First day of summer

Hello, hello! Can you believe it? It's summer already! Hip hip hooray!

I've had to bite my tongue at all those people complaining about the weather: "Isn't it June? What's with the rain?" I'm sure you've heard them, too. Maybe even asked the same questions. I'd just like to point out that, first of all, most of June is still spring time. Second, the majority of the complainers live in Seattle/somewhere in the PNW so, yeah, it's raining. Anyways, blah blah blah. What I'm trying to say is that NOW it's time for a few more warm sunny days that last a little bit longer into the evening. Now we can start up the BBQs and days in the sand. And while I do not think I'll be camping with a newborn, pitching a tent somewhere in the woods sure sounds fun. And now is the time for that, too.

Our first day of summer was spent at Golden Gardens. If you live around here, it's worth a day trip. There's a great playground (I mean, like, the coolest one ever) and lots of sandy beach. It was a nice warm day with the perfect breeze and we weren't gonna miss it! I was a little nervous (not gonna lie) about going because, well, let's face it, I'm 7 1/2 months pregnant and the idea of toting a 10 month old put-everything-into-my-mouth-even-if-it's-tastes-like-sand baby was intimidating. But no excuses! We packed our bags and met some friends for a fun afternoon. And I'm glad we did. I only got a handful of pictures due to chasing said sand eating baby, but it's only the first day of summer, right? Plenty more to come...

It was actually Paige's first experience in the sand. We weren't sure how she'd take it but there was no need to worry, she dug right in! Shelby and her friends made sandcastles and collected buckets of rocks. Then, I guess they took some time out for a little girl talk...

All in all it was a great day. Thanks to Michelle, Bella, and Bianca for joining us! 

What did you guys do to ring on the summer? I'm excited about days by the water, nights with the windows open, and weekends at estate sales! Oh, and our baby being born :)

xoxo

Joy

30 down and 10 to go

Maybe this time next year I'll be talking about pounds but for right now, we're talking about weeks! 30 seems like a good, solid number, doesn't it? I'm very excited/nervous/happy/anxious/unprepared/looking forward to what's going to happen over the next 10 weeks. That's only 70 days, people!! The first 210 went pretty quickly now that I think of it...

Two weeks ago marked my entrance into 3rd trimester zone and it's hit me rather abruptly. My first two trimesters (with their mostly ignorable symptoms) were just too good to be true, I guess - shoulda known. I'm super tired and back to needing 10 hrs of sleep a night with naps during the day! I've got lots of stretching/pulling/cramping going on in there and it can make for some really uncomfortable days at work. Thankfully Paige is crawling now and would actually rather me not pick her up. Also, stretching obviously means baby is getting bigger and that means I can feel his every wiggle! It's been super fun for me and I enjoy watching my belly bump around to his dance moves.

This week we decided we should practice using one of our baby name choices. Instead of calling him 'baby' we're talking to him as 'just-kidding-it's-a-surprise-and-you-thought-I-was-about-to-blow-it'. Haha, gotchya! This week's practice name is actually probably our first pick and using it out loud makes it feel even more comfortable. We might just have a winner at first try! Okay, now I need to stop talking about it because I'm getting excited and might actually blow it!

Hello Baby,

We love you so so so much and we can hardly wait for you to come out and play! Daddy is getting especially antsy since he doesn't get to carry you around, talk to you, and feel you all day like mama does. I sure hope you're snuggly warm and cozy in there but, please, don't get too comfy. Mama needs you to come out on time!!

Oh my goodness, we're just over-the-moon excited!

Love you, baby

xoxo

daddy and mama

A New Start

Source: weheartit.com via Joy on Pinterest

I've been thinking a lot lately about what I'm doing with this little blogspot. Obviously, I haven't been here much at all over the last few months and I was curious as to why I was avoiding this space. Writing is really enjoyable for me, but for some reason(s), I wasn't taking the time to fill any pages with anything. I've missed it.

Here's what I figured out:

A) Admittedly, I probably started HappyCandido for the wrong reasons. You know, to post photos, write funny stuff, and get a following of thousands. Okay, not probably but definitely for the wrong reasons. With this popularity contest mindset, of course I got burnt out!

