Happy 2020, y’all! It’s What’s Up Wednesday with Shay and Sheaffer! I missed last month because things were a little crazy around here (I’ll explain a little more later), but I’m glad to be back with a little life update now that we’re finally (finally!) wrapping up January!
What We’re Eating…
Monday- Steven had been wanting enchiladas at Abuelo’s for a few weeks, so we drove to College Station! (And it was delicious!)
Tuesday- Chicken spaghetti, green beans and garlic bread
Wednesday- leftover chicken spaghetti
Thursday- roast with carrots and potatoes
Friday- we are headed out of town!
What I’m Reminiscing About…
I think I’ve mainly been comparing where we were this time two years ago to where we are now pregnancy wise. It’s not a super fair comparison since I’m two months behind chronologically, but it’s the same kind of anticipation of rolling into the spring ready for a new baby!
What I’m Loving…
I got some great new things for Christmas that I have really been loving! Steven bought me this handheld vacuum (that I asked for and really, really wanted!) and I have absolutely loved it! It is a total game changer as far as cleaning up after a toddler!
I got this overnight bag and it is really roomy and cute! I’m planning to use it as my hospital bag when we have Henry. I’m also loving this Revlon paddle brush hair dryer– I know everyone is raving about the round brush option, but I didn’t want something adding volume to my hair- I have enough of that on my own, haha! It doesn’t completely do the job for me, but I can use it to dry my hair pretty straight and do minimal touch ups with my hair straightener. I think it leaves my straight hair shinier and smoother!
What I’ve Been Up To…
Well, like I mentioned off the top, in addition to the normal craziness and commotion of the holiday season, about a week before Christmas, we very suddenly lost my sweet grandmother.
Those were taken at about 6 months ago at her 75th birthday party- she was so, so proud of her first great grandbaby! She hadn’t been feeling well for a week or two prior, but had not been ill otherwise so we were all a little blindsided by her death, honestly. She and my grandpa had been married for 57 years, and I think the hardest part of all it has been seeing him by himself- they just went together, and you didn’t have one without the other. We know she’s in the best place, but it’s been hard here without her trying to move on. She was the sweetest Godly woman, and an example I looked up to my whole life.
I never went to day care growing up- I stayed with my grandma from the time I was six weeks old when my mom went back to work until kindergarten, and we went everywhere together- to get her hair done once a week, to deliver the Avon orders she sold (she was an Avon lady most of my childhood and loved taking care of all her ladies), to the grocery store, etc, as well as watching Days of Our Lives everyday, haha! Despite being one of the girliest and always put together ladies I knew, she loved the outdoors, and would take us fishing and horseback riding at their land through the summers every year by herself while my grandpa was working- she was a pro at baiting a hook and saddling a horse with her manicured nails and coordinating outfit. I cherish all the time I had with her so much as her only granddaughter, and I absolutely hate that my daughter doesn’t get the same time with her, but am thankful for the time she did get. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Livy suddenly developed a serious attachment to the Frozen blanket Mommom specifically picked out for her first birthday around the time we lost her. We’re all clinging to our pieces of her a little tighter now. We all wore little touches of purple for her service since that was her favorite color, and it was nice to bring in a little brightness, just like she did.
Our Christmas plans changed a little because of this, and we did Christmas on our own a few days before. Livy got a play kitchen, a few new books, some clothes, and these sassy new red boots that look just like some her daddy had when he was her age!
We spent Christmas Eve and Christmas day with my family just all being together around my grandpa. I honestly don’t know how we would have made it through without Livy for comedic relief! She got to wear her little work coveralls and check cows with my dad repeatedly, and play outside as much as she wanted (which totally wore her out when it came time to eat).
After we spent a few days with my family, we headed on to Steven’s family for the weekend. We got to celebrate with everyone there and had a great time, and Livy officially became a driver thanks to Uncle Avery and Aunt Shelby!
