FoF: awesome deals and nursery furniture!

Friday, October 28, 2016

[O N E]
Last week we were at Burlington Coat Factory and I found this adorable Christmas mat for only $7! You better believe it came home with me. Can't wait to put it out in just a few weeks!


[T W O]
While at Burlington Coat Factory I also spotted these Muslin swaddles for only $11! This is a huge steal!! They had the very same pack at a local boutique for $38, crazy! I know we will probably receive a lot of swaddle blankets but I couldn't pass up this deal.


[T H R E E]
We officially pulled the trigger on baby girl's nursery furniture. Whew! Can't decide if I'm relieved or scared, or both. I have the worst buyer's remorse EVER! I am so in love with it but slightly embarrassed that we spent this much on her furniture. I keep telling myself that we saved so much time not having to hunt for matching pieces since we bought them altogether. Also, we will use the same furniture for every child we have whether boy or girl (just rationalizing this to myself, bear with me haha).

[F O U R]
You guys I need HELP! I am a tried and true Lululemon fan but my workout leggings are getting way too tight. I have an indentation around my stomach after leaving the gym haha! I need recommendations for maternity workout leggings ASAP!


[F I V E]
Major throwback picture because this little nugget is turning FOUR tomorrow!! My niece is the light of my life. I am so lucky I live right beside her and my nephew and get to see them every day and watch them grow up. I can't wait to celebrate her all weekend!


Linking up with April and Amanda

Pregnancy after infertility

Thursday, October 27, 2016

I have sat down and stared at a blank screen for months trying to put this post into words. Bear with me, this is a jumble of thoughts and feelings on experiencing pregnancy after infertility.


When we were only dating we were faced with the harsh reality that we would likely have trouble conceiving. This lead to endless research, surgery, reaching out to others to had been through IVF, prayer, long discussions about our future, and never-ending anxiety about getting pregnant. Through our dating years, engagement, and newlywed stage one thing was for certain, whatever trials were in our future, we would face them together.

Fast forward to 2015 when we were officially "ready". It came as no surprise when we saw negative test after negative test, month after month. Though we were "prepared" for this, that didn't make it any easier. We knew time is of the essence and we didn't want to delay the inevitable. We found the perfect infertility clinic for us and were officially told what we had known for 6 years… IVF was our only option. Game on, let's do this! You guys have seen the journey unfold here, from making our journey public to my egg retrieval and embryo transfer and finally to our answered prayer. What I haven't touched on much is how hard it was after we got our BFP (big fat positive).

After we found out we were pregnant, instead of feeling elated that we had finally overcome infertility, all I could think about were the "what ifs". What if I have a miscarriage, what if this baby has health problems, what if… you name it. I was not prepared for these feelings, as I thought I would be carefree and on top of the world. To make matters worse, around week 7 I started bleeding and I was 100% positive I was miscarrying. I left work immediately went straight to my doctor who confirmed that baby's heart was beating away (praise God!) but that I had a subchorionic hemorrhage. I was put on modified bed rest and monitored weekly until my body reabsorbed it. This only made my anxiety worse, knowing that this hematoma put me at increased risk for miscarriage.

Even as we transitioned out of the first trimester, my hematoma resolved, and baby was doing perfectly, it wasn't until around week 15 or 16 that I really started to enjoy my pregnancy. Don't get me wrong, my love for that tiny baby was something fierce, but I didn't really like talking about my pregnancy with other people. I felt like I was going to "jinx" something if I talked about it. I didn't have the "run to the bathroom and pee on a stick and surprise husband with the news" experience that you see in the movies. Our road to get to this place was hard so unfortunately I was overly aware of all the bad things that could happen. I think this is pretty common after battling infertility. After going through IVF, you are far too used to hearing what went wrong, what your odds are, "I'm sorry", etc. You feel like one big science experiment.

So, I have put together a list of 3 things that all women should do in early pregnancy after beating infertility:

1. Give yourself grace. You've been through hell and back. It's not easy to flip a switch and go from worried and anxious to happy and carefree the second you see that BFP. Those negative feelings will fade with time as you start to realizing that your miracle baby isn't going anywhere! Trust that God brought you this far for a reason and that "He is knitting your baby together in your womb" (Psalm 139:13).

