I decided on a whim that I wanted to redesign my blog, and with not a large budget I searched Etsy for templates. I found a great designer that lives in Munich, Germany and she was super affordable! Premade templates are THE way to go if you want to start a blog and don't have any HTML experience. You can find templates for Blogger and Wordpress, and for an additional cost designers will work with you to customize the site.
New Look + Affordable Blog Templates
Clean Out Your Closets Using VarageSale
- A platform to buy and sell new and gently used items with your local community.
- We’re unique because the community is built around trust and real identities, which has resonated well with people, especially moms.
- VarageSale is available in local communities across 42 states, and has millions of users
- VarageSale is completely free to use, and available on iOS, Android and online at www.varagesale.com
- Buy items at a fraction of the retail price (some up to 90% off!)
- Earn extra cash by decluttering your home and selling unused items
- Shop with confidence by browsing member profiles to see real names and photos which have been vetted by local admins and moderators
- Get to know your neighbors in a fun, social environment
- Central/East - http://m.varagesale.com/m/5YPKH8tVZn
- North Austin (includes Round Rock, Cedar Park, Pflugerville) - http://m.varagesale.com/m/XQ5kNM4GUn
- South Austin - http://m.varagesale.com/m/Ng8Sr24fTn
- SW Austin - http://m.varagesale.com/m/VAVmzqbmTn
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/VarageSale
- Twitter: @VarageSale
- Instagram: VarageSale
- YouTube: www.youtube.com/varagesale
- Check out this channel for lots of short, fun video demos of how VarageSale works
I hope you try out this super user friendly app, and let me know what you think!
31 Weeks {Twins}
How Far Along: 31 Weeks (this is a week late so I can give you a full update on my 30th week of pregnancy)
Babies Genders: Boy (Walton) AND Girl (Whitney) #WaltandWhit
Due Date: February 8, will deliver no later than January 25
Things to Note:
- I threw a Favorite Things Christmas party on Friday night. It took a lot of prep work and cleaning the day of, which was a bit hard on my body. Using the Swiffer wet jet was the most exhausting part, and caused me to have a ton of Braxton hicks every time I contracted my stomach.
- Saturday night I went to a friend's tacky sweater Christmas party and my neighbor let me borrow her amazingly horrific denim jumper. It was a hit at the party, and thankfully I didn't have to worry about how I looked...because I was wearing a bag. I ate a TON, and then had horrific heartburn all night. I've been popping tums like they are going out of style.
- I've bought the cutest boy/girl outfits lately (mostly from Old Navy & Gap). Buying for boy/girl twins is seriously the funnest thing. I don't think if I had girl twins or boy twins that I could buy the same outfit twice, so I love it when I find matching outfits but in contrasting colors.
Nursery: Hoping to begin working on the closet very soon with an awesome collaboration. Stay tuned!
Symptoms:
- Braxton-Hicks contractions
- Heartburn, especially during the night. Propping myself seems to help a bit.
- I wake up about 3 times per night to use the restroom. I wake up around 3/4 I'm wide awake so I have to try very hard not to get on my phone.
Exercise: 30 min. walk. I've basically given up on exercising. At this point, every time I move I have braxton hicks contractions, and the weight is definitely putting a toll on my body so I've decided to take it easy from this point on.
Clothing: I'm really hoping that I can nurse the twins, so I've been eyeing nursing friendly tops and bras. These Bravado nursing bras look super comfy! Do you have any recommendations?
LADY ATX Mag Contributor
I'm excited to announce that I'll be guest contributing to Austin's new online magazine, Lady ATX Mag, created by Nikol Moen. The site is simple and pretty, and it's sole purpose is to connect women in Austin. Check out my first article recapping my night out at Love Ding learning how to make flower crowns!
21 Weeks {Twins}

Maternity Countdown Tee
How Far Along: 21 weeks
Babies Genders: Boy AND Girl
Things to Note:
- My friends, Katie and Josh, along with my Mom and Sis hosted a baby shower for Alex and I over the weekend. I decided months ago to have my shower early because I wanted to make sure it didn't coincide with the holidays, and I wanted to have plenty of time to know what to buy/save for.
- Purchased a matching Britax car seat, IKEA cribs and a few Rock n' Play sleepers via Craigslist.
Nursery: Decided to participate in the One Room Challenge and complete the nursery in 6 weeks! Follow along my journey, as I will be posting updates every week till the big reveal on Nov. 12th.
