Now before anyone gets butt hurt about anything im about to say, these are my opinions and my thoughts on my pregnancy. I completely understand that no two pregnancies are the same and its very rare that anything i'm about to say will resonate with someone else, but thats ok. thats why this is my blog ;)  

via google

as i enter my third and final trimester, these are my thougths on pregnancy: IT'S NOT THAT BAD.   it really isn't. i've had a really pleasant pregnancy. i got morning and evening sickness probably a total of 10 times through the entire first trimester. a few of those times were at work, in my car, and after i brushed my teeth. but it wasn't that bad. i never missed a day of work, an event, nothing. i could function even feeling like i had the worlds worst hangover. did i hate some of it? yes. did i mind it? no.    i had a few moments of guilt as i cried to CL who held my hair back and rubbed my back as i had my head in a toilet and cried. i first hand know more than 3 incredible women who cannot have children. women who would do anything to have one and can't. and i felt guilty that i was miserable because they would never experience what i was experiencing. and that made me realize, IT'S NOT THAT BAD.    the sleepies? gosh, they hit hard every day at around 3pm. I get up early and work all day, come home and tend to the dogs, cook dinner, workout.. and i do it willingly. being exhausted all the time? yup. IT'S NOT THAT BAD.    i can't really speak much on weight gain, because i haven't gained any.. yet. but i know its coming. i know that it will happen, and yes, im prepared. ive been working out as much as i can. i know that a baby only weighs somewhere between 6-9lbs (hopfully not more than 9lbs!) and plus a few for the wonderful placenta and waterweight, the rest of the weight mama gains is all her. being a little overweight going into this pregnancy really made me want to remain healthy and to keep a fitness schedule so that im in the best shape possible when baby boy arrives. so weight gain.. bring it on, you are growing a human. IT'S NOT THAT BAD.   the girls that bitch and moan about not getting their glass of wine? or margarita? PUH-LEASE. drinking an alcoholic bevy pregnant is about the last thing on earth i've wanted. it drives me nuts when i hear 'i'd kill for a glass of wine!' really? you can't go 10 months without drinking? i believe thats called a 'problem' and its a good thing you shouldn't be drinking anyways. i've been to Napa, Vegas, parties, and functions and drinking was the last thing on my mind. No adult beverages? IT'S NOT THAT BAD.   maternity clothes? hello, when, if ever, are elastic waisted pants appropriate? or leggings considered pants? When your prego, that's when. instead of fighting the belly, embrace it. or else you just look like you had one too many burritos and a extra pint of ben and jerry's. pregnany is a beautiful thing and your body has embarked on a crazy wild journey, so show off that belly. IT'S NOT THAT BAD.   the hot flashes/ built in heater in my belly that makes me pee all the time? yeah. good thing i live in northern california where its pretty mild year round. now im not saying that its pleasant at night.. its hot. just ask my husband. but im sleeping through the night minus getting up to pee. usually just once a night.. don't drink anything past 8 and usually you can sleep through the night.. and if i don't, i get up, pee, and fall right back to sleep in our hot room. ha. we literally turn the ac down and sometimes sleep with the sliding glass door open. but even if i sweat all night long, and make my husband freeze.  IT'S NOT THAT BAD.   i haven't complained about any part of my pregnancy because i've loved being pregnant. has it been perfect? absolutely not. i've been tested for every. single. thing. under the sun. i've been poked with more needles than i'd like to admit. i've peed in more cups and even a bucket for 24 hours. glucose test? try taking 2. i've got things going on under the hood that i've cried for days over. but im in a great hospital and have great doctors that have done everything to make sure that our first born develops and grows into a healthy baby. im healthy. baby boy is healthy. and so far, so good. being pregnant has been one of the biggest blessings in my life and i've fully embraced it.   will i have a village when baby is born since i live 1000 miles away from my family? yes. sort of. carmen, you have been promoted to chief of the baby louis village, once my mom leaves, btw. am i heartbroken that im 27 weeks pregnant and the ONLY things i own for baby boy are a car seat, stroller, bassinet (for said stroller) a moses basket, and a few outfits? not one bit. babies don't need much the first few months and why would i waste my (or anyone else's) money on a nursery that im probably going to change my mind about 100x before he gets here? and who's newborn sleeps in their nursery? or crib for that matter? plus have i mentioned that we live in a one bedroom apartment? with two dogs? yeah. wrap your head around that! no nesting for moi. IT'S NOT THE END OF THE WORLD.    am i bummed that im probably not going to have numerous baby showers? a little. but mostly because i just want to spend time with my family during this time. and eat cake (ha!) i could care less about having everything off my registry show up the moment baby arrives. will he notice? nope. will i? doubt it. we will have what we need when he arrives, and if we need something, we don't live in a 3rd world country. and there's this website called amazon that delivers! whoa! crazy. i haven't washed a thing. i don't have a nursery. i don't have a plethora of baby stuff. and guess what? IT WON'T BE THE END OF THE WORLD.   i know that the 3rd trimester brings on the heartburn, backaches, (much more) peeing all the time, bad sleep, and anxiety, but im looking forward to every second of it. after all, people have been procreating for 1000s of years and they wouldn't keep doing it if it was that bad. i don't know if it's because im a little older (a whopping 28) or a realist, but this scary, unknown journey im on has been the best adventure i've ever embarked on. i can't wait to meet baby boy and watch my husband become a father. we literally can't wait.   bring it on baby!

