Father's Day 2015

We made a trip down South to visit my family over the weekend for Father's Day. My mom was so sweet and threw me a surprise baby shower. I'm so blessed that my family came together to do something special for me and the baby. 

We made some time to detour to Padre Island for a day so my husband could fish and Anabelle could swim! It was a beautiful day, sunny with a nice breeze. I even made the trip more exciting by forgetting my swim bottoms. I had to wear my husband's briefs on the public beach. Pregnant much? Why yes, yes I am. 

Sunglasses last season (similar) // Pink Feather Bow // Beach Blanket // Striped Linen Bow // Saltwater Sandals 

I hope your daddy's day was everything and more!

xo,

Valerie

Summer Sandals for Toddlers

With all this drenching rain we've been getting, I've been day dreaming about summer sandals for my gremlin. I know I should probably be thinking more about a Father's Day gift, but isn't Anabelle responsible for that anyway? Totally.

Salt Water Sandals // Birkenstock // Jellies // Scalloped Sandals // Havaianas

I'm about to have a son, and I can't even pick out sandals for a boy. At least Birkens and Havaianas are unisex, because I have no idea what I'm doing.

Any other sandals I need to know about?!

Our (Brief) Beach Getaway

Life gets busy and we have to get away from all the hustle and bustle of grown up and toddler responsibilities. The weekend was filled with the beach and beautifully sunny days. Doritos stained fingers and fedoras. Swimsuits and sandcastles. Pregnant bellies and fluffy pancakes. Crazy curls and fingers sticky with Ben and Jerrys. And best of all, hand holding and lots of love. 

Toddler One-Piece // Toddler Fedora // Faux Birkens // Mama's Bikini Top // Mama's Fedora

We're soaking in all the time we have left with our baby big girl before our family of three turns into a family of four. 

I hope your weekend was as wonderful as ours!

THE SHOP IS NOW OPEN

The shop I've been pouring my heart and soul into for the past several month is now LIVE. These are just a few of my favorite products to start with. I have so much more in store for you guys that I can't wait to share in the next few weeks. 
FREE THREADS. get stoked my friends, because I am :)
http://freethreads.bigcartel.com/

Bump Update - 19 Weeks

How far along: 19 weeks.

Gender: We found out we were having a boy around 11 weeks. So exciting!!

Weight gain: Last I checked, it was about 6 lbs. I don't have a scale, so I won't know it until my next doctor appointment.

Maternity clothes: Nope. So far maxis and the belly band are my go-to items. I really despise maternity clothes, so I've been using a few select pieces that I can also use after the baby is born. 

Sleep: Blissful. As soon as my head hits the pillow, I am out.

Best bump moment so far: When my husband felt the baby kick. His face was melted my heart :)

Miss anything: Beer! No really. I even had a dream I was at a bar watching everyone drinking their delicious craft brew. It was pure torture. I woke up and told my husband my disturbing nightmare and he laughed at me.

Exercise: I'm consistently exercising 2-3 times a week I was put on low impact exercise during my first trimester since I have placenta previa. I hope I'll get the clear from my doc during my 20 week check up to get back to high impact. I never missed jumping so much in my life! 

Cravings: Fruit and cake. Because they pair so well together. 

Symptoms: Sore boobs and exhaustion. My boobs need their own rail guards, because this is just ridiculous. 

Looking forward to: The 20 week anatomy scan. I can't wait to see little mister squirming around!

A BIG Announcement + Rebranding + Shop News!

 Top (similar) // Shorts // Jellies

Anabelle is going to be a big sister! She couldn't be more thrilled. Well, really right before I snapped this picture I asked if she wanted some chocolate and she jumped up and down, and squealed, "yes!" So let's pretend she was really squealing for her future baby brother, okay?  But really, she is super excited and talks about lil bro all the time. 

Let's back up a minute. I took this picture during a brief rain intermission while it was incredibly windy. Before we even got out of the car, she said, "no pictures mom." She wasn't having it. I even had to bribe her with chocolate to get a smile out of her. After I told her, "okay, let's go home and paint" before the rain got us, she immediately let go of the remaining three balloons. Ensue toddler tantrum the entire way home. 

But anyway, we're having a baby boy! I'm 18 weeks along, and I have to admit, it's been the most exhausting 18 weeks of my life. Being pregnant with a toddler is no joke. Hence the lack of blogging, reading or being on social media. Whew. Luckily the second trimester has given me a break.

In other BIG NEWS, I'm opening a shop for mamas and their little free spirits! I've been working on this for months, and severe fatigue and a cold delayed the shop opening. But it's almost here. In just a few short weeks, the shop will be open! I can't even begin to tell you how stoked I am! See all the exclamation points?!

I hope you'll follow me on this new journey and update your reader to the new site: freethreadsblog.blogspot.com. The new site will go live TOMORROW, so don't miss it.

Thanks for sticking with me this far :)

Spring Books for Toddlers

Now that Spring is here (hooray!) we've been reading some of our favorite spring books that Anabelle just can't get enough of. Sometimes she'll be playing a little too quietly in her playoom and when I peek in she's reading a book to herself. It melts my heart.

Where the Wild Things Are: A classic favorite I grew up reading about a boy that visits a far away land with terrible creatures that adore him. My favorite part has to be when he returns home to find his dinner waiting for him. What a sweet mother he has!

Sleepyheads: I have a love/hate relationship with this book. I love it because it gets Anabelle in sleepy mode, but I hate it because it gets me in sleepy mode to. Then I want to pass out at 8:30pm after pointing out all the other creatures that are sleeping. 

The Pout-Pout Fish: Anabelle loves to read along with me when we read this. It's about a sad pouty fish who gets a different outlook on his life. There's no reason to be gloomy forever!

Guess How Much I Love You: I love that this book is about the love between a father and son. They go back and forth on how much they love each other. Come on, how sweet is that?

Are there any books we need to add to our collection, even though the bookshelf is overflowing?