Our New Adventure

Alright, this past year has been a bumpy one. A very bumpy one. I do not share the nitty gritty detail of the negatives of our lives because everyone is dealing with something. But in short, life has been crazy since graduating college in May 2014. We have gone from graduation to different jobs and a baby and more jobs. We have gone from living with our parents to living on our own then back with parents. All of this done in order to pay off student loans. Let me tell you, private universities are not cheap. They are worth it, but not cheap. Zack and I do not deal with debt as some people do, some people are great with making their minimum payments and are content with that. Zack and I are a bit of extremists. If we can accomplish something huge in a short amount of time, we will. That being said. These past six months have been spent living with parents and making a huge dent in our student loans. We are both still driving around our cars from high-school and we never have credit card debt. Being smart with our money has put an emotional strain on us...as we were living with our parents. We are grateful and beyond appreciative, but couch surfing with a baby...not so fun, but an adventure in its own way. 

A few months back, Zack got a great opportunity to further his medical device sales experience, he has been working as an Orthopedic Trauma Sales Rep. for the past six months. He has been in the operating room and growing his business in Orange County, CA. Both of our families live in San Clemente, CA so that is where we have been living, but don't know if we want to set up the rest of our lives here. We both grew up here, only went to school an hour from home in San Diego and we haven't seen too much else. 

Well, last week Zack kind of hit the pinnacle of his goals. He was presented with an offer from a company that he had his eyes on for a year now. It is one of those offers where you think, this is too good to be true. We are both so excited that over a year of craziness has lead to stability and something SUPER exciting.

So the deal with this job is...traveling for  6 months to 1 year. Zack's territory for his new Medical Sales position with this company is the South East...Texas to Florida and the Carolinas. So far the company wants him in Dallas, TX. He could be covering this territory for 6 months or 2 months and then they could want him in Florida for a week and then South Carolina for a month. Yes, CRAZINESS. Even crazier if I didn't get to see him for this amount of time...but the best part is, the company takes care of their employees very well...so I will be joining him! So for the next 6 months to a year we will be living in HOTELS! WOO! Room Service? We will be seeing the south, traveling, exploring and I am kinda hoping Elba will develop some accent...kidding, kinda. I really do want her to whip out a "y'all" here and there though. 

This will be it though... 6 months to 1 year and then we will be settling down and finding a place to call home. I will decorate the heck out of it and have candles going all of the time. Until then, I am going to enjoy some serious turn down service, bathtubs and room service. 

Elba and I will explore each city we are in during the day while Daddy slaves away ;) our superhero. 

So if you are following me on here, pinterest, instagram, and snapchat, get ready for some serious changes! First birthday party planning and then we are off to traveling! I will be documenting it all. I cannot freaking wait.

xo Sydney

30 Weeks Pregnant Picture

30 Weeks Pregnant Update 

How far along: I am 30 weeks and 5 days pregnant in the pictures, she is still the size of a "winter squash" or mini pumpkin? Who knows. These food comparisons confuse me...but she will be the size of a "winter squash" until week 32. She is just getting FAT now. 

Symptoms: Peeing up to 5 times a night some nights; Heartburn after anything spicy, which is upsetting because I like spicy foods (yay for tums); Lightheadedness if I do not eat within a certain time frame of hunger haha; I had a slight break out last week on my face, but that is likely just stress, my skin has actually been pretty good throughout this whole pregnancy; Boobs still leaking which is a good sign, means they are working and getting ready for baby girl; My leg numbness still happens in the morning and at night if I am sitting up in bed; She is crushing my lungs! The perks of having a miniature torso!; Last but not least (from what I can remember of my symptoms) Braxton Hicks!

Cravings: I don't know what is wrong with me...no cravings. Zack certainly has them still..."You know what I am craving...?" I just look at him like, please tell me princess, what is it that you want. It is fun to joke around about though, we always laugh when he says "You know what sounds good?" or "You know what I am craving?"

Aversions: Nothing sounds awful, but nothing sounds great either...

