Family Friday: Second Trimester

Hi Friends!

It is technically still Thursday, but since tomorrow marks the beginning of my third trimester I wanted to go ahead and write my "Family Friday" post. I hope you don't mind! :)

Tomorrow I will be 28 weeks pregnant! I'm officially in the third trimester and can't wait for Jack to get here. During the second trimester I felt tons better (no more nausea and not as tired). I will say that I felt slightly disappointed with my energy levels as I had heard how wonderful the second trimester is supposed to be. Yes, I no longer felt sick 24/7 and didn't need to go to bed by 8:30pm, but I wasn't exactly ready to go run a marathon either. I guess that was just an unrealistic expectation that I had, but once I kind of figured things out I felt much better. There are still some random aches and pains in the second trimester, but overall it was really wonderful!

As I've gotten closer to the third trimester I've started having a little bit of trouble sleeping at night and heartburn has made an appearance :) I had a little bit of heartburn in the first trimester, but it pretty much went away. It isn't pleasant, but I'd prefer that to morning sickness!!

The second trimester has also brought the start of our childbirth preparation classes which has been so fun! We've had a breastfeeding class and infant/child CPR class. I think both were helpful in making us feel a little bit more confident as we get closer to Jack's arrival. Coming up next we will have prepared childbirth classes, an unmedicated childbirth class, and a hospital tour in the next month(s). We have also been so blessed to have sweet friends and family who have offered to throw us a baby shower! So I'm really looking forward to those. I'm anxious to start getting everything ready, but I'm holding off on buying too much since I know we have baby showers coming up. I gotta keep that "nesting" instinct in check!

Here are some pics from the second trimester:

16 weeks

18 weeks

25 weeks

Here's my updated questionnaire for the 2nd trimester:

How far along? 28 weeks
Total weight gain/measurements: I think I've gained about 20 lbs (I've been trying not to obsess over this, but still be conscious of the amount I'm gaining to make sure it is enough/not too much)
Maternity clothes: Yes!! One of my cousins was so kind to share her maternity clothes with me and they have been a huge help. I was not looking forward to buying a lot of clothes, so having some nice pants and tops was really helpful. I've supplemented with other items that I've bought, but it was so helpful to have those clothes. 
Stretch marks: Not yet
Sleep: Good! I have slept pretty well this semester (up until very recently). Daniel bought me a boppy body pillow and that has been really helpful for sleep. It took a few nights to get used to it, but now I can't sleep without it!
Best moment this trimester: Finding out the gender!
Miss anything? Being able to do more for myself. I am still able to do pretty much anything that I want, but it is a little bit hard to let other people do things for me. I know it is not safe to lift/move heavy objects, etc., and it has been hard for me to remember that my body is not just my own right now.
Movement: Lots & lots! I've loved it. He kicks hard enough for Daniel to feel, too.
Food cravings: I've really been into sweets :/ I am usually not a huge sweets person, but during this pregnancy I can't say no to a donut.
Anything making you queasy or sick? Nope
Gender: Boy! 
Labor signs: I've had braxton hicks twice, but no actual labor signs (thankfully).
Symptoms: I can't think of any symptoms right now.. 3rd trimester is bringing heartburn with it, but the 2nd was pretty easy. I will say that (TMI) digestive issues have remained throughout the 2nd trimester, but using some recommended over-the-counter products have helped tremendously.
Belly button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? Off. I can still wear my rings, but I've found that by the end of the day my hands are slightly swollen and I'm scared that my rings will get stuck. I've opted to wear a fake ring the past few weeks.
Happy or moody most of the time: I think mostly happy!
Looking forward to: Jack getting here!

Family Friday: First Trimester

Hi Family & Friends!

So, as most of you probably know by now, Daniel and I are expecting our first baby in June 2015!

We are so excited and incredibly grateful for this gift. We have wanted to have kids ever since we got married in 2010, but the timing has not been right. Then when we did feel like we were ready to start our family it didn't happen quite as quickly as we thought it would. Needless to say, we were overjoyed when we finally found out we were going to have a baby.

