Happy Anniversary To Us!!

You probably guessed by the title or perhaps you recall our super duper fun (or at least we like to think so) wedding, but today was our 1 year anniversary! It's amazing how time flies...but this really has been a great year. We have so much to look forward to and so much to be grateful for!

Chris actually started celebrating a couple days early by having a local bakery make us an anniversary cake. No, it didn't really resemble our actual wedding cake, but I can't even believe the man remembered the tradition of eating the top layer on your 1st anniversary. I mean I'm literally shocked! (We ate our top layer at our brunch the day after our wedding, which was totally the best thing we could have done with it!!)

Well, turns out they were closed on Mondays so we got cake early! What a great Husband! I'm planning on milkin' this anniversary thing for as long as possible.

And today I came home from work to beautiful flowers!

He actually marched his hiney in to the store to buy them for me (also very impressive considering he would rather buy things off the internet).

This is turning into a long-winded post that is boring to anyone but myself probably but I'll keep the attention on me for a little while longer. :) Big surprise, right?!

Tonight we went to our favorite restaurant in the area, Mattei's Tavern.

...We gorged ourselves on all kinds of delicious fare (my favorite mud pie ever!)

...At the end of our wonderful dinner were given a piece of paper that said our dinner had been paid for!

A HUGE thanks to Mom & Dad Richey for the ridiculously sweet and generous thought. It was a surprise we wouldn't have expected in a million years!

(I have yet to figure out how they actually found the restaurant considering it's spelling and in-the-boonies location)...

And for your viewing pleasure, a picture of the two of us (Chris is getting to be a pro at holding the camera himself)

Before I say goodnight, I want to know who the wise guy is that thinks we're gonna have a 10+ pounder...and no, I'm not talking about fish. (see poll at left).

Fifi's Room!

Sooo this weekend Baby Daddy and I spent hours in the lovely 100+ degree heat getting Chloe's room ready for her big debut... (I think the gas mask is in preparation for the infamous diaper changes...)

I actually had a lot of fun!

(You can see I'm not the only one!)

There are still a few things to do to get the room ready to actually decorate, but it's much closer now!

Before

Before

TaaaDAAA!
Awww. I'm getting so excited! Poor Chris moved out the last of his computers from her room yesterday (into our bedroom of course)...

I'm sure it feels real to him now that he's given up his man room!

Fathers Day

So I know it's late, but happy belated Fathers Day to all of you dads out there!! We had a pretty full house this weekend...well...full of testosterone at least. Chris's dad and my dad both came to go fishing...and Harley even tagged along!! Gosh he's cute! He took a liking to napping in Chloe's room.

For fathers day, the dads got Wii's (mine also caught a cold along with lots of fish on Saturday)... Evidently he had fun being the tough guy using the crappy fishing pole that was extra work... ironically enough word from the fishermen is that he caught the most fish of them all!!

And as a father/daughter bonding experience we planted a container garden out on our back patio. It's so cute; I can't wait to see if anything actually grows (I have a brown thumb unlike my dad's side of the family).

Hmm...let's see... that's about all the updating I have for ya now... Not very exciting, I know...

2 posts in one day!?

Yes.

That's right. You're all blessed with 2 posts today.

However, this one is about Restoration Hardware. They have copied our bedding!

...AND stolen our babys name (see blanket)!!

(If only our nursery looked like that finished!)

Their new baby line is just way too cute to go unmentioned.

Look at their ridiculously cute moses baskets!!


















If you just can't help but drool over deliciously overpriced baby supplies... be sure to check out http://www.rhbabyandchild.com/


(No, unfortunately I don't get anything for mentioning them!)

Someone please take my credit cards and cut them up. It is officially over. I should be locked up for the next few months ...well... no... indefinitely; 3 months wouldn't be long enough.

Time To Post?

