Merry Christmas

The little one's appointment went very well on Friday. She gained 7 ounces in a week, which was double what her pediatrician had hoped for. Yay!

Don't forget to put out your plate of cookies and glass of milk for Santa tonight, get nestled into your bed, and dream sweet dreams while the magic of Christmas comes...

May all my readers have a very blessed Christmas and a safe and happy New Year!

Tipping the Scales

Life sure is busy now with two children - toddler + newborn.

I brought the baby in for her 1 week check up last Friday and she hadn't gained back as much weight as her pediatrician had hoped for, so I have to bring her back in to the doctor this coming Friday for a quick weigh-in.

Her cheeks and fingers are looking pudgier so there's hope that she'll have put on a good amount of weight.

Otherwise, she's doing fantastic! She's really a wonderful baby, although she seems to like the wee hours of the morning to be awake and playful.

The older munchkin is adjusting as well as can be expected. She's been patting the baby's head gently and chorusing, "YUCK!" at the same time. But she also gives the new baby a lot of kisses and hugs and doesn't really understand why she can't carry her around the house. After all, according to her, she's shown that she can carry four babies and an assortment of other toys around the house all at the same time AND manage a sippy cup. How much harder could a baby be?

Without snow and the temperatures being in the 60s yesterday, it's so hard to believe that Christmas is less than a week away!

Motherly duties are calling - Good luck to all my readers in surviving the mad, crazy shoppers and drivers out there before the joyous arrival of Christmas.

I'm Home

We're finally home! We got home yesterday afternoon and it sure does feel good to be out of the hospital.

I have a beautiful little girl. 7 pounds 14 ounces. 19.5 inches tall. Sweet as sweet can be.



The delivery went very smoothly. I couldn't have asked for an easier delivery! However, I COULD have asked for a less busy time to have a baby. I had to wait six and a half hours to get a delivery room!

We're all adjusting to the new blessing that has been added to our family - thank goodness my mother in law is here to help.

I forgot how much work tiny babies are!

munchkin matching

Ok, so Leesa posted this really neat site where you upload a photo and then their engine will scan your features and match them to celebrities. Trying to keep my mind off tomorrow, I did this for my little one and here are the results:


This is the picture I used...



And here are her matches:

The Time Has Come

Well folks, I'm outta here!

I'm finishing up some odds n ends here at the house and tomorrow morning early, I'll be heading off to the hospital. My doctor called me personally this morning and upped my delivery to tomorrow morning at 6am.

Hopefully everything will go smoothly and I'll be back for you know it!

two hours trying so far

I've been trying to go to sleep for the last two hours. I'm exhausted, but my mind is racing.

I.just.want.to.sleep.

Did I say seven days to go?

I went to the doctor this morning for my weekly check up. Blood pressure is good. Baby's heart rate is good. My induction is was scheduled for Tuesday, December 13th.

My doctor checked to see how well my body's prepared for the pending delivery of baby #2 and I'm already dialated 2cm.

Then he chuckled and began saying, "Hmmmm.....hmmmm....hmmmm..."

I responded, "What ~exactly~ are you 'hmmming' about????"

He smirked and gave a little laugh and told me he doesn't think I'll last till Tuesday!

He told me to gather my things and he was going to go call Labor and Delivery! Eeks!

He comes back into the exam room and tells me that he really wanted to get me in to labor and delivery this week, but that they are booked solid and SO busy - so he put me in the first open spot of Monday the 12th at 6am. BUT! He isn't sure I'll be able to last that long.

So naturally although I was smiling on the outside, I was freaking out on the inside!

I had intended to run errands today and do some household chores like laundry and vaccuuming and all that other REALLY FUN stuff...but I changed my plans to just sit and relax with my legs crossed.

For my own sanity, I am going to focus on Monday now as my delivery date. I've got packages arriving full of presents for my family that I have to sign for etc...

I can't go into labor RIGHT NOW.

Won Ton Me a Smile

My husband, daughter, and myself decided we were going to dinner last night. There's a little Japanese restaurant not far from where we live that my husband's been wanting to try. Since I had been lounging in comfy anything-that-will-fit-me outfit, I rummaged up some presentable pregnancy clothes and dolled myself up the best I could.

We arrived at the restaurant only to find that they didn't open up for another half an hour. Bleh! Being hungry and not wanting to wait thirty more minutes, my husband decides that we'll drive to another restaurant and check the wait there.

As we drove by it was packed and people were already waiting outside to be called for their table. With a quick, unaminous, decision of ~Uhhh, No Thanks!~ we keep driving.

We ended up at this little Chinese restaurant not far from the second restaurant.

~~FINE DINING FOR CHINESE CUISINE~~ it stated under the name.

Indeed it was a nice restaurant, but I'm not sure I'd go as far as posting 'fine dining' under the name outside. It had cloth napkins and leaf shaped plates, but beyond that it was just a regular ol' restaurant.

They wanted to seat us with a highchair in the MOST CROWDED area of the restaurant that had the MOST TRAFFIC from the kitchen and a view right into the kitchen...

So you know it wasn't long before this hormonal pregnant lady spoke up. I asked to be moved to a different table. I got ~looks~ but we were moved regardless.

Our waitress was slow in getting to us and then the table behind us seemed to make her even more delayed in coming. The woman had a MILLION questions. Honestly, she must have asked the waitress 30 questions - I'm.not.kidding.

So when our waitress finally made it to our table, we told her we were ready to order our food - even though our drink order hadn't even been taken. She asked if we had any questions, and the hungry beast within me blurted out, "No. And especially after what you were just put through-NO!"

As we sat waiting for our drinks to arrive at the very least, we heard strange yodeling from the kitchen. Yes, yodeling. In.a.Chinese.restaurant.

When we asked for a spoon for my daughter, they brought us a spoon the size of her head practically. I wonder, really, what the waitress was thinking...Did she honestly think my daughter would be able to use it? I could have shoveled snow with the thing!

The food was just average and the prices were above average. And then of course just before we get our bill I hear the woman at the table behind us pipe up again to our busy waitress, "No, I don't want any more hot tea...IT'S SO HOT IN HERE!!!"

And I thought to myself, "Um lady, you're wearing a turtle neck and a fleece pull-over jacket on top of that and you're inside a restaurant with working heat and hot food and it's only in the 50's outside at the lowest!"