We actually found out on Daniel's birthday which was a really fun surprise! I had a home pregnancy test leftover and knew that it was about the time when I could take it, but I really didn't think that I was pregnant. I just thought I'd take it for the heck of it and then would surprise Daniel if it was positive. Well, I took the test and at first everything looked like it was just another negative. I left the test and went into the kitchen to make cinnamon rolls for Daniel. Well, a few minutes later I went back into the bathroom to throw the test away and my stomach jumped when I saw a faint second pink line! I was totally shocked and walked up to Daniel with the test and said, "Well, Happy Birthday!" For a split second I my stomach dropped and I thought, "No turning back now" haha! But pretty much immediately Daniel and I both felt a lot of peace about it and were both so overjoyed at this wonderful news.

Since then we've gotten to tell our parents, siblings, and friends and have enjoyed sharing that news with our loved ones. We've had 2 doctors appointments and were able to see the baby both times. We saw the heartbeat flicker on the first ultrasound and at the second one we had a sonogram first (to hear the heartbeat) and then had an ultrasound to see the baby. It was fun to see him/her the second time because he/she looks much more baby-like now.

Our Social Media announcement

The first trimester has been good - just the typical symptoms (nausea, fatigue, etc). I saw on a few blogs this fun questionnaire they answer each week during their pregnancy and I thought that would be fun to answer! I'm just going to answer it for the whole first trimester since I'm at 12 weeks.

How far along? 12 weeks
Total weight gain/measurements: 3-5 lbs
Maternity clothes: I've bought a couple of tops because I feel like my stomach looks bloated; I can still wear my regular pants.
Stretch marks: Not yet
Sleep: Good! I have slept a LOT this trimester
Best moment this trimester: When Daniel and I got to see the baby and his/her heartbeat on the ultrasound monitor.
Miss anything? Hmm.. cheese dip! I'm not sure if I have to avoid it, but since I only eat it when we're at restaurants I'm not sure what they put in it so I avoid it just in case any of the cheese used isn't pasteurized.. I'm sure I sound like a first time mom!
Movement: Nope
Food cravings: The first week we knew I was pregnant I really wanted Fruit by the Foot. Since then I've mostly just wanted carbs and protein (aka: sausage biscuits..)
Anything making you queasy or sick? Coffee! And broccoli.
Gender: We don't know yet
Labor signs: No, thankfully!
Symptoms: Nausea (most often at night), extreme fatigue, general digestive discomfort at times, some unusual (for me) moodiness, acne.
Belly button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or moody most of the time: I think mostly happy!
Looking forward to: Finding out the gender!!

Well, I hope you enjoyed this update! I'll try to be better about posting pregnancy updates and pictures (especially on "Family Friday").

Love,
The Logans

Recipe Time!

This is a little bit random, but I thought I'd share an easy recipe with you guys that I've made several times in the past, but put back in the rotation this week. I got this recipe from Mama Laughlin's blog a long time ago and Daniel and I both enjoy it.

Picture courtesy of Plain Chicken

Ingredients:
1 can reduced fat crescent rolls
1/2 lb. extra lean ground beef or turkey
1 can Original Rotel, drained
1 package Taco Seasoning
1 6 oz. container Fage 0% plain greek yogurt 
1 cup reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 bag Baked Doritos Nacho Cheese chips, crushed

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.

In a large skillet, brown ground beef and drain off fat.
Add in taco seasoning and Rotel. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Press crescent rolls in the bottom of a 9x13 greased pan.
Press seams to seal. Top crescent rolls with meat mixture, then spread greek yogurt over meat. Top with shredded cheese and crushed Doritos.
Bake for 30 minutes.

This makes 8 servings which comes to 320 calories per serving.

Enjoy!

Weekend with Sarah

A few weekends ago my middle sister, Sarah, came for a visit! Her husband was out of town for the week so she decided to come see us for the weekend.. and we're glad she did!

On Friday night we ate some supper (turkey burgers, sweet potato fries, & veggies), visited, then Sarah and I watched Father of the Bride and ate some ice cream - yum!

On Saturday we got up and enjoyed donuts (courtesy of sweet Daniel's trip to Publix), got ready, and headed out to do some bham exploring. We ate lunch at The Boot Pub in the Preserve and it was delicious. Here are some pictures from lunch:

Sarah & I outside of The Boot

After lunch we headed over to Kohls to look at baby stuff!! So fun! At this point Sarah didn't know for sure if they were having a boy or girl so we didn't buy any gender specific clothing, but we had lots of fun looking around. Everything is just SO cute! I bought a white fuzzy sleep sack for the baby (gender neutral) so I was glad to finally get to buy something for my wittle nephew! Once we had thoroughly explored all of the baby section we checked out the jewelry and Sarah was able to find a Christmas gift for *someone* on her list. 

