The Rawlings Family: May 2016

5.29.2016

maternity photo shoot!

last month we took our first family pictures!

Stephanie took them for us and the location she picked just happened to be the same place where Mark proposed to me! they turned out beautiful even though it's been flooding here on a weekly basis so we had to trample through swamps to get to all the good spots! Mark carried me (and the baby) through all the murky patches :)

this last one is my favorite. we were getting eaten alive by mosquitos but I still wanted to take a few more pictures so Mark goes, "quick, just kiss me!" we were both half laughing because the second before I had just slapped him across the face to get a mosquito!

I cannot wait until the next set of Rawlings family pictures!

5.27.2016

37 Week Bumpdate

WEEK 37

Baby is the size of a skunk!

bebe le pew!

sometimes I wonder if my belly is actually still getting bigger...like if that is even possible! I used to read about pregnant women saying they forgot what it's like to not have a huge belly and I would always wonder how that could be, now here I am joining them. what was it like to not have my stomach bump into things (counter tops, tables, people) before the rest of me? what was sleeping like when I used to actually lay down at night (on my stomach!) instead of half propped up by three pillows and one between my legs?! there are these rare times at night where I get in a super comfortable position so that I almost don't feel pregnant and can't feel the weight of my stomach...heaven!

the weeks are ticking. I can't really fathom that I could go into labor any day now...it all still seems months away! my baby's due date is now sooner than the expiration on our milk! so the next time we buy milk (or Mark buys milk) we will have a baby!!!

we are doing pretty good on our checklist...I totally caved and ordered more baby clothes (it's memorial day weekend so there are so many sales!) so we will have to do more baby laundry now but there really isn't much else to do. read, read, and read some more because every time we read one of our four books we're reading, I learn something I consider invaluable and wonder how I would have survived not knowing that vital piece of information...which also leaves me wondering, what other essential information have I not yet learned?! it is like finals week over here and we are cramming, cramming, cramming to get an A on this test called "Parenthood"!

I don't know why I don't think I can continue learning after the baby arrives! I sort of feel like it's going to alter time, stop the universe, hours will disappear and days will be no longer existent and even the simplest things like brushing my teeth will become a thing of the past! I feel like a hurricane is coming to take over my life and once it hits, I have to be fully prepared because there will be no time in the storm to learn how to survive it! is this an accurate picture, all you mothers out there??

don't get me wrong, I am very excited! and so happy to meet my baby, the new love of my life. but the excitement is being overshadowed by nerves, anxiety, fear, and an overwhelming desire to be good at this. I want to be the best mom and not do anything wrong or mess up on my sweet, innocent baby that is being entrusted to me! who am I to be held responsible for this precious, little life? please let me do a good job!

5.22.2016

Nursery Reveal!

our nursery has been done for weeks and it's by far our favorite room in the house! this is where we currently read our parenting books, work on baby projects, and just relax and daydream about what it will be like when baby actually lives here!

we started out with so many different ideas for nursery themes and finally settled on baby animals :) I didn't want animal print sheets or anything though, just subtle touches of little animals here and there with most of the decor kept simple, classic and gender neutral. we picked a light color scheme - white, dove grey and icy mint which really kept everything bright and airy. lots of my inspiration came from rh baby & child and we had fun finding creative ways to make it look like one of their nurseries made for royalty!

I am in love with how it all turned out! every time I sit in our rocker, I get a rush of emotion thinking about nursing and rocking baby to sleep there in just a few weeks! I can't really wrap my mind around it all but time is flying and baby will be here before we know it!

crib, mobile, rocker, knit throw, lamp, hamper, diaper caddy // pottery barn kids

crib sheets, crib skirt, pillow, changing pad cover // rh baby & child

dresser, bookshelf, nightstand, drapes // ikea

moses basket, diaper bin, mattress, changing pad // amazon

little darling prints // the animal print shop

stay wild letters // hobby lobby (mark made them!)

pouf // land of nod

diaper bag // buy buy baby

5.18.2016

36 Week Bumpdate

WEEK 36

Baby is the size of a chihuahua!

so I have exciting news! at my appointment today the doctor checked me and I am 2 CM DILATED!!! I really have no idea what this means but I think it means baby might be coming soooon!!! he also measured the baby and told me baby will be about 6 lbs at birth! he said it's a small baby, lucky me :) thank goodness!!!

things we still have to do before baby comes:

1. finish four baby books we are currently reading: "what to expect," "the baby book" by Dr. Sears, "the happiest baby on the block," and "how to have your second child first"

2. read two more baby books on my list: "secrets of the baby whisperer" and "the no-cry sleep solution"

3. pack my hospital bag - on the agenda for this weekend

4. create our birth plan - sometime next week

5. practice swaddling and using all our baby wraps (I think we have every wrap ever invented - solly, moby, boba, tula, ergo...)

6. finish my online medela breastfeeding course

7. start / finish online childbirth course

8. subscribe & save on amazon diapers (we're going with pampers swaddlers, per many recommendations!)

9. finish editing my time lapse bump video

10. design our birth announcement & collect emails

if baby comes on time, we should be able to get all of this done! I am moving slower and slower these days so it's a good thing none of these take very much energy. also, I think baby may have dropped! it's been so hard to walk the past few days because I feel like there's something lodged low in my pelvis, like a baby! HA!

other than checking things off our 'baby to do' list, we've truly been enjoying our last month of freedom! my dad got a huge bonus from work and treated himself to a new grill so we spent last weekend barbecuing every day and living in the pool!