We didn't eat all of our meal and needed to go boxes and a soup container. They actually had quite tasty won ton soup, but we couldn't finish it off. The gentleman who boxed up our food though was young and obviously didn't have much of a clue about what he was doing. Not to mention, he kept trying to box the food up right.next.to.our.daughter. At 21 months, little styrafoam boxes and big shiny silverware and what looks to her like playing with food since he wasn't eating it, she was pretty excited and wanted in on the action. Between my husband and myself, we must have stopped her from attacking the containers and food at least a dozen times. And then the guy went to pour the soup into the container to go - only thing is, he felt it was far better to do it the quick way and just pick the bowl up, dump in the contents from one container to the other, and all as quickly as he could. However, he didn't take into consideration the spill factor on that method. Soup was going all over the table and heading right for my husband's lap. Luckily my husband caught the soup just before it reached the edge of the table....UGH!

We had a nice time out though and it did provide a good chuckle...especially when people look at me like, "Oh goodness, that poor woman! I wonder if her water will break RIGHT.HERe!"

Down to single digit days now, my friends!

my magical snowflake

We got our tree all set up yesterday. It's gorgeous! Well, the tree is gorgeous, and I did the best job I could decorating it. All the ornaments are Disney, which couldn't please the munchkin more. She's dazzled by the lights and this morning spent quite a bit of time pointing out all the 'dog' ornaments and all the 'Mickey' ornaments. One thing she's a bit confused on though is the presents under the tree. We decided to go ahead and put the wrapped presents we have under the tree and work with her on the whole 'not touching only looking' ordeal. She's been pretty good about it, but she thinks the presents are all wrapped boxes of SHOES! So ~all~ morning long I had to listen to her try to explain to me that shoes shouldn't be wrapped, but instead should be allowed to be opened up by her and worn.

"Honey, I promise you that they aren't shoes...I PROMISE! Trust Mommy!"

What I eventually had to do was get one of her real shoe boxes from the closet and let her play with it. I showed her how she could put some of her small toys in it and play. That indeed worked, but as I went to get her down for her nap, I noticed she had carefully placed her shoebox full of little toys under the tree next to the other boxes. As much of a stinker as she is, she sure is cute.



Decorating the tree took me quite a bit of time and it was a bit akward being on the ladder in all my roly poly glory, but I did it! What I love the most is the magical snowflake I put on the tree...I can turn the tree lights on and off with one quick touch of it!

peek-a-boo, pjs, and pretty

My daughter has been waking up early as of late. I'm not sure why...maybe she senses the soon coming of her sibling? Maybe her tummy awakens her because of hunger? (She seems to be so hungry lately.) Maybe she just thinks I've had my fair share of sleep and she's going to help me out by waking me up? "C'mon Mom, let's get this day started ~already~!"

Whatever the reason is, it's early and there's no mistaking that.

Although I'm a wee bit disgruntled when I first reach that verticle position out into the chilled house from the toasty warm sheets, my mood seems to quickly lighten while watching my daughter eat her breakfast. All the while I'm making her eggs and toast and pouring her milk, she "Mmmmm!!"s. She giggles with great anticipation of the breakfast masterpiece I'm creating for her. And trust me, at the early hour we're up, it's far from a masterpiece, but she thinks it is - fine.by.me! She smiles and does silly little things that make it impossible to stay cranky.

Yesterday morning, she bit the center out of her toast and when I looked up at her, she was peeking at me through the hole. She melts my heart.



After running errands and nap time and x, y, and z that filled our day to the brim, we had a few minutes to relax at home before we'd head out to pick my husband up from work.

I rushed out the door with the little one and in the process forgot my cell phone. I always call my husband once I get to his work so that he doesn't end up having to wait outside for me. I call - he comes out. It's a good plan for us and it works. But it doesn't work if I forget my cell phone.

Problem was though, that I was in my pajamas. And barefoot. Casual pjs though - tshirt and thin cotton drawstring pants. I sat in the parking lot for awhile kicking myself for forgetting the phone.

"Ok I'm sure he'll just come out...yeah, he'll just come out...yeah..."

I wasn't very good at convincing myself as inside I knew he was not going to come out until I called. And the calling wasn't going to happen because I.forgot.my.phone.at.home.

Sparing my daughter the profanities that were swirling around in my head, I kept my mouth shut. I got out of the car and headed to the cargo area where I remembered I had a pair of grungy, old sneakers. They were dusty and dirty and full of burrs.

I slipped my barefeet into the yucky shoes, laced them up and headed back toward the front of the car to get the munchkin. It was at this point that I remembered just how hideous I looked in my pjs. Not only was it far from the distinguished look of a lady, but my pj bottoms were see through and good gosh, people were going to see my p-i-n-k u-n-d-e-r-w-e-a-r through them!

Idea!! Ah ha!

I'd simply carry my daughter and throw my purse over my shoulder...between the purse and her leg, my bottom would be fairly well covered.

The idea was a good one, except that my little one is at the age of wanting to be ~independent~! She wanted to walk herself into the building. Mommy didn't want that. So there we were - me in my pjs, grungy shoes no socks, VERY pregnant and lucky if my tshirt stayed down as to not expose my massive roundness, carrying a toddler that's squirming and wiggling to try to free herself from Mommy's grasp, while my purse was bouncing behind me with each struggling step toward the building.

We made it to my husband's office - and he.wasn't.there!

And of course the office had people in it. I apologized for my horrendous appearance and they brushed it off as no big deal, but the smirks on their faces said so much more.

Finally, he arrived out of no where. He didn't even notice how I looked - gave me a kiss and picked up our munchkin and asked me where we should pick up dinner.

I turned to the office staff, "See? He doesn't even notice when I look horrendous...I knew there was a reason I married him."

My husband looked at me with a "huh?" expression and we all just chuckled.

As we walked back out to the car I encouraged us to walk just a little.bit.faster.please so that I could keep my pink undies from being discovered. He laughed and apologized for taking so long.

Next time I ~will~ remember my cell phone.

So in the evening I was relaxing and wanted to paint my toenails. I was feeling festive and had picked up Santa Red nailpolish with a slight golden shimmer to it. I'm not quite sure how I finagled it, but I did manage to paint my toes all.by.myself! And I even did nail art with nail gems making it look like I have holly on my two main toes. It must have been a funny sight to see - me on the kitchen floor trying to prevail over the task at hand. I'm not sure you can see the nail art very well in the picture...but I feel festive and pretty - at least my toes do!

Dinner and Doctors

Today was yet another busy day.

I went to the doctor - same ol' same ol' there. Baby and I are doing great! My blood pressure was 120/70. The baby's heart rate was 140. I'm slightly dilated. All is how it's supposed to be. AND we set a date for delivery. December 13.

I still think that I will end up going naturally before that, but we'll see. At any rate, it's just a couple days over two weeks away at the most. Wow! So close!

