Road Trip! Washington

Ok, you got me, this wasnt a road trip. But we did go there. There was a death in the family and Neil ended up being able to take emergency leave and was able to come home for a few weeks to be with the family. It was awesome having him home again, but quite stressful all the same. We flew to Whidbey Island. Wa a few days before Christmas. Which, just so you know; trying to get cross country plane tickets a few days before Christmas on the cheap isnt an easy thing to do. Though im just glad we actually GOT tickets. While we were there we absolutely HAD to get out of the house. We went on a hike after we had been there. My MIL placed a Geocache along a popular hiking route at Ebeys Landing and we found it.

A few days Neil and I went our on our own for some fresh air. I wanted to go places I had never been on the island yet. First we stopped at the Deception Pass Bridge.

His beard has started to grow in Thank God! That deployment mustache is TERRIBLE!

It certainly was a lovely day out. 

Then we headed over to.. a lake or something. I dont remember where we went, but it was pretty. It would be a fun place for a photosession!

Of course we had to get our jump on! Though the camera wasnt at the best angle for it.

I was right at 20 weeks here

And last but not least, probably my favorite shot from the whole week.

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Blog Hop!

So all the blogging world has been all a buzz about "Blissdom" and its this weekend in Nashville. I will also be in Nashville this weekend but im not attending. BUT! I am participating in my first blog hop! :)

Yippee!

So here's a little about me. :)

I am awesome. I am pregnant with my first kiddo. HE is a boy and due in May. Im a bit nervous but exciting all the same.

I am a photographer. See: www.hilarymercer.com :)
I like to sew. I like to lindy hop. I hate to cook which is good cause Im no good at it. My house is a mess and im working on getting it clean.

Im married to a pretty awesome guy. He's in the Air Force and he's deployed at the moment. But dont worry, hopefully he'll make it back for our babies birth. If he doesnt, ill be quite upset.

We live in North Carolina but we'll be moving at some point this summer. We have no idea where.

So currently, im doing a lot of waiting.
Waiting on an assignment. Waiting on my husband to come home from war. Waiting to pop out this baby.

By the way, my awesome friend Autumn of Reminiscing Moments Photography took this photo when we got together the other day. She's awesome.

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Road Trip! Florida

Uhhh, I am SUPER way behind on blogging personal stuff. I was in Florida in.. October. Wow. It seems like it was such a long time ago. I guess it was, around that time I was 10 weeks pregnant and I am now 25. TWENTY FIVE! Holy cow im going to have a baby soon! EEK! Anyway, here are some of my favorite personal images from the trip. Though- I will admit. When I wasnt shooting weddings I didnt really want to take photos so there arent THAT many awesome ones.

I took my first trip to Sea World. Thanks Sea World for letting Military in for free without their husbands. It was really nice and very relaxing for an amusement park. Alicia and I went on a non busy day and it was awesome. I didnt even have to wait super long for her to ride the roller coasters because.. Im definitely not a fan. 

My favorite show was the dolphins. It was pretty interesting.

The Shamu show was a big let down for me. Mainly because there was a guy right in front of us taking photos with his camera phone THE W H O L E TIME. Ugh, oh well. Shamu isnt allowed in the water with the trainers anymore due to the accident earlier this year. So a lot of the typical tricks you can imagine the silly whale wasnt allowed to do.  :(

A few days later Alicia and I traveled down to Fort Myers to see my friend Alex and while we were there we visited Sanibel. This wasnt my first time to Sanibel but I still loved it. Id really like to come back and take little Jack so he can see all the shells. Which I neglected to get a photo of. Alicia took most of the photos here and she got it along with the "Sanibel Stoop."

While we were on the island we got some geocaches. I think we got 6 that day actually. This was one of the spots. I was a bit nervous AND a bit relieved to have not seen any alligators. 

Throughout all of our time knowing about this mystical island of Sanibel we had always heard about this awesome restaurant called the Bubble Room. Well, it totally lived up to our expectations. It was yummy and super strange.

