It's a Boy!

NOTICE: I'm currently working on a blog re-design so things are moving around a little bit in the next day or two! I changed my blog name and all links from Be Like The Fox to Chaos Parade. Doing a little bit of rebranding ;)
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Somehow I ended up taking an unexpected hiatus from blogging, and truthfully, it's been awesome. It was nice to spend some time away from the computer (aside from this awful philosophy class...) and more time just reading and learning and growing bigger every day. I'm over five months along now! We found out the gender of our little one two days before Christmas, so we surprised both of our families on Christmas day!

I've known before I became pregnant that I would go the natural route, but reading a lot about it has cemented that decision and I couldn't be more excited! Mentally preparing for this change in our lives has become something I make time for every day. I ride in silence in the car a lot. :) After we found out we were having a boy, the next day I wanted to text Corey and be like, "WE'RE HAVING A BABY!" Of course everyone already knows this, but finding out the gender has made it all so real!

I'd like to say I'm poking out a little bit for cheesy pictures' sake, but I've already gained twenty pounds. My midwife said that after the holidays I should try to "cut back" and basically told me I need to go on a diet! I'm not really stressing out about weight gain, but I have been zero percent active since becoming pregnant and it bothers me a lot. That's what new year resolutions are for, riiight?! Anyway, I just wanted to update all of the people who don't yet follow me on Instagram with the news! 

Our Levi Gamble is due on May 9th, 2014 and we are so excited. :)

We've got a lot, don't ever forget that.

Have people been spamming your Facebook all month with different things they are thankful for every day? It has actually confirmed my decision to never (try) to participate in an Instagram photo challenge where you have to post something different every day. It's annoying. So I've piled all of this into one sappy post today, because I'm not cold hearted and there's a lot I'm happy to be alive for.

First, I'd like to start with my family. I've been one hell of a daughter over the past 23 years, and my parents have always stood by me and supported me. They may have pushed me to get jobs that I don't like and always end up quitting, but they have always wanted me to just be happy with what I'm doing. My mom drove me to thrift stores when I was thirteen and wore all black and sported liberty spikes. Props if you even know what those are! She must have been mortified, but it didn't show. I've always felt totally comfortable just being whoever I felt like being, and I'm so damn thankful for that.

I can't put into words how much my husband means to me. He's seen me at my rock bottom, and tried everything he could to bring me back up, even when I cried over other boyfriends and couldn't see that he loved me. Sometimes you forget to always be there for someone when that person is always there. Marriage is a constant work in progress. It storms but the calm afterward is when you really learn about each other and what it means to commit to "for better or worse".

I'm thankful that I'm able to grow this baby like I am. I've never been the maternal or nurturing type, and I sure as hell feel uncomfortable around kids still. A couple of weeks ago, my sister looked at me and said, "Don't worry. It's always different with your own." I will never forget that, because it is. I already feel it. When I'm falling asleep at night, I look forward to the crazy awesome years to come. I'm not scared about the kind of parents we will be or if our kid will misbehave or make mistakes like we both did. I just hope they grow to realize how beautiful life can be if you just keep going.

I don't regret anything I've done in my life. I've spent many nights insanely depressed and unsure of myself and if this world is even worth living in. I've done bad things like cheat and steal and get too close to certain drugs. I spent too many years battling with my image of myself. But I've learned from these things, and I've spent so much time through all of it just getting closer to myself. I know exactly who I am, down to the core. I'm not scared of life anymore. I'm more ambitious and excited than I've ever been.

Life is a crazy, beautiful thing and I'm thankful that I'm still here today to realize that.

Treasures #3

I started this series a few months ago, but haven't kept up with it as much since we've moved around and now most of my things are in a storage shed. Last weekend, though, my mom and I went to about twenty yard sales and I scored some awesome things! Aside from a bunch of baby stuff (hello $75 savings on a baby monitor) here are some of the things I found:

vintage suitcase // $5

1986 Jenga // $1

huge mason jar // $5

dreamcatcher // $2

The huge mason jar was found at the flea market by my husband (good eye, eh?) and with a good wash and coat of paint for the lid, it's our new change jar. We're putting five dollars each week in there, then when it's full we are going to take a ballllin' vacation! With the size of that thing, I'm thinking Sweden. ;)

I'm thinking about putting the dreamcatcher in the baby's room, but I haven't really decided on decor yet so who knows. And going to paint all those Jenga pieces pretty colors for future family nights in our house!

What have you thrifted lately? I'd love to see or hear about it! 

Review: Aquafarm

Almost two weeks ago, I received a package in the mail from Uncommon Goods. When asked what I'd be interested in reviewing, I couldn't decide if I should choose the pick punch, here, or the Aquafarm! I ended up getting the Aquafarm, and I'm really happy I did.

The packaging of the Aquafarm was so cute and well designed. It came with everything I needed to get started, including organic wheatgrass & basil! All I had to get was our little beta fish. The farm and fish both benefit from their environment, as the water is filtered through and provides nutrients. A little noisy, but such a cool little system. The wheatgrass grew like crazy, and now I have a ton for smoothies!