Then we brought my husband lunch at work and I picked up some yummy desserts for after dinner from a local pastry deli.

I feel like I was running all over the place today, but in reflection I guess I didn't go all that many places.

In addition to all the heres and theres that the little one and I went to, we also squeezed in another fun outting to the bagel cafe this morning. She really loves our time there and the bagel we share. It's our special time away from home.

Dinner tonight sure looked pretty, but it didn't meet up to my dining standards for taste. It was fun making it, but I won't make it again simply for the fact that I could make something better outside of this recipe. Not to mention the crab meat was entirely overpowering I thought. My typical Spring Mix salad with tomatoes and avacados and homemade vinaigrette was a hit as usual though.



But what really put a smile on my face was sitting on the couch with my husband sharing the desserts that I had picked up earlier.

A delicious slice of creamy cheesecake, a raspberry sponge cake with a raspberry mousse filling and blueberries and white chocolate on top, and then some sort of sinful chocolate cake and chocolate mousse filled pyramid of richness.

They all were so yummy, but the cheesecake was definately my favorite!

Sense of Humor

I had a pretty busy day today - Target, Costco, other errands....

On my way home, I called my husband to see if he wanted me to pick him up something to eat. He thought that was a great idea, so I swung through a drive thru.

A woman took my order over the speaker and when I approached the ~first~ window to pay, a man stood before me telling me my total.

Now, quite obviously I knew he wasn't the one who took my order, but I said anyways, "Wow! You sure sound different over the speaker!"

And instead of laughing, he became very concerned. "Oh! That wasn't me!! It was HER!" And he leans out the window to point to the woman standing at the ~second~ drive up window.

I chuckled and despite my obvious joke, I explained it to him anyways. "Yes, I know that wasn't you - I was just kidding."

He is still worried apparently by looking at his face.

Then my little one starts laughing out loud really obnoxiously. She's at the age where she loves to hear her own voice, and she had picked up on me joking around, so when I laugh - she laughs.

The man looks at my daughter and then looks at me and says, "So, is SHE laughing at ME too!?!" He said this seriously.

Again, I explain the situation. "No, I was joking earlier, and she just likes to laugh when anyone else laughs...she's not laughing AT you."

Goodness!

We went for coffee this evening and a nice, little drive. The sunset was gorgeous and I caught a few pictures of it. I couldn't decide which one I liked best, and my husband wasn't any help in deciding either so I put my three favorites up.



~click on the photo to see a better shot of it~

asphalt and fish

Yesterday was the day after Thanksgiving, which means it was the busiest shopping day of the year in the States at least. I really wanted to go zipping about looking for presents for the holidays. I wanted to eat lunch out. I wanted to sit and have a coffee at Starbucks and listen to the holiday music playing overhead and people watch as people came in and out fixating on what caffeine buzz they were going to splurge on.

But after thinking about it in more depth, I realized it probably wouldn't be the best time for me to do such a thing. Being so close to the delivery, and the roads being so trafficy, there really wasn't a reason good enough to risk getting into a car accident or being trampled by the shopping madness.

Not to mention, I was extremely tired.

My darling daughter woke up at 2:30am and decided that she wasn't tired. Despite my efforts to get her back to sleep, by 3:45am she was asking to have her toe nails clipped. By 4am she was hungry and wanting to eat, "eat! eat! pwweeze!". So there I stood in my kitchen making eggs and toast. She wasn't making it up though. She ate all of her breakfast and by 4:40am I got her to go back to sleep for an hour or so.

Starting your day in such a way really throws things off.

My husband and I did decide to go out for a bit. We drove to look at our land, and me and my brilliant ideas - I talked us into going to one of our cell phone provider stores to ~finally~ switch over our cell phone numbers from our old area of residence to our new area of residence. We've really been after getting this done for some time now so my husband agreed to it so we could get it over with.

Long story short about the phone store, the lady working was ~clueless~ and ~misleading~. And just in case any of my readers have forgotten this...I'm VERY pregnant. Which means I don't have a ton of patience and I have a lot of extra hormones cruising through my body. I asked the woman straight up if there was a better cell phone store in the area of our provider to go to to expedite the number changing - because honestly she was slower than molasses on a cold, winter's day.

She tells me no. That it would be JUST THE SAME because all the work has to be done over the phone yadda yadda yadda. Only to find out that this was a privately owned store and not a corporate store. A corporate store was just down the street. And a corporate store would have been MUCH better. Not only would they know what they were doing far better, but they also wouldn't be charging an EXTRA $50 for supplies. Excuse me, but having to spend an extra fifty bucks at YOUR store, makes the OTHER store BETTER. Simple.

I was noticeably irritated and really did my best to bite my tongue and be civil. She wasted over thirty minutes of our time. She should have been straight up with me and not tried to play games.

I grumbled the whole drive home. My husband thought it was pretty good entertainment to listen to me, although he too thought it was ridiculous. I'll go to the corporate store later and get the number switching taken care of properly.

Later in the day, we picked up some groceries for the weekend. The little one got to sit in the grocery cart car and adored her ride. I think she really thinks she is driving. Cracks me up. While we were shopping, it rained outside.

So when we left the store, it just stank. The parking lot smelled like asphalt and fish - and with that I decided we should go home and stay home.

It wasn't a good day to be out.

thank you

Thanksgiving is such a wonderful holiday. Comfy cozy with friends and family - lots of yummy food - endless conversation - the buzzing of the TV in the background and the occassion outburst of cheers or groans from the ups and downs of whatever football game is playing - the clanking of dishes in the kitchen - the delicious smells of cooking food wafting throughout the house...

This year my husband, daughter, and I are having a quiet Thanksgiving. Soon we will have a newborn and a house that's busy trying to transition from one child to two. My husband is going to grill the turkey and I'm going to tend to the side dishes while my daughter probably scurries around the kitchen begging for KEES! ("Cookies" for my readers that missed that word in an earlier post.)

I have so much to be thankful for, and while it would take forever to list them all in their entirety, let me list some until I run out of posting time:

My health.

My family's health.

For the miracle that's growing inside me.

That this little miracle is also healthy, and that she wasn't born early when I passed my kidney stone.

For the memories I hold of happy times with loved ones that have passed who can't spend Thanksgiving with me in a tangible sense.

For my friends and their health.

For knowing that I have my dog in a home that really loves him. It was hard giving him up, but at least I know he's happy.

For being able to have a feast on my dining room table for all my family to enjoy. We are so fortunate.

For coffee. (C'mon, you didn't think I could leave that off my list did you??)

For all the love and kisses that my family gives me.

