Blog Giveaway Alert!

Head on over to Mada's Place Blog to enter a giveaway. My friend Steph has an adorable gift shop with all sorts of fabulous goodies!

http://tinyurl.com/ykphxhq

The last Christmas as we know it

Christmas 2009. I can only wonder what Christmas 2010 will be like. For over 30 years, our family has been used to me, Temple and Amanda being the babies. And of course the Brannons have been used to Ann-Margaret, Adam, and their cousins being the babies! For 30 years!!! Yes, it took THAT long for us to decide to add on to our family and relinquish our titles as the babies of the family. As each month/week/day passes we get closer and closer to meeting three very special new additions. Adam's cousin Hannah is the first to add to the family with the arrival of her son Henry - due any day now!! Temple and Jonathan will be next to welcome their new baby boy - Reese. He is due February 1 and we can't wait to meet him. Soon after, our little Sarah Beth will come into the world sometime around April 20.

That brings me back to my original thought - Christmas will NEVER be the same again! Our family has traditions just like any other family. We spend Christmas morning with Adam's parents, sister, and brother-in-law. Christmas afternoon and evening are spent with my family - MaMa Miriam, my parents, Aunt Ann & Uncle Ricky, Temple, Amanda and their significant others. Next year there will be two little crawlers bringing much excitement and joy to our Christmas day. Sarah Beth will be around 8 months old and Reese will be around 10 months old! As I look into the future, I try to picture a scene in my mind as if I'm looking in from the outside. I see lots of giggles, tons of smiles, even more love than ever possible, and an all around renewed sense of joy and family.

So yes, this Christmas 2009 may be the last one "as we know it", but I can't say I'm sad. I simply can not wait to see what the future holds. Years and years to come we will have new babies and new traditions. Everyone in our families is so excited and ready to meet the new little ones. So Merry Christmas 2009 and HELLO 2010!!!

Nursery Inspiration

Of course the nursery is something I've been planning since before I was even pregnant. I wanted to share a few ideas I've found while searching the Internet. I've already shared a picture of the bedding we're using. It's Bananafish Lily Bedding from Target. Of course it is back ordered which makes me nervous. Many reviews say they've been waiting for months and it still hasn't come. I'm giving it until February. If it's not here by then, I'm going to make my own. God help us all. Here's a picture of it:



The "theme" if you want to call it that, will be pink and green damask. I went over to one of my favorite overpriced baby sites, Rosenberry Rooms for some inspiration. If you have $900 to drop on a crib set, this is your place. I just go there to drool and find things that I love that I can recreate. Thankfully I have a very artsy friend named Beth (Beth of Unskinny Boppy blog) who has offered to recreate these two precious paintings for the nursery. I want to hang these over the crib, I think. I'll also do a pink or white distressed frame since the walls will be green.



I also love this little piece of art from Etsy to hang over the rocking chair area:



The last two little gems I found this morning on Rosenberry Rooms. They are each over $30 which is absolutely insane. If you have a glue gun and a little patience, you can do these yourself so easily!! I may not use the exact same fabrics because I don't want to go overboard on damask, but you get the idea. First is a night light and second is a little hair bow holder! Now the hair bow holder may be useless if we have a bald child, like both of us were, so maybe I'll wait til she's here to do that one!





OH and I almost forgot, I bought a couple of things at Hobby Lobby last night. They were 50% off so how could I resist? First is a switch plate cover and next is a decorative door knob thingy to hang on the wall. I will probably hang a cute dress or tu-tu from it on one of those cute little satin covered hangers.

She's on the move!

Finally I have started to feel movement! I was beginning to worry, but the doctors kept saying it may be 25 weeks before I felt her. Still, I worried. Just a few days ago I started feeling her! I was sitting at my desk at work, and I got three strong little kicks in a row! She is way down low and I think she has taken up residence on top of my bladder. It's ok though, as long as she is happy in there I'm ok with more frequent potty breaks! Each day I feel her more and more and it's just the coolest thing ever! I can't wait for Adam to be able to feel her from the outside, but it'll probably be a few more weeks until that. Grow baby, grow!

Constant craving

People keep asking me if I've had any weird cravings. The only thing that I really just can't get enough of is soup! LOVE me some soup. Adam and I went to the Rexall Drug Store Grill in historic Duluth, GA on Saturday. They have the best homemade vegetable beef soup and cornbread, along with other yummy treats. It's an old fashioned, literally like really old, drug store and you see lots of little old men "townies" in there hanging out along with people young and old of all backgrounds. If you live in the area, you need to check it out!

