My Birthday After Baby

I've been wanting to post this entry for a while now.  I finally got a chance to find some time from my busy mommy schedule. :)

I recently celebrated my 30th birthday and this picture above was taken at 1week postpartum.  I gained a total of 45lbs during pregnancy.  And most of it sky rocketed during the last weeks of pregnancy.  Towards the end I was just mortified of even getting on the scale at the Doctor's office.  

In this picture I was still very swollen.  My stomach was still bloated from labor, my legs felt so tight with the swelling, my ankles did not exist, and my feet looked like sausages.  This is why I opted for a maxi dress on my birthday.  I wanted to look pretty and feel comfortable, but yet disguise all these problem areas like tummy, legs, ankles, and feet.  This is a Mossimo dress from Target and the belt is from Forever 21.  I liked the touch the belt gave the dress and my body.  It created an illusion of cinching the waist to look smaller.

I wore beautiful Karen Egren earrings for my birthday.  I'm so obsessed with her jewelry line.  If you have not checked it out, it is a MUST! www.karenegren.com  Her jewelry line has a wide variety of styles and selections. What is great about this line that I absolutely love, is that the price range varies catering to a wide clientele.  You can have fabulous well made jewelry with out breaking the bank. I love all kinds of jewelry, ranging from Forever 21 all the way to fine jewelry.  I believe every woman needs to have some fabulous pieces of  great quality jewelry in their collections.  And Karen Egren jewelry will give you just that.

Here I am with the hubby and my yummy Oreo cake by the lovely Summer.  If you live in the Charleston area I highly recommend Summer to make your cake or treats for that special occasion.  Her cakes are delicious.  It was litteraly the best cake I have ever eaten.  Make sure to check out her desserts and like her facebook page.  Deserts By Summer won't disappoint.

My hubby also took me out to lunch at Twenty Six Divine cafe.  It is the cutest little place ever.  They serve water in mason jars and the food is so fresh and tasteful.  I was truly blown away and I can't wait to go back and have lunch there again soon.  I ordered the Lemon Basil Chicken Salad Sandwich.  It was served with a side of the moment which I believe was quinoa and a cup of fresh fruit.

Sometime before I ate here I had the pleasure of doing a makeover on Jennifer Parezo, the owner of Twenty Six Divine, for her maternity photo shoot.  That's where we got to chatting and that's how I discovered this gem.  

I ordered the Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie for dessert and she added a cute little touch with the "Happy Birthday Marilu!" written on the plate! I absolutely loved it!  If you live in the Charleston area or ever visit Charleston or even plan to visit, this is one place to definitely try.  Jenn and Enan are wonderful people.  You can also find them on facebook.  www.facebook.com/twentysixdivine  

I had a wonderful birthday.  It seriously didn't even phase me turning 30 because I was too excited for my angel of joy, our baby boy's arrival.  Mommy hood is seriously the best.  I love it.  Baby Manny and I are getting into a routine and getting a schedule down so I'll have more posts up here soon.  

I've missed blogging and I've missed you all!

xoxo,
Marilu