I never thought…

….I’d appreciate my parents more than I already do. Reading the mountain of baby books and learning about baby care has made me realize that it’s a LOT of work. They did everything with smiles on their faces and without a single complaint for my brothers and myself. We’ve always been a tight-knit familia, but knowing this opened up an entire door of appreciation.

mom

..I’d love my abs. They were always my not-so-favorite part- the one that took the longest for me to see any type of fitness gain or result. I was happy with them, but always thought “they could still be more defined.” Now that I can no longer see my abs –they’re on vacation- and I look back on old pictures of myself, I think “damn. My abs looked fantastic. And I had no idea.” Aren’t we always our worst critic?

20week4

[That’s from my 20 week update– belly is even bigger now. Grow baby, grow!]

…I’d enjoy clothes shopping for someone else more than myself. I haven’t bought clothes in over a month –a world record- but onesies and tutus? Twist my arm 😉 I really love picking out things for the little nuggette, and am so grateful for Babysteals, Amazon and Zulily for hooking us up with baller deals.

clothes

[And the Gymboree baby sale! All of that = $27. Love it]

..I’d care about diapers this much. After the great diaper debacle and talking to my friend Nicole about cloth diapers, we’re 100% on board the cloth diaper train. I’m actually EXCITED about it! I’m going to do a full post with the different options and everything Nicole taught me, but we definitely plan to cloth diaper after we get into a good routine (probably a month or so after she’s born, or out of newborn disposable diaps).stack_of_fuzzibunz1 Source

…I’d be this attached to my jewelry. I’m still bummed out that my rings don’t fit. Quite a few people suggested wearing them on a chain, but if the chain broke, I’d be devastated. I’m still on the lookout for a CZ band I can wear to prove I’m married, but definitely miss the rings that my hubby placed on my finger :/

wedding6

[And then we got crunk on the dance floor]

…that Bella would pick ME over Tom. Bell and I are great friends and snuggle all the livelong day, but as soon as Tom gets home from work, she’ll only pay attention to me if I bribe her with food (preferably chicken, second is goat cheese). We always *fight* over her on the couch, aka we each lay on the couch and say “Bella, Bella come here” and see who she goes to first. He always wins, and gets covered in kisses. Last night, she jumped on my side of the couch and curled up on top of my belly. I won 🙂

bell on belly

…I’d be even more of a snack machine. Baby must be going through a growth spurt because I’m hungry all day, and snack every 1-2 hours. Last night I woke up and almost came down to the kitchen for a snackaroo.

…That I’d be this in love with something I still don’t even believe is *real*. Yes, I know she’s there –I can feel her kicking all day, playing trampoline on my bladder and definitely making her presence known- but it’s definitely weird to not really *know* her yet, what her face looks like, and how her personality is. It’s so hard to be patient, but at the same time, it will be here before we know it.baby

… That I’d be this stoked for birthing class. 2 hours of quality time with Tom is good enough to make me excited, but the fact that he’s going to be massaging my back at some point aaaand we get an end-of-class meditation/relaxation sesh: happy kid, right here.

Post Navigation:

41 Comments

  1. Katherina @ Zephyr Runs on September 20, 2011 at 5:51 pm

    Yes! I love how in love you are with Tom. I’m so much like you in that regard and people think I’m nuts!! I also love that Bella loves the bebe 🙂

    • Fitnessista on September 20, 2011 at 5:52 pm

      she’s already claiming it as her own, haha

  2. Darci on September 20, 2011 at 5:55 pm

    SUCH a good post, Gina! it made me tear up! i’ll blame my own little half baked 20 week “nugget” for that 😉 i think it’s funny how you are turning into a snack machine…i am too! do you find it as hard as i do to avoid flamin’ hot cheetoes????? 😉

    • Fitnessista on September 20, 2011 at 5:57 pm

      omg i wasn’t, but now that you mention it… haha

  3. Coco on September 20, 2011 at 5:57 pm

    I love that pic of you and your hubby on the dance floor! That’s how I envision myself at my wedding–havin a baller time dancin the night away.

    Also, SO TRUE about our parents. I am not a parent (yet), but PHEW, it is hard work!

  4. Cait @ Beyond Bananas on September 20, 2011 at 6:03 pm

    You look just like your mom!! Minus the 80’s hair!!

  5. Lauren on September 20, 2011 at 6:07 pm

    Great post! One time my pup put her paw on my belly and at that exact time, the baby kicked! So cool!

    P.s. You will appreciate your parents even more once she is born! I can’t believe mine did it 3x! Although, I think I would do it 2 more times too! 😉 so worth it!

  6. Jen @familyfoodfitnessandfun on September 20, 2011 at 6:08 pm

    Aww…sweet post! I totally look up to my parents now that I have kids…some of the stuff I put them through…yikes!

