Pregnancy Progression: The Third Trimester

Happy Friday everyone!

Well - I am officially 39 weeks pregnant. We are in the final countdown (cue music) to finally meet and greet this little girl face to face. 

<One of our maternity photos courtesy of the great Caroline Jurgensen>

In a way it feels like I've been pregnant for eternity, and in the same respect I still don't think it has fully hit me. Since it's one of those things we have constantly talked about and prepared for over the past nine months, it feels like it's been such a long time coming. But from an emotional perspective? It still is so surreal to me. Probably because I have no idea what to expect, nor the magnitude at which this whole motherhood thing will rock my world :)

Jeff is beyond ready for baby snuggles. And while I'm ready for copious amounts of snuggles myself, I still have this big scary painful thing called labor in between now and then so I'm kind of just bee-bopping around and hangin' tight. Plus, like my sister reminded us, once she's out - you can't put her back in!

Since I'm a bit of a ticking time bomb at the moment, I figured now is as good of a time as any to recap my thoughts on the third trimester. 

See my first trimester recap here and my second trimester recap here.

I'll be honest: when we kicked off the third trimester, I thought it was going to be plum awful. I had HORRIBLE sciatica/SI joint pain in my back and it was getting worse by the day. Some days it was so bad I couldn't put weight down on my right leg, and I was basically bed-ridden until the inflammation went down.

PS I think this is when Jeff's prayer that I wouldn't have to go on bed rest began. If you know me at all, you know I don't sit well. So I'm basically the worst patient ever on bed rest. To all you mamas out there who had to go on actual bed rest with your nuggets - bless your sweet and precious soul. To any future mamas out there who have to get put on bed rest - call me, I'll come play monopoly with you.

Anywho - so I thought the third trimester was going to be horrible, but then I went to three physical therapy sessions (shout out to Airrosti!) and have had zero troubles since. In fact, the third trimester overall has been pretty pleasant. 

The good news: I've had minimal eye bleeding situations in the third trimester. So either it's from all your prayers or the fact that 'they' say most of your blood volume increase happens in the second trimester, so I've kind of chilled out in the third trimester. Or we can say both :)

At 31 weeks, my friends threw me the most amazing shower in honor of sweet Sadie girl. It was just one of the greatest days ever. I gushed on and on about it here in case you missed it. After the shower it was looooots of nursery organizing. I think I've organized and re-organized that nursery 4 times. And I probably will again once she's here and I figure out how the heck to care for a child!

I went on maternity leave at the beginning of November, but towards those last few weeks of work I was getting pretty uncomfortable. Once I stopped working I felt a lot better, so I think it was just the act of sitting all day that made me feel like I was 87 years old each time I stood up. Plus that whole getting ready each day thing got harder and harder. I would wake up with SO much energy, and by the time I got ready and made the commute to work I would be in dire need of a nap.

Speaking of sleep - I slept like a champion up until about 37-38 weeks. As in if preggo sleep was an Olympic sport, I would have for sure contributed to the US medal count. And I know that's a lot longer than most mamas get, so I'll take it! Now I'll have one 8-10 hour stretch every few days, but on the off days I'm up for 3-4 hours in the middle of the night. Just chillin. And usually watching Hallmark.

I was pretty uncomfortable when week 37 rolled around. I remember I texted my friends and said 'okay, week 37 - this isn't fun anymore.' But honestly, that lasted for about a week and now I feel really good. Like oddly good. My lightning crotch finally eased up (to all you men out there - it's an actual thing. And it is basically what makes preggo women waddle) after two months, so I'm really just hanging out at this point. 

My wedding rings are a little tighter than usual, but other than that I've had minimal swelling. I'm telling y'all - I thought the third trimester was going to be brutal, but I've actually enjoyed it for the most part. Or maybe I just have an extremely positive outlook on things and have blocked out all the negative things now that I can see the light at the end of the tunnel :)

In the delivery department, my body has already started to make progress on its own, which I am super thankful and happy about! We still have a ways to go, and a plan in place in case I don't get there on my own, but for now we're just praying that I keep making progress. 

