Well, hello there!  It's been a fun week here at the Hall house.  Andy has been on cloud nine after finding out Baby Hall is Baby BOY Hall.  Baby Boy is still nameless, but we have a few frontrunner names that we are still trying to agree on!

Friday we went to Anchor Fest for food and then ran away as quickly as possible.  Anchor Fest is a local fair that comes every year to Centralia.  There are always carnival rides, carnival food, carnies, a car show, street dancing, and much more crazy nonsense.  People tend to come out of the woodwork and NOT bathe before coming...it's an entertaining adventure.  Here's the food spread.  It was HEAVEN...until it made me wicked sick.

Saturday morning I got up EARLY (WAY early for me, like ready before 9 am on a Saturday early) and hubs, my Mama, and I all went garage sale-ing for clothes for baby boy.  We got SO much stuff for him and I am so, so so excited!  I washed it all and here's a picture of the spread so far.  I've even started hanging things in his closet and it makes me even more excited to meet him!

 Oh.  And one of my favorites so far.

After that on Saturday, we decided to get the heck out of dodge and away from the Anchor Fest crazies.  We drove to O Fallon, IL to visit our good friends and visit said friends and their grandson's birthdays!  This sweet little LoveBug is so entertaining and I really enjoyed celebrating his third birthday!

Isn't he the cutest?  This was his second or third piece of cake.

Sunday we came home and chilled out.  I vegged out most of the day on pinterest looking at color schemes for baby boy's room.

And for the weekly update:

How far along? 17 weeks 4 days 

Total weight gain/loss: Last weigh in I was still down!

Baby is the size of a: Onion!

Maternity clothes? Every day this week I've worn a long skirt and some sort of either tank or t-shirt.  So technically no, but yes.

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: Sleep this week is good!  Getting up early has made my sleep come quick and easy.

Best moment this week: Starting on Baby Boy's closet!

Have you told family and friends: Yes!

Miss Anything? Not much this week...I feel pretty satisfied. :)  

Movement: Comes and goes

Food cravings: Boiled peanuts :)

Anything making you queasy or sick: Teeth brushing, greasy food

Have you started to show yet: Yes!

Gender: BOY!

Labor Signs: No

Belly Button in or out? In

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!  But getting up earlier does have me more irritable than before.

Weekly Wisdom: Don't drink a ton of water and then eat greasy food.  My body hated me.

Looking forward to: Daily movement, agreeing on a name, and painting baby boy's room!

Thanks for tuning in for this week's events! Xo

Baby Hall is a.....

Welcome, friends!  Today is a big day for the Hall Family as we learned the gender of our little bug!  Thanks again for your patience today while you waited for us to tell our parents.  Today was SO exciting for both of us.  I cried a little tear (although I don't think Andy saw) when we found out the gender out of pure excitement!

Pardon my scary no makeup face!  This is post-pool from this weekend!

How far along? 16 weeks 3 days

Total weight gain/loss: I am DOWN a couple pounds from our last appointment :)

Baby is the size of a: avocado! YUM!

Maternity clothes? Pretty sure I'm done with jeans.  Ugh.  Wearing a pair of yoga pants today and doing maxi dresses most of the time.  Also pretty sure I'm nearly done with compression top pants because they are getting pretty tight!

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: Comes and goes.  This week I blame my icky sleep on the people building a house directly next to us...but the sleep comes and goes.

Best moment this week: Finding out the gender and getting in the pool for the first time!

Have you told family and friends: Yes!

Miss Anything? Sleep and booze.

Movement: Today was a pretty active day...I think baby enjoyed (or didn't?) being prodded at our ultrasound today.

Food cravings: BOILED PEANUTS!!!!!  Delish.  I might add that my incredibly caring husband drove to Walmart in the middle of our weekend to get me a few cans.  Heaven in my mouth.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Still just some teeth brushing nonsense.

Have you started to show yet: Yes!

Gender: See below...

Labor Signs: No

Belly Button in or out? In

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!  Although Andy called me out yesterday on being moody.

Weekly Wisdom: Our doctor told us this week that I can get in the pool no matter the temperature and can't freeze the baby...YAY!

Looking forward to: Daily movement!  And settling on a name!

Proud parents of a....

Protective big brother?

This is what the box looked like pre-reveal....

