October 2016

Not so scary second trimester!

We just came home from the doctor this morning and I am happy to officially tell you that the second trimester is under wraps and everything is going smoothly and perfect with our little bundle of joy. I really do not want to turn this blog/diary into a pregnancy page, so I am trying to keep everything about babies to a minimum, but now the time has come to talk a bit about the bittersweet second trimester.As you know by now, I have been really fortunate in the ‘baking baby’ department and did not really feel sick for one day during the first trimester (see here), and the overall great feeling stayed throughout my second trimester as well. I was fortunate enough to not have any medical complications and apart from my prenatal pill I do not take any other medication. Now that we sorted all that out, there are a few things and feelings that deserve a bit of attention and I plan on discussing them here.

First of all, remember how I said that I felt tired during the first trimester? Well that feeling magically vanished from the 14th week and I was lucky enough to feel as energetic as I used to in my pre-pregnancy days. This does not mean that I slept less or exercised more, but I did put that energy to good use where the baby-stuff is concerned. These are the three months of big decisions in my opinion, as, to be frank about the whole situation, there is no guarantee that you’ll feel 100% during the last trimester and it is better to make all the baby decisions when you are feeling great both about yourself as well as about the pregnancy. This meant that we went in full-renovation mode despite only wanting to do the nursery at first. I must confess that we had not done a proper renovation of our house for the past 7 years and I do not regret for one moment the decision to feel horrible in our home for two weeks. While the work is not done yet, all the construction work is over and from this point on it is up to us to finish everything – we are currently waiting on some furniture pieces.

This was the period when we decided on the furniture for our little princess, the decor, most of the miscellaneous (baby bottles, stroller, baby bath, etc) and I am very glad we did that as I have to say this is no easy task. It took us about 3 weeks to decide on the stroller as there seem to be so many different options out there and I have a feeling that first-time parents tend to be over-thinkers – I know we are overthinking every single thing. At some point, being the rational adults that we are, we decided to divide the stuff between us but still making the ultimate decisions together. Therefore D got to choose the stroller and all the electrical hi-tech equipment (nanny cam, baby monitor, sleep monitor) while I was left with the rest of the stuff (baby furniture and decorations, baby bottles, steriliser etc). When each of us got down to two or three choices we involved the other, but not before and so far it went smoothly for us. All of these choices are incredibly hard to make (2 weeks on the crib alone) so I feel that the second trimester is the best time to make them mainly because that is when you start feeling human again and naturally we had to think about the winter ahead and what if we did not feel/ could not get out of the house to buy all these things because of the snow.

Those are about all the big decisions we made during this period, now a bit about the feelings and sensations that come in this second trimester… First of all, in my opinion, this is the time where a pregnant woman blooms, literally, she expands on all spatial axes. Or at least that was what happened to me. But make no mistake, this is a good thing! True, I had two days (not in a row) of panic attacks while looking at my closet as I felt like I looked like crap in everything I owned, but both of those moments where right at the beginning of the forth month and I blamed that on the last ‘first trimester hormones’. After my belly started to really look pregnant as opposed to full of beer and pizza, I immediately started feeling a lot (A LOT!) better about myself. The fact that I went shopping and discovered that I did not go up a size did help a lot (A LOT!) and made me less nervous about my monthly weight-in at the doctors’.

A bit about the weight gain… It does tend to be nerve-wrecking, but healthily gaining weight is the best thing for you and your baby right now. I would like to emphasise a bit on the HEALTHY part of the matter and I want to be honest with you. Thus far, I have gained 10 kg (got weighted this morning) and I’ve got another two months and three weeks to go. While I did not gain any weight during the last three weeks I am still in the healthy-range for my age and height. The fact that my weight gain stopped for a bit must be due to the fact that I have started taking long walks with our dog every evening while not adding extra-calories to my diet. I am however listening very carefully to what my body desires and do not plan on depriving it of anything. Thus far, I always had certain weird cravings at the beginning of each trimester, when I gained a lot of weight but that weight gain usually stops by the last month of the trimester. I assume this will happen in the third trimester as well though, by now, I did not have any huger moments in this third trimester. Hopefully I will not gain too much weight, but honestly, that is my last concern right now. My major concern is being healthy and getting all the nutrients my baby needs daily.

Also, my skin cleared up a bit more and I am now able to put on make-up and feel great without worrying about zits and greasy patches (though that might be thanks to my new beauty routine – here). So far I did not experience any swelling in my legs nor in my hands, no cramps, to be honest, I did not experience anything nasty. I did have a few (3) days of heartburn in the evening but that sorted itself out after about an hour and I was told that is totally normal and it usually lasts way more that that. I also had two episodes of cramping but as my doctor reassured me, that was due to gas and again, after a bit of walking around the house and taking two pills that was over. Other than that, on most days I did not feel like I was pregnant, I do not feel like I am pregnant now and the big belly growing is there to remind me of how lucky I am thus far.

