All Things Loved In November

1. Warm November weather! I'm pretty sure this Wisconsin November has been the warmest one of my lifetime. And while I should be concerned about that with global warming and all, I have to admit that for this year--and this year alone--I'm grateful for the unseasonably warm weather because I only have one maternity sweater and zero maternity coats.

2. Weeds.


G and I recently started watching this show, and we're hooked! For those of you not familiar with it, the show is about a widowed housewife from an affluent California suburb who starts selling marijuana to make ends meet. We're only in the middle of Season 2 (so no spoilers) and so far we're loving it!

3. St. Ives Apricot Scrub.


I've used this product here and there since my teenage years, but never on a regular basis. Since getting pregnant, however, I've been dealing with bad skin for really the first time in my life. I now use this scrub on my face about 2-3 times per week and I'm definitely noticing improvement--and it smells fantastic!

4. The Baby Bargains book.


If you are pregnant with your first child, you need this book. I consider this book our baby bible when comes to navigating that crazy, pastel, and over-stuffed world of baby products. It reviews nearly everything you could ever need for a baby and tells you which brands and products are the best bang for your buck, and which ones are wastes of money. While it may seem overwhelming when you first crack the cover, it's actually a very easy read. And besides--what's more overwhelming than stepping into Babies R Us for the first time and trying to decide which of the 42,398 bottles to add to your registry? I read every chapter--highlighter in hand--and knew exactly where I was going to point that barcode scanner before I even walked into the store. I went from knowing almost nothing about baby products to feeling fairly well-versed on car seats, and swaddlers, and strollers. At the very least I learned what questions to ask, what to look for, and what to avoid. If you're new to the baby world, I highly recommend this book. And be sure to get the latest edition! Baby products change almost as often as you'll be changing diapers, so make sure you get the latest edition for the most up-to-date information and reviews.

5. My Mariah Carey Christmas CD.


Oh yes--it's not even December yet, but I'm already in the Christmas spirit and my beloved Mariah Carey Christmas CD has been getting play time in my car for weeks now! Bring on December, and snow, and twinkle lights, and peppermint lattes, and Christmas carols--I've been waiting for you!

Love this site? Then cast your vote! All Things G&D has been nominated for a Divine Caroline "Love This Site" style award! You can show your support by voting for me HERE. (Or CLICK HERE for voting instructions.) Voting ends on Friday, December 4th, so please vote soon. Thanks everyone!

Giveaway Winner!

Oh my goodness, I really should have been much more careful about the question I posed to you all for the Watkins Pumpkin Bread Giveaway. I asked you to tell me your favorite pumpkin treat and after only a handful of comments my mouth was watering like CRAZY! Thanks to you tempting readers, I've had more than my share of pumpkin-flavored goodies this week including:

Pumpkin spiced lattes
Panera Bread pumpkin muffin
Panera Bread pumpkin cookie--which turned out not to be pumpkin-flavored, but just a cookie in the shape of a pumpkin. I ate it anyway.
Pumpkin pie
Pumpkin cream cheese pie
Pumpkin bars
And you've inspired me to make my first ever pumpkin roll--can't wait to try it!

Pumpkin things I still need to eat as soon as possible thanks to all of you include pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin crisp (I'd love your recipe suburban prep!), Melissa's pumpkin spice bread, pumpkin caramel cake (wow that sounds good), pumpkin spice granola (I'd love your recipe too, Kristi!), and pumpkin pancakes.

And I absolutely MUST know what a "pumpkin whoopie pie" is! I've never heard of it before but I'm pretty sure I need to eat that, too.

Thanks to all who entered, and the winner of the Mix-in-a-Mitt is Katy! Katy loves pumpkin so much she couldn't narrow her answer to just one thing--pumpkin beer, pumpkin pie, pumpkin cake--she loves it all. Congratulations Katy! Check your email for information on how to claim your prize.

Love this site? Then cast your vote! All Things G&D has been nominated for a Divine Caroline "Love This Site" style award! You can show your support by voting for me HERE. (Or CLICK HERE for voting instructions.) Voting ends on Friday, December 4th, so please vote soon. Thanks everyone!

