86 Days Until We Meet You

Charlie's favorite book to read as a child                                   Katie's favorite book to read as a child

As children my sister and I loved scary movies. We watched all of them, probably much younger than kids were allowed. We also enjoyed all of the movies with Superheros and the classic, original monsters. 

Our father being an English Teacher had such a creative mind. Though we enjoyed the movies we of course would still be a little scared to sleep some nights. Instead of opening a book and reading page to page to us, my sister and I would hop onto one of the beds and my dad would begin telling a story off the top of his head. They always included a scary character like Freddy Krueger (as an example)... and then Batman would join the story and put Freddy in prison. Sometimes, the scary characters would end up turning good and befriending Superman or the Beast from the TV Series Beauty and the Beast. Each night he would tell us stories, the characters were new and the story lines were so exciting and suspenseful.   

We would still read books of course. We had many, many books in our house, especially the  entire collection of '..Little Golden Books' which were always our favorites. Once I could truly read and my little speech setback was corrected in which I could pronounce all of the letters in the alphabet I really enjoyed making up voices. I did it mainly to make my sister laugh as well my parents and friends. I liked to pick out books to read that had a lot of conversation going back and forth between the characters.  

Charlie and I decided to each search for a book that we loved as children. Amazon is an amazing thing! I of course loved Katie the Kitten because my name was printed on every page. Charlie was a big fan of Grover and as we went through the books together we attempted to talk in the Grover voice. We cracked up and couldn't get through an entire page reading in his voice. I look forward to reading these stories with Autumn and having her discover someday her favorite book she loved as a child.

#86: Sharing stories together as a family each day and talking in silly voices.

96 Days Until We Meet You

 

This is my last week before entering the 3rd and Final Trimester of my pregnancy. I was looking back at all of the events that occurred beginning in the 1st Trimester and thought I would list some of those to have written down in case my memory slips someday.

1st Trimester:

• Seeing our first positive on the pregnancy test before even hitting 4 weeks. Then taking a gazillion (yes... a gazillion) more just to make sure that positive did not change to a negative. 
• At 5 weeks when we felt confident of the pregnancy, Charlie and I took a day trip together to celebrate as we walked around Gillette Castle and grabbed lunch. It went in the book as one of the happiest days of our lives.
• Sharing the news with our parents and siblings. It was so hard keeping that from everyone as we wanted everyone together to announce at once. The excitement, tears and hugs were priceless.
• Going up to Boston to spend a weekend with 2 of our Best Friends. 
• Finding out that one of my best friends & cousin's are also due with their first babies.
• The first Doctor's Appointment which was very upsetting.
• The second Doctor's Appointment which followed 5 days later in which everything turned out to be better than we expected. 
• Being handed our first ultrasound photo.
• Ordering a Fetal Doppler Monitor  to hear the heartbeat at home. 
• Receiving the Monitor in the mail only after 3 days and after 20 minutes of listening to what ended up being my heartbeat.. we heard our baby.
• Two of my very best friends giving birth to their second babies! 
• Planning and prepping for my sister's Bridal Shower.
• Our official Announcement at 10 Weeks that we are expecting our Little Miracle in November. You Can watch our video "Here". 
• Dinner & Lunch Dates with all my wonderful friends, catching up and enjoying each other's company.

2nd Trimester:

• Finally feeling safe enough to get my hair done and hide all the dark roots that were taking over my head.
• Celebrating my Sister's Bridal Shower on a day with perfect weather!
• Finding out the Gender of the baby.
• Uncertain of the gender of the baby.
• Going back to confirm the gender of the baby and it was different than the first time.
• Confirmation that we are having a GIRL as the umbilical cord decided to move out of the way.
• Going away for a long weekend with Charlie to Lake Winnipesaukee where I finally was getting my appetite back and ate everything in site. We took a train ride and then drove ourselves around the entire lake. 
• Celebrating Charlie's 34th Birthday at a Max Burger. 
• Bought Charlie some gifts for Father's Day from myself and little Autumn. One being a book that had a list of all the amazing Kid Friendly places to hike in CT. Right up his alley!
• My sister's BIG DAY arrived. A wedding that was truly beautiful, memorable and perfect!
• Being a part of my nephew Parker's "Blessing Ceremony".
• Completing the Anatomy Screening of our little girl to find out she had a small Choroid Plexus Cyst in her brain. We were told it was nothing to worry about and would go away in the early 30 weeks of pregnancy. Of course.. we worried.
• A jam packed 4th of July Weekend where I discovered the pain I was constantly having was from my Gall Bladder.
• A follow up screening to confirm little Autumn had no heart defects (which she doesn't) and a surprise to find out that the cyst had went away prior to 30 weeks. 
• Another hair appointment to banish the roots as those amazing Prenatal Vitamins sure made my hair grow!
• Off to vacation we went to celebrate our last time as a couple. 

