Camping themed Bridal Shower

Meet my brother in law Greg and his beautiful fiance, Liz:

In just a few short weeks they will be walking down the aisle and we couldn't be more excited for them. Since all of Liz's family and friends are all over the country, my mother in law and I decided to throw her a little shower before the big day with everyone close to all of us. Even her mom flew in from Texas! We decided on a camping theme since Liz's true test of our family was coming to our annual Canada camping trip (in the pouring rain) and because she is the "S'mores Queen."

I started searching Pinterest for some motivation and inspiration and found this picture:

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and this:

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We decided to work from there. We decked out the Matthews country style home with red and white picnic table clothes and various lanterns that Kathy happens to collect.

They were really fun and just added that special something to each table. We also decided to set up a s'mores making station in honor of Liz's love of the delightful treat. We set up a simple fire pit so everyone could have a sweet treat later that night.

To keep the delicious treats going, we also got some yummy cupcakes. Keeping with the camping theme we also asked the baker to focus on fun camp scenes. She came through and gave us some whimsical cupcakes that were fun and delicious.

It was fun to see the baker let her imagination run wild with the camping theme. They were clever and fun. I love that little bunny cookie and magic trees. And if you can't tell, that last cupcake was a camp fire made out of pretzels and even toasted marshmallows to boot!

But what we were really excited about were the favors that we gave the women on their way out. We went with the earlier inspiration and gave everyone their own personal s'mores.

 I loved the saying from the pin so I used the same line. It was too cute to pass up!

Our own favors came with giant marshmallows that I found at Walmart and we even added their own camping skewers to take with them on their next camping trip. Those were a hit for sure!

So those were some of the highlights of this fun camp out shower! Can't wait to show you the other fun projects that are going into their wedding but we have to wait a few more weeks to show you them. Do you love theme parties as much as I do? Making those favors were way more fun than I should admit. :)

The Big Reveal

We are so excited to announce we are having a...

 

We are welcoming a baby GIRL to our little family!

Our ultrasound technician guessed a girl a few weeks ago but now it is official. We are so excited to have a baby girl to even out the gender in our little family. Now our minds are wrapped around cribs, nursery designs and most importantly, NAMES! We will make sure we share the good news as we go along since it is new for us and hopefully this can help someone later down the road.

As for now things are hectic with an excited upcoming wedding in the family. My brother in law is marrying an awesome girl and I couldn't be more excited to have her officially become a Matthews. There will be more this week on the shower that Tim's mom and I threw. Here is a sneak peak of the fun we had creating it. Think Camping!

Whew...It feel like this little girl has already taken over this blog. :) Any other fun gender revealing stories to share? Did anyone see the cute gender announcement on Katie B.'s blog? It was too cute!

I'm How Far Along!?!

*originally posted on 6/19/12. This is the last one of these before we are caught up to speed and I can move on to fun projects I have been working on.*

Our first ultrasound appointment was on Friday (6/15). I drank my 32 oz. of water like a champ and walked into the doctors office feeling full but not in too much pain. Then we waited....and waited ...and waited. Apparently they were running late. No one told us and I was starting to lose it. I was cranky because I was anxious to finally see Little M and because I really really had to pee. 20 minutes later she called our names. I laid down and she got to work. Bless this woman for not bothering to talk to me and then do the ultrasound. She must have seen the desperation in my face.

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First, I have to comment about a movie myth. That gel they put on your stomach is not cold at all. In fact, she had a warmer for hers. Not sure if that is common but it was appreciated. We sat there waiting for her to find the baby and there it was.

I still wasn't convinced everything was okay so I didn't fall in love until she said, the heart rate looks good. *Cue Huge Sigh of Relief* Then she said another magical line-" let me check that the bladder is okay so you can go to the bathroom and come back and enjoy the ultrasound."

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Hallelujah! It's like she read my mind. I ran to the bathroom, had a "League of their Own Moment" and then headed back in.

Ready for my next shocker....She was asking me how far along they thought I was. I came in for a screening ultrasound so I was right around 12 weeks. Or so I thought.

"Have you had any spotting?" Not that I knew of. "Well, it turns out you did."

Immediately my mind went to the worst place. I was picturing seeing that little baby and then finding out that I messed it up somehow and something terrible happened. I know- dramatic- but I am not always a positive person. As my mind was racing she exclaimed, "You are actually farther along than you thought."

WHAT?

"Yeah by the looks of it, you look like you are about 15 weeks, 3 days." Wow- many thoughts went through my head. First I looked over and Tim is stunned but beaming. I then try to figure out when my new due date is. She says December 4th. I get excited that I avoided having to possibly be in labor at Christmas. Then I get nervous because things will be moving faster than planned. My darling husband came to the rescue and said, "Think of it this way. You basically skipped a month ahead of being pregnant."

Yeah...I guess I did.

Overall, it was a great appointment. She even had a guess at the sex but that will be confirmed on July 20th so we will keep it off here for now.

*So now you are all caught up! We go in tomorrow for our anatomy ultrasound. So excited to finally confirm the gender so we can avoid calling the baby it. We will definitely share the good news and plans for the nursery. So far feeling good. Getting bigger and overall really excited for the coming months!

What was your first ultrasound like? Anyone else have a delay that made you want to tear apart the waiting room?*

60 minutes

*written April 19th* 

That is how long I have before this "baby" became a reality. All week I had been DYING to tell Tim. DYING. It was so hard. I felt like it almost wasn't real...until I took another test last night that screamed "pregnant". Now I have 60 minutes until work is out and I drive home where hubby is waiting for me. He got back early from his work trip and has no idea. NONE. Its making me nervous. Here is my plan.