Tie It Up, Tie It Down

Top: New York & Company
Cardigan: Old Navy
Pants: Liz Lange for Target Maternity
Boots: Nine West
Pregnancy: 32 weeks

I love the versatility and graphic pattern of this top, but mostly I love its colors: black, dark brown, light brown, grey, mustard yellow, and cream.


Love this site? Then cast your vote! All Things G&D has been nominated for a Divine Caroline "Love This Site" style award! You can show your support by voting for me HERE. (Or CLICK HERE for voting instructions.) Voting ends on Friday, December 4th, so please vote soon. Thanks everyone!

Vote for All Things G&D!

I am thrilled to announce that for the second year in an row All Things G&D has been nominated for a Divine Caroline "Love this Site" style award!


And now I need your help--please vote for me! It is super quick and super simple to do:

1. CLICK HERE to go to my voting page.
   
2. Click on the orange "Vote" button.
   
3. Select "Register Now" in the upper right hand corner of the pop-up box.
   
4. Enter your name and email address to join Divine Caroline and register to vote.
   
5. Once registered, you will go to a "thank you" screen that asks what you'd like to do next. Click on "Keep Browsing" to go back to where you were before registering. This will bring you back to my voting page.
   
6. Click the orange "Vote" button to vote for All Things G&D! Your vote has not been cast until the orange vote button appears gray.

If you already have an account with Divine Caroline, all you will need to do is click the orange "Vote" button and log-in to cast your vote. (Remember, your vote has not been cast until the orange button appears gray.)

I know that seems like a lot of steps, but I promise it is very quick and easy to do, and you will not receive any spam!

Voting ends next Friday (December 4th) so please vote soon! And if you're feeling especially generous this holiday season, you can help me out by spreading the word--email your friends to solicit their votes as well, post this on your facebook page, tweet it, blog it, whatever you can do to help me dominate the competition and not be a loser two years in a row out would make me forever grateful.

Thank you so much everyone!

Hope

T-shirt: Old Navy
Tank top: Motherhood Maternity
Jeans: Gap Maternity
Boots: Etienne Aigner
Pregnancy: 32 weeks

New Moon Review

After my complete and utter disappointment with the first Twilight movie, I decided to do 2 things differently in anticipation for New Moon:

1. I did not re-read the book so it was fresh in my mind.
   
2. I lowered my expectations.

Preparation is key, people. And you know what? I think it worked...sort of. I will say that I liked this movie much better than the first one, but I still felt like it could have been so much better...

Let's start with what I liked about it:

1. They stayed much truer to the book this time which I was pleased to see. Of course they can't incorporate everything from the book into the movie, but one of the things I hated about the first Twilight movie is that they added things that never happened in the book. I can see cutting out parts of the book for the sake of not having a 5 hour movie, but don't cut out the story that I love just to introduce brand new, not in the book, information! I was happy to see they restrained themselves with New Moon. And since they stayed truer to the book, I was able to watch the movie without just taking in what was on screen--I could also think about how it was written in the book and remember how I felt when reading about it, which really enhanced the movie for me.
   
2. The special effects were a huge improvement. I loved the werewolf phasing scenes!
   
3. I thought the chemistry between Edward and Bella was a lot more believable in this movie. (And I totally cried during their break-up scene.)
   
4. Edward's makeup was better, although I still could have done without the man lipstick.
   
5. Alice's hair was cuter this time around.

And now for the things I didn't like:

1. Edward's fart faces. He spends half of his scenes with his nose and face all scrunched up and uncomfortable looking. Doesn't it look like he's smelling the nastiest fart? IT DRIVES ME CRAZY!
   
2. I hated, hated, hated how it took the actors 20 minutes to deliver a line. I get that they're trying to be all dark and twisty and Meredithy, but COME ON. Granted I'm a fast talker, but I don't know anyone who carries on a conversation that slowly. I was half wondering if they had to wait for someone in the wings to whisper their next lines to them before they could recite them. Let's speed it up for Eclipse, mmkay?
   
