Bits and pieces **pic heavy

Over the last few weeks Andrei and I have been writing up lists of final things that we need before the baby arrives and getting things prepared in the mean time so if Luka does decide to arrive early we're both not running around like headless chickens buying things we so desperately need.

This blog post is pretty much just gonna cover what we have organized in means of storing her clothes to toiletries and anything else. This really is just bits and pieces of anything and everything!

Top: Bendon 'Motherlove' maternity bra from NZD$49.95 to NZD$20!
Bottom: Elle Macpherson 'Momamia' maternity bra from NZD$59.95 to $NZD$20!

In my last post here I stated that I purchased some gorgeous maternity bra's over the weekend at incredible prices as noted above.
It's taken me a while to finally get into maternity things because we don't have very many affordable stockists in NZ; plus I hate plain lingerie so finding these two gorgeous bras was amazing!
When I think about it, I own absolutely no plain underwear, everything is colourful and has a bit of playful lace added and I find that with maternity wear all you get is plain and ugly designs so I was very happy to purchase these lovely (and amazingly comfortable!!!) bras at such a decent price cause during pregnancy you still want to feel womanly, afterall it is our right :-)

Elle Macpherson 'Could Swing' bra NZD$74.95 to NZD$20!

And last but not least I brought this playful bra, which isn't maternity at all but it was so pretty I just couldn't resist!

 

 

Next on the list is how I store Lukas clothes, accessories etc.

These storage shelves are kept in the closet out of the way and is very accessable. I've organised each part into where her hats and booties are kept together, her mittens, bibs and long sleeve onsies are altogether and so on so fourth.

I'm going to be putting stickers in the front so that organsiation is kept, although I know it will be difficult once she's here!

 

 

I could not leave this out! This is Luka's bassinet all ready and set for her!

Teddies at the back are mix of mine and Andrei's old ones plus a new one which we recieved at her baby shower.

 

The bassinet, which was given to us from our lovely friends, has an underneath compartment where you can store nappies, wipes, cloths etc.



Pretty pom poms that were used at Luka's baby shower plus a glow-in-the-dark Jupiter which are placed above her bassinet

Picture's of baby girl from previous scans

Nice little bit of eclectic décor in our room :-) Plus a home for our polaroid baby shower pics

Two of my fave outfits! Left is a romper I brought from Pumpkin Patch and on the right is the outfit I was brought home in as a baby which I plan on dressing Luka in too :-)
Also please excuse my burgeoning belly below :P

Naww baby booties!!!

More room décor of some Disney memorabilia that I've had since I was 7!

Her name has found a place at the top of our bookshelf and in our hearts :D

A random pic of one of the shelves in our bookshelf. Two of my favourite photos and a gorgeous handmade Matryoshka doll that was given to me from my mother in law. The doll will be an inspiration for my next tattoo design :-)

And finally is my latest and greatest appliance purchase the 'Yonanas' frozen fruit dessert maker from Dole which you can read all about on their website 'here'

All you need is frozen fruit and pop it through the machine and it comes out just like ice cream except healthier and 100% guilt free!

I've made a mix of banana, blackberry, strawberry, raspberry and pineapple mix which I've stored away per the pics above and below; it is delish!

 

This is usually retail priced at NZD$130 but I picked it up on sale for NZD$91!
I'm such a good bargain hunter :D
The appliance also comes with a recipe booklet so you can make various delicious desserts. I tried it out on my friends kids last week with a simple strawberry banana and apricot mix which they (and my friend and I) loved!
If that's one way to get you're kids eating healthier treats then I don't know what is!

That's all from me until next time, hope you enjoyed it!

XOXOX 

 

Outfit Of The Night and 30week update

It's taken me a while to finally get this up cause I've been waiting for the weather to warm up and also to have an adequate amount of time to get outside and take some pics of the outfit I wore for my baby shower.

My mumma helped me take these photo's in her beautiful garden :-)

 

 Dress // unknown label // brought 3years ago and the shower was the first time I'd worn it! Can't remember the cost

Heels // Siren from Wild Pair (old purchase) // NZD$80

Statement necklace // Colette Hayman // NZD$5.70 from NZD$22!

 

I wanted to wear something light, flowy and feminine and maybe something a little sexy too ;-)

 

I honestly can't remember the last time I did and 'outfit' post!