Wedding rings: On

Sleep: I wish.

Excited for: I am excited for her to be here. In the beginning you just can't wait until your next ultrasound, now I am at the point where I am like okay little baby, get on out here and hang out with me! I am also excited for my baby shower coming up soon!

Missing: I am missing sleep, clothes that fit, breathing normally, and working out!

Movement:  She is the craziest baby in the world. She is so hyper, all the time. Especially today! Simmer down little one, get some sleep! 

Dr. update: She is still head down and in the correct position. 

Exercise: Still working out on the eliptical and going on walks! I am slow, but I am still moving. Just sweating a little bit helps me relieve stress so I try to do something active every day, even if I am not going my hardest every day it is still good to get out and get myself and baby moving!

Stretch marks: None on my tummy, none on my butt or thighs, none on my hips but I did get some on my boobs, but I had DD boobs before pregnancy so it was bound to happen when they got even bigger. They are super little and I have just been using my Frank scrub on them and keeping up with all of my oils and lotions!

Swelling: After working out or at the end of the day, but only if I am really looking for it. I think I will experience more in the next coming weeks.

Maternity clothes: Nope! Still no maternity clothes. We will see....still haven't purchased any and I thought I would have had to by now, maybe I will need to next month! We will see!

Labor signs: Nope!

What I am loving:  I am loving how close we are getting and slowly buying things for her like clothes, the crib, and making the baby registries and deciding on our carseat and stroller and all of that. We are getting so close!

Best moment of this week: Zack and I went to the mall and we got her a cute little bodysuit. Zack picked it out at Nordstroms and really wanted to get it for her and I thought that was really sweet. I love how excited he is and how he is always so into this little baby. He is very sure on the stroller we want and the car seat which I think is cute also, cuts my job in half having him look with me! We also went to Victoria's Secret and got me underwear that doesn't dig into my hips (I hate the word panties so we are settling on underwear) and oh my god they are so comfortable haha, really ridiculous I know, but comfort is my best friend these last weeks of pregnancy. 

XOXO Sydney 

25 Weeks Pregnant Picture

25 Weeks Pregnant Update 

Yes, here we go, the most unflattering angle ever. BAM. There is it for ya. Thanks Zack, appreciate it. Even worse...I decided that the best time to take this picture was SECONDS after lunch. So I don't know how much baby bump we are seeing as much as we are seeing my full stomach far above my belly button because that's where my growing uterus has smashed it. Is this an accurate picture? No probably not, but every day with this bump is different. Some days it is like where is it? Other days its like I cannot believe I have to get bigger than this, some days I am bloated and other days all you see is this weird little egg shaped belly...so pregnancy is weird and I am just accepting that these pictures are going to slowly become more unflattering and maybe next time Zack won't be standing at the bottom of the steps facing the camera upwards, what pregnant girl wants to see herself like that!?!?! Haha, so here we go! Week 25 wrapped up!

How far along: I am 25 weeks and 6 days pregnant in the picture, tomorrow I will be 26 weeks! I have been really bad about taking pictures earlier in the week again. I need to fix that.

Symptoms: Peeing all of the time; Belly button pain (sharp pains) like she is pulling on it or kicking it...I did have an umbilical hernia when I was a baby so maybe that is part of the reason? All I know is that it kills; Headaches if I do not eat first thing in the morning, kind of feels like a hang over; Nail growth is insane, I just had to cut mine and they looked like they were acrylics; Boobs have been hurting and feeling hard in places, I assume this is due to the fact that I am leaking and it must just be build up of some sort (yumm). 

Cravings: I have been craving candy a lot more this week and gave in twice, I will not be doing that again though and I make sure it is candy with a very low amount of sugar! Other than that, no cravings at all...its actually kind of a pain finding food I do want to eat. Fruit is always good and I am still really enjoying eating fruit all the time. 

Aversions: Nothing really, I am not too into food lately.