#96: A favorite past time as a family will be going to the store to buy a loaf of bread 

and sit at Mill Pond Park while we break away little pieces to feed the ducks.

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97 Days Until We Meet You

It's amazing how quickly life changes from being a "couple" to "soon to be parents". I feel that since the moment we saw our positives on the many pregnancy tests we have been in full speed to planning and preparing for her arrival. Our weeknights have not entirely changed except for the occasional drinks we would have with friends which I truly miss. Oh and I sure do miss wine as well. Our weekends seemed to be much more busier than ever before. We occasionally would attempt to sleep in late on a Saturday and Sunday but I blame my early wake ups to start fresh at the task that's on my mind that day.

I look back at the photos of Charlie and I throughout our 13 years together and they have always been so complete in my eyes. The photos were of only us and that's all there was for those years. 

Here begins our new chapter. I know besides the bump protruding from my unbuttoned, unzipped, tight pants the last 6 months.. our little girl isn't seen in the photos. I don't consider her missing as I know she's there, but what I've been doing is keeping photos of Charlie and I so that someday we will retake them in the exact location. She will be filling in that empty space beside us with that huge smile, pig tails and cute polka dotted dress which I picture all of the time when I close my eyes. Our family of 3 + our little fur babies of course!

#97: Making hand prints in stone together as a family. 

98 Days Until We Meet You

Today is the celebration of 26 weeks in which Autumn has been growing in there. That's 14 weeks out of 40 weeks (give or take) that we have left until she greets all of us with her beautiful little smile. 

I have to say that this journey has been quite unpredictable no matter what everyone who has been through this experience has told us and prepared us for. I've learned that though the "process" is similar, everyone has a different experience in pregnancy. 

For starters this little Peanut of ours couldn't make up her mind when it came to food for the first 16 weeks and I spent the majority of my day with my head in the toilet... so so very attractive. 

She even gave us quite the scare at 7 weeks in the very beginning that left Charlie and I very distraught for 5 days. They were by far the longest and heartbreaking 5 days of our lives in which we distanced ourselves from everyone around us. It was very emotional when we had learned that everything was going to be okay. 

It's been smooth sailing since then!

I can't wait to tell her someday about the times she was sleeping inside and I didn't feel movement for hours so of course I would shake my tummy a little to wake her up. If life was like the movie "Look Who's Talking" I'm sure she would be yelling at me in that Bruce Willis accent.   

I want to share with her the videos I've taken of my stomach along with the earlier videos of her heartbeat on the fetal doppler monitor. The mornings I lay in bed beside Charlie while we watch my stomach move from side to side like a seesaw. The day we watched her kicking exactly where my tattoo is and then we saw what was a foot, hand or elbow completely glide all the way up the side of my stomach like a groundhog on the hunt.  Her consistently tiny hiccup bumps. When my stomach stays in a lopsided form for hours at a time. 

It's all pretty incredible and I miss it already thinking about this experience.

#98: The first time you write your name in the sand.   

99 Days Until We Meet You

 

One year ago we were exactly where we are today. On vacation and completely relaxing as we were 10 days away from our Wedding Day. I remember the excitement as I had no stress and knew everything would work out. I honestly can say that in this moment I feel the same way as we will be going from just "Charlie and I" to our little family. 

August 29th marks 13 years of Charlie and I being together. 13 years of pretty incredible, fun, challenging, sad, happy and unpredictable memories. It has been just the two of us that we have shared all of our love with. I love him even more everyday, as each second passes and now as Autumn continues to grow inside of me.. I can feel myself creating even more love that we will share with her. 

I've been "people watching" on the beach each day and of course I immediately am drawn to the little babies wobbling around as they are trying to keep their balance walking in the sand. The little bonnets protecting their hairless heads from the sun and the adorable floaties they are tipping over in as their parents make sure they're ready to go into the water. The sunglasses falling down on their faces and the bulge from the diapers underneath their bathing suits. It doesn't get any cuter than that. 

#99: Your first beach photo rocking some sweet sunglasses. 

100 Days Until We Meet You

Dress: Pink Blush Maternity

It has been a very long year for my husband and I. When I say long I mean that in the most positive way. Last November I went in for surgery which you can read about 'here'. From that day forward ours lives have changed in such an incredible way that for almost 10 years we never imagined it could have.

In 100 days we will meet our daughter, Autumn Lily. I'll be starting my 3rd trimester a week from Friday and I still cannot believe how blessed we are. Being able to welcome her into our lives is a true miracle for us. Without my surgery last November I was unable to conceive. She will be born exactly a year (her choosing of the exact day of course) from when I had the surgery to make this all possible. 

