weight gain: 6 lbs. {i thought i was going to double from the last appointment…phew!!!}
maternity clothes? not yet! pants really don’t fit, around my waist that is…haven’t gotten the belly band yet, so my kid sized legging still work, as long as i roll it down! whoop!
sleep: getting up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom has actually lessened {yeah!}. getting a full night’s sleep has gotten much better.
physical state: a little bit more energized! i’m less nauseated and tired. my early bedtime still exists but at a more reasonable time than 8 or 9 pm! 10 pm is not bad, right?! the acne, oh the acne! my face is just covered in cysts, whiteheads, and pimples…gross. ewww, really gross. and what’s up with the hot hands and feet?! blech.
miss anything? i still miss my starbucks americanos, sushi {i miss you white dragon roll from coast!}, bagel & lox, deli meat sandwiches, not so much alcohol since i never really drank anyways! oh, and my eggs over easy {boohoo}, i love my eggs over easy.
baby movement: not yet!
food cravings: fruit {cherries, blueberries, mango, red grapefruit by the pound}, ice pops, cereal, hot spicy foods, cheddar cheese sticks. i’m in love with pop. i never drank the stuff before but i love it now! so, i buy diet so i don’t go nuts drinking the stuff all the time. the crazy part, i really don’t eat sweets!! i might have a nibble once in a blue moon but that’s it!
bump status: i feel i’ve got a full, blown bump. i mean, c’mon…i’m only 12 weeks but that thing is already massive?! i keep asking my pregnant and past pregnant friends…is this normal?!
gender reveal: not yet! majority of folks says it’s a girl! like i said, i’m taking tallies. we’ll see…
we celebrated charlie’s 40th birthday party this past saturday!
happy beurffday charlie!
leyla had rented out a private room at goose island and hosted charlie’s friends and family at the fete! we had food, drinks, and yummy cupcakes from molly’s!
a sunny afternoon and a lunch date with a friend was in order. i was super excited to meet up with jodi and jett! we planned a lunch rendezvous at floriole in lincoln park. it was sunny and beautiful outside and i was itching to sit al fresco, thank goodness they had outdoor seating!
i got there first and i was really, really excited because i hadn’t told jodi, yet, that i’m pregnant! it was bursting with excitement to tell her! i saw her strolling up the sidewalk with baby jett and i got up to greet her, we hugged, and sat down {trying to hide my protruding belly}. we talked about ordering, so jodi got up to peruse the menu and then we both got into line to order. only a few minutes had gone by before i blurted out, “i’m pregnant!!!!”. she was so happy!! i couldn’t contain myself, besides, i was so self conscious about my bump, i know it would have been only a few minutes before she would notice!
she was so ecstatic about the pregnancy! we sat down, our yummy food came, and we chit chatted non-stop about everything. it felt so good to be out in the sun too! after spending quite a bit of time at the restaurant, we decided to traipsed around the neighborhood since it was so nice. we stopped by a few stores and strolled around the block. we both had gotten new cars and we wanted to check out our new vehicles! so we walked to each other’s cars to admire the newness!
[jodi and jett]
[jodi insisted on a picture to show her mom, ann {love ann!!!} and other peeps]
after talking, and talking, and talking, we finally parted ways to go about our merry day! it was so lovely to see jodi and the babes {he’s so adorable!!!!}.
today is a day to celebrate all the mom’s out there!
a job that is never ending. a mother’s love never fails. a mother’s love is always giving. a mother’s love is sometimes all you need.
i celebrate my mom today because of the unconditional love she has always given us. through good times and bad, she was and will always be there. i look back at my life and cannot even fathom how she was able to do what she did! even though i lived it! she worked full-time, raised five kids, and always, always had a full dinner on the table!!!!
i love my mom and i am grateful for all that she has done for me. i must say that one day isn’t enough to say i love you and thank you. celebrate everyday as if it were mother’s day!
love is patient, love is kind. it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. it is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. it always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
i got up early {gasp!} and did many tasks! it’s always so satisfying to check things off my list {i know, i’m a list kind o’ gal!}. i think i was trying to fit too many tasks into my morning, as the clock was ticking, i was feverishly rushing to get things done. i needed to get out the door before noon to go see my dad! yikes! i’m so tenacious and steadfast, i let my determination get the best of me!
i finally completed my projects and rushed to get dressed. ugh. i still had to throw out garbage, recycling, and carry some obtuse items down to my car! i finally made {just a little past noon!} and was on my merry way to the ‘burbs.
i picked up lunch for thuy and my dad. we ate, we conversed, and then we just hung out. it was fantastic to be able to lounge around outside in the warm sun! after lunch, thuy left back to work and i just hung out with my dad for the rest of the afternoon. i waited for my mom to come home to say hello and then off i went to meet kim for dinner. of course, you can’t let a day off go by without a stop at target!
i met up with kim at her place, hung out for a bit, and then we headed on our way to dolce to meet up with thuy and then eventually terry and the boys {reagan had his first baseball lesson!}. drinks, apps, pizza for the boys, and delicious meals for the adults. it’s always a pleasant and relaxing time here!
