Easter is just a couple of weeks away so I thought I would show you what my girls are getting in their baskets! A majority of the items are from Target or Amazon, so you would definitely still have time to purchase them.
This list is what I got for Evelyn. Since she will only be 7 weeks at Easter, she’s not getting much but I wanted the big girls to see that the Easter Bunny included her too! Just click on the corresponding number for the link to the item!
And just like that our littlest love is already 1 month old! It’s absolutely bittersweet...I miss those first few days of newborn bliss SO much, but I also can’t wait to watch her grow into a tiny tot as the year goes on! She just had her 1 month check up on Friday, and she already weighs 8lbs 8oz and is 19.75 inches! Way to grow my little chunk!
After we got home from the hospital, we spent the first few days of Evy’s first month doing lots of cuddling and LOTS of nursing. She was the cluster feeding queen, but since I was recovering from my surgery anyway I didn’t mind one bit.
Her umbilical stump came off completely at just over 2 weeks, so Evelyn got to take her first real bath! She loves the warm water, but is not a fan of getting out of it. ;)
We finished off the month celebrating my 35th birthday with the three best gifts I’ve ever been given! I love my sissy squad more than I could ever explain!
I love you so much my little Evy Mac! This month with you has been beyond perfect!
My littlest love is already a week old today, and it’s so very hard to believe! I figured I needed to get her birth story up before the memories start to fade a bit, so here we go!
I started having symptoms of cholestasis right around 35 weeks. Itchy hands and feet told me it had returned yet again (I had it with Natalie also) and I was also having a lot of preterm labor. I went to my 36 week appointment and told my doctor and she said we would be delivering baby at exactly 37 weeks. Finding out you’re going to meet your babe in only 10 days is one of the craziest feelings ever!
I spent the next 10 days super busy. We had Natalie’s birthday party and her celebration on her actual birthday along with doing all the cleaning and before-baby prep work. The time seriously flew, and before I knew it baby day had come!
I was allowed to eat until 11:00am, so I started the day with a big breakfast from Mimi’s Cafe. We had a nice quiet day with the girls, settled them in with Brian’s mom, and then headed out around 2:30 to go to the hospital. They wanted us there 3 hours early for pre-op, and I was honestly glad because the waiting game was killing me!
Once we got to the hospital, they took us back to labor and delivery for pre-op fairly quickly, where I had an amazing team of nurses helping to get me ready. They told me that rumor had it that my OB might want to start with me a little early, and I got so excited! Sure enough, they walked me to the OR a half hour earlier than expected and we got ready to start the c-section.
I felt so much more calm this time than I was with Natalie. It was nice to know what to expect, and I was able to joke around with my nurses and actually had some fun. They brought Brian in to sit by my head and hold my hand, and I knew then it wouldn’t be long before our baby girl was born!
I heard my OB and nurses giggle at the sight of her little breech booty popping out of my uterus. “She has the cutest little buns!” made me crack up, and minutes later at 7:09 pm Evelyn Mackenzie Hope entered the world! (Fun fact: all of my girls were born during the 7:00pm hour, Baylee was 7:15, Natalie was 7:42) I didn’t hear a cry, so I knew immediately something wasn’t right. Brian could see her on the warmer and said they were giving her oxygen and that she was starting to pink up, which was a relief. They had to work on her so long, though that they decided she needed to go to the nursery for 4 hours of observation. I was bummed but I knew my OB had to finish my tubal ligation (I decided to get my tubes tied so no miracle oops babies in the future) and I had to still go to recovery, so I was hoping that would make time go by fast. Before they took her, I got to spend a few moments with her by my head snuggling and telling her “Happy Birthday!”
Once I was in recovery, Brian left the nursery to see me and show me pictures and video of our girl. I didn’t even know her stats yet, so he filled me in that she was 18 inches long and weighed 6 lbs 13.5 oz. Right around the same size as our other two beauties! I was counting the time to be able to finally meet her, and before I knew it, they were wheeling me in to my postpartum room.
Once I was there, and settled in, Brian went back to to nursery to see how she was doing. He texted me to let me know she was having chest retractions while breathing, so they needed to do a chest x-ray and keep her for and additional 6 hours. I was heartbroken that I wouldn’t be able to meet my baby on the night of her birth. I tried to get some sleep, but it was nearly impossible because I was so worried about her. Brian stayed with her until around 1:00am and then came to the room so we could both get a couple hours of sleep before she joined us in our room. At 4:30 I woke Brian up to go back to the nursery, and at 5:30 he texted me that they were on their way to the room! I was finally going to get to hold my baby girl!
She was an absolute dream, and looked just like a combination of her big sisters. That “big love” feeling returned immediately, and I couldn’t believe there was ever a time that I almost lived life without her! She is 100% the missing puzzle piece that completes us.
I was also very lucky because my mom happens to be a postpartum nurse at the hospital where I delivered, so she got to be with me all 3 days, and got to give Evelyn her first bath which she has now done with all 3 of my girls! So special!
