thief and bandit

I am loving Thief and Bandit's clothing and jewelry line - the prints! the colors! - and I have been seeing the stuff pop up all over the place on fashion-loving bloggers recently. So I was really excited to find out that: 1) The mastermind behind Thief and Bandit, Annie Cunningham, works out of Richmond, VA! and her studio space is in Scott's Addition, which is totally our neighborhood. 2) She has a line for kids/babies! I'm already having visions of my baby rocking some of her prints.

Check out the rest of the lookbook for Summer 2012 here.

And Thief and Bandit KIDS!

You can check out her Etsy shop here and here.

it chooses you

If you are a fan of Miranda July's writing, or if you are one of those types of people who is interested in knowing what people are about, check out Miranda's book 'It Chooses You'. While she was working on the screenplay for her second movie, 'The Future', she procrastinated/sought inspiration by reading the Penny Saver (think old-school, paper-based, pre-computer version of craigslist) and then going on interviews with the people that she found in its pages. The book is a collection of interviews and reflections with people that she would never have met otherwise, and I kind of loved the selections from it that she read at a Symphony Space event. I listened to the readings on a Selected Shorts' podcast, but you can check it out here.

And here is the trailer for the movie, 'The Future', which as you can see, eventually got made:

source of images

18 weeks...

I think it’s almost time to say goodbye to pants and hello to stretchy skirts, leggings and dresses. I’m on the lookout for attractive maxi dresses, so if you see any, do let me know.

I’m supposed to feel the baby kick at any moment now, so I’ve been anticipating that and trying to distinguish the baby from other things that I feel in my stomach: stretching, gas, aches. So far, nothing that seems distinctively baby, so I’m still waiting.

In the meanwhile, my appetite now leans toward red meat and sweets. I still constantly want to eat fruit, but not so much vegetables, unfortunately. I think I’m going to have to starting drinking more V8 or juicing in order to get the vegetables in, because my appetite is feeling hostile to vegetables! I’m hoping this passes quickly because I usually love vegetables and want my baby to love them too. It is the strangest thing to me that I wake up wanting to eat peanut butter ice cream, but yes, that has happened.

Also, I know this is totally typical of the pregnant lady, but the increase in bathroom trips is getting out of control! This baby must be sitting right on top of my bladder right now. C’mon baby!

Update on the Flonase: I decided to stop using it after a few days because I kept feeling anxious and paranoid about using it. Thankfully the congestion is not as bad now as it was a few weeks ago, so I am just going to try to fight through it without the meds.

i find it soothing to design and decorate imaginary rooms in my mind

Style blogger, Joy for Oh Joy, had her living room and dining room redone on Secrets of a Stylist (yay HGTV!), and I was quite inspired, specifically by the use of mid-century Danish furniture mixed in with light and airy quirk. Mid-century pieces seem to be all the rage right now, but I can't get enough! Especially with the upcoming move into our house in five months, my eye is always wandering towards inspiring photos of living spaces. I love when the simple, woodsy, modern pieces mix with creative touches to make the space appear both liveable and unique.

For more inspirational mid-century homes, check out these posts by design sponge:
here, here, here, and here.

And because this is what I do sometimes, some mid-century style tables from etsy:
here, here, here and here.

friendly feelings towards cupcakes, especially at Pearl's

A few weekends ago, my friend Ashley threw a lovely baby shower for our friend Julia, and here is the spread for your viewing pleasure. Namely, take a look at those cupcakes!






I'm not a crazy cupcake lover, but these were done RIGHT. I'm pretty sure a lot of it has to do with the butter cream frosting, and maybe something to do with this little one that I'm growing. The cupcakes were from Pearl's on Grove Avenue here in Richmond, and I thought about them all week. I looked up pictures of them on their website while I was at work. That's how good they were.




So naturally, I mosied on to their store on Saturday to get my fix. Pretty cake and cupcake paintings!



I got a box of four - two double troubles, a red velvet, and then a cupcake with a cookie on top!



It was glorious.

17 weeks

...means you can definitely see the baby bump! There was a notable baby-shaped bump at week 15-`16, but it wasn't until this week that it is all 'helloo world' through my clothes.

