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{17} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading What to Expect The First Year by Sandee Hathaway, Arlene Eisenberg, and Heidi Murkoff. Rather than read the entire book all the way through right away, I have decided to read each month as we are all going through it as a family. So far I have finished the first month, and I’m starting on month 2.

writing Well, Nico’s birth announcement cards just came in the mail today, so I am super excited to address and send them out!

listening The Coffee House station on XM Radio has been a top contender for most played the past few weeks. It’s soothing and Nico falls asleep in the car to it.

thinking I can’t believe we survived our first weekend trip to Maryland as a family! Although it was extremely stressful at some points, everything ended up working out well and the bottom line is we did it.

smelling Pumpkin Spice coffee…mmm…

watching Million Dollar Listing LA. My husband used to be a real estate agent, so this is one of the few shows he will actually watch with me.

wishing A lifetime of happiness to my friends Teri and Charlie! They are the reason we went down to Maryland. We celebrated their wedding, and it was phenomenal. What an amazing couple. I am so happy for them!

hoping To survive my first 48 hours as a single parent while Zack goes to Chicago to present at a conference. Hopefully it will be nice outside and Nico and I can take some walks together.

wearing Got dolled up this past weekend for my friend Teri’s wedding, and man did it feel good! Hair, makeup, mani, pedi, a sexy bridesmaid dress…the works. It felt good to be pampered again after rocking sweats for so many weeks!

loving The fact that I have amazing friends and family. While on our first trip as a family, there were some bumps with the weather, traffic, fire alarms in the hotel, etc. I am so lucky to have had my friends and family to help us out on our first trip. From helping me carry diaper bags, driving my car, watching my little boy, holding him during dinner so we could eat, and more. I know I am super lucky to have such wonderful, trustworthy people in my life.

laughing Every time Nico farts, I think it’s the most hilarious thing. What am I, 5?

wanting My bags to unpack themselves.

needing Snuggles from my little boy. I just can’t get enough!

feeling Sleepy sleepy. While we had a great weekend, it was a bit crazy trying to figure out our new normal. Did I mention the fire alarm going off in the hotel? TWICE.

craving These over-the-knee boots by Sam Edelman.

clicking Through photos to try and figure out which ones I want to frame and hang up in the apartment.

What have you been up to lately?

Hope everyone had a nice long weekend! Hope you all have a great week ahead!

Love,

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.

{14} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading Just finished The Sh!t No One Tells You: A Guide to Surviving Your Baby’s First Year by Dawn Dais. I’m not sure whether or not it was a good idea or a bad idea to read this book. It was quite terrifying, although I suppose I am grateful for the dose of reality and preparations. Just started reading Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan. Stumbled across it last week while browsing at Barnes and Noble and figured I would read it since I went to Maine this summer. It’s more of a beach read about family summer drama.

writing Well technically, I haven’t started yet, because my apartment has been a disaster zone since the baby shower, and I haven’t even been able to sit on the couch. HOWEVER, I plan on starting to write out some thank you notes this weekend for all of the lovely gifts we received from our family and friends.

listening I think I am late on this song, but I heard it a few weeks ago, and honestly it reminds me of my grandfather who always used to say, “You’re gonna miss me when I’m gone.” Ain’t that the truth, Grandpa. The song is Cups by Anna Kendrick from the movie Pitch Perfect.

thinking That every time I think my belly can’t possibly get any bigger…I wake up, and it’s bigger.

smelling The Victoria’s Secret Dream Angels Heavenly that I put on this morning.

watching The Challenge: Rivals II. I know it’s ridiculous that I still follow these shows, but I just can’t get enough of the drama that unfolds with every new season of a challenge. I also constantly wonder how I would measure up in these challenges. Something tells me I would give those girls a run for their money.

wishing That I could fly out to Missouri to celebrate my friend’s Cris and Kate’s big day this weekend! This is the second big wedding we have missed this year, and it’s definitely a bummer to not be there, even though I know it’s for a good reason. Wishing Cris and Kate a magical day and lots of love!

