Flora +

Memorial Day Weekend.... through the iphone's lens

2012-05-31T08:19:00.001-07:00

I'm thankful for an awesome memorial day long weekend. It was just the right amount of activities and rest. My favorite part was probably going to "music at the park" it must be one of the best things to do in Chicago during summer. Nothing like laying down in the grass listening to classical music eating all kinds of snacks.. after hibernating for months in the Chicago winter. It was fun to go with my brother and his wife since it was their first time there. We also went to brunch... everyday.. another favorite activity of ours, we decided to splurge since we know there wont be many peaceful brunches once baby girl arrives! If I was rich I would do fancy brunches every single day :) yumm! we even had tres leches french toast! how delicious! We also went to the beach for a long walk, and that last picture is at the market.. holding a pineapple since that's how big she is now! I certainly feel like I'm carrying a pineapple around all day :)

34 weeks

2012-05-30T07:34:00.001-07:00

Only 6 more weeks until my due date and 5 more weeks at work! sounds exciting and very nerve-racking. I'm happy to report I'm still feeling fairly good, still sleeping ok through the night, I can still breathe normally, .. but my feet! my feet hurt sooo much these days! and all of my summer flats (usually super comfy) are pretty tight these days, so sandals it is! The walk to the train is definitely getting more challenging, between the pressure on my stomach as I walk and my hurting feet, poor Chris has to stop and wait for me as I slowly waddle next to him. He ends up missing his train by just a little bit every morning and I feel so bad :) He pretends it's not a big deal, but I know the frustration deep down of waiting for the next one in the platform when you were soo close. We had an awesome memorial day weekend and I was good about taking lots of pictures so we can remember it.. We did quite a bit of work on the final touches for the nursery, and we are almost done with it! it doesn't look at all what I had in mind when we first begun.. but between compromising on looks and colors with Chris, trying to fit it all in a pretty tiny space, and trying not to go overboard on the prices it was pretty much impossible to recreate the perfect nursery I had in my head. I still love what we did though, and I'm pretty sure she's gonna love it in there.. is nice and cozy. Girly but not too girly. I will be posting pics as soon as we finish.

33 weeks

2012-05-26T21:04:00.000-07:00

When we bought our condo we had no idea there was a super nice park less than a block away from us! how did we miss that? I don't know.. but that goes to show how God is even in the tiny details. So this last weekend we went for a walk to check it out for the first time, I am so excited about taking my baby girl to play there in a few months... Even when it gets colder outside it wont be such a daunting task knowing that it's so close.

I got this shirt a long time ago, every time I wore it I thought it would be a sweet shirt to wear when I was pregnant, well I almost forgot about it! luckily I saw it hiding away in our closet, so here it is with my ever growing pregnant belly :)

The lint effect: that's what I call what's happening to all my shirts! I tend to rub my belly so much, specially on the right side where she's usually kicking, that I started noticing the annoying little lint balls in most of my favorite shirts :( what a bummer! The worse part is even now that I'm aware I can't stop rubbing my belly! She moves around so much, that I think that's my first reaction. You can barely see it in the picture but believe me, it's way more obnoxious in real life.

3 años con mi Chris!

2012-05-23T07:59:00.000-07:00

Three years ago, I had possibly the best day of my life when I married my Chris. Before we got married we were told by soo many people that marriage was no easy thing, and that we would need to work hard at it, and that it's not always blissful, etc.. etc... so we were both ready for the really hard times to hit, well... I'm happy to report, we are still waiting for those really hard times people talk about. After three years of being together we've both noticed how surprisingly easy and fun our marriage has been so far. I'm sure having a baby will add stress, and many challenges, but I'm confident we will be just fine. A lot of people think we get along so well because we both have really laid back personalities. I think it's all due to the immeasurable amount of blessings God has given us these three years. I'm so glad we've taken many many pictures these past three years, because it's fun to look back and see all the things we've done together and things we have accomplished.
I cannot wait to see what the next 70 years will bring for us!
I thank God for my Chris all the time, because I could not have picked a better partner for myself. I can only hope our baby girl will marry someone as wonderful as her very own daddy! Here's some of my favorite pictures from that day 3 years ago. And some other pictures of these past 3 years.
I love you Chris!