It was funny, the other day I was praying about all things delivery and since there are SO many different ways this delivery thing could go, I realized I had reached 'prayer scenario F ' before deciding to just let go and let God. 

The hardest part is not knowing. Not knowing when, not knowing how, not knowing what, if any, complications will arise, and not having been through this before to have ANY expectations in the slightest. But God knows. And fortunately for me, the One that knows is also the One that's in control. That's a win win in my book. 

So until then I'm just keeping my days busy, nesting this house like it's my day job, resting up, and feeding Sadie as much Blue Bell as I can before she's out and can't have it anymore. (How sad for her is that!? Breaks my heart.)

If you're wondering how to pray for us over the next week or so, just pray that my body continues to make progress on its own and that it's a textbook delivery with no complications. It's so fun to hear how 'low risk' I am in all these appointments. That's all attributable to my little army. And while I know there are a LOT of mom fails ahead of me, bringing Sadie into a world where she has an automatic prayer battalion like y'all is one of the biggest mom wins I could ever have. 

We love y'all to pieces and can't wait to report back when she's here!

Until next time,

Katy 

Sadie's Shower: A Lil Pumpkin is On Her Way!

I seriously have the greatest friends in the world. 

Yesterday morning, Sadie and I were BLOWN AWAY by the most adorable shower. The decor and details were phenomenal, the people were the sweetest, the baby gifts overwhelming, and the overall sense of joy and love for this upcoming little bundle was SO beyond apparent. My cup over-floweth. Big time. 

Okay cool. I just started tearing up. Hi there, hormones.

The theme of the shower was 'a little pumpkin is on her way' - which if you know me at all, you know is all kinds of right up my alley. Give me all the pumpkins. 

I meeeeean, YES. She is such the little pumpkin!

Also, huge shout out to my hostesses - who not only made the cutest shower ever, but did so only a year after participating in all my wedding festivities. I guaranteed them that next fall there will be no life changing events happening on my account. GUARANTEED, I TELL YOU. 

Lauren - Kristie - Me - Melissa - Emily - Kelsey

When you walked in, you were greeted by the cutest little entry way table!

Like - there were even pink pumpkins in the basket-o-pumpkins under the table...

They also were brilliant and picked an invite that came with matching signs/banners. I will now be doing this for all future showers I throw. It just tied everything together so perfectly!

And yes - that's a baby scrapbook. Four months ago I over-committed to doing a baby SCRAPBOOK in lieu of a baby book that had prompts/blanks to fill in. I'm honestly having a lot of fun doing it, but it's so dang time consuming. I told Jeff the other day that it's really unfortunate only our firstborn will have a scrapbook like this :) 

Cute lil drink station!

Adorable mantle decor and nine million presents: this little one is so spoiled already! And I legitimately worked up a sweat opening these bad boys. SO beyond thankful.

The shower was at 10:30a so it coincided with brunch - which is my favorite meal of the day. The ladies put out quite a spread! We had mini chicken-n-waffles, egg casserole, potato casserole, sausage balls, fruit salad, pumpkin bread (my personal request!), and a DONUT HOLE TOWER. 

Like the donut hole tower just gives me great joy in life.

As do....

A platter of themed Sadie cookies! 

These are actually made by the same girl who did my gender reveal cookies and I can't recommend her enough. Her name is @tinykitchencakery on instagram and she is amazing! The onesie says "lil pumpkin" and the blocks say "FALLing in love with Sadie" - like, are you serious? Obsessed. 

And still nibbling on my obsession because they sent me home with my own box. They also sent me home with a plate of donut holes and a loaf of pumpkin bread. I can't wait to weigh in at my doctor's appointment on Tuesday.... :)

I also have to call out Kristie for texting me multiple times telling me to have low expectations for the flowers at this party, how she's not a flower person, yada yada yada... and then I get there and there's flowers sitting in pumpkin vases.

Yeah - OKAY. I don't even know how to gut a pumpkin much less use it for a vase. My interaction with pumpkin comes in the form of a can of puree that goes into a baked good. 

