Knox’s Newborn Shoot

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Oh my goodness, I am so excited to finally share these newborn photos of our sweet baby, Knox Gannon Notes, taken by Tyler Lyons of Scratch Studios! Tyler was so patient with our family as Knox was super fussy during the first half of the shoot until he finally fell asleep and allowed us to position him in cute poses haha. We also wanted to get some family shots with our new babe, and you know how photo shoots go with two toddlers! But Tyler was awesome and patient and did such a great job! These photos were taken when Knox was about 8 days old, and I can’t believe he’s now already over 5 weeks!

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So thankful to Tyler for these amazing shots, and it’s going to be tough to figure out which ones to print and frame for the house!

Since my last post, nursing has definitely gotten a bit better. The craniosacral therapy was MAGICAL and really helped with Knox’s neck tension. I felt a huge difference after this appointment, and I HIGHLY recommend Amy from CranioBaby. He still needs work with stretching out his tongue which we are working on with sucking exercises and we are doing more tummy time for neck strength, etc. We aren’t in a perfect spot, and it can still bit a little painful at times, but hopefully it will get better and better as he grows and his latch improves. The good news is that this mama is a milk machine, so he is still getting plenty and growing strong.

Sleep is going okay. At night he is waking up twice currently, eating quickly, and going back down in the rock and play. Naps are tougher as he is a pretty light sleeper during the day, and I have two other noisy boys haha. He also likes to be moving for naps so we have been either using the swing, the stroller, or the K’tan wrap. As many of you mamas know, things are constantly changing with newborns, and as soon as you think you figure something out, then everything changes. Am I right?! So it’s a day by day survival.

This week has been tougher on me as I’m trying to navigate three kids on little sleep, also running a business, and trying to find some time for myself to clear my head, which is insanely hard to do. I know it’s just a season of life, and I’m trying to soak it in, but some days you just need a good cry, and that’s what happened yesterday. I find it tough to meet the needs of a newborn at the same time as a toddler. Something I went through last time around as well. It’s almost easier having all three boys together, because at least the older two can entertain each other. When it’s only two of them, it’s harder, because everyone wants and needs mama’s attention. Being a mom is not for the weak my friends, and my babies need a LOT of me right now. I just have to remember to ask for a break when I need it. Whether I have my hubby take over, call a babysitter for help, go take a walk to clear my head, call a friend or family member, etc, it’s so important to keep myself in a good headspace, so I can be a better mom for my babes. I think it will also help once I am cleared to start exercising again as that is a good stress reliever for me. My post partum appointment is next week, so I am hoping to start back up with my exercise programs again on October 8 for those who want to join me!

As always, thanks for reading! And I hope you enjoyed these sweet little photos as much as I did! Wishing you all a fantastic end to your week!

XO,

Gina

{46} Lately…

It’s been a long time since I have written one of these posts, but I have missed them and they were a crowd favorite, so I want to bring them back over here to the blog! And what better time than when I’m sitting here at 39 weeks and 5 days pregnant patiently (not-so-patiently) waiting for this 3rd baby to arrive. Am I right?

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Lately I’ve been…

reading Reading all the things you guys. A couple that I want to highlight that I finished recently are Real Food for Pregnancy  by Lily Nichols. Such great insight and research into optimal nutrition for us preggo mamas. Aside from her incredible nutrition info, she also touches on food myths, exercise, and the 4th trimester. Highly recommend this one! The next book I loved recently was Stranger in the House. I finished it in less than 2 days as I couldn’t put this thriller down! Shari Lapena, author of The Couple Next Door, wrote this one which was a huge hit, and I actually think I liked this book even better! I am also currently reading The Untethered Soul by Michael A. Singer. Definitely a great read, but also super heavy, so I am taking this one at one chapter per day so I can soak it all in. And lastly, I just picked up Amy Schumer’s book from the library last week, The Girl With the Lower Back Tattoo, which is already to be proving to be a hilarious read.

 writing  Thank you notes from the boy’s bday and baby gifts, and I recently wrote a Baby Mama’s Hospital Bag Checklist that I posted on this here blog if you haven’t seen it yet!

listening  Mixing it up between chill music to relax and dance music to try and dance this baby out. Loving Drake, “In My Feelings” right now. Super original, I know.

thinking About my mama who is driving up to NY right now from MD to come help out with the boys until the baby arrives and beyond. Super thankful!

smelling  The coffee I am drinking…a dark roast from Roatan (off the coast of Honduras) brought to us as a gift from my mother-in-law after her recent trip and made with the French Press. Mmm.

watching  Hubs and I have been watching Mad Men together which is a nice throwback to my advertising background. We are currently on Season 4 and loving it. I am also pumped about the new seasons of both Orange is the New Black and Shameless that just arrived recently on Netflix.

wearing At this point at 39 weeks pregnant, anything that still fits and is comfortable to move in. That mostly means maternity leggings or maxi dresses. I did buy these cute slip on shoes on sale from Old Navy for the fall though.

exercising Right now I’m lucky if I get a couple workouts and some walks in each week. It’s mostly yoga, light weights with holds, or dance aside from walking. Just trying to move a bit to get this baby out already!!! He doesn’t seem to want to budge though.

feeling  Achy all over and just SUPER ready. This is my longest pregnancy yet. Baby #1 came out with an early induction at 38 weeks and Baby #2 came out at 39 weeks due to water break. This is also going to be my largest child at birth (by far I imagine at this point), so he is just feeling super heavy in there and wearing me down big time. Chasing two other kiddos around is a task on it’s own as well!

wanting  This baby to be born. I mean, I think that’s obvious by now, no? Haha.

needing  Today to be the day. Need I say it again? Okay, fine, I’ll give you something else. If baby doesn’t come today, we have been needing to hang up some wall art and family photos in the house that are way overdue. Including some from our recently family photo shoot with Tyler Lyons, which I will hopefully get around to sharing here soon! So that may be a potential project while we are waiting around.

loving  How sweet my older boys have been in anticipation of the new baby. They are constantly giving me belly rubs and kisses, telling me how they are going to hold and help with their new little brother, and even more importantly, they have been playing so nicely together this summer (for the most part) to allow me some rest and work time when I need it. I honestly feel very lucky for them!

wishing For a smooth, quick, painless (hah!) delivery, and my sweet babe to be in my arms soon.

hoping  For some nice weather today so we can get the boys outside to play with their new little pool they got for their birthdays. And maybe I could also go into labor…

craving  ALL the ice cream.

clicking  Around for back-to-school sales for clothes in the next size up for Nico. Old Navy has some great deals going on right now. Also looking around for some post partum wardrobe items. Totally getting sick of all the maternity gear!

following Been loving following Lauren McBride lately, a Connecticut based life and style blogger. She recently became a mama of 3, so she has lots of great mom tips, shopping tips (especially for post partum), and beautiful home posts. Her blog is fantastic, but I also just love following her on Instagram for her daily updates and stories!

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HAPPY SATURDAY!

What are you up to on this summer weekend?

What have you been up to lately?

XO,

Gina