Alicia has a thing for Mr Kent.

And we finished off the meal with a SUPER YUMMY piece of cake. 

Apparently its their world famous and has won a lot of awards. It certainly deserved them.

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Twenty Four weeks

Well, its time for another belly shot. Its been a while. My goodness, taking a photo a week is hard work. How I ever completed my 365 in 08/09 Ill never know. I mean.. I know most of my photos were crap but I finished it! Recently there just isnt anything too too exciting to take photos of, plus ive been busy.

24.4 Weeks

How I feel: Not too different. I slept really bad the other night, I just couldnt get comfortable. I was quite frustrated as there seems there is no comfortable furniture in my house. I dont know what I was thinking before. But I do know im going to need a good comfy, chair to nurse LJ in. Cause the couch just aint gunna cut it I dont think. Other than that, its getting harder to get my shoes on. Im continuously out of breath, especially when talking on the phone. I tend to pace while on the phone so I suppose it can count as a workout.

At some point last week I felt a hand or something up at the top of my belly AND a kick at the bottom. Which means, there is ACTUALLY something inside me. Growing rapidly everyday. It was sorta neat because he's getting big and im excited about it. My goodness he moves a lot though. He either doesnt like hot chocolate or he loves it because if I ever want to make him squirm I drink it. Plus its so yummy right now since its cold out.

Cravings: Still nothing really. I still R E A L LY like fruity pebbles though. Dr Pepper is still up there though im drinking in moderation. Im trying to not drink soda more than once a week. So far I think Ive done pretty well- except for the first week of the new year.

Other changes: I was reading up on dry skin and I decided to give a go at dry brushing before my showers. The idea is that it helps get rid of all of the excess skin accumulating on the surface. Its also supposed to be a good stimulator and makes your skin less lazy so your cellulite will be less visible the more you use it. Im on day 2, so we'll see not that I really have cellulite. Well, not thats too too visible.

Ive also been cleaning and organizing the house. For those of you who I have let into the house you know Neil and I both are not the cleanest people in the world. Which makes living hard sometimes. Well not hard but more annoying since neither of us are OCD about anything. For almost 2 weeks Ive gone to bed with the dishes done AND Ive woken up and made my bed. Ive also been setting a timer for an hour a day and tackling something I thought was major before. Im on day 5 of this and its going super awesome so far. These HUGE messes have been able to be cleaned up in an hour. Here I was thinking it was going to take hours! So far, Ive tackled Neils hot spot in the kitchen(its not 100% done yet though), the pantry, I tackled most of the table tops in the house(side tables and living room table) and yesterday I defeated the dining room table. Mostly it was covered in photography stuff and I just wasnt sure where to put it. I found homes for everything and mopped and swept and it looks lovely now. Forgive the Iphone photo. Im quite sad I didnt take befores of anything. It would have made a bigger impact. Just know, there was a TON of crap on it before.

 

And yes, I know its not completely empty. I cant lift the rolls up by myself so they will stay there until someone nice comes over.

I feel a lot better about getting the house clean. Who knew it was so easy?! Just allotting a little time a day. Crazy, who knew!

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Nicole's Dr. Suess themed baby shower!

I have been looking to the first of our squadrons baby showers for quite some time. I also knew the hosts were going to pull out all the stops. We seriously have some talent when it comes to throwing parties. I wish I were as talented as them.

Everything was so fun and bright. Im a big fan of Dr. Suess myself so I loved all of the little details that were added. All of the food had cute Dr Suess inspired names.

HELLO CUTEST CUPCAKES EVER!

Happy Mama and one of the hostesses!

Cale is going to be a lucky boy! He'll be a very well read little one too.

How cute are these gloves for TICKLING!?

and as you walked out you got a book clip! Genius. Ive been wanting to read some in bed recently and since I dont have a lamp(dont judge) it makes it hard. So I was quite excited about it.

Kelly, Barbara, and Courtney you guys threw a great shower! It was lovely!