Uncommon Goods is a NY based company that has high-quality and even handcrafted items at reasonable prices. Their website has a ton of customizable gifts that you can buy for the special people in your life, and also gifts on the smaller side, like this one, that are great presents to bring to work holiday parties!

Baby Shower on a Budget

When I found out one of my best friends was pregnant with her second child, I knew I had to throw her a baby shower! This was months ago, before I even knew that I was pregnant, so I've really loved getting to visualize the shower and making it come to life. Since I was throwing this shower on a budget, I DIYed a lot of the stuff, which is all explained below!

Of course, I got a lot of inspiration from Pinterest. Once I made my food list, I decided on decorations and invitations. I used free printables from this website, which I printed on silver card stock paper left over from doing my wedding invitations and cut them to fit the envelope. I covered the kitchen table with a white tablecloth, then used about 25 paper doilies and randomly placed them around the table. Then, I used pink and grey felt (about 3 squares of each) and cut into triangles then sewed together for the bunting.

The part I was most excited about was the pink lemonade served in lace decorated mason jars! I save leftover jars (it's actually sort of a problem) so I just tied some scrap lace onto the jars with embroidery thread. The pink lemonade was made from the frozen tubes! Super simple.

For the fruit kebabs, we diced up different fruits and put them on to mini bamboo sticks ($3). My mom made a big batch of whipped icing, and the cupcakes were a strawberry cake mix.

I'll be posting a recipe for the pink popcorn next week! It's super simple to make. For serving, I cut standard scrapbook paper into quarters (6"x6"), rolled into cones, and taped with wash tape that I already had. Craft stores put scrapbook paper on sale a lot (Michael's sale is usually 4 for $1) so this is another really simple and cheap project! For the toothpick flags, I bought two different pieces of scrapbook paper in the same color palette, and cut the edges to a fringe about 1.5 inches long. After cutting the fringe off, you'll have a bunch of little strips. Fold those in half and cut the edges!

Lastly, we made pretzel rods as favors! This task wasn't as cheap or easy, but it was definitely one of my favorite things! The mold is from Michael's for $2.99, and for 40 pretzels, we used about 4 bags total of the melting candy. Everyone loved the pretzel favors, and I was so pleased that everyone noticed my little touches throughout the party! Another one of my friends just found out she's having a girl, so I'm glad we have some decorations left over! 

Outfit: Roadside Roses

Growing up on a small private road, I did a lot of exploring as a kid. One of my favorite things to do was wander around the woods and ride my bike all around the dirt roads behind my house. This always led me to the end of the road, where there were these big rose bushes. I've always admired that area and the country feel of it. Now, it's a big garden with crops and different flowers. There were a couple of roses, too!

When I first got this dress, the straps were totally falling off me! Now that my boobs have grown almost a full size (so weird!) and I've gained almost 10 pounds, it fits a lot better. So maybe I won't take it in until all this growing is over with! The tights are one of my new favorite things in my closet, since I've been dying for a pair of over-the-knee socks but have had totally bad luck on that.

outfit details
dress: Urban Outfitters
tights: Forever 21
socks: Target
boots: Forever 21

Imaginary Outfit: Fancy Fall

For this imaginary outfit, I pictured having to get all fancified for a party or gathering. I particularly thought about a holiday work party, but that's just because if I wore this anywhere else, I'd be afraid of messing it up! Usually I shy away from tights for nights out, but that's because they used to involve alcohol and the possibility of cigarette burns. No worries about that now! ;)

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 

I'm really into the idea of wearing some glittery gold tights with a nice pair of black heels. I actually am just into the idea of dressing up all fancy for any reason! I'm gonna find a good reason soon enough to get people together so that we can all dress up and feel special.

A Holiday Gift Guide (all under $20!)

ModCloth is having a 20% off sale on all of their holiday gift items until tomorrow, so I thought I'd share a few of my favorites! There are so many cute items to buy as presents or stocking stuffers, and all five of these are under $20!

clockwise from left: 1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5

I think my favorite of them all would be the critter notebooks! I'm a sucker for notebooks, and these are totally adorable. Also, that tea infuser...

Outfit: Tomato Tree

Corey and I were driving around, scouting places to take pictures and found this gorgeous tree at the end of a dirt road. It seriously looked like tiny tomatoes were growing on the tree! I love it, haha. I keep thinking of taking pictures of my "bump", but it just seems weird because it's not an actual pregnant belly, it's just the result of eating lots of food for the past few months!

This is just a casual outfit I throw on when I'm going to run errands or hang out with friends. I got these jeans from Target for like $20 and they're seriously perfect. I had to size up a few weeks ago, and these are so comfortable and stretchy! The only downside is that they don't have front pockets, but I can live with that.

outfit details
top: Forever 21
button up: thrifted
jeans: Target
boots: Urban Outfitters

Life Lately

Time has really been flying by! I'm still pinching myself that it's already November and I still have so many things I'd like to accomplish before I turn 24! I'm trying not to stress about that too much, though. The past two weeks, I've been working on a bunch of little things for a baby shower I'm throwing for a friend on Sunday! I'm super excited because I love throwing parties, so watch out for post overload!

