18 Weeks {Round 2}

Posted in Baby G by Kendra G.

I swear I just posted an update yesterday, but I guess it’s been two weeks.
I am getting bigger, but I think that I am actually looking the appropriate size for 18 weeks,
and I don’t feel as ginormous as previous weeks, but then I see this picture and yikes!

More importantly, for the last week I have been able to feel baby G2 moving around in there!
I don’t remember exactly when I started feeling Kenley move, but I don’t think it was this early.
A couple nights ago, I swear I could have felt a little kick from the outside, but no such luck yet.
I am excited for more movement to come!!

I am still feeling good and no crazy food cravings these past two weeks.
Kenley and I have been eating a lot of pickles though.
The girl loves them, just like her mama, but only the zesty (slightly spicy) ones…
NOT the bread & butter flavor.
They were buy one, get one free at Publix last week and we’ve almost polished off two jars of them. Yum!

I went to my first prenatal yoga class last week and I really enjoyed it.
Confession, it was actually my first yoga class ever!
I am much more of a cardio person, so if the activity doesn’t cause me to sweat profusely,
then I don’t think it’s much of a workout. I think I may start becoming a yoga person though,
if nothing else, for the stretching alone, which I am very bad on my own.

More next week! Happy Wednesday!

27May2013

my [long] weekend in photos

Posted in Random by Kendra G.

friday night we headed down to grammy’s house after work.
we pulled into town right as the sun was setting over the water,
what a great way to start the long weekend.

having a snack outside in our swim suits.
still envious this suit doesn’t come in my size. i can’t get enough of it.

after our snack it was time to take the boat out.

heading out into the blue water. amazing.

after nap time, we headed down to the beach.
we have approximately 24 cloth diapers at home that double as swim diapers…
and we didn’t even pack one on the trip. #fail

regardless, we had fun playing in the ocean.

jumping into the pool with daddy!

i enjoyed my zero proof cucumber ginger jasmine-tini at dinner saturday night.
it probably wasn’t as good as a real martini, but it was sure yummy.

sunday we headed to the rays / yankees game in probably the sickest seats we’ve ever sat in.

kenley loved that the seats were all-you-can-eat too. and she did!

i didn’t mind seeing evan longria that close.

sporting her new rays watch too.

after the game, we headed out on the boat one more time.

once we got back into town, we headed over to the jenkinson’s for a memorial day cookout.
the girls had fun being silly.

in true memorial day fashion, kenley loved the corn on the cob!

***

we had a great long weekend away and enjoyed our extra day off.
today we remember and thank those who have served our country so we could have such a great weekend.
how was your weekend?

23May2013

Where the laundry gets done…

Posted in House Tour, Projects Around the House by Kendra G.

Finally! Our laundry room is done!
I know that I am probably going to go into way more detail than you would like to know
about our laundry room, but this room is important to us. Between our cloth diaper laundry
and laundry for two adults and one little person, we use our laundry room a lot!
With that being said, I was very specific about what I wanted.
It needed to be 100% functional, and of course, cute too.

Moving into the house, this is what the laundry room looked like.
If you would have seen the before-before pictures of the house, you would have
seen a washer and dryer in there… somehow in the process of the bank fixing up the house,
those did not make it. We think someone just took them… along with the fridge,
which we were way more bummed about, but I digress.
We were so excited that there was already a sink and cabinet in there, which saved us some moolah.

Things that needed updating in the original laundry room:

1. Open wire shelf. From our last laundry room, I already knew that I wasn’t a fan,
so when my mom and I painted the room over Christmas break, I didn’t let them put the shelf back up.
I thought this would force us to actually do something with the room, but here we are 5 months later…
We had to replace it with something and tossed around the idea of getting cabinets, but opted for
a shelving unit we found in the As Is section at IKEA for a whopping $25!

2. The fluorescent light. No further explanation needed.

3. Our $10 stand up, folding drying rack that I have had since college. It sat right in the
narrow laundry room, making it hard to open and close the front loading machines.
It was a royal pain in my arse and I swear I hear angels singing the day we installed our new drying racks.

4. Color! Fun fact: this was the first can of paint we bought for the house.
The laundry room… I told you I was excited about it.