hoping To make a lot of progress on our little boy’s room this weekend. I’m really excited for my vision of how it will look when it’s finished, but it’s a long process to get there! I’m hoping we can get a good chunk done this weekend. Am I in nesting mode perhaps?

wearing Mint green shorts and a gray and orange striped top (different color here), both from Motherhood Maternity.

loving The maternity session photos that Misa*Me Photography took for us! She gave us a little sneak peek, and I am so excited to share them with you all in the next couple of weeks. She did a wonderful job, as always. Stay tuned!

laughing At this rendition of Ice Ice Baby that my co-worker shared with me earlier this week. Props to the editor for stringing together 280 movies worth of clips to create this.

wanting To swing by the Hester Street Fair on the Lower East Side this weekend. My friends, Nicole and Maria, have a booth this summer for their handcrafted jewelry company, Guilty Jean, who you may remember from these previous posts. (Spring Has Sprung, Preppy With a Twist, Spiked & Studded, and Boho Spring). Looking forward to checking out their latest line!

needing Water, water, water. Hydration is key for this prego mama.

feeling Alien-like movements coming from my belly. He’s kicking and squirming more and more every day. I swear, it’s the weirdest feeling ever that something is alive and moving inside of you! But it’s also pretty cool.

craving Watermelon. Nothing like this delicious fresh fruit on a hot summer day.

clicking Through resume after resume. Trying to find someone to fill in for me at work while I’m away. I think we are getting close to making a decision!

What have you been up to lately?

Happy Friday! Hope you all have a great weekend!

Love,

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.

{13} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading Just finished What Remains by Carole Radziwill. She is one of the more recent additions to the New York City Housewife cast, although she wrote this book long before. Carole was a reporter for many years, a princess, and related to the Kennedy’s. This memoir is about friendship, love, and loss. It’s extremely sad, but very real, and Radziwill is an excellent writer. I just started Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks as I heard it was decent and was looking for a light summer beach read (even though I’m not at the beach).

writing Contracts. I’m no lawyer, and I can’t exactly say much yet, but it’s exciting, and I’m drafting, drafting.

listening I’ve always been an Avicii fan, but I’m really loving his new single Wake Me Up. It starts out with a folk/country guitar style, and breaks into the typical dance/house style of Avicii that we know and love.

thinking That all I wanted was summertime, and now I got my wish…but it’s so hot, I don’t know how this prego body is going to make it through August.

smelling Breakfast food…my favorite!

watching Holy Bachelorette! Some intense home visits and a sad goodbye. Go figure they are all in love with her, except the one she is in love with. I still can’t believe I got into this show this season…those to blame, you know who you are…

wishing That I could fly out to San Fran to celebrate my friend’s Trey and Suzette’s big day this weekend! I know it will be amazing, and I’m sad to miss it. But excited instead to celebrate my bestie Teri’s bridal shower and a baby shower for my Little Monkey.

hoping For good weather this weekend. We have a maternity photo session scheduled with Misa*Me Photography, and I’m hoping the weather will cooperate!

wearing Gray and blue striped cotton jersey dress that was handed down to me by Danielle, my college roomie and cutest little mama!

loving The new Up the Amp MAC lipstick that I got for free by turning in my 6 empties to recycle. Also loving the new Benefit They’re Real Mascara I got for my birthday from Sephora.

laughing At this awesome maid of honor speech I discovered on Zigi’s blog. I died laughing, and it totally made me think of my bestie Teri. Let’s just say this girl does a sick Eminem.

wanting To jump in a pool for my birthday (next weekend)…anyone know a place in the city that could throw a good pool party?

needing Air conditioning. Been blasting it lately! I’m dreading the electric bill.

feeling Incredibly lucky for my amazing family and friends. Everyone has been so generous, and we have already started getting lots of packages and gifts to the house for our little man, and I haven’t even had my shower yet! I cannot wait to get everything in order! Thank you everyone, I really appreciate it.

craving Chocolate and fruit. I have been wanting a little bit almost every day lately.

clicking Photography inspiration ideas for our shoot this Saturday.

