It's not you, it's me...really.

Ok, so I know I could start this off by saying, "I'm sorry for not posting..." 

But I'm not. 

Instead I'm going to announce that I'm putting this blog and my Twitter account on hold.

Don't freak. 

Take a breather...

I'm not leaving the online world of sharing completely. 

Just these two avenues.

I've decided that with 6 more weeks until the arrival of Baby Bliss, I'll more than likely be more busy than I could possibly be prepared for. So to be smart and not constantly knock myself in the head for not posting or tweeting (like I've been doing recently), I should just stick to maintaining my YouTube beauty channel.

Between that and venturing into New Mommy Land, I'm sure that'll keep me plenty busy.

Plus, it'll give me more opportunity to focus on filming more videos than I have been (third pregnancy fatigue is a social life/filming killer!!!) and thus more time to come up with a variety of new content.

"But WHY?!?!?!?"

Well, first of all, to manage a YouTube channel, blog AND Twitter account, is pretty demanding... I mean, it's not like I have a zillion followers or anything but I feel the pressure all the same. So I thought I'd just focus on the two things that I know I'll enjoy doing and can definitely make time for: YouTube and Bliss.

Hope you aren't bawling your eyes out too much... You'll survive. Just hop on over to my YouTube channel... problem solved, easy breeezy baby!

So until I get about - oh - 100,000 subbies or so, I think this blog will remain stagnant.

Thanks so much for those of you who have faithfully read my postings and followed me on Twitter. It really means the world to me (cheese ball!)

See on YouTube!

Love,

Amy

Many thanks and love...

Thanks to a recent Beauty Swap I did with the fabulous Emily of lisettebeaute, I've been getting daily subbies. To add to that, Emily went a step further and mentioned me in a recent TAG video she made about being a YouTube Beauty Blogger; she dubbed me as a person who deserves more subbies.

So nice!

I can see how "cliques" are formed in the beauty community. It's not that you mean to but that once you connect with people it's amazing how much your channel seems to take off!

I have been getting so much great feedback and comments from people who have been subscribing to my YouTube channel. It's so exhilarating!

And to top that off, I have even gotten some personal messages from people wanting to show support for my channel and what it stands for.

I knew I was on to something!!! LOL

I'm just glad that this seems to be something that is showing interest in an otherwise overwhelming community of thousands (it seems) of beauty YouTubers.

So that's my little ray of sunshine I'm sharing. Just had to gush about how awesome this YouTube thing has been going for me.

On to other randomness...

I have already scheduled my 4D ultrasound for April 30th. I am sooo excited and anxious! I cannot wait to get a true glimpse of Bliss!

At first when I told Andy that I wanted to get this done and how much it cost ($129 for a decent package - GULP - ) he was like, "Seriously? You can't just wait till you deliver and see her in person?"

Sheesh. Talk about a party pooper.

But I know that this is worth the expense. I've not only heard of good things from the business we are going to get this done at but I also am a firm believer that this is going to be soooo worth it!

If you think about it this is the only time we'll be able to capture her in the safest place she'll ever be: the womb. 

MY womb. 

And if I have the ability to capture and document a miraculous thing such as another human being growing inside of me, you better believe it's worth the money!

Random thought: WOMB is a funny looking and funny sounding word. Think about it.

WOMB.

Ok, moving on...

Not only is it good memories for Bliss to have when she gets older but great for me in this coming 3rd trimester. I have heard countless women proclaim that the 3rd trimester is not only rough on your body but rough on your emotions. 

The anxiety of knowing you are so close to delivering.

The stress of the unknown pain of delivery.

The restlessness of carrying around a body that is super sized and there's nothing you can do about it but get super super sized!

I believe that having something as awesome as a 4D ultrasound will - at the very least - soothe the restlessness of being in an extra large body and wishing it all to be over with. I think if I start to feel like I'm over the whole being pregnant part, I can pop that DVD in the TV, watch Blissy Boo move around (or whatever she'll be doing when we see her) and I think that'll just melt away any and all negative thoughts and emotions.

Totally worth $129, yes?

I'm glad we both agree on this. 

Andy will come around once he sees those chubby baby cheeks.

Until then...

It's all about Bliss

Today I just finished creating a baby registry.

