Old pieces

Happy Thursday, everyone!

First of all, thank you so much for your kind words on my last post. You guys sure know how to make me feel good =). To be honest with you, I haven’t done anything trying to lose weight. I am very fortunate that I am one of those lucky people who have a fast metabolism. I gained 25 pounds with my first pregnancy. I left the hospital with only 5 pounds left to lose. I eventually lost all of my baby weight within 3 weeks.

 

What I am wearing:

Jacket: Ann Taylor - size 0P (buy similar)

Pants: Old Navy Rockstar denim - size 2

Shoes: Target suede wedges (buy similar)

Tee: H&M - size 4 (buy similar) 

Sunglasses: Kate Spade Gayla

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Old pieces

Today is D-day!

This is it, guys! Today is the day (thank you, scheduled c-section). This pregnancy goes so fast yet so slow. It would be an understatement to say that this pregnancy is tougher than the last one. The first part of the pregnancy was a breeze. Although, the second part was a different story. I was diagnosed around 27 weeks with placenta previa. There was all sorts of unexpected issues associated with it. It's been tough for me but I know it'll all be worth it in the end.

I would be lying if I told you I am not scared. I'm nervous, scared, but excited at the same time. I have so many mixed emotions running through my head right now. It's 5:00 in the morning and my little one (soon to be the bigger one) is wide awake and ready to go. My whole family is here with me as well. There is no doubt that I will be in good hands. We can't wait to welcome baby Madelyn to this world!

{Can't wait to add the newest member of our family to the back of the car}

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Today is D-day!

Something new

I turned a year older today! Pretty exciting, huh? Not really =) I never make a big deal out of my birthday even when I was young. I've always been pretty low-key with my birthday celebrations. However, on my birthday, I like to take a moment and reflect back on my life and where I am today.

September holds a special place in my heart. It's not only my birthday month, it's also our anniversary month. It's very important as you celebrate your marriage anniversary, to remember why you fell in love. This is the time to pause and reflect over the last years that you've been together. What makes our anniversary even more special this year is the birth of baby Madelyn.

OK..so enough with the mushy stuff =) Let's talk about the fun stuff. Say hello to my birthday/anniversary/push present – The Chanel jumbo flap in caviar. By the way, the first time I heard “push present” was from the talented Sew Petite Gal. I had no idea what it was before but think it's a beautiful concept!

Even though, I've done fairly extensive research online before purchasing my first Chanel, there are a couple things I wish I had done differently.

1. Caviar vs. lambskin: I love the feel and texture of the lambskin but boy, it's hard to care for and scuff easily. I really don't baby my bags. I am a firm believer that luxury goods are there to be enjoyed, I just have to find ways to take more care of it. Caviar would be so much easier to take care of and also keeps its shape better than the lambskin.

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Something new

Madelyn’s Nursery Reveal

Madelyn's nursery is finally done! We’re super thrilled to be able to share with you guys. It certainly has been a labor of love. As mentioned before, I didn't want the nursery to get overly cutesy. We wanted to create a room that we could keep fairly gender neutral with touches of pink. It's a very neutral nursery with nothing too flashy. For those who have been waiting for the reveal, I hope its simplicity doesn't disappoint you =)

I went back and forth between between the girly girl white furniture set and the dark espresso for our baby girl for weeks. At the end, we decided to go with the dark espresso furniture. I love the look of white furniture, it is so feminine and happy looking. However, it does seem to get dirty easier. Dark furniture also gives the nursery an intimate and cozy feel.

Showing:
Delta Eclipse Crib in Expresso
Pottery Barn Kids Sweet Lambie Quilt
Pottery Barn Kids Sweet Lambie Sheet
Pottery Barn Kids Sweet Lambie Crib Bumper

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Madelyn’s Nursery Reveal

Pregnancy Update: Week 35

Well, here I am, 35 weeks pregnant! I can’t believe I’m here already. It seems like this pregnancy has gone by so fast. Technically, I still have 5 more weeks to go but for medical reasons, I am going to have this baby early (I won't bore you with the details). I'll get to meet my baby girl as little as two weeks from now. We are beyond thrilled and cannot wait to welcome baby Madelyn into our home!