For Tylenol. And for the fact that it actually alleviates pain for me. (Took some last night when I woke up from being SO achey, and as I laid down in bed again to fall asleep, I could actually feel the pain dissipate.)

For being a bit quirky and keeping life a bit strange and interesting for those around me - makes life more fun.

For having supportive family and friends.

For having a daughter who thinks I'm special.

And that is such a small part of all that I'm thankful for...

Happy Thanksgiving!

Ripening

I never did give the news from my doctor's appointment on Monday...

Everything is looking great! My doctor is out of town this week, so I saw the Nurse. She was super busy as she was doing about a million things at once and seeing all the patients for their check ups, but she was still a gem of a person and took her time with me.

Being the curious cat that I am, of course I had a fair amount of questions. None of them were essential, so I did feel a bit bad asking them since I know she was so busy, but she assured me that she didn't mind my questions at all as long as I didn't mind her running warp speed from my exam room after we were done so she wasn't too late getting to the next patient.

I had to give the standard tinkle sample, and I usually have been holding it for awhile so as I'd be sure to be able to go when I get to the doctor's office. But by the time I got to the bathroom, I had to go so bad that I completely forgot I was supposed to go tinkle in the cup until the very end and was able to just catch a drop.

"Oops! Say, you don't need very much ...dooo...you..? Because, I um sorta forgot!"

She said she had enough, but I sure hope she wasn't cursing me under her breath.

The baby's heart rate was 152 or 155 (can't totally recall) which is healthy and strong.

My blood pressure is "good" - didn't get numbers on that this time, however, it's always about the same every time I go in and it's always been really good. So I can let not knowing the #s slide this time - although I'm a #s person... I like knowing specifics.

I had the nurse check my chart, and I've gained 30 pounds this pregnancy. That's a lot better than my first pregnancy!

Still holding to delivery during the second week of December, but no formal date has been set yet and again, because I'm a #s person - this.is.driving.me.nuts! I can't wait to have a solid date set for the inducing.

Seeing as how my sister-in-law had her baby a month early and that the baby was breech, naturally I had some questions about how my body seems to be prepping and how the baby is positioned.

"So, what % can you give me on how sure you are that my baby isn't breech??" (Again, there I go with the #s - I can be such a pain!)

She starts off with telling me what I already knew, "Well, we can't be for sure until we start with the delivery really, and if we have suspicions then we'll do an ultrasound to verify to determine what we need to do..."

But then she cut herself short and even though she was incredibly rushed, she took the time to do an ultrasound for me! I was SO surprised!! She definately didn't need to do that for me, but she did. She wanted to put the worry out of my mind that the baby might be breech, and the baby isn't...WHEW! Head down just like she's supposed to be.

..like SHE'S supposed to be...

That really is something I've been mulling over lately- is the baby REALLY a girl? I'm sure the baby IS! but there's this nagging thought that she's a HE. I know I'll find out soon for sure, but it's frustrating not being settled with the fact that I was told the baby is a girl.

So I asked, "So, can you see privates???"

The nurse said she wasn't any good at that, and reminded me since I don't really have a gender preference what difference does it make? And she's right...and I will know soon enough and I'm quite certain the baby will come out a beautiful, precious GIRL!

Everything is in check and looking how it's supposed to be - my body is properly prepping for the delivery of this little miracle...I just wonder when it will all take place!

Toddler Tuesdays

This morning started off earlier than usual due to the fact that the munchkin didn't nap yesterday for more than 15 minutes because Daddy was home and when Daddy is home she constantly wants to know what he's up to.

So bedtime came 45 minutes earlier than usual and she was out like a light in five minutes.

I fixed my daughter her usual breakfast ("Fast! Fast! Fast!" as she says when she wakes up...), and then we got cleaned up to take my husband to work after a short walk outside in the morning sunshine.

AND! I saw the dog I'm sure that did the lawn dookie in front of my house...he was off leash and running amuck this morning, not to mention definately OVER the 40 pound weight limit rule set here by Management. Anyways...

After we took my husband to work, we stopped by the yummiest bagel place in the area and for the first time in a long time, I actually sat in the cafe there and enjoyed people watching. My daughter was being her typical cheery I-Love-The-World self and doing her best to get eye contact with everyone she could so she could flash her pearly whites at them.

We shared a toasted, plain bagel with fresh, whipped cream cheese and a soda. Of course she stole the hearts of a couple of elderly women who had met up for a good gossip session, coffee, and morning pastry. They also cast a glance of sympathy for me while I carried my daughter on the side of my big pregnant belly, carried my purse, carried the plate with the bagel on it, carried extra napkins, and the highchair. Whew though! We made it to the table without any mishaps.

It was warm in the cafe with the smell of hot coffee, freshly brewed, and baking bread. Mmm. It was fun, even if the only real conversation I held was with my daughter as we exchanged, "MMmm!"s back and forth while we snacked.

Then it was a mission for new shoes, 1/2 a size larger. My daughter is still wearing her go-fasters that she has just fine, but I figured it would just be easier to have the next size up for when they become to small. We first went to Target, but their selection just didn't thrill me, however, I found a couple very cute outfits for my precious munchkin. I also picked up some new bath toys, including a little hose shower spout that hooks on to the tub spout - will make it easier for me to wash my little one's hair - and will make it easier on Grandma when she comes to visit too. Picked up some super gentle baby wash. And. And. And Target is just too easy of a place to find stuff to spend your money at!

But! We didn't leave with shoes, and that's why we went there in the first place. So off we went to Payless Shoe Source. That's a great place to pick up kid shoes. I refuse to spend a fortune on shoes that only last a short while...it's just silly. So we did find some very cute go-fasters that were $9.99. Perfect!

Now we had just.enough.time to get our tooshs over to the book store for Toddler Tuesday!

There were thirteen children in attendance. My little one was so excited and I did give her freedom out of her stroller. I was a little nervous about that at first, because obviously in a store full of beautiful new books, she could cause some serious damage not to mention really rack up a hefty bill for Mommy. But she was great and suprised the socks off me. She minded me really well and all I had to do was remind her that we were there to 'look' not to 'touch'. Then it was read-aloud time. One of the store employees plopped herself up on the neatly decorated kid's stage while all the kids sat themselves down on the benches and floor surrounding the stage. My little one was a bit unsure about sitting and listening at first. It was her first experience with such an event. I sat her down in the second row of seats, and sat myself down on the carpet to the side of the first row bench and the second row bench. Naturally, she didn't want to stay on the bench and she waddled her way over to me and sat next to me on the carpet.