The most important feeling of the second trimester in my opinion is the first baby kick. I felt my bundle of joy at about week 20 and it was the best feeling in the world. I aways thought that this had to be the weirdest, most alien-like feeling ever and was very scared of that moment, but when it happened it felt like the most natural and normal thing out there. If at the beginning I was feeling her once or twice per day, now I feel her all the time and from time to time she even wakes me up at 5 in the morning just to let me know she is up. So far I have not experienced any painful kicks, only some nice soothing ones that feel lovely, but I will keep you updated. But, I am telling you, there is nothing more amazing than feeling you own little baby kick and D has to agree as he felt her through my belly and loved it.

Also, during the second trimester it is best to think of a birth plan, just to get that sorted especially if you are leaning toward the private sector (like we did) as there is quite a consistent discount for ‘early booking’. So far, I have not decided on wether I’d like a natural birth or a C-section, though I am leaning toward the latter, but ultimately it is up to the little lady inside because if she decides she can come out naturally without a big fuss that’s the way I am going to go, otherwise C-section it is!

This is also the time to start buying pregnancy adjuvants (as I call them). As you know, I found it hard to wear normal pants so I felt the need to go for maternity ones and the best and most comfortable I could find are the ones from H&M. They totally changed my mood when it came to dressing daily. I love these four pairs here for the comfort and the way they hug your curves: 1, 2, 3, 4. Another big help during the second trimester are the Belly Bandit products, specifically the thighs disguise and the flawless belly. Whenever I wear a dress, I wear one of those miracle makers and I instantly feel and look better. They both offer great support for your back and belly and they keep the stretch mark oil off of my clothes. Obviously I am going to opt for their post-pregnancy stuff as well as I love these two items.

I’d say that is about it on the second trimester. I am very glad that I did not have any incidents thus far and I hope that everything will go smoothly from now on as well and we will welcome our healthy princess in January. As far as this post goes, I hope that it will help mamas-to-be both morally and with planning their decisions. Naturally, at some point, we will show you everything we deemed worthy of our princess terms of baby-stuff, but I really want to get the products first so we can avoid the internet-perfected-photos and use our own. Hope this post was helpful!

October 31, 2016

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The second trimester – in pictures

This is the picture-post that sums up the last three months of carrying a very special load in my belly. As you know, a ‘feelings’ post is right around the corner, so I’m not going to write anything about how I’ve felt this second trimester here. Also, as opposed to the last similar post (click here for the first trimester), I’ve also selected some photos of only myself, as I feel that my fattening needs a bit of pic-detailing just to help you really see the evolution. Hope you’ll love this post as much as you like the first trimester one.

The Forth Month

My evolution during the forth month

The Fifth Month

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My evolution during the fifth month

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The Sixth Month

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My evolution during the sixth month

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October 29, 2016

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Healthiest berry muffins

These muffins are some of the healthiest sweet things you are going to find on this blog or online, for that matter. They contain absolutely no sugar or any derivates of sugar and no white flour whatsoever. And, as an added bonus they do satisfy your sweet tooth, while also giving you some healthy nutrients.I must admit that I did use some frozen berries as those were handy at the time, but they are just as healthy and tasty as fresh berries and, to be honest, it doesn’t really matter which ones you use.About a week ago, D came home with a bag of frozen mixed berries but did not hint anything, so this week I decided to take things into my own (baking) hands and surprise him with something that is both healthy (so it won’t upset my weekly diet) and tasty (to satisfy his growing sugar cravings). There are times when I think that he is the pregnant one as he seems to have all sorts of cravings lately but I think that is partly due to the fact that he, being the gentleman that he is, is trying to keep up with my weight gain so that we can loose it all together after the baby comes.

Back to the muffins… as you’ve probably noticed, I prefer to eat savoury rather than sweet things therefore making a tray of sweet muffins is usually not my first option, but this time, I really wanted to try and make the tastiest and healthiest sweet muffins ever. They are way easier to make than it appears and only take about 40 minutes for basic ingredients to turn into perfectly moist and tasty muffins.When you think about muffin perfection, there are a few boxes that must be ticked: moisture and softness. Usually you get this by using large amounts of butter, but I did not use any here, I only used a tablespoon of coconut oil and tried to get that softness and moisture by using plain yoghurt. True, I could’ve used greek yoghurt but that would’ve just added to the fat count and I was really curious as to how these were going to turn out with simple yoghurt – they were great!

