Hey folks! It’s the weekend again! Not that it really matters for me – the days also have melted into one. BUT, I can still be excited because it does mean that Evs is home for the next two days and he can help alleviate some of my boredom free time.
I am plodding along and literally waiting for baby to arrive. My due date is in about a week (Easter Monday in fact), so every post could be my LAST. Duh duh DUH.
(Yep, I like to be dramatic somewhat).
Despite my lack of internet, I have painstakingly gathered some links that I have read over the last week and that caught my eye. I hope you enjoy them too!
For those people who aren’t really into heavy breakfasts – typically with either some sort of grain or bread – Maria over at Econest has some ideas to switch it up without getting all blah. Bonus – sugar-free as well.
I was looking at this list and thinking I should have known half of these things while I was in my corporate job. A great post for any professional woman with career tips from the most successful women in the world. My favourite – “Forget the ladder, climb the jungle gym”.
A beautiful post that reminds me that everyone’s love language is different. So Evs might not be a classically romantic guy, but he shows love in a different way.
I am really, really wishing I could go along to this – but alas small thing called a baby will be here. Melbourne peeps – if you are free – I’d highly recommend it. These girls are amazing.
With Winter coming upon us (and thus the shorter days and lack of natural light!) and the urge to take better photos (it’s half the reason I don’t post many recipes – Instagram can only do so much lol) – I’m considering building my own light box. Here’s a great tutorial on how to DIY one of your own.
Did you hear about Lululemon’s recall on their new line of yoga pants because they were too sheer?? Jimmy Kimmel give us his (hilarious) opinion on it through this video about the yoga pant shortage.
Also, given my sporadic blogging – for the first baby news you’re more likely to catch me on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
The biggest challenge of this pregnancy (besides the lack of wine and the insane heat!) has been finding clothes to wear that a) fit and b) actually look okay. I’ve been primarily subsisting on my pre-pregnancy skinny black jeans which transitioned to fitting, to being held together with a hair-tie to finally being used with a belly belt (and extender for your buttons). That doesn’t mean I’m not in constant fear that my fly is undone.
In this heat (seriously Summer, I love you, but I’m over it!), my at-home uniform consists of mismatched shorts and whatever shirt I can find that fits over my belly. Bra is optional these days.
So, when Elena from DCinstyle contacted me (through Instagram!!) about being part of her maternity style collaboration series, I jumped at the chance to see if I could pull off something that would be fit to be seen in public at this late stage of pregnancy. Elena is a talented artist and has been rocking some amazing maternity style throughout her pregnancy. And I have to be honest, what I really wanted was an awesome picture of me done by her.
How cute is this??!!
OMG – her cat reminds me of Mad Cat from Inspector Gadget. So cute!
Check out Elena’s blog for more of her fabulous look!
I struggled a little bit to find something in my wardrobe that I fit into at 37 weeks pregnant, but I found this non-maternity dress at the back of my closet (thank god for stretch!!) and even managed to pull on some heels for the photos.
Can you tell I want baby to come NOW?
I am no fashion blogger and Evs got tired of asking me to try and not look like the Joker when smiling. So this is what you get. Excuse the tired face – it was still 37 degrees at that point in evening and I was hungry.
What a fun exercise and it did well to pull me out of my rut. Wishing you all the best Elena for the rest of your pregnancy! xx
Ahhh it’s been a relaxing, lazy, super-soaked in sunshine and love and the magical possibility of the new year kind of break. I’m a bit late posting this (and have week 27 to post tomorrow!) but I’m sure you don’t mind. Sunshine and ice-cream must come first, no?
How I’m feeling? Getting tired again. It’s hit me all of a sudden, this fatigue and I find myself taking my time to go up the stairs slowly or even putting on pants take effort. You do not want to know the state of my toenails. Yeesh.
Fitness? Swimming, walking and prenatal yoga. I do this yoga routine a few times a week in the morning and it really does help me. I’m toying with the idea of the prenatal Vinyasa one I can do because my bones and heart aches for a good, sweaty yoga class but my body is telling me to ease up and stick with the stretching. My back thanks me every time I do it as well. Swimming has been awesome – especially in this heat, although it also means that the local pool is full of kids (also because it’s school holidays) and they kinda annoy me.
Can I say that?? I mean, I know I’m about to have my own kid, but seriously some of this little monsters need taming. Especially when they randomly come swimming into my lane despite them having THREE play areas AND a massive aqua play area in the big pool. I’ve nearly missed being kicked in the stomach several time coz of these kids.
Weight? Oh vey. Getting off the couch is at least a half-hour exercise and my belly seems to be stretching beyond belief. Those faint stretch marks I had right at the start are starting to show a bit more as well despite my generous slathering of Bio-Oil.
How I’m changing? I’m getting excited – the third trimester is just around the corner and that means the home stretch for me. I also find myself getting really protective of my belly, especially when I dared to negotiate the crazy shopping centres after Christmas. Not worth it. Although I did manage to pick up two cheapish sunglasses at 50% off, a new diary and monthly planner and some sheets etc for the baby’s bassinet.
What I miss? Sushi. It would be THE perfect summer meal right now. However, I do have Ev’s talent in making Vietnamese rice paper rolls and that’s just as good.
Symptoms? Back pain. It ACHES. I can’t sit still for too long. Or walk for too long. I feel like I need to be having a constant back massage.
Cravings? Hmm…cherries are awesome. But then again it’s been more like – if I see something, my mind immediately goes “Oooh I wouldn’t mind that” about a hundred times a day. I’m an advertiser’s dream right now.
