Good morning!
It’s going to be a chatty, old school kinda post today because I can’t sleep so I figured I’d tap away at my laptop and write down a few thoughts.
It’s Saturday morning, around 4am as I’m writing this and I’m currently munching on a bowl of Special K cereal and listening to the rain pouring down outside. Feeling very cozy at the moment!
I’m currently 34 weeks pregnant (will be 35 tomorrow actually) and things have been pretty crazy lately. All amazing, awesome things, but also a little overwhelming and it’s a bit scary to think that bubby could be here so very soon!
We had another Obstetrician appointment yesterday and got to see her cute little chubby cheeks on the ultrasound! She’s apparently going to be quite a small “Lauren sized” baby from the looks of things but everything is going well!
We are so looking forward to meeting her, and yet, to be totally honest, I’m actually kinda terrified about how life is going to change when she’s out and about in the world! I know I will be so incredibly excited when she does make her appearance, but currently there is so much I want to get done and sorted out first!
I think a big part of the fear is the fact that I’ve been told a million times by my parents (and even family friends!) that I was basically a nightmare baby. I never slept and would never stop crying and I’m just a bit scared about how Tom and I will cope with that if our little bub happens to be the same! I know that whatever happens, we have amazing support and things will be fine - but the unknown is definitely scary!
I think also the fact that she could be here in just a few weeks and I still feel really unprepared is kinda freaking me out a little too! I was born at 37 weeks and it’s only just hit me that 37 weeks is only 2 weeks away!
Anyway, enough of the rambling and focusing on my worries (which really aren’t that bad - everything will be fine!!)
Let’s rewind for a bit and I’ll recap a little of what’s been happening in the last few weeks, because it’s been a very exciting time!
Moving House!
The biggest change has been that we moved house 3 weeks ago!
I don’t know how it’s been 3 weeks already but time has been absolutely flying! We’re so excited to be in our new place and I’m sure I’ll be sharing lots more home interiors content on the blog in future, but currently the place is a bit chaotic!
I’m trying not to feel too stressed about it all, but I would love to have everything in order and in it’s place before bubby comes along.
I know that it will be fine regardless of whether I get everything I want sorted before bubs arrives, but, as Gretchen Rubin says in her book The Happiness Project - “outer order contributes to inner calm” and I would definitely love to be able to be surrounded by a nice calm space when bringing a new baby home! I’m one of those people who’s environment can really affect how I feel and I think the low grade stress I’ve been feeling the past few weeks has been hugely related to the fact that our home is so messy right now! So that’s a project for this weekend!
Speaking of decreasing stress though, we did get removalists and they were so great I figured I should recommend them here on the blog! We used Fox Removals and the two guys helping us - Travis and Dan were so efficient, professional, friendly and really took great care with our furniture!! If you’re looking for a good removalist in Perth I’d highly recommend them!
A Surprise Baby Shower!
The second exciting thing that happened was my friends and family throwing me a surprise baby shower! It was completely unexpected and they made it such a special event!
The day after moving, we walked into my parents house (I thought we were having a family afternoon tea to say bye to my Uncle who’s heading back overseas) and I was greeted by the most amazing sight.
Pink and white balloons, an amazing table filled with delicious pink treats and flowers and my fave people all dressed in pink and white and wearing little tiaras on their head! It was probably the pinkest, girliest Baby Shower ever and I loved it!
(I know… gender stereotyping and all… but hey - I am a really girlie girl and I adore pink! Hopefully bubby will like it too - but if not she can decide on that when she’s older! haha!)
My mum had even managed to get me to wear pink for the occasion (without me getting suspicious at all!) so I was appropriately dressed for the theme too! My dress was from Legoe Heritage which is a really lovely Australian maternity brand.
I’ll share more photos of the shower soon (I really want to do a separate dedicated post) but for now here’s a little sneak peak.
I really felt so loved by everyone and our little girl is so lucky - she was thoroughly spoiled receiving so many beautiful gifts and you can just feel how loved she is already! My friends went to so much effort to make it a beautiful occasion and it was especially touching because I know how crazy busy their lives are at the moment!
It was one of those “wow… I am so so lucky to have these people in my life” kinda moments.
Feeling this huge wave of appreciation as I think back on it actually and it’s making me feel so much happier and chilled just remembering it (I was a little tense when I started writing this post!)
My Besties Hen Party High Tea
The weekend after the baby shower was my best friend Emily’s Hen Party! She’s getting married in France in October (her Fiancé is French!)
Although I unfortunately can’t make it to the french wedding (considering bubby will be just a few weeks old!) luckily she’s also having a second one in Perth in January!
Seeing as I couldn’t make it to the French wedding though, I really wanted to throw her a little party to celebrate before she gets married (and we’ll have the proper hen party next year), so I organised a High Tea for just a few really close friends who’ll be attending the French wedding.
