Maternity Photo Shoot

Hello! I finally got my maternity photos!!!
So I mentioned that I had a great time with Madeline from Mad Hearts Photography but I was a bit nervous about how I would look in the pictures. Not because I had any doubt in Madeline, but because of how I saw myself in pictures. I have obviously gained some weight (and in my mind, I show it in my face). Therefore, Israel and I thought it would be best to pay for the shoot itself and pay for the pictures separately (since I'm so picky with pictures :p).

Well, what little faith I have!!!!
The pictures came out BEAUTIFUL! So beautiful, I ended up buying the digital copies.
(So my lack of faith cost me more money at the end :p)
But it was so worth it. I love my photographer. I think she's amazing!!!
She will definitely be our family photographer from now on!

I leave you with just some of my maternity photos (there are just too many to post here).
ENJOY!

30 Weeks

Our anniversary was on Friday, but since the sun doesn't sets until around 8:30pm, we could still go out to dinner after Israel got home. So he planned to take me to La Strada. The food is good, but what I love the most is the Virgin Strawberry Daiquiri.  Israel ordered his favorite dish, Chicken Parmigiana, and I ordered a special they had that night, Penne with Beef Tips in a Rosemary Sauce. I wasn't crazy about mine...it was good, but not amazing. However, Israel's chicken was AMAZING. It was huge too, so I would take some from him. Oh, I can just savor it right now. Definitely a nice place to go. Very elegant and good food.

We basically relaxed during the weekend. Saw my dad a few times which is always good because he makes me laugh SO much! Then Sunday evening, I finally got to wash all of Isabella's clothes and get them ready to put away. We've been very fortunate to have a close friend that gave us her daughter's clothes. The clothes are BEAUTIFUL! 

As you can see, Isabella has plenty of clothes for the first few months.

And just to give you a sneak peak...

This is how the nursery is coming along. I still need to decorate a bit, and put some shelves on the walls. Hopefully the nursery will be done by the end of the month.

I leave you with my 30-week belly shot:

How far along: 30 weeks

Gender: Girl

Maternity clothes: I haven't bought anything new. I'm loving the shorts and tanks I bought during Memorial Weekend since it's been so hot lately. (Well, it's been in the high 80's, but humid.)

Stretch marks: Yes :(  Since I haven't had a full-body mirror in the house (because of the floor updates) I didn't see my sides. I saw one little mark on my right side and freaked out. I was doing so well! But I'm rubbing cream and oil all over now, twice a day. I hope it goes away. The belly is fine, no marks there. Hopefully it stays that way.

Belly button in or out: It's still in :)

Sleep: I sleep well at night, even though Isabella is moving a lot when I go to sleep. Sometimes it feels like she's doing somersaults in there, but I can still fall asleep since I'm so tired. I am getting tired during the day and getting some naps in (which I thought I'd never do, since I could never sleep during the day).

Best moment this week:Well my anniversary of course!!! :D I love, love, love being with Israel. (I sound so cheesy, don't I?)

Miss anything: I do miss hot dogs, especially now that people are having bbq's.

Movement: She is one active little girl...And the funny part is when she has hiccups. I love to watch my belly move!

Cravings: Nothing in particular. Just random cravings. Like now I'm craving that Chicken Parmigiana after righting this post :p

Queasy or sick: I do get nauseous at times, but it usually when I eat too much.

Looking forward to: Finishing the nursery.

29 Weeks

This week we finally did the Maternity Photo Shoot. We had a great time doing it, even though we were very tired. Israel had been working on the house all day so by the time we had to get ready and head out to meet Madeline (Mad Hearts Photography), he was pretty tired and I was sleepy of course. And we walked A LOT during our photo shoot. That night I TIRED. My feet hurt so much!

Overall, the experience was nice. It was nice spending time with Israel and having fun with the poses.

There was one shot we wanted to take, which I had asked ahead of time. It was basically taking a shot similar to one of our wedding photos:

 

So basically, it would end up something like this:

 

 Ours would be "YEAR FOUR" :)

We tried to go to the place where we held our wedding reception, but they wanted to charge us $60 per person to go out on the green and take the picture....

pfftttt I wasn't going to pay that for a 5-minute shot.