3. Edward's head floating in the corner of the screen whenever Bella heard his voice. Oh. My. God. If there was ONE THING I could change about this movie, this would be it! I literally cringed when it first happened. Groaned when it happened a second time. And by the third time I was composing a strongly worded email to the director in my head, begging him to please FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THINGS TWILIGHT ask, "Does this seem cheesy??" before adding crap like this to the next movie!

Overall, I really do think it was a big improvement from the first movie and I think I'll like it even more after seeing it a second time...but I'll be waiting for the DVD.

Interested in reading more of my Twilight posts? Here they are in order:
Don't Send Out the Search Party Yet
Life After Twilight
The Only Thing on My Mind Right Now
The Twilight Movie
Bite Me
My Twilight Saga
All Set for New Moon!

Watkins Pumpkin Bread Giveaway!

***This giveaway is now closed. Thanks to all who entered!***
I am absolutely in love with Watkins bread mixes. My friend Beth is a Watkins representative and turned me on to some of this amazing bread when I was visiting her in Alabama. My favorite is the pumpkin bread, which is seriously so moist and delicious that it really shouldn't be called "bread" at all--it should be called pumpkin cake, or pumpkin brownies!

Unfortunately the pumpkin bread was a seasonal item and has already sold out, but one lucky reader will still be able to enjoy it because today we're giving it away! Beth has put together this fabulous Watkins Mix-in-a-Mitt which includes:

1 Watkins Pumpkin Bread Mix
1 can Libby's Pumpkin puree

And samplers of:
Tomato Basil Dip Mix
Bacon Cheddar Dip Mix
Watkins Cinnamon
Watkins Black Pepper
Mango Shea Butter
Lavender Hand and Body Lotion


All wrapped up in a Watkins Oven Mitt and tied with festive ribbon!


It'll make the perfect gift for that chef in your family--or for yourself! See giveaway entry rules below for your chance at winning this item, or you can CLICK HERE to buy your very own Watkins Mix-in-a-Mitt!

Interested in finding out what else Watkins has to offer? Check out Beth's Watkins Online store for more great all-natural products including baby care and pet care lines coming soon! You can also check out Beth's Watkins blog Southern Living Naturally for product features, helpful tips, recipes, and even more fabulous giveaways!

ENTRY RULES:
To enter this giveaway, comment on this post by Thursday, November 26th at 11:59pm CDT, and tell me what's your favorite pumpkin-flavored treat! Your comment must include an email address to be eligible to win (either through your blogging ID or typed into your comment entry).

This giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents only.

Only one entry per person--unless you want to earn yourself some extra entries! How can you do that?

• Subscribe to All Things G&D and post a separate comment letting me know you're a new subscriber.
  
• Become of fan of All Things G&D on Facebook and post a separate comment telling me you joined!
• Tweet a link to this giveaway and post a separate comment letting me know.
  
• Blog about this giveaway (linking to this post) and leave a separate comment with the link to your post.
  
• Post a link to this giveaway on your Facebook page and leave a separate comment letting me know.
  

The winner will be chosen by random.org and announced on Friday, November 27th.

Good luck!

Pregnancy: Week 33

November 16-22
I don't think you're ready for this belly:

It's week 33 and I'm in the home stretch of my pregnancy, so I thought I'd mark the occasion with some belly shots! (<--That term had a whole different meaning in college.) I have to admit--how my belly looks straight-on really threw me for a loop as it was growing. Did you know pregnant bellies looked like that? I sure didn't! I kept wondering why it was popping out only in the center, and not all around. Turns out that's normal. And since it would have been nice to know that all along I thought I'd share it in case anyone else was clueless like me. I had a follow-up prenatal appointment this week to get my amniotic fluid checked since my levels were a little concerning last week. They did another ultrasound (our 6th look at our baby during this pregnancy!) and everything looks great! The amniotic fluid measured at nearly twice the level they were able to see last week and there is no need for continued monitoring or concern, so that's great news! The baby's heart rate was 147 bpm and my uterus continues to measure right on track for my due date. Your uterus should measure 1 centimeter long for every week pregnant you are. That means mine currently measures 33 centimeters (almost 13 inches!) from top to bottom. Isn't that crazy? They tried to get another look at Baby G&D's face since she was hiding behind her hands last week, but this time she had her face completely covered with those hands, so no luck. This little girl better get used to having her pictures taken soon!