Through half listening and half taking in the scenery of the store, she realized there was just enough space next to another child on the first row bench. Up she went and squished herself on the edge of the bench. Luckily the other child skooted over a bit and wasn't bothered at all by my daughter's friendly nature. And there my daughter sat and listened to the stories being read - and then she'd come back to my lap for a few minutes, and then back to the bench, and then back to my lap, bench, lap, bench...

After the second story, it was snack time. The woman handed out a cookie and apple juice to each child and then continued reading two more stories. After that, it was Coloring Time. There was a nice, wooden, round table with crayons with paper for coloring and then the children were also given permission to sit up on the stage to color if they preferred.

This was great! She socialized with so many of the kids. We started out at the coloring table, and then she moved on to chit-chat and color with a different group of kids with their Moms, and after that she moved on to yet another group of kids and their parents...

By the time we reached the third group and spent a little bit of time coloring there, the Toddler Tuesday time was over and all the crayons needed to be collected. My little munchkin followed the woman all over to try to hand in her crayons and the woman kept on cruising further and further away in a circle. It was really pretty comical, and my daugther was getting somewhat frustrated, but she did track the woman down and turned in her crayons.

I told her it was time to go and back into the stroller we went and she waved bye to everyone and said, "Bye!!"

What a great outting - and they do it every Tuesday for free.

dookie duty please

Someone who walks their dog around the neighborhood let their dog go poopie in our front yard - YUCK. Seeing as how we're renting this house in a large complex of other rental homes, I was not about to pick it up. There are rules about this sort of thing - this poopie business. The manager even has bag stations up around the neighborhood so that dog owners don't even need to worry about carrying a pick-up bag with them on their walks.

For a week. An entire week. That pile of stink sat there on our front lawn. Had it sat there beyond today, I had plans of calling the manager to have her come pick it up, but thank goodness today was 'mowing the lawn' day so the gardners got to it.

It's really a shame they had to pick it up. No one but the owners of the dog that did it should have to do that. I actually had intended on printing out a sign and putting in on the lawn that read, "If your dog did this - PICK IT UP!"

It's just rude and classless. It's part of being a dog owner. Curb your dog!

two miles a go go

The weather was gorgeous this morning.

Chilly but not cold - warm but not hot - sunny, blue skies, no clouds.

The little one and I went for a two mile walk. It was long, for sure, but it felt really great to get some fresh air deep into my lungs and get the blood really circulating through my body.

The first mile went a lot faster than the return mile though! By the end of our walk I was pretty tired and somewhat achey.

I had intended on taking the munchkin to the park and pushing her on the swing, but the sun was so sparkly that we went to a different park with a scenic view.

By the time we got home, it was time to make a pot of coffee for my husband to tote off to work with him and make a couple snacks for myself and my daughter to nibble on. We sat at opposite ends of the dining room table and made faces at each other.

She thinks I'm so funny, and I love that. But then again, I think she's pretty darn funny too, and she loves that.

We spent the rest of the day playing and relaxing around the house.

At some point in the evening, my daughter managed to get ahold of my husband's soda can when he left his PC to use ~the little boy's room~. Of course she spilled a fair amount on her shirt and a fair amount on the carpet (thank goodness it's a caramel color).

And you have to love it when kids put to use new words they've added to their vocabulary...

So she grabs the soaked part of her shirt and slurps out the soda to which she then says, "Mmm SIP!! SIP!"

She's such a crack up.

produce passion

I was recently introduced to the blog On Location With Rick Lee. I had been feeling in a photo schlump as of late, and really needed inspiration. I found it in heaps and gobs at Rick's blog. I can't tell you what a rush it was. His photos are spectacular and yet he really comes across very down to earth and shows his readers that amazing shots can be found most anywhere.

He features a special post every Thursday on produce, because as he says, "Because Thursday night is grocery night!"

This morning I awoke with new found energy, dressed the munchkin, put myself together and off we went to the grocery store. I knew my daughter would be well behaved as long as she could ride in one of those grocery cart cars. And with that, I would be able to peruse the produce as if I was a cat insearch of tasty mouse morsel.

I was having a fantastic time snapping shots. Some duds right off the bat, some duds found later when I got home, but some that turned out - all in all it was so refreshing! Even if they had all turned out crumby, it was the entire experience...the feeling of wanting to find "the shot" again...the union of me and my camera and wherever my scanning eyes took me.

I did however learn two valuable lessons:

1. Make sure you know if the grocery store plays a little tune before they turn on the produce sprinklers. Especially if you've got your camera whipped out and you're trying to take a close up. I found out that this grocery store did not. Poor poor camera. Poor poor me.

2. Expect the produce guy to think you're off your rocker. As I was happily snapping shots, the produce guy became very curious as to what I was up to. What are you doing? Why are you doing it? What do you do with the photos? Really? Really? Seriously? Hmm, you sure? Cool. I felt like he was about ready to handcuff me and drag me into the back to that dim lit room where there's the good cop/bad cop there to interrogate me, "If you cooperate with us this will go a lot smoother, Ms Insanity..." In all seriousness though, he thought me snapping shots of his immaculately aligned fruits and veggies was great - I think he was rather flattered.

But then after I exhausted the produce section, my daughter and I had to walk the Isle of Death in the bakery. Flanked on each side of us were stacks and stacks of cookies. Naturally, that being a word my daughter can say (half way at least), I immediately hear, "KEEEEEEES! KEEEEEEEES! KEEEEEEEES!" (meaning Cookies)

So I caved since she'd been so wonderful during my "produce photoshoot" and began looking at all the different kinds of KEES to find some that would make the least amount of mess. She had been so cute and determined and somewhat LOUD that one of the bakery men came over to chit-chat. I apologized for a) my loud persistant daughter and b) for not having aspirin to hand out. He chuckled and assured me the grocery store had seen far worse than my little toddler cruising around in her grocery cart car.

Even though I had committed to a yummy container of chocolate chip cookies, the nice gentleman opened up some red sugar sprinkle covered sugar cookies and gave one to my daughter. She was delighted beyond comprehension and that satiated any KEES desires for a good ten minutes.

He was thrilled with the fact that I was taking pictures. He encouraged me to chat with one of the bakers in the back about a photography club in the area and how I should join it after I have my second baby. He gave me good insights on other places to go to in town to try to catch some fun shots. It was really kind of him and very informative.

I asked him to please let the Produce Guy know that I'm really not mental if they were to ever have words with each other.

He laughed and assured me that the Produce Guy didn't think I was mental...

I picked up the items I needed, and we went on our way. I left feeling rejuvenated and alive.

What a great feeling.