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registries and other stuff

I started registering for things pretty much as soon as I found out I was pregnant. I started small and would add things after I read review after review on multiple sites. Now, I sorta know more of what im looking for. Registering for me is different because I dont want a lot of crap and neither does Jack. He's going to have enough in his diaper ;) It is so hard to find cheaper things to add to my registry. Im already full up on things like clothes(thanks to the folks giving them - hand me downs FTW!) and blankets. My goodness, I have a ton of blankets already and I havent even had any shower yet. I can only imagine how many I will get then. Anyway, its also a bit different because were going to be cloth diapering. Back in 2005 I started doing research on cloth diapering. Why on earth I did that I have no clue! What 18/19 does that? Anyway, I kept up with the trends and what to do and what not to do. Now im pretty glad I did it because I think I would be a bit more stressed reading reviews on all of the options out there. Its a bit ridiculous the amount of even cloth diapers there are out there. Our plan will be to start out with prefolds in covers and then about a month in move up to All in Ones. Were going to go with Bum Genius as I read they are better at fitting more babies. Hopefully they will work out for us in the end. Im quite excited about it. Well.. now I am. Right now im not having to see poop and then wash it. Possibly wash it again and then hope its all out. :)

Anyway, I just wish stores like Target and BabiesRUs would sell more organic exciting things I actually wanted to register for. I was reading OohDeeDoh.com as normal and came across this post. I found it awesome. A lot of this stuff I hadnt even thought of adding to my own registry. I also liked a few of the suggestions like: a new track suit in a size up from the moms typical size (because moms dont typically shrink back and she needs something comfy, the idea of a gift certificate to a local newborn photographer ( being one, I think thats a great present and im quite surprised no one has asked for any of our local mommies) <-- that being said my plan was to gift a session to them but when I asked who wanted me, no one did. I didnt want to gift someone a gift they didnt want. :( I also liked the idea of gifting someone 3 months of cleaning service or grocery service. How awesome would it be to get a huge box of fresh fruit from a local farmers market!? That would be a pretty sweet present anyway. Which reminds me, I cant wait until Strawberry season this year. Ill even get to try out my new canning system my mother in law got me.

For our nursery were going with a loosely based woodland theme. Isnt everyone these days? Ive pretty much fallen in love with these though: the owl and the gnome. The gnome would most likely be my pick but im a cheapo and its not 69$ its 68 so its just not meant to be. These might be a good substitute though. If I were doing a flight/plane themed room I would jump on this! I havent decided how I want to display his name yet. Ill most likely make up some big fabric letters or maybe even pillows? That may be cute. For the big display in his room Im collecting random letters in random fonts and im going to decorate them in fun ways and display it above his crib. I need to get working on them now that I think of it. Perhaps that will be on my list in a few weeks. Im just excited to get where were going to get so I can paint and make it my own again. I feel like Ive never given this home a proper introduction. I feel like we didnt love it to its fullest.

Also, this is a random part in this post. But its something Ive been meaning to address or blog about rather. Giveaways. They are the bomb. Ive been entering them since I first found out about 'mommy blogs' and their usefulness. Im also quite good at winning. Really you just have to pick the right ones. So today I gathered up all that I could find/remember about that I had won.


So, whats all in this photo?
Kalorik blender
Super cute handmade bib
Handmade toddler tie
Grasshopper Cloth Diaper
4 board books
Simply Saline gift pack
Juno Baby DVD for toddlers
1 pair of baby legs

Other random stuff Ive won, a HUGE jar of pickles, a lot of gift cards to local restaurants, CSN giftcards, Amazon giftcards, a baby, a free photography session(with an awesome photographer), photography actions, a newborn diaper cover(for photoshoots) and im sure there are others

This probably isnt all of it but its what I could find off the top of my head. For the most part Ive only been entering baby giveaways in hopes that I may be able to safe on baby presents. But, most of what Ive won I want to keep for myself. :) Figures. Ive won other stuff on its way to me too like most recently I won a Britax booster seat. Now yes, Jack wont need it for a few years but its free and its BRITAX which is an awesome, safe brand. A lot of the winning I think comes in when you tweet about it a lot. Each tweet gives you more enteries to the giveaway. So when I find something I really want, I tweet about it anytime I can get credit for it. Currently Im working on 4 giveaways and I can tweet 4X a day. Thats a lot, so I made a new twitter account specifically for me to post about giveaways and so I can post about this blog.

