15 weeks and finally the big reveal!!!

HOW FAR ALONG?:  15 weeks 3 days.

TOTAL WEIGHT GAIN?: I havent weighed myself this week. I should probably get a scale.

STRETCH MARKS?: NOPE.

SLEEP?: Sleep??? Whats that?!

MATERNITY CLOTHES?: Still wearing my regular jeans with the Bella Band, but its so darn hot, that I would rather wear dresses and shorts

BEST MOMENT THIS WEEK?: Taking the gender reveal pictures with my sister in law, and FINALLY being able to tell everyone! Also, my AMAZING husband surprised me with a trip to New York for my bday next week! Ive never been to NY, so I am BEYOND EXCITED!!!! I cannot wait, time cannot go by fast enough! Oh, and I found out one of my cousins is also preggo, and due only 3 weeks after I am! I am SOOOOO happy for her!!!

WORST MOMENT THIS WEEK?: Ive been REALLY tired lately, and the throwing up has made a comeback. Hopefully it wont stick around for long!

MISS ANYTHING?: Sleeping. Coke. Coffee. Starbucks in general. (This answer hasnt changed.)

MOVEMENT?: I definitely feel her move, just not regularly, or as defined as I know I will feel her in the next few weeks.

FOOD CRAVINGS?: Nothing really. Nothing yet, anyways!

ANYTHING MAKING ME QUEASY / SICK?: Still the smells of meat make me gag a little.

SHOWING YET?: Yup.the belly is growing!

LABOR SIGNS?: Negative!

MOOD?: Ive been a little emotional lately. No crazy outbursts though!

COMPLAINTS?: Nope! Well, i'd like to sleep a full night!  

BELLY BUTTON IN or OUT?: For now, it's in.

WEDDING RINGS OFF or ON?: ON!

LOOKING FORWARD TO...?: NEW YORK!!!!!! And feeling the baby move alot more!

Big sister Harley wanted to get in on the pictures too! 

14 Weeks- Hello 2nd trimester!

HOW FAR ALONG?:  14-ish weeks. I GLADLY welcome the second trimester!

TOTAL WEIGHT GAIN?: +2 lbs. Seems like way more to me!!!

STRETCH MARKS?: NOPE. Only got a few tiny ones with Harley, however I have a feeling I wont be as lucky this time around :(

SLEEP?: Ha! Between my constant having to pee, and the fact that I cannot get comfortable to save my life, sleep is a luxury around here these days.

MATERNITY CLOTHES?: I recently discovered the beauty of the Bella band, so my pre-preggo jeans are finally being used again, yay!

BEST MOMENT THIS WEEK?: Finding out the sex of the baby!!!!! Unfortunately, both sets of parents live far away, so they were told by phone, but we had Ronys siblings over to watch the ultrasound DVD and i made special gender reveal cupcakes for them!! We are keeping a secret to everyone else for now, but we are both very excited, especially me, cuz now I can finally start shopping!

WORST MOMENT THIS WEEK?: I had to go see the dr (again, geeeeez!) because I was having really bad cramping, and the nurse said I needed to be seen right away. I texted Rony on the way there to let him know, and prayed that everything was ok. I went in, and the first thing they did was check for the heartbeat. It was 163- perfect!! After that, I didnt really care what the dr said. She did however, say that I overworked my body, and that I NEEDED to stick to my bedrest. Yea yea I got the message loud and clear this time!    

MISS ANYTHING?: Sleeping. Coke. Coffee. Starbucks in general.

MOVEMENT?: I already feel the flutters from time to time, which the dr said was normal since this is my second pregnancy,  But I cannot wait till Rony and Harley can feel the baby move too!

FOOD CRAVINGS?: Not really. There are times when certain things sound better than others, but generally food is just all around gross right now.

ANYTHING MAKING ME QUEASY / SICK?: Ha, everything?! Mainly the smell of meat being cooked (Umm Hello Kobe's, can you please quit making me queezy everytime I drive by your restaurant?!) and long car rides are NO FUN!

SHOWING YET?: Yup. Far more than I thought Id be this early, but again, the dr said it was normal for a second pregnancy. I still sometimes wonder if people can tell im pregnant, or just have a beer belly, lol.

LABOR SIGNS?: Negative!