AND last, but not least, the DIAPER CAKE. 

My nursery is pink/white/gray/lamb themed, so Lauren and Emily outdid themselves with this little masterpiece. I know I'll need the diapers, but it makes me sad to disassemble! It's too pretty!

We mingled, we ate, we played a fun game, we wrote well wishes for Sadie, and we opened gifts. Aaaaand I know I've said this once already but this shindig put so much happy in my heart I'm still smiling about it! 

My sweet friend Megan was super smart and thoughtful and took pictures while I was opening gifts! I didn't get a picture with everyone but here's what I do have - I LOVE THESE PEOPLE SO MUCH!

The lineage of the Reeves women. Can't wait to add one more to the bunch!

My Baylor girls and one of our future Baylor bears. We can't wait for them all to be roommates :) 

My favorite niece and the best little cousin-in-training for Miss Sadie Kate!

My work besties!! We all started at the same firm 7 years ago, and even if we all quit and work at other companies, these three will always be my 'work besties.' Also, one went to OU and one married into a UT family and my shower was during OU/TX. So my work besties are pretty dedicated, too :)

I "married into" these ladies and I couldn't be happier (or luckier) to marry into such a fantastic group! These women and their men take great care of our little family!

My MIL and two of my AILs (aunts-in law...is that a thing?). One aunt flew in from Florida and the other flew in from Pennsylvania - just for this shower! Have I mentioned how loved Sadie and I feel?!

Because hooded towels are both practical AND fun. 

My "big sisters" - who both have zero willpower when it comes to buying for my child :) 

My BRH (Baylor Choir) besties - one of whom flew up from Houston for like 6 hours to attend this thing. GUYS. I HAVE THE BEST FRIENDS. 

My pretty cousin in law! We married into the Smith crew and are so glad we did! 

And last but not least - THIS WOMAN. Who is going to teach me everything I know about being a mama. Because she knows all the things. And it's quite shocking how little I know. It also has hit me recently that we're basically twins, so I'm curious to see if Sadie looks like us too. Key indicator: a smile that shows every single one of your teeth and all your gums. 

And if they hadn't outdone themselves already... they had another matching sign and pumpkin favors when everyone left the party. So. Stinking. Adorable.

Like - I know I sound like a broken record, but I am just so thankful for the people in my life. Not only for showering (ha!) us with love and goodies, but because I know how hard these people have been/are praying for the health of both myself and Sadie. These people are good people, and I don't know how I got so lucky to have them all in my life! 

Also - while the girls were taking care of me, all of Jeff's buddies got together to 'honor' him with a diaper shower. It's a little tradition among the men, and while you may think it's super sweet and thoughtful, don't be too fooled - it's also an excuse for them to get together and watch sports. :) 

BUT thanks to both showers yesterday, we officially have 1,430 diapers and 1,288 wipes. 

So... what? That should last us around a month? :) 

THANK YOU times TEN MILLION to everyone who had a part in making Jeff and I feel so special yesterday. I will be smiling from ear to ear for the remaining nine weeks! Well - and part of that smile is attributable to the fact that I also get to organize the poo out of my nursery now. Which seriously gives me great joy. Like, Monica Gellar joy. 

So I'm going to go do that. Right now. 

Until next time,

Katy

Pregnancy Progression: The Second Trimester

Alrighty - so I am a couple weeks into the third (and final!) leg of this pregnancy journey, so I thought I'd jot down my thoughts on what the second trimester was like. People told me that the middle trimester is definitely the best of the three - and I can already tell that's going to ring true for me, as well. 

The second trimester kicked off with our ice-cream themed Gender Reveal! We found out our little one was a little Miss, so mama here started seeing in shades of pink. What's comical is that the whole first trimester I told myself that if it was a girl, I wasn't doing pink. 

Yeah, I totally drank the pink kool-aid. Not to mention, if you don't drink the pink kool-aid, it will be extremely hard to find decor for your nursery. Society has come a long way on things like technology, women in the workplace, and hairstyles, but when it comes to nurseries...girls are still pink and boys are still blue.