Symptoms:
- Definitely feeling baby kicks and maybe a few Braxton hicks contractions. I'm not 100% sure if the tightening is from a contraction, or if it's the position the babies are in.
- Every time I do Body Pump, my stomach gets extremely hard and the babies drop super low. It's a very uncomfortable feeling. Are they mad because I'm moving so much?
Exercise: Body Pump (weight training), 30 min. walk x 2
Clothing: It's still super hot in Texas so I've been wearing non maternity summer dresses and non maternity stretchy jogger pants before it gets cold. At this point, I'm pretty set on basic fall pieces, but I am interested in purchasing some comfy post pregnancy pajamas, slippers and nursing bras. I remember after Turner was born I wore the same pair of pajama pants and interchanged two nursing tanks from Target every day.
Cravings: Caffeine...soda and tea. I try not to have more than 1-2 glasses per day.
One Room Challenge: Twin Nursery
Summer Bucket List 2015 - Recap
We didn't complete all 25 activities on our Summer bucket list, but we added
many more unexpectedly. After #14 you'll see the extra activities we added to the
list, and the best part about it was that many of these activities were
Turner's FIRSTS. He definitely had a summer
full of new experiences!
1.) Cool off with a Snow Cone - discovered Hula Cowgirl Shaved Ice in Georgetown...amazing!
2.) Kayak or Paddle board Lady Bird Lake - no picture of this, but we were lucky enough to go with our neighbors as well as take our host daughter, Sophie.
3.) Have a picnic at the Round Rock Splash Pad
4.) Date night out dancing - One of my favorite things to do for date night. Not always Alex's favorite, but he knows how much I love two stepping.
5.) Neighborhood BBQ - We had lots of game nights and pot lucks with our neighbors. We are truly blessed to be surrounded by such awesome people!
6.) Attend Free Yoga on the Lawn at the Domain
7.) Spend the day at Hawaiian Falls water park
8.) Paint master bedroom furniture
9.) Redecorate guest bedroom in preparation for host daughter - Bed Frame: $15 from a garage sale, Bedding: SteinMart, Gold Trunk: Estate Sale, Lamp: Target
10.) Vacation in Maui, Hawaii sans toddler
12.) Swim at Round Rock's Rock'N River Family Aquatic Center
13.) Take Turner to his first movie at the Dollar Theatre. Turner's first movie, Home, was a huge success...thank you popcorn and ICEEs. Since he did so good, I took him to see Minions on a week night later in the summer when Alex was out of town.
14.) Swim with my niece's in their new pool
15.) Take Turner Bowling - He absolutely loved wearing the bowling shoes, and danced the entire time. We had to bribe him with the arcade so he wouldn't have a meltdown over taking off the shoes.
16.) Republic of Texas (ROT) Biker Rally - Talk about a little boy's heaven. To say Turner LOVES motorcycles is an understatement, so he was in absolute awe during the biker parade.
17.) Transfer Turner to a big boy bed - The first night went AMAZING and he went right to sleep. We've been pretty successful ever since. It's honestly super cute when he barges in to our bedroom in the morning and gets in our bed to cuddle....except when he does that before 7am.
21.) Visit downtown San Antonio - We visited Gruene and ate at the Gristmill on our way down to SA. We toured the Alamo, Riverwalk, and ate lunch at one of my favorite Tex-Mex restaurants, Mi Tierra. While walking around the mercado, we had fresh watermelon juice and churros!
22.) Co-hosted the 4th ATX Blogger Mixer
23.) Visit TopGolf
24.) Saw Garth Brooks live in concert - We were lucky enough to grab 3 tickets, and took our host daughter with us!
This truly has been one of my favorite summers! Lots of unexpected turns (with totaling both our cars and finding out we're having twins), but we have been extremely lucky to experience some great vacations and many firsts with Turner. I can't even imagine what next summer will look like as a family of FIVE!
Decorating a Cubicle
Sources
(left to right: clockwise)
1. Globe: Target, Gold Frame: Target
2. Magnets: Target, Photo Frames: very old, can't recall where I bought them
3. Be Kind & Work Hard Print: Elm & Gray FREE here, Lamp: Target
4. Gold Tray: Target, Clear Organizer: Target, Black & White Frame: Homegoods
P.S. They just opened a Homegoods 2 minutes from my office. I'm in trouble.


