Follow me here!

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disappearing act

A friend of mine posted this to her facebook and I figured I would share as I found it interesting. I wonder what was in the newspaper back in 1987 about what children that year wouldnt know about? I feel like I know about most things. I might have ever seen them but Ive at least heard of them.. or seen them in antique stores.

In other news. My belly button has seemed to lose itself recently. I know its there I just cant see it. Its like Santa or the Easter bunny. Ok, I know its not COMPLETELY gone yet but its pretty flat and I dont like it. That means im closer to an outie than I want.

oh and dont judge the hair around it.. apparently that happens when youre pregnant too.

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twenty two - hooty hoo!

So, on top of this being an adventurous year for me with the move and the baby I want to to continue to be creative. Or rather Ill rephrase, Im feeling a bit uninspired and lacking something. What im not sure of though. I feel like recently Ive just been living inside my house. Barely moving from my computer. Which.. is no fun. Its cold and I dont have that many sessions to get out and about with. A lot of my work now is working on albums and editing. So I want to start getting out more. Even if its just going around Pine Level and seeing whats up there. I need to get out. Im feeling a bit cramped. Ive started looking through photos over the past few years and what im finding is that now that im done with my 365 I BARELY ever take photos during the week. Or of things I see. Well, im pretty good with my iphone but I feel like im not documenting like I should. 

Anyway, in other news.

Im at 22 weeks!

It doesnt seem like I look all that different with my clothes off. But I look crazy different with clothes ON. See that sweet photo by my new friend Bobby Bonsey? That was taken New Years Eve right at 21 weeks.

How im feeling? (im still very tired of this question BTW)

Well, quite sad actually. The house is lonely again without Neil here. Id kinda just got used to being alone and now im lonely again. I miss being able to just look over and say 'hey, what do you think of this?" How I function when he's gone im not sure. 

Baby wise im feeling tons of movement! Everytime it happens I get a little freaked out. Its still hard to believe there is something living inside me. I imagine my belly to be a fish tank right now. Theres a tiny goldfish that just keeps on getting bigger bumping into the walls right now. It seems like its flying by quite quickly. In less then 5 months Ill have a baby. THATS SO SOON! oh my. So much is going to happen between then and now its nuts.

What im craving?

Well you may or may not know I gave up soda for 2 years as New Years resolutions. If I were to say I was craving anything it would have to be Dr. Pepper. I think I may have been craving it the entire time and now I can drink it again. Im really trying to take it easy because I do have the little one inside to think about. I also know im not eating as healthily as Id like. Its hard to eat healthy being just me. I do need to throw in some more veggies though. Im not 100% Ive even had one veggie this week minus a few pieces of lettuce which I dont count as it was iceberg. So yeah, craving dr Pepper and thats about it. 

Any other changes?

Other than my larger belly most everything else is normal. Well, everything except my skin. Its C R A Z Y dry. My forehead flakes like snow. My arms and legs are dry too. Its quite odd. But im moisturizing as much as possible. I dont notice my hair getting any thicker due to a lack in hair loss. I also notice my hair coming out more than the usual. Perhaps Ill have an absolutely normal pregnancy and nothing will change except my belly. Id be ok with my feet not growing too.

I had a Drs. appointment yesterday and everything seemed fine. Im measuring normal. apparently Im 22 inches..( i think inches at least) from top to bottom and he says thats good cause it coincides with my week. Odd. Ive also not gained any weight since my last appt which he says is ok since Im measuring normal and im not starving myself. So Im still only +2 and still under 150 lbs for the time being.