My goal for pregnancy summer fashion (and afterwards) is maxi dresses, wedge heels, statement necklaces and all items combined with plenty of colour I.E. yellows, reds, oranges, blues, crisp whites and mint.

 

I'm finding fashion is anyone's game these days, I'm not fashionista and still pretty much live in my jeans and t-shirts!

But working in fashion retail has opened my eyes up to new ways of dressing up even you're simple plain white T and blue denim.

 

 

 

 

I can't wait to update you more on my pregnancy style, watch this space!

 



How far along? 30 weeks! Only 10 or so more weeks to go, I cannot believe how fast time has flown!!!
 

Total weight gain/loss? 69.58kgs (153.39pounds). I've gained a total of 8.98kgs since my pregnancy started (21.09pounds) which isn't that much. In total I'm aiming to gain a minimum of 13kgs.

Also we had a growth ultra sound for Luka last week and she's happy, healthy and weighs approx 3pounds!

No wonder I feel so heavy in my belly...

Maternity clothes? Alright I know I've said before that I don't want to fish out for maternity gear, well I caved.

My body has been growing at an extremely fast rate the last few weeks, thus being unable to fit into my usual size NZ 8/10 jeans and now being able to fit comfortably into size NZ 12's.

I finish work in just a few short weeks so instead of me buying jeans I brought this beautiful dress from ASOS as well as this one when it was available in orange (I'd wanted it for months and brought for the sale price of NZD$85 from NZD$170!), but that one is a little to snug around my belly so that'll be saved till after Luka's born :-)

Otherwise that gorgeous aqua blue/green dress is the only thing I've brought maternity wise, it's now warmer here in NZ so I doubt I'll be wearing jeans!

 

Stretch marks? Still none, I'm using Mum to Be Organics stretch mark oil as well as good ol' Bio Oil.

 

Symptoms: Absent mindedness, shortness of breath, sore feet and legs, tummy heaviness, rapid hair and nail growth (yay) which is all common for around this stage of my pregnancy. Also pelvic floor pain which started about a month ago but is bothersome every now and then.

Sleep: Is great. I'm used to Luka moving a around at night now so I sleep more soundly.

 

Best moment this week? Would've been last weekend actually, it was labour weekend so Andrei and I stayed at our friends' place out of Auckland in the Waikato region and then the next day road tripped it to my fave place in NZ (and possibly the world), Whangamata. We walked along the beach, had some ice cream and then shot off home it was really lovely to escape out of the city chaos!

Miss anything? Hmmm... Nope nothing really :-)

 

Movements? Yeah, she's always moving! Having little boxing rounds in my belly and rolling about, I love it :-) I'm actually going to miss feeling her movements when she's here.

 

Labour signs? No. Not planning on feeling anything this early!

Food cravings? Apples and apple juice strangely enough! Still fruits though, strawberries are in season and I've made a few trips to a local strawberry farm which I've indulged in their yummy ice creams and brought a few packs of strawberries :-)

 

Starting to show? As per the photo's above I think I am starting to show :-)

 

Happy or moody most of the time? I was a bit up and down over the weekend as I worked quite a few shifts last week so I was a bit tired and grumpy. But now that I've had a good rest I'm fine :-)

Exercising? Yup, I didn't go to the gym last week due to the amount of shifts I picked up and I wanted to rest and conserve as much energy as possible. But I did do quite a lot of walking, I'd say about 5hours last week, 30mins to my bus stop and back.

I went to the gym today and cause my belly's getting so big now I've slowed right down and certain exercises are becoming difficult so I'm just really going at my own pace.

Baby is a: Girl!

 

Belly button in or out? In. It's starting to look slanted so I think it'll pop out any week now.

 

Looking forward to? Receiving my ASOS maternity dress, work leaving party and work Christmas party (it's Great Gatsby themed!). My last trip to Whangamata in early December with some friends before baby arrives and of course meeting Luka very soon :-)

 

XOXOX

Celebrating Baby Girl

Last weekend Andrei and I hosted our first Baby Shower for our little girl who's due in early January.

What was essentially planned to be a casual BBQ at our place moved to a Mongolian BBQ restaurant surrounded by most family and friends :-)

It was such an amazing night, very relaxed, great atmosphere and the gifts were non stop!

Here's a few pics that were taken during the night with my Polaroid camera....

Group shot! A few of the guests had left before this was taken.