So I guess It's been a while since my last post. After Monterey, it seems like there hasn't been anything exciting to write about. Chris has started classes again (he probably won't be caught smiling again until August when this round of classes is over) ... and my new boss has become my old boss and quit. We'll be onto 4 bosses in just a little over 2 years. We're getting a reputation for being mean! Oh well, I guess our 'babysitters' just can't handle our spunk.

Time seems to be flying by and I can't believe we're about 28 weeks along now. Chloe has her quiet days and then she has her busy days where she is a ferocious mover/kicker and sometimes I'm worried she's going to just kick right on out. She's also much higher, she's been spotted moving waaay above my belly button now.

While on the subject of belly buttons, I'll let you in on some useless knowledge ... I still have an innie! How about everyone keeps their fingers crossed for us on that one??

We're getting more and more excited to meet Chloe and we're slowly starting to realize how different life is going to be soon... While watching baseball the other night I looked at Chris and said, "Do you realize that Chloe will be here watching the World Series WITH us?!" And I don't mean next years WS, I mean this years!!

Speaking of baseball, this last weekend Chris and I went to see the Santa Maria Indians play. They're a collegiate league team in our city. Not great, definitely not like true Southern California baseball, but still entertaining (and we didnt' even need binoculars).

Ok. Enough Boring talk about our lives. Perhaps I'll be more inclined to entertain you later in the week?

Happy Birthday To ME!

We just got back from Monterey and gosh did we have fun! It's also now official that I am a whopping 24 years old and almost 27 weeks pregnant (yes, we're entering our 3rd trimester now!)

We stayed at a new hotel in Monterey - the Intercontinental Clement Monterey. It was gorgeous and HUGE (it took up both sides of Cannery Row for almost a block!) They haven't been open long enough to get all of the kinks worked out, but it was still truly amazing. With all the pictures we took, I can't believe that I didn't get a single one of our hotel! I guess we'll have to go back...
We had fun reliving memories from previous trips while making new ones. We even went back to the aquarium for a trip down memory lane! (and shared a delicious sundae at Ghiradelli).

We spent a good chunk of today just meandering our way home along the 1, making various stops along the way. My favorite was the infamous Julia Pfeiffer Burns state park.

I've decided it's my favorite place in the entire world.

I could have spent all day there.

Our last stop of the day was San Simeon to see the Elephant Seals (what seems like 8 million of them). It's so neat to be able to get so close; they're amazing creatures!! See the two flirting in the water? :)

Almost Time!

... For our trip to Monterey! I love that we have a "place" (it's no Aruba, but it does the trick) - we already have lots of fabulous memories (our first vacation was there...AND we got engaged there!). This time tomorrow I'll be dining on something delicious with an ocean view!!
I got my results back today and actually PASSED my Gestational Diabetes test. I was surprised but what a huge relief! I'm a sugar/carb junkie now... what would I do if they cut me off? I am, however, low on iron which is a little annoying... I now have to take iron Pills in addition to prenatals. Yucky! Oh well. It's worth it!

Have a fabulous weekend... When we get back I'll be another year older! Yikes.

99 Days!!

Yup. That's right. I thought that deserved a post. We officially have 99 days to go. It's a huge landmark that I honestly didn't think we'd ever get to but now that we're here, the days and weeks seem to be flying by! That could be due to the fact that we've been busy every single weekend lately.

This is the point at which I must comment on our busy Memorial Day weekend. My sister and her 2 daughters were visiting from Boston so we made the (5 hour!) trek to the Orange County to be fully-immersed in kid-city. We had an 8 month old, a 1.5 yr old, a 3.5 yr old and a pregnant whale present. And I mean that in the nicest way. It was so much fun interacting with all three of our nieces and learning their personalities. I hate that we don't live closer, I miss my sister tons! My family also had a nice birthday dinner for me complete with Sprinkles cupcakes and gifts (it's been a few years since we've all been together for my birthday...so fun!) Oh yeah... I can't forget to mention that Chris found himself a little girlfriend in our 8 month old niece who literally could not look away from him... she reserved her good behavior and googly eyes for him. (yes, the same man that swore up and down to me that he scared babies). The weekend really did go way too fast.

