Nearer to me…

As I gear up to have our newest little one, I’m taking the above quote with me in my heart. <3

Also, I thought it’d be fun to share a few things going on around here as we wait (any day now!) for baby to make his appearance, so here’s a bloggy photo collage of some highlights from the last few months…

My sister + family threw me a Baby Sprinkle and my mother-in-law organized a beautiful virtual Baby Shower and I was so beyond touched. <3

When it’s your 6th time around, you get lots of comments about how basically you’ve got it all figured out, even though you really don’t. 🙂 So it was truly special to feel that this baby is wanted and loved not just by us, but by others as well, and to be celebrated a little for bringing another little soul into the world. <3

Also inspired by these celebrations and using the adorable confetti hearts my sis used, I created a little “Gender Reveal” mani using dip powders in honor of my little guy. <3

I’ve also been packing and adding to my hospital bag! If you’re interested in what I packed last time for my daughter (who’s now 2!!), here’s that in-depth post. This time around I’ve added a few things even though our hospital is thankfully only about 7 minutes away. These snacks are some of the things I was most excited about packing, c/o our friendly neighborhood Trader Joe’s! Truth be told I had to buy some extras because they were too good to wait on. 😀

Also been staying hydrated as much as possible because as my luck would have it, I’m always super duper pregnant in the absolute summer, ha! I’ve recently discovered this strawberry -flavored “Liquid IV” electrolyte powder for my ice water that my sis recommended and I feel like it’s really helping. Also been enjoying Starbucks iced “subtly sweet” medium-roast coffee (I buy mine at Target) and of course lots of homemade iced Matcha drinks.

The last few months we’ve also celebrated tons of b-days, Matt’s and my 10 year Anniversary, and I’ve gone on maternity leave starting at 32 weeks – which was just in time for me and this tired mama body.

That’s just a little summary of the high points we’ve had these last few months. Of course there have been plenty of rough moments and challenges. We even got covid in June for the first time and as you can imagine it was a wild ride for all of us to be down at the same time. But thanks be to God we seem to have fully recovered well! The hard times are inevitable, but I love being able to share the good times too and recognize/appreciate them. Family life is such a mix of struggles, love, high’s and low’s! I’ll take all of it though. <3

So I’m sitting here with plenty of aches & pains while I experience my typical 37 week prodromal symptoms. I’m currently surrounded by my husband and kids who are scurrying around to get the house further organized so I can feel comfy enough to bring my baby home. <3

Occasionally I get a burst of frantic energy and feel the need to do some nesting, but that’s slowing down, so I’m fully expecting this little guy to come soon (although it’s up to him, right??). Thanks for reading along, friends! I’ll leave this last picture here – it’s my official “last mani” I think, before baby comes. Just a nice neutral transition from Summer to Fall to keep me feeling together while I wait! Dipping my nails has been a fun and distracting artistic hobby that I’ve definitely enjoyed during this time!

See you on the other side, friends! Comment and let me know how you’re doing!! I love hearing from you. <3

Love,