Monday, November 24, 2008

Happy Thanksgiving Week!

Today starts a crazy week for us. In a few hours we are driving three hours to Spartanburg, SC to pick up Matt's new car! It's a really pretty 2006 Tahoe, leather, sunroof, and most importantly, heated seats :) I call it the baby wagon. It will quickly be broken in as we are driving it down to Florida for Thanksgiving on Wednesday. Lots of driving this week.

We are really excited about going down to Florida for Thanksgiving. My mom's entire side of the family will be there, including my cousin's new 3 month old baby Kaylee. I'm obviously very excited about this because I'm dying to hold a little baby!! Plus I need all the practice I can get! My mom has also graciously decided to throw me a baby shower on Saturday which I am so excited about. Living far away from family is obviously not ideal, so it's nice they will all be able to share in the baby fun.

On another note, Madelyn has become quite the little mover bug. Yesterday I started feeling actual little kicks instead of just flutters. At first it scared me but then I got used to it and now I love it. Now I'm just dying for Matt to feel it, but she's quite elusive when she knows she's being watched. I also wonder what it means that this is kind of early for someone to actively feel a baby move around so much---it scares me that she is going to be all over the place when she is bigger!

I hope everyone has a safe and happy Thanksgiving week and holiday! I'll be sure to post some belly pictures when we return from Florida :)

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Buyers Beware



I feel it is my public duty to share this article with my loyal readers (all 4 of you :)

Here in Atlanta we have two main grocery stores: Kroger and Publix. I am consistently torn between the two, mainly because I love the Publix atmosphere but Kroger has a better selection (especially or organics) and lower prices. Of course, I also supplement with Whole Foods and Trader Joe's inbetween, but down here in the 'burbs we haven't yet been blessed with either of those within a decent proximity to my house.

So, I decided to do some research and found this Dateline study about the cleanest(and not so clean) grocery stores in the country. You'll never guess where my beloved Publix ranked...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10976595/

Here is the full list from top to bottom. They are ranked based on the average number of health violations per 10 inspections, with "cleanest" at the top. This is one list you don't want to be number 10 on.

1. Food Lion- What?! I don't remember loving these when I lived in Florida

2. Save-A-Lot- I've never been in one of these stores, so I can't judge, but this did surprise me for some reason

3. Wal-Mart- Again, surprised...I do agree they don't have a bad grocery selection...if only I wasn't blinded by the flourescent lights and overwhelming number of people and screaming children everytime I went in there

4. Costco- Love Costco- I should have known they'd rank well

5. Sam's Club- Where is Publix and Kroger?

6. Winn-Dixie

7. Kroger- Finally- this is a less than desirable ranking. 17 average violations vs. Wal Mart's 9...yuck

8. Publix- Wait, you mean the welcoming atmosphere, clean stores, and excellent customer service are now overshadowed by a 22 average violations??!!

9. Albertsons

10. Safeway

As you can see, this doesn't make my decision any easier at all. In fact, I'm tempted to pack up my Publix (ahem) reusable bags and start toting them to Costco every 2 weeks.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Things that make me happy this week :)

1. Yesterday I got gas for $1.89...$1.89!!! That is amazing. I feel richer already.

2. The high in Atlanta today is 45 degrees. Now, being a Florida girl, I tend to only like this kind of weather for a few days, so by the time Thanksgiving rolls around I will be very thankful for the (hopefully) warm Florida weather we'll be enjoying.

3. Almost all of my work pants are the Editor fit from Express. I swear they are the best pants out there. They fit perfectly and they hold up really well, plus they don't wrinkle when you wash them. Editor pants have a zipper and then two clasps at the top. Last week I could close the zipper and the bottom clasp, closing the top was possible just not comfortable. Well, this morning all I could do was zip, no clasps. Thank goodness for these belly bands holdin up my trousers! I am pretty excited about the growing belly, so this was a fun moment for me :)

4. I'm almost certain I felt little pumpkin move yesterday for the first time. Now I find myself tempting her with tiny bits of sugar and caffeine to see if I can get her excited and rolling around...I worry this is not a good precedent to set, but it is fun!

5. My Florida Gators are taking college football by storm and on their way to a possible National Championship. I don't like to brag...who am I kidding, yes I do...especially to Matt who's team has barely been squeaking it out the last few weeks ;)

6. My two favorite actresses both have movies coming out soon that Matt and I will definitely be seeing. Keep an eye out for Marley and Me with Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson, and 4 Christmases with Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn.



7. Operation nursery is full steam ahead! We are ordering the nursery furniture in the next week or so and working on finding a time for Matt to paint when I'm not home because of the fumes. I'll be sure to post before and after pics as soon as we have made some progress.

Friday, November 14, 2008

I'm in love

My mother, who has excellent taste, found this absolutely perfect chandelier for Madelyn's room at Pottery Barn Kids. I cannot wait to see it hanging in her nursery, it will be the perfect touch of sparkle and girlyness :)



On another note, I'm typically not a huge fan of Old Navy, but given their expansive maternity collection I've become a frequent visitor to their website. Last night I stopped into the store by my house and tried on ths super cute jacket that is currently half off. It is perfect for pregos and non-pregos because it falls straight down from your shoulders allowing plenty of room for a belly if you have one. I'm going to pick one up this weekend while they are still on sale.



I also LOVED this little peacoat/trench, but I'm pretty sure I would have outgrown this about a month from now. Too bad, because it is on sale for just $25!

Monday, November 10, 2008

It's Official....

This Christmas it will be.....




AND



MADELYN!!
We found out today that baby Marden is definitely a girl! Her name will be Madelyn Grace. Luckily, I ordered this stocking on sale a few weeks ago with my fingers crossed that the doctor's suspicion was correct and it was!

Maddy (her nickname...already...) is right at 4" long and growing right on schedule. Here are two cute pictures from the 3D ultrasound.


I am so excited to finally begin working on her nursery! The walls in her room are a pretty deep green color, bedding will be mostly white with pink and green accents, and her furniture will be a pretty cherry finish. Here is the bedding I plan to do:
My vision also includes a crystal chandelier and white shaggy rug...time to get started!

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Busy Week

I am a slack blogger, but to my defense this has been a crazy week! Our trip to Florida last weekend was so much fun, the perfect weekend. We tailgated all morning Saturday and then went back out to the beach where Megan and Bobby live to watch the game, then Sunday morning we went for a bike ride to breakfast at this adorable (and delicious) beach diner. Below are a few pics from our adventures :)
Tomorrow we head off to Charlotte to see our good friends BW and Shannon and to celebrate BW's birthday. We are certainly taking advantage of our last few months of "freedom"- haha.

Stay tuned- Monday we find out if baby Marden will be Madelyn or Cole!

By the way, incase you didn't see it, the Gators didn't just win against Matt's Bulldogs on Saturday- they stomped all over them and sent them home crying to their moms. 49-10. It was beautiful.





© Living the Good Life. Powered by