A Wednesday Funny

Morning! Happy Wednesday to you and happy last day of bed rest for me! (The HUGE smile on my face right now would make you smile, guaranteed. )

After scrolling and scanning like a madwoman on Pinterest this morning, I decided to roll (a VERY pretty sight these days, I'll leave it up to your imagination) out of bed, make a fiber smoothie and do a face mask. A truly eventful morning for myself.

As I sit with my mint green mask covering from the base of my hairline all the way down my neck, I took the first sip of my smoothie and opened my planner. Knock knock...ah! snap-eeek, shoot, fudge, crap, no!

While I contemplated hiding under my kitchen table, putting a blanket over my head, or somehow scrubbing off my freshly applied mask in five seconds, I found myself at the door. (Maybe they'll think I am REALLY into Saint Patrick's Day..a little early..or having a strange leap day celebration??)

My mailman looked at my masked face for what seemed like two hours. Quickly gathering that neither of us were going to say anything about the mask; or the fact that, indeed, my green Toms matched my face..we made awkward small talk and he handed me a package. "Thanks!" I shut the door and laughed. He laughed too.

Reese would have been so embarrassed of her Momma! My "morning funny" reminded me to laugh at myself and not take life too seriously, cheers to that.

Picture from when I was 10 weeks...

Almost Done, hooray! 

P.S. All you Momma's..or someday Momma's, check out this website. It's absolutely fabulous for planning a nursery or just getting inspired about deco!  http://laybabylay.com/ xo

JH

Day 8.

Butt on couch countdown-only 6 more days to go! Until my hair is blowing in the wind, my toes are in the sand (looking like a beached whale, but nonetheless!)  I am free!

I could tell you it has been complete torture, so you will feel horrible for me and send me twizzler bites...but honesty is policy. While at certain moments I feel like ripping my temporarily smooth (prenatal vitamin enhanced) blonde hair and sprinting around the block, I have actually been enjoying this still time of bed-rest. Drew and I rarely are housebound. We wine, we dine, we adventure! Before this week, we have not put many hours into our white couch just "being."  Sitting next to each other..reading all day...laughing..being quiet. Friends come and visit and we don't go anywhere. We just sit.. It's oddly refreshing.

Stillness is a joy that I rarely encounter. 

I love music. 

I love LOUD, CRAZY music even more. 

I love talking, yelling, singing.

I love dogs. 

I love street dance parties. 

I love talk radio. 

I love Laker games. 

I love people with sass and energy. 

I love Patty, the "Millionaire Matchmaker"

All of these things are wonderful and also, wonderfully noisy. 

I surround myself with noise..because I love noise. 

But as most things are in life, there is an intelligent balance that must be strived for. 

I could and would never ditch my love for noise, I am learning the gift of stillness. 

Sit. 

Think. 

Pray. 

Read. 

Listen. 

All things I am no good at, but am pursuing. Because, they are beautiful and just as important as me blasting Rhianna in the shower! (..I'm breakin dishes!!..)

35.5 Weeks <3

It's funny how you can learn life lessons when you are least expecting to.  

JH

In Bed.

For a person like me (i.e., if not running around, doing jumping jacks, baking, gabbing with girlfriends over chai, doing laundry or solving world hunger, I have failed).."bed rest" is not the most welcomed or happy phrase. However, I am making the most of my doctor grounding me, forcing me to glue my booty to the bed...

Top 5 favorite moments of Day 3 (yesterday) during the "booty glued to bed grounding."

1. Discovering the game of "scramble" on the Iphone. If I haven't invited you to play, it is just a matter of time. Please play back in a reasonable amount of time, I am waiting by the phone to whoop you.

2. The WORLDS BEST PIZZA made right here in the Harris kitchen by my personal chef, who is also known as my strapping husband of 9 months. Trader Joe's whole wheat pizza dough, fresh basil, pineapples, garlic, pepperoni's baked to p-e-r-f-e-c-t-i-o-n! Followed by Breyers lemon popsicles! Mmm, wish we had leftovers...

3. Painting my nails (base-OPI "French Quarter" and a topcoat of Essie "Set in Stones") and imagining my hands, polished in glitter, holding Reese for the first time.

4. Drew exploding in laughter, almost to the point of spraying the pinot noir that was in his mouth all over our white duvet cover!

5. Writing a letter to our unborn baby girl. Telling her how excited her Dad and I are to meet her..what I'm scared about...what I'm excited about..she might not read it for 7 years, but it felt so freeing to write.

It's crazy how the little things are my highlights right now, simply because I have time to enjoy them. Don't forget to sllllooowww down. In fact, I am grounding you to at least an hour of bed rest today. Read your favorite book, journal, just sit, play me in scramble...whatever it is, glue your booty to the bed.