What have you been up to lately?

Happy Tuesday!

Love,

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.

Chesapeake Bay Beach Love

Let me set the scene. It was a beautiful sunny day in Annapolis. We headed over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge by shuttle for a lovely church ceremony, followed by a gorgeous reception on the water at the Chesapeake Bay Beach Club. We watched Kurt and Tiffany say their long-awaited “I do’s” and the love was radiating between the two of them all day and night long.

I have known Kurt since college. He was roommates with my high school friend Mike at St. Joseph’s University in Philly, and my cousin Marisa and I took many of those two hour trips throughout our college years up from the University of Maryland to visit them as well as another one of our besties at UPenn. We really got to know all of the St. Joe’s guys, but especially Kurt as he and Mike stayed roommates and best friends for years to come. We spent many crazy summers in Dewey Beach fist pumping, dancing to techno, screaming Taylor Swift at the tops of our lungs and taking a gazillion photos. We also spent many fun nights hanging out in Baltimore in the off season for all different kinds of events or just random weekend nights. I remember when Kurt first met Tiffany, and her first trip to Dewey Beach. I think I may actually have it on video. She seemed a little nervous (because let’s be honest, my friends are crazy), but she was sweet as could be and fit right in with the gang. I knew she would be sticking around for the long haul.

Kurt and Tiffany have such a special relationship that you would have to be blind to not notice. I hope the photos below capture the beautiful and awesome wedding day that June 29th was. They are a wonderful couple and I am happy to call them my friends. Congratulations Kurt and Tiff, and I I wish you both a lifetime of happiness together!

Hope you enjoyed the photos from this magical day. Doesn’t Tiff just look stunning in this last photo?

This week has been a good one…been busy with multiple errands, catching up with blogging and e-mails, and enjoying a little peace and quiet around the house. I have a doc appointment for Little Monkey today for our 7 month checkup. I still cannot believe we are almost there! Things have been piling in for the nursery…he is already spoiled thanks to my family and friends. We are getting super excited for his arrival, and I’m pretty sure the “nesting” bug is going to hit me soon.

Hope you all are having a great week so far!

XO,

Gina

Boston Love

I finally found some time to go through the tons of photos I took at Jamie and Kaitlyn’s wedding in Boston. For those that don’t remember, their wedding took place on the same day as the manhunt for the Boston Marathon bomber. It was an extremely crazy day, and I am proud of the bride and groom for taking everything in stride. Their original ceremony location was supposed to be held at a church that was in a lockdown area, so they had to move it at the last minute to the same location at the reception. I think they did a phenomenal job with the transformation, and this couple proved that the show must go on and love prevails!

Tons of love, patriotism, and Boston pride were shown at this wedding from start to finish. The groom and his men dressed in Naval attire, the sword arch ceremony, the altered speeches, and the irish jig and Bostonian song lyrics gave this wedding a special touch. It was so nice to see their family and friends rally around the bride and groom on their special day, and also rally around their city in light of such crazy times. I’m sure you can see the love here in the photos below. Enjoy!

IMG_7959_Layers_v1 — Me and the hubby (with the little one doing a good job of hiding)

What a fun night!

Stay tuned for more photos from our Boston trip to come.

This past weekend we went to Maryland for the 1st Annual John Petrovick Memorial 5K in Baltimore. You may remember I ran for John and raised over $5,000 for the Johns Hopkins Departments of Neurology and Neurosurgery back in October. Well, yesterday marked the 1 year anniversary of his passing, and some good friends of mine put on this special event to honor his memory and inspire others. John was a truly inspirational person, and I am so happy this event went off without a hitch. It was a gorgeous, sunny day, and about 250 runners and walkers participated. This was definitely the best possible way we could have spent the day. “Inside all of us is HOPE.” Miss you, John.

Hope you all are having a great start to your week!