5. Paint the cabinets. I originally wanted to do them in white, but I didn’t want to buy the
entire kit for two little cabinets, so I was going to settle with the Espresso that we had purchased already.
But, then it dawned on my to ask Sally to borrow some of her extra grey from when she painted her kitchen cabinets.
It worked out perfectly, and I love the grey!

6. Decor. We really liked the decal we had in our old laundry room so we decided to get another one.
We actually purchased it before we were officially house hunting, due to an expiring Groupon,
but the decal works perfect in the space. I also looked on Pinterest for some fun artwork,
and found the awesome laundry cheat sheet that I printed for free.

7. Store the detergent in style. We already had one large glass jar that served as a gin bucket,
so I got a matching one so we have one jar for diaper detergent and one for laundry detergent.
I made the chalkboard labels from our leftover chalkboard contact paper on the pantry door.

What we still need to do:

1. Get a matching washer to the dryer. Here’s the story.
Somehow during the moving process, the dryer was damaged beyond repair.
After a costly service call, we had to get a new one. It’s sad that the washer and dryer
do not match at this point, but I don’t care enough to go buy a new washer.
We opted not to go with the front loaders this time around, which was kind of a
spur of the moment decision, but we aren’t in love with our washer now,
so I am still very happy with that decision. I would love to get the new washer soon,
but we will use this one until it dies…and that may not be too far away.

2. We would love to eventually paint the counter top too.
I have no idea what color, but something other than what it is now.
It works for now, but I certainly don’t love it.
Updated: Project complete!

Source List:

Paint – Valspar Araucana Teal
GRUNDTAL Drying Racks
PRESSA Drying Rack
Shelf Unit – HEMNES Wall/bridging shelf (AS IS section for $25!)
Storage Baskets – Threshold Global Small Milk Crate
Detergent Jars – Target
Laundry Cheat Sheet – Print / Frame
The Laundry Room decal – Dali Decal (purchased with Groupon)
Pendant light – MINUT pendant downlight
Cabinet Paint – Rustoleum Cabinet Restoration Kit in Winter Fog
Cabinet Hardware – Handles / Knobs

20May2013

my weekend in photos

Posted in Random by Kendra G.

i was flying solo most of the weekend while greg worked.
actually, the last five nights i have been sans husband, which has been tough.
mad props to those parents/spouses who travel or stay home alone most of the week.
god bless your little hearts.

kenley had a doctor’s appointment late afternoon friday, which put us home a tad early.
which meant, more time for a wagon ride before dinner!
no matter how many times i told her that that was “mommy’s water” she *had* to hold it.

we stopped by kyler’s house for a little piano playing action.

saturday morning i took pictures at our friends’ son’s soccer game. a team full of 3-5 year olds.
we got a glimpse into our future in a couple years. sheer chaos i tell you.

i was about ready to kill the fed ex guy who obnoxiously rang the doorbell as soon as kenley was asleep,
then i saw what he brought and i forgave him.
yes, i have my snacks delivered to my door. amazon prime for the win.

thanks to the jenkinsons who set up the fun waterpark in their backyard,
the girls got to beat the heat on saturday… which felt like the hottest day of my life.

kenley and i visited daddy at work and watched some of the cirque du soleil show quidam.
we didn’t get to stay for the whole thing due to an antsy girl, but what we saw was good.

since my husband wasn’t home to feed me dinner, our sweet friends stepped in.
kenley had fun playing with charlie and margot too!

between fighting nap time and some teething tantrums today,
kenley loooooved playing with her new baby and stroller.
i have a feeling she’ll be a great big sister…minus chucking the baby across the room.

***

we are so so so happy to have daddy back this week at a decent hour
and are anxiously waiting a much needed, long weekend getaway coming at the end of the week.
how was your weekend?

19May2013

19 Months!

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

Kenley is 19 months on the 19th!

I have done a poor job of making mental notes this month,
probably due to my severe pregnancy brain, but here are a few highlights.

Kenley can now say her last name! We noticed this last week after she repeated it back to us
nearly perfectly. A couple days ago, her report from school said she was saying it there too.
I asked her teachers about it and they said they call the kids by their full name sometimes,
so she’s been hearing it a lot. We’re now working on putting all her names together.