Mom & Nic Visit!

It had been the longest we had gone without seeing each other, so when i put in the call to my mom a couple months ago that she needed to come visit, especially since im expecting, it was a no brainer! It seemed like forever from the booking of the flights, to their arrival, but as always, it was totally worth the wait!   As you saw in the last post, we surprised them both at the airport with balloons to tell them the sex of baby louis! And well if you didn't see that post, click here!!

We went to dinner and got settled back at the apartment before we all went to bed, it had been a long, exciting evening!   Friday, Mom, Nic and I were able to just spend the day together. I showed them the hospital where we'd be delivering the baby, and we had lunch at the Palo Alto Creamery, one of my faves!

We strolled around downtown Palo Alto and window shopped and grabbed a coffee. We also spotted Waldo! ha!   We then headed to Stanford University to see what campus had to offer. it was beautiful out and still needed to walk off that slice of apple pie!

 

 

 

 That evening we had a dinner planned with my cousin Veronica and her roommate Ari, Carmen and Jared, and of course me, CL, Mom and Nic. CL made reservations at Gravity and it was delish! It was so nice having an evening with everyone and getting the chance to catch up!

 

 

Nic had to leave early the next morning, so I really only got a day with him, but it was the best 24 hours ever! He's grown up to be such a talented musician and music producer and I can't wait 'til we can officially call him Uncle Nic!

Saturday we headed into the city to spend the day. We decided to take BART into the city, which for my mom was an adventure in and of itself! We started off at Ferry Building to wander the farmers market. It's seriously one of my favorite things to do on the weekends. CL even bought me the most delicious smelling bouquet of dried lavender. mmm!

 

we headed to china town for lunch, and we headed back to Nanking, and it was yummy as ever!

We walked Chinatown after lunch and perused the hundreds of shops. CL bought baby louis a knitted minion hat! its too cute! We also found out that baby louis will be born in the year of the horse, so he will be a strong, hard worker! We even stopped in the catholic church and lit a candle for Nic's flight (it was super delayed) and one for baby louis.

 

 

 

 

We headed back to the ferry building to grab a blue bottle coffee (or hot chocolate in my case) and rest a little before heading back home. we sat on the pier, had our drinks and tried the macaroons we purchased earlier that day. it was the perfect way to end the day.

 

 

we got home, exhausted, and relaxed for the rest of the evening before getting Mom her first In-and-Out burger! Her request! CL even got It's It ice cream sandwiches for dessert! Sunday we slept in, and headed to a early lunch before going shopping! I needed a few more 'maternity' shirts and another pair of jeans. I say maternity because im still rocking non-maternity shirts. Oh yeah.    as fast as the weekend came, it went even faster. by the time we got home it was already time to get Mom to the airport. I tried my best not to cry when we dropped her off, but of course, that lasted about 2 seconds! luckily i'll get to see her again over the holidays! it really was a fun, family weekend!

It's a.....

B O Y !

20 weeks! it's a boy!

