Shaz by the Sea

Yay!!  I am 20 weeks today!  I've reached the "official" halfway point! Although for twins, my halfway point was a few weeks ago. But however you want to look at it, I am now certainly over the halfway hump. Wooooooo!  As I prepare to fly back to Boston in a few weeks for my baby shower, I can't help but get a little anxious about flying alone.  Here's a pic of my belly at the gym last night (and I still have 2 more weeks til I fly): Since I feel nervous/anxious about everything these days, I decided to research some travel tips to help put my mind at ease.  I compiled the "Top 8" of what I thought would be the most helpful, and some of these tips are great for non-prego travelers, too! Get your Doctor's OK. Before you travel, make sure to check with your doctor to be sure you are progressing without complications, especially if you are in your second and third trimester. Also check with your airline to read up on their specific travel poli

TWIN BOYS!!! Jim and I are absolutely over the moon about our twin boys arriving this May! We are both sooo so happy and excited. It really hits home for us, because Jim's grandmother Mary had twin boys during her first pregnancy (yup, it all makes sense now). I have to be honest and say that from day one of this pregnancy, I have said that we are having two boys..... On a personal and rather sentimental note, I feel there are several commonalities between Mary and Paul (Jim's paternal grandparents) and Jim and I. Jim is a lot like his grandfather in many ways, which is a huge compliment. For example, Jim and Paul are/were very hard workers, dedicated husbands/sons/brothers, both love the cape and bought homes there while they were young, both extremely forward thinkers and planners when it comes to finances, family and just life in general. Oh and they both married pretty awesome ladies. Hehehe. Ok, I am kidding, but Jim's grandmother is seriously awesome. Here&

Merry day after Christmas, everyone!! I had a great Christmas -- and hope you all did, too. This year was very memorable, because Jimmy and I were able to Skype with our families, open our gifts to each other, spend time at the beach and then open the big GENDER REVEAL! Check out the "A & B" tab for more info on their production. Below are a few pics of us FaceTiming with the Callahans and Phelans on Christmas. The weather here has been beautiful all week. We spent both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at the beach. We saw a few gorgeous socal sunsets, and made some fun beachy Christmas memories. Shout out to Rock for having us over. Christmas Eve:   Christmas Day:     I was trying to think of a creative brunch to have on Christmas morning and I came up with a soufflé idea. Last year, Jim and I spent Christmas Eve with the Alexy family (& their amazing chocolate martinis). Kiley made a wonderful ham and egg soufflé on Christmas mornin

It's December 21st -- what would have been my Grampa Callahan's 95th birthday. It is also my good friend, Milady's birthday! So shout out to MAO and all those who celebrate their birthdays on the first day of winter. Being out here in SoCal, there isn't much to make you think Christmas is literally around the corner. The sun is shining bright, the weather is about 70 degrees and the traffic is still horrific everywhere. And as much as I want to be home with friends and family over the holidays, I can honestly say I am glad I am not traveling. I need a little break. My friend Nicole (who is ironically traveling back home to Boston today) hosted a FANTASTIC potluck Christmas dinner at her place in Manhattan Beach last night. We had tons of apps/salads, filet mignon, chicken parm, stuffed shells and tons of other sides and desserts. What a spread. I was in charge of making some sweet potatoes, a kielbasa & pineapple appetizer, and a warm spiked Christmas apple cid

I just got back from a fun vacation in Los Cabos last weekend! I went to an all inclusive resort with my besties Sarah and Nicole. We had SUCH an amazing time. We were nicknamed the party girls by the hotel staff there. It was so funny. Our flights were short and sweet, and everything went very smoothly. Here's a pic of us on a little boat tour near the arch in Cabo and another pic of us at Lover's Beach. Now that I am back in the states, I am in full fledge Christmas-prep mode! I started cooking a lot again (now that I can stomach most smells) and even baked a mixed berry pie today. I included a lot of photos in this post because there was so much to talk about! To start, I was craving pie. I really wanted a blueberry pie (or maybe A and B really wanted blueberry pie) but the blueberries weren't on sale at the market. They were each $4 and I needed about 3 containers. I couldn't even think about spending $12 on blueberries alone, and was happy when I remember

Well, I suppose my posts over these last few weeks make more sense now. I mentioned I was trying to eat more protein (the average person needs about 45g/day and the average pregnant lady needs 70g/day...and I have two babies in there!). I have also been overly emotional and homesick recently and of course, couldn't wait to fly back east for Thanksgiving to tell everyone the big news in person. My parents reactions were absolutely priceless. Shout out to Linds for capturing it all on video. I sent it to a few of my friends and they thought it was either hilarious or it made them cry. You can seriously feel my moms excitement/emotion. My Dad was literally speechless, nothing could come out of his mouth -- he had to leave the room. I posted a shorter clip of it below, but not sure if it you can view it on your phone. You can try viewing on your computer if you are really interested. For any other mamas or mamas-to-be out there, I wanted to share my recent favs for anything pre

I'm pregnant!! During the first week of September, Jim and I happily found out we are expecting. We had several important agenda items booked in early fall (i.e. visitors; trips to both El Salvador and Boston; Jim's classes, homework, job hunting and the bar). Needless to say, the first month was overwhelming, but happy and exciting nonetheless.  My first doctor appointment was around the 7 week mark, right after we returned from our trip to Boston for my parents birthdays and a family wedding. Jim's 2002 Ford Ranger wouldn't start that morning, so he waited for AAA as I proceeded to my appt at UCLA. I figured it couldn't be more than a simple blood or pee test for them to say "yup, you're pregnant!" or "better luck next time".  So off I went.... Turns out, my three home-pregnancy tests did in fact work properly and I am indeed pregnant.  And surprise, we are expecting TWINS!!  Yup, you heard me.  Twins.  We have nicknamed them A and