2. Have a support system. My husband and mom have been my absolute rocks through this entire process. I never went to a single doctor's appointment alone, and my clinic was 2 hours away. My husband knew when I was feeling sad and let me feel these things, then he was there to pick me up when I was ready. His tears of happiness at every ultrasound showed me that we were in this together. He would pray over our baby and constantly tried to reassure me that everything would be ok. It's impossible to go through this alone. Find your solid support system and don't be afraid to ask for help.

3. Celebrate the milestones. Celebrate your BFP, celebrate hearing the heartbeat for the first time, celebrate graduating from the first trimester. It's ok to let yourself be happy! You won't jinx it!

++

If you made it to the end of this post, kudos to you! At 21 weeks now, I am incredibly thankful and happy for every single day with this baby. I absolutely love being pregnant and would do it all over again in a heartbeat for this baby. If you or someone you know has any questions about IVF or infertility, don't hesitate to email me at davisduoblog@gmail.com. At the end of the day, I am so very thankful for our journey and I am certain that our struggle made me 100x more thankful for every minute of this pregnancy!

Homemade apple crisp

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

I mentioned in my post earlier this week that I made apple crisp last weekend and I promised to post the recipe. You guys, it was a total hit with my entire family! SO delicious!

Ingredients:
-10 small Gala apples, peeled and sliced thinly (we have this apple peeler/slicer which makes it SO easy)
-1 cup sugar
-1 tbsp flour
-2 cups flour
-1 tsp ground cinnamon
-1/4 cup water
-2 cups oats
-2 cups packed light brown sugar
-1/2 tsp baking powder
-1/2 tsp baking soda
-1 cup butter, melted

Instructions:
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees
-Put apple slices in large, oven safe dish
-Whisk together the 1 tbsp of flour, sugar, and cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly over top of the apples, then toss with a spoon to coat. Pour water over the apples, do not mix.
-Mix together the brown sugar, oats, 2 cups of flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Pour in the melted butter and mix well to combine (use your hands). Mixture will form medium chunks.
-Evenly sprinkle the topping over the apple mixture.
-Bake for 45 minutes until golden brown and the filling is bubbling up at the edges.
-Serve immediately with a scoop of ice cream!

I didn't even take a picture of mine with ice cream because it was devoured so fast! I will definitely be making this again soon!


Linking up with Jenn!

Weekending: a weekend at home!

Monday, October 24, 2016

This weekend was the first weekend that actually felt like fall in NC. It was so cool in the mornings but warmed up by afternoon and we spent as much time outside as possible! How is it already the last week of October? It is blowing my mind!!

My husband was out of town for a work conference all week until Saturday so Friday night was date night with my sweet niece. We went to the movies and saw Storks which was decent. She liked it but I've seen cuter children's movies. Then she had a sleepover at my house. Gosh I just love this girl and how she will touch my belly and talk about her baby cousin.


Saturday was the most productive day ever. I spent all morning cleaning the house, grocery shopping, going to the gym, etc. I was even able to vote early before Garrett got home!


Saturday late afternoon he got home and I was sooo happy! I missed him so much! We decided to go to Saturday night church so that we could have all day Sunday to spend outside, watch football, etc. After church we headed to my mom's house for dinner with my whole family. We grilled out steaks with stuffed potatoes, asparagus, salad and I made a homemade apple crisp which was out of this world (tooting my own horn). Recipe coming to the blog soon!


Sunday was for lazy mornings drinking coffee, gym, grocery store, watching Garrett play tennis, football, and crock pot taco soup. Am I the only one in disbelief that Thanksgiving and Christmas are right around the corner?! I am already itching to decorate for Christmas and bust out my Christmas music ;)

Linking up with Biana and Meghan

Gender Reveal party

Friday, October 14, 2016

As you probably already know, we had our gender reveal party last weekend. My dad graciously hosted everyone at his home. We had our closest friends and family over for drinks and dinner then which led up to the big moment… the gender reveal! Like a terrible blogger, I didn't take a single picture of our dinner. We had someone do all the food for us. I knew I would not want to be in the kitchen because I was so anxious and wanted to mingle with our guests. For dinner we had chicken, pasta salad, broccoli salad, baked beans, and sweet potato biscuits. Dessert was cookies, cake pops, and rice krispy treats. Everything was simple and sweet and perfect! Huge photo dump below!






