It's almost Fall, which means it's almost baby time!

This past week has been a week of mixed emotions. Having made it through 2 natural disasters in the past 10 days (although we are still left without power or running water from that bitch Irene. Do you know how much it sucks not having a running toilet when you have to pee every 10 minutes?!), and a very sad death in our family, I am ready to welcome September with open arms. September means decaf pumpkin lattes, pumpkin bread, squash ravioli (you sense a theme here?) and 30 days closer to being October.

We spent one day this past weekend shopping for 8 hours straight. Not in preparation for Hurricane Irene like everyone else, but in preparation for Baby! We shopped til we dropped (and we happened to drop at one of our favorite restaurants, BOLU Trattoria in Basking Ridge, and ate a 5 course meal. If you haven't been there- GO! It's awesome.) and we did a lot of work in the nursery. We started organizing all of the baby paraphernalia and hanging some more of our pictures. Our custom printed Beatles inspired photos were framed in our beautiful glass and wood frames (which I found on clearance at Target for $4. 24 each - so exciting!) and hung on the wall by our rocker/recliner. And we hung 2 of Matt's electric guitars on the main wall on either side of the loveseat(the black & white one and the signed Weezer guitar I got for Matt a few Christmas' ago).

Some of our newborn baby clothes were washed, along with receiving blankets, bibs and those adorable mini socks (I am kind of obsessed with baby socks, they are so cute and small!).

And that was just the beginning of our weekend baby activities...we also took our "Prepared Childbirth" class and maternity center tour at our hospital.

It was a full 8 hours of videos of babies being born (Matt, nor I, really liked that part), breathing (and lots of mimicking of the famous breathing scene in the "Bill Cosby, Himself" stand up comedy act...not by the entire class...just by Matt and I. Glad we took it seriously) and then we took our tour of the maternity center. Pretty nice digs, I have to say. As we passed by the nursery, the nurse on duty brought the one lone infant that was there up to the window for us to see. OMG. This little munchkin just melted my heart. He was adorable and I actually had tears in my eyes when I looked at him. I have a feeling I will be a blubbering mess when I see my own little one all swaddled up in a few months. Or, in 7 weeks and 4 days to be exact. CRAZY!

It is truly going by so incredibly fast. I have 5 more weeks until I go on maternity leave and 7 weeks until I give birth to our son. OUR SON. Still totally trips me out.

Everytime I feel him roll around in my increasingly growing belly, I smile.

Every time. Even when he kicks me so hard in my lady parts that I wince. I still find myself smiling afterward.

You know you're in your 3rd trimester when...

So, I think it's finally happened and I guess it took long enough. I feel pregnant. Really, truly pregnant.

Gone are the days of a cute tiny bump, wearing 4 inch heels all day long, and strangers still wondering if your pregnant or just ate a quarter-pounder with cheese for lunch. Now my belly looks like I swallowed a watermelon (and two honeydews up top, and two cantaloupes on my backside), I wore sneakers (SNEAKERS!) twice last week, and total strangers greet me with "Hi Mama!" "Congrats!" or "Boy or Girl?".

I have been feeling wonderful the entire past 7 months, and now I am starting to feel...well, pregnant I guess. I still feel good, so I'm not complaining (per se), but things just change when you hit your 3rd tri-mester.
There are a few things that I have noticed most notably in the past couple of weeks...so I entitle this- (and I worn you, some is not for the faint of heart, or stomach. Or men. Men might not like hearing some of this stuff.)

You know you're in your 3rd trimester when:
- You hit your belly when closing the stall door when using the restroom at work
- You think of a game plan before bending down to or sitting on the ground. You need to make sure there is something in arms reach to prop your self back up, or you may be chillin' on the floor for a while.
- You call your husband from another room, just to turn on a light.
- You get really pissed off when Macy's is on the other side of the mall from Bloomingdale's.
- You consider getting into your car to drive from Macy's to Bloomingdale's.
- Every closet in your entire house has been organized and re-organized...and most of the stuff inside the closets has been thrown away.
- You find yourself praying in the middle of the night for just "30 minutes of continuous sleep" PLEASE SLEEP GODS! Have mercy on me!
- You need to leave work a few minutes earlier just to make your train on time.
- Eating has become an hourly necessity. Unless you want to deal with a majorly cranky, starving, crazy woman.
- You start to use your belly as a snack table.
- Your exercise becomes walking up one flight of stairs. Even though you sound like you just ran a marathon because you are so out of breath.
-You grunt and moan a lot. And not the good type of grunting and moaning.
- Double chin. I hate it. ugh.
- It kinda looks like a cat scratched up the sides of your hips a bit.
- Your legs look like a kindergartner shaved them.
- You start to look like a 70s porn star (yeah, you know exactly what I mean.)