[we didn’t even realize we all had a nautical theme going on until terry pointed it out!]
[the rich and delicious mushroom, spinach ravioli]
reagan and bennett just love being there! it’s like they own the place. they are too funny and cute. they totally get lost in their own world. it’s so cute to see them so engrossed in their conversations…and most of the time you just can’t understand b! but always too cute to watch!
well, it was another successful and fulfilling warm day! tootles.
the other day, after a very long day, i was driving back home to chicago. it was such a beautiful evening! it was warm outside, a perfect night to hang outside! i called dear dana back and we chit chatted for a bit. she was telling me how she was packing for a short get away to new haven and some other news dans sa vie.
i told her we had to grab dinner! how could we not eat al fresco tonight?! it was too lovely an evening to not eat outside! so, there i was, driving by dana’s and picking her up. we headed to southport and decided to go to any restaurant that had open seating outside.
[refreshing!]
we ended up at crosby’s kitchen. burgers and beers it was. well, dana got the turkey burger and i just did the cow. the fries were so yummy, i was a little greedy and annoyed that there wasn’t more on my plate {hungry hungry hippo}! i so i had to eat dana’s fries as well {hehehe}.
we chilled and just soaked in the warm night. we people watched, we cooed over doggies walking by, we counted how many girls had on maxi dresses, and what fashion faux pas’ we spotted.
it was a quick get together but so worth it! it was my first meal al fresco for the year and the start of many more to come!
this past saturday, we participated in service day at st. clement!
it was an all day event that turned out amazing!
we started out by heading out to st. clement, by 10:30 am. team captains were required to get there early so we could greet all our volunteers. we walked inside and found our sign and assigned pew. we waited, patiently, for all our teammates to arrive. one by one, we greeted everyone. it was great to chat and get to know one another before we started our prayer service.
fr. ken started our short prayer service and reinforced our thoughts for the day. how important it is to pray, serve, and give, st. clement’s mission statement.
after that, we headed on our way over to bishop conway residency. we piled ourselves into two cars, jaimie {who so graciously volunteered} was our second driver. the traffic down fullerton was obnoxious {as to be expected!}.
what felt like forever later, we finally arrived at our destination. we walked in and jaimie, kelly, and jen were already waiting for us. we received a cute little wooden box {painted and decorated} as a gift from the residences, which was so nice!
we headed downstairs and i found aixa, the head cook, and introduced myself to her. we needed to eat lunch, so she showed us a room we could sit down in and eat. after, lunch we headed back into the kitchen to start working! aixa had us clean up. we cleared plates, glasses, food. some of us did the dishes, a few swept and mopped. the boys took out garbage. we set the tables for dinner. we prepped food for later. after all the clean up and prep, we then played games with any of the residences in the game room.
there was uno, dominos, and rummy going on! kelly and i joined a group playing rummy. we watched, we learned, we asked a lot of questions. our group was so funny. especially robert and linda. oh, did they love to bicker! linda felt robert made up his own rules and robert was always eagle eyeing everyone to make sure they weren’t cheating! bernadette seemed to be sleeping the whole time {although she wasn’t and was funny and kind}. charlie was a serious player with a knack of not enunciating any of his words and rosita, who i sat next to as well, was so stinkin’ sweet! she constantly smiled at me and always included me in everything.
after several rounds, robert asked if i wanted to play. i was still confused because it seemed like they made rules up as they went! but i was biddable, so i agreed and here i went with my first game of rummy! it was great, rosita helped me out a lot. time really flew by and before we knew it, we had to leave and head back to st. clement for the 5 pm mass. it was sad to go, we had so much fun!
we then went upstairs and had our time for reflection. i led the prayer and provoked our thoughts. how did we feel? how did we see the lord’s goodness in today’s events? i quivered a bit while reading, it got a little emotional for me! as we left, the officer in the front handed out little handmade thank you cards from the residences! it was so cute!
our trip back was quicker and we got there with plenty of parking left {smallest parking lot for a really big parish!}. we all sat together for mass and the group volunteered me to walk in the procession! ha, no one wanted to, so of course, they said, ‘you’re the team captain, you do it!”. so i went to the vestibule, grabbed our sign {each sign had the location of the place we volunteered at} and waited for the procession into the church to start. all the little kids, who participated in service day, went first {they planted their ‘fans’ into the pots around the alter} and i led the group of sign holders into the procession.
after the wonderful mass, that was led by fr. manny, we heading into the school for dinner {beer, wine, pop, pizza, pasta, bread, salad, + dessert}! it was so great to mingle, see everyone, and really revel in the day’s activities.