What I’ve Been Working On…
There’s a lot (a LOT) going on around here with a toddler, a new baby coming, a constantly changing hospital schedule and a few other things I’ll have to touch on at a later time, so I’m just working on not being a crazy person and keeping track of it all! Specifically, we’ve been in the process of cleaning out/ selling a lot of our extra clutter to make room to move Livy into our front guest bedroom (her “big girl” room), so we can then make her nursery into Henry’s nursery. We’re planning to move her before he’s born, but we’re not in a super big hurry over the next few weeks, and still have some work cleaning out and setting up to do.
What I’m Excited About…
February is going to be so busy! We’ve got Liv’s second birthday party, Adley’s (our niece on the way!) shower, Henry’s shower, and Steven’s grandmother’s 90th birthday through the month, so we’re going to be busy having a lot of fun! What I’m really excited about as well is that Steven has a long stretch without hospital call the next few months and doesn’t go on again until after Henry is born, so we are going to enjoy having him free on weekends!
What I’m Watching/ Reading…
I can’t think of anything in particular that I’m watching that I would recommend, honestly (other than CHEER on Netflix, but I’m probably the 900th person to recommend that, haha! But it is REALLY GOOD! And set in the town right outside where we go fishing every year with Steven’s family!). But my parents bought me a new Kindle for Christmas and I’m already on my fourth book for the year! I wanted a Kindle because I really liked reading while I was nursing/ pumping for Livy but holding an actual book was hard, and my phone was a little small, so the Kindle is just perfect! I’ve been using the Libby app connected to my library card to download ebooks from our local library for free and it has been so awesome! The only downside is that I’ve gotten really invested in these books and haven’t wanted to tear myself away to do what I actually need to do, haha! So far I’ve read…
- The Gown by Jennifer Robson : This is a historical fiction set in post WWII England and present day Toronto from the perspective of three different women- two who worked as embroiderers for the dress designer that made Queen Elizabeth’s wedding dress in the 1940s, and one who is the granddaughter of one of the embroiderers in present day. They each have a unique story that all winds together at the end, and it was really beautiful! I thought it was a good mix of history with actual storytelling and I was truly surprised how it all ended and wrapped up. Highly recommend!
- Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson : when I first started this one, I wasn’t sure it was for me, honestly. Knox from the Popcast recommended it, and it was strange from the get go. It is about a girl (who I’d honestly describe as a female Jesse Pinkman from Breaking Bad) who gets a job being the nanny for the stepchildren of one of her high school friends. Sounds normal enough, only the stepchildren spontaneously catch on fire, and part of her job is to keep them from catching on fire because their dad is a high profile political figure and they are trying to keep their weirdness under wraps. So, it’s strange in the sense that we just act like that’s a normal thing that can happen to people, but somehow I did still get sucked into the story and wanted to know how it was going to end. It’s definitely got explicit language throughout, but was different enough to keep my attention, and I’d probably recommend just with the caveat of it being explicit.
- The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine : HOLY MOLY. This was maybe the best of the 3? I don’t know, it is so different than the other two, it’s hard to judge them against each other, but I read this in less than 24 hours start to finish. It helped that I had my glucose tolerance test and an ultrasound at the hospital during that 24 hours, so plenty of down time/ waiting room time, but I did stay up later than usual to cap it all off after that because I was dying to see how it ended. This is about a girl named Amber who feels like she’s been put upon her whole life, and is determined to make something of herself, and her plan to accomplish that is by targeting one of the wealthiest families in a small Connecticut town and ousting the wife, becoming the new Mrs. Parrish. She quickly befriends Daphne, the current Mrs. Parrish, and infiltrates their life in working toward her plan, but halfway through, it flips to Daphne’s perspective, and you find out a whole different side to the story. This is rated R- there is language and adult content, but my goodness it is a total page turner (or tapper, haha!) from start to finish! And then I had nightmares about the story that night, haha! But, I would highly recommend it!
