avoiding maternity clothes

Posted in pregnancy by ElaineMarie

how
i did
avoiding
maternity
clothes this week…

only one addition to the regular rotation. but it was a fun addition, a funky addition. it’s an addition that needs some recognition. fringing this t-shirt is what i spent my precious alone time doing. yep. fringe is an important accessory to me. and this t-shirt is getting me excited for rocking my postpartum mom bod for the rest of the summer. mid-drifts aren’t just for baby bumps anymore! stretch marks and blown out belly buttons will be on display soon, too!

darla came home to me wearing this and had instant fringe envy. don’t worry, we fixed her up with a style of her own. keep a look out for a post in which she dons her own fringey tee in just a bit.

seriously, wish and magical think me into postpartum clothes by next week. please. thanks!

7Jul2014

weekending

Posted in love and happiness, weekending by ElaineMarie

^^^ we are made of star stuff ^^^

^^^ can you not? that probably has lead in it ^^^

^^^ doo dah anti-parade parade. my favorite thing that happens annually in columbus ^^^

^^^ we all geeked for these glasses ^^^

^^^ obligatory ^^^

^^^ still waiting…^^^

movies projected onto the garage under the stars, parades, hang time with family and friends, extra chill time together and alone, goofing off as a family, preparing for baby and waiting. beautiful weather, family walks. more waiting. this is the stuff our weekend was made of. i felt recharged and even spent a little time dreaming about the future this weekend. trying to remind myself to keep my mind and heart open to all the possibilities the universe holds.

* i hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend! *

3Jul2014

bump day

Posted in pregnancy by ElaineMarie

y’all, i love this bump. i really do. but i hope i do not have another bump day post next week. i hope i have a baby. in arms. not in belly.

i officially have a big sister on my hands. the photo below is of darla telling the baby he/she has a “stinky poop toot butt.” this sounds like older sister teasing at it’s finest already.

sigh. all the love for this rounded belly.

dear baby,
i baked a stock of biscuits for the weekend. and there’s jam. this means we’re ready to meet you.

2Jul2014

pregnancy eats

Posted in pregnancy, yum yum eat good by ElaineMarie

i’m in my final weeks {days?} of pregnancy. i think i’ve earned to eat fatty foods in secrecy!

the fruits ripening and coming to harvest in central ohio at the end of my pregnancy is one of the most generous blessings the universe has ever bestowed on me. i didn’t think it possible, but black raspberries taste even better when you’re 9 months pregnant.

so this is me as of late. fresh fruits over ice cream paired with ginger ale + homemade strawberry syrup. and yeah, there were some jalapeno stuffed olives in the mix too. because, pregnancy cravings. yes.

gawd i love food while pregnant.

1Jul2014

avoiding maternity clothes

Posted in pregnancy by ElaineMarie

how
i did
avoiding
maternity clothes
this week……………

^^^ berry picking in all white because i never really make good fashion decisions ^^^

^^^ dark colors and long sleeves for an outdoor festival during a 90 degree day because again…. ^^^

^^^ a very important outfit these days. i’m very thankful to my regular bathing suit for hanging in there as a maternity suit. this may or may not qualify as a good fashion decision depending on which side you’re on ^^^

* wish me luck with next week. or better yet, wish me luck with a birth and a first week in postpartum clothes!*

28Jun2014

— on pause —

Posted in Momma Needs a minute... by ElaineMarie

this feels like a life in limbo. i feel rooted to the ground, unable to make movement in any direction until this new being is born. there are so many things, goals, i would like to be working towards but for some reason, i can’t. it feels like someone is not only inhabiting my body but taking up my brain as well, giving me only enough power to get from day-to-day and remain focused on bringing this new life here.

and while i understand this is the way nature has designed and intended it to be for me as a mother, it still leaves me feeling inadequate. i want to make so much out of this life and it seems like i’m always out of reach of my goals. i need to seek the serenity that will help me be satisfied with the here and now instead of constantly longing for my life to be somehow different.

being unable to move is so terribly exhausting. i mean this both figuratively and literally. i can’t move my body in the ways i’d like anymore. i can’t move my mind with the agility i used to have. i feel that i can’t move my life in the direction i’d like it to go. i just don’t have the energy. and i don’t know when i will again.

i’m seeking some positive energy to be at peace with this life on pause. i’m seeking solace in knowing that it really is only for a short while. i’m seeking the willingness to accept my powerlessness over my life in these next few weeks. i want to invoke the magnificence of the current moment into my consciousness and forget about the future.

