How our first prenatal class went…

The other day my husband and I drove to our first of many (oh so many) prenatal classes. It was three hours long. This course cost us a pretty penny (Bay Area Life I suppose….) and no wonder they don’t give refunds, because it was dumb. I was hoping it wouldn’t be. But no refunds = we’ll continue to go.

I also maybe embarassed myself a little bit during class since she asked everyone to answer out loud what their favourite thing of being pregnant was.

Me: I love how thick my hair has gotten, omgggggg
Every other gosh darn tootin’ person: Aw, I love feeling baby kicking.

Oops? Guess I probably shouldn’t have answered as one of the first people. But it’s true! I love how thick my hair feels, it doesn’t get greasy, and it’s just fantastic.

The instructor insured us she wasn’t going to get all hippy-dippy on us, but by the end we were all on the floor doing that hee-hee-hee-hoo breathing technique that no one uses during labor. I couldn’t even doing it because my husband and I were laughing too much. Luckily a ton of people in the class were also a bit foolish so we didn’t feel like complete jerks for laughing so hard at….mostly everything.

I made one Black Friday purchase and it was this denim vest from Recks & Relle, a shop I found on the explore page of Instagram. But for this OOTD today on the blog, I added an extra layer – the Shop Pink Blush cardigan which is honestly hands-down the best quality item I’ve received yet from them.

Sure horizontal stripes may make me look wider than what I am. But! I am huge fan of them, and I feel like all I do lately is wear grey, black or white striped tops in this pregnancy, with the exception of a few basic tops.

Debating why I thought it was a good decision to take some of these photos on the floor. Honestly it sounds so ridiculous but it’s quite difficult to get up off the floor – especially in the evenings. Where did my abs go? Why do they only work in the mornings and completely disappear at night? All these questions I have.

Long sleeved tops are my jam right now.

I feel so fancy in my monochrome outfit with my brilliant red velvet shoes that are under $15! What a deal. I even bought a backup pair because I’m crazy like that.

Wearing: 
Black Striped Fold Trim Maternity Cardigan ($45)
Target Black non-maternity long sleeved
H&M Mama Leggings (need to be replaced! They are starting to get holes!)
Velvet shoes

Lol pointing to the large and in charge belly, not the delicious iced coffee.

I’m going to see the Nutcracker Ballet soon, and I am totally eying up this Velvet Blazer from Pink Blush, too! I hope it’s on my list of items to choose as an Ambassador next time, eek! :)

Disclaimer: Huge thanks to my pal Megan for hooking me up with PinkBlush to be an ambassador with them too! As a PinkBlush Ambassador I get a point for each piece of clothing to review. Each time I post = 1 point. I did not receive monetary compensation for posting about the brand. 

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Where I buy maternity clothes

I suppose one of the most signature looks I have could also be classified as loungewear. I like to keep things pretty casual. I’m all about comfort.

I thought I’d show you where I’ve been shopping for the majority of my pregnancy (and I’m also including the places that have sent me stuff because some of the items are truly one’s I’d buy with my own money). I mean. Why promote it if I wouldn’t buy it with my own money, right?

Either way, my pal from back home, Bobbi requested I do a favourite store post, for maternity clothing. I’m a bit late to the game as I’m pretty sure she requested me to do this ages ago.

A lot of the stores here are definitely much more accesible here to me, as every store imaginable almost ships to USA residents. In Canada places are bad for customs (I’ve yet to see that here in the USA, maybe iut’s not even a thing? Can anyone claifry?)

Okay 28 weeks into the pregnancy. Wearing a ton of maternity clothing now, but still wearing a lot of non-maternity tops that I’ve purchased from Forever 21, and Target over the years – empire/flowy tops are my jam, and definitely come in handy with a belly.

For the pants, I’ve opted for only 2 maternity pairs, and I purchased them both from H&M. One is a pair of Mama Skinny Jeans ($3-0) and the other is a pair of $12 leggings. I ain’t gonna be squishin’ the belly with pre-preg jeans and be uncomfortable, when I have pants that literally go right up to my boobs. There’s no question about it – it’s comfort gold.

None of my jackets will zip up,  I fret that come January/February I’ll be super chilly but my husband suggested I just wear his larger jackets. Score. I’m not going to be buying a winter coat down here when I can simply wear his (for as long as I can). Then I’ll just have to get smart about the layering with scarves to keep my front warm.