We thought we might hit up a few different stores, but after exploring Kohls we were pretty wiped out. We stopped by the library (my favorite place! haha!) and got a Modern Family DVD to watch that night, then we headed home. The weather that weekend had finally started to cool off and the crisp fall air was delicious! When we got home we left the front door open so that we could enjoy the cooler temperature and the feel of that fall air. That worked out well because we also decided to paint our nails... :) 

Rimmel London Mintilicious

Since Daniel and I moved we opted not to get cable. This really hasn't been an issue because we don't watch a lot of network TV (we just use Netflix or DVD's from the library). The only show I miss seeing live is 19 Kids & Counting! So my sweet parents have been recording the episodes for me and mailing them to me- how thoughtful is that? I had a couple of episodes that I hadn't watched yet (and Sarah is a fan of the show, too) so we watched that while we painted our nails (in the color shown above). It's funny how the simplest moments can mean so much, because I have to say that sitting on the living room floor, watching TV, and painting my nails with Sarah was one of my favorite parts of the whole weekend!

On Sunday we went to church, stayed for fellowship for awhile afterwards, then headed to Zaxby's! :) That is one of Sarah's favorite places to eat (and hey, I don't hate it either!) and she picked that as where she'd like to go while she was in town since she doesn't get to eat there very often! After lunch we headed home to pack up and Sarah had to hit the road.

We had such a fun time with you, Sarah! Come visit again soon!

Now, who wants to visit next?

Roopville Homecoming Festival

Last weekend Daniel and I had the fun opportunity to visit the Logan side of the family and attend the Roopville Homecoming Festival. This is a yearly event and is always so much fun! The first time I ever visited Daniel's family (when we first started dating) was the weekend of the festival so it holds a special place in my heart. Roopville is a small, friendly town and this yearly event is always tons of fun. 

The town itself is just the epitome of Americana - it feels like you're going back in time or visiting a fictional location (like Mitford or Stars Hollow). Speaking of Stars Hollow, are there any other Gilmore Girls fans out there? Whenever we're in Roopville I always feel like I might bump into Taylor or Babette. I especially felt this way this year when I saw this car parked in front of Aunt Cathy's house:

Lorelai? Did you come for a visit?

The festival begins with a parade (which I'm afraid we usually miss because we get there too late! haha!) and then after that you can explore booths that line the street, visit the petting zoo/pony rides, or get some yummy food. This year Daniel got a cool wooden bowl and I bought a homemade candle. It is called "Autumn Leaves" and it kind of reminds me of the way Christmas trees smell. So, needless to say I love it! :) 

We made sure to stop by my favorite vendor - the one that sells kettle korn popcorn and fried Oreos! The kettle korn is seriously the best I've ever tasted (much better than the kind you find in grocery stores) and the fried Oreos are hard to describe.. they are unbelievable! The vendor sells the Oreos in a little dish of 4 so we only buy one and share them with anyone who wants one (you really can't eat more than one!). Here is mine mid-bite:

We also bought BBQ from another vendor and had some cream soda for lunch. Can you say, "sugar rush"? :) After we ate we did some more walking around and visiting with family and some of the family friends who live in town. Then later in the afternoon this goodness happened:

Dad Logan and Aunt Cathy made some homemade peach ice cream - yum! Even Diogi had a bowl and she l o v e d it! :) After eating so much goodness all day, we enjoyed an afternoon/evening of talking and laughter with the family on the front porch.

Family pictures in front of Aunt Cathy's house :)

The magical town of Roopville even has a mini "library" where you can take a book & leave a book.

Me & Daniel enjoying the day :)

The Petting Zoo which included a kangaroo, tortoise, and a piglet!

Well, I hope you enjoyed following along on our day in Roopville! We had a great time and can't wait to go back next year! 

Happy Friday!

What I Ate Wednesday!

Hi Friends!

I was inspired by the lovely Anna Saccone-Joly to do a just for fun post today. Anna has done a series of "What I Ate Wednesday" posts and I always enjoy reading those. Maybe it is the foodie in me, but I really like meal/food pictures and articles! So, here is my first "What I Ate Wednesday" post (please excuse the low quality pictures - I forgot my camera so I was using my iPod).

