Beach Babymoon

Stewart and I love our sweet firstborn baby boy more than life itself, but we also recognize that a little healthy one-on-one "adult" time is crucial for our marriage and sanity. And since our lives are about to change again drastically in about three months when Baby Sister joins the family, we decided to plan a little grownup getaway for ourselves with some of our very best friends, Brett and Haley. 

We headed out to Ocean Shores for a weekend of relaxation...

Believe it or not (she looks tiny in this photo), Haley is also due with a baby girl just six days after me! We've had so much fun sharing our pregnancy experiences.

We had big plans for our weekend at the beach:

Relax... Repeat.

After an amazing night's sleep during which I, for once, did not have a two-year-old kicking me in the ribs and trying to climb on top of me all night, Haley and I headed to the nearby beach town of Seabrook for prenatal massages. Haley had found a beautiful unique day spa, where we were both treated to the most amazing massages of our lives! 

I honestly can't remember the last time I felt so relaxed and calm; it was exactly what I needed...

In the meantime, the boys had no trouble entertaining themselves back at the casino. 

They both won big, which meant next up was a yummy lunch at my favorite coastal seafood restaurant, Bennett's. And since we were on vacation, our next stop was the candy shop for ice cream and salt water taffy. 

Afterward, we rolled ourselves on down to the beach...

Future Baby BFFs.

The rest of the weekend we spent lounging, chatting, napping, watching movies (and the UW Husky football game), and of course eating as much as we could manage. I think on Saturday night all of us were asleep on the couch by about ten o'clock... 

Times sure have changed...

Ryder spent the weekend with my parents, and even though I knew he was having a fantastic time I sure did miss that little guy! He has been my entire world for the past 2.5 years, and I'm having a bit of a hard time imagining how I'm going to split my time and attention between two children. In the meantime, I am just trying to shower him in as much love and quality time as possible.

Because Baby Sister is on the way, and we can't wait to meet her!

Many, many thanks to our fabulous friends Brett and Haley for making this fantastic weekend possible. 

We love you guys! 

Holiday Pampering

To celebrate the start of the holiday season, the managers in my department decided to treat the admin staff to an evening of pampering at Apollo Nails and Spa in Queen Anne. This salon just opened in the past few weeks and it's absolutely gorgeous inside. The design is chic and modern with a cozy ambiance. The owner and the girls who did our pedicures were all super friendly and really took their time with our pedicures which turned out great. It was also really nice that we were able to bring in food and alcohol and lay it all out on the table in the middle of the room under an absolutely gorgeous trendy chandelier. Apollo provided all the glassware, plates and napkins that we needed and were extremely flexible about us taking over the salon with nine people. If this place had been around in March it would have been a great place to take my bridal party.

Everyone loved the relaxing pedicures and the yummy appetizers and drinks, and we especially appreciated the welcome down time away from the office. I got sparkly red polish, perfect to start off the holidays!

Wedding Pampering

In the weeks leading up to the wedding I had some major pampering done... something I don't normally indulge in, so I thought I would share some of my experiences.

I had my trial hair and makeup appointment at Swink Style Bar about three weeks before the wedding. After I looked into having someone come to the hotel suite to do my hair and makeup on the day of the wedding and finding out it was way out of my budget, I did some online research and found Swink. They had really great reviews and the salon was located right across the street from our hotel, plus the could accomodate my entire bridal party on the big day which I thought would be fun. Plus I loved the idea that in addition to the appointments for my wedding hair and makeup for the bride they include a trial appointment so you can test things out and make sure it's what you want. I brought a lot of inspirational photos and magazine cut outs to my first appointment and left feeling super confident that this very important piece of the puzzle was going to turn out right.

About two weeks before the wedding, courtesy of my maid of honor, I had an amazing "Sweet Treatments" organic facial at Sugar Sugar. I've only ever had one facial before but loved it, so I was really looking forward to a relaxing morning appointment at the spa. Sugar Sugar has customized facials that are personally designed to suit individual skin needs. The esthetician asked me all about my skin and how far out the wedding was and then used handpicked pure certified organic ingredients to get my skin into its healthiest condition. I left feeling hydrated, rejuvenated and glowing. And for just a little while I was actually able to relax and stop stressing about the wedding, so thanks Erin!

