WEEK 19

Well, I'm finally getting around to posting the belly pics I have been taking every week. You can see the all if you click on the tab up top called 40 weeks. This will let you see all of them together. I didn't even start until week 13 because there was nothing to see, and even now it's not much to look at, but I do look "thicker" right?

Anyhoo, I am starting week 20 tomorrow, which is half way there! Wow! If the first half is any indication my labor, it's going to be a breeze. Haha! Ok, Im dreaming. Well, you know my sister had an easy pregnancy and only pushed 2 times and there was Kelli! 2 times! She is my hero too, no drugs! Nice! I do feel that I have a high pain tolerance, but when it comes down to it, if/when I'm in unbearable pain, Ill take the epidural. Thank you very much.

HAPPY EASTER [NEWS] TOO!

What a wonderful weekend in Ohio!  It was great to see my family and hang out with everyone!  (we were missing Brrrian and Tim's clan:(

I helped my mom with all the traditional baking (breads, nut roll, and lepeny) and my sister and I were able to squeeze in some great thrifting.  Friday night was spent laughing it up at Bill's house till wee hours.  God, I feel so lucky to have a great family.  Can you guys move to GA, please?  The weather is so much better!
Bill and Barbie made me this "Little Puckwaa" shirt back when they found out I was pregnant, so I wore it on Saturday and got lots of laughs. (Puckwaa is a nickname Bill and I have had for each other for years...don't ask)

The most exciting part was seeing my little niece Cheekers.  I was amazed at how she is talking up a storm now.  What a cutie with her little Easter hat!

Yes...that was the most exciting part.......until.....eggs were passed out to the whole family by Cheekers.  They were all filled with candy, except the egg going to my parents!  That one was fill with a SONOGRAM!!!!

{Screams!  Cries of joy! }

Yep!  My brother Bill and Barbie are expecting too!! Yeah!  She is due just 5 weeks after me at the end of October!!!!   Way to steal my thunder Barb!  haha!  Just kidding.  Im so excited for them!

Back when they announced they were pregnant with Eleanor, I got mad at her for not telling me they were trying to have a baby.  10 years ago we made a pact that we were going to have babies at the same time and she waited until she was 3 months pregnant to tell me?? Hello?? Come on Barb!

Oh well, we laughed because I told them I was pregnant the DAY I peed on the stick!  So they had some time to catch me.  The next month they were pregnant too!  Perfect timing guys!!  Now Barbie and I are back on track!

We will have a great summer and give each other lots of support!  I predict that we are both having boys!!  We did a cute little photo shoot to show the difference 5 weeks can make during a pregnancy.

 OK, I may have been sticking my stomach out a bit there....here is the real thing!

{Cindy-19 weeks, Barbie-13 weeks}

Exciting times ahead!!

You. Are. So. Beautiful.

Today we got another look at our little Mexi-mouth.  At 19 weeks, everything seems to be developing quite well.  Unfortunately, Ernesto couldn't make this appointment, and boy was it the wrong one to miss.  This ultrasound was really cool, way more detailed than the first one.  The tech zoomed in everywhere except the one place I didn't want to see.   I saw the little hands and feet, the spine, legs and a very muscular looking arm!   A future Crossfitter!!

Ernesto kept teasing me that he was going to secretly find out the sex of the baby at this appointment, so Im kind-of glad he didn't go!  Just kidding mi amor!

This profile pic was the best: 

Ernesto first words?  The nose looks big!  (There were more words after those. Ha!!) So what if he/she has a big nose like yours, mi amor??  Just kidding...your nose is perfect! Sometime during the next 10 weeks we will schedule a 3D ultrasound and take a closer look!

When I was laying down for the ultrasound, I couldn't believe how much my belly was popping out.  Love it!

Inman Park Festival 2011

 

ZAFIRO JEWELRY

at

 Hope you can make it to the festival.  

It runs this weekend, April 30 & May 1 from 10am-6pm

Sneak peak of Spring 2011 collection:  Viva India!

{London blue topaz on gold}

Inspiration Board #1

For years I have been reading/browsing the photos of my favorite design blogs for ideas.  I have a folder on my desktop called "lookbook" (thanks Lauren!) and this is where I stash all of the photos I love and want to remember for the future.

Along with this house hunting process comes a strong erge to nest.  The fact that I am pregnant (!) could have something to do with it as well, which is why I have been looking at a lot of nursery designs.  Unfortunately I don't have any room for nesting in our apartment, but that doesn't mean my imagination isn't going wild!