Anywho - so naturally after the gender reveal was the naming process. Fun fact: our boy names are set. Jeff and I have discussed, we have two names (both first and middle!) lined up for any male offspring we produce. But we weren't quite as prepared for a girl. Years ago I had always said I wanted a Kennedy Kate, but when we found out we were pregnant (and therefore you're attaching a once theoretical name to a real live human), it didn't give me all the feels. I loved Kennedy Kate because I love alliteration, so I started to think of S names that would go with Smith. And alas, we ended up with little miss Sadie Smith. Step one: CHECK. 

Side note: in the interest of full disclosure, it really bothers me that Katy and Sadie rhyme. I feel like we're some sort of girl band. But alas, some things you just have to accept and move on.

So we were down to a middle name, had three to four options, and just couldn't decide. SO, I decided to ask all my friends and family their thoughts - and from this process I learned a very important lesson: don't ask all your friends and family their thoughts. 

The likelihood of everyone I love agreeing on the same name was slim to none, but for the people-pleaser in me it was really hard to choose a name that I knew some of the people close to me didn't prefer. We got out our letterboard, set it up in the kitchen (where we were frequently passing through), and then would change out her middle name every few days to see how they all "felt." Eventually, we kept changing out the middle name back to the same one. And that's how we ended up with Sadie Kathryn. Sweet girl will share a middle name (and the same initials!) with her mama. 

Let's see - what else? Morning sickness tapered off in the early weeks of the second trimester. Which is a good thing, because we did a LOT of traveling. Right after I hit 14 weeks, we went to New York, then two weeks later went to Myrtle Beach for a family reunion/vacation, and then two weeks later went to Mississippi for another family reunion. Not only were the vacations super fun and relaxing, but they also made the second trimester seem like it was flying by. If you remember, the first trimester felt like it was 836 weeks long - but I'm honestly a bit shocked I'm in the third trimester already.

Around 18 weeks, I started to feel Sadie move. At first it just felt like muscle spasms, and then one night I was falling asleep on my stomach and JOLTED out of bed. Jeff looked at me like I was insane. I started laughing (which in turn made me look more insane) and told him I had just been officially kicked. 

The next couple of weeks I was in shock with how much I felt her move, especially since it was considered pretty early to feel that kind of movement. She moved so frequently/fiercely that I actually was afraid she was in distress or something. My doctor assured me she was just an active little one, and my sweet friend Lauren told me it was just another constant reminder from the Lord that she was alive and well. Kind of like morning sickness - but much more pleasant :)

During the second trimester we also saw a high risk specialist a couple of times - but NOT for reasons such as cancer. I actually was considered a low risk pregnancy (I can't tell you how long it's been since I've been considered "low risk" for something!), until we told the doctor about Jeff's craniosynostosis. And no that's not the fun song in Mary Poppins. 

In short, craniosynostosis means Jeff was born without a soft spot. When he was six months old he had surgery to cut his head open (no exaggeration - he has a scar from ear to ear) and 'create' one. He was fortunate to have a mild case that could be fixed with one surgery, as our doctor told us most cases require 10-15 surgeries. Oh my mama heart. 

All that to say, Sadie's head looks perfect and round, and last week we were told we didn't need to continue high risk monitoring. So that's a definite praise! It was also nice to be able to get a few more sonograms than the average joe and see how she's growing. To reiterate my point on her mobility, in the sonogram last week, Sadie was literally swinging her legs back and forth - causing so much bumping that the doctor couldn't hold the device to my stomach. She kept kicking it off! He actually started laughing and said "wow, your kid is crazy."

Thanks, bro. 

Let's see - what else? I definitely went through a period of significant hunger and thirst (and the bathroom breaks - good LAWD those bathroom breaks). There was actually a week where I would wake up at 4 a.m. STARVING. Jeff woke up once and I was just sitting in bed eating crackers and watching TV. I said 'oh hey!' (thinking he might want to join me) and he just looked at me and rolled over. I guess some people just aren't up for a picnic in bed in the wee hours of the morning.. 

