what's in a name?

The hubs and I decided a long time ago (before we even knew we were prego) that we were going to keep our baby names a secret. This actually wasn't a hard decision to come to for us, but I've definitely been asked why quite a bit. I feel like there are two main reasons.

Reason #1
Picking out a name was not easy for us. It had to be special, unique, not too hard to spell, not easily made fun of, badass (hubs' requirement), oh and we both had to like it. We spent lots of time suggesting and analyzing and picking apart names until we finally decided, "this is it...this is the one" and then it was still changed again after someone else used part of it.

After all that effort we didn't want anything to ruin it. People have opinions. It's in their nature and we understand that...but we don't care.

We don't want to know if you like it, love it, hate it, it reminds you of something, know someone with that name who was awesome, or know someone with that name who was awful. It doesn't matter to us. We especially don't want you to try and convince us to change it or question why we chose the name that we did.

His name is extremely special to us. That is what matters. That is what we care about. To us, he is already this little person with this unique name. We love his name and we love him.

Reason #2
It is so special to have something that the hubs and I can share just between us, if only for a little while. This secret brings us together as we lay dreaming about his future, discussing what his personality might be like.

When someone asks us what his name is we both smile at each other knowing what the other is thinking as we respond, "we are keeping it a secret until he is born." We are the only members of the name knowing club and we like it that way.

We did decide to reveal his initials. They are QRS. Since we live in the land of the monogram, we figured it was a fair compromise for those that first respond with, "but I want to give you a gift with his name on it!" Truthfully though, I wish we hadn't told even that little bit.

Now instead of reactions to the name, it is a constant guessing game. We have said over and over we won't tell you if you guess correctly and while it is sometimes fun to giggle at the guesses and frustration, it's also getting old. People just don't give up!

While I know there will still be comments and opinions after he has arrived, we hope the delay in knowing will lessen the amount. We hope people will take the time to understand how special he and his name is to us.

In 16 (give or take) weeks we will share our secret with you. We promise.

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you always know

pinnable me: vintage circus nursery

I'm linking up with Paw Prints & Pastry Bags for another Friday installment of pinnable me. Fair warning, this week is a long one for me.

I have a very opinionated husband. He claims that he doesn't care about most things but this is normally how a conversation goes:

me: I'm going to pick out new bedding (just for example), do you care what I pick?

hubs: Whatever you want babe...but not flowery, or girly, or stripes, or...

me: How about you come with me?

(later at the store)

me: Do you like this one?

hubs: ehhhh

me: This one?

hubs: Hmm it's ok...

me: I thought you said I could pick out what I wanted...*eye roll*

I knew deciding on nursery decor was going to be a challenge. I felt like nearly everything I picked out, he shut down, until one day I remembered a piece of scrapbook paper I had saved.

I showed it to the hubs and he liked it! We had our theme, vintage circus! Our main colors will be red, navy, and little touches of yellow. Below are some of the things that have inspired me.

Source: nurserymuralsandmore.com via Desiree on Pinterest

We plan on painting the ceiling like this one, but with red stripes instead of blue

Source: etsy.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: poshtots.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: thebabygardner.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: interiorly.wordpress.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Love the striped curtains

Source: hudsongoodsblog.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: hudsongoodsblog.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: google.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: ellamaesbarngathering.blogspot.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: kidsbabydesign.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: potterybarnkids.com via Desiree on Pinterest

23 weeks and a confession

Wow these weeks sure are flying by! I was watching The Real Housewives of New Jersey (yes I watch junk tv) and it was Christmastime on the show. That made me think how fast the holiday season is going to sneak up on us along with the arrival of our little boy. Hope we're ready!

Time for a little confession. I don't like being pregnant. I'm not saying I've had a hard pregnancy, far from it. The morning sickness went away. The tiredness went away. I haven't put on much weight. I'm not huge and uncomfortable. I don't have heartburn. While I consider myself extremely lucky, I just don't enjoy being pregnant. 

I have many friends that love everything about their pregnancy. They love seeing their body change shape, feeling the baby move, reading all the articles about the miracles happening inside them. I guess I'm just not one of those girls. 

