HELLO
Mom to Iris. Wife to Todd. Our little family lives at the foothills of the Ozark Mountains in Fayetteville, Arkansas. We love it here and I love sharing little bits of our life.

© 2014 sarahfortune.

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Articles written by: Sarah

Pregnancy Blog: The Baby Name

It took months of careful thought and lots of vetoing (on Todd’s part), but we have finally decided on a name for our little girl. Turns out, that wasn’t even the hard part. Once we had the first and middle name together, it just felt right. But agreeing on how to spell the darn thing was a different task.

Finally though, we have her name and here it is…

Iris Adella Gill

We chose this name mostly because, well, we like it.
But it has a little special meaning too.

Iris is the Tennessee state flower, where Todd and I were both born.

Delle was my grandmother’s middle name. She was one of my favorite people in the whole wide world and she passed away shortly after I found out I was pregnant. My hope is that Iris can have a slice of her name and perhaps a slice of her sweet, quirky personality too. With the genes she’s getting though, I’m sure quirky will be no trouble at all.

Pregnancy Blog: 21 weeks

Pregnancy Blog: 21 weeks

Another week, another milestone. This past week we had our “big” ultrasound where they take a closer look at how the baby is forming. The initial visit went good and today I got a phone call that the radiologist reviewed everything and it all looks great! Even though I was 21 weeks at my visit, the baby measured 22 weeks and 3 days. Yowzers. She also weighs a whopping 1 pound, 2 ounces. My suspicions about having a big baby keep getting stronger. Probably the most exciting thing (besides the baby looking healthy of course) is that we confirmed we are indeed having a GIRL! I celebrated by driving out to the country this weekend and adding to my vintage baby collection. Adorable dresses for a quarter? Yes, please. We’ve also decided on a name, which I’m sure I’ll be sharing shortly. Till then, here are a few photos from week 21…

Pregnancy Blog: 21 weeks

Pregnancy Blog: 21 weeks

Pregnancy Blog: 21 weeks

21 Weeks

21 Weeks

21 Weeks

21 Weeks

Pregnancy Blog: 20 weeks

Pregnancy Blog: 20 weeks

HOORAY! This week I’m officially half way through the pregnancy. It’s hard to believe, but if I ever have any doubts I can just glance down.

The most exciting thing about week 20 is that I can occasionally feel the baby kick from the outside of my belly. Not only that, but I’ve SEEN it too. While I feel her moving a lot from the inside, it’s still very rare that the movement is hard enough to tell by hand, so Todd still hasn’t been able to feel it yet.

The other thing that’s on my mind is our big ultrasound next week. This will be the one where they take measurements, examine the organs, and look for any issues. Of course this makes me a little nervous because I just want everything to be okay, but I’m thinking good thoughts and counting down the days till I get to see her again. Oh, and that’s another thing. Since we found out the gender so early, they should be able to let us know if she really is a she.

This was a big week for another reason too – I took a little business trip to New York City. The little one and I both did great, although I do wish I could take back that whole ‘riding the subway pregnant with luggage and in heels thing’. Not wise.

I did get to add a few more items to the ongoing list of things baby has done before even being born.

Little baby, this past week in NYC…

● We stayed in a quaint, old hotel in the Upper West Side.

NYC

● Walked everywhere (but mostly through Central Park). I thought my legs were going to fall off, so lucky for you, you got a free ride.

NYC

NYC

● Stuffed our faces at the tiniest Indian restaurant ever.

NYC

● Visited Rosie Pope, the maternity store featured on the Bravo show Pregnant in Heels. While sifting through the Paige jeans I got my first, “How far along are you?” I’m not sure it officially counts though since I was in a strictly pregnant lady store.

NYC

● We browsed through bunches of baby shops. Oh the cuteness! But of all the stores, the only thing I bought was a little snow globe (I was soo good). My hope, little one, is that you can keep it always as a memento from your first trip to the Big Apple.

NYC

NYC

Random sites, tastes, & pictures:

● We ate carrot cake from a local bakery… In bed.

● Walked right past movie star, Julianne Moore.

● Watched the terrible news footage of Joplin. This hit close to home. Literally. I can’t stop thinking about how terrible this is for so many people.

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

I was happy to visit one of my all time favorite cities, but it also felt good to get home to the comforts of the slow paced south. I could have done without the the scary airplane ride through the storms though (see the mean clouds above). We’re safe, sound, and home and that’s all that matters.

Till next week…

Home & Hearts

Last week something quite amazing happened.

I’ve always known what great friends Todd and I have, but this time we were left in awe over how incredible they truly are.

The back story: Exactly one year ago we began experiencing problems with the roof on our house. Apparently the people that installed it before we bought our home did a faulty job and, over time, leaks have popped up in several rooms. Unfortunately, home owners insurance doesn’t cover this because the work was done prior to our purchase. We’ve tried to stretch out little fixes here and there while we attempt to save for a new roof, but of course with a baby along the way we have additional expenses to save for too. It does get tricky though, because in order to start working on the nursery we need a new roof, so that we can put up new sheetrock from the water damage, so that we can paint, so that we can move in furniture, etc.

Out of the blue on Friday, a couple of dear friends came over to drop off an early baby gift from a small group of our friends. They told us that they were recently discussing what to get us for the baby and decided they wanted to give us something we really needed. We weren’t expecting a thing when they presented us with a card and enough money for a…

brand. new. ROOF.

Without our knowledge, they gathered estimates and all pitched in so that we can move forward immediately with getting our house in tip-top shape for the baby. I cried (heavy tears, ya’ll) and mumbled something to the likes of, “I feel like I’m on Oprah.” It was the most generous, thoughtful gift ever.

I cried because it was a huge relief, but also because our friends did not have to do this. They didn’t have to think twice about our roofing-woes and they most certainly didn’t have to do anything about it.

But they did.

And out of love they came together to help. It was the sweetest, most incredible thing. Saying that we will be grateful for a very, very long time is an understatement. Thank you, friends. This means more than you know.

Here’s the card we received, handmade by Tim out of roofing shingles,
which will be framed and hung in the nursery.

Home & Friends.

Pregnancy Blog: 19 weeks

19 weeks

Well, it’s week 19 of project baby. Part of me feels like it has dragged on forever, but most of me can’t believe that I’m nearly HALF WAY through the pregnancy.

Lucky for me I have a friend to go through this craziness with. The only downside is that she’s 5 weeks behind me, so I’ll always be the bigger one. Awesome. This week I’ve decided that I officially look like a pregnant lady. I know I’ve been showing for a while, but now it’s like… bam! I’m waiting for a stranger to ask when I’m due, but it hasn’t happened yet.

This week I still feel pretty darn good… as long as I get lots of sleep, LOTS of food, even more water (with tons of fresh lemon), and bathroom access every twenty minutes to pee. I’m feeling the flutters and thumps of the little one much more frequently this week, which is my favorite part of every day. It’s still too early to feel from the outside, but with as much as she’s moving around I have a feeling that’s coming soon.

Next week I’ll celebrate the intro into my 20th week in New York City. I’m curious how it will go traveling pregnant (and alone), but hopefully not much different than before. Just a few less beers during my layover. Hah.

GL and I took a few preggo pics this week.
(14 weeks & 19 weeks)

19 weeks

19 weeks

19 weeks

19 weeks

19 weeks