go to Kennywood! Like I mentioned in Thursday’s post, it’s been insanely hot this week, so we purposefully stayed home, ate dinner, and didn’t head out to the Park until after 6pm. While we were sitting & eating dinner though, Braelynn looked over the table at Derrick & said, “Thank you, Daddy.” He looked at her curiously & asked, “Thank you for what, baby?” She responded, “Thank you for saying we could go to Kennywood tonight.” I think my heart literally burst.
Yes, This Happened
- I am now 17 weeks pregnant & baby is the size of a turnip (what in the world is a turnip & how big is it? I have no idea – but the internet says baby is approximately 5 inches long & weighs 5 ounces)
- I’ve been feeling pretty good this week – yahoo! With the exception of yesterday, which was the first time I’ve truly felt queasy in about 2 weeks (I spent most of the morning laying on the couch), I’ve been feeling good.
- Have you seen those memes that say something along the lines of “Sorry I’m late, my toddler has to do everything all by herself”? Yeah, we have transitioned into that phase of life. Braelynn has always been super independent, but it just seems to be getting more and more and more emphasized. She has to put on her own socks, put on her own shoes, and open the door, by herself. She has to climb into the car, climb into her car seat, and begin the process of buckling herself in, by herself. She has to climb out of her car seat, climb out of the car, and walk, by herself. And of course, these tasks take about 3 times as long as if I helped her, so needless to say, my patience is being stretched. Don’t get me wrong, I’m so glad she’s learning to do these tasks by herself! That will be a big help when the baby is born – I just wish she’d pick up the pace, especially when getting in & out of the car in 100º weather!
- Braelynn has also started calling Derrick, “Derrick”. She thinks it’s hilarious (and it does sound pretty comical coming out of her tiny mouth)! She literally means zero disrespect by it – it’s just what she hears me & others calling him, so she’s starting calling him that too. Most of the time though, she still calls him “Daddy”.
- Do you have any idea how hard it is to find maternity clothes (let me further clarify: cute, modern, comfy maternity clothes that don’t cost an arm & a leg)?! Seriously: SO HARD. Like, I’m not interested in spending a fortune on maternity clothes when I’m only going to be wearing them for a few more months! Thankfully, I have a lot of winter maternity clothes – so I’m feeling set as far as the colder months go, but I have very few summer maternity clothes from when I was expecting Braelynn (mostly because by the time I started wearing maternity clothes with her, I was further along in my pregnancy & the weather was already beginning to cool down). This time around though, I’ve been wearing maternity clothes since I was 6 weeks pregnant – I know that I’m not really that huge, but I literally feel like a bloated walrus who just inhaled a whole elephant (yikes, what will I feel like 20 weeks from now?). So, I’ve been on the hunt for just a few staple summer maternity pieces. Thrift stores would usually be my go-to place as far as buying clothes go, especially clothes that I’m only going to be wearing for a short time, but their selections of maternity clothes are frustratingly small (and extremely lacking in the “cute & modern” look I want). It’s been kind of frustrating to say the least. I was literally on my last straw & feeling like I was going to have to buckle down & spend around $100 at Target (the only store that has a decent maternity section) when my Mom suggested a trip over to Ross. If you don’t have a Ross or have never been in one, it’s simply wonderful (think like a TJ Max or Marshals, but better). We went this week & I was so excited to find exactly what I needed! I got a pair of shorts, a cami, a cute top, a pair of tight “bicycle” shorts (for under dresses on wedding days), and a pair of leggings for less than $40 – WIN. I feel like I’m finally set for the rest of this pregnancy as far as clothes go!
Feeling Blessed
I’m off to shoot wedding #11 of the year today! WHEW it’s been a busy year. Just crazy. I’m so thankful – just beyond thankful. And I can’t wait to go celebrate with Katie & Casey today! But, I’m also thankful that after today, I have a nice long break. Don’t get me wrong – I love my couples & photographing weddings, but there’s just so much work that happens pre-wedding day & post-wedding day – and it’s been a busy year (plus all of my morning sickness troubles, it’s been downright challenging). After today, I have a full month “off” – I have no more weddings until mid-August! I am so looking forward to this break & having time to just rest & relax (HA – who am I kidding? I have a toddler to keep up with plus a baby to prepare for!) Obviously, “time off” doesn’t really exist when you own a small business, but a period of “slow” is going to just be wonderful – I’m so looking forward to it!
