Re: A much needed bREak

A friend recently commented to me,

"I think you're the only pregnant woman who will actually have
less on her plate after the baby arrives."

Don't get me wrong, I certainly don't expect a lot of rest and relaxation after she's born, but in a few other ways, I sure hope my friend is right! It has been a busy several months...

Luckily, we got to enjoy some of that R & R at a B & B in East Hampton last weekend, and checked off one of the items from the "Before the Baby Arrives" List,

6. Take a "Babymoon!" Even if it's just one night away, we gotta do it.

The only thing we had a lot of on our plates there was FOOD! Here are some other "R's" that we enjoyed:

Rejuvenating. Recuperating. Revitalizing. Reconnecting. Restoring. Rejoicing. Renewing. Retreating.

Who knew so many great words start with the letters "re?" We could come up with many more to describe our recent getaway to the 1770 House, but the above selection does a mighty fine job of summing up our time. Our three night trip was just wonderful- filled with lots of reading, talking, eating, celebrating, massages (!), and just being with each other. God has revealed an awful lot to us in this last year of marriage, more so than any other, and He has done some amazing work in our relationship. We are so grateful for where He has brought us, and where He continues to work in our lives, and this trip gave us such an important opportunity to reflect back on it all.

To commemorate some of the milestones, Steve had written numerous haikus for me, with a different focus on each day- the first day was in celebration of the completion of my degree, the second a celebration of our baby girl-to-be, and the third in honor of my birthday. It was pretty special, indeed. Here are just a few pics from our time:

Our Room

The Restaurant

First night at a delicious restaurant that we happened to hit during "Restaurant Week!"


Day Two: Steve's gifts celebrating our pregnancy

Day Two: Enjoyed a "couple's massage" and also lucked out that it was "spa week!"

Day Three: Despite the 30 degree temp, we couldn't resist a walk to the beautiful beach!

After a HUGE dinner thanks to my mommy and daddy's gift on my birthday

Check my Facebook page in a few days for more pics of our trip!

Another highlight and time of rejoicing this past month was a baby shower in NY hosted by some of my very sweet friends- BIG thanks to Desiree, Heather, Jessa, Lauren, and Shawna for putting it together, AND to my incredible friend, Sarah, who made the trip all the way down from MA to be there!!! It was an absolutely lovely time and I was so impressed and touched that so many sweet friends actually ventured out into the treacherous downpours (no lie- worst wind/rain I believe I have EVER been in... sigh) to celebrate with me.

Some pics from that joyous occasion!

Sweet onesies

The AMAZING hostesses: Heather, Lauren, Shawna, and Jessa (we missed you, Desiree!)

My INCREDIBLE Sarah

More SPECIAL, SPECIAL friends: Ginger, Katy, and Shawna

SWEET gals from our community group: Brooke, Whitney, Annie, Heather, and Radhika

The very GENEROUS gift spread!!!

It was a very special day. And again, if you want to see more pics from that, check my Facebook page!

This past month has also been filled with:

* finishing up childbirth/childcare classes

* more lessons out at Stony Brook

* many get togethers with friends

* organizing, preparing, and serving a meal of over 80 servings for residents of the Ronald McDonald House

* more sorting and organizing of our apartment

* a quick but great visit from my mom while she helped me get further along with #2 on the "List"

* a very cherished lunch with my Too-dad, Mary Catherine, my Aunt Viv, and my parents at the Waldorf Astoria




* a grand finale concert by my teacher, Carol Wincenc, where I joined in the huge flute choir for the last piece

* a big LOVE146 fundraising event that we couldn't make, but Steve was able to have two of his photos auctioned off

* the awesome and sacred Easter services with Apostles where we got to see my cousin Bill and his family (wife Lori, daughter Hanna, and Hanna's friend) and enjoy brunch with them during their visit to the city



While pretty much all of the above equal "fun times" and I'm so thankful for them all, I'm looking forward to some downtime with a more open calendar over this next week as Maelee's due date approaches.

But first, here are some more "checks" off the "Before the Baby Arrives" List:

8. Pregnancy photos - the for real kind with both of us. Steve couldn't talk me into doing a belly cast.

Well, by "the for real kind," I kinda meant professional, but as I'm constantly impressed by my hubby's mad photog skills, and he has actually been paid for some of his works, we figured why not save some dough and do our own? We had a beautiful setting outside the 1770 House and took advantage of the beautiful day (but FREEZING! As in, temps in the 30s.... sigh) so here are some of the faves (although, I couldn't convince him to get enough of US as I was hoping...):




9. Learn how to swaddle.

Much to Steve's dismay, this is in no thanks to the cat, but thanks to our "babycare" class. But he is trying to recruit the cat to get his diapering skills up to par.

10. Finally get new prescription glasses. I've been wearing the same pair that I got when I first needed glasses, in my senior year of high school. Scared. And they're ugly.

Ok, so they didn't end up being as cute as I was hoping, but again, gotta save the dough where we can.

I can't say we're "finished" with Maelee's room or organizing our apartment, but we sure are getting closer! And it's hard to tell if we'll make it to that Broadway show before she arrives... We'll see! The next post could very well be announcing her arrival! Stay tuned... :)