Anyway, back to my cravings. I have decided to try a soup each week. This week I am making a big pot of vegetable beef soup. Next week will be chicken stew. The following week will be baked potato soup. Then after that I'll do my favorite chicken tortilla soup (that picture on the recipe is mine!).

If you have a favorite soup recipe, please feel free to share!

Please vote for a good cause - takes just a second

Please vote for my friend Erin's blog, Rare and Beautiful Treasures. She is a phenomenal writer and very inspirational lady. I really admire her faith in God. She got a guest spot on Divine Caroline (how cool!) and if she wins, she is going to donate the money to her friends who are missionaries in Ethiopia helping orphan children who are burn victims.

Click HERE to vote:

I really am turning into a scrooge

I just received a comment on a post last December. I had forgotten about it, but apparently last year I decided not to decorate for Christmas. I can't remember what I did last week, so I surely didn't remember if I decorated last year or not. Well this year I've also decided to not decorate. Usually people are like "OMG WHY?!?!" as if I have done some horrible crime like scalping kittens. Well, why not? We don't have children (yet) and we travel for the holidays, so what's more depressing than being away for Christmas and coming home and having to undecorate everything? Next year I promise I'll decorate - I'll do it big. I may even do some inflatable lawn ornaments (ok I'm joking on that part). Should I feel so guilty? Why do I feel guilty about this? Grr, someone justify my actions please!

PS - I did decorate my cubicle at work so that helps, right?

We're having a baby girl!

Well tomorrow, December 1, marks the half way point of my pregnancy. WOW I can't believe I'm half way to meeting my precious little baby. It has been a great few months and I hope the next few continue to be this way. We had our big ultrasound appointment this morning to make sure the little one was developing correctly and also to find out the gender. We got to see all of the baby's organs - even got a close up look at the chambers of the heart. It was absolutely amazing! The ultrasound tech printed out a ton of pictures and was taking measurements the whole time. I didn't catch this, but according to Adam with each measurement a due date would flash up. All measurements were right on target at an April 20 due date.

Of course she waited until the very end to tell us the gender. The little one was being modest and not wanting to open her legs so the tech had to do some mashing and pressing on my belly to make her move. The tech goes "I think it's a girl". You THINK? Ok lady, I need to know for sure here because you say girl and I will paint every square inch of everything she owns pink and buy a ton of girly clothes. If there's any doubt in your mind this is NOT a girl, speak now or forever hold your peace. She went into a little spiel saying how they can never be 100% correct but that it's over 90% sure. Hmm, well ok then lady. She didn't give me the warm fuzzies I was hoping for, but nothing was going to bring me down!

After the ultrasound we met with the doctor and he told us everything looked great with the baby. Everything with me is great too. He answered a few questions and sent us on the way. Next appointment is December 28.

Many people have been asking what we plan on naming her. We have decided on Sarah Elizabeth and we will call her Sarah Beth. I love double names for girls and I think this one is so beautiful! We both have Sarah and Elizabeth on both sides of our families so this will keep in the tradition of family names. If it was a boy, he would have been Foster Templeton. Maybe the next one will be a boy :o) Here are some pictures of little Sarah Beth.

Here's her entire body - so cute if I do say so myself!


Up close shot of her profile


Leg on the left - it's bent so the knee is at the top and her foot is on the left. Arms are on the right - they are bent at the elbow and are in front of her face. Little hands on the right side.


Foot on the left - will she have my huge feet? Hmm, I sorta hope not! Bottom shot on the right.


It's a girl!

My baby is a....mango?

One particular website sends me a weekly update to tell me what's going on with me and the baby. I have really enjoyed seeing what fruit or vegetable they compare the baby's size to each week. You can view the entire list by clicking here. Last week we were a sweet potato. This week, a mango! Grow baby, grow!



Baby is also covered with a waxy "cheese" called Vernix that helps protect the skin from amniotic fluid. Mmm, cheese.

Weeks 7 - 18

Yeah, week 6 was where the weekly pregnancy documentation ended. I'm a horrible blogger, what can I say?! I actually have a lot of guilt for not documenting this pregnancy like I planned. I wanted to do weekly updates like my dear friend Dusty but alas, I did not.