XO,

Gina

Winter Wedding Wonderland

You saw the “Milk & Cookie” themed bridal shower. You saw the Atlantic City Bachelorette. And now it’s time for the main event. Milk and Cookie finally get married!!! Let me set the scene. We awoke on a crisp Saturday morning before the sun came up, and shortly after got a light dusting of snow. The bridal suite overlooked Camden Yards in Baltimore, which was a gorgeous view. We got ready, took tons of photos, and headed off to the church in Elkridge, Maryland. After the wonderful ceremony complete with the Arch of Swords military send off, we headed back to Baltimore to a lovely little venue called the Belvedere. The ballroom was stunning and so was the bride. The dance floor was packed and the photo booth was hysterical. The bridesmaids even had a little special dance prepared for the guests to enjoy. I was honored to be a bridesmaid in my cousin’s wedding, and this was definitely one for the books! I had such a great time with all my family, and it was the perfect end to 2012. Congratulations Alex & Seamus! XOXO.

2012: A Year in Review

Ringing in the New Year in Playas del Coco, Costa Rica!

Hiking in the Cloud Forest in Monteverde, Costa Rica

Valentine’s Day Surprise at the Mary Poppins Show! I dressed just like her without even knowing.

Celebrating Zack’s 31st at crazy Mehenata Bulgarian Bar

14 inch hair chop! Bye Bye. Thanks Nikki!

Sweetlife Festival at Merriweather in MD featuring Avicii…AMAZING.

Seeing Emily Blunt and Jason Segal at the premiere of 5 Year Engagement at the Tribeca Film Festival

SKYDIVING!!! Thanks to my amazing husband – he surprised me on our one year anniversary with this bucket list item.

Dad FINALLY visits us in NY. With Zack, Mom, and cousins at their pasta shop in Brooklyn

Virginia Beach trip with friends for Shirin and Shahrum’s wedding

Testudo came to Zach and Jessica’s wedding! Go Terps!

Happy Birthday to ME! Love my new camera!

Girl’s Weekend in OC for Katie’s Bachelorette – Seacrets is crazy!

Dewey Summer Send off on Labor Day Weekend

A Naval Academy Wedding for Megan and JoJo

Visionary Art Museum Wedding for MaryBeth and James

Trip to Montauk for Mike and Abby’s Big Day

Katie & Adam tie the knot at Sagamore Farms

racejohn — Running with Patrick and Melissa for my late dear friend John Petrovick. “Inside all of us is HOPE.”

racejohn2 — Thanks to Gabbi for helping to raise money for John’s cause.

Camping trip with Erin and Rai to French Creek

End of the season pic with my JV High School Girls Soccer Team

ASHS 10 Year High School Reunion – man time flies

All my girls at the 5th Annual Pollard Potluck

poodiewedding — Alex and Seamus get married to end the year!

It may seem like a lot of photos, but this is just a small snippet of what took place in 2012. There were so many more fun memories of this past year. There were also some sad moments as well. I have learned a lot this past year, and I know that I am truly thankful for the family and friends that I have. I am incredibly lucky for the support and love that I have received this past year, and I hope I was able to return the favor to all of you as well.

I wish you all a Happy New Year’s Eve. Please stay safe tonight.

Bring on 2013!

XO,

Gina

Mom’s Turn for a Birthday Shoutout

My Mom and Dad are literally two days apart in age. They usually end up celebrating their birthday’s together (much like my sister and I did growing up), but I figured I would give them each their own individual shout out on the blog for their special days this year. So Mom…now it’s your turn…

