first baby shower sentiments

Last Saturday, I experienced my first baby shower in my hometown of Gainesville, Ga. Despite being sick, I managed to put up a good front for two hours, as I visited with roughly 35 women and spent the majority of the time opening precious gifts.

After the shower, a bit tired and delirious, I reflected on just how blessed I am to have so many friends and family friends supporting me on this next big step in my life. The women at the shower have known me since I was a small girl, have seen me grow up and graduate high school, and attended my wedding three and a half years ago.

The women who threw the shower will always have a special place in my heart:

They're the ones who cabined at Vogel State Park with my family every fall and spring for more than decade. 

They're the ones whose families spent New Year's Day playing two-hand-touch football with us on front lawns. 

They're the ones who maxed out our mini van so we could pay a low set price to get into Lake Lanier Islands in the summer. 

They're the ones whose husbands took us trick or treating and put on impromptu magic shows to entertain us. 

They're the ones I ran to when I was hurt and couldn't find my mom. 

They're the ones who let us be free, let us be kids and encouraged us to rise to our full potential.

I will forever be grateful to these women who have left such an impression on my life. Thankfully, I have them to remind me what it's like to be a great mother.



Despite many of the registry items I received, I also received many sentimental homemade gifts as well.

• Grandma Hunt gave me a children's bible that she used to read to James growing up.
• Cousin Beth gave me a variety of handmade light-weight nursing blankets.
• My Grandma (mom's mom) gave me a sweet tote that was similar to the one she made for my little brother and cousin when they were toddlers two decades ago.
• My Grandmother (dad's mom) gave me a stockpile of soft fleecy receiving blankets.

favorite fall recipes...pumpkin + apples

Last fall, my friend Lindsey and I held Pumpkin Night, which turned out so well, we held an Apple Night a month later.

Last week, we combined the two and called it Fall Night. We resurrected Butternut Squash and Apple Soup, and this generous recipe makes enough of this healthy goodness to stock your freezer for weeks. Paleo peeps, this soup is a great recipe for you.

I eaten the leftovers from this soup every day for the past 5 days. And each time, it's been just as delicious. Yesterday, I made some parmesan cheddar crisps, and topped the soup with toasted pecans and bacon crumbles. Delicious!

Along with our amazing soup, we made Spinach Pomegranate Salad with Apples and Walnuts. I forgot to take a picture, but here's the one from the recipe website. This salad was amazing, and we added a generous amount of the toppings.

We also made another batch of Pumpkin Crisp, only this time I used gluten-free cake mix, since most all grocery stores carry it now.

third trimester and the nursery

Well the third trimester is finally here! I'm 28 weeks, and it's hard to believe that Dec. 31 is just around the corner.

I had my 7-month appointment earlier in the week, and luckily passed my glucose test "with flying colors," according to the nurse. I had heard about so many women failing the one-hour test that I was super paranoid. But I guess me passing just reinforces my go-to breakfast of bacon and eggs :)

I'm still CrossFitting away, and enjoying every minute of it. I average 3 or 4 trips to the gym each week. This past week, we did tababta overhead squats one day. I did light weight (45lbs), but managed to do 60 squats in the four-minute mini workout.

Notice the Pirate Pending T-shirt :)

Last week, my brother came down from Chattanooga for a few days to visit. While he was here, I convinced him to paint the nursery for me. He did a great job!

Yesterday, my parents came up with a truckload of baby furniture, and our extra bedroom was transformed from a guest room to a nursery in a few short hours.

My mom and I found this wooden table for $10 at a Hilton Head thrift shop over Labor Day weekend. After a few coats of white paint and some inexpensive knobs from Home Depot, it was completely transformed.

My mom used this baby chest for me, my sister and my brother when we were babies. Originally cream, she painted it white and added more inexpensive knobs, and voila!

My sister found this glider, a baby crib and matching changing table on Craigslist in Hilton Head. The glider is lightweight but super comfortable, and I love that it came with an ottoman.

Though my first shower isn't for two weeks, my mom went ahead and gave me my crib bedding as an early gift since we were putting together the nursery. It took me weeks of searching, but I finally settled on this bedding that was a little more sophisticated than cutesy. I loved the colors and the contemporary look of the buildings. Hopefully the wrinkles will fall out with time!

My parents also brought up one of the old twin beds that my sister and I slept in growing up. I purchased a white down comforter for it (yes, also wrinkled) and two throw pillows that feature blue, gray and yellow dots. Now, I just have to find a large colored pillow to make the throw pillows pop.

We had quite a 'fun' time putting together the changing table, which matches the crib. After my showers, I'll figure out how to best organize things.

Next item of business: working on some wall art. I'm in the middle of a few projects that I hope will look great on the walls.

Today is the hubby's 31st birthday, and we're having a couple couples over to fondue.

I'm glad you're over the mustache phase :)

And in case you're wondering, you're still a stud to me--and you've got skillz.

Somehow, you always end up on top. Guess that's why your nickname is the Golden Child. Love you!