Baby Belly - 32 Weeks

This week a special Baby Belly pic taken in Annapolis, MD at sunset. Definitely more pics to follow from this weekend getaway!

4 year Korean Paul McCartney Wannabe

What Will Jude's Middle Name Be?

We still haven't decided on a middle name for Baby JB yet. As you know, middle names are important, because when you're really mad at someone you use their middle name. My mom has called me JOHN NATHAN BENNET more than a few times, and never with a smile.

For the most part, we've been tossing around the same 4 or 5 names for about 6 months. We do like some of these names more than others, but we're not saying which ones. Since we're having such a hard time with it, we figure we'd let our friends and family weigh in on the subject.

Choose your favorite name in the Poll to the right......ONE VOTE ONLY PLEASE :)

So what do you think is a good, strong middle name for Jude? Here is your chance to pick! The poll will be up for 7 days. At the end of one week, we'll see what those closest to us have chosen for Jude's middle name.

FYI - this poll is not actually determining what Jude's middle name will be, we're leaving that up to the magic 8 ball and Ashleigh's Psychic.

Every Girl's Crazy 'bout a Sharp Dressed Man...

Jude's wardrobe seems to grow daily. We picked up a couple of onesies tonight with our favorite band's name on them. You might have heard of them....

Sunday...Monday...Tuesday...

Baby Belly - 31 Weeks

31 Weeks along, about an hour before running in the Hot Chocolate 5k on Lake Michigan

Hot Chocolate 5/15K Race

A few weeks ago, Ashleigh convinced John to run in a 5k that was to be held November 6th. He agreed to, mainly because the goody bag that was given out included a hooded sweatshirt. There was also talk of thousands of gallons of chocolate fondue, as well as unlimited hot chocolate at the finish line. All of those promises came true, though he's not quite sure it was worth waking up at 6a.m. on a Saturday....

The race went great, the weather was actually pretty good on the lakefront. The course was amazing; we started right at Grand Park and ran down around Soldier Field and Shedd Aquarium, then all along the lakefront path for a mile or so. The skyline looked great from our angle, brining tears to our eyes. Then again, it could have been the ice cold headwind that made me cry. Our friends Nick and Brigid joined us for brunch afterwards at one of our favorite spots; Crossroads bar and grill. It was a great day all around, though by the end of the race, Mamma Bennet had made up her mind that she was hanging up the running shoes until the Spring....

Ready to Race

post-race cocktails have been replaced by post-race Starbucks. Oh, how times have changed

JB's Workshop is Officially Closed for Business

So...Ashleigh's co-worker and friend Aisha was kind enough to give us a fantastic set of nursery furniture. Complete with crib, dresser and another storage cabinet, it's a fantastic set that saved us a TON of money. Needless to say, it was slightly used and had some nics and dings, but was solid and worth restoring.

We decided to bring it from a light, Pine colored wood to a vibrant Black! We lucked out at Home Depot because they had a gallon of "oops" paint they had mistakenly mixed....and it was Black, the exact kind we needed....for $5! One orbital sander and a butt-load of sandpaper later, we walked out of there ready to go.

And so I sanded....and sanded.....and sanded.....and sanded some more. I threw on a coat of primer and three coats of black paint, and BOOM! a brand new set of nursery furniture. All in all it took several weeks worth of working for an hour of two of daylight in the evenings. Our condo is not exactly power tool project-friendly, so our balcony and occasionally the living room became JB's Workshop. Thank God for the warm Fall weather this year!

After all the work, I think it turned out pretty good and was definitely worth the trouble. If anything, it will give me something to hang over Jude's head when he's 12. "Do you have any idea what I've done for you!!!???......"

The crib was the absolute worst! Sanding and painting all those dang rungs in the middle was a nightmare!

all the sanding...sanding....sanding....aaahhhhhhhhhh

Ashleigh, doing her part :)

The workshop in action. Paint a coat, and wait........ 

......and wait......

FINALLY! Looks great with those horizontal stripes, eh!

This will be a changing table in a just a couple more months!

Should have PLENTY of storage for one little guy, right??

Troll Dancin'

I always ask Ash what it feels like to have a baby inside her. Usually she says it feels like he's dancing in there. Lucky for us, she waited until she had a Troll costume on to illustrate what she meant. As usual, it was hilarious.

Happy Halloween!

