That time my baby turned two

Ugh. She's two.

I wasn't dreading it, in fact I was so excited about her being a little girl. I've always looked forward to her milestones and growing up. I enjoy it.

But there was something about that sweet face this year.

It reminded me that at one point she looked like this...

and this, a brand new babe in her daddy's arms...

Sitting in a highchair was a big deal

So were dates with mommy.

And her giving me kisses was something new...

And that time that she looked like the cutest little baby and I thought she looked grown up...

Because now, she's this little girl... making "pancakes"

and when I can't find her, she's in here...

And then, just like that, she turned into a little girl. 

Who dressed herself in winter boots when it's 85 out and refuses to let me do her hair...

But most of all. She's my girl.

I love you E and I love watching you grow.

xoxo

Mommy.

Nothing can replace a Venus razor, unless it's $19.00

For a while now I have been a part of Influenster . They send me really neat products for free in exchange for reviews. It's been a really neat way for me to try new products and to get kind of spoiled. I haven't blogged about them before because I didn't see myself as that type of person but I figure hey, that's why they are giving me this stuff right? So I regret not sharing about the previous products I've received but I promise I'll share the goodies now.

The latest product I was given was The Gillette Venus Snap with Embrace razor. I was actually really excited for this because 1. I needed new razors anyways and I didn't want to go to Target to get them (the lazy reason for sure) and 2. I really missed buying Venus razors. You know the store brand ones just don't cut it sometimes.

I opened my box and saw my cute little razor with the adorable travel case. I saw that this razor had 5 blades! Whoa, there, we're getting fancy!

The good: I loved how small and compact it was. It could easily go in a purse, bag, or small suitcase and wouldn't take up much room. The case makes it nice so it doesn't get dirty. I actually found that the handle was easier to hold than the regular handle and I continued it for every day use. Also, it looks cute. I don't know if you ever thought that a razor would look cute, but it does. My first use was amazing. I felt like the women on the commercials. My legs were probably the smoothest they have ever been and at that moment I really wanted to spring for the expensive Venus razor again.

The bad: Okay, here is where I turn into Debbie Downer. The moisturizing border that's around the razor is really annoying. It is so bulky that I was missing spots left and right. Also, by the 3rd day, the same moisturizing border was sticking to the case and left and awful sticky film to where it was coming off when I would take it out of the case. The razor, started rusting after a week. I wasn't impressed with that. I expect that from my cheap razors, but not a Venus. But still I was willing to forget all of that and buy a refill of the same razor using the coupon that was also sent to me complimentary. I get to Target and see that the Embrace razor refills were almost $19.00. Um what?!Even with the coupon, I would be spending over $15.00 for 4 razor refills. Absolutely not. So instead, I decided to splurge on some regular disposable Venus razors with 3 blades and call it a day. (I actually liked those better.)

Overall: I think it's a cute product. I don't think it's practical, I probably would never buy it. It did however, make me miss a better quality of a razor and good old Gillette convinced me to spring for their brand over the store brand. So I say that won that battle.

First trimester down, 2 more to go.

Now that I'm past the first trimester, I feel pretty good.

I'm still tired all the time. I've been trying to get out of my habit of a daily nap, because it's starting to affect my sleep at night.

Speaking of, E is finally sleeping through the night. She may get up before 6am, but after 2 years of her waking up 4+ times a night, I can happily say that I'll take it!

It came at a really good time too. The first few weeks of pregnancy were so awful I was beginning to wonder if I'd ever sleep normally ever again.

So now I'm about 12ish weeks. My midwives and I have different dates. I believe mine is more acurate, so I go off of mine most of the time. (It's only a 5 day difference between them)

This one will be another home birth. I had such an amazing experience last time, that I can't picture myself doing it any other way. We were happy to choose an excellent midwife group that isn't too far from us.

Baby Hulk as we have so lovingly named it, if the size of a plum. So far I'm feeling that this one might be another girl. Mike of course thinks it's a boy, and good news is that one of us will be right! If you ask E though, she will tell her it's a girl and she wants a sister.

This pregnancy is very different from the last. I am feeling much better and am able to enjoy this part of the process more. My nausea was more severe but less frequent than my last. This made me lose some weight which I can't say I'm unhappy about because last time I had gained 15 pounds with E in my first trimester. I would really like to not gain 40 pounds this time.

This one has been a breeze and I hope it continues to stay that way. I'm interested to see how it goes being pregnant in the summer, especially Texas heat. As someone who is hot all the time, I don't see myself enjoying the outdoors very much this summer.

I wanted to be better about taking pictures this pregnancy. Things were so hectic last time (when are things not hectic in V household?) that I regret not doing weekly pregnancy pictures. So here it is Baby Hulk at 12 weeks. Yes, there is only one baby. Yes, you tend to show sooner during the second pregnancy, and No, I promise there is only one. ;) And yes, I might have just rolled out of bed during a nap to take this.

Here we go!

Please excuse me while I do a massive update with tons of posts. I planned on updating once or twice a month but with how I was feeling during the first trimester of this second pregnancy, I was lucky enough to keep my eyes open to entertain E, let alone type. ;) (Seriously, God bless Curious George and Netflix.)

Now that we are on our way out of the the first trimester and into the second, I'm feeling much better.

I found out I was pregnant a few days after Mike's birthday and it was such a shock for us, but very much wanted and we are so excited to give E a little brother or sister.

With E, I was very sick and tired throughout my whole pregnancy. It was really hard on my emotionally and physically because I wasn't really mentally prepared to what pregnancy would actually do to my body.

With this one, I had some morning sickness in the beginning that had lasted about 3-4 weeks but nausea has mostly gone away and now I just have extreme fatigue. I'm napping at least 2 hours a day when E naps, and I'm sleeping mostly through the night with only having to get up a couple times.

Overall, I'm enjoying this pregnancy more than E's because I'm not so sick. It's a struggle to go out and do stuff. Like heading the grocery store becomes a daunting task because it just drains me bu the time I get home. But I remember it's not just me, I'm also keeping track of a very energetic toddler.

E doesn't get what's going on, which I expected. However, I know she is going to be an amazing big sister. She loves babies and she will be so happy to find out we get to keep this one, and it's real!