Only 9 more weeks until we get to meet Baby!

...and loving every minute of it.

Bumbos, Boobie pads & Baby clothes...oh my!

So, the day has come and gone... one of the days I was looking forward to most out of my time being prego- My baby shower!

This Sunday was my baby shower, and holy crap, was I showered. With love, with fun, with food, with laughs and with presents!

We kind of did a very nontraditional traditional shower. First off, I knew all about it. I told my mom from the very beginning not to try and surprise me, because it just doesn't work. Seriously, it's not worth the effort. I am too much of a (self titled) control freak to be surprised, and it stresses me out. But we did the whole women only thing, so we kept with the tradition there. My wonderful husband hired a piano player to play some of my favorite Beatles, Elton John, Billy Joel etc... tunes for the first two hours. And we had a really delish cocktail hour of passed food followed by a buffet with 2 carving stations and a pasta station. And a whole wall of desserts, homemade zeppoles and red velvet cake. yum.

So, I helped a bit with the planning, and in the end, my mom and sister threw me the best shower ever.
There was lots of eating, drinking (including a gallon of home-made Bailey's. But of course, I stuck to water with lemon and shirley temples), chatting (we did have 60 women at this party), and rubbing of my ever-growing belly (which ,I, unlike most pregnant women, actually love).

Some questions/comments that were heard/made to me during the party:

Them: Do you have a name picked out?
Me: Yes, but I'm not telling you...or anyone.
Them: Why?
Me: Because I want it to be a surprise! ...and I don't want your opinion ; )

Them: Can I rub your belly? (as they are already rubbing it...)
Me: Sure!

Them: How much weight have you gained so far?
Me: 14 pounds
Them: Bitch. (seriously was the response by 90% of my family & friends that asked me this..ha)

Them: What would you do if the baby came out a girl?!
Me: Most likely have a heart attack in the delivery room, so hopefully that won't happen.

"POOP!!!!" ~ Screamed out by my bff, Katie, after she received a poopy diaper in the poopy diaper game

"ARGHHHHH MEEEE (while jumping up and down)!!!"~ Screamed out by my other bff, Lindsey ,after she won a Coach key-chain in the raffle game (This was followed by me doubled over and holding my"self" because I was laughing so hard, I thought I might pee my cropped leggings)

"Who wants a shot?!? ~ usually said by my Mom. Yup. We are some classy broads.

"Elisa, your cake is PINK!" ~ said by half the party after they brought my cake out covered by the brightest pink icing I have ever seen. They later fixed said pink icing and made it bright blue. But you could still little smudges of pink here and there. Maybe it's an omen?! And, seriously, who cares...it was freakin' scrumptious.

"This cake is better than sex." ~ Can be overheard on the video that my aunt was taking of me opening my gifts (thank you Patty for the hysterical commentary : )


Yeah, it was a pretty fun day. And we got a crap load of gifts to boot! The gifts literally take up the entire nursery (I will post a pic tomorrow) and I think we may need to put an addition onto the already ginormous room.

How much stuff you "need" for a baby is truly amazing to me. It is the biggest marketing scam ever.
I am pretty sure my grandma, my mom and millions of other moms got by without a Bumbo (I still am unsure what this thing is for, but I HAD to have one.), or a baby hiking backpack. But alas, they are sitting in my soon to be little ones room, and I cannot wait to use them. I also got an entire basket dedicated to my soon to be lactating boobies (you know you're prego when this excites you), and a gift certificate for baby's first photo-shoot (he already has paparazzi!).

With all this stuff, It sometimes feels like we are giving birth to a Sultan, not an infant.

