Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Reliant

    Being a mama is the best thing I've ever done. I've never had so much fun or been as happy as I am right now.
  But let's be honest, being a mama 
is HARD.
 It's harder than I thought it would be. The fact that I'm completely responsible for this little baby girl's well being can be overwhelming at times. There are days where the lack of sleep gets to me, and days when I start to feel lonely after being at home all day without another adult to talk to.
     
But there's something so beautiful to me about hardships of motherhood. As frustrating and exhausting as it can be, these hardships cause me to completely rely on Jesus. There are times where I don't know how I'm going to get through the day. Especially on those days where I am so tired that I am falling asleep standing up. Or when my baby is whiny and fussy and I can't figure out what's wrong. That's when I have to call out to Jesus for help. 

To be honest, I've never been one who likes to ask for help. I'd rather just do something myself instead of asking someone to help with a task or to do it for me. And there are times where being this way makes my life more difficult, because without help I become extremely overwhelmed and anxious. Being a mom has completely humbled me in this area of my life. I've had to tell myself that I can't do everything, no matter how hard I try

Jesus is my peace, my comfort, and my strength. Motherhood has been a constant reminder of how much I need his grace in my life. So even though there are struggles and frustrations that come along with being a mom, I welcome them with open arms. Because without them, I wouldn't be where I am today: completely and willingly reliant on Christ.   


Happy Wednesday!
xoxoKelsey

Saturday, August 24, 2013

Baby Love

Oh man, has it been a long time since I blogged! The last time was when I was 38 weeks pregnant, and 4 days before my little Eisley was born. It's kind of funny to read that post, because I remember I was just SO ready to not be pregnant anymore. I guess she heard my complaints and decided to show up early!


So what's been going on? Well, I had Miss Eisley Rose!

                              
You guys, I'm so in love with her. It's so true when other people say that you have this instant love for your baby the second you see them. I don't think anything can compare to the feeling I had when I first held her in my arms. I kept thinking how right it felt. It was almost like my whole life I had been waiting for that very moment. In an instant there was this tiny baby with cute pouty lips and big eyes staring at me. I about died of happiness. And don't even get me started about Ian. Seeing him with Eisley just melts my heart. He is just smitten with her. That girl already has him wrapped around her finger, and I have fallen in love with him even more now that we have her.


Eisley is a petite lady with strawberry blonde and blue eyes. She is finally able to wear most of her newborn clothes. She's just so tiny and and cute I love it. So far, she's very easy going and is happy almost always except for when she's hungry, tired, or has the hiccups. She HATES the hiccups and always makes sure to let you know about it. Haha! Oh, and she looks just like her dad. I love it. It's so fun (and weird) to see him when I look at her sometimes. 

Speaking of cute, here's a few pictures from the past two months so you can see why we are SO in love!
And by a few, I mean a ton. 





                              



I mean, can you even handle the cuteness? I barely can some days. She's the best.
 (That last picture was taken by my talented brother, Jake. You can see his work here.)

I'm really glad to be blogging again. I'm hoping to be able to not only share parts of my life, but to encourage other young mamas out there as I figure out this whole motherhood thing. I've been so encouraged by other moms, and I hope to be able to do the same! Thanks for reading :).

Happy Saturday!

xoxoKelsey




Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Patience


Hello, everyone! Man, I have REALLY missed blogging. I need to get myself back onto somewhat of a routine before the baby gets here. Otherwise, it may never happen. For now, here's a bit of an update on what has been going on:

 -I'm 38 weeks pregnant tomorrow! Only two more weeks to go. I feel like it was March and then I blinked and it's June already,

-Today is my last day of work before maternity leave. I am really excited to be done, but at the same time it is an odd feeling to know I won't be working for awhile. I know that I'll be starting a new job soon as a mama, though. I'm already convinced it will be the best job ever!

-I have been nesting like a crazy person. I used to think that nesting was kind of a fake thing. Nope, totally real. 

-My mom is coming up to stay with us for a little while a week from Monday. I'm so thankful that I will have her here to help me figure out this whole mom thing.

-Ian is done with school for the quarter on Friday, and then he gets three weeks off. I'm hoping this baby comes on time so that he has some extra days off to enjoy the baby. And he only has one quarter left of school until he graduates. Hallelujah! 


