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what makes the perfect day for a pregnant lady? one or more of the following items ... bonus points if you get more than one, and a freaking GREAT day if you get all of them on the same day. please realize, i love being pregnant. i love that this baby is growing by the second. and most of all, i love that he'll be here in three months. the following are simply things that have the potential to make those "blah" days, better.
• no one tells you your boobs look bigger than your baby bump (see image above).
• no victoria's secret catalogs in the mail. and if one happens to make it, your husband rips it in half and throws it away before you even see it.
• when getting ready for work, the first items out of the closet fit AND look good ... no digging in the dirty clothes to find the ONE pair of pants that are comfortable and work-suitable required.
• no one tells you how huge you've become in a matter of weeks. why do people think this makes anyone feel good—growing baby or not.
• zero water retention for a whole day.
• hair and makeup cooperate and foundation does not end up on the belly of the shirt that actually fits you and looks cute.
• the sun comes out for a whole day and you don't have to work. or, you wake up and decide that work isn't going to happen.
• the brewing baby shares a few big flips and sticks his toes out the side of your belly.
• no tying shoes, painting your own toenails, or lying on your belly to get someone's favorite toy from under the refrigerator is required.
i've been contemplating maternity photos this time around. it's our last baby, and the last time i'll be sporting the belly bump. but, after searching and searching for maternity shoot inspiration, i came up empty and a bit disheartened. if i do a shoot, i don't want it to be the same as everyone else's.
i want something that says exactly how i feel at this point in time. it's summer. i'm pregnant. and there's so much to be happy about. and then i ran across these photos. this is exactly the inspiration i needed.
now, i realize i don't live in a place with water this blue, or sand this white. *tear. but, we live at the beach during the summer. literally, live in the lake. and these pictures are what i've been searching for. colors, textures, and style. the black-and-white shot above is possibly the coolest maternity photo i've ever seen.
i'm thinking, beach day at the lake with the kiddos, sunshine, beach hair, sunscreened-up kids, SUP board, kayak maybe?, belly out-and-about in full force, and my favorite photographer if she'll put up with me for yet another shoot.
these pictures make me sad that i sit at a computer all day for work ...
my sister, the good auntie that she is, took taylor to get frozen yogurt the other day. and when i heard about it, i got jealous. so, yesterday, the husband and i took the kiddos up to ben's yogurt & deli to see what it was all about.
who knew we had such a gem just a few blocks away? the topping bar is totally awesome. and the flavors change every week—i had blueberry. um, yum. i refrained from putting sour patch kids on top though and went with fresh blueberries and kiwi from the fruit section of the topping bar (don't worry, they have a good old fashioned candy and cookies section, too.
other flavors this week include:
ALPINE VANILLA
CABLE CAR CHOCOLATE
APPLE PIE
VERRY BERRY SORBET
BLUEBERRY (No sugar added!)
once you pay for your yogurt though, i noticed a sign that said, 'outdoor seating.' and upon further inspection, i realized that they have the cutest patio area i may have ever seen. and they're open until 9 p.m., so you can sit out there in the evening ... soaking up all the cuteness. evening tea with the girls may have to switch to yogurt—they're open later than our local starbucks! i'm waiting for the day they start having live bands in the evening—it's the perfect setting and they'd be crazy not to.
i saw this really nifty idea in a magazine the other day. a lady bought a really nice teak door mat ... of course, she had a vintage super-cute watering can, and her back deck was all clean and nice and pretty.
in my attempt to copy, i had some cedar deck tiles from IKEA that i bought about six years ago (they got a nice hose-down after sitting in the garage for five years or so), a target plastic watering can that does nothing for the eyes, and a messy back porch, but the idea's the same.
when you come inside from the garden or out in the yard, your feet (and flip-flops) are dirty. the slatted door mat is perfect for water and dirt to fall through, and the watering can provides the perfect shower for your feet and flops. plus, the back porch gets a nice shower every time someone comes in. easy-peasy, keeps my floors clean inside, and free!
holy moly, these things got huge (the picture doesn't do them justice ... they are literally, almost four feet tall)! i wish i had a 'before' picture to show you of just how decimate they were, just even a month ago. in a last ditch effort to save them, the husband threw them in one of our raised vegetable beds—apparently, potato onions LOVE compost. as you can see, we are no longer hurting for growth on these babies. we even went back to the lady that sold them to us last year at the farmer's market to find out how to maintain and/or use something like this! if you don't know anything about potato onions, here's some info. they're an interesting breed for sure, and i'm so lucky we were able to find starts now that we know what the heck to do with them! she said we'll probably have 8-10 onions at the root of each one by fall!
in other gardening news ...
carrots have been thinned (both the cute, round market variety and regular).
holy potatoes! (they're at the front of the bed.)
we have teeny tiny cucumbers and the zucchini has blossoms!
apples are little babies, but no wormies this year!
cherries will be gone to the birds, but hopefully i'll get at least a few before they do.
red and white normal size onions are not 5 feet tall, but still doing lovely.
others i don't have pictures of at the moment ...
green beans are going crazy. blueberries are ripening. raspberries are taking forever, but green as ever. blackberries are getting big but still no flowers yet. and strawberries are sooooooooo close!
i weeded this weekend. a lot. mostly, it was just re-weeding the areas i already did earlier this year (garden, flower beds, etc). but, there's one area that i pruned and groomed, pondered and inspired-upon. out in front of our deck in the backyard, just waiting for something spectacular. something we can all enjoy when we're sitting out on the back deck, drinking tea in the morning, eating dinner in the evening, playing with the kids, or just taking a minute out of the day to breathe.
in my plotting and planning, i dragged out my old issues of martha magazine, clippings, and inspirational ripped out pages i've conglomerated over the years. it's so fun to look back at some of the things that i used to think were sooooo cool. that really. are. not. and maybe never were.
one thing i did find, however, was this:
an all-white blooming garden. obviously, it's a bit larger area than what i have to work with ... with a budget much bigger than mine. but, with the space i'm working in, it's mostly shade, and gets a little dark, especially toward the end of the day.
the all-white blooms, mixed with the different shades of greens just popped out at me. i'm envisioning early mornings and early evenings when the sun's not quite full and the whites and greens can brighten up this dark little area. so, i've spent the last two days researching local plants, nursery-hopping, and making my list of what i'm hoping to find.
lilac. the white kind. for the full sun space in the bed, and to take up a large amount of room with something lovely and pretty and good-smelly. plus, we live in the lilac city ... i think it's about time we had one.
hosta. not only is it already in my yard just waiting to be transplanted, and therefore, freeeee—it looks so pretty in the shade, and will carry those white, silver, and green tones and make an excellent filler.
sweet autumn clematis. this is one of my favorites to grow. it vines, and will work perfectly to climb the deck posts up to our awning. this white variety blooms late in August-September, so it will be pretty and green all summer, and burst with these white flowers when everything else is settling down for fall!
annabelle hydrangea. a shade-lover and has beautiful white-turn-almost-green flowers. and perfect for a larger foundation plant.
lily of the valley. i'm picturing this shade-lover right in the front of the garden, almost cascading down the rock wall.
allium. these easy-to-grow bulbs are purple in my front yard, and they might be my favorite late spring bloomer. they look like giant puff balls—and even better, you can plant them in white!
helleborus. this beauty is another shade-lover, and though i don't know much about it yet, i think it's just lovely!
so, now who wants to finance this little garden of mine? loan payments would come in the form of home-cooked meals, baked goods, tea on the back porch, and being surrounded by the scent of lilac and hydrangea all summer long.
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