I can't believe how much fun it is.

And how expensive!

My plan is to register as little as possible but just enough to give ideas for those who might be stuck on what to buy me or just LOVE using registries.

But I highly doubt anyone ever has trouble choosing a baby gift. Usually it's blankets and clothes to their liking, right?

At least, that's how I shop for baby showers.

And now that I am on the other side of the story for this, I'm realizing how much I really hope people aren't like me and just buy whatever suits their fancy.

But I won't hold my breath on that one.

So I decided I am going to wait until after my baby shower (May 19th) to see what I get and then go on my own shopping spree to buy whatever is needed.

But that's more than a month away. Might as well be a year from now for someone like me who loves to plan WAY ahead of time.

 Andy and I for sure decided we will have to get the car seat, stroller, and play yard BRAND NEW. Basically, the most expensive items you can buy, is what we decided to buy new. Ugh.

I mean, I am all for saving a few bucks here and there but not on something that's going to hold my very real very human baby.

Plus, I've heard that baby items get recalled all the time. So why take a chance that what I'm buying from Mrs. Jones for half off the list price is not because her little Joey has outgrown it but because she can't stand the thought of trashing a semi-new item that has been recalled?

Yeah, thanks, Mrs. Jones.

So I'm budgeting about $400 for those 3 items. And, thankfully, places like Babies R Us have a layaway so I plan on zipping right over there the day after my shower and putting those things on layaway (should I not receive those as gifts).

I bet you're laughing really hard right now, huh?

A girl can dream, you know.

And FYI I am one of those girls who will not be buying a stroller/car seat/play yard with pink on it. It's going to be completely neutral so that Andy will have no qualms about using it. Cuz everyone knows that I expect and will demand Andy to be just as involved in taking care of Bliss as I will (with the exception of when he's at work and I'm at home).

We've already gone over the whole "responsibilities" part of raising our child. And it's pretty simple. You work in an office, I work at home taking care of Bliss. The moment you walk in the door, taking care of Bliss becomes 50/50 between the two of us.

And he agreed. I mean, he really didn't have a choice.

I just don't understand the logic of how men can go work for 9-10 hours a day 5 days a week and come home thinking their day of work is over just because they actually spent half a day somewhere outside of the home. Like that makes it "real" work or something. Meanwhile, the woman is basically working 24 hours a day 7 days a week but it isn't really "working" because she is at home. Is that fair? 

Umm, no.

Just because you have the title "Stay at home" doesn't mean you aren't working hard.

So, I am fortunate enough to be married to a man who sees the sense in this and agrees that once he walks in the door, it's all about him and I tag teaming to take care of Bliss.

Gosh, for me meaning only to talk about my baby registry, this has really gotten off track.

Focus...

ABOVE: So this is basically what I'm going to be getting. Neutral enough for a man, yes?

And plus, Andy loves to run, and has said that he plans on taking Bliss out on his runs. Which I think is super sweet considering that most guys would probably use running as a way to get away from the baby and not use it to include the baby.

Yeah, I'm blessed.

Also, another thing we are getting is a play yard in lieu of a crib. What???

It's because we are basically living in a studio right now so Bliss will not have her own room for the time being. (Yeah, not ideal for us)

So instead of using up so much room for a crib we decided that a play yard would suffice.

And to be quite honest, I think it's not only going to be a great space saver but also ingenious on our part.

If you haven't seen them recently, play yards are pretty impressive. They are building them all multifunctional (what isn't). They come with a bassinet, changing table and storage for diapers and wipes. 

The bassinet is obviously removable and to make the bottom a "crib" we are going to buy a foam/memory mattress to make the bottom a little more comfortable for Bliss to sleep in on a regular basis.

And the best part of all is it could also be taken with us if we travel (in a car) so hopefully Bliss will be able to sleep easier should we be out still and she gets tired. I have heard stories of kids needing to be in their usual or comfort zone in order to sleep normal.

A win win situation, yes?

ABOVE: Something similar to this is what we are going for. It'll match our bedroom decor perfectly.

And that is all folks!!! The highlight of my week thus far and you are getting first dibs in on it!

You are blessed, if I don't say so myself.

Until next time...