We went to a place called Chapels on Whatley in Maylands. I’d been there earlier in the year and the food, tea and service was lovely so decided it would be a nice place to go back to. It didn’t disappoint. It was a lovely setting, we had lots of food, delicious teas (including a rose tea which was my fave!) and plenty of time to just relax, linger and chat. Some high tea places can be really strict about timeframes so it was nice that we didn’t feel pressured to leave earlier than we wanted to! They even had a violinist playing who serenaded the bride so that was a bit of fun too!
I think the bride-to-be and other guests had a good time so it was a success!
To make it a bit more special, I decorated the tables with jars filled with fresh lavender and purple & white balloons (I was inspired to do the balloons after my Baby Shower!) I figured the lavender gave a french flair (as well as the fact that purple is one of her fave colours). The bride-to-be even managed to match the decor - completely by accident!
We played the “Ring on a String” game where you’re not allowed to say certain words (bride/groom/wedding etc) or you lose your ring. The person with the most rings at the end wins. I’d also asked the groom some questions to see how well he knew the bride so that was a fun thing to read out too!
Attending the Pregnancy Babies & Children’s Expo
Last weekend I went to the Pregnancy Babies & Children’s Expo. It was a really great way to check out a whole bunch of different baby products, learn (as they had a lot of education stalls too) and get some great deals on things we’d been meaning to buy (as well as lots of free samples and entries into giveaways!)
I might do a post later on talking about the different things I purchased and reviewing them, but a few things I picked up included a Baby Bobek carrier (which seems really great) , a Tommy Tippee breast pump (and some other accessories) - out of all the ones I looked into it seemed a reasonable, middle-range one that would be a good starting point (plus I managed to get a great deal), and a Boppy nursing pillow. Maybe not a necessity but it was 50% off and I figured I want to be comfortable!
Another brand I discovered was Hotmilk Collective - they make maternity/nursing bras that are actually really pretty (which is a hard thing to find!) They were taking measurements at the expo and had a deal where if you ordered two, the third was free. My order just arrived yesterday and I’m really happy with them! It’s nice to have a few options that aren’t boring, ugly maternity bras!!
We also finally registered for Cord Blood collection which is something that had been on my list to do as well. They had a good special on at the expo that saved us a fair bit of money but I’ve also got my fingers crossed as I’m hoping we could win their 25 year cord blood storage giveaway!! … I know it’s a long shot but it would be amazing if we did - putting it out into the universe! Regardless, for me, it’s one of those things that is definitely worth spending on… you hope to never have to use it but I know I’d be kicking myself in the future if something happened and we’d decided not to do it!
My mum and I spent quite a few hours at the expo on the Friday and it was a really fun outing! (and if you can go on a weekday I’d recommend it as it was definitely a lot less hectic!)
I went back with Tom the next day so he could have a look too and decide on a few things (like the baby carrier as he’ll probably be wearing it a lot!)
The expo was definitely worth a visit and I managed to tick a bunch of the things I’d been meaning to purchase off my list, so I’d recommend checking it out next year for anyone who’s pregnant or has a little baby! Just make sure you do a little research first, that way you won’t be overwhelmed by the huge amount of products - I went in knowing what I wanted and needed, so although I did buy quite a few things, I don’t feel like I went overboard. The people at the stalls were really great too - there was no pressuring you to buy anything, it was just showing what’s available and educating!
Finishing Up Work In The Next Week
I have one more week of work left before going on Maternity Leave and I have to say - I am really ready to be finished (the past few weeks have been hard!)
My work colleagues and boss have been so lovely and supportive though and I’ve been feeling so appreciative of everyone! Especially since there’s been a bit of stress about what’s going to happen with my contract when I go on maternity leave etc, but thankfully that is somewhat resolved now (fingers crossed everything works out okay and I have a job to go back to!)
They had a little farewell morning tea for me on Tuesday (they wanted to do it a week early in case I didn’t last another week! haha) and they surprised me with a big bucket filled with gifts!
It was all a bit overwhelming really - they were so generous and their beautiful card made me tear up a little too! It really left me feeling so lucky to have such a wonderful group of work colleagues (and boss!)
There were some super cute, fun and useful gifts in the mix - one example is is a little Star Wars dress and a Harry Potter dress (both with matching bows!)
I said to Tom - “wow… they really do know me well!” and he goes “well yes - you have been there for 7 years!!”
So yes, basically I’ve just been feeling this roller coaster of overwhelm about all the things I want to get done in the next few weeks and then complete appreciation for everyone and everything in my life and the knowledge that whatever happens, whenever bubby arrives it will all be okay!
Thanks for reading my rambles if you got this far! I’m feeling a lot more calm after writing all this out! These kinda posts always remind me of why I got into blogging in the first place!
I hope things are going well for you and as always, you can leave a comment below or come say hi over on Instagram - @laurennatalia.co
Lots of Love
Lauren
xxx