Buy Modern Baby has an awesome blog run by Esther. She has created over 30 inspiration boards for baby/kids rooms.  Looking at hers inspired me to create one of my own.  Now, keep in mind I have 5 more months until the arrival of our little mouth so Im sure things will change.   I change my mind a lot.  Heck, I don't even have a room to decorate yet, but I can dream.  Ha!  I may not stay with these colors/design, but I do know that the room will not be too baby.  I want to furnish it for me and add accessories/artwork for the baby.  Makes sense, right?

This was really fun to create, I see more in my future.  Nursery inspiration board #1: 

1 -  Yellow Moroccan Pouf
2 -  Grey wool rug
3 -  Joya Rocker (also like the white leather option)
4 - Armoire (a Craigslist score that will soon be painted)
5 - Map wall decal from Etsy
6 - yellow/white chevron fabric for curtains
7 - Tripod floor lamp
8 - Olivia Crib
9 - bird mobile (made by my mom/me-pattern here)
10 - yellow painted dresser/changing table (future find on Craigslist!)

Some other ideas that I have seen elsewhere and would like to incorporate into the nursery are this awesome wall o' books.  The room was designed by Elizabeth Sullivan Design. I love the striped ceiling too!

This picture is from Refresh Design Studio. The alphabet was decorated at a baby shower.  I love this idea (hint, hint)!  With all the crafty people in my family, these would turn out great! 

This little paper pom-pom/lantern "chandelier" is really cool too.  It is from Live the Fancy Life.  The grey wall color is right up my alley as well.

Well, this is just my first attempt at throwing together some inspiration I have been pouring over.  Ahhhh...So fun and exciting to decorate...even if it is just virtual [for now].

The Verdict

Well, as the picture indicates,  we are not getting the house that I showed you the other day.   Remember I said that we offered and they countered us in 4 hours?  It was moving so smoothly....until....they got greedy.  After agreeing (via emails) on all the details, we were due to sign the papers and make it official.  Well, the next morning, instead of the final paperwork, we get a group email stating "We have received multiple offers on this property.  Please submit highest and best offers by noon Tuesday."

 WTF??    

How can they accept more offers when we already agreed on the selling price and all other details??  Supposedly our emails prove nothing legally, but how about ethically??  Can you say screwed?! We are pissed to say the least.

This house was not perfect by any means.  There were many changes that need to be made.  Remember the list?  But at 104k, it was a no-brainer.  Apparently others were on the same line of thinking.  Im afraid this will be the case with all of the foreclosures at a steal of a price.  Although this is a buyers market, the competition is tough.  We need to be quick in offering and we need our agent to be on top of the paperwork.  Period.

Ahh...Dissapointment settles in....but I am on my way to being over it.   I'll move on right after I tell off the selling agent.   I will say something along these lines:

Dear J Steadman and Associates Inc.,
Im glad that you are able to overlook any moral/ethical obligation so you may receive 1k more in commission.  You can be sure I will spread the word all over the internet, Atlanta forums and to personally to anyone who will listen.  The public needs to know that your company is not professional, trustworthy, nor ethical.

In the mean time, I will just tell myself that there MUST be something big wrong with this house.   It was on the market for a long time and has had two deals [that we know of] fall through. The house was probably not structurally sound to build the 2nd floor and this is why the owner never finished the staircase.  Yes! That's it!  We would have found out with the inspection, right?  Right!

I know we can find another house that we like just as much or better.  As my sister told me the other day, that's "just my luck."

**Also, last night we spoke to the winning bidders agent and  found out something that makes us feel a bit better:
The highest bid for the house was $20k more than what we offered.
Fine.  Take it.  Goodbye.

Pobrecito Titi

A week ago, while we were still in San Diego, Titi came home one night [after exploring outside for a few hours] without his collar.   

We thought maybe it came off while he was squeezing through a fence.   Later that night I pet him and he made some strange noises and moved from the bed to the closet.  Weird.  In the morning he didn't wake up with us as usual, instead he stayed in the closet for 2 hours.  I investigated and there was a bump on his back and it seemed painful.  The next day the the pain seemed to subside, so I thought it was getting better.

After a couple days, I started to get worried.  Titi didn't have as much energy and the bump that had seemed to be going away was now bigger and more painful.  I made an appointment at a vet for Saturday morning. 

WARNING!  THE FOLLOWING CONTENT MAY BE UNSUITABLE FOR CHILDREN OR PERSONS WITH A WEAK STOMACH. 

The vet said he would have to shave Titi's beautiful fur to take a closer look.  What they found was this:

We left Titi there for a few hours because they had to drain the abscess (an infected puncture wound, usually from fighting with another cat).  When we picked Titi up a few hours later, I was horrified to see this:

A rubber pipe was pushed through Titi's skin to drain out the liquid from the TWO abcesses they found under the fur.  I cried.  

"What in the hell did they do to my sweet kitty?"

 I was equally horrified at the bill. 

