Pregnancy Update- 20 Weeks

Aloha Bloggerinos,

This little (or long as it has turned out) post will be especially for all the lovely Bloggerinos who have been asking about my pregnancy/telling me how broody they are/just being lovely-ahhh :)

If pregnant women wittering on about they're aches and pains isn't your bag, look away now!

So, as the title suggests, I'm 20 weeks pregnant now and feeling marvellous. We had our 5 month scan on Friday and it was truly the one of the best 30 minutes of my life! Matt was able to come to this one so for him, it was the first time he saw it. We saw the all four chambers of the heart, both halves of the brain, it's spine, ribs, leg bones, eye sockets, mouth, nose, everything. It was just an amazing experience to see our little baby moving about on the screen, totally unaware that it's parents were looking on loving it to bits.

After all the routine checks were confirmed as normal (hurrah!), the sonographer had a good look at baby's bits and told us we're having a little baby........................girl!!!! I literally burst into tears I was so happy. Matt had tears in his eyes and even the sonographer shed a tear with us. People always describe these moments as amazing and I never really got it, I just thought they were being dramatic, but now I understand. It was a moment when nothing else filled the room except pure and untainted joy. Joy for the moment and joy for what was to come.

Now I know what we're having, I feel a million times more bonded with her and sooooo excited. It's mad because I was so sure she was a he, and here I am, dreaming of sparkly shoes and frilly dresses.

In the last few weeks I have been feeling movement and in the last 10 days or so I have been feeling clear kicks and punches. It feels like someone tapping you with their finger but from the inside and is so odd!! You kind of forget your pregnant sometimes and then you have a little knock knock from baby and smile to yourself, that oh yes, your little baby loves you. The other morning, I was laying really still and she was kicking quite vigorously and Matt was able to feel her! I was so glad. I want him to be able to feel as close to her as I do, I think he does.

I had a bit of a scare last week, when I was bent over double in pain. Urgh it was awful. I know aches are usual as they are your body stretching to accommodate little one, but this was unreal. I went to the emergency dr and after a good prod about, he just said she had had a rather large growth spurt and my body was struggling to adjust- stretchy stretchy! I'm feeling a lot better now so panic not.

I've developed some oh-so-sexy stretch marks on my tummy too. I can't say I'm overly bothered by them though because I just think they are my body making my baby. If it contributes to a lovely baby it can't be that bad.

I have a properly defined bump now, which is just lovely and I find myself stroking it, or her, absent mindedly. Matt and I often talk about things we're going to do with her, show her, teach her. I feel so lucky to be able to have all this.

We've picked out her names but we'll be keeping these schtum until she's born I'm afraid. We've told both sets of parents and a few friends and the majority have loved her name. My Dad and Stepmum didn't seem too enamoured with it but there we are, I tried not to be too hurt- what a luxury to be able to be brutally honest eh?

We're slowly building our stash of stuff up, although I'm yet to buy anything pink or girly, mainly due to lack of funds :(. People have been so generous though and bought lots of lovely baby things so I am really pleased. I've been spending far too much time trawling through Etsy.com (like an eBay but for wonderful handmade products) for those gorgeous big headbands you see little American babies in. I haven't seen any over here and I don't want to put the baby in regular headbands because their heads are so delicate.

Anyway, have I rambled on long enough? haha. No snaps to share this time, hope you can forgive me :)

Are any of you pregnant/trying/had a baby? I love hearing other people's stories. Orrr do any of you make/sell those lovely baby headbands? Do let me know.

Lots of maternal love,

Toodlepip!

xx

Lou's Reviews :: MAC Magically Cool Liquid Powder

Aloha Bloggerinos,

Ages and aggeess ago, I was very kindly sent a couple of bits from Mac and since I've now had a good amount of time to give them a whirl, I thought I'd tell you my findings. I was sent the Magically Cool Liquid Powder in Cajun (from the Venomous Villains collection) and a mascara which we'll no doubt talk about another time.

What MAC have to say about it:

"A silky, feather-light powder, formulated with 70% water, dusts on to the skin as a cooling mist to set and enhance the look of any foundation. Beyond sheer: light-reflecting and translucent. A virtually invisible way to add luminosity and a soft radiant glow to the skin. Limited edition."