Here’s what you’ll need for 12 muffins:

240 g wholegrain flour
2 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt (not too much)
1 tbsp coconut oil (melted)
2 large egg whites (no yolk)
1 tbsp vanilla extract
125 g plain yoghurt
2 tbsp honey (I used a mixture of cinnamon and honey as I can already feel the Christmas spirit and I need to put cinnamon in everything)
1 cup milk
240 g red berries (I only had frozen at hand but you can use fresh)

What you need to do for the next 10 minutes:

Preheat the oven at 175 degrees C and mix together the baking soda and the flour in a bowl.
In another bowl, put the egg whites and whisk them for a couple of minutes then add the vanilla extract, the coconut oil, the yoghurt and the honey and mix it all together really good until there are no lumps left.
Carefully start incorporating the flour mixture and the milk – I used a spoon for each as that is going to make it easier to control the texture.
Sprinkle the frozen berries with flour as that way they are going to keep your batter from becoming murky-grey because of all the juices. If you are using fresh berries there is no need to do that.
Incorporate the berries into the muffin mixture and fill in the prepared muffin tray.
Put them into the oven for about 20 minutes, or until they are golden and look done. Before eating them, let them cool for 10 minutes – trust me they are better when they do not burn your taste buds!

That’s it! Healthy deliciousness on a tray that is easy to make and does not require any ‘exotic’ ingredients. All the nutritional information is from the MyNetDiary app that I totally recommend as it really helps you check everything you eat and has a huge database. I’ve put the serving information as well as the info for the entire quantity of the muffins. Hope you’ll enjoy them as much as we did!

October 27, 2016

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It’s getting chillier and chillier!

As you can see, D is not in a t-shirt, so the items must be going down! As a a matter of fact, the sweater he is wearing is brand new and he bought it on the day of the photoshoot the moment he realised that he forgot his jacket at home. Yes, it’s starting to feel more and more like winter is coming – no pun intended as the show I am quoting from is months away, while we are left here to endure a cool October. I was really going for a badass motor theme with this photoshoot, but D here simply forgot (or did not get the memo) his leather jacket – maybe next time.

You know what I’ve noticed when we got home and I took a quick look at these pics? The fact that aside from black coloured items and a very low camera angle, another really curve-forgiving strategy is to just find a bench and sit down! That way, none of the extra kilograms will show and I’ll end up with some really nice pics. That said, I will not pose without a bench nearby ever again – or at least until I loose all the baby-weight. Other than that, we obviously had a great time shooting (hence the large amount of photos) and we are going to keep on taking pictures at dawn, because hay, the day is getting shorter and it seems like we have loads of stuff to do every single day – will this be the way parenthood is going to go?

On me:

Pants – H&M; T-shirt – Atmosphere; Jacket – ZARA; Boots – ZARA; Bag – Chloe; Bling – Swarovski; Watch – Apple

Moving along to the black-badass-themed photoshoot… This is another pair of pregnancy pants also from H&M and I can not believe they make such comfy but badass clothes for pregnant women, I mean, moto-inspired black pants for the baby-bump? Yes please! I felt like pairing them with this badass silver t-shirt that has a huge butterfly skull on it and is one of those blouses that keeps surviving all the wardrobe hauls from the last four years and still sees the light of day regularly. I got it from Atmosphere (so, no, it is not a designer piece) while in London ages ago and I will try and find an appropriate alternative online.

On D:

Jeans – Replay; Sweater – Bershka; Shoes – Converse x John Varvatos; Bling – Fossil; Watch – Tissot

Also, the big skull demanded some black leather chunky boots that I’ve also had from ages from ZARA. The thing with these boots is, that I have a love-hate relationship with them. One year I love them and another I absolutely hate them and they do not see the light of day. This year it would appear they are on my good side and despite having them for quite a large number of years, you can still find similar ones at Mihaela Glavan or ZARA. The bag is meat again my black Chloe as I still can’t seem to find a good alternative currently – hoping for some pointers from you guys! The jacket is yet again an old staple piece and I feel like everyone should own a moto-jacket and right now you can find loads of options.

D really wanted to be badass himself and carefully chose his clothes specifically for that, but then he realised he forgot his leather jacket at home and was forced to buy this lovely, lovely Bershka sweater. Naturally this plum hue is one of my favourite for fall and I will try and match it for a future photoshoot. For the badass part of the outfit he wore his lovely Replay Hyperflex jeans and his Converse x John Varvatos hi-tops. As for accessorising, he kept things simple with his Tissot watch and Fossil bracelet while I wore my Apple Watch and a Swarovski bracelet. For some reason we are becoming slackers in the bling department as soon as the temps drop.

