Sweet Baby Bump - 31 Weeks

The highlights:

- I had a work shower this week with one of my BFFs and got some adorable things. 

- We painted the nursery and have the crib and dresser put together. Woohoo!

- I've been a little tired this week from working every single day. 

- Planning to wash baby clothes and organize everything this weekend. 

- One of my sweet friends is having a baby today!! Prayers for a healthy momma and baby. 

- I've started making the "oomph" noise when I sit down or stand back up. Haha. 

- I noticed today that I can't see my feet when I walk up/down steps. That makes it interesting. 

- Peeking my head in the nursery just makes my heart melt now that it looks like a nursery!

Happy weekend, friends!

Here's Our Life Lately

Paint on the walls and furniture being put together. 

31 week baby bump.

Sweet puppy snuggles by the heater. 

Life is good. 

What have y'all been up to lately? Anything exciting?

What 27 Looks Like

I turned 27 this past Saturday and while I'm not silly enough to say "I'm so old," I must admit that this is the first age where I thought that in my head. I don't know what it is about 27, but it just sounds so much more adult-like and mature than 26. Or maybe I'm just crazy. 

I've been doing a little bit of reflecting lately (I think it's the pregnancy hormones!) and I thought I'd share a little bit about where I pictured myself at 27 versus where I really am. 

- I thought that I would have at least one child by now, if not two. I always pictured myself getting married right out of college and having babies quickly. So thankful that I trusted my heart and waited on God to give me my soul-mate, even if it took a little bit longer than I had planned. And now here we are expecting a baby girl in two months. God's plan is perfect. 

- I figured that I would have gone back to school by now. I have always enjoyed school and I planned to go back and get my master's, but now I honestly have no desire to do that...at all. I'm happy where I am in my job and I want to focus on our family.

- I never thought that I'd have had a miscarriage...at this age or at any age. I don't know all the reasons why our first baby had to go to heaven so quickly, but I do know that it has shaped me as a person and a mother. I appreciate the miracle of pregnancy more now than ever before. It may seem common because it happens so much, but it doesn't happen for everyone. It really is a true miracle and I will never take it for granted. 

It's crazy how I had "plans" for my life, thinking that it would be perfect MY way, but really the best plans are all the Lord's and the only perfect way is HIS way. And I really wouldn't change any of it at all. He knows all the desires of my heart. 

I am so blessed.

27 is going to be a great year. 

Painting the Nursery

This past week/weekend was such a great one. We had the best Thanksgiving with our families and then I got to spend all day Saturday with my parents for my birthday. They seriously spoiled the heck out of me (and baby E) and I appreciate them SO much. I am blessed all around in life, but definitely SO blessed in the parent department. 

We spent Sunday painting the nursery...YAY!! I seriously could not be more thrilled about it and I must confess that I go in there every 5 minutes just to look at it. I can't wait to finally get furniture in there and see everything start to come together. 

On the painting note, I've noticed a few things:

- Right when you think you are getting good at it, your hand shakes and you smear paint somewhere it isn't supposed to go. 

- The second coat is so much harder to do than the first coat since you are painting the same color. 

- Painting with a mask on is awful. 

- Somehow paint manages to get everywhere on your body. 

Three little helpers.



It's coming together, y'all, slowly but surely. : )

PS: In honor of Cyber Monday and great prices, I'm offering a 50% discount on ALL sponsor ads right now! Good for today only. Use code MONDAY at checkout. 

Sweet Baby Bump - 30 Weeks

The highlights:

- Everything looked/measured great at our doctor's appointment this week. 

- E loved her first taste of Thanksgiving food...she kicked like crazy all afternoon!

- My baby shower was perfect and we got so many goodies for our little girl. 

- 30 weeks sounds SO close to me. We aren't in the 20's anymore!

- My parents are coming in town tomorrow (for my birthday!) and we are going to get the nursery paint, crib and crib mattress. My mom said that is E's present for my birthday. How awesome is that?!

- I'm still feeling really great. I sleep through the night and rarely have back pain. Thank you, Jesus!

- My in-laws bought me a spa gift certificate for my birthday. Prenatal massage, here I come. 

Makeup free face. Yikes. 

No, my maxi dress hasn't shrunk that much! I was getting a little tired of the maxi dress look, so I pinned it up to show my boots. It feels more "fallish" with boots showing. Even though it's still 70 degrees here. 