So, for anyone behind on Chloe's developments, this past weekend was the first time we were able to see her move from the outside. She started going crazy Saturday night while I was lying in bed and Chris and my dad were playing drunken Wii bowling (meaning he missed the really crazy movements but caught some smaller ones). I'm pretty sure we lost track of Christopher's margaritas at #8... evidently he's a big hit smashed... Anyway - Chloe is obviously getting strong and I'm growing more uncomfortable by the hour...but it's all worth it. Today I also got to drink the fabulous sugar drink to test for Gestational Diabetes. Let's all cross our fingers they don't cut me off from delicious sugary treats!! I would probably wilt. Or at least Cry.

I hope everyone had as much fun this last weekend as we did... I was so sad this morning at work when I looked at the clock and realized it was 7:00 and my sisters plane was on it's way down the runway back to Boston... We'll have to take Chloe out to visit them next!

I Think We Have A Winner!

Sooo Chris and I toured a hospital last night and found a winner!

Now I'm not going to call myself a nut-and-berry kinda gal,

...but I wanted to have Chloe in a setting where they don't push medical interventions on you but let you do things as you'd like.

They even assured me that there would be a supply of Popsicles upon request!

Initially we thought we only had one hospital we could deliver at but it looks like we are able to go to French Hospital's Family Birthing Center in San Luis Obispo...

and YES...

I'm sure I'll have an epidural but they offer a lot of the options I'd been hoping for (some rooms have labor tubs, they don't require constant monitoring, there isn't a maximum amount of time you can labor, etc.) and the nurse that gave us our tour was fabulous. She answered a lot of my questions and put to rest most of my fears about having a C-Section if it came down to that. I can't believe the anxiety I have about being left to recover without Chris OR Chloe if I had a C-Section...

I'm not completely over it but the hospital is small and just had a very homey feel, a far cry from it's more modern behemoth counterpart which was our alternate option. So that's that. For Chris' sake, please pray I'm not a raving lunatic on the 1/2 hour drive to the hospital...

Fess Parker

Mom and I had a great Mothers Day weekend together at the Fess Parker Resort. It was even better than I could have expected! Our room was AMAZING and the company couldn't have been better. We got our fill of Eggs Benedict and baby shopping and she even found a few scarves she loves! Please enjoy these pictures - Can you believe how great moms Stuffed French Toast looks?? It was even tastier than it looks! I had bundles of fun - can't complain when I'm getting spoiled by my mom!

My Brand New Motherly Do!

...Hair-Do that is !...

We've officially made it to 24 weeks today and to show off my excitement, I got my hair did! Haha. It's been getting great reviews and was MUCH needed. I sat down in the stylists chair and I think I frightened her. Evidently I was looking very 'motherly' already - AKA - Lookin' like crap. Oh dear. At least she covered all the gray hair!! Please forgive the creepy picture... I promise better pictures to come, especially after our Birthday/Anniversary/Babymoon trip we have planned to Monterey May 30th-June 1st!!! We're both getting so excited to get away for a weekend alone.

Happy (Early) Mothers Day! ...And Lots More.

I know it's early but I won't be around to say Happy Mothers Day since I'll be vacationing at the *gorgeous* Fess Parker Resort on the waterfront in Santa Barbara for a couple days with my very own Mamacita! I'm very excited to catch up with her.

As we get farther and farther along in this pregnancy I reflect more and more on my own relationship with my mom and want so badly to have a fabulous relationship with my own daughter. It just puts into perspective the whole mother/daughter thing.

It took 23 years but I am finally able to look at my relationship with my mom from the other side and I am finally coming to understand just how strong and unconditional a mothers love really is! It's amazing how Fifi isn't even here and I'd do anything in the entire world to give her the best chance at happiness and success in life; I can't wait to tell her that I'm her biggest supporter! (My mom was good at that one...she was also great at cheering me on during games from the sidelines, much to my pre-teen and teenage dismay!). This mothers day will be my last quiet one for a long time and I'm sure I'll spend a good portion of it reflecting and looking forward to the future and all the good times (and perhaps frustrating times) that having Fifi will bring to our family.