Blogging and Beauty Swapping

Easter was fun and memorable. Really good times.

And of course, I didn't take one picture.

Am I losing it or what?

I take my camera and I have some pretty cool camera apps on my phone, but yet I keep failing time and again to record or capture photos.

(sigh)

I totally blame pregnancy. And the fatigue and forgetfulness that comes with it.

 

 

Anywho... So recently I did this really cool thing called a Beauty Swap with another fellow YouTube beauty guru named Emily.

 

I believe I mentioned this in my last post.

 

But I finally got my package from her last week on Wednesday and filmed then posted the video on Saturday.

 

Let me tell you this was such a fun experience. Shopping for someone knowing that they are doing the very same thing for you is kind of more fun than say... Christmas.

Yup, I dare say that something is more fun than Christmas itself.

Maybe it's because with this beauty swap, we had a set budget (don't go over or under) and we knew that we were getting beauty products in general just not which ones.

What's not fun about that?

With Christmas, it's fun to shop for people but then there's always that bugging feeling that you might be spending too much on someone or too little and you could literally get them ANYTHING and vice versa.

And let's face it, people rarely have the same taste in gifts as you do. So there's always a 50/50 chance you will be disappointed.

With a beauty swap, you know that what you are spending on this person is being spent on you. 

So you are literally buying yourself stuff. 

And the fact that you know it's beauty related makes it even easier to be satisfied with what you receive.

What's not to love?

As you can see, Emily packaged the makeup so beautifully. It was so much fun just unwrapping the stuff!

For those of you busy bodies... our budget was $40 and we decided to steer clear of face products that needed to be color matched to our skin (foundations, finishing powders, concealers, etc... duh).

We didn't give each other a list of items we wanted (some other people on YT have done that) because - really -  what would be the point of telling each other what we wanted.

I might as well go out and get it myself and say she bought it for me.

We did give each other tips on colors that we are currently into and colors that we didn't think go very well with our skin. That totally helped out.

Other than that, it was a free for all. And I know I was not disappointed and she didn't seem like she was either.

And to top it all off, I can say that I have made a new friend in the YouTube beauty community (that lives a few states away and whom I've never met in person).

Pretty cool.

 

 

 

 

Post Birthday Update

Today I am back at work. 

But yesterday and Tuesday, I was off and for good reason.

It was not only my 29th birthday but also Andy's 29th birthday AND our 8 year wedding anniversary.

Yeah, three events within 2 days time.

If you read my past post you'll know how all that works out to be together they way they are.

Anywho, to my dismay, Andy was not able to get off either of those days because of the time he took off for us to go to Florida. (Working on your birthday???? I know, absolutely ludicrous!)

I still took my days off.

Hey, they were paid days off that I'd have to use between now and mid June (when I start my permanent maternity leave) and I don't foresee any other events happening within that time to save these hours for.

So basically I had 2 days off to celebrate our birthdays and anniversary. And I basically either spent it alone or with people other than Andy! 

ha

Pretty much the story of my life.

I still went and got my prenatal massage that was scheduled and since Andy couldn't make it and it was too late to re-schedule, I decided to bring my mom along to take Andy's place.

'How mean!!!' you say.

Umm, not really.

Andy knew the massages were scheduled and non-refundable.

Not my fault.

Moving on...

So then after the massags we decided to keep the good detox going and went to this place in San Juan Capistrano called The Hot Lunch Lady.

'The hot lunch lady? Geez, she better be a stunna to choose a name as bold as that!'

But it's actually The HOT LUNCH lady. Meaning she serves hot lunches, not that she considers herself to be above the typical school cafeteria lunch lady most adolescent boys drool over.

Staying on track: The food was reallly good! Very light and fresh but filling. Yum!

ABOVE: Apple Cranberry Salad with half a California wrap

 

And obviously we didn't go with any hot items, it just wasn't the time for that. 

For the rest of Andy's birthday/Our wedding anniversary I spent relaxing at home. I thought we were going to head over to Downtown Disney to use up a Groupon voucher to Johnny Rockets and walk around but Andy was really stressed and tired from work so we just stayed home.

Poor me Andy.

So the following day (MY birthday - woop woop!) I once again had the day to myself.

This time my friend since elementary school texted me and asked if we could meet up for lunch to celebrate my birthday. 