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You say goodbye, I say Hello!

Perhaps I started out 2010 a little TOO adventurous. I ended up being a W H O L E lot busier than I had ever anticipated. Part of what some people do at the beginning of a new year is reflect on the year past. These are my resolutions from last year.

1) Not to drink soda pop again this year (last years old resolution) CHECK!
2) Cook at least 10 things a month Does Mac & Cheese count?
3) Read at least 5 books, rereading the Twilight saga doesn't cut it. :(  I think I read three..
4) Obviously the crafts, hopefully 365 in the end. I definitely crafted when I had time.. though not merely enough
5) Shoot 15 weddings, I have 5 booked now I just need to find 10 more. Any takers? CHECK-ish. I ended up with 14 weddings under my belt this year. It was a fantastic year!
6) Shoot a model once a month. I'm no good when it comes to models, mainly because I don't know strobes the way I want to. Because of that it makes me think I'm less of a photographer. I know that sounds silly but I'm going to try. Ive already got January's lined up for when I'm in Orlando later on in the month. I started out well but when my weddings for more frequent I had to hold off a bit.
7) Ill also try to clean more but im not having that be a resolution Yeah, not so much.. I did buy myself a DYSON for Christmas though..
8) get creative with my 52 weeks I started today. You should check it out in a few weeks. I have a few awesome ideas. Again, I got super swamped. No time for excess things.. plus I was feeling quite uninspired for a while there. 

Yeah.. so I did end up holding out on the whole soda thing. But I must admit.. I sincerely missed Dr. Pepper. He and I have been reacquainted and it has been a lovely relationship. I just dont want to spend too much time with him. Water and I need to maintain our relationship too. I was quite surprised to shoot 14 weddings. Its hard to wish to do something you have no control over. Though.. technically with second shooting I shot 15 weddings.

As for this year, my goals are quite different as there are a lot of changes coming up in my life soon.

1) Im only allowed to eat Fast Food once a week. Subway doesnt count.

2) I will try not to bite my nails. Ive been trying since I was old enough to realize biting my nails is gross. Now im just worried my nails will be SUPER ugly when/ if they ever DO grow out. Anyone have any tips or hints to help with this?

3) I will have a baby. I know this one is a given but I think its a pretty big thing. Its a good goal. I mean.. it would be weird if Little Jack just hung out in my belly for the rest of my life.

4) I will not buy any new clothes maternity or other wise until my pregnancy weight is back to where it needs to be. 135 lbs. I am allowed to buy accessories and baby clothes of course.

5) I would like to photograph 5 weddings this year. Why 5 you ask? 1: Im due in May(terrible timing with it being right smack dab in the middle of wedding season) 2: We are moving. We don't know where or when but we probably wont be here in good ole NC when the second wedding season sets in. 3: Because of those 2 reasons I only have one wedding booked right now. Thats 9 away from last year at this time. Ugh. Its very frustrating and there's nothing I can do about it.

6) I still want to get my craft on this year and I know I will with the baby on the way.. but I dont want to set any expectations. The same with cooking, reading and cleaning. :)

7) This year I WILL do a 52 weeks and 8) start a 365 of Little Jack. The 52 weeks because I want to document this sweet, huge belly Im getting. Once I have the baby it will turn into a 365 with one photo a week being a family photo. I also of course want to document Jack and his growth and the best way to do that is with a 365. Its going to be fun even if I dont post everything I take.

9) Take more photos for me. For no reason at all. Id like to document North Carolina while im still here. I need to go and do some exploration. I guess I just need to be outside more often.

10) I really need to get some things on the wall. Canvas', prints, random thrift store findings. Just something so our next house feels more homey.

 A few weeks ago Neil came home for emergency leave and we hiked over to his hometown of Oak Harbor, Washington. To get out of the house we did a little hiking to the top of a hill and of course I had to have a few photos of the newly developed bump. Here I am at 20 weeks. Im even bigger now at 22!

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