Every year I choose a theme song to help keep me focused on what I want the year to bring. However, the problem with this year is that I feel so unfocused that I can’t even select a theme word for my year. Instead of beating myself up for what feels like mush brain, I’ve...
Sarah Novak
When we’re in the States, it’s easy to get lulled into the familiar routine and forget that we’re heading back overseas soon. By the time we leave in May, I’ll have been here for almost a year and Manila seems but a distant memory. In fact, with all the Nia...
Much like Christmas, our New Year’s Celebration had a bit of a different feel to it this year. The biggest difference would be that it all took place on New Year’s Eve DAY since we knew we’d be fast asleep by 9 o’clock that night and too sleepy to party the night...
It was a very DC Christmas for us this year. Nick wasn’t allowed to take any vacation days during his language training, so we spent the holiday in DC instead of traveling to see our families. Thankfully, this lifestyle has taught us how to make do with whatever circumstances...
Just wanted to share one of my favorite holiday songs with you to celebrate. It’s not very well-known, so perhaps you’ll love it so much that you’ll have to add it to your collection! Wishing you all a wonderful holiday, wherever you may be…
Since Nia and I are spending Christmas Day with Nick in DC, we celebrated early with the Miller family. Nia was the belle of the ball in her new Christmas dress (and by new I mean ‘new to us’ – that’s right, this Baby Gap beauty was $4 at a Garage sale)! We had a...
Friday was a big day for little Nia. It was her first visit to see Dr. Tonnie. As many of you know, I’ve been doing Network Spinal Analysis (NSA) with Tonnie for several years now. My work with her has helped me eliminate my chronic back pain, deal with my anxiety better and have a...
One of the biggest things that has surprised me about Motherhood is how draining simple things like diapering, feeding and rocking can be. None of them requires much brainpower, but the energy expended in caring for a little life is way more depleting then I ever would have imagined. I...
“Hey, where are we? Who are all these other babies? I’m going to be extra cute to make sure I get noticed!” “This yoga stuff is a piece of cake. All I have to do is lay here.” “Hey, give me back my arm! It wasn’t meant to twist like that!”...
We have lots to be thankful for this year, including this little munchkin!
Every year I select an ornament that captures something representative of the year. It gives me a way to collect meaningful ornaments for our tree and also helps me remember the major events. I was in Caribou Coffee the other day with Nia and came across this adorable Caribou ornament mug...
We are in the habit of making videos for Nick each day. This one was so good I thought we’d share it with a wider audience!
Warning: Projectile Vomiting at min 00:25. Watch at your own risk…
Well, we finally got Nia’s Photo Shoot proofs back. Actually, they were better than I expected given how uncooperative she was. You can see all 16 final shots HERE. Would love to hear which are your favorites.
Nia got to meet her Minnesota Aunties for the first time this past weekend. They’re helping me take care of her while I get a hang of this parenting thing.
Auntie Emily
Auntie Beth
Auntie Jenna
So last night I decided to make my first solo trip out to Target to get some miscellaneous baby items I needed in Minnesota. My Mom was happy to watch Nia for a bit and I was excited to get out after what felt like a successful day of Mothering. I was flying high, finally feeling like I...
Oh friends, it’s starting to become laughable how many things have not gone according to plan. Of course, I’m still shedding a few tears over each miss but I expect that I’ll eventually get to laughing about it, right? Pretty sure part of my problem is that I hold myself...
So, I’m afraid I’ve hit my max. With a diagnosis of Shingles yesterday, a dead car battery today and Nick going back to work on Monday it’s just not looking so optimistic for Mama Sarah. The Shingles particularly worries me because although it’s not painful yet and...
I was starting to go a bit stir crazy in the house and decided it was time for Nia and I to take our first outing (Dr’s visits don’t count). It was a WILD adventure. We started by going through the underground in an exciting tunnel… and ended up at Caribou Coffee...
It’s hard to believe, but Nia turns one week old today! As most parents would attest to, it’s been a complete and total blur. Nothing could have prepared me for the delusional state that results from the lack of sleep and intense hormones! We’re just taking it 1 hour at...
We are delighted to announce that after a 14 hour labor, we welcomed a healthy baby girl into our family. Her name is Nia Marisa Novak and she weighed in at 7 lbs 8 oz. She was 20 inches in length and born at 12:39 PM in the afternoon on Saturday, October 22nd (we went into labor at 10 PM...
So, tomorrow (October 21st) is my official due date. I had what I **HOPE** will be my last Doctor appointment this morning and was THRILLED to finally get some uplifting news. Here’s what we found out: I am 1 cm dilated! I am 50% effaced (that’s where the cervix thins out from...
This is very amusing (and definitely makes me sound more important than I am). Browhaus, my favorite eyebrow threading place in the Philippines, turned my blog post into an endorsement of their shop! I can’t stop giggling – it makes me look like some authority on the matter...
Patience has never been one of my strong suits and honestly, these last 10 days have been downright torturous for me as I await Baby Nia’s arrival. So much open space on the calendar and nothing to do but stare at my belly and will her to come out… Sensing my growing distress...
Here’s an insanely catchy tune by Will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas that’s garnered over 7 million hits on Youtube. Check it out for yourself, it’s sure to brighten your day! In fact, I’m so enamored with it that I’m thinking of making it my new personal theme...
I had an experience on Wednesday that gave new meaning to the phrase “Rolling Out the Red Carpet.” It was, hands down, one of the most exceptional service experiences I have ever had. I imagine you are trying to guess where this incredible service took place. Nordstrom’s...
Baby is slowly starting to make her way down. Hopefully it’ll be any time now that we’re welcoming Nia into the world. . .