You will see more and more photos of me on a bench and from impossibly low angles as well as during the evening as that’s how things are going to stay from now on, but we will try and keep things fun in the clothes department as much as we can.

October 25, 2016

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At dawn…

These are among my favourite photos so far that we took for this blog, and these are the first photos we took at dawn or shall I say after dawn hence they are a bit foggy. The reason we did not take as many photos of the two of us (or at least usable photos) is because it was kinda difficult to get the camera to focus where we wanted it to because it was so dark already when we actually got to taking pics of us. But I was way beyond excited when I saw the photos and could not wait to start editing them a bit to make them blog worthy. I think D enjoyed this photoshoot the most as he got to experiment with different settings and lights and the end result is just amazing.

What I am wearing is probably going to be my autumn uniform as I feel that this combo is the winner for me right now. I just love a chunky big sweater, especially when it is paired with thigh-high boots. For some reason it just screams autumn perfection. I also love the ‘forest green’ colour but unfortunately I found out that I do not have as many pieces in that lovely regal colour as I’d like so measures must be taken, but with caution as I have no idea how things are going to fit post baby. On the other hand, chunky sweaters and thigh high boots are always going to be in style and are always going to fit the same way so I am stocking up on stuff that I will probably wear over and over again.

On me:

Sweater – ZARA; Jeans – H&M; Boots – Steve Madden; Bag – Chloe; Hat – ZARA; Bling – Swarovski; Watch – Apple

A bit more details on the outfit… As I bragged in the last fashion post, I found two new pairs of pregnancy pants in my size (34) at H&M and I will proudly wear them all autumn and winter long. The ones you get a sneak-peak of in these photos are one of them and I have to tell you that maternity jeans are the most comfortable pants I’ve ever worn but still manage to make you feel good. I paired them with this big chunky sweater from ZARA in this lovely rich green hue that just goes perfectly with my muddy-green Steve Madden boots. At first I was quite skeptical about jeans and thigh high boots as I was more accustomed to pairing these boots with thighs but after seeing these pics I am sold on this warm combo.

On D:

T-shirt – Mango; Jacket – SuperDry; Jeans – Review; Shoes – Nike; Bling – Fossil; Watch – Tissot

To keep things in the ‘exciting’ department I decided on wearing hats this season therefore I expanded my (small) collection with this lovely fun black one from ZARA that I will probably also wear over and over again. I realised that I should at some point invest in a new black bag as I only have this Chloe piece to play with and I do not want you to get bored by our posts. Also jewellery wise I did not wear much aside from the Swarovski bracelet and my new Apple Watch that I’ve grown to love more and more these days.

D really tried to go with the green theme and wore his army green Mango t-shirt as he realised that this is the only dark green piece of clothing in his closet – we really need to take measures where our greens are concerned. Since it is getting chillier and chillier he wore his badass leather jacket from SuperDry that is never going to go out of style and that he got few years ago. Since he also lacks in the green-shoes department, he went with the safe option of black Nikes that go just right with these perfectly tailored jeans from Review – yes, I know I rave about theses jeans all the time. Since he doesn’t own and Apple Watch (just yet!) he wore his lovely Tissot T-Race alongside his Fossil bracelet that is becoming as popular as his wedding band among his accessories.

I really can’t wait to take some more photos in the dark and I am so glad D enjoys them so much as we get to take so many lovely photos and thus making memories and successfully following my pregnancy belly with lots of pics each week.

October 23, 2016

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4-5 days per week…

…more like 4 days per week, but hey, I try… Most weeks I manage to go up to four days per week of eating healthy and keeping my cravings in place, but I confess that there are some weeks when I don’t even make it to three days without craving something sugary or fatty. As for the other two to three remaining days of the week, well, since recently I have become able to ingest some meat, I try and incorporate it into my diet because I feel that animal protein is important during pregnancy and my baby should not miss any nutrients because of my eating choices – this does not mean that I am a vegetarian or a vegan in my day-to-day normal non-pregnancy life, but usually I only eat meat once per week at best because of some digestive problems that I discovered a few years ago. That being said, as you can see I do not feel sick towards cheese hence I have to keep it under control as I do tend to over-indulge in all cheesy things. YES, I looooove cheese!!! It is the glue to my life, but I confess that cheese immediately travels on my beee-hind so no over-eating it for me!