I like to make lists when I'm off work so that I stay busy throughout the day, otherwise I'd totally lay in bed and chill until dinner time. Lately I started crossing off my lists with rainbow colors, and weirdly, it encourages me to get more done! I'm kinda obsessed with making lists.

For Halloween, all the stylists dressed up and we had a potluck. I seriously love holiday work parties! Haha. We just figured out the date for the Christmas party and I'm already looking at dresses online. (btw ModCloth has all party dresses 20% off til tomorrow!) I can't wait to dress up all fancy and eat good food. 

I have some weekly DIY tutorials planned for December, that include handmade gifts and wrapping paper! I'm really trying to plan more with my blogging so that I post regularly, so I got some new post-its to encourage me. And Doritos 'cause I eat them while I sit on the computer. :)

What have you been up to lately? Any certain kind of post you like to see on this blog? I'm always appreciative of suggestions!

October in Instagram

It's really crazy how fast the months just fly by! Soon enough we'll all be bundling up for winter, and after that I'm going to have a little one to take care of all the time. The amount of responsibility on my and Corey's shoulders is about to increase like whoa, but I'm excited! Every thing we do, like go to the fair or apple orchard or just out to dinner, I'm like, "Let's savor it now, because this time next year we won't be alone anymore!" That being said, I've really been valuing our down time lately.

feet n apples // pretty sunset // selfie

lunch // total weirdness // blood orange drank

fair fun // the best clouds // ultrasound

If you don't already, follow me on Instagram to see more! 

Outfit: Apple Pickin'

Last week, I posted some pictures of our time spent at the apple orchard, but I wanted to save the outfit pictures for a different post! I got this dress from Target for like $8 and I love it! Only problem is that I'm not fitting in to a lot of my clothes now and have to opt for more flowy things. I improvised this day for the sake of looking cute and wore my dress unzipped. ;)

outfit details

dress: Target

cardigan: Target

shoes: Urban Outfitters (similar)

I just realized that I'm wearing all primary colors in one outfit- which is probably why I love this outfit so much! I think aside from black, the primary colors are my favorite.

Pregnancy: First Trimester Essentials

Since my first trimester is almost over (I think that calls for a happy dance...) I thought I'd put together a little list of some things that have kept me going for the past 7 weeks! All of these items can be found at Target except for the Breaking Bad mug, which is from Etsy. 

Every one of these items revolves around one thing, and that is relaxing. The biggest problem for me hasn't been the nausea or fatigue, but the change in my emotions. I'm a pretty independent person, but lately I've felt so needy. I like Corey to be with me all the time, which has made things a little rocky for me and my tear ducts!

 Baths. I've been all about some baths. When things start feeling a little stressful, I start filling up the bathtub. This Burt's Bees body wash smells amazing, and since I'm not big on bubbles, it's my favorite thing to use. Grabbing a good book and soaking in hot water is perfect for de-stressing.

Candles. Many a candle have been burned lately. I love amber and woodsy scents, and not too big on sweet smells lately. This black orchid & amber candle smells amazing and is so relaxing!

Comfy pajamas. When I'm at home, I'm in my pajamas. Investing in a comfortable pair of pajamas is necessary to still feeling cute when you're lazing around and adjusting to your changing body.

Warm drinks. Since I've had to limit my caffeine intake, I've started drinking other things like apple cider and hot chocolate. This dark chocolate cocoa mix from Target is so good! & it's always nice to drink out of an awesome mug like this one found on Etsy.

By the way, there's only one day left to enter my giveaway for a free pair of handmade crochet slippers! ENTER HERE!

Skytop Apple Orchard

Last weekend, Corey and I took a day trip up to North Carolina to visit an apple orchard. I've been wanting to go to an apple orchard for years, so we finally got to go! Is it just me or does everyone grab their camera at the first sight of the mountains? It never does the view justice! (And I always end up deleting most of the pictures.) We both truly love being in the mountains, and hope to live there someday. It's so peaceful and relaxing, and it always brings us closer together.

I read on the website, which I stalked religiously for a week, that weekends were really busy. Boy, they were right! The second we parked, it felt like we were at a zoo. Luckily, once we got our basket and started off on the path, it cleared out. There were seriously apples all over the place! It was amazing.

Dreams do come true.

After filling our basket with different kinds of apples and climbing treacherous hills, we took a path to the back of the orchard. The road was flat which was a relief, since my pregnant body is having a rather alarming lack of energy lately! I was so glad I brought a cardigan since it was a little chilly, and because I actually had my dress unzipped the whole time since I'm busting out of all my old clothes.

The back of the orchard was just as beautiful, with a big pond backed by big trees with changing colors. The place was awesome, and I was seriously so happy to be there! Once we circled back to the front, there was a petting zoo with goats and sheep you could feed.

After we were done, we went to the market to get some apple butter, hot cider (for me) and a cider slushy (for him), and a dozen of their famous apple cider donuts! So, so good. On the way home, I got a little lost admiring the view and missed our turn. That led us to some awesome country back roads and a cute little antique shop, where I scored some Pyrex and a set of vintage canisters. 

It was a wonderful weekend! Have you ever been to an apple orchard? I'd love to hear about it!