We are so in love already, head over heels.. in love! With every little kick, her endless dance moves as the noise outside of my stomach gets louder and louder. When she decides that transverse position is way more comfortable (for her). The times you like to bounce on my bladder. She's already apart of us and has my heart along with her father's. 

This week is our yearly family vacation at Old Orchard Beach, ME. I've spent each day not thinking about what we can no longer do on vacation anymore as we will have a child in 3 months, but instead, all of the wonderful adventures we can share with Autumn next time we come back to Maine. 

#100: Next Summer we will dip your feet into the chilly ocean unless you step into it yourself. 

Missing Spring.

I am unsure if it's because Charlie and I are both sick while being stuck inside on a sunny day. Or perhaps, it's the mud in our yard that is accumulating as the snow begins to melt. Maybe, it's because I was putting clothes away and saw a few pairs of shorts. I miss Spring. I miss putting on a pair of capris, a tee and jumping in the car with Charlie with no particular place to go. I miss opening the sunroof and feeling warmth hit my neck from the sunbeams creeping into my car. 

I miss jumping from rock to rock across a River and feeling the spray of the chilled water hitting my leg as some of the waves collapse against the rocks. 

When Spring arrives I know that I will miss Winter.

We Heart Sand Dollars!

Our last day on vacation. Which explains the lack of posts (my true apologies). I've had so much time to relax and clear my mind this past week. It's been beautiful and life changing. I have some great ideas for this blog that once I'm home, settled, I will then share with everyone! There will be new photos added soon to my Etsy Shop from Maine. They are so peaceful ♥

One of my favorite times in Maine are waking up with Charlie and head down to the beach before the sun comes up. It's a great feel to walk along the beach while less than a handful of other people area out. The anticipation of the sun rising and what colours it'll reflect along the water its a feeling I've had time and time again. We also search for sand dollars. We never find a lot which means it's always one each, haha. I know other people who find close to 100 each year the come. We are just not that lucky.

 

Yeah, We All Shine On..

 

 

We can only learn to love by loving..

We learn from others, we learn from ourselves. It's always after events in our lives happen where it helps us to open our eyes and appreciate what is around us. My purpose here, with my blog is to try and do that prior to something occurring. I hope that what I write makes a difference ♥

The story behind this photo is the woman on the far left in the green shirt. As we're walking towards the water to take our own photos we noticed she was removing from a plastic bag beautiful rocks and what looked to be colours of seaglass. She was placing them upright in the sand and kneeling to take photos. Our little nephew asked her what she was doing. She explained that she was taking photos for her good friend to send to her. How beautiful. How simple. What a lovely gesture. ♥

A little 'hello' from Maine from me to you! ♥

Traditions

Traditions.. we all have them. Perhaps, they're not quite consistent but I'm sure there's something that occurs in your life more than once and with the same people? My tradition is our vacation in Maine. It's our 21st year going to Old Orchard Beach. We've stayed in the same.. one of two cottages each year. We love it.. I love it. I feel at peace when I'm there, especially with my family.

Things have changed over the years. The town has 'upgraded' so to speak. Making additions, renovations, adding condos, souping the place up for tourists, removing some cute shops. With all of these changes though, it's like an old friend that will always be there and you're eyes open wide and you approach with the biggest smile on your face.. and of course.. open arms!

This view gives me goosebumps every year. It may not seem like much, but see the ocean in the background? Driving down what I call 'the hill' immediately removes any stress, aches and worries from my body. I feel it's like a mat at the front door. 'Leave your shoes here before walking in'. Well, Maine is like that. So here is my view, what I crave all year long...

We headed on down to The Pier tonight and I enjoyed a fairly new tradition. Last year my father, Charlie and I gathered for some yummy alcoholic beverages on The Pier. I had what they called 'Pier Punch'. I prayed it still existed. Well, it does and I got 2 free cups out of it! See for yourself..

Last but not least before I call it a night. Walking home I was paying close attention to all of the cute signatures in the sidewalks. You know.. when they lay out the cement and hoodlums (just kidding) decide to draw the  date, handprints or their name in the sidewalk? I truly adore the 'hoodlum' who chose to write this.. Out of all the sidewalks in the world.. I happened to walk on yours! I thank you from the bottom of my heart ♥

 

Summertime Secrets!

I bet my title caught your attention? Okay... I have a little secret I wanted to share. It's not anything to write home to mama about.. or is it?! I feel things that make us feel good about ourselves, should be shared amongst each other. Especially, us women! It's not a 'ooooooh that's a gooood secret'. It's more of, 'oh! I want to try that'. I know.. the suspense must be killing you!