Other odds and ends...

I think Chris is getting more and more excited on a daily basis...
We were at Trader Joes after dinner tonight and he keep looking down at the cookies I had in my hand oddly (I swore he was thinking that I don't need to consume any more cookies), so finally I said, "WHAT are you staring at?!" He said, "It's just that...You really look pregnant now... There's definitely a Fifi in there!" Uhhh DUH! Silly boy. Needless to say, he didn't stop looking. Then...(and this could have been the margarita talking) he put his hand on my stomach and rubbed it...

WHAT is THIS?!

PDA in Trader Joes?! How very un-christopher-like! Haha.

Ok. SO it could have been his 2nd El Presidente margarita talking.

He's getting so cute about Fifi and it is so fun to watch as he comes to recognize Fifi as being real and tangible. I had been worried it might take him until I'm either looking like a total whale or even until she was born... So I'm definitely looking forward to the next 4 *quiet* months with him in our unborn parental bliss. Not to mention the John Mayer concert that I bought tickets for when I'll be 34 weeks along. The concert will take place in the armpit of California at the end of July in Paso Robles (well above 100 degree temps on a daily basis during summer)...miserable much, Jen?? Haha. I can't wait!!

Chris thinks we'll get more room this way as nobody will want to be near a woman who looks like she is about to "explode at any moment". Thanks Dear.

This post and the entire blog for that matter jumps everywhere and is quite random, but I explained to Chris the other day (although he still thinks I'm crazy I'm sure), that I want to make sure I write down as much as I can so that I have a way to look back on this pregnancy. This blog is as much for me as it is for keeping everyone who is so far away in the loop!

Which reminds me, the last couple of weeks Chloe has really been going to town and kicking up a storm. They started as little flutters at first but now she can easily be felt kicking from the outside (Chris even felt her last week!). She's an early bird like her mommy too; She is squirming by 5:30 AM on my drive into work!


Anyway - if you made it this far in the post, it's about to get ugly. I try not to write too much about work because it's made this pregnancy pretty stressful but this weekend will be a much needed girls getaway following a CRAZY week at work ... to those of you who don't know, Chloe's adopted Aunt Sandee (my fabulous co-worker whom I've come to LOVE and look up to as a mentor) resigned due to some ugly issues surrounding recent changes and a falling out with our new director. I can't say I blame her and I will try to remain impartial for the sake of the blog but it's a huge loss for the surgery center. We've had countless (repeat) patients in the last few days that are devastated to hear we lost Sandee and I keep expecting her to walk through the door or to see her car coming down the street in the dark at 5:45 am on our way to work like I have so many times in the past. I will stop here, but I have to admit the pregnancy hormones are making this really hard to deal with. I seriously feel like I should get my 3 days of grievance pay for losing a loved one!! (Funny thing is most of the people where we work feel the same way)...

Thanks for sticking it out through the long post. I hope you all enjoy your Mothers Day weekend and if you're a mother I hope you get spoiled rotten on Sunday and if you're a husband with a baby named Chloe on the way... thanks for the peanut shell sling someone I know got early for mothers day. It's ridiculously fun to wear stuffed with baking goodies as a pretend baby!

I WANT TO BUY IT ALL!

You heard me!!! I want to buy EVERYTHING I see that is made for babies! My rationale behind this is that well... we NEED lots of things for her...right?? Ok...bad rationale, I know....