Of course I obliged my busy birthday day to fit her in (pff, yeah right) and we met up at P.F.Chang's in the Irvine Spectrum.

ABOVE: My preggo self with my friend, Mistica, whom I've known since 3rd grade(!) and her adorable daughter, Priscilla.

It was really nice catching up with her.

After departing ways with her I then proceeded to debate whether I should head to Sephora and redeem a free birthday gift that looks promising but decided that I wasn't in the mood to peruse for high end makeup. (what??? I know) 

I just wasn't in the mood to stare at all the high end prices that come with that kind of makeup.

So back home I went to wait for Andy.

Thankfully, he came home in a lighter mood and wanted to go eat at - where else folks? - The Boiling Crab!!!

So off we went and, never one to disappoint, the Boiling Crab was delish!

And that, my little friends, is the summary of my uber exciting 2 days off.

Not exactly what I had in mind, as I LOVE birthdays, but it'll have to do.

And we did go to Florida less than a month ago, so I really cannot complain.

Life could be worse.

They could've closed down the Boiling Crab!!! (horror movie scream)

Until next time...

Plans for my birthday...

Technically, it's both Andy and my birthday this week as well as our wedding anniversary

BUT

Andy has to work...

I already have the days off from work, so I'm going to stick with my plan and make the best of it.

I have a prenatal massage scheduled, so I'm definitely keeping that appointment!

Then I figure I'll probably head on over to Ulta and make use of the weekly coupon and discounts and treat myself to some makeup.

Then head home and film some YouTube videos. That's always fun. Seriously.

And hopefully, when Andy gets off work, we shall head over to the Boiling Crab (yup, THAT place again)!

That should be it for tomorrow and then hopefully Andy will be able to take off work for my birthday the following day or else I have to go at it again on my own. (sigh)

Totally not how I planned to spend this week.But I wont let that ruin my days off!!! No sir-ree!


Oh and another thing to look forward to this week...


A package full of goodies from a fellow YouTuber lisettesbeaute.


No, I didn't just magically score some free loot from a random person, but I was actually contacted by Emily (lisettesbeaute), asking if I'd be interested in doing a "beauty swap".


A beauty, what?


A beauty swap!!! Basically, we each have a  dollar amount to spend and buy each other beauty products that we like. Then we mail them to each other and once we receive the package we then film a video on it.


Pretty cool, huh?


In general, I loooove getting packages in the mail, it always feels like Christmas to me (for reals) so to get something in the mail that I know will be makeup but not exactly what kind of makeup, gets me excited!!!


Especially knowing that someone picked it out with me in mind.


And of course it's just as fun buying makeup for someone too!

Well, unless she doesn't end up liking some of the things I bought...


Then we might have an issue.


Hmmm. (thinking and nervously biting nails)


Well, I guess only time will tell!!!


Until next time...

It's always planning season around here...

I have been in a frenzie this past month. A planning frenzie.

And I love it.

First, I planned for the Mini Me (gender revealing) party - CHECK

Then, I planned for our vacation to Florida - CHECK

This week I've been planning for our upcoming birthdays and wedding anniversary next week- HALF CHECK

Next week, Andy and I are both turning 29. His birthday is on April 3rd and my birthday is the following day on the 4th.

"Of the same year?", you ask... Yup! He is only 1 day older than me! 
What are the odds, right?

And to add to it, we got married on his birthday in 2004. 

Totally his idea, as I'm sure you can probably guess, only a guy would think of combining a butt load of special days.

"Then why did you let him?"

Well, I'll say it was love. When he proposed the idea of getting married on his birthday and therefore we'd be celebrating our honeymoon on my birthday, I couldn't burst his bubble and tell him that that was a horrible idea for future years to come...

...because only guys think of the now and girls think of the now, tomorrow and FOREVER aspect of things.

(sigh)

Anywho, it happened, and now next week we are celebrating our 29th birthdays and our 8 year wedding anniversary.

So, to celebrate, we are getting a couples massage (We are both getting a prenatal massage but SHH don't tell Andy that! LOL Totally kidding...or am I...)

Afterwards we are going to see about Andy getting a tattoo.