My grocery store shots can be viewed in my slideshow above or by clicking here.

pork - it's whats for dinner

I went grocery shopping this morning and I couldn't deny this craving I'm having for grilled pork chops. It will just be my husband and I eating them, but did I keep that in mind when looking in the meat department? Heck no. I've got six gorgeous chops sitting in my fridge waiting for ~The Grill Master~ to work his magic on tonight.

I've known people who never, ever have cravings for particular foods. I can't imagine what life would be like. I live for cravings. Although they are torture and heaven combined. It's so horrible when you really are craving something to eat and you can't seem to get your hands on it. But then when you do get what you have been craving - it's as if you're tasting it for the first time...so incredibly good!

Not to forget those rare occassions when you've been very much craving something, and you finally get it, only to take a bite and have it be NOT what you wanted or NOT the right type of what you wanted or just a really crappily made version of what you wanted...That's entirely depressing and can put me in a foul mood rather quickly.

I'm not hungry in the slightest right now, but I can't wait for dinner!

I also picked up all the trimmings to cook up a Thanksgiving feast. We've always gone to other places besides our own home for Thanksgiving, so this year will be something new. My husband is excited to grill the turkey on ~a fine bed of charcoal coals~ and me tending to all the other side dishes will be easy enough.

It will be our quite little family time...the last holiday before we are no longer a family of three. Early December is approaching fast...the new munchkin will be here before we know it!!

Today my goal is to get my hospital bag packed...if only I can stop procrastinating!

dream kitchen

I was reading my new Bon Appetit magazine this evening and Viking has an ad in this issue with the most amazing kitchen. Between now and the time we actually build our house, I may change my mind as to what a 'dream kitchen' will look like...but right now...

this.is.it!

(I just photo'd the magazine ad, so bear with the quality...)



Click on the photo to view the larger picture. There is so much beauty to be seen in this kitchen!

Kissing the Golden Bulb

In celebration of my little one napping and having a few moments of solitude, I completely devoured a warm brownie topped with mocha almond fudge ice cream and whipped cream. At the time of consumption, it was a moment of ecstacy. However, now having finished it, let me tell you that I.regret.it. I feel sick and icky. Why oh why do I let my mind convince my hand and mouth to give in to such tasty treats.

I can't bear to even think on it any more...

Yesterday, I taught the munchkin the word "sip". As in to use it if she wants a sip of Mommy or Daddy's soda/beverage. She sounds so cute when she belts it out, "Sip! Sip! Siiiiipppppppp!! Pweeeeeeeze??!!"

Now however, it's sip this and sip that and sip sip sip sip sip all hours of the day. The girl is obsessed! Cute, but definately putting her new word to use.

And the garland...it has beautiful gold bulbs hanging on it. I turned the lights on last night and the munchkin was fascinated. Then she went up for a closer look at a bulb of her height and realized she could see her reflection in it - to which she kissed herself.

And it reminded me of sitting on the guest bed with her reading through a cookbook that had a lot of neat photos in it. She insisted on kissing all the boys in the book but refused to give Mommy a kiss!! And all she could do was laugh about it. She's only one. I think my husband and I are in trouble.

with a heartfelt thank you

I received the BIGGEST box today. Door delivered even!

A dear reader and friend that I've met through blogging sent me a beautiful present. She made me (as in with her own two hands!) a photo album for my munchkin on the way. That was so sweet and I can't thank you enough!

I've made a little photo display of it - of course the scrapbook art looks NOTHING like the scrapbook art found on this blog, but it was fun nonetheless to try to give this beautiful creation a worthy display other than just posting the regular ol' photo.

Thank you, thank you, thank you! Although I have to say, my little one is just as appreciative of it as I am...she's BEGGING me to let her hold it. It's safe on the dining room table though, out of reach.

wild water

In a desperate attempt to find some sleeping comfort I moved my slightly smaller than a barge self to the squishy couch in the middle of the night.

I found sleep. And with it, another crazy dream:

I was walking around a neighborhood that overlooked a lake. It was beautiful - manicured lawns, tall trees, everything green and lush and in bloom. I decided to take my camera for a walk and snap some pictures. I was visiting and wanted to document this magnificent area so I could look back on it later.

As I walked down the road (the neighborhood was on a hill that declined down to the lake) looking for the perfect picture, I looked upon the lake. All of a sudden this huge tidal wave of water came rushing out and up the hill at me at tremendous speed. I turned to head back up the hill for safety and what seemed like from no where came a massive rush of water down the hill at me as well. I ran to the side, since it was my only route, and pulled myself up into one of the trees. Other people were in the trees clutching on for their life. There was a pregnant woman right next to where I was. She was lying on her back on one of the branches holding on to two other smaller branches with her hands. I asked her if she wanted help to try to sit up and she nodded. In the process of helping her she lost her balance and fell. She was grabbing on to the two smaller branches even tighter now hoping she wouldn't fall down into the flooding waters below us.

Then my dream switched to another place in time...

I was a lifeguard, thin and fit in my white tank top and red shorts, working at a public beach. There were so many people swimming and soaking up the sun. There was a hush all around about Naval forces stealthing around off the shore and they were looking for new recruits for their special forces team for some local project. All my co-lifeguards were there around me. All of us in our uniforms. We were being asked to perform several tasks to test our ability. I don't recall what the tasks were, but we were in the water and none of us were qualifying. Maybe one of the girls met one performance test, but beyond that no one.

As we stood there up to our waist in the water, talking with our superior, right out of no where surfaced the Naval special force team. They were riding fancy shark like looking jet skiis that were painted a dark green/charcoal color and they were wearing military gear. It was an awesome site to see them surface up in the middle of a bunch of casual swimmers. No one saw them coming. One of the men came over to talk to us and our superior to see if any of us had met their qualifications for assisting them in their local task.

Since none of us qualified, they said they could use our help in other areas. I want to recall that it was driving trucks guised as garbage disposal people, but it's a bit foggy.

Then I woke up.

Lights! Camera! Action!

I was feeling excited today about the Holidays. We'll have a new baby in the house, family and friends sharing in our excitement, and I won't have below zero temperatures to contend with.

I decided to put up the Holiday garland and put festive lights out on our back fence. It was somewhat of a challenge considering how roly poly I am - working the drill (and actually figuring out how to put the teenie weenie drill bit in it) so I could put the garland hooks on the wall, rummaging out the Holiday decorations, trying to safely climb the ladder - all the while keeping my toddler from attacking the drill, eating the fake berries from the garland, running off with the decorative pine cones, and stealing the green and red placemats I put on the dining room table.

Now that it's done, I feel relaxed. I don't have to worry about the house lacking holiday cheer when visitors come by to see the new addition to our family. I know I won't be in any sort of mood to do it after I deliver, so now it's just one more thing that's all taken care of.