And then both grandmas opening the box...

(I have a video of the balloons actually coming out but my computer is being rude.  So I'll stick with pictures for now and post the video later.)

 

BABY HALL IS A BOY!!!!  :)

15 Weeks and other fun things

Welcome Friends!  First, a picture from last week's bump.  LOVE being able to say I've felt our little bug move around.

Second, this has been an exciting two weeks!  We celebrated our FIFTH anniversary this week.  Seriously....this cute boy has been with me for ten years and married five?!  He is so patient, kind, and entertaining.  Yesterday we read each other baby books while cleaning out baby's room.  I SO look forward to seeing him become a Dad-he will truly be a fun Dad and very entertaining.  My parents helped us celebrate since we are trying so hard to be grownups and save for baby.  They even bought us this cake!

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We also put up the pool this week! Except it's been icky cold.  I am REALLY excited about this forecast and it getting warmer again for pool weather! This makes me truly happy because I love hanging at home with beers.  We have everything we need at our new house now and I am SO pumped to be able to hang at home with all our friends and family!

AND?  The bump grew.

How far along? 15 Weeks 1 day

Total weight gain/loss: Not sure but when I weigh myself, it's right around the pre-pregnancy weight.

Maternity clothes? Not yet, although I have some.  The extra room in the shirts is looking mighty inviting right about now, though.

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: Was really struggling last week with sleep.  Started sleeping with my Boppy maternity pillow and it has helped a lot!

Best moment this week: SO many good moments over the past two weeks--cleaning out baby's room to make way for furniture, putting up the pool, and celebrating our FIFTH wedding anniversary!  Pics below.

Have you told family and friends: Yes!

Miss Anything? Beer and trops.  I'll really be missing both later this week when the weather warms up again.

Movement: Yes, but only once.  Just a few little flutters while I was in a tough meeting this week.  I truly enjoyed it because it reminded me that even though work is hard sometimes, I really am lucky to be helping create this sweet little life!

Food cravings: Peanut butter toast :)

Anything making you queasy or sick: Not really, besides the dreading teeth/tongue brushing.

Have you started to show yet: Yes.  SO EXCITED about it, too!

Gender prediction: I predict boy, hubs predicts girl.

Labor Signs: No

Belly Button in or out? In

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!  Haven't seen much change in this one.

Weekly Wisdom: Use the boppy pillow.  Lifesaver.

Looking forward to: Finding out the gender!  I am BEYOND excited for this one.  The countdown to gender reveal is in SINGLE digits.  9 days until we find out!!

And finally, a pic of this sweet little thing enjoying the sun today.  It's been hiding most of the week, so we were all pretty happy it came out.  Not sure who loves the sun more, him or me!

13 weeks!

Hey friends!

A couple days late because Sunday was crazy busy!  Andy was gone Saturday at what I call "Man Day," AKA where he and some of our man friends go to a Led Zeppelin tribute concert in STL called Celebration Day.  It is a wasted fest and Andy always has an awesome time.  Sunday he had a golf thing with his job and got SO, SO sunburned.  I would've taken a picture because it is an EPIC sunburn on his forehead, complete with bubbles and all.  Icky.  However, I think he might cut me if he found out I put a picture of that on our blog.

You know that saying "While the [someone] is away, the [someone] will play?" Yeah.  Not really the same when you're pregnant.  So while the Andy, was away, the Sarah didn't really play.  The Sarah sorta nested by cleaning out the closet in the baby's room and watching my mama drink margaritas.

Sunday when Andy came home, he brought gifts with him!  Our dear friends from Saint Louis area literally GIFTED these couches to us.  I think they fit really well in our living room and I am PUMPED they look so good.  I'll post a final picture sometime whenever we get the coffee table to complete the living room.

And FINALLY??  HELLO SECOND TRIMESTER!!  So excited.  This little bug has truly been a blessing!  I think I can almost handle the not drinking just for this little angel growing inside me!  Side note...not drinking on Cinco?  Not so fun.  I called it my Cinco de Sober.  No bueno!  I look forward to the Dos Equis and margaritas next summer!

My apologies for no bump picture with the chalkboard this week, but there was no hubs to take the picture for me!

How far along? 13 weeks, 3 days

Total weight gain/loss: Still down from pre-pregnancy weight and STILL think it's from my lack of boozing.

