gender reveal

I went back and forth on whether to do a Gender Reveal Party.  It's something I've seen on Pinterest and always been intrigued by.  The having to wait a couple weeks after our ultrasound to find out the gender didn't bother me.  I just didn't want people to think it was tacky and I was concerned about planning if all didn't go as planned... and I was only beginning to get my energy back so it had been daunting to think about until the second trimester.

I had my monthly appointment in mid-March and our ultrasound was scheduled for  a little over a week later on 3/29.  I talked to Jay and my sister about it - I basically had to decide that week if I wanted to do the Reveal Party.  Jay was all for it and Kara thought it was a great idea too.  My mom said we always love to throw get-togethers so it wouldn't be weird at all - just another excuse to party!

Basically what we would do is have the ultrasound tech determine the gender and write it down and put it in a sealed envelope. We wouldn't know.  Then we would give the envelope to a baker and have a cake that was gender neutral on the outside but pink or blue (cake or icing) on the inside.  We'd have our closest friends and family over for a get-together and all find out together. Fun right?

I decided no official invites until after the ultrasound in case Baby Lee didn't "cooperate."  I was looking at Etsy for some fun printables and my sister convinced me we could make our own.  I got some inspiration from Etsy but came up with my own theme - Mickey silhouette with a bowtie and Minnie silhouette with a bow... then I themed it out from there.  I love a theme.  From the return labels on the invitations, to the invites, to food tent labels, to cupcake toppers, etc.  I really liked how it turned out! I didn't print anything until after the ultrasound though.

My mom came with us to the ultrasound.  It seemed like the tech was uncomfortable writing down the gender.  Before she even checked it, she was telling us how it wasn't 100% certain and so on.  We gave her the option of telling my mom or writing it down.  She told my mom.  I do NOT know how my mom did such a good job keeping it a secret.  It did make me feel better about the cake though because my mom was able to order it and be pretty specific.  Good thing we were both busy with work and we only had 2 weeks to keep it under wraps!  Easter was the following weekend and the party after that.

Some people still didn't get that WE (Jay and I) didn't know the gender either until the party.  It was a blast!

Now for the fun party - the pictures:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wait a minute, what do you mean I have to share my room with a baby SISTER?!?!

PS - I've also labeled this under 35 by 35 for the "printables." They are just clip art, fun fonts, and Microsoft office but I figure they count and I came up with them myself :-)

35 by 35

So my sister and some of her friends are doing shortened bucket lists in honor of their upcoming 30th birthdays (usually in 1-2 years).  Their lists consist of 30 things they want to do by 30.  I missed that boat.  I'm going to be 33 this year.  Where did the time go!?!  When did I get so OLD adult!?!  Okay, enough wallowing in self-pity, time to come up with my own list: 35 by 35.

And yes, several of these are taken straight from my sister's list found here -  Hold On Hope: 30 by 30.  We can cheer each other on and support each other - we're sisters, alike and different in so many ways so it kinda makes sense.  And without further ado.....

1. Have another baby (or two). Baby Lee 2.0 arrived August 2013!
2. Eat more vegan - specifically "go vegan" for a straight month.
3. Complete a 5K. Completed a 14 month stretch of monthly 5Ks 11/2013-12/2014
4. Participate in The Color Run. Two!  Color Vibe 3/2014 and Neon Vibe 6/2014
5. Pay off CC Debt. (Well, kinda...) 11/2014
6. Pay off Car Loan. January 2015
7. Buy a DSLR. You know it - Black Friday Target Special! 11/2014
8. Learn Photoshop and/or Illustrator.
9. Create my own "printables."
10. Plant a vegetable garden and maintain it.
11. Crochet something fun or useful.
12. Learn to knit (again).
13. Knit something fun or useful.
14. Sell stuff on our probably defunct Etsy site.
15. Weigh no more than what I weighed when I graduated high school.
16. Read all of the Harry Potter books (again).
17. Harry Potter Movie Marathon (all 8 in 48 hours).
18. Have my scrap books up to date.
19. Take a cake decorating class.
20. Redo (at least) my kitchen counters, hardware, sink, and faucet.
21. Replace our carpet floors.
22. See the play Wicked.
23. Teach college.
24. Read the Entire Bible.
25. Save $1/day. Seems silly, but I have $10/wk automatically transferred to savings!
26. Memorize all the presidents AND vice presidents.
27. Tailgate at a football game.
28. Go back to Tallahassee as tourists.
29. Start and continue "mommy school" with Keegan.
30. Go apple picking and strawberry picking.
31. Get Disney annual passes again.
32. Get a Passport.
33. Take a photography class. February 2014
34. Have really nice family portraits done and feel good about it.
35. Sew kids clothes and/or other fun or functional items.

There are definitely a few more on my "life list" that I don't expect to be able to complete in the next two years (although you never know) but as I think of things I will probably add them here:

1. Go to Ireland.
2. Go to England.
3. Go to the American Girl Store in NYC with my sister and our hopefully future daughters (stolen from one of Kara's friend's lists but totally something Kara and I talk about!).
4. Go back to Vegas.
5. Renew our wedding vows.
6. Go to Discovery Cove (see #15 of 35 by 35 - wanting to complete that first!).
7. Move to Orlando.
8. Become a Stay at Home Mom.
9. Stay at every Disney World Resort.
10. Take Ski lessons (again).
11. Do all things touristy and educational in Washington DC on a family vacation when kids are older.

I just might get adventurous and continue to add to both lists as the time goes on.  I love a challenge.  It's what keeps me actually "doing."  I love lists too.  I might just have more mini lists as time goes on pertaining to new subjects and seasons.  Time will tell.