I must say this has been a pretty easy pregnancy. I never got sick in my first trimester, thank goodness!!! I had some bouts of nausea but once I ate I felt better. I was just HUNGRY and TIRED for the most part! Here is a picture of our 8 week ultrasound. Little bean's heart was beating 156 BPM!



I sailed into the second trimester and things have been really great. I got another quick unofficial ultrasound at 12 weeks which was really great. We got to see the baby again and it actually looked like a baby this time! It even moved around for us. Here's that picture:



The 16 week appointment was great. We heard the heart beat with the doppler an scheduled the BIG ultrasound for November 30th! The date is fast approaching and we can't wait to find out if we're having a boy or girl! Most importantly we want to make sure the baby is healthy. We had the second trimester blood work screening done at the 16 week appointment. That tests for all major genetic abnormalities with the baby. Luckily it all came back fine.

To occupy my time I have been studying my pregnancy books such as Your Pregnancy Week by Week, What to Expect When You're Expecting, and Baby Bargains.

I've started creating baby registries at Babies R Us, Target, and Wal Mart. I'm trying to keep most of it gender neutral so we can use these items again with the next one. My favorite item, and my big splurge, is the Bob Stroller. After polling several friends that own these and doing lots of research online and through my Baby Bargains book, I decided that this is our best options. I can use it from the infancy through toddler years. It has an infant car seat attachment that allows us to snap the car seat into it until the baby is big enough to fit in the regular stroller seat. It is built with all metal but is really light weight - very durable! The front wheel rotates 360 and you can push the thing with one finger. I tried one out in a baby store and fell in love. It's the Cadillac of strollers, for sure.

Of course I'm also obsessed with baby bedding! I have it narrowed down to two choices. I originally had picked some rather expensive bedding from a boutique custom place, but I found this other bedding at Target and fell in love. It's affordable, adorable, and when the inevitable diaper blow out or throw up happens, I won't lose any sleep if I have to replace something. Here's the girl option. You can see that is is reversible as well.





Here is the boy option. Precious!



That is the rest of my pregnancy in a nutshell! I am absolutely dying to find out the gender of this little one! So far the majority of people guess GIRL. I'm not patient, so let's hope that November 30 gets here as quickly as possible!

Pregnancy - Week 6

This week has been....interesting, to say the least. Things are definitely different now. I wouldn't say I'm fully nauseas, but I am feeling sort of puny. Indigestion is pretty bad. I also am TIRED. It is a challenge to stay awake at work. I just want to lay in bed. I'm also slightly more crampy this week. Week 6 starts the embryonic stage, so I'm guessing the little one is growing a lot in there. The heart beat starts this week and the eye buds form as well as arm and leg buds.

I've also noticed I'm starving all the time. Example: Wednesday morning I had a Jimmy Dean D-Lite breakfast bowl for breakfast. It had turkey sausage, potatoes, and eggs in it. I got to work and was starving again around 9:30. I ate a bowl of instant oatmeal. Then around 10:30 I was starving again!!

Pregnancy - Week 5

Week 5 has been a glorious week because I was at the beach all week on vacation!! Adam and I spent the week at Pawley's Island at his Aunt Clarke and Uncle Bob's beach house. My pregnancy "symptoms" were fatigue (can't make it past 10 PM) and still some cramping. It was great to be at the beach and relax - it really took my mind off a lot of worrying that goes on in the first trimester. Aunt Clarke even made me a sweet little knitted baby hat!

On our way back home we stopped by our parents' homes to tell them. They are all ecstatic!!! I was so glad my dad was in town so I could tell him in person. With his travel schedule he misses out on a lot, so it was important for me to be able to tell him in person.

I was pretty much a beach bum the entire week. I read two books and ate a lot of good food. It was fabulous! The next week at work is going to be very hard :o(

I have a little news to share...

Note: this post should have been posted weeks ago!! I wrote it back in August and have been slack about getting the blog back up and running. Enjoy!

Most of you already know this, but I'm pregnant!!! Adam and I could not be more excited. By the time I actually post this, I'll be safely in my 2nd Trimester. The due date is April 20. Today I am 4 Weeks, 1 Day pregnant. Here's the story of how I found out:

Monday, August 10:
Something was up. I just knew it. I spent all day wondering "is this really it or is mother nature pulling a really mean trick on me"? I spent all day at work pondering this and fretting over every little ache/pain/feeling that went on in my body that day. On the way home from work, I picked up a pack of First Response Early Response pregnancy tests. When I got home, I took the test and sat there staring at it with my heart racing 1,000,000 beats per minute. Finally I thought I was seeing a TINY faint pink line. Could it be? Was I hallucinating? Was it just the shadow of the darker test line? I brought it in the kitchen under brighter lights and if you held it just so, you could see a tiny line.

