Baby Update & Breastfeeding

This past weekend flew by. I can't even remember what we did. I remember going to church and that's about it. I went in to see the doctor today and I am happy to share that everything is going well with the baby. My blood pressure is still high (it stayed high through out my entire pregnancy with Savannah), but I passed all the screenings for pre eclampsia so no worries there. :-) 

I have reached that point in my pregnancy where they start administering the "non-stress" tests. The "non-stress" test is a test they give to monitor the baby's heart rate and movement. I'll be going in twice a week for my tests until I deliver. They'll plug me up to a machine and I'll just lye there for about thirty minutes to an hour. I did the same thing with Savannah. This let's me know that the end is near. I can not believe how fast this pregnancy is flying by. So crazy.

Which brings me back to thinking about breastfeeding preparation. I've been pulling out all of my old books and resources to give myself a refresher on how things go and best practices. Since I really want to try to increase my milk supply this time I've been focusing on learning more about how to achieve that. If it doesn't happen that's okay too. Savannah never had a supply of milk in the freezer but I would love to try to have a few bottles this time around so that my husband can help more. I was able to find a good one sheeter on increasing your milk supply on pinterest. 

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Fenugreek never worked for me while I was pregnant with Sav. This time I am going to try the infamous Mother's Milk tea and Raspberry Leaf tea. Raspberry Leaf tea was actually recommended to me by a lady at church. I am hoping that the teas and a healthy diet will be the key for me. Anyone have suggestions for me that really worked for you? Anything that I can start doing now (other than drinking lots of water)?

Maternity Style: My Nicole Richie Moment

While I was doing a little pinning on Pinterest I noticed that a pin of mine had been re-pinned that featured Nicole Richie's maternity style. I don't even remember pinning it but it's a cute outfit. Then I realized that I wore something very similar to her look just last weekend.

We attended a birthday party for our little cousin. I wasn't sure what to wear but I wanted to be comfortable and cute. Since it was pretty warm that day (and because it was a family) event I didn't over do it on my makeup and my hair was in a ponytail. Other than that I may have hit Nicole's outfit almost dead on. What do you think?

                                                                     Source: ivillage.com via The Chic Stay at Home Mom on Pinterest

Dress and Mesh Cardigan: Express
Leopard Flats: American Eagle, Payless

And here's a pic of what I looked like before I ate all those hot dogs and ran around after Savannah...

See. Very little makeup but at least my red lips were doing a little something!

Chic Obsessions: Pregnancy Survival Kit

It's a thunderstorm rainy day here in San Antonio. I for one am glad to see some rain and cooler temps. We went to dance this morning and then out to run a couple errands before coming home. Savannah's dance class will be dancing to a song from the Winnie the Pooh soundtrack. They will be dressed as little Piglets. That should be cute. Once we were home I tossed some chicken breasts, beer and BBQ sauce in the crock pot for dinner. Super easy and fast. We'll have pulled chicken sandwiches with roasted mustard potatoes. I saw the recipe on Mimi's blog,  Lipgloss and Binky, and thought I would try it. 

Anyway. I digress. Last night I was thinking about how fast this pregnancy has seemed to fly by. I have exactly twelve weeks left. So exciting. I thought this would be a nice time to share some of the products that I have used during this pregnancy to help with some of the common pregnancy issues. This post is not sponsored and I have not been compensated to share these products. I just wanted to share what works for me in the hope that it would work for you as well. We're girls, right? If I'd recommend it to my bestie I'd recommend it to you too! Here we go... 

Lemon Heads. A morning sickness lifesaver.

Remember how bad my morning sickness was? It lasted forever it seems.

Everyone's body responds to pregnancy differently. I know stretch marks are said to be hereditary and that there's nothing you can do about them. When I was pregnant with Savannah I thought I would try to beat my odds and lather up twice a day. I read somewhere that keeping your skin moisturized helps. I used the the Palmer's Cocoa Butter line during both pregnancies and loved it. So far no stretch marks, but I do notice that I'm getting cellulite so trust me I'm not getting off that easy. :-)

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Love this lotion by Neutrogena too.

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My skin went through a lot of different changes during this pregnancy. It went from being extremely dry to acne prone. My acne is finally starting to clear up again. I found two different skin care lines to treat my issues. During the dry stages I used the Burt's Bees Intense Hydration line and Mary Kay's Velocity line for my acne. They both have worked wonders. 

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This BB cream has an SPF and it provides a slight bit of coverage. It makes getting ready to go so much easier. A little BB cream, mascara and blush or bronzer and I am done!

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 I discovered the Be Band during my first pregnancy when my pants no longer buttoned. This was a great way to still wear some of my jeans before investing in maternity clothes. 

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Those are all of the items I could think of for now. I also thought it would be fun to share some of the meals I've eaten recently. I live for grits, eggs and bacon for breakfast. A yummy "kitchen sink" salad covered in Thousand Island dressing is always good and the last pic is of our Easter dinner, delicious!!

Mac n Cheese, Mustard Greens, Rice and Ribs

What"s in your pregnancy survival kit? 

Maternity Style: What I Wore

Happy Friday!! I quickly wanted to share what I wore to an event last weekend. I was asked to be a speaker at the event so I wanted to look stylish and pulled together. Nothing is easier to pull together than a LBD. Pregnant or not it looks good on everybody. I kept my accessories simple with gold hoops, my watch and a gold bangle.

I pulled the belt off of another dress and gave myself a little empire waist. The belt is black and white polka dots with a gold buckle. Love it.

To finish off my look I wore some nude platform heels. They were a gift from my husband and I love them. I can not wait to wear them more after the baby is born. 

Dress - Target (old)

Belt- Express (it came with a dress)

Shoes- Chinese Laundry

Bangle- Express

Watch- My everyday Michael Kors Chronograph timepiece.

Not too bad for someone a few days shy of being six months pregnant, right?

Pregnancy Update: Gender Reveal

Yesterday we had our "big" ultrasound. Everything went well and we are so excited to meet our newest little bundle. There aren't too many updates to gush about. I've gained five pounds and the baby is measuring perfectly (actually a little bigger) for where we are in the pregnancy.

Now for the gender reveal. I have to say that I am pretty excited to share that baby number two will be a very handsome little boy!! You couldn't tell my husband anything after our appointment yesterday. We are both over the moon with joy. Since everything we own is for a little girl I will be having a serious yard sale or several eBay auctions soon. I've saved everything Savannah has ever owned and some of it has to go to make room for the new baby's things. Not to mention it would also be nice to have a little extra cash to start getting both of them ready for the hot summer season here in Texas.

Does anyone know of a reliable second hand baby clothing website that works like eBay? Got any yard sale pricing tips? You know I'm open to hearing it all! Please keep my little family in your prayers as we become a family of four.