Thankful Tuesdays - Laundry

2012-05-22T10:56:00.001-07:00

This tuesday, I am thankful for a washer and dryer at home!
If you live in Chicago or any other big city you know that washer and dryer inside your home are consider a total luxury. That was one of my few "must haves" when we bought our condo. For years I have shared washers and dryers with strangers.. I'm not a germ freak by any means, but to know that you are washing your clothes right after who knows who, that just washed who knows what type of clothes! yuck!
I couldn't even imagine washing my baby clothes in one of those washers! not to mention most of this shared laundry places are usually at the very basement of the building, which can be really creepy at night..in our last apartment I would have to wait for Chris to have a chance to come downstairs with me and help me out carrying the heavy laundry down and then up 4 floors. Needless to say I hated doing laundry. But now, I'm a new woman! laundry gets me so excited! our place is pretty small so getting clothes to and from the room is a piece of cake, I never forget the dryer sheets anymore because they are right there! I love how the house smells right after I pull the clothes from the dryer, I probably wash our towels and sheets twice as often as I ever have, just because I can. And I'm sure Chris is loving the fact that he can officially take laundry off of his to do list forever.

Don't be fooled by the picture, this is not our actual laundry room, this picture is just from pinterest. Unfortunately our laundry room is not as glamorous, it's just the cute little stacked washer and dryer on top of each other behind a door. But I love them anyways.

32 weeks

2012-05-15T11:49:00.000-07:00

Thirty-two weeks already! time is going by so fast!! This pregnancy will be over before I know it! That's why I'm savoring every second of it! Chris took this pretty pictures of the bump yesterday on our roof-deck while he grilled some burgers that I was craving! He has me pretty spoiled these days and I love it!

Dear Baby Girl: Each day you are in my belly is such a gift! These days you are more active than ever! at work they call you vampire baby because my stomach moves so violently when you shift around. It's kindda creepy, and sweet in a weird way. Everyone always ask me "what is she doing in there?"... I wish I knew! Your room is slowly coming together, we bought most of the essentials this past weekend and it seems so real that you will be here with us soon! we bought teeny tiny diapers for you! and for some reason that gets me so excited. The smell of new diapers reminds me of when I was little, and I used to put tiny diapers on my teddy bear and dolls, well now you are my real life doll! and I can't wait to change your diapers! (too bad its gonna be real life poop too) Your dad started calling me rolly polly because of the way I get in and out of bed and the couch. It's getting harder to do everyday things with this big belly :) but I wouldn't change it for the world! I have a strong feeling you are coming early just because of the way you move inside of me, you seem so ready for this world! But I also had a strong feeling you were a boy.. and look how that turned out!
Love ya!
Your mama.

PS. Thanks to my sister in law Andrea for letting me borrow this beautiful girly dress! I haven't had a chance to wear it to any events just yet, but I hope I do soon!

Feliz Dia de las madres 2012!

2012-05-10T06:05:00.000-07:00

Today is mother's day in Mexico, so this is a little post in honor of my awesome mother. Her name is Monica, I call her Moni. She's one of those moms that you wouldn't change for the world. Ever since we were little she has always been an excellent mother. I am so so so glad to have her example to follow with our little girl. One of the reasons why I am so excited about having a daughter is because I can envision my relationship with her as special as my relationship with Moni.
Here's a few things that I can only wish I will also do with baby girl as she did with me and my siblings:
1 • She attempted natural birth with no drugs, but after many many hours of brave pushing she was too small and had to get an emergency c-section :( (But who are we kidding... I'm small too so I might just skip the natural birth part and go straight to the epidural part)
2 • She attempted to keep us away from sugar for as long as she could! and I'm sure that was a hard task!
3 • She breastfed all three of us diligently for at least a year!
4 • She made all our baby food from scratch and carefully introduced new foods to make sure we were not allergic. Thanks to the exposure to all kinds of food she gave us, I now have a taste for just about anything, and enjoys all kinds of foods and spices! (expect cumin! cumin sucks!)
5 • She was constantly making all kinds of art and craft projects with us, my favorite one being the homemade play-doh! I can't wait to do this with my daughter! I hope she loves it as much as I do. It smells sooo good! and I have awesome memories making play-doh in the kitchen table.
6 • She had us try all kinds of extracurricular classes to try to figure out what we were good at. You name it, we did it. Piano classes, guitar lessons, tennis lessons, swimming lessons, ballet classes, painting classes, french lessons...and even math lessons after school when she figured out how much I sucked at math :)
7 • When I was a teenager she was the excellent balance of mother and friend. I felt comfortable enough to let her know about all my boyfriends but respected her advice as a mother as well. So I was able to have a fun and healthy teenage stage.
8 • She's coming over once baby girl arrives, she will stay with us for a little while and I'm sure she will be a huge help and encouragement during the cahos.