Being Thankful

As I've been sitting here this morning watching the parade and getting ready for our big family lunch, I can't help but tear up as I realize how blessed I am. I don't deserve anything...and yet the Lord has given me everything that my heart desires. He is so merciful and loving. 

I'm so thankful today for His forgiveness, my Savior, my precious hubby that was made just for me, this sweet baby girl growing in my belly, and all my friends and family, including y'all! And that is just the very tip top of my list...I could go on and on (my health, a great job, sprite zero, never going hungry). 

Hope that you are feeling just as blessed as I am...today and every day. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving 2011. 

Baby Shower

We were so absolutely blessed at our baby shower this past weekend. My grandma, mom and aunt went way above and beyond and everything looked absolutely amazing. I am so thankful that we have these amazing people in our life...and in awe of how much they already love our sweet baby girl! Thank you, Jesus, for all of our blessings! 

There is nothing more heartwarming than seeing all of these people that you love, excited about meeting and loving your baby girl. Maybe it's the extra hormones, but I could just cry thinking about it. Plus there was balloons and pink chips, so it was perfect.

Clothes that my great grandma made and the bow off of our wedding cake. 

Hubby stopped by...and even dressed for the occasion. ; )

I loved that there was pink, pink and more pink...along with ribbons and bows and sparkles. Having a little girl is SO much fun. She better love pink...or else she's in trouble! 

In the Bag

So one of my favorite things to do right now is search Pinterest for lists of what to pack for baby/momma while in the hospital. Yeah, that's how exciting my life is these days. ; ) 

I've read tons of lists and I love seeing all the different things that people think to bring. A few things that are major musts for me: Lysol wipes and spray. I definitely will de-germ the room before I can relax. I can't help it - it stems from being an ER nurse, I think. It's an obsession. 

So now I need to hear from y'all...what are hospital bag necessities for mom and baby? What do I need to have in my bags? What could we leave at home? Even if you haven't been pregnant/been through labor yet, I'd love your opinion!

And on a side note, how can one little baby girl have so much stuff?? She is so loved already. 

Sometimes I just sit and stare at everything and my heart aches to meet her! 

Around

Just thought I'd share a few posts from around the blog world that y'all should check out:

- This post for an amazing pumpkin pancake recipe. 

- A giveaway here for mini pearl cluster earrings that are precious. 

- This post about helping free women from the sex slave industry. 

- A Pinterest inspired Christmas craft that I'm loving here. 

- This post about navigating through life when things are unsure. 

- My own giveaway here for an amazing piece of jewelry! 

Here's a sneak peek of just some of the gifts from our shower yesterday. We are SO blessed!

Feeling so thankful today for the love of our family and friends. Our little girl is already loved so much. It makes my heart almost burst. Thank you, Jesus! 

Happy Sunday!

Sweet Baby Bump - 29 Weeks

The highlights:

- My first baby shower is tomorrow. I can't wait!

- I was supposed to go to a breastfeeding class with my bff Kay this week. We skipped. Oops. 

- We have officially painted a few squares of color on the nursery wall and picked one. 

- Painting the nursery should happen soon. Should. 

- Our maternity pictures are done and I can't wait to see them. 

- We finally saw my belly move when E kicked. Like really really move. 

My college besties are getting here today to spend the weekend with me. I can't wait to sit around in pajamas, watch Lifetime movies and eat tons of junk food. Is there anything better?

Grandma Got Run Over By...Christmas Spirit

I have my first baby shower this weekend and it's at my grandma's house. To say that she is excited would be an understatement. She is way beyond excited. She asked me if she could go ahead and decorate for Christmas at her house for the shower. My grandma loves Christmas and she likes to go all out with the decorating. I told her yes, of course, because I love Christmas. 

We went over there about a week ago to see if she needed any help and apparently we were a little bit too late. It looks like Santa's workshop exploded in her house. There is no space untouched. It looks absolutely amazing and even better than what she normally does.

My 80+ year old grandma did almost all of that herself. 

She is a Christmas decorating beast. 

Giveaway - Blue Bird Bride

Anyone in the mood to win some beautiful jewelry?