Oh yeah, and I put the little Santa Claus pillows on the couch, hung three stockings, and put out the gold and red berry with snow and glitter painted pine cones in our crystal vase for the dining room table.

Now just to figure out where my Holiday CDs are...but I promise not to play them until the first of December.

Just Too Darn Comical

I received this from a friend today and it was too funny not to post. I doubt it's real, but I wonder...

Panera Pandemonium

Ever wonder what a gamer chick who loves bread dreams about when she's got a toddler and is eight months pregnant and she finally finds some lost sleep?

I thought so...let me share...

It was dark and musky. My surroundings weren't familiar to me at all and the only light I had to navigate myself was the little bit of light being given off by the shining moon which seemed to only be half visible due to heavy clouds looming in the air.

I was traveling with a friend. I don't recall where we were traveling to, but we reached an enterance to somewhere and we needed to then switch from traveling by foot to traveling by raft. The raft wasn't anything that you'd imagine from a modern day setting. Nothing like this. The raft we climbed on to was old and made of wood and tied together barely by frayed ropes. Something similar to this, however imagine it being much more tattered and degraded.

So there we were, up to our thighs in murky water climbing atop this raft to float down this waterway from the enterance that lead into this cavern of even muskier air and darker sights to see.

Sitting up on the raft made it very unstable so we figured lying down would be the better choice. As I laid there looking up catching a glimpse of our surroundings from time to time, chills would travel up my spine. Wrought iron, immaculately detailed architechture lined the ceiling of this cave. The sound of running water seemed to have an eerie flowing sound to it. The feeling of being in this cave just didn't embrace me as one of warmth and friendliness. It was scary. And it was unknown.

As we continued in further, we reached this iron gate. Again very detailed in design. As we passed underneath the gate and I was able to get a closer look at the details before us, I realized exactly where we were.

The dungeonous waterway that leads to the center of Hell.

I start whispering in a loud and exasperated tone, "We..'re...in...PANERA!"

(Panera? How pathetic is that? In the depth of my dream when I realize I'm in Hell...I start thinking about... B.R.E.A.D? Although I guess anyone who is doing the Atkins diet probably feels bread and Hell are one in the same...I'm definately not one of those people though.)

And from there my dream shifted to being in a small tourist town that, in my dream, was not far from Disneyland. Now it was myself and a couple girlfriends and again we were on an adventure. This time to find all the secret passageways from around town that lead into the Disneyland park. Some shops had small little doors that seemed to open up in discreet ways that had dark pathways leading to what we knew was Disneyland. And again, the streets were lined with several bread stores.

Strange.

At one door, we had decided to travel down the dark pathway and see how dangerous and lengthy the trip was to the inner area of Disneyland. We knew it was secret. We knew it would be risky. But we wanted to anyways. My two girlfriends headed into the small opening in the wall first, and just as I was heading in, another friend of mine showed up calling my name. She had brought a handful of people with her and they were urging me to attend coffee with them.

As it started to rain and the rest of the party headed into the cafe, I told her privately that I was sorry, but I just couldn't make the coffee shop. About twenty minutes had passed by the time I was able to turn and head back to the previous engagement of my friends in the tunnel. When I opened the small, private door, there they were, scrunched and waiting.

We looked at each other back and forth and then looked down the dark passageway and then back at each other. We agreed that maybe we weren't ready to go down that path as it just didn't seem very safe and had the same eerie feeling as the cavern from the earlier part of my dream.

We left with plans of trying it again on another day soon.

And then I woke up with us standing outside that small, secret opening looking around at all the tourist shops, chatting and wondering what we could do instead...

Nutcase Nesting

As each moment ticks by and the arrival of our new little munchkin gets closer, I am feeling more and more scatter brained. I'm pretty well prepared to have another child - have all the house things in order. I already bought diapers, have the clothes washed and folded and put away, have the nursing stuff ready, stocked up on toddler diapers and larger shoes and larger clothes (just in case she would happen to grow out of them overnight during my couple day stay at the hospital so my husband wouldn't have to worry about finding something that fits...), the Bjorn is all washed, baby blankets washed, extra crib sheets washed, and I have the crib, playpen, and vibrating/music playing chair set up...

Yet, I still feel a tad bit frazzled. Like maybe I've forgotten something important.

Granted, I still need to pack my hospital bag, but my official due date isn't for another month despite what my doctor says about being induced. And even with that - that's probably three weeks away.

Braxton Hicks have really settled in in the last couple days and unlike with my first daughter, this time around they are far from enjoyable or comfortable. In fact, I'm inclined to say they are downright yucky and unpleasant.

The new life that's been harboring inside me seems to be a real athelete. I am watching my caffeine intake, however, she acts like I've got a direct line from the coffee pot right to her bloodstream. She's always on the go - tossing and turning and s.t.r.e.t.c.h.i.n.g and pushing and I honestly wonder at times if my tummy is going to burst open from pressure.

At my last doctor's appointment, they thought maybe the baby was breech due to the fact that the upper part of my tummy on one side was so hard. But it was just her pushing and s.t.r.e.t.c.h.i.n.g her little body. Her head is nestled down where it's supposed to be.

Hopefully sooner than later, I can kick this feeling of being mental and calm down this incessant nesting obsession of mine.

Welcome to the World

High Point:

Being an Auntie to a new little baby that was welcomed in to this world last night at 11:05pm! A sweet bundle of preciousness that is healthy and doing well. Mommy of baby is doing well too. Life is such a miracle.

Low Point:

My new niece arrived a month early. And the cute, little stinker was breech so my sister-in-law had to have a c-section. We were all very worried about both baby and mommy, but everyone is doing just fine. Whew.

I have family flying in to town this evening. Life is always on the go-go-go with me. I'm not complaining though - I love it!

However, JUST.NOW. I answered the door as a package arrived. I have had several packages arrive in the last few days- today it was spices, the other day - pants for my husband that I ordered, the day before that - nursing bras...

I said to the UPS man, (with a smile mind you) "I see you too often!"

He replies, "Yeah, well, you gotta keep your finger off the mouse!"

If he only knew just how exciting my packages were.... and in all fairness, the few packages before that weren't even things ~I~ ordered!! Two came from my friend John and two other things that came were ordered by my husband...

So there!

Happy Hula

High Point:

Finding out that there's a Polynesian Cultural Center where I live, and that they offer Hawaiian dance lessons. I'm very much looking forward to signing up my little one for lessons as soon as she's old enough!

