Adventures in Rochester-land!

Me and my baby belly have been having an amazing time being home here in lovely Rochester, NY! And, I've been doing my best to make sure baby gets an official taste of NY pizza while I'm here. In the past 10 days that I've been here so far, I've managed to eat some sort of pizza at least 7 out of those 10 days, from 6 different pizza places - not bad! And, no "complaints" from baby, so that's a good sign, too! This week has been filled with many visits with friends and family, lots of good food, and tons of amazingly beautiful sights all around. It's mostly been in the 50s and raining the entire time I've been here, but that's what's expected of Fall weather, so I'm enjoying it a ton, and trying to take it in as much as possible because I know by this time next week, I'll be back in sweltering temps and humid air with no pretty leaves to make up for it!

I've taken a ton of photos since I've been here and couldn't help myself, but to post some of them here on the blog as a nice reminder of my last trip home before baby arrives!

Monday I was fortunate that it was a school holiday, and therefore was able to spend the day with my good friend, Erin, (who was off of school) and her adorable and sweet little 7.5 month old, Charlotte. Little Charlotte amazed me with her walking talents at such a young age - she is already starting to take some of those very first steps (with a little help from Mommy, of course). We took a little video of her walking when she was at my mom's house for a little while. Listen for her squealing sounds that she makes.... it completely cracks me up and is like music to my ears!

I also got to meet Charlotte's "boyfriend," Conner, while I was over at their house visiting. She's rocking the cradle a tad bit with that relationship (he's about 6 weeks younger than her), but they are the cutest together. They both stand there and squeal at each other, it's really adorable.

Charlotte and Conner

Charlotte trying to taste Conner's head

Look at those two sweet faces!

Later Charlotte took a nap and stayed home with "Daddy" so Erin and I "hit the town." After realizing that we really had no place to go, we fell back on an old favorite.... Wegmans (our local grocery store). If you're not from Rochester, it may seem slightly odd to go "hang out" at a grocery store, but considering that was an old favorite thing to do of ours, and considering how much I MISS having a Wegmans to shop at, off we went!

Ahhhhh, Wegmans. And, that's not one of those pumpkins under my shirt... that would be my baby belly. :)

We decided to get creative and have a little fun with taking pictures inside - nothing better to do, why not!?

Posing in my most beloved spot of Wegmans - the produce department.

Red pepper or cucumber, anyone?

Me and my baby belly showcasing the floral department....

... until the man standing at the counter behind me informed us that we weren't "allowed" to take pictures inside Wegmans. Thanks, Mister, that completely ruined our fun for the next 20 minutes.

Nobody said anything about being allowed to take photos OUTside Wegmans, so here is where our photoshoot continued.

Just a nice prego admiring her belly by the pumpkins and cornstalks.... haha

Me and Erin :)

On Tuesday morning my mom and I went down to Park Ave and had breakfast with our neighbor, Deby - DEEEElicious! We were the only ones there (considering it was a Tuesday late morning and it was raining out) and though pumpkin pancakes, NOR hot apple cider were on the menu, they somehow managed to scrape up a meal including both of those things for the pregnant girl who asked for them! :) Not bad!

Mom, me, and Deby at Charlie's Frogpond

While we were sitting there enjoying our breakfast, an old friend of mine that I grew up with, Stephanie, was spotted outside - and she's pregnant, too! We made sure to get some footage of our bellies together. We both share September birthdays and threw a Sweet 16th birthday party together, so it only seems fitting to both be having our first child at the same time, too!

Stephanie and I pointing to our baby bellies - Steph is due 11/8 and me (incase you forgot) 1/2

Showing off our basketball bumps!

The next day I spent the morning with my friend, Jessica and her adorable little 6.5 month old little girl, Maddie - but I somehow managed to leave the house without my camera and therefore, did not take any pictures of that! :( Maddie is a smiler - and has one sweet little grin at that! I also got to spend some quality time with their dog, Cody, who has known Delaney since she was a pup! :)

Wednesday evening me and "the ladies" - sans Jill, headed out to dinner together. We took some pretty hilarious photos there.

Jenna, me, Marisa, Erin, and Rachel at "Tastings"

I like soup!

Mmmmm - baby likes soup, too!

Jenna trying to having a conversation with the baby and get him or her to kick.

And, Erin took this video of Jenna trying to talk to my belly. Earlier in the week Erin cupped her hands over her mouth and went close up to my belly, belting out a big: "helllllloooooooooo" and the baby instantly socked her one right in the spot where she was speaking at! It was pretty funny, until I realized that we probably just scared the wits out of our baby! :) (Sorry, little one!) Jenna was now trying to get some communication going, too -

Thursday afternoon, Mom and I went out to Hurd Orchard for a luncheon..... such a unique and beautiful place! They create a different lunch every day based on the fruits, vegetables, and herbs available in their crops at that time of year. This lunch was Fall themed and it was YUM! We took a few photos while we were there:

This was inside the barn where the luncheons are held.

Mom and I - each wearing layers and layers of clothing because it was FREEZING out and inside that barn!

Later that evening we went out to dinner with my best bud, Karen, and her mom, Christine.

Dinner at Fruit and Salad Co. - Karen, Christine, Mom, and me

Seems like it became quite common for us to run into people while out dining, because while we were there, Deby, and her daughter, Jenna, happened to walk in! So we had to document that! :)

Me, Jenna, and Deby

Just me.

Karen and I posing after dinner.

Today, my mom and I were pampered for a while in the afternoon with a nice manicure and pedicure - heaven! And, then I spent this afternoon/evening, with Karen/Will and their kids - Shane and Megan. We looked through old photo albums, reminisced a little, and once again, I had some pizza there! :) Here are some pics we took.

Shane and Megan, lovingly, goofing around.

Megan modeling her new pretty pink bathroom for me with her pumpkin.

Megan took this shot of me, my belly, Karen, and Shanie! She did a good job and was quite proud of herself. :)

Me with the kiddies and "just a few" of Megan's stuffed animals.

Megan and Shane by the fire..... YES we had a fire - Thanks Will!!!! Definitely need one of those on a Fall evening at home in NY!

Megan and I

The kids trying to talk to their newest little baby friend in my belly - how adorable is that?

Nice picture to end the little photo show with.... a cozied up prego girl sitting by the fire! :)

One of the most difficult, but also sweetest, things for me to get to hear when I'm visiting NY are the little kiddies in my life up here telling me that they wished we lived closer. :( Steal my heart away! I got one of those lines from little Shanie tonight - so sweet! I also got an "I like your coat" and "I like your sneakers" from Shane tonight, too - "why thank you, little man!" - so, so cute! My trip here in NY has almost reached an end... just a few more days - and I intend to make those days count extra because I'm realizing that I will not be heading home again until sometime after the baby is born around Easter (?), which is 6 months away! Though 6 months sounds like an awful long amount of time - I know it's going to be an awfully exciting time as well, and we just could not be happier! Though it's hard to leave, I'm glad I've been fortunate enough to have had the time up here that I have spent over these last couple of weeks, and we're looking forward to the little precious blessing that is about to enter our world in just 3 short months!