  7. Kelly @ Laughter, Strength, and Food on September 20, 2011 at 6:10 pm

    Love the post! So many new and exciting things going on! 😀

  8. Hillary on September 20, 2011 at 6:14 pm

    First of all, that picture of you guys at your wedding is the BEST. My bf says that’s exactly what he’s looking forward to the most when we get married: the dancing. True story.

    Second of all, I’m not pregnant, and I already love looking at baby clothes (walking into Baby Gap is too good). God knows what I’ll be like when the time actually comes around.

  9. Holly @ The Runny Egg on September 20, 2011 at 6:18 pm

    I have really started to appreciate my parents more and more over the years — sometimes being an adult just sucks and they seem to be so good at it all the time!

  10. Angie Echols on September 20, 2011 at 6:22 pm

    We have a schnoodle and shes in LOVE with my husband!!! He bought her for me as an anniversary gift last November but she’s made it clear who her heart belongs to!! Oh the treats that dog gets to win her attention!

    LOVE this list… how awesome 🙂

  11. Ali @ urbanfruitbat on September 20, 2011 at 6:22 pm

    Aww, this post was so cute! Bella must already love the new little one. I think you look SO much like your mama when she was young! What an awesome picture. And it is totally true, I don’t think you ever fully appreciate your parents until you are a parent.

  12. Gurminder on September 20, 2011 at 6:24 pm

    beautiful post Gina!

  13. Lauren on September 20, 2011 at 6:27 pm

    Such a sweet post. It must make your madre so happy.

  14. ecoprincess on September 20, 2011 at 6:29 pm

    OMG, my bf and I do that with our dog all the time too! We always compete to see who she loves the most haha we say to her “wag your tail if you love me the most” in the same kind of tone we’d use if we were asking her if she wants a treat. We’re so weird! haha

  15. Shaya (Eye Girl Eats) on September 20, 2011 at 6:34 pm

    Haha I always play the ‘who will the dog pick’ game with our family dog– she picks me when I go home to visit 🙂

    Cute wedding pic! the Pilot looks real serous 😉

  16. Averie @ Love Veggies and Yoga on September 20, 2011 at 6:36 pm

    If you think you’re snacky now, just WAIT til you start nursing. Girl I never ate so much in my entire life as I did the first 6 months of nursing. Making milk and supporting an entire human being just from your milk is a big job and I was an eating machine. I would raid the cupboards at 3:37am like it was my job 🙂

    So glad to hear you’re on board with cloth diapers. The Fuzzy Buns diapers that you showed never fit Skylar as well as the Bum Genius did. Kind of like the difference between Seven Jeans and Gap Jeans. Some people can wear certain brands and they fit a glove vs. other brands just dont work as well. Cant wait to see what you end up going with!

  17. Silvia @skinny jeans food on September 20, 2011 at 6:42 pm

    Bella likes listening to the heartbeat of her little sista 😉 Animals have such better hearing than we do. One of my cats always snuggled up to the pregnant belly of a good friend of mine..

  18. Gina on September 20, 2011 at 6:45 pm

    aw I had a smile on my face while reading the whole post 🙂
    I’m so excited to see what she looks like. With you and Tom for parents, she’s going to be a gorgeous baby!

  19. Azka on September 20, 2011 at 6:46 pm

    I totally hear you on the abs!! I always worked on them the hardest and criticized them the most and at 8 months pregnant when I look at my 4-weeks-pregnant picture I’m like wow – If I can just have that back after baby I’d be super happy!
    p.s. I’m delurking after many months. I’m 35 weeks, and started reading you when you were just a couple weeks pregnant – I believe I was googling pregnancy + fitness or something, and have been hooked ever since! Thanks for all the food, fitness, and baby gear insight! I have to confess I totally made a list of items that I had overlooked in my registry and did some more baby shopping after comparing my list with yours!

  20. Kathryn @ Flopoodle on September 20, 2011 at 6:46 pm

    So sweet! Parents are truly saints, and you’ll be a fantastic parent!

    Don’t feel bad about Bell, my cats both prefer my bf over me even though I’m the one that feeds them and cleans their litter box. So ungrateful 😉

  21. Michelle @ Turning Over a New Leaf on September 20, 2011 at 7:00 pm

    Omg. Is it weird that I’m not pregnant, nor trying, and I’m totally excited about the concept of cloth diapering in the future?

  22. Dana Marie on September 20, 2011 at 7:07 pm

    I’m never having a baby because I’m vain and selfish! rock on though

  23. Casey @ Pocket Full of Sunshine on September 20, 2011 at 7:24 pm

    Ooh, that last one is definitely awesome. 🙂 I am always asking my BF for massages but I run out of reasons other than “I want one.” Haha. Being pregnant should qualify you for nine months of daily massages!