JH

Soapbox Tuesday

Some fun insights I would like to share after 8 months of marriage, 25 years of life, and about 26 identity crisis meltdowns.

1. Ask good questions. The ones that make people think deeper...become a master at this. Even if it's a stranger, ask them what they do, where they grew up, you never know..you could learn something you never knew. Take initiative.

2. Don't make people guess. If I'm feeling cranky, tired, and pissed off at my boss, I need to communicate that with my husband. If I don't, he may think I am cranky, tired, and pissed off at him. Talk to each other people!

3. Laugh at yourself. If you take yourself too seriously in a relationship (of any kind), you will stress everyone out, including me..including yourself. Laugh Out Loud. Life is way to short to stress about the clothes that got left on the floor..pick them up and fling them at the fan so they fly across the room.

4. Don't compare yourself, your marriage, your booty, your anything. Not only is it unattractive to everyone around you, it robs you of your freaking amazingness. When you are focused on what others have, it fogs your view of what YOU have. Which, my friend, is a WHOLE BUNCH OF GREATNESS! Be inspired by others, absolutely, just don't wish to be them instead of your beautiful self.

5. Think before you speak. Is it really your friend who said the wrong thing, or is it about an insecurity that YOU have? Would your husband/friend really want you to say THAT about them? Double and triple check your thoughts before you jab full speed ahead. This is what I call the "check yo self" method.

6. Learn that "no" does not mean you're a loser b***h. Sometimes you need to say "no" to events, volunteering, girls nights etc..and saying yes to you getting in bed an hour earlier, that's okay.. Take care of yourself and know what your body/mind/spirit needs. This is for your own balance, but it will positively effect those you love if you make mindful decisions with your time management!

7. Ask for help. If you are struggling with something, your friends/lovers WANT to help you. Not only will it be healing for you, but it will open up a whole new world of humility, vulnerability, and closeness with that person. (Asking for help is something I literally have to ask God to help me with!! Stubborn as super glue!)

There's my rant.
In other news, I pretend like Valentines Day is dumb, but I think it's kind of cute. I wake up every 1.5 hours to move and go to the bathroom. I am learning that praying for your spouse is one of the most powerful things you can do for them. I hope your day is full of chocolate.

A little hospital snooze

You know those times in life when you feel like you are on vacation during your normal, day to day life?? Kicking your feet up and reading for hours on end..because there is nothing else to do.....me either! I have jumped on a train that has been trekking at 90 for the past month. As I take a deep breath and know most of you are nodding your heads at this very moment, I feel like we're in this together.

A few weeks ago, Drew and I went out to dinner with our great friends at Crow Burger on the Peninsula in Newport (don't go unless you have NOTHING else to do..we waited an hour for a mediocre cheeseburger, sad!). My stomach had been acting up just before dinner, it felt like a cramping that I couldn't quite describe and had never felt before. In the middle of laughs and storied about the fire service, I began feeling uncomfortable. We ended the night without ice cream, I was ready to go home...Friday night without ice cream is a sin, by the way..

Once home, Drew soon fell asleep and I began feeling more and more uncomfortable "cramping." Thanks to Google, I soon realized what I was experiencing were contractions. Not the kind called "Braxton Hicks," those are normal and relatively painless. These, however, were coming quicker and quicker, and I was feeling more pain as they progressed. I woke Drew up and in 2 seconds he was dressed and had the car warmed up. Middle of the night "calls" are his specialty. I was hesitant to go to the Hospital, and by hesitant I mean..passionately stubborn.

Before we knew it, we were in Labor and Delivery at Kaiser in Irvine and they had me hooked up to a monitor to see how bad my contractions were. Sure enough my body was gearing up for labor at 30 weeks! Reese was ready to join us! The next few hours felt like a tornado as they told me I was 1 cm dilated and was sent in for an ultrasound. Drew and I turned into a Momma and Papa bear..all we wanted was to protect our little one and keep her brewing for a couple of weeks longer. We slept in the hospital that night..(Is it still considered sleeping when its only 2 hours and it's interrupted???).. Needless to say, baby Reese is still in my tummy and hopefully there to stay for a while! The doctors and nurses at Kaiser were absolute gems and I am so thankful they took such good care of our little unborn girl!

Not only was the staff incredible, but our family surrounded us like groupies and made it that much easier. No more exercise and no lifting for me, but the little one is safe and sound...and o boy, is she growing!

It's crazy beautiful how the Lord bonded Drew and I over this experience, and even bonded us to our little Reese as well. Life is full of hiccups and I am so thankful HE is in control and HE provides.

As my belly shoots out, I am gearing up a possible side business, Drew and I are determined to find a home, I have 1 month left of work, and my goodness...I'm blessed.

I'm very glad I am here on this earth at this time with all of you..take advantage of every opportunity and remember..today might be it.

Au revoir <3