I much rather have my baby in my arms than in my belly!

want a smore? some more of what?

You're killing me Smalls!

The Sandlot has to be one of my all time favorite summer movies. One of the best parts of summer that the movie highlights is making smores. What could be more relaxing than sitting around a campfire roasting the perfect marshmallow to make into the perfect smore?

At the end of a summer day you should smell like campfire smoke and bug spray and have sticky marshmallow fingers!

mmmm...yum!

Right now we are in the middle of a big renovation. The hubs has torn down his old work shop and is replacing it with an 18' x 35' garage. On the backside of the garage we are planning to build a deck that will wrap halfway around the pool and also house the hot tub. I thought the perfect addition to the deck would be one of these beauties.

garden treasures metal firepit

While the whole project won't be complete until next summer I can already picture it. We'll play all day in the pool, BBQ in the evening for dinner, and spend the night sitting around the fire enjoying smores. Perfection!

coke hummingbird feeder

Today I finally finished up a project that has been in the works for only two plus years ha! The hubs helped me turn two of my old coke bottles into hummingbird feeders. Here they are hanging on our front porch.

To make the feeder, the hubs took an i-bolt and a washer and glued it onto the end of the bottle. I had found the feeder tubes with the rubber stopper on Amazon.  After the glue set I just had to fill the bottle with red sugar water and plug in the stopper.

I just love the way the feeders look. It's like a little touch of vintage hanging from the porch ceiling. Hopefully the hummingbirds will actually drink from them.

While I was out hanging up the feeders I went ahead and put up our new flag {that we got as a present last Christmas haha}. Our previously Clemson flag was so faded that the orange and purple had turned pastel. The new one looks so pretty! 

friday inspiration

22 weeks

Today marks 22 weeks into the pregnancy. It's a bit surreal to think I'm more than halfway done and we will soon be meeting our little baby boy.

This dress does a good job of showing off the bump. I've had it for years but would only wear it when I was feeling especially skinny since it clings to my stomach. Now that I've got a prego belly I don't mind the cling ha!

The only news to report is that I now feel Q (that's the first inital of his name btw) move all the time. He is seriously boogying down in my belly. I thought I read somewhere that they are supposed to sleep the majority of the day and then start squirming when you're ready to go to bed. Well not this little guy. He moves all day long!

I recently ordered some maternity clothes from Old Navy and Gap. They finally came in the mail today! I love getting packages in the mail. 

I now own a pair of maternity jeans! I've spent the last 3 casual Fridays in dresses or linen pants because I didn't have any jeans, but tomorrow will be a jeans day for me! I really love the way these fit. The full belly panel is very comfortable and I feel like the skinny cut makes my legs look lean.

full-panel skinny jeans

pure body cap-sleeve t

In the above picture I'm also wearing this tshirt from Gap. It's super soft and only $4.99!

ruffle detail t

I couldn't resist getting this shirt. I really liked the little ruffle as well as the light lilac color. It'll look great paired with all of my orange jewelry.

drape-front top

This top was the last item I picked out. I thought it would be great to wear to work, church, showers, or maybe even maternity pictures. Hopefully now I have a little bit of everything and I can make the clothes last as long as possible.

the jig is up

The hubs and I have two cats. Waldo and Sophia. Waldo is the hubs' cat from college and Sophia is mine.

Sophia bird watching

Waldo curled up on our bed

For those of you who have had the pleasure of meeting Waldo you all know he is damn finicky. He is very independent and changes his mind constantly. One minute he is purring and rubbing up against you, the next minute his hisses, turns, and bites the hand that is petting him. There's never any rhyme or reason, that's just Waldo.

Recently he's been very lovey dovey and I do mean VERY LOVEY DOVEY. He wants to be held and cuddled and petted by me all-the-time. It's actually gone way past cute into just plain annoying. Waldo will follow me room to room reaching up my leg to try and get me to pick him up. He'll get under my feet as I'm walking tripping me up to get my attention. He'll crawl into my lap while I'm trying to eat, read, watch tv, fold laundry, write this blog post, anything!