I have an amazing giveaway today brought to y'all by Blue Bird Bride, a sweet little shop that sells stunningly beautiful handcrafted jewelry, particularly great bubble necklaces! Each piece is crafted so perfectly and there is a wide range of colors to suit all tastes. Here's a few of my favorite pieces:

The shop has a ton of great holiday deals right now, including bubble necklaces that are buy three/get one free! Perfect for Christmas gifts...and you get one for yourself to keep. ; ) 

Up for grabs today is a $20 shop credit to Blue Bird Bride. Enter using the giveaway tool below. 

Extra bonus for Mackey Madness readers: you can get 15% off ANY order by using the code FALL2012 at checkout. So go ahead and start that Christmas shopping!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Fair and the Food

Last week, we ventured out to the fair at the request of my stomach. We went on one of the dollar admission nights, so to say that it was packed and crazy would be an understatement. But hey, when you're pregnant, food wins over crowds all the time.

We have a bit of an affinity for the fair, partly because of the delicious food, but mostly because that's where my husband told me he loved me for the first time...at the top of the ferris wheel. Major props to the hubs for that one. (Read the whole story here) Obviously we didn't ride any rides this year (can pregnant women even ride rides?), but we still had a lot of fun eating and people watching. Let's just say that some really interesting people hang out at the fair.

My favorite thing ever...I dream of this stand. 

Funnel cake on the left; fried oreos on the right. 

Side note: you can get ANYTHING fried at the fair. It is a little bit awesome and a little bit disgusting. Mostly awesome, though, let's be honest. 

How do y'all feel about fairs? Do y'all trust the quickly put up rides??

Christmas Ornament Swap

I'm so super excited to announce the..............

Julie and I had SO much fun putting it together last year and it was such a hit, that we decided to do it again. We would love to have you join us this year - it's meant to help us connect with other bloggers, get a fun little snail mail package, and celebrate Christmas...all without breaking the bank. 

Here's how it works:

1) Sign up will run today (11/12) through Monday, November 19th.

To sign up, please leave a comment on this post with your:

-Name

-Email address

-Blog URL

2) On Monday, November 26th, we will announce partners and y'all can exchange addresses.

3) Purchase an ornament for your partner (spending limit is $15).

4) Ship your ornament by December 5th.

5) We will have a link-up on both of our blogs on December 17th so we can show off our new ornaments!

And if you want to spread the word, here's the button!

<center> <a href="http://www.thesmittenmintons.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1086.photobucket.com/albums/j451/jminton22/OrnamentButton-002.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"/></a></center>

Isn't the button totally adorable? Designed and made by Julie. The girl has some serious talent. 

Email me (mackeymadness(at)gmail.com) if you have any questions! 

Sweet Baby Bump - 28 Weeks

The highlights:

- Third trimester...woohoo!

- I now go to the doctor every two weeks. It's going to make the weeks fly by. 

- Passed my glucose test on Monday!

- Good thing I did because E got her first taste of pizza on a stick and funnel cake last night at the fair. And she liked it...a whole lot. 

- Had to get a Rhogam shot. Ouch. 

- Taking maternity pictures today. I'm so excited! 

- Emory is so so active these days and I am loving it. 

- Feeling great...I can't believe how close we are getting! 

Confession: I totally forgot about bump pictures this week until this morning. 

Bright sunlight + haven't showered = not the best time to take pictures. 

My Political Post

I think there's something that we all need to read after the election. 

Christians, remember this. You are a witness at all times, even through social media. 

Glorify the Lord in ALL that you do. 

Giveaway - Tiny Prints

I love the Christmas season for so many reasons, one being getting Christmas cards in the mail! Any snail mail is fun, but for some reason Christmas cards are one of my favorite things to open. 

I'm absolutely loving some of the Christmas cards over at Tiny Prints this year. I love that they have so many options and include lots of religious cards. After all, Jesus is the reason for the season! 

Here's a few of my favorite cards from Tiny Prints:

I used Tiny Prints for my Christmas cards last year and I was impressed with the quality, colors and design. I cannot say enough good things about them. They also are constantly offering great deals and discounts on their special offers page. 

One reader is getting super lucky today. Tiny Prints is offering to give a $50 credit to someone (must be used by December 14). Enter using the tool below and good luck! : )

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post from Tiny Prints. All opinions and words are my own.