So we found a spot that was similar to our wedding shot at the park we chose.

Israel had a black suite on with a white dress shirt, and I had purchased a white maxi dress.

I was so embarrassed because while we were posing, people would walk by and congratulate us!

They thought we just got married!!! It was nice that they were so happy for us, but I didn't want them to think I was getting married AFTER I got pregnant!

So that was the laugh for that day.

The next day, Madeline posted a sneak peak of our photo shoot:

Can't wait to see the other pictures!

How far along: 29 weeks

Gender: Girl

Maternity clothes: I ended up not getting anything new for the photo shoot. I couldn't find anything beautiful that was less than $150-$200. I was NOT going to spend that much on a dress.

Stretch marks: Nada!

Belly button in or out: Still in... does every pregnant woman's belly button go out??? I'm 29 weeks and it's still in....hmmmm just makes me wonder.

Sleep: Ohhhhh the pain in my pelvic area. I asked my doctor about it and she said there's really nothing I can do. Some nights are better than others.

Best moment this week:The photo shoot was nice. Madeline is super nice and patient. She dedicated a lot of time to get the best shots.

Miss anything: Coca-cola...and to think I still have over a year of not drinking it. I'm hoping after waiting that long, I won't want it anymore.

Movement: She moves so much. She's so cute. And when I rub my hand on my belly, she moves even more. Love it!

Cravings:Nothing crazy.

Queasy or sick: Queasy sometimes. Very little, though.

Looking forward to: Seeing the pictures from the Maternity Photo Shoot. :)

28 Weeks

I've been MIA (missing in action) for a while. Well, with all the house work, Israel has been busy, so he hadn't taken any pictures. I basically stopped him one morning before he left and handed him my phone so he could take a quick photo. So here is my 28-week belly shot :)

I'm getting big, huh? :-D

Oh, and a most recent picture of Isabella at her 28-week check-up:

 

So we finished week 28 with Memorial Weekend and had a very nice, relaxing time. We went down to the NJ shore and stayed at the Double Tree Hotel 10 minutes away from the beach. We were going to go to Belmar beach, since we always go to that beach, but tried going to Asbury Park Beach, as that was closer. We just went to walk on the beach a bit and dip our feet in the ocean, but the water was freezing and it was pretty windy. I did get Israel to take a picture of me with the ocean :)

We did have a chance to go to the outlets, just to walk around....But we know that's never the case. Of course we saw things we liked. Israel got more sneakers and I got my dad a pair too. While I was waiting for Israel to find the right sneakers, I found a beautiful outfit for Isabella!!!

I just fell in love with it. 

Now Isabella has an outfit for when she watches soccer games with her dad!

How far along: 28 weeks

Gender: Girl

Maternity clothes: I got myself a CHEAP bathing suit at Target :p

I was searching the web for a simple tankini to wear for Memorial Weekend but everything was running over $40; a lot close to $100. So I decided to try out Target and found a top on the clearance rack for $12. Then walking back from the fitting room, I saw a bottom in the regular women's section clearance rack for $5. They pretty much matched so that's what I got! 

Stretch marks: Nope, nothing! 

Belly button in or out: Still in.

Sleep: I'm sleeping well at night except for that "round ligament" pain I feel when switching sides. I do get sleepy during the day, though. 

Best moment this week: Memorial Day Weekend!!! It was so nice spending alone time with my husband. It sounds cheesy, but I love him more and more each day.

Miss anything: Cold, deli sandwiches!!! And Coke, And Ice Coffee...especially when I see a McDonald's commercial.

Movement: Oh, she's a soccer player alright! :p I love to see my belly move. I actually record my belly at night so I can save the memory.

Cravings: Chips. Ruffles chips. I'm dying to buy some, but I know if I have them at home, I'll eat them in a day.

Queasy or sick: I am getting nauseous sometimes. Not sure if that normal in the third trimester.

Looking forward to: Decorating the nursery and the photo shoot next weekend.