I have always been a pressed powder bronzer kind of a gal, so when I opened this, I was a little worried. I tend to make a total mess of loose pigment products and having a white carpet, this is a problemo. There's no way round it other than a careful hand and a lot of tapping-off-excess-ness really- any other suggestions, I'll be glad to hear them!

I apply this bronzer with my (fake- I was swizzed on Ebay dagnamit) MAC due fibre brush in a swirly motion to the apples of my cheek, temples and a smidge on my forhead and nose. When you first apply it, it really does feel cool in temperature, almost wet even, which was quite a surprise. I've not come across a product which has that effect. I think this coolness will feel amazing in the summer- what a winner.

The formula is VERY concentrated, so a teensy weensy bit goes a reeeaaallllyy long way. This comes as some consolation for the fact that it retails at £23.00, which I believe to be a bit steep for a bronzer that wouldn't last as long as this baby.

This incrediably finely milled bronzer is a medium-dark brown with a very, very slight hint of shimmer. It's a tiny bit too dark for my pale complexion but if used sparingly and buffed in well, it looks nicely natural. It has a decent staying time and is easy to remove- bonus.

This isn't a product I use daily because of the mess, but it's one I bring out for nights out and special occasions. I hope that come summer, I can make much better use of this.

Have you tried or would you try this? What do you think?

Toodlepip!

xx

Christmas Crafts :: Chic Garland

Aloha Bloggerinos,

With winter well and truly here (as I type, my windows are about to be blown in by gale force winds and also, veering of course a bit here, my 60 something year old neighbours are having some shockingly loud 'couple time' if you get my jist- erlack), I felt it time to crack open the craft box and get busy.

As previously mentioned, I am currently rich in time but poor in mula, so this Christmas is going to be inspired by vintage, handmade and upcycling- very fashionable dontchya know? I've set myself the challenge of using up all the copious supplies I have and will not, not, NOT go to HobbyCraft under any circumstances!!

So, one of the first things I have made was inspired by my Ideal Homes (I think) Christmas magazine which Matt bought me at an M6 service station, I do love that man. Basically, it's a paper garland that you can adapt to however you like and hang pretty much anywhere- versatile oui??

I would described the skill level of this project as- superduper basic. A monkey could do it I would think.

What you need:

1. Paper. I used paper from a music book jobby that I bought at a charity shop last year (gawd knows why). 2. Scissors/Stamp cutter. I already have a circle and heart cutter from HobbyCraft, but you could just use scissors to cut whatever shape you like. I suggest using a template for accuracy though.

3. Ribbon or string cut to whatever length you want your garland (remember to leave a little bit at each end to loop or hook.

4. Glue. I used kiddy type PVA, just because that's what I found first :)

5. Gems/Glitter/Embellishments. This is optional. I used hot pink crystals. Ohh yeeaah.

Cut/stamp out your shapes. I went for circle and then heart alternatively. Next time I'll do just hearts but you live and learn.

Squeeze out your glue into something. That pot is an old nailvarnish wipe pot. You seeeee crafts and cosmetics go hand in hand. Ho ho.

On one side schmear (mm love that word sscchhmmeeaarr) you glue and lay the ribbon/string on it. Then, take another shape of the exact same size and lay it on top, to make a ribbon/strong sandwich if you will.

To add a bit of festive sparkle, embellish however you fancy. I stuck on little gems. I used the end of a plastic fork to splot the glue on so that I could make a small gem sized blob and prevent a glue related nightmare!

Leave to dry and voila, a very unique garland that you can hang from the tree, mantelpiece, banister or wherever you fancy. You could also adapt this for other occasions- pink hearts on red ribbon for Valentines, orange pumpkin shapes on green ribbon for Halloween etc. I may even make some for the nursery in girly shapes and colours of boyish ones. It's a nice easy project that you need very little for. Super.

If you would like to buy a kit for £3.50 (inc P&P anywhere) pop your paypal email in the comment box and I will send it out to you. Kit will include 32 hearts or circles or a mixtures (please specify) which is enough for 16 shapes on the garland, 100 crystals in clear (which is enough for 6-7 on each shape) and 125cm of fairy pink wrapping ribbon (you know like the type you can curl). All you'd need to sort out yourself is your glue, and voila- Your Own Chic Garland Project Kit :)

What do you think? Is this something you might try?

Toodlepip!

xx