Hailey and Heirloom earrings

Ok, so that's probably an exaggeration. Heirloom implies worth a lot right? But what if it's worth a lot in sentimental value? That factors in too right? Anyway, I've had these earrings laying around forever. 

They are clip on, or rather, you screw them on (totally crazy and cool) and my Grandma gave them to me years ago. They are from one of my great great aunt's jewelry boxes. I have had the intention ever since she gave them to me, (I was seriously probably like 16), of taking them to a jeweler and having them made into actual earrings. They are s pretty and I thought they would be precious stud earrings. 

Well, I'm SO glad I didn't. 

She doesn't like being the center of attention and was being all goofy, self conscious and cute :)

They have found a new owner, and I think Hailey's Great Great Great Aunt would be pleased.

What I Wore Sunday

It's been a while since I've linked up with the ladies over at Fine Linen and Purple, and I figured, today, what the heck. 

I discovered this pregnancy that H&M has a maternity line. The clothes are SO comfortable. This dress was a staple piece I wanted this pregnancy and have loved it and worn it a ton. It is so stretchy and comfortable and has held up beautifully. And it was only like $15.

The wedge heel is from DSW. Again, just what I was looking for and they were on clearance. It might seem crazy that I would willingly wear a 2 and a half inch heel two weeks away from delivery, but they are actually more comfortable for me than flats. I have terrible arches, and my knees and hips are affected too. By wearing heels, my arches can't collapse inward so to speak and so my hips feel so much better! I love them. I felt like everyone in church though was looking at me like, "oh my word, what is she doing in those high heels!?!?"

Sometimes heels do equal comfort. At least in my world.

Sunday Best and WIWS

Linking up double time today for Sunday fashion with Fine Linen and Purple and Camp Patton! Ok, lets get the picture portion over with shall we....

I hate this bathroom. I hate taking pictures in this bathroom. But look at the 24 week old baby :)

this ensemble gets 5 stars for comfort. Love.

close up of I don't know what.

trying to get a pic with not yellowish green lighting....and nope.

Because you could't see them in the above pics...I'm kind of obsessed with my new wedges.

Wow, sorry about those awful pictures. I could tell you about my Mass experience solo with the kids, but let's just skip to their grades. (*groan*)

Hailey: C. Neither plus or minus, just C. She wanted to sit on my lap in the cry room the whole time. Why? I have no idea. Um, probably because Casey was teething and miserable and wanted to sit on my lap, therefore she had to as well. At one point I was trying to hold both of them (excuse me, all three of them, let's not forget little baby brother taking up more and more room on Mommy's lap), and it was all causing this mama to sweat intensely. Oh yeah, no AC, closed door in cry room, it's like 8 by 5 feet in size, eight people in there....stale air, I kept checking Casey because I swore I smelled a bomb....it was all sorts of bad.  She did ask, "I eat JeeJeesus too?" right before we went up for Communion and I kind of softened then. Maybe I should give the girl a C+.

Casey: B. Whined, cried, wanted to be held the whole time. But he's teething and looked at books nicely for 5 min.

Looking forward to next Sunday with Daddy! Home in time for Father's Day. Maybe I'll send him to Mass by himself with the kids to allow him to celebrate fatherhood. I'm kidding, I'm not that cruel, but boy am I counting down the days! 5 down, 4 to go. 

What I Wore Sunday

What a wonderful Sunday we had today. On the first Sunday of the month our parish has donuts and coffee in the parish hall. I was kinda really looking forward to it because I really wanted a chocolate hole donut. The kids had way too many and nap time ended up being a complete bust. There was lots of laughing and talking and jumping....and no sleeping. And of course it would be the afternoon I decided to do my new prenatal workout dvd and have to keep pausing it to go tuck them back in, scold and plead to go to sleep! In the end, I got through my work out (which felt great! I recently purchased Summer Sanders prenatal workout dvd, recommended by none other than that fabulous Grace of Camp Patton), and went upstairs to close my eyes for a few minutes, fingers crossed the kids would pass out already. I don't know how long I was peacefully dosing but I woke up to Hailey next to me shaking a change purse of quarters saying, "wook mama!" She then proceeded to turn off the white noise in the hall, turn on the hall light and take off down the stairs. I followed, turning the white noise back on for Casey (who had indeed fallen asleep), shut the light off and get downstairs to see, what it tuned out, she had been up to during my sweet slumber! Thankfully, it appeared to just be some puzzles. Anyway, we later got to go out for dinner with our chaplain and the team which was such a nice break from cooking. Then, per our Sunday evening tradition, we got Rita's custard and both kids were in bed, asleep at 7:30pm! Since they had already had too much sugar for the day, they actually didn't get any ice cream, such cruel parents I know. Casey didn't care, but Hailey let us know how mad she was. We told her she  had plenty of treats for today and she eventually got over it.

