a good day =

a fun outing with serena & my mom.
visiting burlington coat factory & their baby depot for the first time. jackpot! {thanks for the tip, tiffany!}
a chicken green chile quesadilla from bajio.
a car repair costing $250 less than anticipated.
getting pulled over and not cited!
grocery shopping alone.
a lazy evening at home.
a new episode of glee.

{it's not the best habit to start forming, but sometimes the only way i can get serena to sit still long enough to eat her dinner is to stick her in front of the tv... bad parenting, i know. but she ate that entire grilled cheese sandwich.}

signs of fall.

the produce! squash, cucumbers, peppers & tomatoes from my mom's garden.

and the peaches! oh my. serena and i shared 4 peaches yesterday.

and my mom made peach cobbler on sunday. heavenly.

pumpkins in front of the grocery store.

cool mornings and evenings.

halloween candy and costumes and decor everywhere.

earlier sunsets.

i love fall. i think i'll make caramel apples today. and maybe go for a drive in a canyon somewhere to see some fall leaves.

8:20 a.m.

today it was my morning to get up with serena {sean and i trade off}.

i woke up this morning.

i hadn't heard serena yet.

the sun was streaming through our window.

i checked the clock.

8:00.

8:00!

this girl is usually up at 6:30!

i went downstairs {without having to}, got a drink, sat on the couch, and read my book for a few minutes. it was pure heaven.

it only lasted for 20 minutes, but it was pure heaven.

i can't remember the last time i woke up on my own. even when it's sean's turn to get up with her, i usually just lay in bed half-awake for an hour until serena decides it's time to come upstairs and jump on the bed.

i hope she will do this a few more times before we have a newborn to keep us up all night :)

nectarines & naps.

'

two of my favorite things lately.

lately all i want to do is eat and sleep. the beached whale stage of pregnancy has now commenced. if i am down on the couch, i am DOWN on the couch, and don't even ask me to get up for at least 30 minutes. {tell that to a 16 month old who is all over the place all the time...} the beached whale phase also makes turning over in bed at night a joy. i have to use full body strength to make the switch :) coinciding with the beached whale phase is the elevator phase. stairs? no thanks. i go out of my way to avoid them.

in other news:

serena's kitties crossed paths {the original and the backup} and that was a whole lot of confusion! she was holding one when she found the other and started saying "meow? meow?" and then of course she couldn't nap without BOTH kitties. i think she has finally forgotten about the 2nd kitty. we're crossing our fingers.

i finally finished a blanket for baby harper {99% sure it will be harper}. one of 2 new things she will have to her name! and speaking of harper, i'm terrified she's going to be as big or bigger than her sister was at birth. my doctor said to me jokingly at my last appointment, "well, you think this is going to be another 9 pounder?" and i wanted to cry. i'm hoping for a short labor & delivery and a fast, easy recovery this time around. i would like to not carry around the inflatable donut for a month afterward. again, crossing our fingers.

anyway.

life is good. busy. tiresome. but good. and i couldn't be happier that fall has arrived. hooray for cooler weather!

{nectarines}

a few more.

for some reason when i was posting photos while we were gone, a bunch of them weren't downloading. i had quite a few surprise pictures show up when i came home and looked at them. these are some favorites:

1. jefferson memorial 2. washington monument 3. dorky me at fort mchenry 4-5. independance hall, philadelphia 6. more red brick in philadelphia 7-8. antique store, downtown gettysburg 9. storefront, harpers ferry 10. view of potomac river, harpers ferry 11. front of monticello 12. dave & kirsten, natural bridge.

b.l.t.

nothing tastier this time of year than a big juicy b.l.t.

with tomatoes from the garden.

i think i could eat one for every meal.

it's even possible that i made one last night at 11:30 p.m. after choir & board meeting, and another one for lunch today.

{i need more tomatoes from your garden, mom!}

loves.

one nap a day. {long nap + later mornings. hooray!}
madame alexander happy meal toys.
this story. i cried when i watched it on the news. soooo awesome.
showing our house twice this week.
fresh peaches.
peach pie.
nectarines.
veggies from mom's garden.
state fair. {serena loved the baby goats. i loved the funnel cakes.}
new fall clothes for serena.
hand-me-downs from her cousins.
biaggi's shrimp & crab cannelloni. so so so so so good.
dry, dry utah air. {i just about died on our trip.}
vacuum lines in the carpet.
cooler temps. {except for this week...}
pizza & movie rental on a friday night.


{image}

accepting that.

i will be wearing the same 2 pairs of pants every day for the next 6-7 weeks.

my toenails will remain unpolished, too. {i can't reach them anymore.}

serena will become increasingly frustrated with me not carrying her.

serena will probably have a meltdown every time i hold this new baby for a while {based on observations with her 2 baby cousins... yikes!}.

my life/house/children's rooms might not be in order before this baby arrives. we would like to sell and move before then, but who knows. this girl won't have a pretty, decorated space of her own for awhile. not that she cares. but i kind of do.

the "thing" with this pregnancy is random and sudden migraines. with serena it was back pain.



accepted. moving on.

:)

best part of being home.

we missed her. the reunion was the best. she ran down the driveway to sean, giggling all the way :)

day eight.

mount vernon

highlights:
leaving the howard johnson hotel behind us. yucky/hilarious memories of that place :)
actually seeing the museums this time.
loving the view from the back of the house.

day seven.

colonial williamsburg

highlights:

souvenir mugs with free refills all day. {best $10 bucks ever spent...}

pretty pretty colonial buildings.

some much needed cloud coverage.

crazy colonial wigs.

discussion with lafayette.

cute cute dolls for serena & bg2.

being there in the off-season.

adorable dresses that i wanted to buy for serena

{but i was unwilling to fork out 80 bucks for a children's dress...}

day six.

natural bridge
monticello

{my favorite place so far. beautifully well kept home and gardens!}

day five.

antietam

highlights:

best park ranger lecture: the story of the battle! {yeah, keith!}

"seething, smoking, cauldron of death."

beautiful burnside bridge.

artillery lecture.

secret trail to the bridge.

harpers ferry

highlights:
john brown lecture.
hiking to the church in 95 degree weather + insane humidity.
ice cream afterward.
view of the rivers.
gorgeous buildings.

day four.

gettysburg

highlights:

beautiful countryside.

great audio tour.

crazy guy walking into the women's restroom and scaring lyn.