I am the type of person that weights every single food that is on my plate, to the point where some might say that I have mental problems, but over time I have come to realise that this is the only way to know exactly what goes into my body and when. Before my pregnancy, I ate way less fruit and I think fruit is actually responsible for my weight gain so far – well, that and the fact that I am having three cheat days per week as opposed to 1 1\2 before. Since I am not allowed to go to the gym, I have to keep everything in check hence the 1200-1300 kcal per day and the abundance of small snacks (that are actually not so small). Before, I ate my last meal of the day at 5 p.m. and then off I was at the gym for two hours and by the time I got home there was absolutely no way I was prepping a meal, no, my only goal was to reach my bed as fast as possible, but now, I feel hunger striking as late as 9 or 10 in the evening so I always keep cucumbers at hand as they seem to not disturb my sleep much.

These photos represent my actual situation and they were taken on Tuesday. While I try and keep everything as easy as I can, both the calorie count as well as the food options depend on the actual season I find myself in. For example all of last summer I craved garden tomatoes and watermelon and I have to tell you, the amount of watermelon that I ate on a daily basis is somewhat illegal hence I did pack a bit more calories than this autumn menu provides. Now I am currently dreaming of iceberg salad and kiwis even though iceberg salad was never my favourite, on the contrary actually, I have always hated it, but now I absolutely love it. On Tuesday I did not have any cottage cheese at hand, but I have to tell you that I try and eat one serving (175 gr) of cottage cheese – try the lighter versions – just for the high protein levels it provides. While during the summer my menu was way redder than my autumn picks (this one is mostly green), I do try as much as possible to eat all the colours of the rainbow but I do tend to listen to what my body craves right now and apparently it wants green stuff.

Breakfast:

I always try and have a healthy full breakfast and, if you look closely, this is the one meal that packs the most kcal as well as fibre and good fats and that is all thanks to the half avocado I eat daily no matter what. I always start my day with a glass of freshly squeezed lemon juice and water because I have to tell you, catching a cold during pregnancy is the worst thing that can happen to you (no nose-drops hence lack of sleep and mental sanity) and this juice provides lots of vitamin C on a empty stomach. At first I started eating avocados because of the high cholesterol levels in my blood, but now, since that is sorted out, I eat it for the all-around benefit it provides. I like to eat it raw as dessert after I indulge in two hard-boiled egg whites – great source of protein – and one yoghurt – much needed calcium. I always have a cup of coffee and my usual choice is a Nespresso capsule. This quantity is fine during pregnancy and it gives me the much-needed energy throughout the day. Since I was never one to drink my coffee black I like to top it up with coconut milk – but no sugar for me because as you’ll in the nutritional analysis at the end of this post, I get a lot of sugar from the fruits throughout the day therefore I do no add sugar in anything.

Lunch:

Lunch is probably my favourite meal because it is both sweet and hot. I like to have a cup of tomato soup and most of the time I do not make it myself but buy it ready-made from the supermarket. I will try and make some more varieties of cream soups myself – I really want to try and make a mushroom soup for a while now – as I always love a good hot soup in the middle of the day. This is the only hot meal I eat throughout a normal day and I think it is very important to not skip cooked meals. For dessert I love to eat a big bowl (about 300 gr) of seedless grapes. These are the only grapes I like and I am always quite happy during autumn the moment D starts buying them for me.

Dinner:

For dinner I usually have some sort of leafy green salad with a dash of avocado oil and a bit of cheese. I think it is important to eat your leafy greens daily as they provide lots of iron and fibre while not packing virtually any kcal and definitely no fats or other nasty stuff. I know, it would be a lot better if I replaced the iceberg salad with baby spinach, but hey, cravings are cravings! I usually put no more than a teaspoon of avocado oil in it and about 40 gr of light white cheese (calcium and proteins), but normally I use a cup of cottage cheese (it is a lot healthier!). For dessert – it seems like I can’t have one meal without something sweet and that must be curtesy of the little lady growing inside me – I like to eat a Granny Smith apple. As with the grapes, I am very strict about my apples – I only like the Granny Smith type. The apple provides lots of fibres and vitamins and is very good for the baby.

Snacks:

I usually have two snacks per day and while you might think that they are evenly distributed, they are not! Both of them are after lunch and both of them contain cheese (did I mention I love cheese?). The first snack of the day consists in a cup of cherry tomatoes – I already miss summer’s garden tomatoes – about 20 gr of cheese and a kiwi fruit. Ever since I got a cold in August and could not really treat it with anything I try and ingest as much natural vitamin C as possible and therefore kiwi is a daily must!

The second snack usually comes later – at around 9:30 in the evening hence the reason it needs to be lighter than the other – and consists of two, maybe three cucumbers, 20 gr of cheese and a kiwi fruit. This snack does not disturb my sleep at all and it is quite satisfying thanks to all the water content of the cucumbers. Usually after this snack, both D and I go out to walk our doggie (here she is) for about 30 minutes and that’s all the exercise I get during the day.