We also discovered the wonder that is the pregnancy pillow. One of us thinks it's the best pregnant invention ever. One of us is counting down the days until it is removed from our bed. 

I think one of the harder things of the second trimester was the significant body changes and body image aspect. And you can judge me all you want - but it's weird not being in control of your body. And if you've ever been pregnant, you know some WEIRD stuff happens to your body. Plus, the phrase "closet full of nothing to wear" has never been more true. I feel like I have about 7 good preggo outfits and I just rotate between them all. Not to mention, all my summer maternity dresses are getting a tad snug, so I'm really ready for some cooler temps where I can do the oversized sweater thing like a champ.

The only other big negative I had going on were the eye bleeds. What's that you ask? Ah, well, that's just a symptom most people don't have to deal with. Nose bleeds are actually pretty common in pregnancy: the dehydration, increased blood volume, and tiny blood vessels in your nose cause a lot of people to have frequent nose bleeds. So take all of that and apply it to my little left eye socket. It's been through a lot, and no longer produces as many tears as the average eye should. So out of no where - it just bleeds. The best part? It doesn't hurt. So I often don't know unless someone tells me. That's fun. Meetings, dinners - all of it. People just look at me and say "ummm......" and I just nod and excuse myself. It's cool. I'm basically a walking Halloween exhibit. 

But in all seriousness - praying HARD that it all goes back to normal after she's born. Not sure I can deal with a bleeding eye for the rest of my life.

Okay, okay - moving on: 

We made a lot of nursery progress in the second trimester, but I still feel like we have a good way to go before she's here. And because Jeff likes to tell people this whenever I talk about the nursery, I guess I'll go ahead and share here as well: 

Our guest room (which is now our nursery) was initially a gray color. I wanted three gray walls and an accent wall (pink). So Jeff thought he only had to paint one wall, right? Hah. Men are so funny. The guest room gray was a little too 'taupey' to be a nursery gray. SO, he repainted three gray walls....gray. THEN I was between six (6) shades of pink for the accent wall. I finally picked one, Jeff painted the whole wall, and I hated it. So I picked a different pink and he repainted the pink wall....pink. 

Whenever people ask us if we painted the nursery, he is quick to chime in with "oh DID we paint the nursery...." Le sigh. Men are so dramatic. :)

I will say I feel the urgency to do a lot of "mom" things. Along with cleaning and organizing every inch of this house, I feel like I need to take a photography class and a cookie/cake decorating class. And a bow making class. I just feel like I really could sharpen up on some mom skills. Notice these skills have nothing to do with true parenting (I guess I'll wing that part), but I guess I feel like I really need to brush up on my June Cleaver. 

I think my very favorite thing about the second trimester is what I fondly call 'my mornings with Sadie.' I love waking up early - before anyone else in the house is awake - making me a cup of coffee, sitting down with my Bible/devotional, and just having some me time. But now during that time, I love the addition of feeling her wake up each morning. Something about just sitting on the couch, feeling her move, and praying over this little bundle has really sweetened those early mornings. Which is a good thing - cause I have a feeling I have quite a few early mornings with my girl up ahead :)

All in all, the second trimester was pretty nice! And I need to remember these niceties because, like clockwork, my third trimester was met with none other than heartburn and sciatica. 

10 weeks and counting :) 

Until next time,
Katy

Gender Reveal!

Hello there Monday. 

I don't know about you, but I really could use an extra day this weekend. It's not even that we had a crazy busy one, but I think all our travels (we've been out of town every two weeks since mid-June) are just plum catching up with me. Well, and I'm growing a tiny human. Me believes that also takes a toll... 

Anywho - I am SUPER excited to share about our gender reveal today! This actually took place almost two months ago, buuut I'm still playing catch up in the blogosphere. 

On June 10th, we had a good ole fashioned ice cream social honoring none other than...

Sweet Baby Smith :) 

I mean, at my wedding I rolled out Blue Bell in a wheel barrow, our pregnancy announcement incorporated Blue Bell - of course I was going to keep the theme going! 