MOOD?: Ehh, I have my "down days" which ive mainly attributed to the fact that I went from working full time, and going to school full time, to being home alone most of the day. I have said it several times, I was not biologically programmed to be a stay at home mom/wife. However, im getting more used to it now, and learned that as long as I keep busy (trick is keeping busy, while on bedrest, WHAT?!) im ok. But generally im happy as could be!

COMPLAINTS?: Seriously, whoever said this whole pregnancy thing was easy (Ok, i may have said it the first time around, but I TAKE IT BACK!) was insane. Ive had so many issues, I just dont seem to see the blessed light at the end of the tunnel. And to think, I still have 26 weeks to go, oh my! But thats not really a complaint, as long as little one is healthy and safe in there, Ill take the sleepless nights and the constant visits to the dr anyday! :)    

BELLY BUTTON IN or OUT?: For now, it's in.

WEDDING RINGS OFF or ON?: ON! Seriously, they will have to cut my finger off before I stop wearing my precious ring!

LOOKING FORWARD TO...?: Feeling somewhat normal again. Soon, I hope!

A picture (sorry its not great quality) of our gender reveal cupcake!

So originally I started this blog to keep everyone, near and far, updated on all the wedding plans. Ad granted, I kinda sucked a little on keeping it updated (hey, i had work, school, a kid, and a wedding to plan, dont judge me!) and it may or may not have been almost 6 months since my last update, but Ill try to be better now that im home....all the time (But thats another story!).

So what have we been up to?? Well, lets see...The wedding did in fact take place. It was the most wonderful and amazing day of our lives, filled with our closest family and friends. The weather was PERFECT, and the evening went off without a hitch. We couldnt have asked for a more perfect day over all.

After the wedding Rony and I headed off to our 8 day cruise which was wonderful, and couldnt have come at a better time after all the work and stress of a wedding. We have an amazing time, and were quite sad once we got back :(

A few weeks later we went off to spend a weekend in Savannah GA with the Mayer clan. We stayed in theee most glorious and beautiful house ever, courtesy of some family friends, and spend such a great weekend with the family.

Soon after that, CellBros (Ronys company) took their employees on a weekend getaway to Palm Coast. A whole 4 days of relaxing by the beach, watching cheesy movies, and eating awesome food. It was quite the weekend!

In June Rony celebrated his 31st bday, and fathers day, by going skydiving with his siblings. I had bought him a gift certificate last year, and he finally worked up the courage to do it once Kevin, Milton and Lissie joined in too! According to them, it was the best experience ever, and I was a very cool wife according to the hubby.

anddddd. Merely 4 days after all the bday celebrating...Rony and I found out I was pregnant!!! Thats right...somewhere along all those getaways, and all the celebrating...a little baby Mayer was made (Too much information? haha) despite our efforts to hold off on a little addition for a year or two.

So, thats pretty much everything. You are all officially caught up! Ill add some pictures so that you guys (whoever actually made it this far) wont be bored to tears.

 

Its almost that time!

With the wedding only a few weeks away, we (and by we, i really mean I!) have been feeling the pressure to get things finalized, and decisions made. Ive been pretty good at sticking to our budget, and doing most things myself, however I would've never imagined how ridiculously expensive ALL things wedding are! It seems by simply being in the "wedding aisle" at Michaels, things become over priced. Ive managed to get away with doing things on a reasonable budget, by trying to stay away from the cutesy wedding stuff, and going a little less traditional. Today I made the decision to not use flowers for bouquets. Am I crazy? Maybe. However, I refuse to spend obscene amounts of money on something that will only die two days after the wedding. Plus, I don't even really like flowers to begin with, so i'm quite happy with my decision. So, stay tuned to see what untraditional idea we come up with for the ceremony ;)


On another note, Have I mentioned how unbelievably excited I am that my brother will be here for my wedding?!?!?! My brother has always been my protector, body guard, dad, and advice-giver. He was the one that yelled at me when I did something wrong, the one that bought me my first car, the one that got me my first job, etc. My brother is the most important man in  my life (besides Rony of course) and having him there will only make my wedding day complete! And to add the icing on the cake, he's bring his beautiful girlfriend with him! I am so excited that they're going to be a part of our special day, and cant wait to see them!


