and on Instagram.

So, what does it all mean?

It means this little man

finally has a name!

In only 4 weeks the little guy formerly known as Peanut will officially be Collin Tyler Banks.

We’re kinda in love with him already

To celebrate, my awesomely talented friend Kashoan of KraftyKash sent me this little beauty!

I literally started happy crying right there at my mailbox when I opened it up. Seeing both my boys’ names right there, with my little surprise “Banks” charm, sent this hormonal momma over the edge.

Needless to say, I haven’t taken it off since

Want to celebrate too?

Kashoan is giving away a KraftyKash Personalized Vintage Dictionary Word Necklace Pendant with 3 letters of your choice (a $28 value)! Perfect for the holidays, or a gift for yourself

How to Enter

Mandatory: Visit KraftyKash and leave me a comment telling me your favorite piece

Like KraftyKash on Facebook

Like Momma Go Round on Facebook

BONUS: Purchase any item from KraftyKash and receive 5 extra entries! Please leave 5 separate comments including what you purchased.

Giveaway ends 11/18. All entries will be verified.

Now that I’ve reached the home stretch, I feel more like a bump on the couch than my normal self. Huge, swollen, exhausted…anything but cute and “wantable”. My sweet hubby tries to make me feel pretty and loved, but it’s darn near impossible right now.

With my usual standby of a little shopping trip to make me feel pretty again kinda pointless right now, I had just kinda resigned to feeling bleh for the next few weeks. Until…

a little box showed up on my doorstep!

I’ve been dying to try one of these beauty boxes for a long time, but was too afraid to pull the trigger. The subscription was the first thing that killed it for me. Not every month is there the extra money to shell out for fun new makeup. Then, to get the box, have only sample sizes, and need to shell out more money if I actually wanted to get the product? Not so much.

Enter the fabulous Wantable!

Full size products, coordinated to work perfectly together, selected based on your preferences, only $40, all name brands, and no subscription!!! The perfect thing when you need a little pick me up, want to try a new look, or want to give a great gift!

After filling out a short survey, I was matched with box options that best fit my makeup style. The best part…the first option was filled with things I actually wanted!

Hands down my favorite products are the lipstick from Paula Dorf and the lip gloss from Beauty for Real. I layer them to give a great rich color that’s not too harsh. Definitely gives me kissable lips

I’m also kinda obsessed with the mascara from myface.cosmetics. Makes my lashes look as long as my kid’s!

The best part is there isn’t a single product in there I don’t like. Each box is valued at $100 or more, and you can totally see why. Friends and family, you might getting these for Christmas, so try to act surprised!

Better yet, get one for you AND a friend! TODAY ONLY (11/12-11/13 at 5am) buy a Wantable box for yourself and get one to give as a gift for FREE!

With T-minus 5 weeks to go until this kiddo is here, life around these parts has become consumed by baby stuff. It’s funny how one teeny little almost-baked person can completely take over.

There’s the projects that are just about done…

like art for his room…

and LJ’s old clothes that are washed, but not put away.

There’s the projects that are yet to be finished…

like his room. Cause he can totally come tomorrow and have a place to sleep

Everyday life is still happening, I just can’t seem to keep up!

Who needs clean clothes to be folded and put away??? That’s overrated, right? And of course the vacuum always lives out, plugged in.

The one thing that’s getting me the most right now is how “not me” I’m feeling. I’m huge, nothing really fits, and it’s still a solid 85 degrees here. With 5 weeks to go, do I even bother getting my jeans shortened?

Friends, meet the uniform. Uniform, meet the friends.

1 pair of barely fitting maternity pants/shorts + 1 t-shirt that I can barely stand anymore + 1 pair of sandals my fat feet squeeze into = The End of The Line Uniform

No joke, most days look like this. I’m not proud of it, or the fact that yesterday I didn’t get out of my nightgown and robe until 2, but that’s life. Unless the weather decides to drastically change or this kid comes early, I’m stuck.

Is it December yet?

Oh, this was going to be comfortable. 

Dumping most of my weight onto my poor hubby, we walked ever so carefully up to where everyone was waiting….and I was home.

At a beautiful wedding site I’d never been to, in shoes I couldn’t walk in, with makeup put on hours before that was barely clinging to where I’d put it, I knew how lucky I was.

For 25 years I’ve been lucky enough to call this bunch of goobers more than my friends, but my family. We had the unique experience of getting to grow up together on the same street, go to the same schools, carpool, cheer each other on, fight, and all the dysfunctional awesomeness that we could come up with.

Sometimes it’s months between when we are all together, sometimes years, but it never matters. We pick right back up like we’re still kids running around playing tag in the cul-de-sac.

Goober with the garter on his head at my wedding…. one of the first people I remember seeing after waking up from a very drug induced nap after LJ was born.

Maid of honor, oldest friend, can’t imagine my life without her.

Uncle RoRo, thanks for getting married, you gave us a reason to be inappropriate and awesome, as usual.

Maybe it’s being a mom. Maybe it’s just time. Maybe it’s all these killer hormones, but it’s been almost 23 years since this picture was taken, and I love these guys more now than ever. Though some of us are rarely home, home is wherever we are.

For that, I’m blessed.

Between all of us getting the stomach flu and crunch time to actually getting this kid a room put together, it’s been a solid 3 weeks since these pictures were taken.