Linking up with April and Amanda

We're having a...

Tuesday, October 11, 2016

If you follow me on Instagram then you've already heard the news, but we are having a precious baby GIRL! We are over the moon and just so excited to meet and love on her. My husband and I both thought it was a boy so I was in complete shock when I saw pink confetti. I started crying and couldn't stop! I am just so thankful, I can't even describe it! My husband wanted a girl from day 1 and the thought of seeing the two of them together makes my heart burst. Bring on all the bows and pink!


Pregnancy update: weeks 15-18

Friday, October 7, 2016


Before I get started with this pregnancy update, can I just say that I have been THE WORST about taking weekly pictures. Before I got pregnant I was all "I'm going to dress cute every week for a picture and not miss a single week". Now Garrett is dragging me out of bed, forcing me to take a picture. I have missed so many weeks. Will probably regret this down the road but it is what it is!

++

How far along?
18 weeks

Size of baby?
A chicken breast. However, measuring a week ahead so technically bigger I guess?

Movement?
Not yet! Hopefully any day now!

Symptoms?
Have been having pretty awful headaches off and on. Thankfully none at work though. I think my body knows that I have to push through work so the headaches typically hit me at night or on the weekends. And another totally weird symptoms is sneezing. You guys, I sneeze at least 20 times a day. And I've never had allergies, sinus problems, etc. so I'm thinking it's just some weird pregnancy symptom.

Sleep?
Sleeping pretty good for the most part. Some really weird dreams and waking up frequently to use the bathroom or because of a headache but overall I can't complain! I think God is trying to get me used to waking up constantly throughout the night :)


Gender?
We find out TOMORROW! We are having a gender reveal party with our friends and family and I am bursting at the seams to know!!! Everyone was thinking girl but a lot of people are starting to think boy, and I am thinking boy as well.

Weight gain?
Up 4 lbs and I'm surprised it's not more than that. My appetite has come back with a vengeance haha! I am trying to watch what I eat and I am going to the gym pretty regularly but give me allllll the Cheetos, sweets, carbs, etc.

Cravings/aversions?
Still not crazy about chicken, but I never really have been. I hardly ate anything the whole 1st trimester and that has sure changed. I am constantly hungry and loving any and all foods, especially the unhealthy stuff.

Maternity clothes?
Still wearing my regular work clothes. My work pants are getting mighty tight and I usually ride home with them unbuttoned, true story. Thankfully I can wear scrubs to work so I will eventually purchase a few pair of maternity scrubs. I bought a few pair of designer maternity jeans to get me through the fall/winter and they are heavenly! Haven't worn them much yet but I definitely will be in them non-stop once the weather changes.

Hubby?
So excited. He can't wait to start feeling baby move! And obviously so excited to find out the gender. He wants a little girl but will be thrilled with a boy as well. A little baseball player to follow in his footsteps. I melt thinking about it!


Nursery?
I am having the hardest time deciding on a crib. We have it narrowed down to about 4 from Restoration Hardware and I am hoping to pull the trigger by the end of next week. I am justifying spending this much on nursery furniture by telling myself that we will use the same furniture for every baby. That makes it ok, right??

Best part of the week?
We had our anatomy scan on Wednesday and we have a healthy, big baby! I am so beyond thankful. I have been praying for this visit since we found out we were pregnant, as IVF babies have increased risk for heart defects. Everything they could see looked perfect and we are so thrilled. Baby is measuring a week ahead, going to be a big one! I was 9lb 5oz and my husband was 9lb 8oz so we are definitely expecting a chunk!

Looking forward to?
Our party tomorrow! Check back next week or follow me on Instagram (@mrsordavis) to see what we're having!

Beach picture session

Thursday, October 6, 2016

Right after we found out we were pregnant (!!!), I knew I wanted to have pictures taken to capture this huge milestone in our lives. We have been through so much in the past year. I wanted to have pictures of just the two of us to remember our happiness and love before we add a little mini to the mix. We used Chelsea Collins Photography and I could not be happier with how they turned out. This man is my rock, my better half, my best friend. He makes the bad days better and the good days great. I can't wait to see him as a dad, I know it will be his best role yet.

Linking up with Annie!

Hover to Pin

 
Designed with ♥ by Nudge Media Design