We stayed in the hospital for one more night, and both her and I were doing so well the next day that we were discharged to go home! I was so excited because it was Valentine’s Day and she was the most perfect Valentine’s Day present! Plus I was going to get to see my big girls, and I couldn’t wait!
It was love at first sight for the two big sisters, and now we are settling in as a party of 5! Welcome to the world Evy girl, you are the most perfect addition that completes us and we love you to the moon and back!
Favorite color?: blue
Favorite toy?: “All of the toys in the playroom” (she plays with her little people the most)
Favorite food?: apples
Favorite movie?: “Frozen number 1”
Favorite snack?: granola bars
Favorite animal?: cow
Favorite book?: “Dragons Love Tacos”
Favorite song?: “Knockin’ Boots” (yes the Luke Bryan song...so appropriate...*facepalm*)
Best friend?: “Sissy!!!”
Favorite cereal?: chocolate strawberry cheerios
Favorite thing to drink?: “green juice!” (Which means the Green Machine Naked juice)
Favorite holiday?: Valentine’s Day
Toy you take to bed with you every night?: Chocolate Bunny
Favorite thing to do outside?: “play with balls”
Favorite place to go? “Shopping with Daddy because I love him”
Favorite show on TV?: “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse” (specifically the “Minnierella” episode)
I love this little girl and her blossoming personality more than I could ever explain! She’s currently in size 3T clothes and a size 7 shoe. Her favorite things in the world are dinosaurs, Disney princesses (Belle is her favorite), and baby dolls. She loves to pretend with Baylee and I hear them playing veterinarians and “house” on the daily (she’s usually the mom and Baylee is the baby! Haha) Outside is her happy place, and she adores any time spent at the park.
She is super smart and can quote lines from all her favorite books. She knows her ABC’s and can count to 20 from memory, and she has just started having letter and number recognition in the past couple weeks! She also knows all her shapes and colors, and of course her dinosaurs. ;) Her first year of preschool will start in about 6 months, and I can’t wait for her to start learning more and making friends!
Miss Natalie is silly, opinionated, passionate about doing things her way and on her time, and a complete “mama’s girl”. She has the best lisp in the whole world, and makes us laugh all day long with the way she pronounces things. Our favorite words right now are “cantu” for “toucan”, “beezas” for “zebras”, “keenbutter” for “peanut butter”, and “Yayie Youise” for “Natalie Louise”. I kind of secretly hope she never starts saying things correctly!
Happy 3rd birthday, my magical girl! I hope this year is wonderful for you!
Because the party was so small, I kept the decor and dessert table very simple this year. We just did store-bought cake and cupcakes (which were actually delicious and turned out adorable) and I made some green T-Rex Rice Krispie treats. For lunch we had burgers and Brian’s famous mac’n’cheese. Everything was simple, and perfect, and kept it much easier on me and my very pregnant self!
I seriously cannot believe my tiny peanut will be 3 tomorrow! We have a fun day planned for her, and then over the weekend she will become a big sister! Let the chaos begin!
1. Pink Stork Tea This tea has gotten me through many bad days off morning (aka ALL DAY) sickness. I’m not a fan of ginger at all, but I feel like the tea masks the ginger flavor well using other flavors. The ginger peach is my favorite.
2. Old Navy Maternity Leggings These are the most comfortable and affordable maternity leggings I have found. They are also perfect for postpartum.
3. Target Maternity Tees These are my favorite maternity tees ever. They are soft, stretchy, very inexpensive, and they come in tons of colors.
4. Personalized Tumbler Water intake is so important during pregnancy, and when I’m on the go I love to use my Hydroflask, but for home I find myself reaching more often for my tumblers. I have 5 of these now with different sayings on them, and they’re definitely worth every penny!
5. Pink Blush Maternity Jeans I feel like I have tried every brand of maternity jeans after having two fall/winter pregnancies, and the Pink Blush jeans I have are by far the most comfortable and best fit. They’re definitely worth the splurge, but they do have really good sales every so often so look out for that!
6. Palmer’s Skin Therapy Oil So far, I have yet to get a single stretch mark, and while I know a lot of that is just luck/genetics, I really think keeping my skin hydrated has only helped. I put this oil on once a day starting in my first trimester, and twice a day in my third.
7. Maternity Shape-wear I love the maternity shape-wear from Amazon for under dresses. It keeps everything smooth and comfortable, especially for maternity pictures!
8. Dr. Teal’s Epsom Salt I have taken SO many baths this pregnancy, and I put epsom salt in every time to soothe my achy muscles. You can always get plain epsom salt and add essential oils, but I love the different kinds that Dr. Teal’s has, especially the Pink Himalayan!
Also, not pictured, is Babylist! Using it for my registry has been the best because I can register for products from all of my favorite companies, and the app tells baby shower guests where they can get the best deal!
And finally, this isn’t a product per se, but did you know you can order almost any Starbucks drink half caff?! I just found out this year, and it has helped me be able to get all my favorite espresso drinks without coming too close to my 200mg limit of caffeine! Such a game changer!
If you want to see my other favorite products broken down by trimester, here are the links for those:
If there are any other pregnancy products that you are wondering what my brand recommendation would be, let me know! I am happy to help! :)
