5 years ago...

Now that the month of August is coming to an end, I thought it would be a good time to touch on why August is such a special month to me :)

 5 years ago Eric and I started dating!

Eric took me out for the first time, the first Tuesday of the month. And the rest is history!

You can read the story of our 1st date here. I'm pretty sure that was my third blog post.... oh how my blog has changed since then :)

We look like babies!

I can't believe how our lives have changed since we found each other 5 years ago!

Eric makes me happier than I ever could have imagined... I'm so glad he's mine!

hair talk {hana flat iron}

My straightener pretty much died on me a few months ago (break my heart!) and the amazing company, Misikko, swooped in and put the pieces of my heart back together :) They sent me a Hana flat iron (along with some other hair/make up goodies. Like I said, amazing company!) and I couldn't wait to try it out!

If this isn't the cutest picture ever... I don't know what it is. Ha ha! I let my hair air dry because I have some crazy curls that make an appearance when I don't blow it out. I wanted to see if this flat iron could handle my beastly hair that has a mind of it's own... and I have to admit that I'm so happy with the end result!

Much better... right?! The Hana flat iron has different heat settings which is what I recommend to my clients looking for a straightener. We all have different types of hair, fine or coarse, thick or thin, which means that our hair requires different heat settings. Those with super thin, fine hair can turn the flat iron onto a lower heat setting, and visa versa for those with thick, coarse hair! No need to fry those ends off with too much heat :) And I love how sleek and small the straightener is. Super easy to straighten my hair but it's size is also perfect size for curling! I love my new flat iron :)

P.S. I've been debating whether I should start doing regular posts full of hair tutorials and tips... what do you think?! I love my job as a hairstylist and I'd love to share some knowledge on hair care and tips on hair styles. But if I'm going to bribe my hubs to take pictures of me for these posts, then I need those bribes to be worth it, ha ha! So I need your honest opinion.... do you want to see regular "hair talk" posts?! If so, what would you like me to touch on? Any hair tutorials in particular? Hair care questions? Be honest!! :)

24 weeks

 Picture taken at 24 weeks 1 day

I mentioned before that I've been having sciatic pains and my lower back just aches and aches after a full day of doing hair. I try my best to wear supportive shoes when I know I'll be on my feet for a long period of time, and Eric has been helping me do stretches each night to relieve my back and hips... but I've been seriously debating whether I should try a chiropractor or massage therapist. Because the pain will only get worse as baby girl grows! Luckily I scored a daily deal (kind of like a groupon) $10 for a 30 minute prenatal massage! I'm hoping that's enough time to figure out if the massage will work, or if it will be more worthwhile to put my $$ into a chiropractor. What did you momma's do to relieve lower back and sciatic pain? Massage, chiropractor, or are you stronger than me and just suffered through the pain with no relief?! :)

On another note... 16 weeks left! How is that possible? Time is flying by! And I get butterflies each time I think about meeting our baby girl :)

p.s. I haven't done one of these in forever... life has been too crazy! But I guest posted over on Eryka's blog so check it out :)

once upon a time...

Eric made dinner the other night, took pictures of the food, then told me I better blog about it! How could I say no when he went to all that effort? I mean... he took pictures of the food! I usually get in big trouble for delaying his food from entering his mouth because I "need" to take pictures for the blog ;) So here's a very short story about how the best husband in the world is also the best cook!

Once upon a time Eric asked me to pin a recipe he found online. (Eric loves that I use Pinterest for recipes... he learned very quickly that his taste buds benefit big time from that site. Now he tries to get all the guy's he works with to have their wives get a pinterest account as well, ha ha!) The recipe claimed to create the fluffiest pancakes ever, and Eric was going to give it a try! After a long day of handy man work and shopping, Eric let me put my feet up and rest while he made dinner! (Have I mentioned that he's the best husband ever?) When dinner was ready he called me into the dining room and had this waiting for me...

Can you tell this picture was taken by a man? Plop the toppings on and snap a picture :)

This pancake was bigger than my head! That thing takes up a full sized dinner plate... Eric made the caramel banana sauce that was also included in the recipe, and homemade whipped cream. Am I spoiled or what? 

We agreed that the recipe wasn't lying, definitely the fluffiest (and thickest) pancakes ever! We could hardly move by the time we were finished eating (actually, we could hardly move for the rest of the night) because we were so full. And clean up was quite the chore. Eric had to use soooo many dishes to make these pancakes, but we decided it was all worth it! The end.

p.s. Recipe found here.

nursery/crib bedding inspiration {HELP!}

Our lease will be up 3 months after baby girl is born and we will be moving out. For that reason I just can't seem to find any motivation to set up a nursery. I mean, why would I work so hard to put together the perfect nursery, just to pack it up in a couple months after it's finished? We're talking about buying a home next (we'll see what happens... a lot can change in just a few months) which would be amazing! I'd love to paint walls and have total control on what goes on under our roof! If I knew I could do whatever I want for the nursery I would have no problem throwing together a perfect little room for our perfect little girl :) I would definitely paint walls. Maybe have an accent wall? I will definitely do some type of vinyl design. I probably won't do this, but I'm in love with the tree!

Source: pin4fun6606.blogspot.com via Courtney on Pinterest

But I also love the idea of having a chandelier-like mobile to hang over the crib. (That's totally the princess wanna-be coming out in me, ha ha!)

Source: godblessournest.blogspot.com via Courtney on Pinterest

And I definitely want this quote in the nursery.... whether it's in a frame on the dresser, or the vinyl on the wall. I don't know where or how, I just know it needs to be in her room.

Source: rockababywallquotes.com via Courtney on Pinterest

I have plenty of other ideas, but I just can't picture how to make them flow to create the perfect nursery. Once we move I know I'll have an easier time because I'll actually see the room that I'll be able to transform. Right now there are just too many what ifs.... the room could be tiny or it could be huge. It could have 1 window or 3. Who knows!
But I do know one thing for certain... Eric and I have decided to set up the crib before we move. I was going to keep it in the box so it wouldn't get damaged during the move but the more I've read, the more I realize that baby girl might prefer the crib before she's 3 months old. Or we might prefer having her in the crib and out of our room, ha ha. So I NEED to get the crib bedding before she's born but the trouble is... I don't know what to get!! Since I have no idea how I'm going to do her nursery, and I just can't get inspired while living in this rental, I NEED HELP! I don't sew and I'm not very savvy with online shopping so please tell me, which etsy shops and websites are your favorite for the crib bedding?? I'm all for going gender neutral with the bedding and going all girly with the rest of the decor... but I can't find anything. I don't know why but this is stressing me out so badly! I just need help, inspiration, advice, ideas, ANYTHING! Help me... pretty please? :)