Maternity clothes? Not yet.  Still doing the yoga pant, compression capris, and maxi dresses.  So happy the warm weather has finally hit MO so I can wear my dresses!

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: Same as last week-good for a few hours, then waking up restless.  Guess I need to work on wearing myself out more so I sleep better?

Best moment this week: Seeing our sweet little bug dance around inside my tummy and hearing that little heartbeat pumping away!

Have you told family and friends: Yes!

Miss Anything? Beer, tequila, margs, TROPS.

Movement: Not yet

Food cravings: Not really anything this week!

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nothing this week besides brushing my teeth and some major indigestion from Mexican food.  Hoping that means my tummy ickies are going away! 

Have you started to show yet: Still hard to tell but I think maybe a little.  I feel like I'm very uh, round.

Gender prediction: Ramzi method would predict we are having a girl, Chinese Gender prediction says we're having a boy. Heart rate this week was in the 140s so I'm guessing boy.

Labor Signs: No

Belly Button in or out? In

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy! I do find that I'm much more irritable now, though.

Weekly Wisdom: Drink water and get more physical activity.

Looking forward to: Getting a bigger bump and finding out the gender!  And putting up the pool for the summer VERY soon! :)

12 weeks! And other fun things from this week...

Hi friends!  Thanks for sticking with me during my hiatus.  Making a baby and buying a house is HARD WORK!  But I hope to do a better job staying up to date.  (PS...see my original post about how terrible I am at this!)

But first.  Today marks the 12 week mark!  Our little bug is the size of a plum!  I've stolen this little blurb from Jessica Garvin (www.littlebabygarvin.blogspot.com) because I LOVE, love, love her blog.  If you haven't been to her blog before, go visit. She is a doll and so are her two perfect babes!

So here goes:

How far along? 12 Weeks, 1 day

Total weight gain/loss: Still down from pre-pregnancy weight--is it from my lack of boozing?
Maternity clothes? Not yet, but I think may be headed that way soon.  Sticking with my yoga pants, maxi dresses, and long skirts for now!  I did buy a BeBand from Target which I LOVE, but don't so much love the way they fit right now!

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: Just this week, I've slept good for the first few hours and then wake up around 3 am with my back hurting and squirm around trying to get comfortable.  But WHEN I sleep? It's good stuff.

Best moment this week: Getting our hammock set up in our new back yard, and an incredibly tasty dinner with my mom and Bob!  (Pics below)

Have you told family and friends: Yes!
Miss Anything? Beer, beer, beer. I literally salivated when Andy bought Bud Light Lime this week.  He also wanted Dos Equis with a lime, and I had to draw the line.  There's only so much delicious temptation I can handle right now.

Movement: Not yet

Food cravings: All things lemon, including lemonade, strawberry lemonade, and lemon La Croix.  I can't get enough.  Oh, and bean burritos.
Anything making you queasy or sick: This week?  Only brushing my teeth.  In weeks past, I've had some tummy ickies related to any kind of meat, but it's getting better!
Have you started to show yet: I'm thinking no, but who knows.  Can't tell if it's baby or my beer gut I had before pregnancy.  I like to pretend it's my baby bump, though!

Gender prediction: Ramzi method would predict we are having a girl, Chinese Gender prediction says we're having a boy. 

Labor Signs: No
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!  I did have a moody episode Friday--good thing I was working home alone!
Weekly Wisdom: Drink water.  LOTS of it.  It's my focus for the week, too.
Looking forward to: Getting a bigger bump and finding out the gender!  And seeing our sweet little bug at our ultrasound Tuesday! (And kissing this nausea goodbye!)

For the fun part of the week?  At our old place we had these two AWESOME trees that were perfect for our hammock.  At our new house?  NO TREES IN OUR BACK YARD.  AT ALL.  So we improvised.  And voila--our own little piece of heaven again!