Aversions? Nothing major.
Highlights this week? NEW YEAR’S EVE. We are hosting and it promises to be an awesome night of family and fun
Another week flown by and another week closer to Christmas and the end of the year! I’m getting excited for both and then slightly panic as I realise that
a) I still have a shitload of work to do in my last week of work
b) I haven’t done all my Christmas shopping yet.
I drove out to rural Victoria during the week and came back yesterday, buggered as hell after a long day. I was hoping to leave work early as we had our Christmas party on that night and I was still in half-minds about going (not so fun when everyone around you is pleasantly buzzed and you’re way too sober to be making small talk with random colleagues). I went a visited a friend who is also pregnant and due very soon and we had a great catchup, exchanging pregnancy stories and me stuffing my face with her home-baked gingerbread cookies. Delish.
I then went home and promptly collapsed onto the couch. There was no way I was getting up now. So I spent my evening with Evs and a pizza, while listening to the rain outside and feeling glad I wasn’t traipsing the streets of the city in heels and watching in horror as my hair frizzed.
This weekend is about tying things up. I have a number of things I’ve been wanting to get through and my house has also been feeling quite neglected in the cleaning department. I hate cleaning the house (especially bathrooms!) but I always feel better after it is done.
AND, I still am getting through a pile of books, so will make time to read. And perhaps see if I can replicate my friend’s delicious Gingerbread Cookies.
For your reading pleasure this weekend:
“Females are not only missing from popular media, [but] when they are on screen, they seem to be there merely for decoration.” An interesting article with some surprising stats on how women and girls are portrayed in Hollywood.
Gah. As it gets hotter, the inclination to wear makeup gets smaller. That being said, I DO have my routine and it is a bit of a comfort thing for me. However, my goal is to one day be able to NOT wear makeup every day (not just on the weekends when I’m bumming around). If you have been thinking about it as well, here’s 5 reasons and benefits of not wearing makeup.
Michelle Bridges is kind of my hero. She’s the Jillian Michaels of the Australian BiggestLoser, but more than that, she has this no-nonsense style that simultaneously scares me and inspires me. Here are her top 10 tips for healthy eating.
Ever wondered what it would be like if guys and girls switched roles at the gym?? I nearly peed a little when I saw this hilarious video. One thing though – I so don’t check out my own butt in the mirror at the gym. Well, maybe a little.
Um, I still can’t get those gingerbread cookies out of my mind. Until I stumbled across these Gingerbread CUPCAKES. Very tempted to make these. There is nothing better than Christmas baking.
With Christmas around the corner, the insane amount spent of gifts can kinda get of control. I wish I could be the kind of person that could craftily make something special for people, but alas, my crafting skills suck. Never fear though – this post over from Yes and Yes has some super awesome, totally doable DIY gifts that even a crafty noob can get on board with.
We all have that one friend that seems to be perpetually angry with the world. I’ve spent many a frustrating moment trying to help and realised probably I haven’t been. While I was just about at a loss, I came across this post from Vienda Maria on the 4 lessons we learn when dealing with angry friends. It just made so much more sense.
Hello friends! It’s been a quiet week on the blog for me due to being slammed at work. As much as I haven’t been wanting to, there have been inevitable days of working late into the night after coming home from the office that have left me not-no-motivated to then spend more time on the computer. I think the clincher was yesterday where I had back-to-back meetings from 8:30am to 3pm, after which I came home and collapsed into a bowl of icecream.
Christmas is definitely in the air and we have also finally put up our Christmas tree as well. We have a non-traditional tree that is all white from one shopping trip soon after Evs and I were married and we decided to brave the shops at 2am when they had their pre-Christmas all-night shopping. Astoundingly, it was packed and after wondering what people were actually DOING there at the shopping centre when most sane people are asleep, we picked this tree up and got the hell out of there.
Pretty tree.
Summer has truly arrived with hot, hot days over the weekend and going into the next week. I am going to make the most of it by wearing as little as possible and eating copious amounts of watermelon and mango and sitting on the deck to just relax and read.
And for you, some links around the web this week:
I love Ashley’s simple take on Christmas this year for gift-giving – 4 inexpensive gifts for your special someone – something they want, something they need, something they wear and something they read. Here’s her gift guide for him and her.
An awesome post over at Yes and Yes with a 2-step plan for getting what you want. For me – my social life has taken a bit of a beating this year and I’m ready for some new adventures.
I can go on about the lessons that yoga teaches us, both on and off the mat. But here is a post from Thought Catalog that sums it up nicely.
One of my favourite blogs to read is Dear Baby, even way before I had thoughts of children. I fell in love with Melissa’s writing and her beautiful, free-spirited family and as it has grown, I feel like I’ve been there on the journey with her. This post, about never being able to go home again struck true for me. A must-read.
I bought a dry body brush a few months ago and it has become part of my daily routine, before I shower. Why do I do it? (Well one reason, it’s a great reliever of my itchy belly hahaha) Here’s a great post from Melissa at Path to Wellness that lists 13 reasons to dry body brush every day.
I’ve been getting into a bit of a breakfast rut and because of that I’ve been forced (yes, FORCED) to eat bagels with cream cheese a fair few times too often. (DELCIOUSLY forced). I came across this great recipe from Dixya at Food, Pleasure & Health and immediately thought this is genius. Dessert for breakfast? Don’t mind if I do. (Also made her Caramalised Onions & Chicken pizza for dinner this week and it was amazing. Try.)