Look at that belly. Sometimes I can't get over how big it is. I'm amazed that my body can stretch this much. Let's just hope it remembers how to go back to (mostly) normal.


If there's one thing I am not good at, it's being patient. 
And being 38 weeks pregnant is truly testing my patience.  I love this little baby, and I just want her here in the world already! I know that God's timing is perfect, and that she'll come when she is supposed to. But if she showed up tomorrow, I'd be totally OK with that. Eisley Rose already has my heart, and it feels like it's going to burst open with excitement. I cannot wait to see her face.

I'd say "I'll be posting again, soon" but I better not jinx it :).

Happy Tuesday!
xoxoKelsey


Wednesday, March 6, 2013

24 Weeks


I am 24 weeks pregnant today. I cannot believe how fast time has gone with this pregnancy. It feels like I was 8 weeks along and then blinked and here I am at 24 weeks! The past few weeks I'm pretty sure my bump has doubled in size. Which I'm OK with, since the relentless "you don't even look pregnant" comments have finally let up. There's no doubt that I definitely look pregnant now, haha! 

Here are a few recent pictures from week 21-24. (Note the impressive size increase between 23-24 weeks)
 21 Weeks
22 weeks
 23 weeks
24 weeks

(I just realized I wear a LOT of stripes and grey. It's part of my pregnant uniform I suppose.)

I'd say the best part about the past few weeks has been how much I feel my little girl squirm and kick in there. It's funny, I get so wrapped up in the whole "being pregnant" thing that I sometimes forget there's an actual baby inside of me! Feeling her little kicks when I wake up in the morning and before I go to bed at night make it feel so much more real. It's such an awesome reminder of this amazing little person God has blessed Ian and I with.
I had my 24 weeks check-up yesterday, and so far everything is measuring as it should, and her heartbeat sounds great as well. It's always so amazing getting to listen to it. Yet another thing that makes this whole pregnancy seem more "real". I was given the infamous glucose drink that I have to consume sometime next week. I won't lie, after hearing from so many people how gross it is, I'm a bit nervous. If you've had to drink it before, what did you think? Is it as bad as everyone says it is? The nurse said it tastes like a flat Sprite.
 De-lish.


Happy Wednesday!
xoxoKelsey

P.s. I'm trying to make a few changes to my blog as far as content and design, so bear with me if it looks a little crazy for a while :).




Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Book Review: Forgetting the Fairy Tale

Hey guys!

LONG time no blog, right? Well that streak ends today with a review of an awesome book that I just finished reading. 

A lovely lady named Donya Dunlap, who is one of my fellow writers for The You Are Project, has written an incredible book called Forgetting the Fairy Tale.

Forgetting the Fairy Tale is an amazing and easy read that any Christian woman, whether single or married, would enjoy. Dunlap uses her great sense of humor, and her amazing wisdom to remind us women how loving Jesus and putting him first is the only way to find true love in your life. She uses characters and stories from the bible to show us that a fairy tale life really doesn't exist. Some of these characters include Eve, David, and Hosea, who's real life examples show us that the need to put God first and foremost is more than enough to make us happy.

So many Christian women idealize romance and put the search for it as the priority in their life. Dunlap reminds us that Jesus will satisfy any need that we have if we only invite him in to our lives to do so.  As a married woman, I found some great reminders of how God is all I'll ever need, and through putting him first, my relationship with my husband will only grow and get stronger. 

I highly recommend you pick up a copy and read the book for yourself! You can purchase the book through Amazon here.

I'll be back to my (hopefully) regular blogging this week. 

Happy Tuesday!
xoxoKelsey

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

The BEST Cheescake Ever.

I don't know if you guys know this or not, but I LOVE to bake.
You also may not know that I'm sort of known for my chocolate chip cookies. And I won't lie, they're pretty epic. And though I've baked many different things, I've never made a cheesecake before. So last week, I decided I'd give it a shot and make one for Thanksgiving. Well, I actually made two. I'm a bit of a perfectionist, so naturally I made a "practice" cheesecake a few days before, just to make sure it turned out OK.