Breakfast

I forgot to take a picture of my breakfast, but I had a bowl of oatmeal with 1/2 banana and a dash of cinnamon. I also had a cup of coffee with some Cafe Mocha creamer. Yum!

Lunch

For lunch I had a poppy seed roll with deli-style tuna and a slice of mozzarella cheese. I also had a side of baby carrots and an apple. Daniel and I had lunch together outside and the weather was beautiful! I'm so glad the temperatures are finally starting to drop.. it has been a HOT summer!

Afternoon Snack

So, you will probably laugh at me for this, but I had a Stonyfield YoBaby yogurt. Yes, these are designed for babies 6+ months! haha! Here's why I chose baby yogurt- they are smaller than regular yogurt cups (which are typically too much for me), they are organic, and they have lots of active cultures in them. I will say that they were kind of "goopy" which I guess makes sense.. maybe more of a baby food consistency? And they didn't taste very sweet at all, but there was 12g of sugar I think. That is way too much sugar! 

Dinner

For dinner we had spaghetti, garlic bread, and broccoli. The spaghetti sauce is seriously the easiest thing in the world to make and it tastes so good! We always get compliments on it whenever we make this sauce. Let me know in the comments below if anyone wants the recipe :) Since I wanted some garlic bread I only had like 5 noodles - haha! I always feel like I need at least a few noodles to mix with the sauce. 

Dessert

For dessert I had a cup of decaf black coffee and 3 Elf Fudge cookies :) I started out with just 2 cookies, but ended up eating a third.. they are just too yummy!

Besides that I drank a good bit of water throughout the day. And that's it!

What did you eat today? :)

We're back!

Hi Friends!

Well, it has been quite some time since I last blogged, but I hope to do better about that in the coming months. We've had quite a lot of excitement since I last posted, including a trip to England and a move. If I get inspired I may do another post about our trip overseas, but for now you can read some great posts written by Daniel here.

This weekend we are heading up to LaGrange, GA to visit Daniel's family and will spend Saturday in Roopville for the yearly festival. You may remember seeing some pictures from Roopville back in the Christmas post, but it is the Logan Family homeplace. It is a very small, friendly town and we love getting to visit each year. The festival starts with a parade and the rest of the day is spent visiting with family on Aunt Cathy's front porch, exploring different booths, and eating lots of yummy treats (homemade kettle corn popcorn and fried oreos.. oh my!).

Aunt Cathy's Front Porch

I'll be back next week to post about our trip to Roopville and will try to be better about posting updates!

Thanks for reading & have a lovely weekend!

The Logans xoxo

What do you do when the time changes?

As much as I (Laura) like to consider myself a go-with-the-flow type of person, I also know that in order to keep myself in line and ever get things done I have to have some sort of a daily routine/schedule. One part of my usual day was to go walking outside after work before I headed home. Well, since the recent time change it is pitch black after work and the trail I used to walk on did not have lights. No bueno. Since then I have started going to the school gym (the gym is not my favorite, but it will do), but that first week after the time change I just felt completely off.

I decided that I needed a project to get me through the first week after the time change. The victim of my self-prescribed craft therapy? Our dining room table and chairs. Now, there was nothing wrong with the table and chairs by any means, but I just thought it might be fun to spruce them up a bit.

I primed the table and chairs, but left the table top as is because the wood is so pretty. I had planned to paint them all yellow (with leftover paint I used on some other furniture projects), but after using the primer I found that I really liked that color on the table. I left that one as is, but spray painted the chairs an antique white.

After completing the painting project I thought it might be nice to have a new tablecloth so I went out in search of some material to sew a tablecloth. I had planned to go to JoAnn's after work one day, but while I was walking through Dollar General one afternoon I saw a super cute curtain and decided to use that material. I then cut up the curtain to sew a tablecloth (a la Maria Von Trapp).

So here is the final product of my time change project:

 Look out coffee table... I've heard the week after Christmas can be a doozy... ;)

What Spring Break might look like if your husband is in school..

