We have some exciting news...!

Sorry for the click bait, but I have been patiently waiting 14 weeks and 3 days to tell you all this news:

WE ARE PREGNANT!!  Baby Fremeau is expected to make his or her debut on April 6!

^^ Thank you to auntie Anna for baby Fremeau's first ever SHOES! 

^^Thank you to auntie Jamie for the best onesie ever: "my mom is going to blog about this #belleontrend"!! 

We don't know gender, yet, but we will be finding out ASAP. More details to come when we know!

^^ Thank you to auntie Jackie and uncle Pete for Baby Fremeau's first ever Notre Dame outfit!!!

You may have noticed that I have been talking flowy tops and loose-fitting dresses for a few months, and this is why! We are so happy and keep thanking God for the opportunity to be parents in a few short months. If I said this process was easy, however, I would be a huge liar.

(My earrings are from Von Maur-- on sale for $12! So lightweight and fun with the fringe.) I also bought these to choose between!

You may have noticed the blog slowed down. WAY DOWN recently. Typically, I blog less once school starts (obvi), so I can grade papers quickly and have my plans set for each day. However, I haven't been able to do much after school at all these days. I typically try to get to Pure Barre 3x a week (it is so hard because I have been soooooooo tired and nauseous), and then sometimes I can't even function to check my email before I am starting to pass out at 7 pm. True story: exercising actually does make you less nauseous, but getting there is a whole challenge in and of itself. It. IS. Hard.


The first trimester of pregnancy is no joke! You're exhausted, nauseous, super emotional and not yourself. The other day I cried because I thought Bentley (our dog) could tell I was sad. THE DOG. hahaha. But, of course, I would do anything for this baby, and I will take the brunt of anything to make sure he or she is safe.

I just pray every day that Baby Fremeau will continue to grow and be healthy; that is all I can ask. It is a blessing to be pregnant, and it breaks my hearts to see friends who are struggling with getting pregnant, so I never want to complain about being sick to my stomach or comatose by 6:50 pm.


As for the blog, I will keep trying to build back up momentum. They say the second trimester can bring about a newfound energy. I am hoping that is the case!  This dress is not maternity, which is so great about the styles currently. I will continue to blog about non-maternity clothes, but I will put a disclaimer on anything that is maternity, so if you're not expecting, you can skip over the post.

(My dress is Ann Taylor. Not maternity! I love the fringe details! I got it for 50% off-- swoop it up on sale now. I love it so much, I might get the black, too. Here I am wearing a medium for reference.)

Now that you know I'm pregnant, and not just super into my Oreos, I can start wearing normal-fitting clothes! haha! However, about the Oreos... food aversions/cravings are real! All I wanted in the first trimester was La Croix and fast-food chicken sandwiches (thanks to my girl Kelly for suggesting that; it was a saver for my nausea!). Now, I seriously want to puke thinking about La Croix! I gave it all away to my coworkers and friends. HAHA! I seriously just need all of the carbs and cheese in my life. It makes me feel so much better-- haha! Mike makes me quesadillas 1x or more a week; again, he is a gem of a husband. Also, give me allllllll the Jimmy John's veggie subs (number 6) with salt and vinegar chips ON IT. You have to open up the sub, and place all the flat chips on the inside. OMG. I could eat this for breakfast, lunch and dinner. If you follow me on Insta, you may have seen me blabbering on about how delish it is. That *may* have blown my cover... haha!

(My makeup was done by the incredible Jean Smith [jeanmariesmith4@gmail.com]. She is my friend and super talented makeup artist! Check her out to book here. Follow her on Instagram, too! @jeanmariemakeupartist).

Mike is a gift from God, which I seriously have known since the day he emailed me on Match.com, but this man has been buying me everything that *might* not make me sick to my stomach, food wise. He's done all his research, and for the nights I was in the fetal position on the couch, he'd come back with seasickness wrist bands (didn't really help), pregnancy tea (sort of helped) and ginger everything (couldn't even look at the ginger cookies-- lol!). He is the best partner to deal with the ups and downs of life, and I can't thank him enough. Side note: my friend Lauren gave me "preggie pop drops", and they have been amazing! Hit me up if you need any more advice on quelling the nausea.

(My shoes are the comfiest sandals on earth. I swear I prefer wearing these to flats! They run TTS!).

The fun part has been slowly telling friends, family, coworkers and my students. For my students, I totally tricked them: I said they had a Google Classroom quiz on the reading from the night before. On this "reading quiz" was actually a picture of the baby's 12-week ultrasound, and questions about the baby. I asked things like, "what should Mrs. Fremeau name her baby?" "when will Baby Fremeau actually arrive?  He or she is due April 6, and many women deliver earlier or later than their due dates." (One student guessed May 26-- haha!) "What is some advice for a first time mom?" My kids were soooooooooooooooo cute about it all. They started to see the ultrasound picture pop up on their quizzes, and they started shrieking with delight! ("You're PREGNANT!!!???? WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US? HOW LONG HAVE YOU BE KEEPING THIS FROM US!" haha, I explained that women do not tell until 12+ weeks, just to be sure everything is going okay. They forgave me.)  Their advice was so precious; my favorite was "dump him in holy water" or "I don't know because I'm not a mom, but you'll be a great mom! Just pretend you're sick so Mr. Fremeau changes the diapers!" Just sweet, thoughtful, wholesome advice from 110 freshmen.

Overall, we can't be happier to be parents in April. This is such a wonderful and exciting time, and we are constantly saying prayers for little Baby Fremeau. I always talk to Baby F on my way to and from work, just to tell her or him to keep growing and being healthy. It is a scary process, and you're constantly worried, but you have to let go of the negativity and know your baby will be okay. EASIER SAID THAN DONE! If you are pregnant or want to talk babies, please feel free to comment or email me (mary.fremeau@gmail.com). I can give you any advice I have picked up over the last 3.5 months, and then maybe I can pick your brain, too! :)


(Our amazing pictures were taken by the incredible Andrea Swofford of Swofford Photography. Book her for weddings, engagement sessions, baby pics-- anything! She is so talented and the sweetest human ever. Email her at: swoffordphotography@outlook.com). Funny story about Andrea: she was actually at our house watching Finn the night I told my mom and Gary and cousin Ashley and my uncle-- so she found out super early, too! She is such a thoughtful, kind person; I'm so lucky I met her as her teacher two years ago!


As always, thank you so much for reading, and I will continue to update the blog about our journey to be parents.  I can't wait to find out gender so I can start buying baby clothes! haha! Mike keeps joking that he will have to drive an Uber on the side for us to pay for baby clothes if we have a girl. I keep saying I should just drive for Jimmy John's to earn extra money (and then get allllll the veggie sandies I desire) for baby clothes. LOL!

xxoo
Mary