Colby and I are so excited to welcome a baby boy in February! We found out about a month before saying anything to anyone- family included!

right after we found out!

as soon as the anatomy sonogram this was the first thing we saw, no joke! CL and i both were like 'looks like boy!!'

 We wanted to surprise my Mom and brother when they came to visit and I think it was definitely worth the wait! We surprised them at the airport when they arrived!

 

 

We also sent my Dad and Grandparents a little surprise in the mail since they couldn't be there too! They both got (hot pink) envelopes with a 'hooray!' card with this inside!

 My mom got a card too, but i forgot to take a photo of it.. womp womp. there was blue 'its a boy!' confetti in it along with a couple of sonogram pictures of baby boy!

I was able to talk to both my Dad and Grandparents as they opened their cards and learned the sex of the baby. They were both equally surprised! All the kids in our family have girls first, so the new generation is starting off with a boy!
I got to share the news with my bestie Carmen and cousin Veronica over that weekend as well! Carmen thought it was a boy but hoped for a girl and Veronica was certain it was a girl! They were shocked as well! We all went to dinner (Carmen & Jared, Mom & Nic, Veronica & Ari, and Me  &Colby!) to celebrate and spend some quality time together!

Everyone else got a text with this photo! We also posted it to instagram and facebook so that once the A team found out, the rest of our friends and family would know too!

We could not be more excited to meet our little man! and I don't care what people say, baby boy/ little boy stuff is totally adorable! We will definitely have the most stylish hip baby boy in the south bay!
oh and Molly & Bailey are super excited to have a little brother as well!

 

PS im currently 26, almost 27 weeks, so this was no lie a long time waiting!

The Epic Jones Visit!

Before we left Austin, we knew that there were certain friends that would have to come visit. We really had just started hanging out a lot and it was so sad to leave them! So when the stars, or football schedules aligned and the Houston Texans were scheduled to play the San Francisco 49ers in San Francisco, Bryan and Courtney planned an extended weekend trip to come visit us, see the city, and of course go to the game! Colby picked them up from the airport on Thursday night and I met them at Gott's Roadside in Palo Alto. It was SO good to see our friends, and even better to see friendly faces! Bryan and Courtney are seriously the nicest people and really great friends and we really missed seeing them! We took them on a short tour of Palo Alto, and finally got a Cream ice cream sandwich. Y'all. A build your own ice cream sandwich made with fresh baked cookies of your choice and your choice of ice cream. SO worth the line!

i had a 1/2 sandwich with a turtle cookie and cookies and cream ice cream! a pregos dream!

They stayed with us on Thursday night which was fun. We came home had a drink (non-alcoholic for me, duh) and went to bed!  They spent Friday exploring the city along as CL and I both had work. We are pretty sure they had a fun day walking all over the city. literally, they walked all day! Saturday we had plans to pick them up and head to Napa for the day! We started off at Mumm for bubbles like always! It was a beautiful day and being outside drinking was just what we all needed. 

 

 

non-alcoholic pinot noir juice for the prego!

 

 

 

We headed to Auberge du Soleil for lunch-- it's seriously one of our favorites. The view is spectacular and the food is good. And it makes you feel fancy, so thats always a plus. haha.

After lunch we headed to Robert Sinskey for a tasting. It wasn't as fun as the last time, but then again, im not drinking, so I dont get an opinion! The wine was, from what im told, was still as good! We had an hour or so left before all the wineries closed, so we made the executive decision to make it to one last winery before we called it a day. We headed to Trefethen Family Winery and yall it was the best google find in a while. The staff was awesome and from what eveyone said, the wine was great! It was also good for some vineyard photos and grapes. (They were actually pretty good and served as a delicious snack! hah!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had planned on dinner in the city and headed to House of Nanking in china town, but not before a sunset trip to the beach for some pics!  

 

 

 I hadn't been to Nanking in years, but knew it was good, and 8 years later if it's still in business and has good yelp reviews, it has to be good! and it was! 

 

 

Sunday was game day. We had such high expectations for the Texans. We all arrived  (late to the stadium) and found our amazing seats. While the game stunk (the Texans lost 34-3) we all had a great time!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The weekend seemed to go by SO fast, but it was SO much fun! We are really blessed to have such awesome friends that will fly 1000s of miles to come visit us! We love you Jones'!!