17 weeks

No baby niece yet. Fingers crossed for this weekend!
I went to the gym the other night (surprising, I know) because I'm starting to feel like I have "bat wings" under my arms. And more jiggles than I care to even think about. While at the gym, something I'll never forget happened. I got my first "when are you due?" from a very sweet girl. She had been staring at me for a while with the weird slash creepy slash awkward grin, so naturally I tried to avoid her gaze. Well, we ended up on the same circuit machine and she clearly could no longer contain her wonder. So very politely, she asked me "the question." When I told her I was about four and half months, she instantly lit up (I assume very pleased with herself for not making a huge mistake) and told me that I looked great and "good for you for working out." (Side note: not sure I would call what I was doing "working out" but whatever, I'll take it) So I guess I'm past the beer belly phase now. I'm really pregnant. And people are noticing. On to the random stranger belly rubs it is!

Please take special note of my stringy, greasy 

hairdo. I swear I still care about my 

appearance...most of the time. AND pretty

sure I've worn my maternity leggings for the last 

3-5 photoshoots. They're pretty much amazing.

After eating a pizza amongst the the four of us,

Jake and Carson decided they were still hungry.

While Megan and I slaved away on the beautiful 

creation above, the boys went to the store and 

came back with this smorgasbord of after dinner snacks.

  

No, the glass of wine did not belong to me. Although

I very much wish it had. However, red wine 

compliments Eggos and tots extremely well, 

if you're looking for a new combo.

Life Lately

Cars and I flew down to San Francisco for my Auntie Petey's memorial this past weekend. It was a beautiful service and a true celebration of her life; we are really glad we were able to make it and spend time with family. She was SO incredibly loved...150 filled the church! It was awesome.

The weather was absolutely gorgeous in Cali and being on the beach made me slightly angry that we aren't closer to it. I forgot my camera but got to try out my newly downloaded Instagram app. I know, I know, I have been living under a rock right? Well, I'm obsessed with it now. So here you go...our weekend  Instagram-ed (plus a few extras for fun).

The beach was a cluster f*** and it gave 

me anxiety so this is as far as I would go.

Hotel room view

We 3 Taylors

Me and my daddy. This particular angle is NOT

flattering for me and my belly. I look like a bowling pin.

Me and my mama...right after I took this picture 

in the car and started messing with it in Instagram, 

I got instantly car sick. Just another lovely 

symptom of carrying a child.

My two favorite men in the whole world

Well, besides maybe him

And him

Carson ran his first organized race a couple weeks 

ago with Bobert and Jake...a 5k called Beat Coach 

Pete. They all beat Pete; Jake only by 4 seconds

 after getting pushed off the trail and rolling his ankle.

 HAHA! I know it's mean to laugh but it's so 

damn typical of Jake, I just can't contain myself.

And, debuting her first head shots, here's our 

tiny Taylor. She's even got the fist pump down!

***Chalkboard weekly update coming soon...too busy waiting around for a phone call that our little niece is on her way into the world. Danica (my sis in law) was due on Sunday so now we're playing the waiting game. As soon as we hear anything, we're jumping in the car and driving to Bend for the occasion. Hopefully her arrival will be my next post!

This week's post is dedicated to my late Auntie Petey who we lost this past week. She was a beautiful, strong, courageous, loving woman who will be greatly missed.

November 2009 Auntie Petey at our wedding

 My mom, Auntie Petey and myself at my college graduation

May 2008

What a crazy week we've had! One of the most CRAZY moments yet? Why don't you just take a peek below...

Yep, that's right. Screw my intuition; we're having a GIRL! Holy shitballs. I had been so sure it was a boy and even completely convinced Carson it was too. So, needless to say, we were SHOCKED. Totally shocked. But after the initial shock wore off, we got super excited! We even went out and each picked out our first little baby girl outfits, both Hurley...so damn cute!

We also picked out the nursery paint color. Carson surprised me and got the room all prepped and painted the next day! I absolutely love how it turned out. We're thinking grays, brown furniture with white, coral and pale pink accents. A touch of girl (of COURSE) yet still subtle and modern.