Liquids:

Before being pregnant, I usually drank 5 l of water per day, but now my usual consumption comes at about 3,5-4 l daily. I always try and listen to my body where hydration is concerned and never try and force myself to drink more or less. The glass of lemon drink in the morning is included in this quantity. I think it is very important to drink lots of water throughout the day, but mainly I trust my body to tell me when and how much water I need.

That’s it, this is what I eat during the week, from Monday to Thursday and sometimes Friday (very rarely!) during my pregnancy. These eating habits haven’t changed much, besides the extra 200-300 kcal per day and a lot more fruit, but then again, I used to go to the gym daily for about two hours, so most of the weight gain is explained solely by that. On the remaining days of the week, I try and satisfy all my cravings (see here 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6) as well as some other things that I never usually eat (yes, I had a bucket of KFC twice during this pregnancy – let the shaming begin!). All in all, I try and stay sane and eat whatever I like but mostly healthy, hence the 4-5/2-3 ratio. I find it a lot easier to stick to my diet for longer it we manage to do our shopping for the entire week on a Sunday. For some reason throwing food away does not sit well with me so I feel obliged to eat it. I feel lucky that my last month of pregnancy will be during Christmas as I am going to get big by then anyway and I will be able to indulge in all the Christmas goodies without feeling guilty or fat – yes tons of gingerbread and panettone included! But until then I am trying to not pack lots of kgs as I am well aware that this is not healthy for me nor for my baby.

Scroll down a bit more to see a full nutritional analysis of what I ate on Tuesday – vitamins and all – all curtesy of the new apple watch D got me and the lovely MyNetDiary app which is quite complete where nutrition is concerned.

October 21, 2016

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Grey Matter!

As you know, we rarely ever find ourselves in the centre of Bucharest, but this weekend I really needed to buy a few pairs of maternity jeans and the only H&M that has the maternity line is in the city centre. Yes, I know, online shopping is a must in this situation, but to be honest, these past two weeks I have been feeling better and more energetic than ever during this pregnancy so I thought a shopping day with D would be perfect. And it was! Once again I received the confirmation that I have not yet changed sizes in pants, the only difference being the fact that I need the maternity belt as I can’t stand anything pressing on my belly and all of a sudden the shopping spirit came back to me.

It’s amazing what sizes can do to ones’ morale. Especially when that someone is almost in the third trimester of pregnancy. Do not get me wrong, I have gained a healthy amount of weight thus far, but apparently it is mostly on my belly and on my butt, which, in my opinion is ok – I will do a post on what I am eating during this pregnancy, nutritional info and all, but I have to say that the main difference is I’ve added an extra day of cheating in my diet simply because I will have lots of time to be a diet-natzi after the little princess arrives.

On me:

Dress – Amisu (impossible to find online but you can shop it in all NewYorker stores); Shoes – Carvela; Bag – DKNY; Jacket – Pull and Bear (only found an alternative); Bling – Swarovski (bracelet and ring); Sunglasses – Dior; Watch – Tissot

Back to this weekend’s photoshoot…we were lucky enough to have a few wonderful day last week and we took full advantage of them. The thing about pregnant women is that they hardly feel any cold, hence I did not feel the need to wear tights at 15 degrees C and actually felt quite hot at some point (weird, right? – more details on that in the upcoming ‘pregnancy feelings’ post). For the first time I did not feel the need to cover up my expanding booty with a long cardigan or jacket and chose a short faux leather jacket instead. We both opted for a grey theme as that is one neutral colour that is both forgiving and appropriate for the cold season.

On D:

T-shirt – Tommy Hilfiger; Jeans – Scotch and Soda; Vest – Bershka (alternative here); Shoes – Converse; Bling – Fossil; Sunglasses – Ray-Ban; Watch – Tissot

The dress… this dress was a very big surprise to me as when I first saw it it didn’t seem like a very good option to me. It is from Amisu and you can shop it in any New Yorker store (can’t find it online) and it is the most comfortable knit dress ever! You know how some knit dresses tend to irritate your skin? Well not this one! This one is so soft and comfortable that I can spend forever dressed in it, plus it hugs my expanding curves just right and the length is to-die-for! This is part of the reason I felt confident enough to top it with my short jacket from Pull and Bear that I’ve had for ages and that I never thought I’d wear during this period.

