C- section scar.

I am the type of person that obsesses over my imperfections, especially my skin. Growing up I always had really great skin, and then puberty happened. Since then, I've gone through every stage of skin problems. (Oily, acne, dry patches, and recently cysts.) 

Hormones are not my friend.

Well, I was really confident going into my pregnancy about everything.. But then , before any noticeable bump popped out I was already bearing 2 stretch marks... Before I was even 12 weeks pregnant.

I talked to my doctor and she told me that the elasticity of my skin would probably resemble that of my mom's and grandma's. Well, crap. They're covered in stretch marks. 

And well, the same thing happened to me. It has beaten me down pretty bad, because it was already a bad insecurity of mine. It really doesn't help that my skin is highly sensitive and will react to anything.

Well, when the reality of a possible c section was brought to the table weeks before I was due, I had to come to terms with another damn scar. It's been a big problem for me mentally. But, I religiously try to keep it moisturized and I use a dark skin neutralizer. I finally checked my scar today for the first time in a month.. And I'm pretty happy with the difference that I already can see! 

I was having issues with sensitivity and itchiness in the area, so I stopped wearing any undies that touched my scar.. (THANKYOU PINK FOR MAKING THESE AWESOME UNDIES)..

Here is how my scar looks currently. :-)

I pulled my stretched out skin up for you to see, haha! 

Teething SUCKS.

Opal has been so fussy and crazy the last 2 weeks once 8 o clock hits... And I finalllllllly have proof that it is teething problems. Her left upper front tooth has began to debut itself and man, I totally forgot how teething sucks for me! I'm like her pacifier ALL night! She will wake up and screammmmmmm, latch on to my boob and won't go to sleep until 3 am, and then insists on waking up around 7.. I haven't had a good night's sleep in weeks now. I hope these two top teeth come in as fast as the last two did, so we can resume our normal 8 hr sleep routine. I miss it dearly.

I hope you are well rested, thanks for reading this short rant.

<3

I'm not fancy!

Have you seen this video? If not, you should take a few minutes and watch it! It is absolutely hilarious and definitely something any parent can relate to! I wont go on forever, just thought I'd share something to make you smile today! Have a lovely one!

7 months of fabulousness.

 

Can y'all believe that my winter baby is now over 1/2 a year old?! I swear, it honestly feels like just last week I was rocking her in the nursery with Dillon, scared to death that we were going to mess something up. I can't even begin to explain just how much my life has changed since becoming a mother. Some days I don't even want to leave the house alone with Opal, because I don't want to do it all by myself. Little things are actually tough to do! Things like, loading/ unloading her stroller and carseat, opening a door to a building WITH the stroller, paying/ getting gas, grocery shopping in general, etc..

It has been especially harder the past 2 months, because Dillon is still in DC, while I am here in California. My family gets annoyed with me, because I tend to ask for help a lot (not really, they're just not quite used to it all yet). It was much easier to hand her off to Dillon, because that's her daddy! Its his job to love on her while I hide in the bathroom! (haha!) But- good news- (fingers crossed and prayers welcome) is that Dillon, Opal, and I may be living under one roof again as soon as January 2015! That's only 5 months from now! Woo-hoo!

Wait, 5 months!?!?!? Holy cow, do you know what that means? That also means that Opal will be turning 1 in 5 months! (begins sobbing*) My younger sister Reyna, is already pinning away on Pinterest for her birthday party ideas.. It is that serious around here. 

Here are a list of some of Opal's milestone achieved this past month:

1. she began crawling forward this month.
2. that led to sitting. I walked away for 30 seconds, came back and found her watching tv sitting up on her own! I nearly cried I was so proud.
3. Its been 5 days of sitting and she has already mastered balancing and doesnt fall over much either!
4. She is beginning to wave to us.
5. She is also learning ways to communicate to us, such as asking for someone to grab her, no, yes, more, etc.
6. She has decided that she is NOT a fan of pureed food. So, I just feed her mashed up vegis/fruits and she also eats what I eat. She's actually pretty great at mashing/"chewing" her food.
7. She also LOVES the apple juice/ water mixture. 
8. We're still breastfeeding, and she still prefers it over everything :-)
9. Oh, she also is trying really hard to pull herself up while in her crib.
10. Wait, did I mention she has transitioned successfully to a crib! Yep, that too!

My $4 manicure.

 

$4? Yes! $4! I have been obsessed with Maybelline's "Color show" nail polishes for a while now, but I think I may have just bought my favorite combo of them all! 

The pretty blue/green is called "green with envy" - such a sweet minty summer color!! I love it. The gold glitter (probably the prettiest and most efficient glitter polish I've ever purchased is: "gilded rose".

Aren't they just soooooo dreamy? I'm in love with my hands right now. Seriously.

As a mama to a 7 month old baby who has been crawling for a month now,

I never ever get time to cook myself food, let alone paint my nails...

Thankyou Maybelline for creating such a great polish line!

Now, to the $4 part.. There's a coupon online for $1 off of these online

(normally $2.99 at target) so, go snag yourself a bottle of this and fall in love! :-)

(P.S. I am ACTUALLY obsessed with these and this is all my honest opinion. Totally in love.)

Sitting like a big kid never looked so cute!

I can't believe how big and strong Opal is now! She is growing so fast into such a beautiful little genius! She amazes me! This Sunday she will be 7 months old, ain't that somethin'!! 

Just this month alone she began crawling, sitting in the big girl seat in the cart, wanting to pull herself up to walk, sitting on her own, and eating textured foods! 

She has been pretty crazy about NOT wanting to sit in her car seat (which doubles as her stroller,) so having the cart as an option has been a life saver!!

Here are some snaps from earlier at Home Depot!

Also, note that she never wears shoes... She despises them.

FINALLY!

I finally decided it was time for a makeover for "datgurlChels". I decided to try to cram it all in nap time.... Well it took 3 nap periods, but Thankyou nap gods for letting me get it done! I was getting reallllllly frustrated with it all after a while.

I was unsure of which way to go with it, but then I caught a glimpse of my first Mother's Day card the hubby and babe gave me and decided that would be my inspiration! I also have been drawing and paint for Opal, so I wanted to incorporate watercolor into the design also. 

I was talking to my sister about my anxiety and some other things I need to work on and put focus on, including being a mother and wife.. So I am planning some posts on how I am working on those things.

I would love to hear your thoughts on my new blog design ;-) Dillon says it is very "me" as in me, Chelsea, not him.. (Hahahaha!)