I got Adam to come look and he was very skeptical. He didn't think it was a line. I tried telling him "a line is a line" but he wasn't buying it. I also tried taking a picture (which I will post below) but it just didn't come out very clearly either. So I went to bed, heart still racing, not able to sleep a wink. I woke up around 4 AM feeling like it was Christmas morning. I went into the bathroom to take the other test and nothing showed up. My heart sank, I was so let down. Month after month seeing those negatives just does something to you. I tried not to be too sad - I figured "well I can at least drink some fruity drinks and have lots of seafood at the beach next week" (Adam and I had a vacation planned the following week to Pawley's Island). Here is the test with a line only a mother can see (hehe). Don't worry if you can't see it, nobody else could either!



I just couldn't shake the image of that faint line from the night before. I decided, to put my mind at ease, I'd buy a digital test on my way to work Tuesday morning. I got into work and immediately went to test. I sat there - heart racing again - just waiting. I had fully prepared myself for the words "Not Pregnant". I just needed to see it. After a couple of minutes the most glorious word popped up on the screen!!! I almost screamed! I am glad I didn't because I am sure I would have scared the lady in there! Here's a picture of the glorious positive test!



I walked outside to call Adam and tell him. No way could I go all day without telling him! He was so excited to hear the news. I was just overwhelmed, shocked, excited. What a roller coaster of emotions from the past two days!! I spent the whole day at work just trying to concentrate (which was so hard) and also to not fall asleep.

Tuesday night I slept like a baby. Went to bed around 9:45 and woke up at 7. I still feel like I could crawl into bed. I am a little achy all over, have a slight headache, and am slightly crampy. These are all normal signs, thank God. I'm trying to remain calm and just think positive right now. It's hard to get too excited after what we went through in Feb. 08, but I have a really good feeling about this one!

Until next week...

Help support a paws, I mean cause! :o)

Introducing one of my newest collar/leash options - the breast cancer awareness fabric! These are great for using on your pets at the breast cancer walk/runs that are coming up. The best part - whenever you purchase one of these, 10% of your entire order is donated to Susan G Komen Foundation! They're beautiful and they support a great cause - need I say more?

Want a chance to win your own Peachy Keen Design?

Hop on over to my friend Allison's blog to enter her give-away!! Allison is a dear friend of mine and one of the most beautiful people I know! She's kindly doing this to help me promote my business. So if you want to win a leash or a collar, go on over and enter.

Thanks for your support Allison! XOXO

Hey Purty Lady

I wanted to introduce you all to one of my most favorite peeps - Natalie. She's my "ragin cajun" friend from New Orleans. Nat and I met online on theknot.com many years ago while planning our weddings and have been great friends ever since. I just recently saw her in Dallas (which I promise I'll blog about later!). She's married and has a beautiful daughter, Anna. She's incredibly funny and I have really ejoyed reading her blog. Check it out for yourself! http://oneporkchop.blogspot.com/ I suggest you start reading from her first post - so funny!

That's Natalie picking the bull's nose - I swear the girl never takes a normal picture, lol

I'm still alive

in case you were wondering :o) I've been such a bad blogger. We have been so busy and I promise to write an update soon.

WOW

It has been well over a month since I last posted. I'm the worst blogger EVER!!! We've been busy, but I'll get to that later. I had to post this fabulous blog entry from my friend Dusty. Her blog has like a million followers, partly because she's such a brilliant writer and also because she has some funny stuff happen to her. This is one of my favorite Dusty memories - Pillowgate 2006. Click the link to see her story...

http://allthingsgd.blogspot.com/2009/03/pillowgate-2006.html

Dog Collars for sale!

I've now mastered the art of dog collar making! They're cute and ready to sell, so please contact me if you're interested! Calhoun loves his :o) I need to get some pink fabric for Callie's new collar. Pricing is as follows: XS & S - $9, M & L - $10, XL - $11. For sizing, just email me your dog or cat's neck measurement and I'll let you know which size you need. I have a variety of fabrics on hand but if I don't have something you like, I can buy something to suit your needs!

I'll also be starting a website soon - we're going to try and work on getting it established this weekend. More to come later...