- Eligible by Curtis Sittenfield : I’m currently reading this, but love it so far! It’s a modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice (my all time favorite book) as if Mr. Bingley was a Harvard educated doctor that appeared on a Bachelor type reality show, and Mr. Darcy is his neurosurgeon colleague with the same meddling Mrs. Bennett trying to get her adult daughters married off.
What I’m Listening To…
I don’t know of anything out of the ordinary for me- the same podcasts as usual (The Popcast, I Hate Green Beans, The Big Boo Cast, and the Bible Binge). The Bible Binge just started a new season on Esther that I’ve really liked so far. I’ve also been listening to the new album by the Sunday Service choir, and if you like gospel choir music, it is beautiful!
What I’m Wearing…
Cristin Cooper (one of my favorite bloggers/ Instagrammers) recommended this Anthropologie sweater back before the holidays as the perfect holiday sweater- it can be dressed up or down, and it flattering without being overly fitted or baggy. It’s normally close to $100, which at first made me say, yeah, thanks, but no thanks… but then, the weekend after Christmas, it went on sale for $35, and that I could live with, haha! I ended up with the ivory and the taupe colors and I really do love the sweaters, except… the tags say hand wash only (and the fabric feels like that hand wash only kind of high maintenance fabric). I am rarely adult enough to handle items that are HWO, but I’m going to do my best! It is currently on sale for $60 ish in a few colors left if you are interested, and I would say it is over-sized to true to size. I ordered smalls, and I think they will fit more like tunics postpartum, but they fit well at 7 months pregnant with plenty of bump room, too.
Other than that, I’m making the most of all my looser non-maternity tops, a few maternity tops, and all my original pants. I can’t tell if I’m bigger now than I was at this point with Olivia, but I feel as big as a house, haha!
What I’m Doing This Weekend…
We are headed to Grammy and Pop Pop’s house (my parents) on Friday night, and then Steven is headed on up to Abilene on Saturday to help his brother move some of their stuff to their new place. Since I can’t really lift anything, Liv and I are going to hang out at my parents’ for the day and relax, and then we’ll all come home on Sunday. At least that’s the last plan I heard, haha! Livy is obsessed with cows, and loves checking on the herd of cows at Pop Pop’s house. And if you ask her who has cows, she will immediately tell you Pop Pop. Up until about a week ago, that was not even close to my dad’s chosen grandpa name, but you better believe he switched it fast hearing that little munchkin confidently call him Pop Pop!
What I’m Looking Forward To Next Month…
I’m really excited about Livy’s second birthday party! We decided we wanted to make homemade grilled fajitas for everyone, so we landed on a “Taco Two-sday” theme (even though we aren’t technically having tacos?), and I think it will be really fun to have everyone together for the day!
What Else is New…
These are a little old at this point, but we had fun at Steven’s departmental Christmas party back at the beginning of December, and got a pretty good little family picture!
I absolutely adore this little ponytail! Her hair is growing in, and getting slightly less mullet-ish, slowly but surely!
My mom found these play glasses in my grandma’s things, and Livy really enjoyed playing with them. She looked like some type of weird bug, and we have no idea why my grandma had them or where she got them, but they looked pretty funny on Liv!
When Daddy readjusts your headband for you, and you look a little bit like you’re headed to Jazzercise…
And when you’re obsessed with stealing Daddy’s cap, and you look pretty cute doing it…
Daddy won not once, but twice at the claw game at our favorite Mexican food restaurant a few weeks ago, and Livy got two new additions to her stuffed animal collection!
And as usual, our Sunday pictures have been quite expressive! We love this little munchkin!
And that’s about it! Happy Wednesday, y’all!
SO many goodies in the post! I live for Liv’s Sunday pictures 🙂 So very sorry about your sweet Grandmother too. XO
Oh, thank you, friend! And Liv’s hamminess is almost too much, haha!