I had three pregnancy "firsts" this week, including my first leg cramp while I was sleeping. HOLY HELL THAT HURT! It jolted me awake in the middle of the night and my immediate reaction was, "GIVE ME THE EPIDURAL!" I may be an even bigger pansy than I realized.

I also noticed the baby hiccuping for the first time this week--it was so cute!

My third "first" was rather interesting to say the least. As you all know, my friend Jill gave birth to her beautiful son Brady this week. Brady was born on Thursday morning, but Jill's labor actually started early Wednesday morning. We talked around 8:00am and her contractions were 5 minutes apart, but still fairly light and not lasting long. She sounded great and I was just so happy and excited that her labor had started. I checked in with her throughout the morning and around 1:00pm I tried calling her but she didn't answer her phone. She sent me a text message right away saying she was heading to the clinic to get checked out and didn't want to talk. And that's when my excitement started being overshadowed by worry as I realized her contractions were no longer "light" and she was obviously in pain.

Before long I started feeling some tightening in the lower part of my belly and I figured it was just the baby making some strange movement and didn't think much of it. As the afternoon continued--and I continued to get updates that Jill's labor and contractions were continuing without much progress (she ended up being in labor for 26 hours and her contractions were 5 minutes apart from the start!)--the tightening in my belly got stronger and lasted longer. I knew by now that it wasn't from the baby moving because her movements have never hurt me before. This felt more like someone was taking my lower stomach muscles and wringing them out like a wet towel. My guess is they were my very first Braxton Hicks contractions (which are "fake" or "practice" contractions) and I kept looking down at my belly and saying, "Oh no little girl! YOU stay put and wait your turn!"

I had my prenatal appointment already scheduled for the end of the day to get my amniotic fluid levels checked, so I asked the doctor about the pains I was experiencing and he confirmed that they sounded like Braxton Hicks.

"I have kind of a weird question," I said to the doctor as we were finishing up. "One of my closest friends is in labor right now and I've been worried about her all afternoon. Is it possible these are sympathy contractions?"

He laughed at the coincidence and replied, "They most certainly could be!"

My Braxton Hicks continued off and on until I found out that Jill's baby had finally been born, and I haven't felt any since! Isn't that weird?

When I went to visit Brady in the hospital I discovered that Baby G&D would move and kick like CRAZY when I was holding him. I don't know if she could feel his heartbeat, or what the deal was, but she was definitely making her presence known. On one visit she kicked so hard that she literally pushed him up and away from my belly! Thank goodness I had a good grip on the little guy! After that I started moving him to my left side when I held him (which is where Baby G&D's back is currently positioned so there's minimal movement on that side). She would still kick and move around like crazy, but at least there was no more risk of her punting him out of my arms. I hope this means she was excited about her new best friend Brady finally arriving because those two kids will certainly be spending a lot of time together!

Additional Week 33 Posts:
All Set for New Moon!
Sweater Dress Remixed
Knit & Leather

Back: Pregnancy: Week 32

Next: Pregnancy: Week 34

Baby Brady Has Arrived!

He's finally here!


No, Baby G&D did not surprise us by arriving early and with boy parts. The big news is MY FRIEND JILL HAD HER BABY!

Jill and her husband Shane welcomed their son Brady on Thursday morning, November 19, 2009. He weighed in at a whopping 9lbs 9oz and 20.5 inches. Where she was hiding all that baby in her tiny little body I have no idea!

He was just hours old when I went to the hospital for my first visit and snapped these pictures. Check out all that hair!