My shoes are from Carvela and I got them the year I was away in London to get my MA degree therefore I was really surprised to still find them online (this was more than four years ago, after all!) but I guess the two main trends that characterises them are hot right now: platform and wood! They are very comfortable, but not to the point where you can wear them all day long as they are quite high (13 cm) which can be a little dangerous especially because my centre of gravity is changing all the time. Being a sunny day out, I couldn’t miss the opportunity to wear my beloved Dior sunglasses. I also opted for the grey DKNY bucket bag as that was the obvious option for a day filled with shopping because I need both of my hands to be free.

D also played along with grey hues and opted for his Scotch and Soda grey jeans with a grey v-neck t-shirt from Tommy Hilfiger. Because he seems to feel the cold a bit more than me, he wore his vest from Bershka to keep him warm. His grey classic Converse shoes could not be left at home – as you can see he has quite the variety of grey Converse shoes. Naturally he decided on finally wearing sunglasses for this photoshoot and chose his Ray-Ban Aviators to complete the look. Bling-wise we were both quite scarce as he only wore his Fossil bracelet while I wore a Swarovski bracelet and ring. We both decided to wear our Tissot watches.

We are keeping our fingers crossed for as many sunny lovely days like this one this autumn and I can’t wait to show you what we ended up buying during our shopping weekend!

October 19, 2016

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Morning Sun…

I love early morning sunshine, but it can be a real bitch where photos are concerned. We managed to shoot on a perfect autumn day: clear skies, breezy temps and lots of wonderful colours in the trees. I just hope we’ll be able to have at least one day per week of this perfect weather so we can shoot the growing baby bump and keep track of my expanding body. By now the little princess seems to be very, very active and sometimes I just want to sit still and enjoy her little movements and that can sometime be a deferral from taking photos or any other activities.

What can I say about today’s fashion choices. Obviously I love the way I feel in my thigh high boots and I have to say, these are really comfortable and give me bit o height to counterbalance the extra kgs I’ve acquired during the last 6 months. It seems that I am more and more prone to wearing heeled shoes just so I can seem just a bit taller and leaner that I actually do. I am quite sure that by the end of this trimester I will care less and less about that and more and more about being comfortable and luckily for me, UGG season is approaching fast and there’s nothing more comfortable than a cozy pair of UGGs!

On me:

Skirt – Herve Leger; Blouse – Mango; Vest – H&M; Boots – Rachel Zoe; Bag – Michael Kors; Bling – Swarovski (bracelet 1, bracelet 2 and ring); Watch – Tissot

I know that we should dress in pink as often as possible, since we are having a girl, but as long as we did not buy anything pink for her or her nursery thus far I think we can safely say that we are not going to turn into pink bundles of joy all together. This time the combo of choice was black (for obvious reasons) and blue. I love wearing this combo and I though I’d take advantage of the fact that my Herve Leger mini is still fitting (I’ve had it for a few years now) – FYI this is an actual office appropriate knee length pencil skirt but taking into consideration the baby bump, it has turned into a mini and will probably become too indecent for public exposure in a few weeks. I paired the newly mini skirt with my Rachel Zoe boots and I have to say that I kinda felt a bit like Julia Robert in Pretty Woman, minus the latex.

On D:

T-shirt – Calvin Klein; Jeans – Review; Shoes – Converse x John Varvatos; Bling – Fossil and Constantin Nautics; Watch – Tissot

In order for my outfit to not be too revealing, I topped everything with my H&M vest that you will see a lot of this autumn. It covers just the right places in order for me to feel confident! I opted for a calf hair mini box cloth from Michael Kors as this seems to be my go-to black clutch during autumn and winter months. Bling wise I went a bit overboard wearing two Swarovski bracelets plus a ginormous cocktail ring also by Swarovski.

D wore those amazing jeans from Review that I swore I was going to make him buy a few more pairs, just to be sure he has them in all the available colours and paired them with his lovely blue polo shirt from Calvin Klein. He did wear a grey and blue combo and our blues are not really matching but as long as both of us were happy, who really cares? As usual lately, he wore his Converse x John Varvatose sneaks simply because he seems to have a hard time transitioning from his summer shoes to his autumn ones. Bling wise he was a bit more reserved than me and wore his Constantin Nautics bracelet alongside his Fossil one. For some reason, our go-to watches lately are out Tissot T-Race ones and that might be because of the very comfortable strap and the fact that they are quite light in comparison to most of our other watches.

I just love it when we manage to get out of the house and actually have time for a fun photoshoot as we always seem to have a real bias doing them. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for at least one nice day per week so we do not have to resort to taking photos in our garage as that will be a real shame.

October 17, 2016

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Finally craving meat!!!

As you know, I’ve been really struggling with meat these past months, meaning I could not even look at it without cringing. Therefore getting my much needed protein throughout my pregnancy has been a real struggle. I am not saying that being a vegetarian is wrong or anything, but I had a really good deal with meat before I got pregnant: I ate it once per week because I really do love a good steak, or burger. Since this has not been an option throughout the past six months, I ate lots of eggs, cottage cheese and other foods that provided the right amount of protein for me as well as for my baby.