I have a list of things/projects to do before the baby arrives. My husband finalizes his travel schedule for work so that he can stay home for an extended period of time. I plan to make some last minute shopping this week for the baby. On top of that, we're still working on little projects here and there for the nursery. I am happy to say that things are starting to come together. Anyway, here are some of my latest purchases for the baby.

I've always wanted to nurse my baby but couldn't do it with my first one. This time, I am determined to try again. After doing extensive research online, I decided to purchase the Medela Pump-in-Style Advanced On-the-go Tote. I am not the stay-at-home mom type and I don't plan to be one. I have looked into several options and the on-the-go tote seems like a good choice for working mothers. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this pump will be put to good use.

I bought the Longchamp Planetes large tote last week and plan to use it as a diaper bag. I just can't see myself carrying a traditional diaper bag. I was debating between 2 sizes but decided to go with the large one. There are so many things that I love about this bag. It's lightweight but extremely durable. It's also waterproof and the material is so easy to clean. It has everything that I am looking for in a diaper bag. If you plan to use this bag as a diaper bag, an organizer is a must. A purse organizer makes it so easy to look for stuff and also gives the bag a little more structure.

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Pregnancy Update: Week 35

Turn a maxi skirt into a tube dress

At this stage of my pregnancy, I am done buying maternity clothes. I bought this Old Navy maxi skirt early in my pregnancy. However, after this post, I didn’t want to wear it anymore for several reasons. The fold-over waistband has so much extra fabric. When I wear this skirt as is, the extra fabric shows under my tops. On top of that, the length is just a bit too long for my 5'2" height. I have to be extra careful when walking as I don't want to fall over anything.

The other day, I pulled the skirt up and attempted to wear it as a dress. It was a bit loose around the waistband but I love the new length. To fix the waistband, I slimmed both sides to make the upper part of the skirt smaller. The skirt/dress turned out perfectly. I’ve been wearing this maxi skirt as a tube dress ever since.

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Turn a maxi skirt into a tube dress

and we chose...

Thank you all so much for your input and feedback on my last post. We loved both names but decided that the name “Madison” was much too common for us. We wanted a tradional name with a modern twist of spelling. With that said, my husband and I strongly feel the name “Madelyn” suits both our tastes.

As for her middle name, we went with “Lam-Anh” (in Vietnamese). For those of you who aren’t Vietnamese or do not understand Vietnamese, Lam means turquosie and Anh means intellectual brightness. One of the things I like about her middle name is how well it flows with her first name.

{A sneak peek of Madelyn's nursery}

Of course, everyone has different tastes, styles, and opinions when it comes to baby names. In our hearts, we believe we have the perfect for our baby girl.

Have a great week!

Sydney

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and we chose...

The quest for a name

In case you didn't know, my husband and I are expecting a baby girl in 5 weeks! We started looking for names right after we found out the gender. After spending countless of hours searching through baby name sites and making lists, we finally narrowed it down to 2 names.

1. Madison

2. Madelyn

About the name “Madison”:

• The meaning of the name Madison is 'Son of Maud - Matthew's son'
• Sounds modern
• Easy to spell
• It is a unisex name
• It is way over used (it has been the most popular girls' name in the U.S. for the past 10 years)

About the name “Madelyn”:

• The meaning of the name Madelyn is 'Woman from Magdala' 
• Sounds classic and ultra-feminine
• This spelling could be a hassle 
• It's definitely a girl's name
• It is far less popular than the name Madison

We had a really hard time deciding on a name for our baby girl. After going back and forth many, many, many times, we finally decided on a name. Before I tell you what it is, I'd love to hear your opinions. What are your thoughts on these names?