I was apprehensive about different things about being pregnant, but the most difficult thing to deal with so far was unexpected. I apologize in advance if this is too much information, but starting a couple of weeks ago, I have been so congested in the worst way. I usually don’t have a problem with this, even in the winter, so I was super uncomfortable. I would wake up several times during the night with a dry, stuffed nose, which meant I couldn’t breathe, and once I was awake, it would take me forever to fall back asleep. Blowing my nose would hurt and when successful, almost all of it was blood! Hard, bloody, boogers. I know, gross, but this is real pregnancy life! Apparently, being pregnant can cause bad congestion and bloody noses, so I knew it was normal, but after over a week of not being able to breathe during the day and night, I felt like I was going crazy. We bought a humidifier, I rinsed my nose with saline solutions, I slept with my head elevated, and I even tried putting Vaseline inside my nose with a q-tip to moisturize it. Some of these things helped for a little while, but then my nose would just be clogged again and I was still waking up in the middle of the night not being able to breathe. Finally, at my first appointment with my midwife, I told her my problem and she prescribed me Flonase. I picked up the bottle, and after first puff, I felt immediately better. But I haven’t taken any medication at all since I found out about this little one, so I started doing some research and wasn't happy about the little information I found. Basically, it’s considered okay because it’s localized in the nose area and it should diffuse there before it gets close to the baby, but the FDA puts it in category C, which means there just hasn’t been enough tests done on it to say for one hundred percent sure that it’s okay for the fetus. Apparently it’s prescribed all the time to pregnant ladies, but I don’t like it! The more I read about the experiments (only on mice and rats so far), the more paranoid I became. I called the pharmacist and he told me that it’s fine, but I’m still not feeling completely okay, and wondering if I should try something else. I’m conflicted because this thing is actually helping me be able to breathe and sleep at night, but if there is even the smallest tiniest possibility that it could effect baby, it freaks me out! Anyone have any thoughts/insight or experience using nasal sprays while pregnant?

I think compared to throwing up all the time, this is probably the lesser of two evils, but boy, it puts some perspective on the little things that I take for granted (like breathing) and makes me feel incredible grateful for all of my facilities when they are working well.


Here's hoping for less anxiety and better breathing,
C

thinking about turquoise and gold, sunlight, and peonies

I love this aqua and gold striped vase from Up in the Air Somewhere. I like its style of modern with a dash of vintage. I can totally imagine it on a dining room table or a side table with bouquet of white or pink peonies, can't you?

Valentine's Day is a really good excuse to eat out

Kenrique and I went on a little Valentine’s date this past weekend. Despite the fact that we both kind of wanted to wear sweatshirts and sweatpants because the weather decided to act like winter all of a sudden, I put on a polka dot dress and Kenrique spiffed it up with a tie for the occasion. Because we are party people when we need to be, that’s why.

We went to dinner at a place called The Water Grill; the ambience was nice, the food was pretty good, and my date was the best. I told him about how I was worried about the weird things I had recently learned about breastfeeding, he was a great listener, and we talked about the future. I got a petit mignon because my body said so, and I felt happy imagining the little one absorbing the nutrients from that medium-well cooked piece of steak. Kenrique had the grilled ribeye steak with horseradish potato croquettes, asparagus, cremini mushroom demi glace. We also had the calamari to start it all off.

Hey now, everyday is love day, and Valentine's is kind of a weird holiday, but I'm going to go ahead anyways and say that this being in love in a marriage is pretty much the coolest thing ever. I’m experiencing first hand what it means to love someone more today than yesterday, and I am thankful that I get to be part of a marriage that is maturing and constantly growing. It’s not that marriage is always a breeze, but I think the fact that you have to work on a marriage make the benefits all the more enjoyable.

Also, I got pretty lucky with the guy I decided to do this marriage thing with, too. He always makes me laugh and he loves me really well (also, isn't he handsome!). I am kind of crazy excited about seeing him be a dad.

16 weeks…

…is an even four months!

16 weeks of baby growing means that it is now the size of a turnip, all of 5 inches and 5 ounces, and the coolest thing about its development at this point is that the baby can HEAR! With its ears! That is kind of thrilling, no? Ken, Rusty and I take turns saying hello to my stomach. It is already learning things about the world it is going to come out into.

I am glad to report that I have now fully absorbed and gotten used to the idea of growing a little one. It’s taken a good 3 months for the idea to seep in, but I am at a good place right now. I’m even starting to get the teensiest bit antsy already to meet the baby. Baby, I’m not in denial anymore, you can come out! It’s strange to think there is five more months of this, but it’s a very necessary five months, especially in terms of finances. Besides all the usual preparations, it feels like husband and I are bonding and getting closer over this and I think it’s a type of bond that is going to be important for carrying us into parenthood.

Many, many things to learn, and I am doing some of that as I go, but right now I should just focus on figuring out how to transition my clothes into ones that will accommodate my stretching stomach. I feel super werid in clothes, which results in a little too much time staring into my closet to figure out what I can wear. I am down to one pair of pants that fit me, and I have been resorting to those almost every day. I have gotten the belly band, but I haven’t quite gotten the hang of it yet. I feel all kinds of awkward wearing that around.

- At 4 months -

Pros: bigger boobs, I’m not wasting calories on wine or beer,
and I am extremely aware of what/how I eat
Cons: congestion and dry nose, sensitive gums, tight pants,
and peeing too many times a day
Currently craving: fruit, more fruit, fried things,
and I can't get enough Simply brand apple juice
Outlook on the coming of baby: positive
Feelings about husband: very positive

somtimes lovely ladies get together and do lovely lady things

Last Friday, there was a small shower for our friend Meghan (who is getting married in a month!), just for the purpose of making sure she had the appropriate lingerie, encouragement, and such things to carry her over the threshold, if you will. A lovely set up and a wonderful time with the ladies!































*don't worry, these weren't the gifts we got her ;)