These are just very few of the many many things that make her a class A mother. Wanna know more about her? This is a post I wrote a couple years back, with a list of my favorite things about her. check it out.

And this is yet another picture by Leo Patrone, thanks to him shooting our wedding, these are the only decent pictures of the family we have :)

My two cents on maternity clothes

2012-05-07T09:58:00.000-07:00

Ever since I found out I was pregnant I was so very excited about dressing my growing bump. Only to realize most maternity clothes out there, are pretty hideous and/or not affordable! #1. Most of them intend to cover up the bump! which I hate! it's not like we got suddenly fat and want to hide it! its more like we are growing little humans in there and are proud to have this big bumps sticking out! so I wanna show it off! I consider my 7.5 month belly my best accessory right now :) It seems like most maternity clothes are these huge flowy pieces of fabric, that makes shorter girls like me, look more like little potato sacks with no shape. #2 What's with the flowery beachy patterns? it seems like most maternity dresses were made for those who live in Hawaii! believe me, those dresses will not work here in Chicago! Having said that, I have found a few pieces that I absolutely love!

1. J BRAND Skinny Jeans- that I borrowed from my sweet friend Nicole.. they are pricey but sooo worth every penny!
2. Liz Lange for Target- V-Neck Top- comfy and perfect for the office
3. Liz Lange for Target- long and lean basic tank top- I have them in every color and wear one under whatever clothes every single day! they are very soft and I love how it's tight but not too tight.
4. Motherhood Long sleeved striped shirts- super comfy and useful.
5. Old Navy Tees- I borrowed a bunch of this from my sister in law Sarah, and have been using then a lot, I love that they have the ruffled sides so they grow with your belly, they never look too big or too small.
6. Motherhood Secret Fit Belly Cargo pants- I also borrowed this from my sister in law Sarah and I love them! it's almost like wearing pajamas! They might look dorky on the picture, but they don't in real life.

I've also been able to still use some of my old clothes, all those striped shirts that I already had from old navy and J Crew, make my belly look nice because they fit and snug around my belly, I'm totally gonna regret doing this if I find out I have been stretching them out all this time.. but we'll see.

La Colombe Coffee

2012-05-04T08:35:00.001-07:00

I love our new neighborhood! Chris and I spotted "La Colombe" truck on our way to the train this morning! And eventhough we were running late (like we are everyday)
I wanted to stop by and find out what the adorable little red truck was all about.
They were giving away free food and coffee! yum! Turns out they are an awesome company that specializes in free/direct trade coffee. Check out the video if you wanna learn a little more about them. They have shops in NY, Philadelphia,
Chicago and South Korea. As you can see in the picture below the adorable little red truck was originally and ambulance in France in the 1967. How cool is that?

Gratitute

2012-05-01T12:04:00.001-07:00

Pretty appropriate post for Thankful Tuesdays. I am loving Claire's blog
fellow fellow, she has a huge amount of DIY projects and beautiful inspiring things
in her blog, such as this! It's one of those blogs you wish you had been following
for a while because it's so good! Thanks to Ellie from mint for enlightening me with
this brilliant find.

Thankful Tuesdays - Baby Shower

2012-05-01T10:13:00.000-07:00

This Tuesday I'm thankful for friends, sister and sister's in law that made this cute baby shower happen last weekend. I had a great time! and got tons of cute teeny tiny baby girl clothes. My favorite was probably the tiniest little tutu I've ever seen in my life! who knew they make such tiny ones!? I can't wait to put it on my baby girl.