It's our last Halloween as just a married couple instead of parents. Our little pumpkin will be here soon, and the wild parties of our past will be replaced by pushing a stroller around to strange houses and asking for their candy. But one final party.......Friday night our neighbors Sean and Ashley down the hall hosted a little get together for Halloween. Ashleigh was a hit as the Treasure Troll, but I was struggling with an idea for a costume. I do this every year; wait until the last minute and then throw something together. I guess I'm just more of a St. Patty's day fan than Halloween. But, thanks to an idea from my friend Jarod, I decided I'd go as "a single man's worst nightmare". So I did...

Just a sad little pregnancy test

Surprise! You're going to be a dad! hahaha.
Notice the matted down hair; that is supposed to represent me having been peed on as the test. 

Ashleigh's Costume for Saturday night's festivities! The Great Pumpkin!

Happy Halloween Everyone!

Happy Halloween Weekend

I know that I have numerous posts to make up this weekend.....THE BABY SHOWER, gifts, thank you notes, maybe another dance, but I have to update you with a double post immediately!

30 weeks and dressing up for my office costume party. Have a Spook-Tacular Weekend!!!

LOVE....Your Treasure Troll and her Blue Jewel, Jude.

30 Weeks

My lovely co-workers!

LOVES

Don't Forget!

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. John is supporting the cause by wearing pink and spreading the word that all women over 40 should get a yearly mammogram, and every woman should conduct self exams frequently.

If there was such a thing as Happy Mother's-To-Be Day...

...It would fall on October 21st. Yesterday was one of the best days I've ever had!

After a long week of Bear's Games, OAR Concerts and a doctor's appointment where I found out my baby boy is so healthy that his mother has packed on a happy 20 pounds, I had quite a day to remember. I use the word happy for poundage....but I don't want to mean it. Glucose levels are great, we're not anemic and we found out that Jude is a huge fan of M Burger and it's caramel pumpkin milkshakes (located right down stairs of Northwestern). That should add about 10 more happy LB's before we're done!!

Anyway I went to work and was scolded again for wearing flip flops from the car to the elevator is such cold weather. You see my feet are in tight slip-on shoes all day and I can't bend over to pull anything on in the morning (BELLY!). Plus I have fantastic friends at work that only want the best for me and baby jb. So I decided to get me some ugly yet comfy shoes at lunch. EMUs may be the ugliest things I've ever put on my feet...and a bit pricey.....but let me tell you! I don't have to bend over to put them on....I don't have to wear socks with them (don't judge me)....and I serioulsy will LIVE in these for the rest of the fall and winter. Please turn your head when you see me in my fake UGGlies. Anyday you buy SHOES is the PERFECT day. Plain and Simple.

It doesn't stop there.  I then get an email from my A-MAH-Zing husband telling me to get off of work by 3:30pm. WHY?? And how can I swing this? He'll give me details later. WHAT? Okay. My fantastic boss tells me that "surprises are usually good Ashleigh!" and let's me out early (Don't worry...I'll make up that hour Friday!). After weeks of complaining that my tailbone is sticking out of my back and after 3 days of my neck feeling like it is going to break off........my BABY DADDY (couldn't help myself) at 3:00pm tells me where I'm going.

MOMMY SPA DAY!!! AHHHH!!!! He booked me the "Lady in Waiting" package at Kaya Spa a few blocks away from our house. Did I mention that this man is A-Mah-ZZZZING?? He is.

I got there and had a pedicure to die for....a manicure that looks gorgeous....and my first ever PRE-NATAL MASSAGE that just melted everything away. Even little Jude danced and giggled the whole time I was being pampered. By the time it was all said and done, I was so zen that I didn't even yell at the Chicago traffic when I left to drive 3 blocks. NAMASTE BISHES.

When I got home, the house was picked up, dinner was made, my baby's tall dresser was finished and I had gifts from my wonderful friends in my mailbox. Life Is Good! My sweater and dress for this weekend even showed up a day early for me to try on AND wear to work Friday. Someone knew I needed a day like this!

I want to THANK all my wonderful friends who've sent Jude gifts already. It's so fun when you see packages waiting for you at home!!! Who doesn't like gifts?? I'll make my huge thank you later....but thank you to BK, Nina, Brooke, Ali, Sid, Sam and Mama Cash for all the things that have helped me settle into mammahood thus far.

And a special THANK YOU to the best husband/daddy/man ever. You always know just what I need and you take such good care of us. Thank you for everything baby...I'm not sure what I'd do without you. I love you so much!

October 21st is going down in history. It was the BEST Happy Mother's-To-Be Day EVER!!!

xoxo Mama and Jude

Busy Week!