<PS Jeff went out of town one week for work and I worked on that banner each night he was gone. Banners are fun to make but they are just not something you knock out in one night!>

Here's the deal: this party was super special to me for many reasons. One, I've wanted to host a gender reveal for YEARS. I love throwing parties, I love throwing themed parties, and I was so ready to dip my hands in all things pink and blue. But, most people host their own gender reveals, so I had to wait my turn. Secondly, my mom and I hosted this shindig together. She's the best party thrower I know and it was so fun (and memorable!) getting to do this with her. And finally, this was our first 'official' party we threw in our house after remodeling it from Jeff's bachelor pad into an adult home (ha!). SO - no pressure, right!? :) 

I was in love with our invites! I found them on Etsy and they were so easy and quick to have printed. 

To be honest, I threw this party for me. I wanted the party to be super simple in nature: friends/family show up, mingle and snack for a bit, do the reveal (eeks!), celebrate with ice cream - the end. I am fully aware that gender reveals have an element of silliness to them considering you're throwing a party for a reveal that takes 30 seconds. So I wanted a simple party. But I knew the decor would be far from simple. I was just too dang excited. Plus, the more decorations I made, the less I anticipated the results of the actual reveal :) 

But in all seriousness, I was looking into how to make a 7-ft ice cream cone completely from balloons. My mom talked me out of it some sense into me. But y'all - the festivity itch was intense. 

 Here was the entryway when guests walked in...

My mom bought these precious little collegiate lovies for the party (and subsequently the nursery), so we put a pink pacifier with the Baylor one and a blue paci wth the OU one. And now that I know the results of said gender, I'd like to say that the color coding was also foreshadowing of our kiddo's future :)

Our decked out little living room! 

So - funny story. I ordered forty balloons for this little get together. FORTY. I just feel like balloons really can make a statement - especially for a theme like this. And I knew Jeff would have told me I was crazy, so I didn't tell him how many I bought until day of when I said we needed two cars to go pick them up :) 

But sure enough, we walk into Party City to grab the balloon fleet, and a woman who is expecting is standing in the doorway. We hear her say "babe, it's perfect!" and look over to see her husband walking from the cashier with a balloon weight and two single balloons: one pink, one blue. 

I proceeded to get a dirty look from my other half... :)

But c'mon - how fun is this?! (In hindsight I actually think I could have used 10-15 more but I digress..) And because I got asked several times at the party - those are 24 inch balloons and I think they're some of the greatest inventions ever made. 

Mantle action...

And see the pink little carriage on top of the mantle? My Gee (mom's mom) who is no longer on this earth with us (but totally had the party gene, too!) brought that to my mom in the hospital when I was born. So it was a pretty special knick-knack to have in attendance!

Once people arrived, I forced nicely asked everyone to "choose their scoop" on what they thought Sweet Baby Smith would be. I wanted to see who was right and didn't trust the honor system :) 

Our voting corner:

I ordered this cute little wives' tale sign from Etsy to aid in people's voting. Plus I just was completely fascinated with wives' tales leading up to the reveal. Turns out I was pretty half/half! That is, of course, unless they were weighted indicators, because then the strength of that YES on the morning sickness line would have represented about 95% of the outcome. Sheesh.

While everyone arrived, voted, and I tried not to ask what time it was every other minute (I was a tad antsy!), we snacked on all things pink and blue. 

Being at 3:00p, we went simple with dips and sweets. Our spread included: 

Jalapeno Ranch Dip

Corn Dip (thanks Kristie!)

Spinach Artichoke Dip

Veggies & Ranch

Chocolate Covered Strawberries
Themed Cookies

Candy Melted Oreos

Trail Mix of popcorn, baby goldfish, honey roasted peanuts, and pink & blue M&Ms)

Y'all. Huge shout out to my favorite cookie lady here in the DFW area. LOOK at these precious cookies!

I meeeeean, they just don't get much cuter than this. And they were delicious. I love shortbread cookies. Not too sweet, but you can't stop at one. It's impossible. For me anyways. I intentionally ordered more than necessary and ate every last 'leftover.' Usually for breakfast. Because a shortbread cookie with my coffee made for a much better work day.

