easter 2013

 

this year, we celebrated easter for the first time as a family of three {four with lennon}. we took L to church for the first time and he got to meet more of our friends and family. although it's super distracting taking a newborn to church, it's important to Hubby and I that we introduce L to church and teach him the importance of faith in our lives. hopefully this is something that L will incorporate into his life as well. i find myself overwhelmed with the responsibility to teach him about love and faith; also blessed that this is something that i get to share with him.

after church, we continued the celebration of easter with dinner, a family nap, and then opened easter baskets from both sets of grandparents. although L didn't get any easter candy {mama did, so i guess he got to taste some cadbury chocolate} - he did get some new toys, a few outfits, and a book about easter from Hubby's parents.

it was a special day made complete by L wearing his very first "outfit" put together by mama - a white button down, cardigan, and pants. this prompted our first easter family photo {see above}.

i will just make one more comment about how husbands suddenly become 10x more attractive when they're holding your baby?? dang.



xoxo,
PJ

January 13, 2013

I can't believe it's been over a month since my last post. The holidays have come and gone, and we're 13 days into this new year. This year, Hubby and I were able to spend time with his side of the family for Christmas and New Year's. It was really nice to be out of the City and with family. We also got to meet our niece, Stella and hang out with her parents who live in Colorado. Super fun. FYI - She's absolutely adorable and it makes me even more excited for our little dude's arrival.

This past weekend, Hubby and I took our first "baby" class - a breast feeding class. It was awesome. I learned a ton, and feel really encouraged. I'm also keeping an open mind about my expectations {especially the length of time that I'd like to be able to breastfeed}. Heading back to work after 12 weeks is going to be difficult and one of the things I was really worried about was figuring out a pumping schedule. Now, I have a bunch of resources about setting up a realistic schedule prior to my return to work and tips about adjusting baby to bottle feeds. Overall, I'm pumped {pun intended}. Later this month we're taking our two-day birthing class via Mother Me, Inc. I'm really excited!

One of my favorite things about having a kiddo a little later than our friends is their incredible generosity of passing on hand-me-downs for little dude. Seriously! Maternity clothes {thanks, B!}, clothes, toys, bottles, and accessories for this mama has saved us literally hundreds of dollars. I'm so thankful and grateful for the support of our friends. I haven't purchased more than $40 worth of clothes, and this little dude is set for at least his 6 months. Though there are still a million more things it feels like we should have -- we can now afford to purchase the items that we really want because of the support {like our stroller}.

Here are the last two pregnancy update photos ...





xoxo,

PJ

Holiday Wishlist 2012

Confession: I have not started any of my Christmas shopping. I'm particularly distracted this year which I blame partially on this growing belly and hormones that accompany. I have ideas and lists of items to purchase for my family and friends, but I have not purchased one item. In an effort to get my holiday gift inspiration going, I created my own little holiday wishlist of sorts. It's hard to focus on myself and not ask for things for the little dude that will be making an appearance in the new year - but alas! I did it.

Holiday Wishlist 2012 by pilarjoy

Holiday Wishlist: Magazine Subscription to Real Simple or Lucky | Tunnel Scarf |

Prenatal Massage | Infinity Ring | Slippers | Belly Butter | Woodsy Candle

Festivities

The big holiday weekend has come and gone. For the first time since starting my new job, I had four consecutive days off. No on-calls, no nothing. It was lovely. I slept in, stayed up late, and spent quality time with my family.

Friday night my sister and brother in law drove in from Michigan.

Saturday morning my dad and I went for a glorious 4.5 mile run, then returned to assist with brunch hosted by my parents for my extended family: aunt, uncle, cousins, and my cousin's family. It was delicious. Saturday night Hubby and I went to a Hanukkah hosted by B and her husband.

Sunday morning was spent sleeping in, eating a laid-back breakfast, sipping coffee. Hubby strummed the guitar while we sang Christmas carols and spent time listening to my parents read the scriptures. Instead of cooking traditional dinner, we all went out to a late lunch at a local Chinese restaurant.

Overall, it was such a great weekend spent with family, creating new memories and sharing old ones. Gosh, I wish we all lived in the same place.

Here's a little photo recap of our Christmas weekend:

{Hanukkah Party with B on Saturday night}

{Christmas morning all of the kids on the couch ... plus Lennon}

{Sisters}

{New sleep masks courtesy of Carolyn}

{New snuggies courtesy of Hubby}

{My most favorite little gift - Marcel the Shell with Shoes On book}

{My most favorite pretty gift - a necklace from Hubby that he picked out all by himself}

{The family all together}

{The Christmas Doggy}

Since all of our holiday card-making items were buried in our storage unit, this year we ordered {gasp!} our holiday cards to coincide with the new year. I will post a photo of our card for my 2011 recap/ new year goal post coming up.

xoxo,

PJ

Happy Christmas

When my family is all together for the Christmas holiday, we spend as much time as we can together carrying on our traditions. On the Eve of Christmas, the three girls open one small gift, and snuggle up to watch our favorite holiday classic: Muppet Christmas Carol. This year, our DVD copy remained buried in our storage unit, so instead we opted for Super 8 via Dad's new blu ray player. Snuggles, laughter, and silly talk ensued. It's definitely one of my favorite things about Christmas.