One major change is that we have now been in a big girl bed for almost a month now.
Due to our pediatrician’s recommendations and the impending arrival of our second child,
we thought it’s now or never. Kenley has done insanely well. So much so that Greg actually said,
“it’s not this easy is it??”. She knows when it’s bed time and most days she’s too tired to even think
about getting up after we’ve put her down. This week has been somewhat challenging,
but she also has had a bad cold, and it’s been nothing that we couldn’t handle.
She still gets up at the crack of dawn some days (joy) but usually will play in her room,
and occasionally try to open the door or knock on it…you know, so we know she’s in there?
Naps are a little more difficult since it’s broad daylight and there are a lot of distractions
in her room, so it’s a crap shoot each day to see how it will go.
I will note that she has been sleeping on a cot during nap time at school since she turned one,
so I am sure that helped in this transition process.
I am also sure that we aren’t out of the woods yet and she may still regress,
but I can say that we are pleased so far with the transition to the big girl bed!

Just in the past week, Kenley seems so old to me. Like, a legit toddler.
I think it may be that her hair is getting so long! All of a sudden, she has a full head of
blondish-strawberry-blondish curly hair. Including bangs in her face at times…
She has been asking for pigtails recently, but doesn’t leave them in too long,
so we tried a ponytail, and it may be the cutest thing ever… She leaves it in too, which is fun.

Another new thing this month is sorry…or “soooo-rry”.
We have been asking her to say it after she hits someone, usually in the face and she has caught on.
She will say it whenever she does something she knows she’s not supposed to do,
but, hasn’t quite realized that she shouldn’t be doing it in the first place. I guess that will come.

While we have been watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse for several months, it was usually background noise,
as she wouldn’t really be interested in sitting in one place for an extended period of time.
She identifies the characters and loves the songs, but just recently she has really been into actually watching the episode.
She will sit in her big green chair, sometimes with a snack, and watch,
laughing and calling for “Toodles” throughout the show.
While we don’t want her sitting in front of the TV for hours of the day, an episode here and there when we need to get
stuff done around the house, or cook dinner, is nice. It helps that it is somewhat educational too, right?

I’m sure there is a lot more I should be writing about, but that’s all for now!
Happy 19th months Kenley Dee…Gilbertson!

16May2013

Michael + Karolina

Posted in Photography by Kendra G.

I’m not sure if you remember my engagement photo session with Michael & Karolina since it’s been so long,
but in honor of their wedding weekend, I thought I would finally share their photos!

We had their session in Winter Park right off Park Ave. and at the Winter Park Farmer’s Market.
I had such a fun time taking their pictures and I am so honored that they put their trust in me for this session.

Congratulations Michael & Karolina!

15May2013

16 Weeks {Round 2}

Posted in Baby G by Kendra G.

I’m not sure how it’s possible, but this pregnancy is going so quickly, but so incredibly slow at the same time.
By my belly, I feel like I should be a couple weeks further along than I actually am,
but at the same time, I still can’t believe I’m already in my second trimester.
My body is continually changing. Belly is growing, growing, growing; and
my completely deflated-post-breastfeeding boobs have inflated again, so I may be on the hunt for new bras very soon.
I’ve had some odd aches and pains, but overall, I’m feeling really good.

I am back to eating everything, thank goodness, and I feel like I can eat all day long…
Then, I immediately regret eating said food because I am so full.
I have had more cravings this time around.
Peanut butter on anything, pretzels, apples, bananas, rice cakes, pancakes…anything!
We are not juice drinkers in our house and I didn’t really grow up drinking juice.
I’m always so aware of how much sugar is in it, so I don’t really ever have the desire to drink it…
until I’m pregnant. Last time I drank a lot of apple juice. This time, it’s anything,
apple juice, orange juice, orange juice with mango, V8 Splash, strawberry banana! I love it.
I have also cut a few things out of my diet completely, which has been somewhat sad.
Alcohol (obviously), caffeine (for the most part), deli meat (sad), and raw sushi.
I’ve been craving coffee lately, so I will have some decaf iced coffee and it totally hits the spot.
We are pretty big (diet) soda drinkers, so I have really laid off that immensely.
I basically think about food all day long, and I’m ok with that.

I had my 16 week appointment yesterday and everything looks good.
I’m gaining weight and little baby G2’s heart rate was 149 bpm.
I haven’t felt any movement yet, but I’m anxiously waiting to!