Last week something weird happened and I found myself craving meat. Naturally D immediately got dressed and off to the supermarket he went to cure my craving – to be honest, he always does that for me, he immediately tries and satisfy whatever craving I might have. Since I can only have well done meat my only viable choices are turkey or chicken as I can’t stand the thought of a perfectly good veal or pork meat not being medium-done (it should be illegal otherwise). For some reason, chicken seemed to be the winner option as I always found it easier to digest than turkey and so a chicken dinner it was!

To make sure that I will not ruin my meat craving forever I tried to cook it with as many citrusy flavours I could while still taking advantage of the amazing indian seasoning we always seem to have in the house – we both love indian food so, so much! That being said, I also like my food spicy, but since heartburn has been a real bitch lately I only spiced things up at a moderate level. This dish is easy to make, but you have to take into account the time it takes the meat to marinate – in this case, I left it in the fridge for one hour, but you can leave it for as long as you’d like, even overnight.

Here’s what I used:

2 chicken breasts (no skin, boneless)
1 pink grapefruit (only the juice)
1 lemon (only the juice)
15 gr fresh oregano leaves
2 tablespoons tikka masala powder
1 tablespoon hot chilli powder
1 tablespoon yellow curry powder
2 tablespoons dijon mustard (since I can’t drink my wine, I might as well use it in my food – or at least some variety of it)

What you need to do:

Cut the chicken breasts into strips – I did that in order for the flavours to get into as much of the meat as possible, plus it’s fun to eat chicken strips.
In a small bowl mix all the powder seasoning together.
In a large bowl prepare your marinade: both of the citrusy juices, the powder spices, the oregano leaves and the mustard and mix everything well.
Put the chicken strips making sure they are well covered in the marinade, cover the bowl with plastic foil and into the fridge it goes for as long as you want.
Give the cast iron pan a light spray of avocado oil and put the chicken in for about 4-5 minutes on each side.
That’s it! Mix some salad greens next to it and voila!: the perfect healthy dinner!

Since the chicken is grilled in virtually no oil, this is quite the healthy option that still has loads of flavour and does not feel like you are eating paper. The nutritional info is for 100 gr which is more than you can see on my plate in the photos and it has a decent amount of protein as well as virtually no fats or other nasty stuff. I love the fact that you can feel the citrusy taste so much and I think that complements chicken just perfectly especially when paired with indian spices!

October 15, 2016

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We’re having a…

We are beyond excited about the news we got from our last appointment. First of all, the little human growing inside me is very healthy, active and has all the toes and fingers in place. And it’s a GIRL!!! D is going to be surrounded by girls – me, our beloved dog and the little princess that will soon join us! And when I say soon, I mean we are about three and a half months away from meeting her and we can’t wait! No, we did not paint the nursery pink, nor will we buy pink things for her, but we did feel the need to have a pink photoshoot despite it being October and quite cold outside.

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Both of us suspected that we are going to have a girl from the 12th week when the doctor told us that there is a very good chance of that, but we decided to not get over-excited until we knew for sure. This time we are 100% sure that a little princess will be joining us in January – yes, we saw her hoo-ha and all so this is happening and there is no chance of any surprises. We did not have any preferences going into this pregnancy only that the baby be healthy and that I will feel fine. Up until now, these two wishes have come true and hope things will go on just as smoothly from now on!

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On me:

Dress – Guess by Marciano; Shoes – Versace; Bag – Furla; Vest – ZARA; Bling – Swarovski (bracelet1, bracelet2 and ring); Watch – Tissot

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On D:

T-shirt – Polo Ralph Lauren; Jeans – ZARA; Shoes – Polo Ralph Lauren; Bling – Fossil; Sunglasses – Ray-Ban; Watch – Tissot

That being said, I do not want to make this post about the fashion bit in it as we are under no circumstances dressed for autumn, but rather for this very happy announcement. Since I am coming closer and closer to the last three months of pregnancy, I will soon upload yet another ‘Pregnancy Feelings’ post about the second trimester and besides the feelings, weight gain and healthy bit of it, I really want to share with you all the stuff we planned and did during this trimester to help you understand why any pregnant woman should take fully advantage if this period.

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Hopefully, we will soon finish all our redecorating (nesting) and we will be able to share with you all that we’ve been doing for the past few weeks (months?). Until then, enjoy our announcement photos and brace yourselves as our little one is coming and she will come kicking and screaming (hopefully not all the time!).