Next step, go shopping for the other stuff that we didn't receive and still need. Yes, there is still more. Lots more. It is truly unbelievable.

I never thought I'd think this, but the Baby industry must rip you off more than the wedding industry.

...But then again, baby socks are so much cuter than a food processor.

Pretty great Groupon deal for all of my NJ moms of young kiddies...and some cool shoes too!

Just thought I'd share....

Groupon is running this pretty great deal today: Gymboree Play & Music – Multiple Locations
One-Month Gymboree Play & Music Membership with Waived Initiation Fee.


I have attended a similar class at a different chain with my nephew a few months ago, and he just loved the child interaction as well as running around like mad!

I actually have every intention of enrolling the little man into Gymboree Play & Music when he is about 6 months old. I think I will love this program especially because of the music aspect to it....can't get enough music into my little ones life!! And, one of the locations happens to be about 15 minutes from my house which is nice.

But alas, this particular Groupon deal expires in November, and baby will only be a mere few weeks old if that...so I will have to wait until the next deal, or (GASP!) pay full price when the time comes.

So, I thought I'd share for all of you other mommies out there...hurry though! Only a few more hours to purchase!

PS- Check out my facebook page for another awesome deal....

Super cool artist from Etsy.com (my FAVE site), MEandREEKIE, is offering an awesome deal until tomorrow (Aug. 18th). Buy one pair of her totally cool Boot-ys and get a second pair free. I ordered the Pirate Boot-ys in distressed black and also in brown...for $25 total including shipping!! Not too shabby for custom made, adorable shoes.
Here is the link: http://www.etsy.com/listing/75000226/grey-and-black-pirate-boot-ys?utm_source=OpenGraph&utm_medium=PageTools&utm_campaign=Share

Besides- these are kind of a must have for any punk rock baby like my future one... ; )

Happy Shopping!

E <3

¡Aye aye aye, el bambino necesitas el comida mexicano mucho!

First off, I apologize in advance for any unintentional profane text, or even worse, any unintentional spelling errors. I am attempting to write this blog post from my droid on my 90+ min. train commute home. And if you have ever received a text from me, you probably know my sent messages could occupy an entire page of "F you auto correct".

That being said, I have nothing all that impressive or pressing to report today except that I am craving mexican food. Again. I am starting to think that mexican food is my main diet and everything else is a craving because I eat it so much. I can honestly say that I have barely had a different craving during my entire pregnancy. Sure, I occasionally want to go out for ice cream, ate nothing but eggplant for an entire week, and asked my (amazing and beautiful) aunt to send me home cactus pears from Brooklyn all the way to NJ....but I realize those are items I wanted.

Mexican food, my dear friends, is something I NEED...and I need it NOW.

I thought pregnant woman cravings were for the weak. For the woman who couldn't control herself, or her mind. Not me, I thought.... I am so not that girl. And then it happened, BOOM! My need for the grande burrito and some tamales from my favorite little mexican joint (the real deal people, we are not talking Taco Bell here) hit me and it hit me strong. A pregnant womans craving starts out like a little nagging feeling...and then you begin to think about that feeling a bit more...then you start to salivate a little thinking about it (yup)...then you call your huband and ask him if he needs to go to Lowes or Home Depot for anything tonight because you know your restaurant is only up the street...then when your husband says "nope, don't need anything", you cry. Yeah, true story. I can never seem to say, I have a craving for mexican food, outright. I play this dumb game to try and get out of cooking...and then cry like the hormonal mess I have become when I fail.

Humerous, sure. Embarrasing? Kind of.

In short (or not, since I just wrote forever about this suto-rant), if my sons first words are Aye Papi, or if eats tortilla chips instead of baby biscotti, we'll know why.


So, if you need to find me tonight (or any other night this feeling overcomes me), you'll find me eating a pollo burrito con pico de gallo, avocado, salsa verde y un poquito de jalepeno. And a mexican coca-cola...those things are amazing!

Phew...what a weekend!

It's Sunday evening and I am exhausted. Apparently, my 3rd trimester low energy-ness has decided to kick in today.