30 WEEKS

2012-04-29T18:28:00.000-07:00

These are some pictures that Chris took of me this weekend. I'm 30 weeks along, only 10 more to go! as you can see my belly is really sticking out now! Life has gotten a little different these days. Here's a list of things that I've been noticing about pregnancy so far: My laptop doesn't balance very well on my round belly... and it's very uncomfortable to find a position. Putting my contacts in every morning is getting harder and harder... as I get further and further from the mirror.. it's tricky after years of leaning really close toward the mirror. I've gotten to know just about every bathroom available, Home Depot, Babie's R Us, grocery stores, restaurants, movie theaters, you name it I've been there. It doesn't help that I absolutely hate public bathrooms, they are all gross! Strangers seem to have an opinion on whether we're having a boy or a girl, which I find quite amusing... why do they care? haha they don't even know me. Sushi, wine, oysters and coffee seem more appealing than ever before! My belly no longer fits under my desk at work, so I have to sit further away with stretched arms and it looks kindda weird. Putting socks and pants on has become quite a task! not to mention shaving my legs, that now take 4 times longer. But other than that, I'm still loving being pregnant. Getting more and more eager each day to finally hold and cuddle my baby girl.

The French Market

2012-04-27T09:24:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to The French Market with some of my coworkers for lunch, and it was a lot of fun. If you live in Chicago you should definitely check it out.

They sell all kinds of things! from fresh fruit and veggies, to macaroons, to organic soaps and even wines. You name it, they have it! Lots of little places to grab delicious lunch too!

While walking around the market I saw a butternut squash and told everyone that according to my app that's how big baby girl is this week! They didn't believe me! because it seemed rather large. Check it out.

Thankful Tuesdays- La nueva cocina!

2012-04-24T07:16:00.000-07:00

This Tuesday, I'm thankful for our new kitchen, and how fast it got done! Ever since we bought our condo we've had quite a list of things we wanted to improve on. The kitchen being one of the major ones. I honestly doubted it would get done before the baby's arrival. Specially after several attempts by Chris, staining the cabinets himself! Then we got a quote from Home Depot just to re-face our cabinets and it that was over 10k! after that I was really doubting any of this would ever get done. But then we did some more research and we found some guys that were willing to stain them for much much less! Last weekend we had them come pick up the cabinet doors to get them stained with a much darker brown (instead of that boring oak color). This Saturday morning they came back and finished the cabinets which we loved. Then we went shopping for the backsplash, luckily we both agreed that the stone look was the best, it didn't take long to narrow it down. So my very motivated husband decided he was not just gonna start the project but finish the whole thing this weekend! He got some mortar, we borrowed a wet saw, and some tools from my father in law.. and bam! by 7pm sunday he was done! never underestimate my Chris! We both loved how it all looks together, exactly what we had in mind. It even feels like we are cooking in someone else's kitchen :)

29 weeks

2012-04-22T19:11:00.002-07:00

Only 11 more weeks to go!! I cannot believe how fast time is going by. I've heard so many girls complain about how long pregnancy is, and being annoyed at people/strangers that ask them about their pregnancy in the streets, stores or the train. It's probably because I've had an extra easy pregnancy so far, but I am seriously loving every second of it. I love staring at my growing belly in the mirror! it feels like a dream. And I absolutely love it when strangers ask me "when are you due?, is it a boy or a girl?, how are you feeling?" and my favorite "you are 7 months already?" :) Here's some updates/stories about 29 weeks pregnant Flora:
1. Baby Girl is kicking up a storm these days, I think her bones are getting harder everyday and she is getting bigger! at work my coworkers can even see my belly shifting across the room!, pretty much anybody that wants is able to feel her moving at anytime :) She puts on quite a show! The other day she was pretty calm in there, so I asked Chris to listen in and see if he could hear anything, because she wasn't moving as much as usual. So Chris leans down, and almost immediately she kicked his ear super hard :) to the point that he said "ouch!" We could not stop laughing.
2. I'm pretty blessed to still be able to sleep very comfortably at 29 weeks, she seems to sleep at night which I know is very rare (it's usually the other way around). So except for the 3 or 4 times I get up at night to go to the bathroom, which doesn't bother me that much, I sleep pretty well :)
3. My belly button is in the process of popping out! and I am so incredibly excited about it! Sometimes you can see it slightly raising thru my shirt, but then it goes
back in. We'll see when it decides to come out for good!
4. We had a pretty successful weekend: we finish updating our kitchen (pictures coming soon), and we also built her crib! which made everything a little more real,
I stop by the nursery every-time I walk by it, just to picture her peacefully sleeping
in there. I can only hope things will keep going as smooth as they have so far.