The past two weeks I’ve went for at least one run… I think just one run each week,
but I ran 2 miles each time, with a short break at the one mile marker.
I feel so good once I get out and run and it’s honestly not that difficult.
Hopefully I’ll be able to keep it up.
I’m only running outside with Greg and only pushing the stroller during the time to walk,
so it helps having a support system and not pushing a 35 lbs+ stroller.
Still haven’t made it to yoga yet, but maybe next week.

Until next time!

14May2013

Impromptu Guest Bath Update

Posted in House Tour, Projects Around the House by Kendra G.

I knew that somewhere down the road we wanted to paint the cabinets in our bathrooms,
but I really had no timetable on that project, so I added it our (3 page) running to-do list.
Much to my surprise, Home Depot was running a special online for the small
Rustoleum Cabinet Restoration Kit in Espresso – half off!! The whole kit was only $40 and free shipping.

Once it arrived, it sat in our bathroom for a good month before we even opened it.
It got neglected much like several other house projects over the last few months, which is fine.
Randomly, a couple weeks ago, we decided to get moving on the guest (and only) bathroom upstairs.
It’s a full bath, but the vanity is small, so we knew it’d be perfect to use these cabinets as a test.
Of course, we decided to do this just 5 days before we had visitors coming into town,
I guess that’s just what we needed. We must work well under pressure.

This is what the boring bathroom looked like when we moved in.
We threw up the shower curtain from our old guest bathroom for the time being
since we had family in town very soon after we moved in.
Randomly, over Christmas break, we were shopping at Homegoods for some other items,
and walked out with a shower curtain, bath mats, decor, and the other bathroom essentials.

Even with those items, the bathroom needed more. In comes fixing up the vanity!

I cannot begin to explain how easy the cabinet transformation kit was to work with.
The cabinets ended up taking about 4 days because we were working on them after work.
We stopped after the first two steps because we didn’t feel it needed the protective or shiny coats.

The kit really does transform the cabinets. I am obsessed with how good they look!
To add to it, we decided to frame out the mirror, because you know how we love to frame mirrors.
We used two 1x4s and stained them with the kit so they would match the cabinets perfectly.
The fact that the picture frames matched is just an added bonus.

Since we were so close to being done with the bathroom,
the final piece was to get rid of the builder grade vanity light, since I despise them.
We purchased a brushed nickel 3-light bath light on Amazon
because we couldn’t decide on anything Lowe’s had to offer, and we couldn’t beat the price on Amazon.

I love how much better the bathroom looks with darker cabinets!

12May2013

my weekend in photos

Posted in Random by Kendra G.

happy saturday morning from the walking towel dog.

after debating for a while about getting our front landscaping done, we finally bit the bullet.

holy cow, we are so excited. i’m too embarrassed to show you what it looked like before, but you can imagine the hot mess.

while work was being done on the outside, i was doing work on the inside.
i am thrilled that our never ending laundry room projects are finally done!

i was literally craving iced coffee all day on saturday. i finally made some around 7pm.
it was worth the wait.

she loved wearing my cozy socks.

someone loved the mother’s day card i got from daddy. we danced a lot this morning.

i will spare you photos of my wonderful food today, but every single meal i had was delicious.
kenley was in shock of our milkshake, but obviously loved it. how could she not? look at that thing!

if she could be outside all day long, she definitely would.

our only attempt at a picture today, i’ll take it.

***

we had a great, relaxing weekend, napping whenever kenley decided to take a nap,
and not worrying about doing anything.
i had a wonderful mother’s day with my two favorite people.
how was your weekend?

happy mother’s day to all those wonderful mommies out there!

5May2013

my weekend in photos

Posted in Random by Kendra G.

we had visitors this weekend! maggi & greg were here from pittsburgh!

we hit up friendly confines friday night for some good food and the pens game.

saturday included pedis with the girls.

and some serious party decorating.

so happy to have this girl here.

mango margaritas to celebrate cinco de mayo! virgin for me, lots of tequila for everyone else.

kenley loved cinco de mayo and all the chips that were involved.

this is what our sunday morning consisted of.
she pulled out every single pant, short, and skirt, tried to put it on, then threw it.
why do i feel this is a prelude for 15 years from now.

***

we had such a fun weekend with friends & our amazing visitors,
celebrating cinco de mayo!

how was your weekend?