Resolution Update

In trying to hold myself accountable, I am going to periodically post updates on how I'm doing with my 2009 resolutions! I kept the resolutions pretty general - be healthier and craft more. So far I have lost 10 pounds, thanks to Good Measure Meals!!! I did cheat slightly last night and at Mexican last night, but I am not beating myself up over it! I also haven't had a single cup of Dunkin Donuts coffee yet this year, or any coffee for that matter - not even the crappy coffee at the office. I truly miss my Dunkin Donuts - I shed a little tear each day as I pass by the two DD shops on my way to work. I also have to make sure I'm in the left lane so I won't easily make that right hand turn into the parking lot. I'm also happy to report I haven't smoked a single cigarette in 2009 either!

As far as my crafting goes, you can see from the posts below that I have kept up that resolution as well! I've been ordering lots of fabrics and making things for friends. I am going to start my Etsy shop as soon as I get get some more things made. I'm calling my little business Peachy Keen Creations. I have business cards - be on the look out!

There are always improvements to be made, so I would like to address those as well. First and foremost I have got to start exercising. There's an adult dance studio down the street from me that a fellow Junior Leaguer owns, so I am going to try and start going to classes a few nights a week. They offer anything from yoga to belly dancing! I've had a hard time finding time for after work activities lately because I am seeing a Chiropractor for some back pain - thankfully nothing too serious that can't be fixed. Other improvements I need to focus more on are eating better on the weekends. It's amazing what a couple of bad meals can do to ya!

That's it for now..until next time. I will leave you with a picture of my beloved coffee. I miss you Dunkin Donuts!!!

Blog Award!

My first ever blog award!! Thanks to Elizabeth at Coffee and Mocha I got my first award, so thanks girl!



The award states: "These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award."

Here are my 8 fabulous friends that are award-worthy!

All Things G&D

The Hamlett Daily Dose

Keeping Up With The Wilsons

The Dickinsons

Parker The Big Brother

R&B News

This Girl's Life

VAMH

Wine totes for sale!

I've mastered another project - the wine tote! Feel fashionable and flirty when you arrive to your next party! This fully insulated wine tote and will keep your wine cool and safe. Hand crafted with designer fabrics and made to order! This also makes a great hostess gift! Wine not included - that's for all my wine-o friends out there :o)

I'm starting a little side business called Peachy Keen Creations. If you like anything you see here, feel free to email me at peachykeeninfo@gmail.com for pricing or questions.

Fun projects!

I can think of at least six people who are pregnant or have just had babies, so I have got some presents to buy or make! One thing I know babies like are Taggie blankets. I found an easy tutorial online on how to make one, so I gave it a shot today. This one pictured was just my test round one so it won't be given away (it has some mistakes) but I am ready to get started on another one!

Front:


Back (it's light yellow):

Success!!

One of my New Year's resolutions (not mentioned in post below) was to craft more. A friend of mine sent me a ton of links to easy sewing projects. This one is the first I chose to tackle. I think it takes me longer to sew than most people. I'm just sort of in that beginner stage where I'm not sure of what all the terms mean, so half the time I'm googling terms such as "baste" and other various terms. It's a learning process and I just learn as I go.

Overall the tote turned out pretty well. I just figured out that I sewed in the lining inside out...oops! So I guess I won't be "reversing" this bag! That's OK though because overall I think it turned out pretty good!

New Year's Resolution

Ahh, the ol' New Year's resolution. I always toy with the idea of even making one, because I always feel like I am just setting myself up for failure with setting unattainable goals. I was thinking about my resolution this year and thinking of things like: lose weight, drink less, work out more, etc. So instead of setting a definite goal, my resolution this year is to be healthier. I think that's an all encompassing and attainable goal! Adam and I , starting Monday, will be using Good Measure Meals. GMM is a meal service in Atlanta (created by a chef) where you pick your calorie level and they prepare fresh meals for you weekly. We are doing the three meals a day plan (no more cooking, yaay!). I'm starting at the 1700 calorie level and Adam is starting at 2100. Once I get adjusted to it, I'm going to try and drop down to 1400 calories a day. If you watch Ruby on the Style Network, she uses a meal service that is created by GMM but is in Savannah, GA. The meals are fresh, never frozen, and delivered or picked up twice a week. They are really good! Hopefully this fresh start will kick start our goal of living healthier. I'm also going to do other things such as take daily vitamins and drink more water.

What is your New Year's resolution? Feel free to leave a comment with yours! Happy New Year everyone, I hope 2009 is great for us all!