minted art challange

2012-04-16T12:39:00.000-07:00

Chris and I entered the latest minted challenge.
Click on the links under each one to vote for us!

art prints - Unwinding
art prints - The Ladder
art prints - Self Portrait
art prints - Inward Happiness
art prints - Trying to look good

Thankful Tuesdays

2012-04-10T09:02:00.000-07:00

Today I'm thankful for this recipe. My hunger level these days is through the roof!
I want to eat constantly!! I don't crave anything specifically, I just want food. All kinds of food. I'm loving this quick and simple Tomato Basil Sandwich recipe. It's super delicious! I could it 4 of these everyday, and it seems somewhat healthy.. (better
than cinnamon rolls anyways). I sometimes put cucumber in there too just to add more veggies. yummy!

picture via: teenytinyturkey

Chris made a font this weekend

2012-04-09T19:04:00.000-07:00

One of the things I love about Chris is that he constantly comes up with projects, and (unlike me) he finishes them. No matter what it is that he puts his mind towards he gets it done. This weekend he was looking for a very specific kind of font, and he couldn't find one that he liked, so of course he decided to make his own, even-though he's never made a font before, and off he goes.. Three days later, we have a new awesome font! He's planing on selling it once he perfects it, stay tune if you like it! check it out!

Meet Nube

2012-04-06T14:29:00.000-07:00

A few weekends back, when we went looking for the perfect stroller, we were also looking for the perfect stuffed animal for baby girl. I'm not a big fan of having tons and tons of stuffed animals.. I think its kindda overwhelming. But I am a huge fan of having one very special stuffed animal that grows with you. I mentioned before in this post how I read from a mom at The Glow about sleeping with a certain stuffed animal before the baby is born so it will acquire your scent. Then once the baby is born and needs to be transported to her crib, the stuffed animal goes with her so she is comforted by the scent of her mother. Awesome idea. Luckily Chris thought it was a good idea too! and he didn't think it was super corny or hippyish. So we ended up buying this funny looking round lamb from Giggle . We named her "Nube" which means cloud in Spanish, because she looks and feels kindda like a big fluffy cloud. So we started sleeping with Nube that same night, then Chris did the sweetest thing I've ever seen him do. All of the sudden I realized Nube was hanging out over by his side of the bed a lot more, instead of right in the middle... So I asked: "Chris, how come she always ends up on your side of the bed?" He responded very blatantly "oh! that's so our baby likes me better, and she recognizes my scent better than yours!" is that the cutest thing you've heard or what? That's why I love him so much! he is already such a good daddy to her.

Thankful Tuesdays

2012-04-03T16:03:00.000-07:00

This Tuesday I'm thankful for KIND Healthy Snacks. If it wasn't for this delicious fruit & nut bars I would be eating donuts and cinnamon rolls everyday! which is probably not the greatest idea when you are pregnant! My good friend Sarah introduced me to them and I've been eating them everyday ever since. My favorite flavor by far is "Walnut + Date" for some reason it reminds me of Mexico.. I have no idea why.

But don't be fooled. I still indulge in delicious donuts every once in a while! ;)
asking me to quit donuts and coffee all at once would be too much..

26 WEEKS and growing!

2012-04-01T19:07:00.000-07:00

This awesome tree just bloomed right in front of our place and I'm loving it! it makes me so happy that spring is finally here! it also makes me anxious because I know the big day approaches!