Seriously, it was the best cheesecake I've ever had. The second I made it I knew I had to share the recipe with all of you. I was a bit nervous about making a cheesecake, but it was much easier than expected!

I found the originally recipe here, and the only thing I changed was how I baked it. Prepare yourselves, for the amazingness that is...

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

Ingredients:
-1 cup chocolate cookie crumbs ( I used Oreos)
 -3 tablespoons white sugar
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
 - 1 (10 ounces) package of frozen raspberries
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
- 2 teaspoons conrstarch
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 cups white chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup half-and-half cream
- 3 (8 ounces) packages of cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Supplies:
9 inch springform pan  
Mixer
Spatula
Strainer

Directions:
  1. In a medium bowl, mix together cookie crumbs, 3 tablespoons sugar, and melted butter. Press mixture into the bottom of your pan.
2.In a saucepan, combine raspberries, 2 tablespoons sugar, cornstarch, and water. Bring to boil, and continue boiling 5 minutes, or until sauce is thick. Strain sauce through a mesh strainer to remove seeds. Warning: this is the most time consuming part of the process. But it's SO worth it. I also added a bit more sugar to the sauce, as my raspberries were extremely tart.
3. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In a metal bowl over a pan of simmering water, melt white chocolate chips with half-and-half, stirring occasionally until smooth. You can also do this in the microwave. Just simply heat it only 30 seconds at a time, stirring it after each 30 seconds until it's mixed.
4. In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese and 1/2 cup sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time. Blend in vanilla and melted white chocolate. Pour half of batter over crust. Spoon 3 tablespoons raspberry sauce over batter. Pour remaining cheesecake batter into pan, and again spoon 3 tablespoons raspberry sauce over the top. And the best part is using a knife to swirl the sauce to create the beautiful marbled effect.
 5. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until filling is set. Cool in the oven for 40 min, and then on the counter. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 8 hours before removing from pan. Serve with the rest of the raspberry sauce.
 The key to getting a cheesecake to cook absolutely perfectly, is by using the water bath method. What you want to do is wrap your pan with a few layers of foil to keep it dry, and then place it in a baking pan. After you place it in the oven, fill the baking pan up about halfway with boiling water. This helps the cake cook evenly, and helps maintain the custard like texture without overcooking it. 
Another tip is to let the cake cool down for 40 min in the oven. Just turn off the heat, crack open the door, and let it cool down. Then make sure you let it cool on the counter until it is barely warm before you put it in the fridge. This will prevent it from cracking.
The cake was a hit at Thanksgiving! It's a great recipe for a holiday meal, and I really suggest you try it out!
Let me know if you try out this recipe. I guarantee it will be gone in just a day or two!

Happy Wednesday!
xoxoKelsey



 

Monday, November 19, 2012

Poppy


Hey there, blogging friends!

So I have some very exciting news:



Yes, it's true! 
This June, we'll be welcoming a little baby into our family of two. 

You guys, I wasn't sure I believed it when women said that you instantly fall in love with your baby the second you find out you're pregnant, but it's true. I just love the little babe so much already! So much so that I have burst into to tears just thinking about it. Although, I'm sure a big part of that is my crazy hormones, ha ha. We are so excited for this little baby, and feel so blessed that the Lord has given us this gift. Sure, I'm a little (a lot) freaked out about being a mom, but more than anything, I cannot wait! 

Two weeks ago we got to see our baby for the first time. Talk about the COOLEST thing ever. After seeing and hearing the baby's heart beat, I was so much more at ease. It was so nice to see that the baby was alive and well. We've nicknamed the little babe Poppy, since he/she was the size of a poppy seed when we found out we were pregnant.

Dear Poppy, you are SO loved by your mama already!


On another note...I've decided to kind of change my blog up a bit. I used to focus mostly on beauty/fashion, and I think I want to have a bit more of a "lifestyle" feel to it. I've been struggling the past few months about what direction I want my blog to go. So in addition to my love for blogging about beauty and fashion, I'm going to start adding in some more posts about my daily life, and a lot of crafting posts. Since I'm preeetty much the biggest crafter of life. 

 Happy Monday!
 xoxoKelsey