B) During a busy week, if there were a couple days where I didn't have the time/inspiration/ambition to post, I felt guilty about not doing so. Like I owed somebody a daily post and if I didn't write anything on Tuesday, I didn't have the right to come back on Wednesday. Uh, kinda weird. I know.

C) Then there was the me, myself, and I problem. I was tired of my content because my content was always about...me. And I got kind of annoyed about that. This wasn't supposed to be a selfish place and I might have thought that's what it had turned into.

So I just backed out for a while.

{insert almost 6 month hiatus HERE}


Well, now I'm feeling a stirring in me to get back to the pen and paper/keyboard. It probably has something to do with this baby in my belly, or the spring that's finally in the air. Whatever it is, I want to come back for the right reasons, with the right mindset and game plan.

How to do that?


Whatdya know, at the same time I was feeling confused about how to start over again, I found this helpful post from Elsie. She even linked back to this older post (just for me?!) that was also a great starting point. I'm excited to start brainstorming new ideas for fresh, inspiring content - things you'll enjoy reading and that I'll enjoy writing! There are so many ways I could be expressing my creativity through this blog, and I'm going to take some special care in making this a place I love.

I've got a lot of techy stuff I'll have to teach myself. I don't want to rush into it again this time so bare with me as the next couple months might be mostly about Baby Candido (ya know, so we can have these memories documented).

I'm ready for a fresh start! Now where is my pen and journal...

xoxo
Joy

Tan lines and diamond rings

Man, oh man. This weather is totally rockin'! It's been sunny since I can remember (granted, there are some days my memory doesn't go farther than what I had for breakfast but still...) and I've been sure to get out to enjoy it!

Paige is a great trip-to-the-park-companion and we've spent a couple days in the grass on our picnic blanket. Yesterday we went to Greenlake for a lunch and got a nice dose of vitamin D. In two days I'm almost caught up to Camillo's brown skin!! And ya know what I think is fun? Having a tan line where my wedding ring sits on my finger! Haha, just sayin'. Today Shelby (big sis) is home with us so we're making a list of things to pack because, you guessed it, it's definitely another picnic at the playground kind of day. 

I hope it's sunny where you are and that you get to enjoy it! 

xoxo

Joy

6 months and Mother's Day

An August 13th due date made this baby boy 6 months big on Mother's Day! While I didn't expect any recognition, it still made my heart happy to know I'm already his mama. He's getting big enough that I can feel most of his little wiggles, not just his soccer kicks. We love him so much and can hardly wait to meet him!

After a pedicure with my mom and grandma, we spent Sunday afternoon at the park with lots of family. Aunts and Uncles and cousins and grandparents - some of whom I haven't seen for a few years. It was so great. They all got to meet this baby bump and he loved all the tummy rubs! The sun was shining super hot and, even though I'd hoped to get a little tan, had to sit in the shade most of the day. It was beautiful, a day I'll remember for a long time!!

I hope all you mamas and someday mamas had a great weekend with the ones you love! 

xoxo

Joy + Baby

It's a Monday

It's my first day back to work after 9 days off! But how can I be sad if coming back means spending time with this little monkey?? The week was full of friends, naps, and projects :) I'm so grateful for the time I got to rest but happy to be back into a routine. I think I do well with daily structure...

Happy Monday!

xoxo

Joy

Almost missed it: 24 weeks!

This week marks the big 2-4! My vacation started with a visit from my mama and 2 of my little brothers. It was super nice to have a relaxing weekend, not stressing about all the things I needed to do with the 2 days in between 50 hour weeks. We walked around Ballard, found a new gelato place, sat in the park, played frisbee, ate pizza, found a couple sweet vintage children's books, and baked cookies! It was so lovely, let me tell ya. 

Can we please talk about these bright green pants?! They're, well, bright green. Kinda skinny. And they're made  just for baby mamas!!! I found them at Motherhood Maternity for less than $40! I was so happy, it's kinda ridiculous. But I lovelovelove all that skinny colored denim and was worried that I'd miss the boat while this tummy grows. I might wear them everyday...

I've had a great week and gotten to spend time with a couple of my favorite peeps, mark off big chores on my to-do-before-baby-comes list, and enjoyed a couple naps...sweet!

We'll be back soon!

xoxo

Joy