[cinco de mayo decor]
[sweeping and mopping! kelly..rich..tammy..jen]
[allison + jaimie doing the dishes]
[allison, eric, + jen playing dominos]
[bridget + jaimie playing uno with perl // she was sassy!]
[kelly watching the rummy game // linda is to the left and bernadette to her right]
[rummy]
[handmade thank you cards from the residences]
[dinner at the school]
[rich + i are dead center, three rows down from the top!]
it was such a wonderful day. it was so fulfilling, fun, happy, joyous, and a very humbling time. the biggest service day to date, 400+ participated this year!
give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1thessalonians 5:18
what a wonderful start to may! warm weather, sunshine, and a day off! woooo! i love all the flowers blooming and the warm sunshine on my skin. so fantastic.
it's time for dining al fresco.
it's time to get in some cubs games.
it's time for some long walks.
it's time for open windows and breezy winds
to flow through the home.
i love, love, love not having a million layers on!
anyhoo, happy may y’all! i hope it’s a good month for all my lovies!
my last night {boo}, for awhile, with the wonderful miss olivia. it was a last minute gathering that turned out so perfect {yay!}. we discussed, at our last dinner, about going to the tasting room, a favorite of mine and caitlin’s. o has never been there, so we thought it would be fun to go there this past week. we left it in the air on whether or not we would go and everything fell into place for us to have dinner together!
the weather was great and the parking was easy. we got there and soon after, caitlin, claire, and kelly joined us.
we started with a few bottles of wine…um, it was half price night {score!}. we ordered the spanish platter, a baked brie plate, and the madeira mushrooms to start. it was all so delicious! i loved all the flavors. the nibbling. the tasting. the trying of new flavors.
we conversed, drank, ate, and giggled. it was a really fun time. after experimenting and devouring our ordered samplings, we decided we wanted more! we then ordered the truffle bruschetta {oh em gee!}, and more samples of cheeses. the bruschetta was soooooo delicious! it was like eating little bites of heaven!
[cabs + shirah’s // me + o // the menu // the amaze bruschetta]
after several hours there, we finally parted ways. it was sooo bittersweet. this truly was the last time i would see miss olivia for at least a few months. we said our goodbyes to the girls and we hopped into her car. she drove me home, as per our mantra…we sat in the car and talked for another good, solid hour! it was a good and sad conversation. a colloquy that had to be had.
i will miss you immensely, i will miss our hours long lunches/dinner, i will miss your animated stories, i will miss your presence, i will miss your hugs, and i hope that you return home soon.
i was able to celebrate olivia’s birthday the other night! it was bittersweet due to the fact that she is moving away to the sunshine state {insert sad face}. it was one of my last nights with her here in chicago for awhile…until she comes back or until i visit!
it was the freakiest weather when i left my place! snowflakes the size of quarters were falling down and the wind was so strong {hello, it’s almost may}! i was in disbelief! i was walking to the restaurant…darn it! i was going to be drenched in wet snow! as i sashayed my way down the street, i was dreading the very short walk. then, as i crossed a street, barely three blocks into my parade, the snow literally stopped. quite an enigma. i mean, one moment it was heavily snowing and the next second…nothing was in the air!!!! what an anomaly to experience! it was like i stepped into another dimension! phew! i was glad it stopped…saved me from looking like a drowned rat when i arrived at the restaurant!
it was a full house. we were packed in like sardines. we started with apps and a bottle of wine. our server was quite interesting…he brought the bottle of wine over for me to taste, poured the girls each a glass {mind you, it was the messiest pour i had ever seen at a restaurant!}, and then never poured my glass! hello?! i prefer a fuller glass of wine! not just a tasting! hmph.
we ate our food and relished in each other’s company on this typical, crazy chicago weather night. our server did know it was olivia’s birthday but we were taken by surprise when he came out with a sparkler lit tiramisu cake! i was so surprised that i forgot to snap a picture of the lovely o {shucks!}.
[caitlin, o, + moi]
[happy birthday!]
[here’s a photo of the ‘cake’ i never took .. looks pretty similar 😉 ]
anyhoo, it was a fun, cozy night to celebrate the ever youthful liv. i hope your day is full of love, happiness, and fun! happy beurffday girl!