Unfortunately Shane wasn't there at this time (he ran home to shower) but here is a picture of the proud mama, looking absolutely fantastic with her precious little boy. Can you believe she went through 26 hours of labor just hours before this picture was taken? Amazing!


I'm so thrilled for Jill and Shane and their families (Brady is the first grandchild on both sides!) and I'm already in love with this gorgeous little boy.

Welcome to the world Brady!

Argyle Sweater Dress

Another warm fall day, so I couldn't resist another day of wearing a comfortable, elastic-free, easy bathroom-access dress. I would typically wear tights with this outfit, but I don't have any maternity tights, and regular non-maternity tights look just terrible on me right now. (The top cuts into my belly which is not pretty. Or comfortable.) Luckily it was warm enough that I could get away with going bare-legged--although I have to admit I felt rather naked all day, so I won't be wearing this dress again until next fall when I will once again be able to wear "regular belly" sized tights.

Dress: Old Navy
Top: The Limited
Boots: Target
Pregnancy: 31 weeks



I'll let you in on a little secret about this ruffled top, first seen HERE, back when I had a waist. (Ah, those were the days...) As you can see, it's not a maternity top, but I thought the ruffled detailing would look cute under this dress so I decided to wear it anyway. To accommodate my belly, only the top few buttons are buttoned and the rest of the shirt is completely open underneath the dress. A useful little trick for expectant mothers to get more out of your non-maternity wardrobe!

All Set for New Moon!

I'm ridiculously excited for the premiere of New Moon this weekend--the next movie in the Twilight saga!

I'm dragging G to it on Saturday night and I've already got my outfit all picked out:


Who's with me?

Wine Bottle Gift Wrapping

Who doesn't love getting wine as a gift? It's a personal favorite of mine to both give and receive! So for my (pregnant) friend Jill's birthday last week I decided to give her a bottle of her favorite red wine which she'll soon be able to enjoy after that precious little baby arrives!

When it comes to wrapping a bottle of wine, your options seem rather limited--but here's one fun idea I came up with! My friend Steph makes these adorable wristlet key fobs and I decided to buy one for Jill:


I wrapped her wine in tissue paper and cellophane, and then used the key fob to decorate the neck of the bottle instead of a ribbon:


And the best part? The rings of the key fob make a perfect card holder!


It's both pretty and functional!

Pretty Paisley

We've been having some warm weather recently this fall, so I was happy to get one last wear out of my favorite fall dress! I got this pretty paisley number at Vanity of all places. Yeah, that's right. Vanity. The store in the mall geared more toward girls closer to their 20s than women in their 30s. But in my defense it was probably about 5 years ago that I bought this dress, so technically I was somewhere in the middle of those two decades. I was walking by and spotted this red paisley fabric in their front window and just had to try it on. Ten minutes later it was mine. Along with some glitter eyeshadow. And maybe some jelly bracelets. Thankfully I outgrew the teen accessories phase, but this dress is one purchase I'm hanging on to!

Dress: Vanity
Tank top: Motherhood Maternity
Cardigan: New York & Company
Boots: Target
Pregnancy: 30 weeks

Pregnancy: Week 32

November 9-15
We had a 32 week ultrasound this week so they could take one last look at all of Baby G&D's major organs and everything looks good! Her heart rate is 148bpm and she currently weighs 4lb 5oz. They predict she’ll be between 7 and 8 lbs if she goes full term--I'm pretty sure I can handle that!

When they started the ultrasound and turned on the screen I was expecting to see her entire little body, all curled up. Instead the first thing we saw was a just a large oval--which I assumed was my womb--but no body inside! WHERE'S OUR BABY?? was the first thing I thought, but before I could panic the ultrasound technician said, "This is the top of her head." Whoa. I was not expecting that! As she moved the ultrasound wand around to look at other parts of her body, it was the first time I realized--really realized--just how big she is already. She's gotten to the size where they can no longer capture her entire body in one ultrasound image! It amazes me to see how much she's grown over these past 32 weeks.

