{31} Lately…

Nico St. Patricks Day

Lately I’ve been…

reading  Still reading The Goldfinch.  Didn’t realize how long the book was!  I am actually enjoying it, but I have been pretty sidetracked with reading business development books and other things.  I will eventually finish it!  

writing  I recently started freelance writing for the new parenting blog started by Mom365. They are a newborn photography company who specializes in hospital photos.  Their blog has tons of parenting tips and advice from moms across the country and is an excellent resource, especially for new parents.  I am so excited to be included in this new venture!  Here is one of the more recent posts I wrote about taking baby outside in the cold.

listening  Went to brunch over the weekend at a piano bar and heard amazing music from Dylan Meek.  We ended up getting his CD and have been playing it while cooking dinner this week. So relaxing!

thinking  How much I miss Nico’s curls.  I held off getting his hair cut for SO long. People thought I was crazy as his hair was growing into his eyes and all, but I just thought it was adorable.  I did have to admit, things started getting out of control, so we finally decided to go for a haircut.  I’m definitely missing those baby curls on my little boy!

smelling  The chicken dinner my husband prepared for us last night lingering in the kitchen.

watching  Just watched 127 Hours, which was nominated for an Academy Award a few years ago.  What an incredible survival story.  It was tough to watch at times, but I’m so glad we watched this amazing account of a man’s will to live.

wishing  We were back in Mexico enjoying that warmth & sunshine once again!  Although my stomach probably wishes otherwise haha.

hoping  For a good doctor’s appointment this week.  We are going on Thursday to check on our little baby for an anatomy scan to make sure he or she is healthy.  Please send us love, prayers, and good vibes!  We will also be able to find out baby’s gender VERY soon!  We are hoping to do a fun reveal in the next week or two (not only for you, but for ourselves as well!), so stay tuned!

wearing  GREEN!  In honor of my Irish heritage.  Yes, I know it’s hard to believe, but I’m actually 50% Irish.  As you can see from above, Nico is celebrating too. Happy St. Paddy’s Day to all!

loving  Nico uttered these words this week… “I love you Mama.” I meeeeeaaannnn this pretty much just made my entire life!  I think every mom waits to hear those three little words from their child. I admit, I prompted him to say it, and right now he loves parroting everything I say, but it was absolutely amazing all the same. 🙂 

wanting  One of these amazingly cool cartoon bags.

needing  Support for my Lenten service project! My sorority sister, Brielle, and I decided to join together to run a family supply drive for the Thorpe Residences in the Bronx, NY. They provide food & shelter to families in transition. They are in need of everything from diapers, wipes, formula, baby food, to board games & toys for family game night. We created an Amazon Wish List that will be up until April 12th for donations, and we can also accept donations in person. Brielle and I will be hand delivering the items to Thorpe after the drive. We appreciate anything you are able to donate!

feeling  How proud of how productive I was yesterday.  I normally hate waking up early, but decided to force myself to stay awake (and not go back to sleep), get my workout in early, eat breakfast and get a jump start on my work for the day.  I have to admit, it felt amazing, and I felt like I had so much energy to get things done.

craving  A green smoothie…because it is St. Patrick’s Day afterall.

clicking  Through beautiful houses in Deep Creek Lake, MD.  Planning a bachelorette getaway for my bestie, Meg, and should be making a final selection on a place tonight!  Whoo hoo!

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On a final note, I would like to wish a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my niece, Brittany!  Hope you have a great day!

What have you been up to lately?

XO,

Gina

***I was inspired by Tina of Like Ordinary Life to create this post, and she was inspired by Lauren of siddathornton, who started The Sunday Currently.

Kiss Me I’m Irish!

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Hope everyone had a HAPPY ST. PATRICK’S DAY!!!  Being half Irish, this holiday always means a bit more to me than the typical American “let’s get wasted” mentality.  I make sure to call my off-the-boat Irish Granny to wish her a great day as well as my mother, sister, aunt, and uncle.  I dream of my roots, and wish to someday actually visit Ireland.  Of course, I also usually take part in the fun festivities as well, but obviously this year was a bit low key!  This weekend, I ended up going to church instead of the bar, hung out with my guy and some friends, went shopping for new clothes (that fit–yay!), and of course, still sported some green in my attire.  It was a nice switch up to St. Paddy’s Day this year.

In addition, my photography class assignment this week was to do self-portraits.  Ahhh!!!  Scary!  Definitely out of my comfort zone, but it was good for me to actually take my tripod out of the box and learn how to set it up.  I decided why not use this as an opportunity to learn how to take my own blog outfit photos if I get in a crunch or the hubby is unavailable.  I was limited in my ability in the sense that I could only do the landscape set up (as opposed to the long-ways portrait set up) with the tripod.  It was also difficult to focus the lens without having anything to focus on, so I had my hubby stand in for me while I focused, and then I mind-marked the position he was standing so I knew where to go.  Trust there was a lot of trial and error, blurry shots, etc.  But I eventually ended up with a few shots that I was satisfied with.  Of course, you are your own biggest critic.  To be the subject AND the photographer at the same time was something very new and different for me.  However, I am glad I was presented with this challenge as it ended up making me more confident in my abilities.

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Top: ZARA / Skinny Jeans: Motherhood Maternity / Boots: Steve Madden / Watch: Michael Kors / Claddagh Ring (Irish Ring): gift – similar / Madonna Necklace: gift  / Shamrock: Wedding Gift – here / Pearls: gift – similar / Lip: Lancome Luxe

Let me tell you…I think ALL jeans should be made like prego jeans…they are ridiculously comfortable!!!  Haha.

Anyway, hope you all had a great weekend, and wishing you a wonderful week ahead!

XO,

Gina

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