She is already so attached to her little sibling! It is the sweetest thing ever. She is constantly kissing and hugging my belly. 

Not the best photos, but they'll do. Counting down till we find out if this lil peanut if a boy or girl! May 16th is our ultrasound!

I hope to be around a little more blogging this week, but I may be hanging out over at Finding Great Joy, for Cynthia's Mother to Mother series on Disciplining! I'm really looking forward to hearing what other mama's have to say, Hailey and Casey give me new challenges every week!

Make sure you see what all the pretty girls on a Sunday are wearing. (Fun was in my head as I typed that.....)

ps: Happy wedding Emily! Congratulations!

What I Wore Sunday

It's been a while, but I'm back linking up this week with FLAP. And as an added bonus today, you get to see what my adorable son wore...

Someone gave us these gray skinny dress pants, seriously, they aren't jean, or cotton, they are like the same feel as a pair of adult khaki pants, only in gray. I thought I would hate them but they actually make him look quite trendy. Especially for being only 17 months of age. 

Definitely almost nap time.

And here's me.
18 Weeks today! And at the totally awkward stage where my regular clothes aren't quite fitting, but I'm swimming in maternity clothes. Putting outfits together is so annoying I've been in yoga pants every day, which although comfy, gets old. So it felt nice to dress up today for many reasons.

Overall, I didn't love it, and won't be wearing it again. I was complaining to Luke that I just look like I ate too much beer and pizza. His response, "I think you're just over-thinking it." He was right. I tried placing the skirt and belt up higher on my natural waistline but it was NOT flattering. 

Now the kiddos are sleeping and Luke is heading out to play golf with a student. He enjoys golf so much (played in college), I just hate how long it takes. 4 hours! I will be spending my Sunday relaxing, maybe doing some baking with the kids and perusing some of the other What I Wore Sunday posts. 

Hope you enjoy a restful Sunday as well! :)

What I Wore Sunday, vol 9

Linking up again with the women over at Fine Linen and Purple. It's been a couple weeks due to our travels, so it's fun to be back linking up again! 

Here's what I wore to Mass today:

Me: Luke, can you take my picture? Ugh, there is no where good to stand in this house. And there's toys everywhere.

Luke: This is our life, hun.

Yes, yes it is. I laughed, grabbed the closest shopping cart and he snapped the pic. 

Nothing very exciting around here today, the kids were just ok at Mass, I made french toast for brunch which was a welcome change of pace from our ritual of pancakes and eggs. 

Later tonight we topped off this fine Sunday with getting custard at Rita's. Oh so good. 

Hope you enjoyed a beautiful Sunday as well! 

What I Wore Sunday, vol8

Linking up again with the ladies at Fine Linen and Purple. I got to go to evening Mass by myself, which is sometimes a nice treat. Ok, who am I kidding. The opportunity is always a nice treat. I sit way up front, hear all the prayers, respond to all the prayers and am able to enter in much more fully. Our chaplain gave the homily and it was beautiful. At one point, he spread open his arms like Jesus on the cross and said, "When Jesus hung there for three hours, he knew each one of our names. He knew each one of our names." And Fr. just paused and held his arms there and kept the silence for a few more moments. It gave me goosebumps and needless to say, after that, when it was time for the Consecration and later for communion, my heart was beyond moved. I prefer to go to church in the morning on Sundays, but after our busy day at the circus (so much fun), it was the perfect way to end the day.

rocking my first pair of color pop skinny jeans

this necklace was a Christmas gift and this was the first time I wore it.

isn't she too much? 

Oh and is that what it looks like? That area in my middle section that my shirt is clinging to? Why yes, yes it is :) I didn't know if this would be the week I spill the beans finally on the blog, but after looking at the pictures, I thought it was too obvious. We are expecting! I'm 13 weeks along and we are so very excited. Please keep me and baby in your prayers!

What I Wore Sunday, vol 6

One of these weeks, I'm going to do a proper photo shoot. Enough is enough of this, my sincere apologies.

This weekend we went to vigil mass, which was kind of a nice change of pace. The whole weekend was great in that sense. The weather was gorgeous, so Saturday after the kids naps we went to the park, then went right to mass. The sunshine must have really gotten to our heads because we suddenly both had to have burgers for dinner. They were amazing. Luke grilled them perfectly. 

Anyway, the reason we went to vigil was because this morning we were heading over to Baltimore to meet up with some friends for lunch. Casey got to see his godmother and only behaved for the 10 minutes he spent eating french fries and then for the time he was outside running around, throwing rocks with Hailey. Afterwards, we stopped in at a kids thrift store, maybe you've heard of it since it's a chain, Once Upon a Child. I was mostly looking for a toddler bed for Hailey, but sadly they only had two, neither of which I liked. Instead, we came away with Easter outfits for the little rascals and a swim trunks/swim shirt set for Casey that I am in love with. It looks totally brand new and was only $7. 