It was a crazy weekend filled with family parties, moving furniture (I didn't move anything, no worries...), buying (more) stuff for the nursery, going on a long hike, spa visits (facial AND massage this weekend- so nice!) housework, and contractions. Yep- I experienced my first contractions.

Mr. Braxton Hicks decided to visit me on Friday night with a vengeance (what I did to him, I'm not so sure...). I got so nervous that I even decided to call the 24 hour nurses hotline that I have access to through my insurance. The RN explained to me that if I was not experiencing contractions closer than every 10 minutes, then I should be ok, and they were only Braxton Hicks (or practice contractions). Kinda scary stuff though! That paired with me pulling a muscle in my hip made for a pretty uncomfortable weekend.

Today, I chilled. Dr. Matty (aka my overprotective husband) put me on bed rest, so I did a lot of tv watching, reading and napping (...and food shopping. Oh well, a wifey's gotta do what she gotta do sometimes).

It was a lovely day until I noticed a giant leak in our master bedroom ceiling from this awful rain (said master bedroom is the same one we just got painted LAST WEEK! UGHHHHH). Yeah, I've said it before...don't buy a house.

Onto this week- I am 30 weeks prego and Matt is turning 30 years old tomorrow!! Lots of fun stuff planned for next weekend including my 30 week doctors appointment, getting my hair colored for the first time in 7 months (YAY), Matt's 30th birthday dinner and bonfire, and my babyyyy showerrrrrr! WOOHOO!


Now,hopefully I can make it to Thursday without collapsing from sleepiness. Then I'll get excited about the weekend.

The baby furniture is here!

Matt and I are so thrilled, because our crib, dresser and nightstand arrived this week! We also picked up the rocker/recliner and loveseat that will also go in the nursery. Our nursery happens to be quite the gigantic room (22'x14'), so we are trying to make it an all purpose baby room/sitting area/playroom for our little pumpkin.

We chose the Metro line from Bonavita for the nursery furniture. It really fits the modern and sleek decor we are going for. The entire theme of the nursery is MUSIC (are you surprised at all?!?). Most of the decor elements have been custom made by awesome artists on etsy...including our crib set, which is going to be incredibly cool and cute. I will be sure to post all my vendors that I used if anyone is interested.

Soon to be Grandma & Grandpa P (or G-MA as my mother would like to be called by our child. Yeah. I don't get it either...) graciously purchased our little ones furniture and we couldn't be more grateful. We really are so in love with it!!

After the furniture came yesterday, Matt and I kept finding ourselves sitting in the baby's room (laying on the carpet, sitting on the loveseat, walking around aimlessly...). I think we both just love it so much already, and this whole thing is starting to feel really real.

Well, onto organizing and decorating! Maybe the little one will change positions so I can actually bend more than an inch today...because right now, my back is not allowing it!

Hopefully more nursery pics to come soon.
E <3

Well...here we go!

Here we are...my second attempt at keeping a blog, during one of the busiest times in my life! 

I thought this would be a nice way for friends and family to keep up with mine and Matt's already busy life that is about to get wayyy busier, because come October, we are going to have a baby! Yes, we finally did it! After over 6 wonderful years of marriage, we thought we'd buckle down and become adults.

So, a little bit about our current situation: Matt and I are expecting our first baby due on October 22nd. We are ridiculously excited at the prospect of having a "Halloween baby, because as many of you may know, we are ridiculously obsessed with all things Halloween. We found out we were pregnant in late February, and found out we were having a SON in early June! I would have never ever admitted this before, but I always wanted to have a boy as my first child- so I am extra thrilled!

I have had the easiest pregnancy known to man (or woman rather) so far- so feel free to hate me all you want. I am hoping this last 11 weeks or so will treat me just as well as the weeks so far.

Now, it's crunch time. But, it's also time for the fun stuff...nursery getting painted, furniture getting delivered, baby shower, assembling baby paraphernalia (thank you in advance, Matt), baby classes, hospital tours, panic attacks (wait? what?). I must admit- the closer we get to October, the more excited I get to meet my little boy, and I also get exponentially more terrified. 

But, alas, here I am...writing this blog about my final few weeks as a first time prego, and then my journey into motherhood and all of the crazy adventures in between. 

Hope you find my stories as fun as I do.... E <3