I took all my tests in a plastic bag with me so he didn't see them. I also got James a dog bone while I was shopping this week. I have a plan to tell him but I might just see him and blurt it out. haha That is more my style. I want it to be memorable but not over the top. I just cant wait to see his reaction. He is going to be impressed that I kept it in from EVERYONE. Especially because I hung out with one of my best friends this week and didn't spill the beans even though I wanted to.

Either way this is the only place I can say what I'm feeling and what I'm feeling is anxiety. Time to head home. Wish me luck...

Update: It was one of the best reactions I will ever get from Tim. I walked in and he was on the couch. James came to greet me and I whipped out a plastic bag. I said " I brought presents for my boys. A bone for the pup. *gave the bone to James so he would go away and give us a minute* and this is for you!" *handed him my positive pregnancy test

The reaction was priceless. He immediately jumped off the couch and hugged me so hard. He just kept repeating.. "Really!? Really?!" He was beaming! Beaming, people. Here I was freaking out and he was so sweet and excited. I couldn't help but shed a tear and I'm not really a crier. All the weight of the secret was off my shoulders and to see how happy it made him was amazing. I'm so glad I waited. He wasn't mad I didn't tell him over the phone or skype. He just couldn't believe it.

Little M- our little nickname for now- decided now was the time, whether mom was ready or not...

Missed this announcement? See the reveal on the blog here and how I found out here.

I had this funny feeling...

*written on April 17th. Go easy on me. I just found out*

On Sunday we spent the whole day gardening. It was back breaking. I was digging, weeding and planting with the hubby. I was really exhausted but I thought to myself that it was all the manual garden labor and I needed to get in better shape. Then that night when it came time to eat I was so excited about dinner but when Tim brought in the grilled veggies that I adore, I couldn't eat them. In fact, I felt nauseous. Shouldn't that have been a sign?! I brushed it aside but still...I had this funny feeling.

Monday rolls around and Tim left for another business trip. (he has been gone every week that month) I was really tired at work and still kinda off so that night I looked at James and thought to myself "maybe I should just take the last test in the box. Just so I don't think about it all week." So I did. Then I left the bathroom. I casually walked back in a few minutes later and looked at the test....

"HOLY S*&T!"- I said that out loud btw

I couldn't believe it. I mean really. I left it and walked back to look at it like 5 more times. Each time I left the bathroom I looked at the pup like he would have an explanation for this. (He didn't)

I was freaking out to say the least. It couldn't be. First off, Tim was traveling soo much this month. (I guess not that much)  Last month my supposed "window" was much later (Guess I was wrong about that too). Plus, I still had a week before my little friend flow was coming. *you will see in later stories that this gets explained* Yet there it was...and it was just me and the pup and whatever reality show I was watching at the time.

At this point I was thinking- I need to call Tim.

But he was traveling and I really wanted to see his expression in person. Plus, if I was him I wouldn't want to find out when I am hundreds of miles away in a hotel room. I grappled with this back and forth for a little bit a long time. I even picked up the phone at one point but I resisted.

I can keep this secret...even if its for 3 more days. I didn't want to call any of my close friends yet because Tim didn't know and I wanted him to be the first...besides the pup and I. So that was it. I freaked out in our living room the rest of the night. I started calculating when I was due, what "it" was doing right now in my stomach and what was I going to do about all the things we had planned. That is kinda where I am right now. It's almost like a dream because its just my little secret. No one knows so it almost doesn't seem real. And it all started because I had this funny little feeling...

Side Project :)

It's time to come clean. I have been keeping this to myself for awhile but now that I have started to withhold information on our latest projects, its time I come clean....Tim and I have been working on a little project of our own that we are really excited about.


(Sorry this picture is dark)

That's right. Tim and I are expecting our first baby this winter! I'm pretty excited and now that the cat is out of the bag to family, friends and work, it was time to spill the beans on here. This is not an excuse but it is a factor as to why I have been a bit quiet on here. Everything we are working on lately has been surrounding our newest addition. I actually wrote a few posts when I found out (it was just me and the pup!), telling Tim, going to my first few appointments, our changing due date and so on so I will share those over the next few days.

As for some details, currently I am 19 weeks and 2 days. I feel great and am finally starting to show. It's pretty surreal but we are pretty excited. I hope to take you guys on our journey as we find out whether its a boy or a girl (next Friday!), replace rugs upstairs, make our office into our nursery, change our guest room into an office/guest room and try to even squeeze in our bump out plans! Whew! Tiring just thinking about it.

Hope your ready for some fun!

Annual Camping Trip

I'm so excited! Our annual camping trip to Canada has arrived. That's right. Every year we pack our cars, take our pups and head to Canada to ring in the 4th of July. This trip is something that Tim's father plans every year. He loves it and 6 years ago Tim and I started tagging along. It's in Plevna, Ontario at a remote camping ground called Tooley's Lodge.

The trip consists of canoeing, camping, making smore's, hiking and lots of fishing. Although you could term this "roughing it" it by no means feel like it is.

In fact, waking up every morning and paddling out to a nearby rock is practically "resort like:

I really enjoy fishing at one lake in particular: Graham Lake. Mostly because I get extremely lucky there every time!

We eat fresh fish multiple nights while we are there. Nothing beats fresh bass cooked over an open fire. My mouth is drooling just thinking about it! Of course the humans aren't the only ones who look forward to this trip. Our puppies (never less than 4) always have a blast running without leashes, getting wet every day and exploring the woods.

James loves this trip. He loves getting wet and dirty and just being able to roam free. Its one of the few vacations he goes on with us so he soaks it in for all its worth.

I'm excited to hit the road tonight and enjoy the trip. This year we are bringing an even larger crowd but that just means it is sure to be a good time. I will be sure to tell you all about it as well as some helpful tips for fishing, packing and large road trips with a large restless puppy! Until then, Happy 4th of July!