I don't know about you, but the halfway point of Lent is always when the going seems to get a little more rough for me. I know it is good though, and I pray for the grace to not let the opportunities to grow in holiness slip by me everyday, but to make the most of them. St. Therese once said, "The Lord gives us 1000 opportunities a day to become saints!" 

Holding you in prayer these last few weeks of Lent! :) Now, go take a look at the other holy women at Fine Linen and Purple. 

What I Wore Sunday

This past week went by so fast, and I feel like we hardly did anything but you know how time still flies when you are busy feeding, cleaning, more feeding, more cleaning little ones!

This Sunday I pulled out an outfit I haven't worn in a while and remembered how much I love it.

Look at that girl - head back, knee bent, toes pointed. haha, I love it!

Mass was a little chaotic again, we hung out in the cry room the whole time. When I'm distracted the majority of the time by the kids, I try to grasp one thing (either from a reading, the homily or eucharistic prayers) to meditate on in the midst of meltdown city. Today it was Peter's trust. "But Lord, we have fished all night and caught nothing. But at your command I will lower the nets." It can be hard for me to trust when I don't know the outcome of something. Trusting in God requires Faith and so that was my meditation during Mass today, asking the Lord to increase my faith and seeking ways to surrender and trust Him more in several areas of my life.

We then had a good friend over for brunch, followed by lots of down time! 

Outfit stats for those curious:

Top: New York and Company

Skirt: New York and CO

Boots: Famous footwear (and yes I will probably keep wearing them very week till the weather gets nicer!)

Accessories unseen: pearl earrings and pearl bracelet

Hailey: dress from Target, leggings from Kohls.

Now head on over to Fine Linen and Purple and see some other beautiful daughters of God :)

What I Wore Sunday

Here we are again! Linking up at Fine Linen and Purple...

This outfit brought to you entirely courtesy of Old Navy. Well, the shoes are Target, but still, that like never happens. And I know I bought the pants and jean jacket on the same day, 5 yrs ago, but not the shirt. Are wide leg pants even in anymore? I'm starting to wonder. 

ps: I love that Casey was giving me kisses, and that's why he's blurry. And I love that the photo of my grandparents (huge life role models to me), and St. Gianna Molla are behind me. 

This necklace was my mom's and it's not an heirloom or anything, but I like it. And need to wear it more. This might have been the second time I've worn it, ever.

Today we went to 4pm Mass on campus, which was an added time today for the Superbowl. Since we are in Raven country, our chaplain was doing his best to accommodate. The kids were unusually good. We sat in a pew for 96% of Mass, and the other 4% was when Luke took Casey to the back for like 15min around communion time. Hardly a major interference. This never happens. We were also relatively on time for Mass. AND on the way out I met our neighbor! A sweet gal, who is a junior and lives a few doors down from us with a few other students and we had never met them. She was so sweet, we had such a nice chat, 

Anyway, then we headed over to the seminary for the game/party. Our goal was to leave at halftime and surprisingly the kids lasted! Casey would clap along with everyone else and Hailey kept asking "Barney? Why? (Super Why), ChooChoo (Thomas), King Cole?" Over and over and over again. I tried unsuccessfully to explain to her that it was everyone else's turn to watch football. Finally, I checked my phone to see how good my signal was inside (sometimes it's goofy on the mount) and I was able to open my netflix app and get Barney up and going. Her delight was off the charts. 

Hope you all had a lovely Sunday! Go check out more of the pretty ladies and get inspired by their modest Sunday attire! 

Rain, Rain, Come Again.

Aren't these boots adorable?

I love them! And yet, pretty much every time it rains, I forget to wear them! Who DOES that? Oh look, it's raining, I should probably wear my rain boots. And I love them. So how could I forget them. Today was one of these instances. It was pouring and I was leaving to take Casey to the doctor for what I thought might be an ear infection. (Turns out it was, poor baby...) To show you how ridiculous this is, I must show you this:

I keep them there on purpose. Know why? So I won't forget them. Right by my diaper bag, which I walked out the door with. One of my pet peeves is when my feet get wet in the rain. 

But here is why I forgot. I was holding my very feverish son, who was crying. I was trying to leave on time and was glancing at the clock noting that I should have left 5 min ago. As I was leaving, one of our teammates was walking in. I was throwing a coat over Casey's shoulders to keep him dry. Ultimately, I was thinking of Casey the entire time, and how I was hopeful for answers at our pending doctor's visit. And so, it was ok. Yes, it would have been nice. And dry. But he was more important. 

Would you believe though, that I came home after the doctor to drop him off to daddy before heading out to pick up his prescription and other errands, I still didn't think of it. That part is kind of irritating. Mostly because in the hour that I was gone I went to the post office, the library, the gas station, CVS, the grocery store, and pizza hut (momma still had to "make" dinner). It was a ton of errands in just an hour! And a lot of in and out, wetness. 

Next time.