(sorry mom! but it's our bodies and we are adults now)

I would get one too, but I have to think of little Blissy Boo.

 After that, I guess it's just a free for all kind of day. Hence my HALF CHECK on this planning. So unlike me, I know.

 Also on my list of planning to do's:

~ My family's annual camping trip (this year it's Big Bear).

~ My younger sister, Angelina's, baby shower in June. (Mine is in May).

~ My nesting period (aka cleaning and organizing our place) before the delivery of Baby Bliss.

How I thrive for times like these...

Do you get overwhelmed or excited when you have a calender full of events to attend/plan?

Until next time...

 

Flo-Rida Baby!!!

I just came back from a quite relaxing vacation.

I bet you're jeal.

And you should be. But only to a certain extent.

It's the last one we are taking before our little Baby Bliss arrives.

Oh yeah, I probably forgot to mention that we found out a few weeks ago that we are having a girl!

I put an exclamation after that because it definitely holds all the emotions that come with using an exclamation in a sentence.

Joy. Excitement. Disbelief.

Andy and I were both pretty sure we were going to have a boy so once the doctor announced it was a girl, we both got those wide disbelieving eyes with mouths gaping wide open.

But after the initial shock and prodding of the doctor to go over the ultrasound one more time for an extra confirmation, we woke up the next morning super ecstatic.

Don't get me wrong. I want a girl. I just honestly didn't think I would have a girl before having a boy. That's all. So don't judge.

Now we are all "Blissy Boo" this and "Blissy Boo" that. (It's our nickname for her while in the womb).

And, yes, we are naming her Bliss. I got it from a book I read. Surprised?

You shouldn't be if you read my blog.

Anywho, I'm sure I'll be blogging more and more about her and my pregnancy, so I think it's time we moved on to the main reason of this post.

Florida.

Andy and I set out to use the last 2 airline tickets I acquired while working for an interior design firm that had me traveling like a socialite. 

Naturally, I am adamant about using anything free to it's fullest potential. And since my older brother, Adam, lives in Clearwater, Florida, what better excuse to go on vacation when you have free airline tickets and free lodging???

And it just so happens that my doctor said this month would be a perfect time to take a "babymoon", since I will be feeling at my best during this month in particular. And he couldn't be more right. I feel as close to normal as I've ever been since being pregnant.

So off we went!!!

ABOVE: (Andy is so not going to be happy with this photo but I figure we are both laughing, and this IS my blog, hee hee)

ABOVE: A little airport food, which was pretty good!!!

ABOVE: Took a road trip to the Everglades and of course we had to stop for our car staple: Starbucks!!!

 

P.S. I have a video on my personal YouTube channel showing the airboat tour we took in the Everglades, if you are interested in seeing more than these pictures...

 ABOVE: A photo of my brother, Adam, and his girlfriend, Sylvia, walking to the Florida Strawberry Festival

ABOVE: Dinner at Smokey Bones Restaurant after the festival. Some delicious food!!!!!!!

 ABOVE: My brother being ridiculous saying he's giving Sylvia his "metro" pose.

ABOVE: We were at a Spring Training Game for the Philadelphia Phillies in Clearwater. It was hot but worth the time and memories. 

 ABOVE: We decided to cool off after the game at a less populated beach, Indian Rocks Beach.

 ABOVE: It looked like a storm was coming our way but it was actually just passing over the ocean only, which was a pretty cool view for us.

 ABOVE: Andy captured a glimpse of my 5 1/2 month baby bump.

ABOVE: Getting our lovin' on... : )

 ABOVE: Headed to eat dinner at Palm Pavilion on Clearwater Beach. Good fish & chips!

 ABOVE: On our last day in Florida we ate at Anna Stella's Cajun Bistro in St. Petersburg Pier. This was by far the best food I ate on the entire trip! Shrimp Po'Boy and some French Beignets...Yum!

ABOVE: The four of us relaxing

 

 ABOVE: Us being silly at the airport waiting for our luggage.

And so that is it folks!!! The weather was really nice, ( high 70's to low 80's), hardly any humidity, no bugs and no rain.

The next thing we'll probably be going on before Bliss arrives is a camping trip to Big Bear. I'll be about 7 months at that point, so we'll see how that goes!!!

Until next time...