For example... I'm currently stumped as to which of the burp rags on the following site I want to buy: http://www.yourbabysroom.com/EmbellishedRags.html
I know I'm going to make a purchase but they're ALL so cute! How do you decide?? What is Chris's response to my inability to decide on which ones I want to have made for Chloe you might ask? "Why do you have to get a fancy one, she's just going to barf on it!" Silly boys! Our princess will have nothing but the finest BARF rags :)

So in more tangible Fifi Purchase news... My fabulous hubby decided to humor me and buy me a Peanut Shell Sling for Mothers Day! (Considering I'm already being kicked around by babycakes I think this should count as my first mothers day!) And Look! It's not pink!!...



Maybe I'll try it out with a bag of flour when it comes. :)

OH yeah! And in HUGE purchase news, we made our biggest (and hopefully last large) baby purchase... Our Glider!! WOOHOO!

What an interesting adventure...

Chris went with me (which should worry everyone immediately because not only were we going shopping but it was BABY Shopping, not even Best Buy shopping) but in the end all was well... Minus the fact that he made me cry in the store...Just kidding. Kinda.

So in any case, I had pretty much decided which chair I want and my heart set on a fully upholstered glider that was also a recliner, but when we got to the store, not only did Chris hate it (He'd LOVE a crusty ole granny rocker if he had his choice I think), but he made me realize that there was NO way my HUGE, ridiculously comfy chair would go up our stairs and then gave me a detailed story of how I'd be going up and down the stairs in the wee hours of the morning with Fifi and he didn't think it was safe...blah blah blah... (Ok, ok...so the man had a point)...

Chair that got the boot:


End Result: I gave up my big comfy chair dream and we came to a really fabulous middle of the road conclusion where we were both quite happy and in just 6-9 short weeks (which in the baby furniture industry means 12-16 weeks), we'll have a gorgeous micro-fiber chocolate brown glider with ottoman!! I'm so darn excited.

Chair that Triumphed!

I <3 Kelly.

Dear Roomie. I miss you and had so much fun with you this weekend! I hope we get another girls weekend soon, I know Chloe is dying to spend more time with you.

I miss Margaritas and Steaks with you.

I miss Margaritas period.

I miss you period!

Love, Your Bestest, Favoritiest Roomie Ever.

This past weekend I went to Saratoga to visit my old roomie Kelly (Aunt Kelly)! Not only did we get in a FULL day of shopping at the fabulous Stanford mall but I also got to spend her birthday with her!!! We went to a comedy club which was a blast and I guess that I just don't realize how much I LOVE Kelly and need her in my life until we see each other. It's like we were never apart! Seriously - I have this amazing friendship with Kelly that nobody has ever come close to ... Point is, I had more fun than you would even know! We had such fun adventures, only got lost a few times, bought a houseplant that was dubbed "George", made fabulous funfetti cupcakes with cream cheese frosting (she's the best baker ever!) AND MORE!


Please enjoy the blurry pictures from our weekend!

What is this?!

Soo...I was feeling guilty today about not having anything exciting or adorable to post about ...

(and despite the request for a belly shot, I won't subject anyone to one of those at this point)

Anyway...

As Chris and I sat on the couch tonight, Chris begins telling me how BIG Fifi is getting (by Fifi he means Jen's Huge a** expanding waistline...in the nicest way of course), when the doorbell rang!!

What is this?!



Could it be something new to post about?!! Why YES, It is!!!


Let the record show that today, Chloe got her first ever very own package in the mail from her cousin Ashley (and her mommy and daddy of course).


You won't believe just how cute the goodies she got are! ... ok... ok.... ya got me; if you know Tracee and Ashley's taste, you won't be surprised at the cute factor of her very first set of towels... and they're monogrammed! OK. Stop blabbing and show the pics already, jen!




OMG. Stop it. Do you see the ridiculously cute caterpillar?! Get.Out.Now.

You have GOT to be kidding me!

Technically we're 20 weeks now and according to a very trusted source (thenestbaby.com), Chloe is now the size of a cantaloupe!

I just can't believe it...although I am starting to look like I swallowed a big melon, it really doesn't seem possible.

I've been having so much fun buying little things for Fifi., I can't wait to harass her with her cute outfits and cuddle with her in her soft blankets... but all the excitement that I have towards her arrival just makes me realize how precious the time I have right now with Chris is.