if only the rest of the world could join me in doing so…

28Jun2014

raspberry picking

Posted in advantageous adventures, it's cool to school, pregnancy, yum yum eat good by ElaineMarie

when i was a young girl it was my job to pick the berry bushes outside the back of our house. i find it rather funny that i pay people now to let me do it at their house, when i acted like it was SUCH A HARD CHORE back in my youth. but still, it does take me back to that time in my life and i hope darla will look back fondly at going to the berry fields with me since we don’t own our yard to plant berry bushes and give her the chore of berry picking.

well, she didn’t look on it very fondly today, that’s for sure. last year it was a novelty. this year it was one of those things her ol’ pregnant mom dragged her along for. so, i eventually just handed her my phone and told her she could just take pictures if she wasn’t interested in picking and i’m glad i did because she had a few good ones in there amongst the hundred or so she snapped away. it’s nice to have some pics of the big bump amongst the berries. i especially love the second photo, which isn’t that flattering of an angle for me or facial expression but it accurately depicts how it was out there: hot, sticky and pretty uncomfortable but incredibly gorgeous and so worth it.

worth it because i got my first taste of black raspberries. i’m 100% telling the truth when i say that i’ve been having anxiety that this baby will come during black raspberry season and i’ll miss out entirely. this was still pretty early for my black beauties but we got enough to wet my whistle for the taste and leave me satisfied should this human come before we can get back to the ripe patches next week. i will type it in all caps again because i’m serious that BLACK RASPBERRIES ARE MY CHILDHOOD ENCAPSULATED IN FOOD FORM AND I LOVE THEM.

{ people of central ohio, if i could send you anywhere for your raspberry needs it would mitchell’s berries. they are simply lovely, affordable and delicious. tell them we sent you on your next visit! }

25Jun2014

pregnancy eats

Posted in pregnancy, yum yum eat good by ElaineMarie

postpartum planning and fresh produce availability are converging at one time to make my pregnancy eats focus directed a little more towards the post-pregnancy period. the garden is starting to yield and so are the farms in central ohio. i’ve been gradually putting away freezer items and have gotten into some canning with our lovely neighbor. i still have quite a bit to put away before i will feel satisfactorily prepared but any progress is good progress, right?

so, we’ve put away some

^^^ cilantro lime rice ^^^

^^^ taco pickles ^^^

lentil tacos

salsa chicken

and

vegetable marinara

^^^ d has been doing her own preserving, making teas and drying bunches from bolted cilantro ^^^

but that’s all i’ve got so far. this is where i need help. i have some ideas like making some crockpot pulled chicken and more taco meat but i need ideas. pinterest is chock full of them but it’s hard to know if a recipe is going to be a bust or not based on the internet so, i am asking you to leave a comment with your tried and true pinterest link for your favorite freezer meals {or any recipe link will do} so i can add it to my board and get some more variety going in our freezer. healthy and cheap options are always good.

and please someone ease my guilt and tell me that i get a zero waste free pass since this is the first time i’ve bought plastic storage bags in at least 3 years? i tried to figure out a way to zero waste this process but there is only so much one mama mind can take on at one time…

thanks in advance for your help!

24Jun2014

avoiding maternity clothes

Posted in pregnancy by ElaineMarie

how i did this week avoiding maternity clothes…with a little help from my friends.

this weeks post is a tribute to a few people who popped up in life to say “hey, i have some flowy, fabricy garments. you can put them on your big body if you’d like!” it was nice to have my maternity wardrobe double in size.

^^^ prairie dress. i pretended i was a pregnant laura ingalls wilder ^^^

^^^ i love the look of a belt cinched above a baby bump ^^^

^^^ story about this shirt: i was literally walking around my house in just pants, bra and support tank top sulking to myself that i didn’t have any shirts left to fit over my body when i said “i wonder what is in this package that just arrived from my aunt?” it contained this shirt, which happens to be my power color this pregnancy, and also happens to be non-maternity and comfortable as heck. i love my family’s cosmic ways. oh and the flower was added by darla just before i left for work. she said it made me look like a beautiful senorita. how could i not wear it then? ^^^

^^^ and i’m so in love with this red dress ^^^

so thank you to those of you who gifted/loaned me something in this past week or two. i have definitely put it to good use. wish me luck with this week!

21Jun2014

postpartum gifts

Posted in Shopping by ElaineMarie

because i’m always thinking of others, i decided i might just make it easy on everyone, all the many people, who might be wondering what they could bring me as the perfect postpartum, push present gift so i made a list. ahem:

1. artisanal butter

2. houseplants. any of these would be fine…

houseplants