Her name is Megan and her company is Tiny Kitchen Cakery. Go check her out on instagram (@tinykitchencakery) and be seriously amazed at this girl's talent. 

Her ice cream cones make my dipped oreos look like amateur hour :) 

I took this picture because it makes me laugh. "Drizzling" chocolate on strawberries is stupid hard. My mom and I were cracking up as I attempted to make them all pretty. By the 6th strawberry my hand was aching and I was so over it. Bakeries must have machines do the drizzle. Or just really talented people - unlike yours truly :)

The trash - my mama's personal favorite :)

Oh - so this was comical. We had great plans for pink and blue beverages, and everything was working out well until we added pineapple juice to the blue punch. Cause then it turned green. Because blue and yellow make green and I apparently forgot the color wheel I learned in pre-K. 

Sigh. So close. Yet so far. 

Okay - that's enough food talk. At about 3:30 I had waited long enough - it was TIME. 

The final votes! Time to reveal!

My friend Emily was the "chosen one" (aka she immediately asked me the second she found out I was doing a reveal) to know the results. She ordered us two smoke cannons from Poof There It Is (the name gets me every time!) and was in charge of the reveal. And I must say, she kept that secret for two whole weeks! She said she took her job very seriously, and she meant it! She did tell her husband, but in true male fashion, he forgot about three and a half minutes after she told him. :)

I posted this on Facebook and Instagram, but in case you missed it (or want to watch again!) here is the whole video of the reveal:

SWEET BABY SMITH IS A GIRL!!!! 

But again. This happened two months ago. So y'all already knew that. 

I love that it smoked in the shape of a heart 💕

What's funny, is in the picture above, I was trying to twist my popper, so I never even saw the pink smoke that came out of Jeff's popper...

And then I was just sad that my popper didn't go off...

But THEN it registered that everyone was cheering, and I looked up and saw the faint disappearance of pink smoke and (clearly) was PUMPED!

The proud parents of a sweet little girl :)

After lots of cheering and rejoicing (and the faint distant sound of our bank account crashing), it was time to bust out the ice cream!

And yes we had six flavors. It can't be an ice cream social without choices! Plus since I'm super indecisive, buying six made my life much easier.

We had these little "ice cream sundaes" in pink and blue all around the house and on the outside tables. Super simple and SO cute and festive. Mom and I are champions at finding ideas on pinterest and then executing via materials we get from amazon prime. Tis a good life. 

Everyone grubbed on ice cream, mingled a tad more, and then picked up a party favor on their way out!

Cotton candy made to looks like ice cream cones :)

(I told you, I COMMIT to my themes!)

And yes - I joked about how this party was basically for children. Balloons galore (huge hit with the kiddos by the way), cookies, ice cream, and cotton candy. There were 10 kids at the party and they all went home with a slight (massive) sugar buzz.  

It was such a fun afternoon! Jeff and I were so excited - still are! In fact, we have quite the closet full of little girl clothes already and started painting the nursery this past weekend. We are well on our way to being wrapped around this little one's finger :)

And a HUGE thank you to everyone who took time out of their Sunday afternoon to come reveal and celebrate with us!

PS I'm super mad I didn't get a picture with my mom. We were too busy hosting and chatting (and then completely crashing after everyone left). Couldn't have done this without her though! And it made it about 20x more special being able to host this with her. Maybe my little girl will get the party throwing gene, too :) 

AND, just because they worked SO hard, I have to quickly share our yard transformation. Jeff and my parents (I'll admit, I didn't do much) all worked tirelessly for multiple weekends to get our yard looking good before the party. And they knocked it out of the park!

Like...this was a giant mud pit before they got started... 

Our rivalry trees :)

We have since joined the two with a big ole hammock so we can get in some good swingin' (and nappin') as a family of 3 (and two doggies)! Just need it to get out of the triple digit weather...

And finally, our front little alcove that leads up to our front door. 

WHEW! That was a long post with a lot of pictures. Kudos to you if you hung in there through them all! 

Have a wonderful week everyone!

Until next time,
Katy