Hope you all had a lovely holiday surrounded by family and friends.

xoxo,
PJ

Holiday Wishlist: Hubby Edition

Hubby enjoys making his holiday wishlist just as much as I do. In all honesty, he probably loves it a little more than I do. Here's his list of things that he would love to receive this holiday season. Do you hear that, Santa?!

Hubby's Holiday Wishlist by pilarjoy 

Nixon Voyager Messenger, Burton 2.5L Fix Jacket, Brooks England Flyer Saddle, Men's Health Magazine Subscription, Keen Men's Springwater Cycling Shoe, Xbox Kinect, Handlebar

Holiday Wishlist

These are a few things that I'm currently loving this season. Hubby and I will be exchanging gifts {with a set budget, of course}. Because most of these things are beyond our budget, I realize I won't be getting many of them this holiday season. But a girl can still hope, can't she?!

 

 

 

Women's Health Magazine Subscription, Nike Running Jacket, Diptyque Vetyver Candle, Marc Jacobs Tote, Petal to the Metal Pouch, Wigwam Socks, The North Face Headband, This or this, Clarisonic Mia, Monogrammed Mug

PJ

Nike Running Gear

So it's become a tradition {at least for the past two years} for Dad and I to run on Thanksgiving morning. This year, we did not do the 8K Turkey Trot {mostly because I'm ran a 5K on Saturday}, and instead headed out for a 4 mile run with my friend B. It was an absolutely gorgeous day for a run!

A few months back when Dad and I attended the Nike Chicago LunarGlide+3 event, Nike graciously sent a new pair of kicks and some tech shirts for myself AND for my Dad! We finally snapped a few photos of us in the running gear. I have been wearing the Nike Chicago LunarGlide+3 for my regular running shoes and I love them.

{our Turkey Day running gear}

{our sweet kicks!}

{the tech shirts and our sweet kicks!}

Thank you again to Chicago Blogger Network and Nike for the gear!

xoxo,

PJ

Turkey Day Meal

Here are some snaps of our Turkey Day meal. The food was incredible. I prepared the turkey {the same as I have for the past two Thanksgivings}. Again, it was brined and roasted to perfection. Mom's homemade apple pie, cheesy potatoes, sweet potatoes, and green bean casserole were incredible {as always!}. I also made the stuffing {cranberry, fig, sausage} and cranberry-apple chutney. Both turned out incredibly delicious.



Overall, it was a great day spent cooking, baking, and spending time with family. So good. Now, I have to roll myself out of bed tomorrow morning to go back to work. Boo.

xoxo,

PJ

Thankful

{Source: A Girl and A Camera Photography}

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday {not only because I love cooking, baking, and eating all the delicious food}. It always holds such meaning and reminds me to spend a day reflecting on my life and the good things in it. My family has a tradition of going around the dinner table, each person sharing the things that they are the most thankful for. I love it.

Since I joined the "Weekly Gratitude" project, I have enjoyed the regular reflection of thankfulness. It's fun to reflect on my week and think about the events {big or small} that leave me feeling blessed.

These are the things I'm most thankful for this Thanksgiving holiday:

I am grateful for my parents {whose love truly is unconditional}.

I am incredibly blessed to be connected to something greater than myself {others, the world around me, my faith}.

I am thankful for each day that I can spend loving others.

I am thankful for friends that celebrate the good and commiserate the bad.

I am thankful for a meaningful career.

I am thankful for sisters.

I am thankful for Hubby {my partner for life} who loves me so completely.

I am thankful for Lennon {who gives the best cuddles in the entire world}.

xoxo,

PJ

another year over

i can't believe 2010 is coming to a close. it's been such an incredible year of growth, and i've enjoyed a majority of the lessons learned and memories made.

last year as 2009 was coming to a close, hubs and i had an incredible conversation about our goals for the new year. being obsessed with writing things down in my planner, i created a running "list" of things that i wanted to accomplish in 2010. i'd be fibbing if i said that i met all of my goals, but i can say (with a great deal of pride) that i met most of them! it's so fun looking back on my list and seeing what i thought was really important at the start of 2010. so without further commentary, here is a look back on my year...

{i got glasses}

{i graduated from graduate school*}

{my baby sister graduated from high school}

{hubs and i took a california vacation*: visited our good friend, photos of us biking the golden gate bridge, & taking a canopy tour of the redwoods}

{i got a tattoo*}

{my other sister got married}

{my best friend moved from michigan back to the east coast}

{i ran a 5k* and an 8k*}

{lennon turned one}

{hubs started taking classes & got a 4.0!}
 

{i took a photography class* and got a new lens* and started blogging more regularly*}

{i made a turkey, again}

{i took a sewing class* and then promptly broke my sewing machine}

{i started reading books again via my new kindle*} 

{we visited colorado with my hubs' family}

{i ate lots of greek yogurt ... i'm a little obsessed}

*indicates that these were actual goals for 2010 that i crossed off my list!

all in all, i look back on 2010 with fond memories, and hope that 2011 will be even better! 
happy new year!

xoxo,

pilar