Wedding rings: On

Sleep: Wow, I do not sleep. I pee all night. I do not even know how I have to pee this much either because I am pretty sure I do not drink enough water to be equivalent to the amount I pee at night. I took a nap this week, something I never give into...but then I realized, these are the last few months where I will be able to nap whenever the hell I feel like it...so I napped and it felt amazing. 

Excited for: Meeting this baby of ours. I am getting so anxious. I keep having dreams about her and I had a dream the other night of what she would look like and now I just want her here. I cannot wait to snuggle her all winter long. 

Missing: Back to missing my old workouts. Adapting to my body changing as well and realizing I am going to be able to work out as much as I want once this baby love of ours is born. I am missing normal sleep...I am missing not peeing all the time and I am missing normal clothes! I love her so much that all of this is irrelevant in the long run and it is going to be so rewarding once we have her here with us. 

Movement:  ALL THE TIME. I will spoon Zack as we fall asleep and he feels her kicking his back...he says, "I can feel her kicking me" and I say, "yeah, imagine how I feel!" This girl is strong! She gets really aggressive when I am hungry. I have not been doing to well on eating small meals throughout the day because of all the hopping around we do. When I do eat she does this wave like motion movement like she is satisfied. It is really funny! She just kicks and hits all day long and I love knowing I have a little buddy with me at all times....even when she kicks my bladder.

Dr. update: I have my glucose test coming up so that will be the next Dr. update. 

Exercise: Still working out every day, this week has been a little less because I have been having some intense abdominal/belly button pain, but I am sticking with it and walk Oak around all the time or workout on the eliptical. I just cannot wait until I can get back to hard workouts. I love a good sweat! When I finally get to I will just have a little person hanging out with me!

Stretch marks: Nope.

Swelling: If my hands are down by my sides when I workout then they will be a little bit more swollen, but that usually subsides within hours. 

Maternity clothes: Nope! Still holding out. I am going to try and hold out as long as I can, unless I see something I have to have then I will wait! 

Labor signs: Nope!

What I am loving: I am loving how quickly it is going by, it is always one day closer to seeing my little love. I am also trying to savor the moments of being pregnant, it is just hard when you are sleep deprived haha!

Best moment of this week:  Feeling her kick and move around is always the best. Zack and I play music for her at night and talk to her before bed and when we wake up in the morning. I love watching him talk to her. If she is moving out of control and going crazy he puts his hand on my tummy and she will either immediately halt and make me look crazy or she will keep moving like a maniac and do a little dance performance for her daddy. I cannot wait to see him with her. 

XOXO Sydney

Snippets From the Last Week or So

Here are just a few pictures from the last week and a half or so....just some fitness, food, and random ones.

Fitness: These are just a few of the workout results from the past week or so, it is more for my benefit having them on here so I can look back and see where I was at during a certain time in my pregnancy.

Food and Yummies: Here are a couple random shots of some yummy food we have made, eaten, and bought over the last week or so. In no particular order...

Coffee date with my man!

These kabobs were so good! I am going to be putting the recipe on here soon. They were amazing and super easy to make!

Smoothies for lunch!

I was really craving an iced coffee and so Zack made sure it happened ;)

Breakfast!

We weren't to hungry one night so we decided to get Banzai Bowls for dinner. SO good, they are amazing.

Random Ones: A few random pictures from the last week or so...

I have been burnt out on the scent of my homemade cocoa butter stretch mark cream so I made a mango coconut one and it smells amazing. Zack loves the smell too and it has definitely been a nice break from the chocolatey scent I have been using for the past 6 months! It goes on so smoothly and sinks into the skin right away. I love it!

Snuggling up with my giant polar bear cuddle bug.

Date night for Zack and I :) 

So these pictures are kinda for myself to see what I was up to during a certain time in my pregnancy. It will be interesting to look back and see what we did and be able to tell our little girl everything we did while she was cooking in there!

xoxo Sydney 

Chatbooks Review

I ordered my Chatbooks a little over a week ago, when they were going through a crazy time with a massive influx of orders...but they still came in the mail very quickly! 