We were sent home with pain killers and a bottle of disinfectant to clean the wound 2x a day.  Titi has to wear this pitiful cone on his head.  I feel so bad for him, he is trying to groom himself and just ends up licking the plastic.  Pobrecito!

{my pitiful little cone head}

The good news is that tomorrow the drain comes out and they'll stitch him up.  He is sleeping a lot and seems to be healing.   He will still have to be a "cone head" for a few days so he doesn't tear out the stitches. 

My heart aches for my little Titi. My poor helpless Titi.  I have been babying him, I guess my motherly instincts are starting to kick in:)

Thailand, Italy or Mexico??

Would you believe that this June will be my 10th wedding anniversary?  10 years!
This calls for something special, right?  A trip of course!  We have so much going on but this may be our last trip solo for a while.  We are exactly decided where to go yet.

Option #1 Thailand

Option #2 Italy 

Option #3 Mexico

These are our choices listed in order of preference.  Unfortunately they are also in descending order of most distance,  time needed and cost.

I really wish Thailand could happen, because that trip needs to be done without kids (though not impossible, it would be preferable).  I have wanted to go there for a long time and this may be our last chance for some years.  We need a month to make this trip worth the 2 days it takes to get there.

Italy is a great second option as Ernesto has never been.   We could fly into Rome and then take a train south to the picturesque town of Positano (where I have never been, pictured above).   The Almafi Coast.....come on, it just sounds romantic, doesn't it? The only con is that I won't be able to drink wine.  Oh the horror!  We could do this trip in a week, but we would make it two just to make sure we aren't rushed.

Third option is to visit Mexico, and that could never be a bad choice.  Its a quick flight, inexpensive and it's Mexico.   We would pick an area that we haven't visited before.  It would be a great time to pick up new textiles for our future house.  Mexico is only a three hour flight so one week is easy here. 

We are still weighing this and once we know if our house deal is going to go through with a closing of May 26th we can set a date.  Im shooting for leaving May 10th.  Perfect because we can back to our new home!!!

So what would be your top 3 destinations for a big anniversary? 
(....and I don't want to hear anyone say Canton, Ohio)

Could This Be Our New Street??

Back in January, right after we found out our big baby news, we started house hunting.  Ernesto took me to look at this house:

This 2 bedroom (with unfinished basement and 2nd floor) borders the neighborhoods of Old 4th Ward and Inman Park and is literally a 2 minute walk from where we currently live so we knew the location would be perfect!!   The outside is so unique, with a cute little garden and trellis for growing vines.  We peered though the windows and instantly fell in love with the high ceilings, bamboo floors and french doors opening the living room up to the front porch.

In short, the house went under contract that day, only 2 days after being listed.  Although not surprising at all (since it was a foreclosure listed at only 104K) it was disappointing.   We moved on and  looked at a bunch of other houses.  Below are two houses we made offers on but did not get. Both were livable, but needed updating.

{3 bed home in Old 4th Ward}

{2 bed Home in East Atlanta Village}

The other day our realtor called us [while we were still in San Diego] to say that the first house we looked at  was back on the market, the offer had fallen through.  Funny enough, Ernesto and I kept watching to see if that might happen.   Just our luck, IT DID!!!!

We submitted our offer yesterday morning and they accepted it that afternoon, plus added a 2-year home warranty which we didn't ask for!?  I understand this is rare because the house is a foreclosure and is being sold "as-is" by the bank, so we were happy.

Speaking of "as-is,"  there are several things that we want to change about this house, but the only things that MUST be done before moving in:
     - buy a refridgerator (other appliances are included and are nice)
     - tear out yuck carpet from the bedrooms and lay new floors (either matching
        bamboo to the living room floor or new hardwoods throughout)

     - patching walls and painting every room

{bamboo floors in living room}

{kitchen appliances...double oven...swoon!}

{ugly bedroom carpet}

 Other fixes/ideas: (not essential at first)
     - new kitchen cabinets
     - mosaic tile back splash
     - change slate floors in kitchen and baths 
     - convert main bath into smaller powder room, thus opening kitchen
     - drywall and add french doors in basement, converting to studio/office
     - finish 2nd story, creating 2 more bedrooms
     - fence back yard or plant tall cypress as border

There are a few "weird" things with this place.  I guess the previous owner had a "plan" to finish the attic into a second story.  He built the staircase...to nowhere.  Really, at the top of the stairs, there is nothing.  Also there is a window leading to the basement staircase instead of a door.  What???  Yep.  That will have to be changed.

They would like the closing to be May 26! Yikes!  It's all happening so fast!  It really would be perfect though, we would have all summer to work on it.  Yay! Wish us luck that everything goes smoothly!  I will post more/better pictures once we seal the deal.