  24. Abby @ Abz 'n' Oats on September 20, 2011 at 7:24 pm

    What a lovely post. I always used to say that I never wanted kids because I didn’t want to lose the way that I looked or ability to travel, buy myself nice things, etc. but hearing people be so excited about having a baby changes my mind every day! 🙂

    The Bella story totally reminds me of my boyfriend. He insists that when we get a dog it will like him more than me. lol. I hope that’s not the case!

  25. Tameeka McIntosh on September 20, 2011 at 7:38 pm

    I can totally relate to the puppy bit… Our Maltease Shi Xu loves me all day but as soon as my husband gets home I dont get a look in. hehe! 🙂

  26. RachelG on September 20, 2011 at 7:56 pm

    I’m not sure if you do this intentionally, but I think it’s nice that you call the Pilot “Tom” on the Fam page. It makes it even sweeter. 🙂

  27. Brittany @ Itty Bits of Balance on September 20, 2011 at 8:36 pm

    This is such a sweet post, Gina 🙂 And I LOVE the part about Bella choosing the Pilot over you! I just got a little chihuahua the other day and he already took a liking to Will over me 🙁 Although I haven’t tried chicken….

  28. Sarah on September 20, 2011 at 9:34 pm

    What a cute post! You guys are going to be great parents, and have a very well dressed baby 🙂

  29. chelsea on September 20, 2011 at 9:39 pm

    I think a 2 hour class with the hubby sounds like so much fun! PLUS a massage and meditation?! If I were pregnant I’d be all in haha.

  30. Jen on September 21, 2011 at 1:04 am

    My husband is a “guy’s guy”, but he goes nutso buying clothes (or anything really) for our 10 month old daughter. It’s the cutest! We mosied into Gymboree tonight after running our main mall errands, and we walked away with 2 bags full of clothing. We live in Florida, so the fact that all of the clearance items are shorts, tanks and skirts isn’t a big problem for us! Not sure if you saw the bumble bee hoodie they’ve got right now, but that also made its way into the pile. Kiss your shopping budget goodbye, but it’s so much more fun to get compliments on your baby anyways 🙂

  31. Lisa on September 21, 2011 at 10:23 am

    Gina, definitely look into a website called upromise….wish I had looked into it more seriously before I had teenagers!!!

  32. A-McC on September 21, 2011 at 12:58 pm

    Holy Pickles, you look like your mom!! Just wanted to say I’m always super excited to see new posts about the baby’s progress. I’m thrilled that you are choosing cloth diapers, good job! Also, I should probably stop reading your baby posts because my ovaries are screaming at me to plant a baby of my own 😉

    • Fitnessista on September 21, 2011 at 9:18 pm

      holy pickles! i love that! 🙂

  33. Leanne (Bride to Mrs.) on September 21, 2011 at 3:11 pm

    I love this post 🙂 all of it but especially when you pointed out the *abs* thang… it’s so true that we are our own worst critic. I find pictures of myself from when I was 19 and WISH I could look like that again (& I will 😀 ) but I remember at the time the picture was taken, I thought I was gross.

    Us girls are crazy sometimes. 😐

    • Fitnessista on September 21, 2011 at 9:17 pm

      you’re right, we are crazy.

  34. Stephanie Midkiff on September 22, 2011 at 3:21 pm

    Hey there! I love your blog and all of your recipes! Congrats on your upcoming little one!

    If any of these rings interest you, let me know and I will give you a discount on one!
    http://shop.stelladot.com/style/b2c_en_us/shop/rings/eternity-band.html
    http://shop.stelladot.com/style/b2c_en_us/shop/rings.html

    • Fitnessista on September 22, 2011 at 3:45 pm

      thanks girl!
      i love the eternity bands- they’re exactly what i was looking for! thank you! now, deciding between the silver and pink? 🙂

  35. amyjogo on September 24, 2011 at 12:34 am

    I am loving your family posts so much! True story: our Boston Terrier was an outside dog that we brought inside during bad weather. When my nephew was about 6 months old, we had several tornadoes touching down in neighboring counties. Mom brought Speck in out of the rain. She left the room to get candles and supplies ready and left the baby in the room where the tv was. Speck laid right under the swing guarding my nephew. A little later, they had to move into a closet for safety. Mom said she sat on the floor with the baby in her lap and Speck laid with his chin propped on her leg and watched over them until they could leave the closet. Speck passed away last September. Dad buried him in the backyard facing the house with his chin propped on his front paws – watching over the house.

    Animals have a special attachment to kids. I don’t think Bella will have any problem adapting when the baby comes. 🙂

  36. Laid Blog on October 20, 2016 at 2:04 pm

    Laid Back Kids Snuggle Chauncy Chompers Stuffed Animal

    […] at friends and snuggle all the livelong day, but as soon as Tom gets home from w […]

Leave a Comment





This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.