Itzbeen
Itzbeen has to be by far the most useful gift we received upon Charlotte’s arrival. You keep track of when you last fed and changed you baby. It also keeps track of when they last slept and has a nifty fourth button that we used to keep track of when we last gave her medicine. Itzbeen has a nigh light feature so that you can locate it and the screen has a back light making it easy to read. It is a lot easier to hit a button than to try to recall at 3am when you last gave your baby medicine.
Fresh Sugar Honey Tinted Lip Treatment
A few years ago, I started using Fresh’s Sugar Lip Balm. It is expensive but I had tried just about everything to treat my chapped lips. I hate feeling like my lips are coated in vaseline or as though I dipped my lips in wax which is pretty much how every lip balm felt. This Christmas, my husband gave me a tube of Fresh’s Sugar Honey Tinted Lip Treatment. I love it! I still use my old Sugar Lip Balm, especially when I am just kicking around the house, but when I am going out, this is a great alternative to lipstick. It has a hint of color and moisturizes my chapped lips at the same time.
A Game of Thrones
These books were recommended by everyone and I never added them to my reading list because they are long and I wasn’t sure about reading another series. I noticed that a TV series was being made and I decided I should read the books before watching the show. My best friend lent me her copies a few weeks before the end of my pregnancy. I just finished the fourth book. They are amazing books! There is intrigue, war, love, and a cast of characters that you find yourself loving and hating. I highly recommend these books!
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Birth
One Month
Two Month
I can’t believe that Charlotte will be 3 months old next week! She is simply the best thing that has ever happened to Pete and me. She arrived on July 13, 2011 at 6:33pm. I am amazed that a year ago, we had just put a contract on our house and Pete had started his new job. I remember feeling so sad about our fertility treatment not working but I was determined to create a happy life for us in Virginia. We didn’t realize that we were already pregnant.  This year we face new struggles with our family but we find that we get through each day because we have each other and our Charlotte. She is a happy and engaging baby!
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I have had some fun on Etsy. I bought a lovely baby book from Ruby Love Designs and these three adorable headbands from Monday’s Child.
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You are not seeing things. That is an ultrasound of our baby. Pete and I are expecting a little girl this July! I am 23 weeks today and she is perfect. Many of you know that we stopped fertility treatment last July after our IVF with egg donor cycle failed. We had tried everything and we accepted that having our own child was not going to happen. We prayed that God would help us accept this and maybe we could look at adoption a year from now. Pete took the job in Northern Virginia and we bought a house. I had decided to go to graduate school and work part-time.  After settling into the new house, I wasn’t feeling well and I thought I had kidney problems. Pete was joking and told me I was pregnant. I dismissed him but then I thought about it and my period was really late. Two sticks later, we are making an appointment with an ob/gyn. Dr. Wolfe confirmed that we are pregnant and all I can say is miracles do happen. It has been two months since she gave us the good news and as of our ultrasound today Charlotte Grace is perfect and should be arriving around July 12th!
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January 17th, 2011 · Books
I have decided once again to try to read 100 books during the year. This means reading an average of eight and a half books each month. I managed to read fifty seven new books last year. Between the fertility treatment and relocating, books took a backseat in my life. I am not sure what will happen this year, but I plan to do it with a book in hand. I have already read five books this month:
Artist of the Beautiful by J.D. Landis
Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
Fall of Giants by Ken Follett
Fallen by Lauren Kate
Roses by Leila Meacham
I really enjoyed Fall of Giants and Roses. The other books were just not my cup of tea. As usual, if you have a recommendation for a good book, let me know!
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The last few days I have been reflecting on our life for the past year. We said goodbye to our cat Little One after 14 years of companionship. We made it through two failed IVF attempts and then came to the painful conclusion that having a baby was not going to happen for us. We decided to pick up and move back to Virginia. This allowed Pete to accept a new job and we bought a new home in the process. Through it all I found I never loved my husband more and I am blessed to have an amazing family and a group of friends that I can count on no matter what. There was a lot of pain in the last year but also a lot of love. I look forward to the New Year and I wish that everyone finds their way through the tough times of the year to see the good that helps us through those times. Happy New Year!
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I found Foodzie while looking for Bacon Jam which I had read about in an article about different foods made from bacon. I love the concept of people who love food finding great food all around the country and putting it into a simple website where I can look and order what appeals to me. I needed a Christmas gift for my husband’s grandfather and I found the perfect gift of roasted pistachios in a cool serving basket. It was easy to order the gift and most importantly it was shipped to me in time for Christmas. I have been thinking of signing up for their tasting box, which they will send a box of their favorite finds for the month. Kinda like wine of the month but with yummy food!
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I was looking around on Etsy today and I fell in love with this Giclee print by Christine Lindstrom. The print can by found in her Etsy shop Mai Autumn.
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The last few months have just been crazy. In August, Pete accepted a job offer in Northern Virginia. We have enjoyed living in New Jersey but we missed living in the land of sweet tea, country music, and 50 million places to buy Pho. He had to start the job in September, so he relocated to Virginia without me. Once again, our friend Scott adopted Pete during our separation and very nicely let Pete stay with him and his wife. I was alone in NJ with two crazy cats. They didn’t want to let me sleep and decided 3am was the perfect time to run a derby around the house. We took advantage of the housing market and bought a cute Cape Cod in Falls Church. I completed the move a week before Thanksgiving. Things are slowly coming together and I am getting some sleep.
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