I ordered mine from the app on my phone and it was super easy to use, very straight forward and simple.

You can choose the cover photos you want for each "Volume" I ordered 4 volumes, each with 60 pages of pictures back and front!

Here are a few shots from the inside of the Chatbooks!

& 

Unlike instagram they actually put the day, month and year the photo was posted on Instagram instead of saying "125 weeks ago" as if you remember that specific date...

You can edit your captions or keep them as their originals. I chose to just keep the original captions instead of going through and changing all of them because I figured it was part of the memory anyways!

Here is a picture of the side binding of each book. You get to create the title you want on each volume. I put "Zack & Sydney" as a way to connect it to my blog and because I use my instagram more than Zack does, the photos are both of our memories!

You can also do a custom book without using your instagram photos and you can visit their website on how to do that (I will link their website below). I know I will be doing one of my bump progression pictures, or just pictures of the belly throughout the whole pregnancy.

I cannot wait to add these little books onto my coffee table at our new place which we will be starting to move within a month or so. I cannot wait to set these books out on display. So much more personal than a random coffee table book. There is something I love about having photos tangible instead of on the computer or on the phone. I absolutely love these books.

Each volume contains 60 pages back and front of your photos and each volume costs 6 dollars. Not bad & definitely worth every penny!

You NEED to go visit their WEBSITE

Check out their INSTAGRAM

I am so happy I did this! I plan to do a lot more in the future!

xoxo Sydney

Etsy Shop Collaboration: Illusy Jewelry

Etsy Collaboration

ILLUSY

The name of the Etsy shop is Illusy {all things jewelry}

{{You can find her Etsy shop here}}

Janet, the owner of the shop is extremely talented and the sweetest person ever! She sent me the "tiara ring" which I was obsessing over. I thought it would be cute to wear for little baby Elba. I thought it was gorgeous online, but it is even sweeter in person. I love the two-toned metal look. My engagement ring and wedding ring are two-toned metal and I really like the way it looks so I thought this was a good choice!

On top of her shop being adorable & all of her pieces being simple, sweet, dainty and gorgeous...the packaging was just as cute!

This is the package it came in, completely secure and already wrapped cute enough to hand someone as a gift. If you order something for someone as a gift, no need to wrap it! Super cute and detailed. She puts a lot of thought into her orders and gives her customers all of her attention.

She packed it with a sweet little note!

I am obsessed and haven't taken it off since I received it in the mail yesterday! She has very timely shipping from the time you place your order. 

My favorite kind of jewelry is either super chunky or super dainty & this is my new favorite dainty jewelry shop! I love it!

She is so kind she is giving all of my 

Instagram/Blog followers 20% off a purchase from her shop until August 9th

Promo code: XOXOSYDNEY

Show her some love!

You can find her Etsy shop here

Follow her on Twitter

Stop by her Blog

Stalk her on Instagram @flatandillusy

XOXO Sydney

IPhone Photos From the Week

Here are just a few of the pictures I picked from my camera roll that we took this past week, these pictures aren't in any particular order:

Here are just a few of my polar watch after my workouts, some days I had to keep it lighter than others because of my back, this next week I should be feeling better and get back to some more intense workouts. For now, this is what I have to work with and it is better than nothing!

Here are a few pictures from a few of the walks we have gone on this week!

Taking the pup to the harbor.

A few shots on different days of the lookout point we often walk to.

Here are some of our sweet treats from this week!

Couple pictures of puppy love.

Watching Zack as he worked on my car.

Getting in my face at lunch.

Beach days! We have been fitting a lot of beach days into our week and it has been really relaxing!

Zack out in the water! Haha :)

After our Sunday beach day we came home, showered and went to a look out point for a picnic dinner. It was relaxing and there was pretty much no one there so we had the large grassy area to ourselves to hangout:)

And of course some decaf tea and a lil shot of baby, we love you little one!

I hope you all had a wonderful and relaxing week! Now onto a new week, loving these summer days!

XOXO Sydney