All I can think is that he knows something is about to change. It's almost like he can sense that I have a baby inside me and he's not going to be top dog...err cat any longer. Any one else have cats that started acting weird when they got pregnant? Or is my cat the only one who knows the jig is up?

bump progression

I'm not going to lie, I was eager to start taking bump pictures to see the changes. Unlucky Lucky for me, I didn't start showing for awhile. It has been fun to see my body changing as baby scales grows though. My mom joked that I should make a flip book, ha!

13.5 weeks: I was a little excited to start bump pictures even though nothing was happening

16 week: still no bump

17 weeks: there it is!

18 weeks: I was looking especially pregnant this day

19 weeks: looks like it's smaller than last week

20 weeks: halfway mark!

21 weeks: this week I'm starting to feel baby scales move

Fun facts about my pregnancy:

• So far the second trimester has been a breeze. No more sickness and no more tiredness for this girl which I am very thankful for! 
• I don't recall having any extremely rare food cravings besides the occasional hot dog or milk shake (not together) and I'm guessing this has helped in the weight gain department. 
• During the first trimester I lost 4 pounds because of the morning all-day-long sickness and now I have put those 4 pounds back on giving me a gain of 0, woo!
• This past week I have started feeling baby scales move. He likes to flip around right at bedtime when mommy has settled down for the evening.
• Truthfully being able to feel him totally creeps me out, ha!
• I've noticed it is a little uncomfortable to bend at the waist now, but I can still sit cross-legged and reach my toes for at home pedicures no problem.
• Nothing else exciting to report!

pinnable me: maternity photos

TIme for another link up with Paw Prints & Pastry Bags for pinnable me Friday!

As my bump is starting to grow I've begun thinking about maternity pictures. I already have my fabulous photographer picked out, Erica, and I'm super excited about it. I absolutely love her and her work. We went to high school together and it's hard to believe she's a mommy and I'm about to be one too!

Here's some fun inspiration I've found:

Source: elizabethkartchner.blogspot.com via Desiree on Pinterest

This is adorable and would fit perfectly with my November due date.

Source: imagovitaphoto.squarespace.com via Desiree on Pinterest

This would be a great picture to hang in the nursery, with our little boy's initial of course.

Source: katelynjamesblog.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Source: ariaphotographyonline.com via Desiree on Pinterest

I'm on a mission to duplicate this outfit now, love it.

Source: lizellelotter.co.za via Desiree on Pinterest

pinnable me: baby boy style

Last post y'all got a sneak peak of how I plan on dressing our baby boy. I'm a believer that little boys can look just as adorable as little girls. I may not be able to cover him in pink and bows, but there are still sweet options out there. Today I'm going to do my first pinnable me link up with Paw Prints & Pastry Bags to show you exactly what I mean. Get ready for cuteness overload!

Source: janieandjack.com via Desiree on Pinterest

I'm sure the first months our little boy will be dressed in nothing but gowns and onesies for the convenience and comfort, but they can still be cute!

Source: janieandjack.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Doesn't this one look so soft?

Source: zulily.com via Desiree on Pinterest

After onesies I want to graduate to the bubble. I can see our little one in this crab version next summer.

Source: zulily.com via Desiree on Pinterest

The perfect bubble for church, dressy but still fun!

Source: southerntots.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Who says monograms can't be boyish?

Source: zulily.com via Desiree on Pinterest

The perfect john john for a Clemson game. Go Tigers!

Source: southerntots.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Loving that this one does double duty since it's reversible. 

Source: southerntots.com via Desiree on Pinterest

Lab longalls definitely fit in this family, although we need them in a chocolate and yellow version instead of black.

Source: southerntots.com via Desiree on Pinterest

I absolutely can't wait for holiday outfits. 

The best part of my favorite baby boy style is that I plan on making a lot of it myself. Remember when I lost my mind and bought the big mo? Now I'm about to get my money's worth! My machine can embroider, smock, and applique. With how many adorable options there are I better start sewing now so he'll be able to wear them before he outgrows them!