It seems like once September comes, it'll be a million years before we get to sleep in or just laze around on the weekends, and lately I've been having a lot of dreams about vacationing - (perhaps because deep down I know that I'm going to have to live vicariously through my vacation dreams for a long time since there aren't any in the cards for us) - I had the most amazing time in Aruba in my dream last night, it was so REAL! I've heard you'll have crazy dreams while you're pregnant and I'm sure that wasn't what they meant but I'm not going to complain!! The only downside was waking up to my alarm at 5:45 am...Aruba doesn't have alarm clocks!

Haha. In any case., I'm sure it'll be an adventure and I know we'll love the ride...especially if we can steal away to Aruba again...but maybe this time we'll bring Fifi since Chris has already looked at me like I was a crazy lady when I brought up the idea of vacationing sans Chloe. I'd think that after a year or so he'd be able to let go for a week or so...right?? Who am I kidding; she'll have him wrapped around her little finger.

As Promised...

As promised in my post earlier this morning...Pictures of Ollie the Octopus and Lulu the Lamb...imagine us toting these throughout the Mission Viejo Mall! (fat chance, ha!) We had the store take them out the back way and inconspicuously put them into our car...however, we didn't know until we got home that they were facing backwards and everyone that drove by us (in Newport Coast, nonetheless) could clearly see them! They must have thought we were nuts!!

Ollie the Octopus and Ashley... and Ollie with Tracee... I wonder who we REALLY bought Ollie for??

Pictures of our goods!! (on a side note, we bought a fabulous dresser/changing table today on a whim!), AND... our Crib is in!!! (We just have to pick it up!) Could it get any better?!

Here's Lulu the Lamb on our dresser which is displaying some of Chloe's new outfits!! It's such a treat going to all the uppity stores for baby clothes shopping!...like tracee said it's like skid row for crack addicts! True dat.

Please note the adorable polka dot dress and her chic coat (below) for when she visits Ashley and Tracee! The back has the most ridiculous bow and pleats. Get out of town.

Ok... Perhaps I can make Chris go get the crib now...

Baby Shopping WOOHOO!

So don't be disappointed that there aren't any pictures in this post... but I just had to tell you how much fun I had FINALLY being able to shop for Fifi! I went to Orange County over the weekend and had a fabulous time visiting my sister and adorable little Ashley as well as my parents! I can't believe how cute (and HUGE) Ashley has gotten!! She's such a ham and loves to dance on her tippy-toes like a ballerina!

So, to recap some of the fabulous finds of the weekend... I must first note that Grandma and Grandpa Richey bought Chloe's Bedding! I'm so excited for the crib to get here now and set it all up and take pictures!! SO CUTE.

Let's see...we also got a TON of adorable clothes... AND my sister took me to register at Babies R Us! It was so much fun using the gun (although my trigger finger hurt afterwards!)...

And my (i mean Chloe's) blanket collection is growing!! Haha. Yes... I have to admit I'm jealous that she's being showered with so many adorable things...although technically I am the one who gets to play dress up on her!!

I'll post pictures of our Lulu/Ollie adventure soon... Oversized chairs in the shape of animals from Babystyle are hilarious! (so is my sister sitting in a chair made for a 2 year old). Oh geez.

Oh My!

It's a......

FIFI!

Her cute little name will be Chloe Lynn!

YAY!

I am so so excited!!!

..Girls are just So darn easy to buy cute clothes for!!

We Took The Big Plunge!

Well...We did it... That's right, we took the big plunge...

... And bought our Crib!

Haha. Not what you were expecting, was it?! After weeks of oogling over cribs, we decided on our favorite, it got fabulous reviews and was a great price!! Can't beat that, can ya?

Here's a pic of our newest addition (which will be arriving in just a few weeks!)

It also converts to a full-size bed, it's nice to think it might last that long, but it's probably wishful thinking!