And then last night, my wonderful mother and her husband chose to share a work award/reward she earned by taking Hubs and me out to a swanky restaurant.  I got a chicken dish with bacon and potatoes, Hubs got duck leg and potatoes, and my Mama and Bob shared a plate of short ribs and mashed potatoes.  This place also had the most DELICIOUS fries and pork belly sliders (oops, no pictures of those).  Finally, we had this SUPERYUMMYTOTALLYAMAZING dessert.  It was like a chocolate pie thing, but not,  I can't even find the words to accurately describe it.  But three different textures including a brownie thing at the bottom, orange in the middle, and silky chocolate on top.  AND vanilla bean ice cream.  AND candied orange on top.  AND warm fudge on the bottom of the plate.  I'm not a sweets girl, but this shiz was SOOOOOOOO good.  Like heaven.  So if you're in CoMo, check out Sycamore.  I was  highly impressed.

I hope you each have something to look forward to this week as well! XO 

Surprise!

We've been away for a period while adjusting to our new home and the business of the holidays.  I warned you on my very first post....I sometimes forget to post altogether.  And this is no exception, friends.  So my apologies.  And yes, you did read correct--OUR NEW HOUSE.  I can't wait to give a tour once it is completed to my liking (or at least fresh paint in each room and cleaned for the 100th time).

Today started like any other Sunday--with me sleeping in WAY, WAY too late.  And starving.  Yesterday, we went to Lucky's for the first time and got some fresh cut yummy bacon.  So I was really looking forward to breakfast this morning.  Well, since it was after 12 at this point, let's call it brunch instead.  So off I went to find the hubs in the living room so we could cook brunchfast.  While getting out all of the food for our brunch, I also found this coffee that we picked up yesterday.

Um, Bob Marley in a coffee?  I'll probably love it.  I thought to myself, "it's probably really smooth and fun to drink."  And guess what?  IT WAS.  It felt like a mix of Andy's favorite (Columbian) and my favorite (Costa Rican).  There were several blends but I really liked this.  So a good start to the day.

 Even better?  My wonderful, amazing husband cooked the bacon and eggs!  My job?  The coffee, strawberries, juice, and toast (which I burnt).  So I was 3/4 successful, I guess.  But my hubs?  100% fantastic.  That man can cook brunch like it's his job!

PS.  The bacon?  Out of this world.

The spread...

Even our sweet boy got to enjoy brunch with us with some bacon grease in his food!  He loved it!

After brunch, we decided to finally finish putting together our basketball goal we got for Christmas.  It's really been a work in progress since Christmas, but since we've been getting so much snow and cold weather, it's been REALLY difficult to get motivated to finish it.   The last things we had to finish were to put the sand in the bottom and put up the net.  Oh, and agree on a spot to put the goal itself (which was way hard).  Remember that WICKED cold weather I mentioned previously?  So yeah.  It froze the sand.  Which made for an interesting defrost session.  Including this:

Yes...that's a hair dryer.  And a chisel.  And because we had NO idea what we were doing?  It also lead to this:

And yes.  That's a coke bottle being used as a funnel.

After we were both COVERED in sand and our butts were still pretty frozen, we had to decide where to put the goal.  And how tall it should be.  I still think it should be somewhere else and that the goal is WAY, WAY too tall (because I'm way NOT tall)...it's done! :) And I even made a goal!

Welcome back to our blog!  We hope to get back in the swing of things and hope to have many more things to share this year! :)

GO PACK GO...and why I've been MIA.

Welcome back, friends!  I know I've been gone several weeks.  Remember that first blog post I wrote about how I get distracted?  That happened.  OOPS!  I still have lots of pictures and lots of blog posts in my head, but seriously have been SO busy lately that I've not had time.

Meanwhile...two weeks ago, the best thing EVER happened.  My birthday present to myself FINALLY HAPPENED.

Also, before the montage of pictures...please be aware that even though I am not a Chiefs fan, I was BEYOND excited for this because I saw my FAVORITE football player :)

Entering the gate to see the boys...

Row 19 away from the field...

Even though I'm not a Chiefs fan, this part was super cool.  There were explosions and even a lady riding a horse.  Why a horse?  I'm  not sure.  I'd been drinking by then...see first picture :)

And the best part of all, you ask?  See that number 52?  That's the best part of my entire day...seeing the Clay Matthews hair flip and seeing him walk around with all his friends.

I love the Pack. :)

But also, as promised, the reason I've been missing from the blog lately.  We found THE HOUSE.  And someone is buying our house. I won't say much more about the new one or ours so I don't jinx anything, but I can't wait to share more with you all.

We've already picked out our new paint colors :)

Until next time, friends!