In case it isn’t obvious, I’ve got some MAJOR control issues surfacing around this whole birth thing. This is frustrating for a variety of reasons, but most notably because I’ve done a ton of personal work on this in the past and largely eliminated it from several areas...
As we’ve been preparing our household to welcome Baby Nia, I’ve noticed that my old money fears are popping up like mad (as they often do during transition periods). Thankfully, this article showed up in my inbox today and totally put me at ease. It comes from one of my mentor...
A Brief History of My Relationship with My Body I’m sure you’re wondering what the heck I’m talking about when I say “my relationship with my body’. Surprisingly, we all have one. Think of it as a lens that we view our body through. Much like any relationship...
Well folks, we’ve reached the 37 week mark and with all the recent pain in my legs from her compressing my sciatic nerve, I’m VERY ready for her to come out. And technically, I’m full term, so we’re good to go at any point from here on out (even though my official...
It started out as one of those normal Thursday mornings. I woke up, got dressed and headed out for my short walk to Caribou Coffee to get my morning mocha. There was however one fun small change-up in my morning routine that I was looking forward to – it happened to be National...
I am officially registering a complaint! At 36 1/2 weeks, pregnancy is no longer fun. Yes, up until Saturday, I would have told you that I was having a jolly good time being pregnant. I felt like my tummy was relatively compact and sitting higher up (which was nice for my bladder). My...
Fact: 10-15% of women are affected by postpartum depression (PPD). Fact: If you have a history of depression in your past, you are 30% MORE LIKELY than the average woman to get postpartum depression (PPD). Reality: Given my history of anxiety/depression, there’s a strong chance I...
I’ve been a girl on a mission this last week. While the setting up house was important insomuch as it made Nick and I feel more at ease, the critical issue at hand was putting together our birthing and postpartum team for Baby Nia’s delivery (who is due five weeks from...
I thought you’d enjoy seeing a couple pictures of where we’ll be living for the next few months. The decorating could definitely use some work (the downside of pre-furnished housing), but the view of the Washington Monument more than makes up for it! We’re already...
With less than 6 weeks to go now, I’m starting to acquire quite the bump. Â Honestly, it doesn’t feel that much bigger than the 30 wk bump and I’m crossing my fingers that it just stays right around this size! Nesting is in full force and I’m taking advantage of...
It’s been a heck of a week folks. Â Last Friday we pulled out of MN at 6 AM, headed for our nation’s capital. Â Given that I feel like humpty dumpty now at 34 weeks pregnant, I convinced Nick that we should split the drive over 3 days (roughly 5-6 hours a day). Â It ended up...
We had our 7th ultrasound of Nia today and I’m pleased to report that she’s thriving in my womb. She is up to a robust 5 pounds now and is measuring in the 78th percentile. I let her know that it’s just fine if she slows down her growing, as there will be plenty of time...
After three months of being transient, I am pleased to say that we are finally en route to DC where we’ll reside for the next nine months. The car is stuffed to the gills with all my garage sale baby finds (and yes, for those who are curious, we do need to ship some additional items...
Nick and I started our 8-day Road Trip in the Pacific Northwest on Sunday. We left from Bend, Oregon in our borrowed mini van (thanks to the in-laws) and motored our way west to the Oregon Coast. We spent our first night in Newport and enjoyed the best fish and chips the area had to offer...
What a fantastic second week in Bend, OR! We got to check out a couple of the hot spots including Smith Rock (top 3 photos) where rock climbers do their thing. Unfortunately we went at a time of day when not many were climbing, but the beauty of the place was still impressive. So cool to...
We just wrapped up our fourth week of home leave (two more weeks to go). A week ago we transferred from Minnesota to Bend, Oregon to visit Nick’s parents. This is my first time visiting the Northwest and WOW has it knocked my socks off. Perfect weather every day, fit people as far...
As some of you may remember, we had booked our dream trip to Bhutan back in early 2011, about 2 weeks before we found out we were pregnant. Unfortunately, the altitude of Bhutan is such that they do not want pregnant women visiting there, so when the pregnancy test came back positive, the...
My belly is finally getting some substance to it now that I’m two weeks into the third trimester. Nick and I are currently in Bend, Oregon with Nick’s parents and I’m taking advantage of the beautiful views and peaceful environment. The picture above is a shot from their...
FINALLY, a new cover from Sam. Hope you enjoy his version of Adele’s Rolling In the Deep! Happy Monday!
Nick and I spent the last week hanging with my family at our cabin in Turtle Lake, Wisconsin. While our ultimate goal was just to relax and enjoy each others’ company, Nick managed to try out a few key “Minnesotan” experiences. Nick’s proudest moment of the week...
Have I mentioned that my husband amuses the heck out of me? Get this. He’s been begging me for months to find him a baby that he can practice diapering and swaddling on. He initially wanted a real baby, but I told him that was out of the question. I thought he’d eventually...
On Sunday afternoon my Mom and Sisters threw a Baby Shower so our friends and relatives could celebrate the upcoming arrival of Baby Nia. Given that my Mom was in charge, guests knew that they could expect a memorable time (she has a reputation!) Being a big fan of party themes, I of...
Ummm, this may be the coolest thing I’ve seen in a month. Seriously, I dare you to watch this and not smile, giggle, or feel the need to jive a bit. Check out this brilliant Danish acapella doing showstopper’s from the 90’s that include: Haddaway’s “What is...
Hi Blog Readers – I just got my first US ultrasound done last Thursday. Boy was the tech surprised when she casually asked if this was my first ultrasound and I replied that it was actually my 6th! Then I had to go on to explain the liberal use of ultrasounds in Manila. She assumed...