Next week is Spring Break for Daniel and it couldn't be coming at a better time! He has been working so hard this semester and I think he is in need of a break. He is so faithful to his school assignments, work obligations, family time, and service in the church. I'm a proud wife! But, I am relieved that he will have a little bit of a break next week.

Now, if you thought I was talking about this kind of Spring Break, you would be mistaken:

This was the tamest SB picture I could find..

Instead, I've planned a week of fun dorky surprises for Daniel. They aren't actually surprises anymore because I already told him about it, but I hope they'll still be fun. We'll be staying in town because of work and church committments. After wracking my brain for ideas and scouring Pinterest for some fun date ideas, here is what I've come up with for us to do after work:

-Trip to Steel City Pops

-Building a blanket fort in our living room, blowing up the air matress, renting one of Daniel's favorite movies, getting some of Daniel's favorite snacks (I've got strawberry poptarts on my list..), and having a movie campout in our living room

-Moe's and Mario Kart tournament

What about you? Do you have any plans for Spring Break?

Love,
Laura xoxo

Cheers to the (belated) Birthday Girl!

Happy Thursday! I hope you have all been doing well! I had intended to write a special post two Friday's ago in honor of my sister Karen's birthday, but time got away from me...

So, I'd like to say a belated HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my sweet oldest sis, Karen! You are an amazing big sister to Sarah & I and we love you so much. I pray that this next year will be your best yet!

I love this picture. On the right is my gorgeous sister, Karen, and the left is my BFF, Demy

Sarah & Karen



Me & Karen

The 3 Sistateers at the Clower wedding in '08

The 3 Sistateers at the Logan wedding in '10

If you couldn't tell, I love my 2 sisters very much. I am so grateful that God allowed us to have one another to grow up with! I'm also grateful for the wonderful upbringing we were blessed with by our parents. I know it wasn't always easy for them, but I'm thankful for all of the hard decisions they made, the sacrifices, and most of all the love they shared with us.

Happy belated birthday, my sweet sister Karen!!

Love,
Laura xoxo

2013 Academy Awards

I love Oscar season! Back in high school our drama club would have an Oscar party where we would all dress up like we were going to the Oscars (or as close we could get - aka: Prom Dresses). My best friend, Demy, and her family were so generous and would host the parties (which were always awesome! No surprise there- they are wonderful party planners), and we would all watch the Oscars together. So much fun!

Demy & I at the Oscar Party our senior year (we were doing the Mary Kate & Ashley pose)

Some of us at one of the Oscar parties (this picture still cracks me up)

Demy & I doing the Mary Kate and Ashley pose at the Oscar Party our junior year

I have such fond memories of celebrating the Academy Award season with my best friends in high school. Some years I find that I either didn't care for a lot of the movies that were nominated or I didn't have a chance to watch many of them. This year I still haven't watched all of the movies that have been nominated, but I have seen quite a few. So I am pretty pumped to watch the Oscars this go around. With that in mind, here is an Oscar prediction ballot (courtesy of moviefone):

Print it out, take a guess, and let me know how you do! I plan to do the same. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and don't forget to tune into the 2013 Academy Awards on Sunday night!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Love,
Laura

Craft projects

Here are a few craft projects I've been working on recently. Although I didn't follow any pin exactly, I must say that a lot of the inspiration for these projects was really "Pinspiration" (from Pinterest).



 My first project was a new wreath. I had an old, plain wreath that I thought I could cover. I bought some twine from Walmart and wrapped it around the entire wreath and tied it off at the end. I did this while watching a TV show with Daniel so it made the time go by a little faster. The next step was the flowers.

I had some material left over that I used to cover some pillows so I decided to use that to make the flowers. I cut the circular strips, rolled them up, hot-glued them onto the wreath, and viola!

My next project was for a birthday party for my friend, Betsy. Remember the scrap booking paper I bought with my mom? I used that to make a little banner. I also used the same kind of twine (used in the wreath) to hang the banner up.

The birthday banner

Up close view of the birthday paper

I was pretty pleased with how it turned out! It was simple, but added a little something to our evening. Kristie brought cupcakes, Rebekah brought Betsy's favorite flowers, and I made Skinnytaste Spinach Artichoke Dip. It turned out pretty well!

We had a fun girls night together getting to celebrate our wonderful friend, Betsy. Once the girls left Daniel got to enjoy the dip, too! :)

Have you been working on any projects recently?

Love,
Laura