I'll be turning 27 in a month (that's not the secret). My age is important in this short little story. You need to understand how long it's been since I was in High School. It's been almost 10 yrs. I was active, playing tennis, running, working at summer camps and doing a lot of outdoor activities. My body got A LOT of sun! Which was wonderful (if you're reading this out loud make sure to emphasize on wonderful in a high pitched voice). I was tan all the time and loved it. My freckles were constantly standing out on my face, arms and legs. After High School ended so did that 'Active little KT'. I found myself, pale and when my body touched the sun... Ouch! Sunburnt everywhere! That's the Irish in me. It seems the French in me was stronger at a younger age.

Long story short I got so badly burnt last summer that I decided to tan for a few months this year in the spring so my body wasn't in shock when it saw sun. It actually helped, but I do not necessarily recommend tanning. So that came and went. My tan started to fade and then I didn't want to go back and pay money. It seems I never have or could find the time to just lay out on my back deck.

I contemplated a few ideas. One being Airbrush Tanning which I've done 2x in my life and loved it. But then I whined to myself.. 'Eh... Ill have to keep going back.. it costs too much money.." You know, excuses? Then I had to take a trip to my favorite cosmetic store, Sephora! One of my true loves!

While I was there refilling my beauty supplies I asked the lady if she had a really good self tanner. What does she point me to, but the products [St. Tropez] they used for the Airbrush Tanning I've done before. My jaw dropped, literally. I was so excited and immediately bought the products. I've gotten so many compliments on my lovely tan ever since. It smells great and there's no going back for me. I'm satisfied with my faux tan and my body likes me too! ♥

It's as easy opening a bag of chips!

Step One: Exfoliate your skin like whoa!
Step Two: Put the Mitt on your dominant hand! If you're unsure, pretend you are going to wax a car.. which hand would you choose?
Step Three: Depending which product you buy (I got the foam and highly recommend it) you add some directly to the Mitt and just rub into your skin until you don't see any lines.
Step Four: Wait a few hours before putting clothes on. I normally do this at night, wearing a strapless top so I don't get lines on my shoulders. Then I'll rinse off in the morning.

If you have any questions feel free to leave a comment or e-mail me (LoveWithKatie@gmail.com)!

Watermelon, anyone?

Hello to all of you beautiful friends! There's a tornado watch in effect until 8:00pm this evening. It's pretty humid outside and little rumbling here and there. I'm praying that there is no damaging weather here and for everyone else in New England.

Charlie and I just signed up for Netflix recently, and I cannot believe we never had this before. It's a whole new world for me. All the movies I've wanted to see but haven't had a chance to are on there. Today, I'm watching Grown Ups. I have seen that one before as I'm a huge Adam Sandler fan. Watching is the second time around I pay closer attention to all of the details outside of the comedy.

One of the things they mentioned in the movie was how all of their kids were inside when it was beautiful outside. They went into how as children they were always outside as far as they can remember. I think about this all of the time. I remember coming home from school everyday and hopping on my bike meeting up with friends in the neighborhood. If we weren't on bikes, we were rollerblading, playing tag, having water fights, kick the can, kickball, catching frogs, etc. etc.

So as adults we are sometimes limited. There aren't enough adults in the neighborhood to play kickball :) But there is plenty of things we can still do outside at our own homes. Here are a few ideas I thought of that I'm going to take advantage of this summer ♥

♥Grab a blanket, a basket or one of those 'Go Green' bags that I know everyone has at least 1 one of from a grocery store, pack some yummy foods and perhaps sneak in a bottle of wine with a few glasses or dixy cups. Find a perfect spot in your front or back yard where you have some shade or sun if you wish. Bring a camera too! Relax and enjoy the beauty around you.

♥Do something a little similar but when the sun goes down. On a clear night, enjoy the the stars! Grab a blanket and you'll need some bug spray! Find a lantern and just take in the night sky.

♥Do you have a basketball hoop? Grab some chalk and put all the markings on the ground for 'Around the World' or if you don't have chalk grab a white rock. That will work too and it washes away. Or you can play the old school H-O-R-S-E. Simple and quick. If you have kids you can play using their names instead.

♥If you don't have a badminton net, it's time to shimmy on down to the store and buy one! You only need 2 people to play and if you have the kiddos split up the teams. It's fun and also is great exercise!

♥Do some crafts outside. You can grab some white paper from your printer, markers, sharpies, crayons, etc. If you have some paint that's even better. Then you can find leaves around your yard and take pieces of grass to dip in the paint and make pretty prints that you can frame and hang up!

So there's a few ideas! If you have some please share :)