The majority of my go-to shops for maternity wear: Target, H&M, Forever 21, and PinkBlush. I’m not one to spend a ton of money on clothing, because I almost always spill something on myself or ruin it quickly, and I don’t even go to fancy-pants places to invest in gorgeous silky tops for instance. Like I said, I have my comfort zone and I stick to it.

Here’s my new top from PinkBlush it’s the Black Striped Maternity Knot Sweater, and it’s super cozy and soft feeling.

Wearing:
PinkBlush Black Striped Maternity Knot Sweater ($36)
H&M Mama Super Skinny Maternity Jeans ($35)
Slippers + Starbucks (lol)

A few days ago I took Alfie to the park, just for a change of scenery. Oh, and random but someone asked me if I’m due soon. Does that mean she thought I was 9 months pregnant already? Hmmmmmm……..wonderful.

Disclaimer: Huge thanks to my pal Megan for hooking me up with PinkBlush to be an ambassador with them too! As a PinkBlush Ambassador I get 2 points for 2 pieces of clothing to review. Each time I post = 1 point. I did not receive monetary compensation for posting about the brand. 

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Pregnancy thoughts: first trimester (+OOTD)

The first trimester has come and gone, and that scary stage waiting until you hit that “safe mark” of 13-14 weeks is over. Unlike most, my first trimester was so uneventful. I had no symptoms at all. So, this post will be a short one, ha!

I kept everything on the down-low for so long, primarily because I wanted to make sure everything was honky-dory and moving along smoothly. That, and the fact it was still so surreal to me. Only last week I did my pregnancy announcement where I drove to Santa Cruz and had my friend take some announcement photos for me.

While most people think having zero pregnancy symptoms are a blessing, I thought quite the opposite! Until I returned home from our trip to Canada (where I was then ~8 weeks pregnant) I didn’t feel any different than my regular self. Zero aversions to anything, zero morning sickness. Zero symptoms. I wanted to feel… something. Although I’m generally a 100%  optimistic person who rarely feels stressed (lol), I was pessimistic each time I went for an ultrasound, and was happily surprised each time they said “and there’s the heartbeat”. The first time I heard it was the first and only time I got emotional about it, and teared up. I was all “Whoa that is not my heartbeat racing, is it?!”. It was pretty cool.

Week 9-10| This is when I started feeling fatigued. It was extreme to the point I was falling asleep sitting up talking to my husband. I napped up to 4 hours a day, and sleeping right through the night. I kept referring back to the 3 pregnancy apps on my phone when my husband told me that fatigue wasn’t normal. Sidenote: It’s real, and totally normal.

Week 11-12| Then around week 11, my nose started becoming more sensitive to smells. I could smell a physicians formula bronzer from about 6 feet away at GenBeauty SF, asking the sales associate if there was something coconut scented at the booth. Wild, right?

Week 13| A light switched in my body and I become so alert. The fatigue completely disappeared and I had so much energy I was waking up at 5-6am every day. Even in the middle of the night, completely wide awake at 2am, checking my phone for e-mails and scrolling on Instagram. Pregnancy is so weird.

Other than that, it’s honestly been pretty uneventful with the symptoms. I kept telling the Doctor that I was worried I had none. Everyone told me how lucky I was, but I hated hearing that — because no. No symptoms to me, meant no baby. At least with a symptom I could pair it up with the baby still being in there. Right? And oh my gosh avoid those pregnancy threads on your phone apps. Bad idea! So many horror stories.

Like I mentioned above, I haven’t had any aversions to food, nor any cravings. I did notice my nails feeling healthier and not chipping as easily. And what’s with the hair-thickness feeling? I don’t get why my hair feels thick. It’s obviously not thicker, but why does it feel thicker?

As for bump photos — I didn’t take any at all in the first trimester. As much as I was thrilled, I didn’t want to do anything to jinx it! So instead, here are some from this Monday (lol).

Wearing:
Pink Blush Grey Heathered Dolman Stitch Maternity Sweater ($36)
H&M Super Skinny Maternity Jeans ($34)
Fossil Campbell Crossbody ($138)
H&M faux-suede slip-on sneakers ($15)

 

Livin’ that decaf latte life. Ha!!

Disclaimer: Huge thanks to my pal Megan for hooking me up with PinkBlush to be an ambassador with them too! As a PinkBlush Ambassador I get 2 points for 2 pieces of clothing to review. Each time I post = 1 point. I did not receive monetary compensation for posting about the brand. 

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