I bought a Groupon a while back for Duque Salon in Ballard, somewhere I had not gone before. I went for the first time about two months before the wedding so I could start catching up on my waxing before the honeymoon, and I also decided to try getting a brow wax which was new for me. The girl who worked on me was amazing, super friendly and not awkward at all considering what she was doing, and I just have to say that I think waxing is FAR less painful than sugaring for your lady bits. She also did a fantastic job on my eyebrows although warned me not to touch them again before my pre-wedding appointment. They had grown out quite a bit by the time my final appointment rolled around a few days before the wedding and she was able to make them absolutely perfect. The prices were also quite reasonable and I'll definitely be going back for future maintenance.

Lucky is the girl whose best friend is a hair dresser. In the morning two days before the wedding I headed over to Bellevue's Salon Cerchio so Crystal could cut, color and style my hair for the rehearsal dinner. Months before I had decided against going back to my natural hair color for the wedding, so I had a full foil done which Crystal made extra perfect for the big day, and we decided on a fun "old Hollywood" hairstyle for that evening to go with my flowing purple dress. I absolutely loved how my hair came out and it was wonderful to sit and chat with Crys for a while about last minute wedding details before things really got into full swing.

One of my bridesmaids kindly took over doing research to find a fun place for the bridal party to go for mani/pedis the day before the wedding. She ended up choosing Julep in downtown Seattle which was just a short walk from our hotel. I got a "Fab for 14 Porch Manicure" which included shellac french manicure polish which dries instantly to a high-gloss and chip-free shine and I loved how it turned out. I also got a super relaxing "Porch Pedicure" and while we were being worked on we all got to chat and enjoy the delicious treats and champagne the girls brought in. I thought Julep was perfect for this little girls day the day before my wedding, but their prices were pretty high so I probably wouldn't go there again unless it was a special occasion.

After my trail appointment at Swink Style Bar I thought a lot about my hair and makeup, so I showed up the day of the wedding with a list of changes I wanted to make. My hairdresser agreed with my thoughts and said the changes would be no problem. It was so fun to be there with my mom and all my bridesmaids around me while I got pretty. I was so nervous but in the end everything turned out perfectly and I couldn't wait for the groom to see me!

I've got a lot of talented bridesmaids, so many of them stayed behind at the hotel on the big day and did their own (or one another's) hair and makeup. Don't they look pretty?

Okay we're really getting close to the wedding now, but I still have a few more stories to tell first...

Sisters & Shellac

I chose a neutral color because it's
supposed to last so long...

Stewart got back from Vegas and almost immediately left for a snowboard trip to Silver Star in Canada, so I thought it was the perfect opportunity to spend some quality time with my sister.

A while ago we had purchased Groupons at Source Salon & Spa in Ballard for Shellac Signature Manicures. I've been hearing amazing things about shellac nail polish, but my one experience so far was absolutely terrible (the polish peeled off in sheets after only two days), so I haven't been in a huge hurry to give it another whirl. But my sis was in need of some chick chat and relaxation, so this was the perfect opportunity. And this time, I am in LOVE with shellac!

The salon was very modern and clean and as new customers we were treated to a tour of the entire facility and then were given cucumber flavored water while we waited. The appointment started right on time and I loved Angelina who did my mani and pedi, she was really friendly and talkative but she also paid super great attention to detail which is important to me because I'm such a perfectionist and I hate sloppy nail jobs. My nails look fabulous and the manicure included a lovely exfoliating scrub of my hands and arms, a massage, and a paraffin wrap. The pedicure was also fantastic and Angelina really took her time doing a perfect job, which I appreciated so much. She spent a lot of time working on my horrible calluses and giving me a great foot and leg rub. 

For my toes I picked something
a little more fun!

The prices were a little steeper than what I usually pay ($57 for shellac manicure and $40 for regular pedicure) but for this occasion I thought the extremely relaxing 2-hour appointment was well worth it. And the shellac is supposed to last 2-3 weeks, obviously much longer than regular polish. I also loved that their products are all organic, and they will do a complimentary makeup touchup for you at the end of your appointment if you ask.

This is probably one of the first times ever I've walked away from a mani/pedi appointment where I wouldn't change a thing. And this salon would be a great place to go for a bachelorette/bridal/birthday party.

I really do love a good pampering!