Like I said, we were very shocked and surprised to find out our little babe is a girl, but we couldn't be happier. Although we got scanned earlier than normal (perks of working in medical imaging), baby girl looks very healthy and is growing just as she should...which is really all we could ever ask for. We have our big 20 week ultrasound in about 3 weeks, at which they will measure and evaluate everything about her. I'm still not totally sure if I've felt her move yet, how am I supposed to know what it feels like?! I think everything is gas bubbles. I hope to know for sure that it's her soon. Names you ask? Not really. We have a few that we like but probably won't tell until it's decided. Our reasoning behind this: because we really don't want your opinion if you hate it. And we especially don't want, "oooohhhhh I knew a little girl with that name but she picked her nose and ate it so now I hate that name." or "I knew a girl with that name and she was a total slut." Thank you for your input but, seriously, that is so totally rude. We feel that if we can say "it's decided, this is the name we've chosen," then maybe, just maybe, people will keep their dis-approvals quiet. Seriously, who is really going to tell you they hate the name you chose after you tell them it's official. No one I hope. Especially none of you reading this right?

Well, here's to another week of getting chubby. I have a long way to go but summer's right around the corner which means boating and sunshine and getting TAN, which we all know makes us feel so much better about ourselves (especially when we're packing on the lbs.)!

15 weeks and Easter

Weekend Highlights:

•  Although I was sick with a nasty head cold on Friday, it was pretty amazing spending the entire afternoon/night on the couch watching movies (PS. Little Miss Sunshine is awesome, can't believe it took me like 5 years to see it), eating quesadillas and talking on the phone for two hours with Kate...one of my besties from Portland.

• Shopping with my girls on Saturday...bought my first maternity dress (pictured above); stopping at Red Robin for bottomless fries at 3pm then eating another entire meal at Texas Roadhouse at 5pm.We headed home, immediately changed into stretch pants, stuffed our faces with cookies, and watched Pocahontas and The Chipmunk Adventure. You know, all the typical things 26 year old girls do on a Saturday night.

• We spent Easter at Carson's boss' house with some of his co-workers and their families. Lots of great food people and such a beautiful, warm sunny day. Summer is officially around the corner in Boise! When we got home we finished moving Carson's office upstairs so the "nursery" is now completely empty and ready for BABY STUFF. Is it crazy that this is still so weird to me? Weird but so very exciting. Can't wait to celebrate next Easter with our very own little bunny!

I'm making a human...what have YOU done today?

All of a sudden I actually look pregnant. It's super weird, but I totally popped out at 14 weeks and now I am noticing people looking at my belly, yet still not saying anything...thankfully. I'm pretty sure the first time I am asked by a stranger if I'm pregnant or when I'm due (without them knowing for sure) is going to be bittersweet. I'm excited to finally look like I'm not just bloated or stuffed full of rainbow chip cupcakes (my favorite fyi, wink wink), but I think it will be a moment I'll never forget. It will mark the beginning of people not looking at my face, which is fine because it's covered in baby acne anyways, but looking at my stomach. It will also mark the random stranger "belly rubs" that I'm not sure how I will react to when the time comes...flattering yet slightly weird right? Bottom line, I look pregnant. I am growing a human. And I am pretty damn excited about it; we both are. And to celebrate our excitement, we purchased our first baby items over the weekend. For as long as I can remember, I have always dreamed of rocking my children in a glider rocking chair. Maybe because I remember how much I LOVED being rocked as a baby and I know my kids will too. Well, I found an awesome cherry wood glider and ottoman in great condition for $20 on Craigslist. I plan on recovering the cushions to match our nursery decor when that time comes. The couple who sold it to us were so sweet and also threw in a boppy, blanket and some brand new nursery books...which we died laughing at the second we read them! Real mature we are; definitely mature enough to become parents right? We also found a Boon grass drying rack at at a thrift store for $2! It's used for drying bottles and other items and looks damn cute on counter tops. I already knew I wanted one of these so this was the highlight of my shopping trip...that's pretty sad. Here's what it looks like if you have no idea what the hell I'm talking about:

So I guess we're officially starting to act like this is really happening. We started moving Carson's office to the upstairs room to make way for the nursery. The more we talk about our little offspring, the more excited we both get. It's a pretty amazing thing this happened. We are slightly terrified over the whole affair but we know, in the end, we'll be great parents. I can't wait to meet my little monster! Eeeeeeeee! (translation: those who know me know that this is my excited voice; used only in really exciting moments in conversation.)

Huge RIGHT?! Oh geez.