Thanks in advance,

Sydney

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The quest for a name

Pregnancy Countdown: Week 32 - Getting the nursery ready

Decorating the nursery is one of the most exciting things that I look forward to doing. I wasn’t sure where to start at first but I knew I wanted a modern nursery with neutral colors. I really dislike super gender specific nurseries. Although, it’s been tough to find nursery items that are modern, not too cutesy and affordable. There just aren't a ton of options out there.

Our home has 4 bedrooms and one of them was used as an exercise room. It’s not ideal to have exercise equipments upstairs but we never had a reason to move them down to the basement. Well, now we do =) We decided it's time to turn this exercise room into a baby room.

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Pregnancy Countdown: Week 32 - Getting the nursery ready

Easy stripes

Lately, my weekend uniform consists of a comfy dress and a pair of sandals. Up until this point, I am still wearing the only 5 maternity pieces that I've bought so far. Let's see if I can get through this entire pregnancy without buying anymore maternity clothes =)

What I am wearing:
Dress: Classic long stripes dress c/o OASAP (buy similar here or here)
Denim jacket: H&M - size 2 (buy similar here)
Sandals: Steve Madden (buy similar here)
Sunglasses: Kate Spade Gayla
Tote: J.Crew Tillary
Lipstick: NYX in summer breeze

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Easy stripes

What to wear when you’re expecting (Part III): Wrap dresses

Continuing my series of “What to wear when you're expecting”, the item I wanted to highlight today is a wrap dress. (Part I: How to style a boyfriend blazer and Part II: How to style a maxi dress).

For the office, wrap dresses are a great solution. The beauty of the wrap dress is the wrap portion. You can make it as tight or as loose as you want. Since it’s a wrap dress, I have the ability to adjust it. For expectant mothers, wrap dresses are great for transition to and from pregnancy. I lived in this Old Navy wrap dress throughout my first and second trimester. Although, it is getting shorter since my tummy is getting bigger every day.

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What to wear when you’re expecting (Part III): Wrap dresses

What to wear when you’re expecting (Part II): Maxi dresses

Congratulations to Saimaeve for winning the lovely dress from OASAP. Please email me your shipping info. My family and I are taking a vacation at the moment but I will get back with you as soon as I can. Thank you, everyone for giving your feedback on the new site as well as submitting your entries for the giveaway. I really appreciate it! Now, onto today's post...

In part I, I was talking about blazers were my favorite thing to wear to work during the 1st and 2nd trimester. When it comes to casual wear for weekends, I literally live in dresses. I love wearing shorts during summer but they just simply don’t work when you’re expecting.

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What to wear when you’re expecting (Part II): Maxi dresses

What to wear when you’re expecting (Part I): Blazers

I've had a few emails from readers asking how to get the most out of the clothing budget. I decided to put together series of posts on what I thought would be helpful to others in terms of what to wear when you’re expecting. Of course, I'm still figuring things out so any thoughts and suggestions are welcome!

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What to wear when you’re expecting (Part I): Blazers

We're expecting!

I can’t hide my tummy anymore so I guess, I'll spill the news =) We’re expecting! Yes, my husband and I are beyond thrilled to announce – we’re having another baby! I know I talked about having a second child a few times on Twitter but I still can’t believe it’s happening. Before getting pregnant, I thought this pregnancy might not be as excited as my first one. Wrong! Every experience of this pregnancy is just as good as the first one.

What I am wearing:

Skirt: Old Navy Maternity Chevron-Stripe maxi skirt - size XS

Tee: Forever 21 basic scoop neck tee - size XS

Jacket: H&M denim jacket - size 4
Necklace: c/o Kate and Soo's Etsy shop

Sandals: Steve Madden (buy similar)

Purse: J.Crew Tillary tote

Watch: Michael Kors 5128 in rose gold

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We're expecting!