Easter Basket

As a little token of my love and way to celebrate Easter, I made a little Easter Box for Scott this year. 

I started by getting one of those cute little dollar bin boxes from Target in a bright blue. Then, I spent about a week gathering different encouraging bible verses I thought would be fitting for Scott. I wrote them up on some colored paper cards. 

Final step was to put his favorite kinds of candy inside!

It was a little gesture that combined typical Easter loot (candy) with the real meaning for the season (scripture cards). Instead of saving it for Sunday, though, I gave Scott his box on Good Friday night. He loved the box, and is inspired to even make me some scripture cards! 

Candy Included: Skittles, Sour Patch Kids, Peach Rings, Snickers Peanut Butter Squares, and Peanut Butter M&Ms :) 

Double 3

33 Weeks!

Baby's Size: About 4 pounds- a pineapple ;)

Weight Gain: Holy Moly...22lbs total! At this point, what it will be will be (que sera sera).

Symptoms: Did I mention that my belly button has popped? It's not cute. Also, my first stretch mark has appeared. At first I was upset, but then I realized, woah, this is so tiny...and on my boob. No one's going to be seeing it other than Scott, and he couldn't notice it! The only other new issue I have is the shooting pain in my very low belly/pubic area. Every now and then when Caffrey's super active he'll kick super low and cause me to double over. I'm still trying to just ignore the bad and enjoy these last couple of weeks, though.

Cravings: Wendy's fries, Butterfingers, and cereal

Best Moment This Week: The nursery is continuing to come together, and my to-do list is seriously small now! Woohoo

Worst Moment This Week: Having plumbing issues at the house--yuck.

Why I love Easter

I've made it pretty clear that I love Valentine's day. The main reason I love that "hallmark holiday" is because of what it stands for: love. I love celebrating love--parental, spousal, and friendship. After some serious introspection, I realize that my biggest reason for loving Easter is because it is the ultimate holiday of love.

Scott actually proposed in front of our favorite Cross two Easters ago.

Love is a verb. I've always known this as fact. Jesus teaches us this very simple truth. Actions matter. Our words can be deceitful, our beliefs are ideology, but our actions show our character. Jesus didn't just tell us He loves us; He showed us. Jesus didn't want to be crucified. He was fully man, after all. He pleaded with our Father to give him another way. There was no other way, though. God and Jesus (as one and separate entities) gave us the ultimate gift of life through sacrifice and suffering to prove their love.

Let that sink in.

Jesus could have disobeyed God. He could have walked away. He could have said, "you know, what? I'm not going to take the wrap for all of your hateful and sinful ways. I love you, but I won't do this."He didn't. Instead, He (basically said) "I don't want to do this, and this will actually kill me, but I love you so much, I will do this for you. I will give you ETERNAL LIFE."

All that being said, there's something we need to take away from this: love is a verb. We need to use this holiday as a reminder--not just of our love with our Father, but also to our friends, family, and human-kind. When Scotty asks me to help make his lunch but I want to sleep in, I should to step outside myself and get out of bed to help my husband. When your friend asks you for help that's inconvenient, think about how helping him/her could show your love.

I hope that through this mind-cloud of a post you can take away a token about this very special time of year and how it can strengthen your relationships.

Easter Best=Family Photoshoot

As I have mentioned before, I love Easter. To prep for my favorite holiday I will be posting all week about different fun things about Easter, spring, and what this time of year means to me. 

I've always thought that Easter was the perfect time for a family photo. It's (usually) in the spring--a time of rebirth, so it seems fitting to have a memory of what your family looks like embarking in that new year of life. Last year I didn't get my photo because of the tumultuous timing (after a major family death and the midst of another private family matter), but this year I am determined to get at least a decent picture of Scotty, me, and the bump ;)

Here's my inspiration for a family photo wardrobe:

Easter Best by viclovesny on polyvore.com

Obviously, this year I won't have the little person to dress, but I wanted to include choices for the babes, too.

I love the fresh-ness of coral, green, and blue together in a tasteful way. I would just choose one main color, a neutral, and one to two 'pop' or accent colors. For example, I would put Scott in the Khaki pants, blue checked shirt, and green tie with dark brown shoes. To coordinate I'd wear the grey maxi with the bold green necklace and gold sandals. If Caffrey were here, I'd put him in the green pants and a plain light-blue button down. If we also had a girl, I'd put her in the white dress with the blue and green headband. A nice balance of color, neutral, and dimension!

I'll be sure to share our Easter photo next week!

Little Guy Style

Caff Style by viclovesny on Polyvore

I think I've mentioned before that I'm not really into the typical monsters and cars little boy clothes. I'm much more into dressing my little guy like I dress his dad. I love the look of little guys in old man sweaters, collared shirts, and laid-back beach bum wear. Although I have plenty of the "typical" baby clothes (sometimes you just need some 'athletic' OshKosh onesies when they're on sale for 99cents!), I also have stocked up on some style pieces for the little dude.

Above is a set of idea baby/toddler style for him. I do not intend to buy all the pieces, though. You can't really justify spending $30 consistently on clothing that will last him about 3 months (if that!). The set does accurately depict my love of grey, nautical, and stripes, of which we have plenty!

31 & 32 Weeks

I'm going to recap the past two weeks together since I kind of skipped it last week.

^Taken at 30 and a half weeks

Total Weight Gain: Last I learned, 19 pounds--eek! I hope I'm not too much more, now!
Baby's Size: Caffrey's about 4lbs at this point (thank goodness since this belly's so big!)
Symptoms: Basically all the same, but not as bad! All the aches and pains are still not constant, my acne has improved some, and my anxiety has even mellowed a bit! My belly button has popped, though!
Cravings: I still love apples, grapes, french fries, and sweets
Best Moments: Having an awesome shower, getting most of my 'big' items for the baby, and basically getting everything close to ready! We need some diapers, more clothes, and an extra car seat base, but beyond that, we have everything!
Worst Moment: Whenever I indulge too much I feel so guilty. Selfishly, I really don't want to be stuck with a bunch of pounds to lose after he arrives!

^32 Weeks! (please excuse my very tired looking face...wth?!)

The next couple of weeks have so much going on. We're really looking forward to it all! This weekend is a much-needed RR time. Next weekend is Scott's cousin's bridal shower AND Easter at our house. Then, we have two catch-up weekends before we go to the Poconos for his cousin's wedding all weekend long. Another weekend of reprieve then it's Scotty's birthday and my SILs' joint bridal shower. That brings us just a couple days before the due date! Mixed in with it all we have to do a hospital tour, put our finishing touches on the nursery, and try to get as much sleep as possible!

In Case You Missed It

We are finally sharing our name!

Our son will be named Caffrey Jay Edwards. 

We've heard the name as a last name before, and we really liked it. We started throwing it around, saying it aloud, and decided it fit perfectly.