Dear Baby Girl-
You are growing faster than my body can, I think. The doc said soon enough you won't be moving and rolling around as much because you will run out of space.. but you kick so hard and move around so much, it seems like you are ready to come out! Your dad and I can now differentiate the different parts of your body! We can tell the difference between the kicks of skinny legs and the big round head (or butt!) moving around. It just doesn't get old. I love it every time.
This pregnancy has also stopped me from one of my worse habits. Biting my nails! I can't do it anymore because they got so hard! that it hurts my teeth now.
Your new favorite spot in my belly is all the way to the right, under my ribs. It's kindda funny you've been hanging out there the last few days.. and I wonder if my right side is somehow more comfortable for you than my left side. Today we were on the train and you wiggled really fast in a way you never had before, and you actually tickled me for a few seconds!! I laughed out loud suddenly.
Everyone looked at me like I was crazy.
This weekend we got a 4D ultrasound just so we could see your sweet face moving around one more time, and we loved it. It's hard to tell because you were all balled up in there, but it seemed like you had my big lips and your dad's nose. Your hands, feet and legs were in your face most of the time so we couldn't see much, but you did give us a sweet smile that made me so happy.

While taking pictures, we discovered a new burger place that just opened a couple blocks from our place called "indie burger" and it was quite delicious! I highly recommend it! everything is organic, local and very yummy!

Wind Map

2012-03-28T21:12:00.000-07:00

Absolutely mesmerizing. An invisible, ancient source of energy—energy that powered the first explorations of the world. This map shows you the delicate tracery of wind flowing over the US right now. I could stare at it for a while! be sure to check it out here

Thankful Tuesdays

2012-03-27T14:11:00.000-07:00

This Tuesday I'm thankful for craigslist It is amazing, how much stuff we were able to sell in there this past weekend. Sunday we just went around the house and made a list of all the things we no longer want/need.We assigned prices and divided the list in two. Chris posted and managed half of the list I posted and managed half, and bam! three days later our house is looking much cleaner and we have some extra cash that we'll probably end up using to buy all the furniture for the baby's room. Piece of cake! I would highly recommend doing a house cleanse! The only thing craigslist has to improve on? their website design! My goodness! get with the times... a site that millions of people visit everyday should have a better design by now.

Abuelita Flora

2012-03-21T20:31:00.001-07:00

My heart is heavy today. My sweet grandma Flora went to be with the Lord last night. It's a bittersweet day. We knew she was suffering so we are comforted now that she is in heaven, but the thought of not having her in this earth anymore hurts really bad. She was and always will be such an inspiration to everyone around her. I had the privilege to be the only granddaughter named after her and for that, I am very grateful. She was not just astonishingly beautiful, but she was very smart, always happy and smiley, cracking jokes at just the right time, caring for everyone, always glamorous, and my favorite memory of her is... she always, always, always smelled good! She lead an amazing life through her 88 years, and I'm sure the Lord welcomed her with a huge "Bravo!" She was married to Grandpa for 67 years, they had a wonderful marriage through and through. She raised her 7 children! (one of them happens to be one of my favorite people in the world, my dad), she traveled the world with grandpa, she was always classy, always prudent, always refined and always devoted to the Lord. She loved life. I am grateful I got the chance to tell her we were expecting. I clearly remember her words with much excitement "que hermosura!" which means "what a beauty!" That was the last time I talked to her, and I'm glad it was so with such happy news. I can only dream my daughter will be like the beautiful, Godly and impeccable woman that she was.
I miss you already Grandma.

Photos of our wedding taken by Leo Patrone.

Thankful Tuesdays

2012-03-20T12:50:00.000-07:00

This Tuesday I'm thankful for my sister Ana. I hope our baby girl gets to have a sister like her, or that she can be an older sister like her. She's done so much for me for the past 27 years.. I couldn't even begin to tell you. Every time I can't decide on something she's the first person I call. I know that most likely I wont like her answer, but deep down I know she's always right, so she's probably right again.
Remember that pretty wedding we had two and a half years ago? well she was the brains behind that whole operation.. from the flowers, to the church, to the dresses.. every detail was perfect thanks to her! I have been so blessed to have her in my life all these years, and I'm really looking forward to the coming years! I have a feeling she's gonna be an awesome aunt! She's already bought her the most stylish little clothes and shoes :) This pretty picture of her was taken by (my favorite photographer + good friend) Leo Patrone