25 Weeks

How far along: 25 weeks

Gender: Girl

Maternity clothes: I think I'm done with maternity clothes shopping for now. If I see a beautiful dress for the baby shower I'll get it. Oh, and I will need a bathing suit because I plan to tan a lot before the baby comes. I'm too pale right now.

Stretch marks: Nothing, thank God. I am still using Bio Oil and I'm not itchy so that's good.

Belly button in or out: In --- but it's starting to look a little funny.

Sleep: Well, since we were sleeping at our parents while the floors were being done, sleeping was a bit difficult. I missed my bed.

Best moment this week: It's more like this past weekend, but I'll include it as part as week 25... I was invited to one of my best friend's 30th birthday dinners on Saturday night and it was so much fun!!! We arrived late, of course, since we had to wait until sunset to go, but it was nice to hang out with him and his friends. And the food was delicious!!!

Miss anything: Coffee and some days a nice, cold Coca-Cola.

Movement: Lots. I am very entertained in the morning and at night when I feel her. She's already making me laugh a lot hehe.

Cravings: Nope, I can't say I have any cravings.

Queasy or sick: Nothing. I feel great, except for being tired sometimes.

Looking forward to: Decorating the nursery. Israel finished painting the nursery...now we can start building the crib and buying the other furniture for the nursery.

Nursery Ideas

This is what I'm envisioning for the room layout of Isabella's Nursery:

Nursery Inspiration:

I would like the overall theme of Isabella's nursery to be like the photo above; white and light pink. That's it!

I like the idea of having corner shelves, especially if it can be a place to put the baby monitor.

And I love the details in these photos to my right. I plan to decorate the bookcase like this.

I just love white for Isabella's nursery. Yes, I'm scared of getting the glider and the rug dirty, but I'll just be very careful. :)

I love the idea of having a mobile on top of the glider, so that Isabella can look at it while she's eating.

It took me a while to find simple, white and light pink bedding for Isabella's crib. This picture is from Pottery Barn Kids. My mom and I went to check it out the other day, and it's perfect! The color, the material, it's just perfect!

24 Weeks

I finally booked my Maternity Photo Shoot with Mad Hearts Photography.
I was debating on whether to do the photo shoot since we've spent a lot of money already preparing the house for our Little Baby Fernandez. However, this is such a special time in my life, I would like to capture it in photos by a professional. So, I decided to go with Mad Hearts Photography because I love her work and I felt very comfortable with her when she shot some pictures of me for a project she was working on.
For months now, I have been compiling ideas of what kind of shots I want that day, on Pinterest.
Here are some ideas:

How far along: 24 weeks

Gender: Girl

Weight gain: I think I've gained 20 lbs so far.

Maternity clothes: I went to Destination Maternity to see if I could find a long, white dress for my Maternity Photo Shoot. I have been looking for weeks now, and didn't think I would find anything at Destination Maternity since the website didn't have anything I liked, but I found three dresses! I bought all three so I could try them on in front of my mom and husband and see what they thought. I also bought two day dresses for church, which one might even be used for my Baby Shower. :)
Here are the three white dresses I bought:

I know they look exactly the same, but they have some differences. The last one is almost double the price of the first two, but so much more comfortable.
You'll have to wait until the Maternity Photo Shoot to see which one I chose!

Stretch marks: No

Belly button in or out: In

Sleep: Sleeping well!

Best moment this week: My 24-week check-up. I just love my Doctor and seeing Isabella on the ultrasound. She's still breech, but I'm not worried. It's still too early; I feel her change positions inside so I hope she'll flip towards the end.

Miss anything: Coffeeeeeeeee.... my new cube-mate makes delicious-smelling coffee everyday and it is soooooo tempting.

Movement: Oh, Isabella is so cute. I can see her move now. I stare at my belly first thing in the morning and before I go to bed, because that's when she moves the most. Love her!

Cravings: Nope, I just eat whatever's available.

Queasy or sick: Just sleepy at times.

Looking forward to: Decorating the Nursery. House should be finished soon. (That post to come shortly)

Almost forgot to leave you with a 24-week photo. 

Here I am at church. And I had to show you the one with my mom :)