It's only Wednesday and it's already been a busy week for the Bennet's! Sunday we were lucky enough to get tickets to the Bears game against Seattle. The Bears sucked and lost, of course, but it was a blast anyway! Thanks to Beau White for hooking us up with his season tickets and face value!

Also on Sunday, we got an email from an EC alumnae Chrystal Downs offering two tickets to an exclusive O.A.R. show that we were wanting to go to...for FREE! We accepted of course, and had an awesome time at the concert. It was held at the Metro, across the street from Wrigley Field. It's a very small venue, so the chance to see one of our favorite bands that close was once in a lifetime.

Today is Doctor's appointment #4! Glucose screening and general health checkup. I'm sure everything will go great.

Saturday is the Baby Shower, so hopefully everyone that checks this blog is going! We're looking forward to seeing everybody and having a great time in this beautiful Fall weather. Travel safe to Mackinaw, and put on your party hats!

Bears Game!

You may have heard about the new Eye sculpture in Chicago? Well, we passed it on the way to the Bears game, and not being one to waste a photo opportunity, Ashleigh capitalized, and of course, it's hilarious.

Jude didn't complain about the seats, so they must have been OK.

There she is, good ol' #54

I know what you all are thinking, but no, that is not Ashleigh playing middle linebacker for the Bears. Although given her athletic ability and current pregnant aggression, I wouldn't put it past her..

 O.A.R. Concert!
As mentioned before, we were given two tickets to an exclusive concert that you couldn't even buy tickets for. Ours ended up being VIP tickets, which basically meant you got in an hour early and had first dibs on an OPEN BAR, appetizers and location to watch the show. All in all, it was a pretty great way to spend a Tuesday night....  

here's a couple links to videos we took at the show:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZB-ZfJkm9mc - saxophone part during "Hey Girl"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhNO-kQZkpU - Bucket Boys making an appearance

excitement was building, as we waited in the VIP line to get in

Very cool, very small venue. Definitely once in a lifetime

It felt good to be "rolling VIP' for once. Believe it or not we pulled this picture off in one try. haha.

We wanted to sit in the balcony area where Jude could rest his bones for a few minutes, but instead we ended up in the very front row. Life's tough sometimes.

yeah, we were close

This guy is amazing

Mark, lead singer kept everyone entertained all night.

Ash Dancing to Wipeout in the Woods

When you've got it, you've got it. And after watching this video about 18 times, I'm pretty confident that Ashleigh has "got it".

Shakin' that lovely lady lump, here she is.......

Preggin' Aint Easy

Don't let the size of that baby bell fool you. Ash is always finding ways to pamper herself. Whether it's with a foot massage from John, a back massage from John, a little cuddling with John (sometimes Max), or using a face scrub and mask that our friend Sidney let her borrow for a little R&R. The other night Ash decided it was time for a little "me time" and the only way to get "me time" is to turn our home into a temporary Spa.

Before.....

During....

POW! Is that Jim Carrey?

And now it's time to kick back with a nice face mask on, a chilled glass of water, some Frank Sinatra in the background....and if you thought something looked odd, then you're right....

.....if you don't have cucumbers, you improvise! At least we didn't have radishes!

Brigid's B-Day Weekend

We were lucky enough to be able to join our friends Nick and Brigid DeVries on a weekend getaway to Michigan Wine Country. We were celebrating Brigid's 30th Birthday, and what a way to bring in the big 3-0.  We stayed in cabins outside of New Buffalo, MI, just a few miles from the Michigan Wine Trail.

Fall colors, the breeze and waves of Lake Michigan, fantastic October weather and tons of great food and drink made for a fantastic weekend along the coast. Nick rented all of the cottages for the weekend and treated friends and family to a much needed break from the city. We LOVE Fall!

That tree was amazing. Like something out of a Tim Burton movie

The main house, where most of the partying took place.

More Partyin'

John and Ashleigh at the Round Barn Winery

Jude's first wine tasting (non-alcoholic of course)

Nick and Brigid DeVries, outside of Tabor Hill Winery

For those that don't know: "Icing" is a game where you strategically hide bottles of Smirnoff Ice so that unsuspecting people stumble upon them, and therefore must CHUG them. This is one of the best Icings I've ever seen.

Ash and Brigid posing outside the Round Barn Winery. Amazing scenery, if you're in Southwest Michigan, make sure you check it out!

Baby Belly - 27 Weeks

27 Weeks! Happy Fall Everyone!

Baby Belly - 26 Weeks

Baby JB - 26 Weeks Old

Baby Belly - 25 Weeks

Pretty in Purple - Momma is 25 Weeks!