Shirt: Gap Outlet, Tee: Old Navy Maternity, Jeans: Old Navy Maternity (left over from LJ), Necklace: FB deal, Wedges: Old Navy, Ring: beach vendor

It’s shocking to me how much can change in such a short period of time.

One week.

A week ago, before the havoc of the stomach flu, I finally washed all of LJ’s old clothes.

To say it was a mind trip would be an understatement. Was he ever that small? Why did he have no pants? How weird will it be to see someone else in his clothes? Will they always be LJ’s clothes?

LJ with my Papa, 3 weeks old. How can this only be 3.5 years ago???? I can barely remember him being so little!

Six weeks.

That’s all that’s left until this little man of mine joins the world. Guess it’s time to wrap my brain around him being real and not just the gremlin in my tummy!

Tired, and mostly couch bound.

Mornings are spent running around getting errands done, picking LJ up from school, cleaning the house (sorta), and anything else I can muster up the energy to do. By about 2pm, my day is over. The couch and I have a date, often nap is invited, and I peel myself up only in time to make dinner. Costco lasagna or frozen spinach raviolis anyone?

With all this sleeping and butt sitting going on, it’s easy to see why it took me months to get a “bath picture” for my MIL for her master bathroom wall. What’s cuter and easier to do than get a little pic of LJ in some bath type setting? A nap, that’s what.

Wrapped up in his little white towel, I can’t help but be reminded of what an angel my boy has been these past few months.

There have definitely been the less-than-angelic moments of peeing on freshly cleaned floors, fits over eating his meal, or not using his listening ears. But he’s three, what can I expect?

I certainly didn’t expect someone so wise, caring, and understanding far beyond his years. His concern for me and his brother are more than I ever imagined.

I’m glad I waited so long to take these pictures. They mean so much more than a cute little bug wrapped up in a towel now.

I wanted to take a minute to let you know things that LJ won’t remember, and you will never know. I hope one day you read this and know how much your big brother loves you.

At 3.5 years old, you would think he’s waited a million years for you to come. His excitement is more than Daddy and I ever imagined. He asks day and night, in the middle of Target, at home on the couch, during morning snuggles, to give you hugs and kisses. One day I hope you understand how precious it is to see him pull up my shirt so he can get to you to give you love.

LJ has big plans for you two. Endless hours of Thomas the Train, sleepovers in his room, and reading “Stein” Bears are top of his list. Showing you off to his friends at school and taking you to Auntie’s house to play with him, Wesley, and Sawyer are so exciting he claps when he talks about them. He’s so proud of you and proud to be your big brother already.

There will come those days where you two are pounding on each other, fighting over a toy, doing all the crazy things that brothers do that give their moms heart attacks. Even when he is the last person you want to see, remember, he loved you before you were even here, and I’m sure he loves you even more now.

As LJ says, keep growing “big and strong” in there Little Brother. There’s only a few more weeks to go until you are stuck with LJ kissing you and hugging you as much as I do.

Love,

Mommy

I know, it’s heart stopping news. While it’s not exactly a revelation, most people I’ve met who “knew” me on the blog first are still shocked with how short I am. 5’2″ on a good day

I was bound and determined this time around to not jump straight into my maternity clothes like I did with LJ. I was going to make my closet work, come up with cute outfits. Yada yada yada, I was full of crap, ain’t happenin’.

The other day I thought I would try out that original plan of mine and see how it worked for me…

Shirt/Vest: Old Navy, Shorts: Gap Maternity, Necklace/Sandals: Target, Ring: Beach vendor

I proceeded to spend the rest of the day yanking down this shirt to cover my ridiculously straight out in front belly.

Sorry patrons of Target, you got more than you bargained for!

I now remember why I gave up my regular clothes so quickly. No one, not even me, wants to see the underside of my belly and accompanying stretchmarks.

So for now, dear closet of mine, I am surrendering to the enormity that is my belly. Birthday clothes I got to wear once, sweaters that will look like crop tops, even skirts with elastic waists…see ya on the flip side!

Hair was rockin’, makeup was on, wearing my socially acceptable pajamas…it was  good day! A rare moment for this momma that I actually felt like my old self and not this giant, pregnant, preschool momma covered in mystery substances.

Grab the tripod and remote, set LJ up with a snack, and head out front.

Dress: Gap Maternity, Necklace: some FB deal I don’t remember, Sandals: Target, Ring: beach vendor in Cabo

6 pictures…..6 PICTURES! That’s all I get off before…

Mommy, I pee…

As Marlin in Nemo says, “good feeling gone!”.

Back to reality. Such is the life of a momma

So here’s the stats to catch you up. Cause, well, these are the first pics I have of me really pregnant, so might as well document the progress.

Though I’m nowhere near the swollen Shrek like beast I was with LJ, my rings have been off for weeks now. Figured my Lisa Leonard necklace was the perfect spot for my rings to rest for the next 12+ weeks.

Top: Old Navy Maternity, Jeans: Gap Maternity (GET SOME BETTER ELASTIC GAP!), Hat: Charming Charlie, Sandals: Target, Necklace: c/o Lisa Leonard, Ring: Beach Guy in Cabo

While it’s fairly obvious now that I’m pregnant, it truly is just hitting me. The kid’s room is still a storage dump, I haven’t unpacked 1 ounce of clothing/toys/gear, and am only just coming to terms with the fact that I really can’t do my normal level of stuff in a day.

Guess it’s time to start wrapping my brain around this kid, since he’s already wrapped himself around my ribs