It was also so incredible to discover exactly how she's hanging out in my womb. She is currently positioned head down and they expect she’ll stay that way, so that’s good! (I was born breech and was a little concerned about that.) Her back curls around the left side of my belly which explains why all the movement I'm feeling is on the right side now. Her little butt is in the upper right part of my belly, so that’s definitely the hard mass I’m feeling every once in a while which is fun to know! The placenta is located on my upper left, which they said is a perfect spot for her delivery--and it makes sense now that I think about it because I don’t feel any movement on my upper left. They couldn’t get a good look at her entire face because her little hands where in front of it the whole time, but we did see the top half of her face and she has the cutest little button nose!

These are the only 2 ultrasound pictures we got at this appointment. They're pretty hard to make out, but they are close-ups of her face. She had her hands in front of her face (along with all the other womb juices apparently) but you can see the top half of her face in these shots--her eyes and part of her nose. The first picture is pretty much a straight-on shot, and in the second picture her head is slightly turned to her left:


The only thing that made them raise an eyebrow is my amniotic fluid level, which is on the low end of normal. The doctor said it’s very hard to get a good amniotic fluid reading, and it’s quite likely that they could try to take a second reading an hour later and everything would be well within normal limits. At this appointment it was just enough on the low end of normal that they want to look at it again in a week. My doctor said it’s nothing to be concerned about at this point, and if the reading is still low next week they’ll want me to start coming weekly and they’ll keep a closer eye on things. Before we left he made me promise not to Google it, and I assured him I wouldn’t. I haven't Googled a single pregnancy-related thing this entire time, so I'm not about to start now! Google is the devil when it comes to things like this and I'm really not interested in all the worst-case scenarios. I'm going to try to stay positive and not worry about anything until my doctor gives me reason to worry. And the good news is this means we get to have another look at our little girl next week, so I'm really looking forward to that!

On to my 32 week pregnancy stats:

Total weight gain: 20 pounds
Belly circumference: 42"
Stretch marks: None
Belly button: In
Swelling: None
Heartburn: None
Varicose veins/skin tags/other horrors: None
Overall comfort level: Good

I was due for a pedicure, so I attempted to paint my own toenails this week. Holy hell that was hard! I won't be making that mistake again. It's amazing I didn't go into labor somewhere around the base coat.

This week is also the first week that I've consistently needed to get up in the middle of the night to pee. Don't get me wrong--there have definitely been nights when nature has called at 2am, but before this week I'd say that was only happening a couple times per month. Now it's once every night, and I'm sure it's only going to get worse!

And since we're on the topic of peeing, I just have to share this rather strange thing I've noticed since being pregnant. (Ready for some potty talk? We're going there.) I can no longer pee quickly! No matter how hard I try, and how badly I have to go, it just comes out in a slow little trickle! And when I try to "push" to pee harder the only response I get is the baby pushing and kicking me back--but no change in stream! Isn't that strange?? I'm guessing this started right around the beginning of my second trimester, and it was something I assumed was a common pregnancy symptom--it's only recently after talking to some pregnant friends that I realized it wasn't. It takes me forever to pee now! Has anyone else experienced this?

I'll end my 32 week pregnancy post with a belly shot of me and my friend Jill who is currently 39 weeks pregnant and due any day now. I'm so excited to meet her little one!


Additional Week 32 Posts:
That's What I Said
Hope
Tie It Up, Tie It Down
Knee-High Boots & Argyle Socks

Back: Pregnancy: Week 31

Next: Pregnancy: Week 33

Flats & Ruffles

Cardigan: Gap
Ruffle tank top: Gap
Jeans: Gap Maternity
Flats (!!): Born Concept
Pregnancy: 29 weeks

I'm really not a flats girl, but I decided I should try to wear flats at least once per week now that I'm in my third trimester. It just feels so strange to be this short! On to the clothes--I recently got this white ruffle tank top on clearance at Gap. Sure it's a little snug right now with my 29 week baby belly, but a cardigan over it does the trick!