Baby Shower!!

On August 15th, Jessica gave me my first baby shower! It was held at Corned Beef & Co in downtown Roanoke and I invited my 8 oldest girlfriends... some of whom I hadn't seen at all since being pregnant! Only 4 and my mom were able to attend but we had a blast! We had dinner, painted onesies (cutest idea!), ate cake, opened presents, and laughed... A LOT. I was feeling very good that night and decided that we should stay out a little late and ended up at 202 Market. We ended up dancing a little bit until I got really hot and really tired. haha It was so much fun though!!

Love you girls!!

CUPCAKES!!

I haven't really had too many cravings while pregnant besides spicy brown mustard and grape pop. I honestly haven't really had a craving for sweets either EXCEPT for cupcakes! Not cake, cupcakes. There is somehow a difference to me.

Bubblecake Bake Shop ()recently opened in Roanoke and it has really intensified my want/need for cupcakes. Even though I have only had the chance to eat a Bubblecake once so far, the owner printed a recipe for her Key Lime Cupcakes in the paper. We have all of the ingredients really to go except for lime extract. We have looked EVERYWHERE for it and no where locally sells it. :( I wanted to share the recipe though just in case someone reading has the extract and can make these. They sound DELISH!!! I will definitely update once we make them but for now.....

Kep Lime Cupcakes

For the cake:
1 (18 oz.) box lemon cake mix
1 box instant lemon pudding mix
1 (12 oz.) can lemon-lime soda (such as Mountain Dew)
3/4 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
1/8 tsp. lime extract

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line two standard-sized muffin tins with paper liners.
2. In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine all of the above ingredients and process for 30-45 seconds. Turn off mixer and scrape down bowl. Process until smooth, an additional 30 seconds or so.
3. Portion batter evenly into baking cups, approximately 2/3 full.
4. Bake 15-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of one cupcake emerges clean. Cool completely before icing.

While cupcakes are baking, prepare the icing:
1 container prepared vanilla frosting
1/2 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. nonalcoholic natural lemon flavoring
1/16 tsp. lime extract
1 dab of leaf green gel food coloring (available at craft stores)
1 dab of lemon yellow gel food coloring

1. Combine all ingredients until streak-free and smooth, using either the whisk attachment on your mixer or whisking by hand.
2. Ice each cupcake and garnish, if desired, with green sprinkles and a cocktail umbrella.

Baby Registeries

And because I've had many inquiries... we are registered at Target and Babies R Us! Our Target is not the best so we are mostly at BRU but the bedding and room decor goodies are at Target because they were cheaper!

Week 28 Picture

Definitely grew between weeks 24 and 28!! I am starting to feel a little huge... little did I know that my belly would only get bigger & bigger!

27 Weeks

Still playing catch up on posts but this sonogram was from our appointment at 27 weeks and it is my FAVORITE so far. Such a teeny foot!!

Nursery Decor!

I know, I know... Life has gotten in the way and I haven't updated in 12 weeks! In the next few days, I'll try and post a few updates. :)

The picture above is the baby's room. Our theme/bedding is Jungle Babies by NoJo. I knew I wanted animals and these were just too cute! After going back & forth between colors for a week, the walls were painted a pumpkin/cantaloupe color to match the color in the border and the window valances. The border went up next and is all around the room. There is NO WAY AJ & I would have had the time to do all of this so my mom has been a lifesaver! She painted the walls, the trim, her & my dad hung the border, she hung the curtain rods & valences, hung the blinds, bought the rug.... I mean, I could go on & on! As you can see from the picture, it is absolutely PERFECT!

AJ & I are going to go watch a movie but I will post more pictures this week!! :)

24 Week Update

24 weeks down, 16 to go! 16?? Whoa... that's not too far away!

Pregnancy has been good so far! He's a healthy little boy and I thankfully haven't had any issues besides my sinuses acting up, fatigue, and back pain. But hey if I can slide by with just those 3 things, I'm pretty lucky compared to some!

He's a squirmy little guy.. he moves around some in the morning but really starts going around 2pm and continues until about 5pm. He settles down and then starts back up around 7-8pm. (He's actually kicking right now!) Even though they are getting a little stronger, AJ hasn't been able to feel him yet but I have a feeling that will soon change.

Still haven't picked a name... we have one in mind that we've agreed on but haven't made that commitment yet. Naming someone is a huge deal! He's going to have this name... well... forever, ya know?

Going to the beach next weekend for a week for the annual family trip with 50 of my closest family members so we are very excited for that. You think buying a swimsuit is hard when you have put on a few extra pounds over the winter? Try gaining a BABY in your belly and looking for one! I will never complain again....