She’s the one who tucked us into bed at night. She’s the one who said goodnight at the bottom of the stairs. She’s the one who made up songs with our names in them. She’s the one who performed these songs while giving us a bath. She’s the one who always tickled our backs. She’s the one who made us dinner every night. She’s the one who also made us eat it whether we wanted to or not. She’s the one who drove us to soccer and basketball practice. She’s the one that was cheering or coaching at every single game. She’s the one who watched TGIF with us on Fridays. She’s the one who thought of cool birthday party ideas. She’s the one who took us shopping. She’s the one who helped us with our homework. She’s the one who helped us study until we were falling asleep with our books in our laps. She’s the one who took me to her lab and showed me what scientists do at work. She’s the one who helped me apply to thirteen…yes thirteen different colleges. She’s the one who went with me to visit a lot of those colleges. (Loyola New Orleans was particularly fun.) She’s the one who understood the true meaning of being a Terp since she’d experienced it herself. She’s the one who taught me how to balance my checkbook. She’s the one who still pretends we are five years old when we are coming down the stairs on Christmas morning. She’s the one who cooks Christmas dinner every year. She’s the one who has her own special Redskins touchdown dance. She’s the one who makes sure there is always food in the fridge when I come home to visit. She’s the one who comes to visit me in New York City. She’s the one who is afraid of the subway. She’s the one who shares my love of singing. She’s the one who plans our OBX vacations. She’s the one who sacrificed so much for us throughout the years. She’s the one who taught me how to be a woman, a daughter, a friend, and hopefully one day a mother myself. She’s the one who has no idea how much she means to all of us.

She is my Mom.

Love you so much Mernie! Hope you have a fantastic Birthday! XO.

At my 8th grade graduation. Look how stunning she is!

228257_555185612078_5596554_n — My bridal shower with my main girl

317191_10100548880321288_771106430_n — Photo courtesy of Joe Brier from The Happy Couple Photography.

59460_10101362998801328_988486883_n — The fam

383696_10100700083119668_1892271096_n — Me and my gorgeous Mama

Wedding Season Part Deux

Well, here you have it. This rounds out the last bit of wedding season this fall. We’ve traveled up and down the East Coast these past few months to celebrate the nuptials of some of our nearest and dearest.

The first adventure took place in Montauk, NY. At the tip of Long Island, Montauk is a gorgeous beach setting, and couldn’t have been a more perfect spot for this bride and groom. The entire weekend was lovely from start to finish. The groom played rugby with my husband at the University of Maryland, so all the college boys were reunited with their beautiful ladies in tow who I very much adore. We had a blast!

Wedding I – Montauk Yacht Club, NY

The second wedding featured in this post is a wedding of my longest best friend, Katie. We met when I was 4 and she was 5 as neighbors, and we have been friends ever since. Not many people can say they have had a non-relative friend for almost their entire life. We spent numerous years going to school together, and although, we have both moved on and moved out of our childhood homes, we have still managed to remain close. I am so lucky to have had Katie and her family in my life all of these years, and I’m happy to welcome her new husband to the “neighborhood.”

Wedding II – Sagamore Farm, MD

Wedding Season

Well, it’s definitely wedding season again! We have a total of 8 weddings that we were invited to this year, and half of them were in the past two months. It’s been a lot of traveling, but it’s been a ton of fun. The weddings have been so beautiful and unique. The first one featured here took place at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. It was the first military wedding that I had attended, and it was very cool to see all the gentlemen dressed up in their whites with their swords. The second was held at the Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, MD. It was a quirky fun location that totally fit the personality of this fun-loving couple. It’s been a blast running around this season snapping photos of all the couples saying their vows and breaking it down on the dance floor.

Wedding I…

Wedding II…

On left: My cousin (remember that fabulous photographer from Misa*Me Photography?) wearing Forever 21. Similar here. On right: Me wearing H&M. Who says you can’t get luxe looks for less?!

Bridesmaids got purple chucks for the dance floor! So fun.

Going to all these weddings this past year makes me think back to my own wedding day, and how much fun it was. My husband and I danced to Michele Featherstone’s, “We Are Man and Wife” for our first dance, and all our family and friends were up on their feet the whole time rocking’ out.

For my married friends out there, what song did you dance to on your wedding day? And if you aren’t married, which song would you choose in the future?

If you like these photos, stay tuned, because Wedding Season Part II will be featured next week. Hope you all have a happy weekend!

XO,

Gina