 

My beautiful friend Candice!

 

Some of the gorgeous girls from Mi Piaci!

 

 

This photo of me and Andrei makes me giggle. I accidentally poked him in the eye hence his facials!!!

 

 Some of my beautiful friends from work!

 

 

My BFF and God-Mother to my baby, Beya :-)

I wanted just a casual gathering for the baby shower which wasn't just a 'girls only' thing.

The restaurant was an 'all you can eat' buffet so I think that set the mood quite nicely for everyone to socialise and have a great night :-)

I set the table with pink and purple Pom Poms , old perfume bottles and baby booties to set the 'baby' theme but make it look pretty. And everyone seemed to have fun with taking the pics with my Fuji Polaroid camera :D

(Shake it like a Polaroid picture!!!)

 

Oh and by the way, as you've probably seen by now, we've named baby girl Luka.

Per this post here which I said about the naming decision, Andrei and I wanted to call her Darcey at first but we and coincidentally Luka thought she suited this name best :P

I really wanted a Russian name for her anyway, and Luka seems to fit the bill just right, plus it's unisex! 

We revealed her name to everyone by these cute block letters which I purchased from this cool store called Typo, then I painted on blue and purple (mine and Dreis fave colors) glitter glue and did and ombré effect to really make Luka's name SPARKLE!

It was such a fantastic night, Andrei and I felt we couldn't thank everyone enough for their company and the gifts they brought for Luka, it was truly amazing!

Plus all the support and well wishing we've received from family and friends that couldn't make the night has just made this whole experience for us becoming first-time-parents incredible :-) 

 My work friends gave me a $50 voucher to Pumpkin Patch. They've just started their Spring/Summer collection which has a 'French Countryside' theme, and I had my eye on this cute as a button romper! Andrei chose the adorable socks and I added in the headband :-)

This is only some of the gifts Luka was given! I was also treated to some skin oil and some bath and shower soaps/bombs from Lush.

 Cards from friends :-)

 

The photo edit apps I use on my iPhone, in case you're wondering, is PicFx, Rhonna Designs and A Beautiful Mess.

And the celebration really doesn't stop here!

We have friends and family coming from overseas in a few months and with me going on maternity leave soon too it's going to be quite the eventful year for Andrei and I.

Bring it on I say!

The next post I'll update you with what I wore for the evening and plus some :)

How far along? 23 weeks, I'll be 6 months next week!

Total weight gain/loss? Haven't weighed myself this week. I'm guessing I'm still at 64kgs.

Maternity clothes? Nothing yet, I'm still wearing the same size jeans I had since before getting pregnant but wearing them with a belly belt.

Stretch marks? Nope. Still using my holy grail Bio Oil.

Symptoms: Braxton Hicks contractions which I feel about 3 times a day.

Sleep: Sleep is fine. I haven't been waking up during the night the last week.

Also I miss sleeping on my tummy!

Best moment this week? Going to the new Spring/Summer range launch meeting at my work place Overland Footwear and getting work alongside a work friend who I haven't seen in months!

I'm such a workaholic! 

Miss anything? Soft serve ice cream, medium rare steak, apple cider, sleeping on my tummy....

Movements? All the time! She's so active :-)

Food cravings? Pancakes!!!! I make these amazing chocolate pancakes which are so light and fluffy then I have it with Nutella, double whipped cream and bananas. ERMEHGERD!

There goes my healthy eating.... Actually I lie, I'm still eating well. Gotta balance these things out y-know?

Starting to show? Yes indeed :-) I have the cutest, tiny round bump!

I get asked how far along I am, I say so, and then get complimented with how tiny I still am! I find it very flattering especially on days when I don't feel shit hot, it's good to know I still look great!

Happy or moody most of the time? My moods are well balanced, I'm happy and sad when I need to be.

Exercising? Umm next question haha! I've been slack the last two weeks with the gym. I had my 'week break once a month' last week and I haven't been this week cause its been raining and I'd rather not catch a cold!

I do feel very sluggish and my backs aching so I've been doing stretches, lunges etc at home until the weathers fine.

Baby is a: Girl!

Belly button in or out? In.

Names? Luka Anya. I'll leave it at that until she's born :-)

Looking forward to? Summer time, meeting Luka, getting into maxi dresses and wedge heels, going to Shakespear Beach in Whangaparaoa!

XOXOX