And on that note, I leave you all with some wedding advice a friend of mine sent me :)


For the Groom:
Never let her go to bed angry - you're defenseless when you sleep.
Don't let her know that you think your couch is comfortable - or you'll be sleeping on the patio.
If she says, "Do whatever you want to" - You'd better figure out what it is she wants you to do.
The best gift a man can give his children - is to show them how much he loves their mother. 
The second best gift he can give them - is his time.
Don't ever criticize your wife in public - the world should know that you believe she is perfect.


For the Bride:
When he asks if he can change channels - no matter how you answer, it sounds like "yes".
Men don't spend money on expensive toys just to make you mad - it's genetic, they can't help it.
If you ask his opinion, and he says "I don't care", or "I don't know" - he really doesn't care, or know. (Ive learned this one with Rony!)
Let him pretend he's in charge. It may take him 5 or more years to figure out that he isn't. By then, it's too late.
Don't ever criticize your husband in public - the world should know that you believe that he tries really hard.


And for BOTH: 
Don't fight or argue over the little stuff. It's never worth the effort.


Happy Leap day...39 days to go!!!!

Where is the time going?!?!

Sorry its been so long since our last update, and I wish my excuse was "Ive been busy with all the wedding plans" but in a reality, life has just been crazy all around, lately. Both Rony and I have been crazy busy with work, and to add to the madness, im also getting ready to take my TEAS to (finally) apply to the nursing program, so needless to say all wedding plans have taken a back seat to our everyday life. However, with the wedding so close now, Im finally feeling the pressure, therefore I promise I will be getting this wedding done and over with even if it kills me!

One great accomplishment we had this month was FINALLY getting a caterer for the wedding! Some of you may know how much work this has been for us, after having to deal with several disappointments, so I am feeling very relieved that we are able to cross this off our list!

We've had several friends and family members ask us recently if we were doing a wedding registry, and I would like to address the topic: Rony and I have everything we need, and really don't feel the need to ask for anything else. As cliche as it may sound, our only wish for our wedding day is for our family and friends to be there, and enjoy the day with us! However if you MUST give us something, theres a VW Bus that my darling Fiance has been wanting! :p

Check, check, check!

If someone would've told me years ago, that one day I would be going to a bridal store and trying on beautiful wedding dresses, I probably would have laughed in their face. Ive never been the girl that dreams about weddings, or being the princess for the day. In fact, up until Rony actually proposing, I thought we would fly off to Vegas when the time came to get married! 

However, yesterday I had an appointment at a bridal store to try on some wedding dresses. I went with 3 of my good friends/Bridesmaids, which I think made the moment so much easier for me. As I walked into the store, I immediately felt overwhelmed. My friend Natalin asked me if I was nervous, to which I simply replied "yes", as I secretly tried not to have a panic attack. So many dresses...so much tulle...so many options! I would just like to add, I am the WORST at making decisions. Something as simple as what to have for dinner becomes an issue for me. Thankfully, with the help of my bridal consultant, Brooke, and my amazing bridesmaids, I found my perfect dress. Its everything I wanted and more, and as embarrassing as it is for me to admit, I may or may not have called Rony gushing about it as soon as we left the store, lol. Now I just need to find a good hiding place for my dress once it comes in, because Rony has been trying to figure out what it looks like! 

After we found my dress, The girls and I headed to the mall and found the perfect bridesmaids dresses! I am so glad they found dresses that were affordable and beautiful at the same time! I also ran over to the wedding venue and put the deposit for our wedding date, which means whether we like it or not, Rony and I will be getting married in April! On top of all the wedding excitement, I am officially done with finals for the semester! I'm not sure what I was more excited about, finals being officially over, or finding my wedding dress! 

The wedding is slowly but surely coming along...and we are very grateful for all the help from our friends. Now that things are falling into place, we are more anxious to share our special day with our family and friends! 

-Ileana

Engagment Pictures!

Yesterday Rony, Harley and I had the our engagement pictures done by Jacqueline Nicole Photos. She was so much fun to work with, and made the whole experience very easy and comfortable. As many of you know, Rony isn't very fond of having his picture taken, so i'm very grateful that he put on a brave face and went through the whole process with a smile (and a few jokes here and there!).

When Jacqui and I first spoke about what we wanted for this shoot, I told her we wanted something outdoors and funky, and I sent her a few pictures that I wanted to recreate. We had so much fun taking the pictures at the locations she picked, that we totally forgot to get any pictures of the engagement ring! So, now we get the pleasure of working with her one more time! I'm so excited to see all the pictures!!!

Here are a few she sent me last night! :)