Low Point:

I feel unorganized. I'm sure it's all part of 'nesting', but even though my life is pretty well organized, I feel out of sorts. I'm worried about there not being enough of me to go around once the baby comes. I'm worried I'll completely loose even the smallest shred of personal time. I think it's all part of the unknowns teasing my mind who wants to know every little detail - when the baby will come, what the baby will look like, how will the munchkin take to the new baby, what the new demands will be, what the new joys will be, etc. It's all part of life I suppose.

New Online Cooking Magazine!

High Point:

Getting an interesting email about a new online cooking magazine. Any of my long time readers will soon realize why this is a highpoint for me once I reveal the magazine. I haven't had the time to really submerge myself into it, but the first few pages look FANTASTIC. But then again, it's early morning for me right now and I'm hungry. I wonder how hard it would be to get a job as a food photographer. What a perfect job for me. Although very soon I won't have a second to even enjoy a stray thought out of Babyland - but they do grow up, and rather quickly - so I'm definately not complaining. Oh yeah! The new magazine...see how scatter brained I am lately? Here it is... ~*~Can you see why I love it??~*~

Low Point:

Hungry. Nothing sounds good that's simple and non-complicated to make. Everything sounds good that requires a lot of preparation and time to make. Bleh.

Attention Shoppers - Christmas Isle Blocked By Big Butt

High Point:

Having a great time at the mall today. I bought an incentive sweater - after the baby is born and get my butt in gear to get skinny again type of sweater - plus a light blue (my favorite color) tank top to wear underneath it. Then browsing in Victoria Secret at all the "I can't wait to be skinny again" unmentionables. However, my mother in law quickly reminded me, "You wear much of that stuff and you won't be skinny for very long..." True.

Low Point:

Making a Costco shopping trip and taking out my cell phone to check to see if my expected caller had called. She hadn't. However, it was just my luck that not a second after I looked at my cell phone screen, the phone slipped from my hands, bounced on the floor, and with such amazingly bad luck, it shot in a straight line right into the little hole at the bottom of the crate holding a LOT of Christmas items. I couldn't believe it. I tried to kneel down to see if I could spot my phone - but no luck. The hole was just too small to peek in from that angle. Determined to try to reach my phone before flagging down a Costco employee, I then, in my pregnant glory, got down on my hands and knees and put my face to the floor and sure enough, saw my phone resting just.out.of.arms.reach. I feel sorry for anyone that had to witness me doing such a thing. I must have looked ridiculous, not to mention the task it was in trying to get my rolly polly self back into an upright position. Meanwhile, my toddler is peeking over the edge of the cart at me nibbling on her free cookie wondering what in the world Mommy is up to. I did get help, and the gentleman didn't make too many teasing comments about my bad luck...but the smirk on his face said more than what needed to be vocalized. I couldn't believe what luck I had. That hole at the bottom of the crate was so darn tiny. Ugh.

Cloud Watching

High Point:

Making my daughter a neat, little play area on our back porch. It got some of the messy toys out of the house, let her breathe in some fresh air, and allowed me to actually get a decent vaccuum in. At one point she was just laying down on her blanket cloud watching. If I wasn't so pregnant, I'd have laid down right next to her, however, seeing that I am just slightly larger than a semi truck, I chose not to for fear of not being able to get back up again.

Low Point:

Having to change my maternity clothes two times to find something that would actually fit half way decently and not make me feel like the incubating baby was choking to death. I'm sure they are fitting snug because of an accidental washing machine setting to 'Hot'. Right? Riiighhttt?

Hurry Home with the Candy!

High Point:

My new bloggy home. Thank you for all the emails and congratulations on moving my blog. Happy Halloween! I'm looking forward to seeing the little one dressed up as a cute leopard tonight. She will be the one to answer the door, greet the trick-or-treaters, and give out the candy. We'll see how well she shares. I have a feeling once she gets her grimey little hands on the candy, she's not going to want to let go of it.

Low Point:

Not having any candy in the house as of right now. My husband is picking up candy on his way home from work. I fear that the little candy seekers may have a nasty trick for me if I tell them I don't have any candy for them! I just hope my husband gets home at a fashionable hour.

Fall Reading

High Point:

Cooler weather finally settling in! That being said, hot coffee tastes that much better, fluffy socks feel softer, soft blankets to nestle up in are so welcoming, the house being chilly when you first bring your feet out of the toasty covers after a long, night's rest...I love it. And I've been doing a lot of interesting reading on the net. Learning new things and keeping the brain cells alive. Self growth is so important.

Low Point:

With all the reading I've been doing, I came across THIS. And what makes me geekier, I found it really interesting and contemplated printing it out, but I bookmarked it instead! Sad, little me, saaad.

Unconditional Love

Practicing Our Words

High Point:

Cheeseburgers before noon. Went driving to look at the land. It was a beautiful morning. On the drive home, the little one was practicing all the words she knows. My husband and I would say a word, and she'd repeat after us. It was so cute and she was doing an amazing job! Duck, Dog, Phone, Please (pweeeze), Four,
Five, Mom, Dad...simple words, you get the picture. And then we took a breather and she called "Mom? Mom?? Mooommmm???" and finally I turn around and reply, "Yes?" and she pauses and then says..."bitch. It hit us so completely unexpectedly. I'm certain she was trying to say a different word, as she's never heard the "B" word before. It's not a word that myself nor my husband use, and it's not exactly a word you hear on the Disney Channel or Food Network. But we laughed and laughed - that little stinker!

Low Point:

Having a hard time eating this Caramello Chocolate Bar all by myself and broke down and resorted to sharing. Shame on me!

Chocolate All For Me

High Point:

Went to the doctor today and everything is looking fantastic. The baby's heart rate was 152. My blood pressure was 90/62. I've gained a nice amount of weight this pregnancy so far, but for some reason only gained one pound in the last three weeks - which is a bit off but I was told not to worry about it, just make sure I'm eating three meals a day which I am!. And I'm measuring right on the mark of where I'm supposed to be belly size wise. I'm in much better physical condition now than my last pregnancy. With approximately just five weeks to go, I'm still 20 pounds off from where I was when I delivered my first child. I can't imagine gaining 20 pounds in the next month. I suppose it could happen - but I doubt it. So I bought a Caramello Chocolate Bar to enjoy - King Sized - and I don't plan on sharing it.

Low Point:

Having this incubated baby of mine think my womb is bigger than it really is. She loves to stretch. So much so that the nurse thought at first the baby was breech because my tummy was hard as a rock. But then with more feeling she felt the head of the baby right where it was supposed to be - head down. What she had originally thought was the skull, was just baby rump with legs pushing and stretching. It's amazing how different this baby acts in the womb from how my first munchkin did - albeit they are both busy bodies!

I Wonder

High Point:

The weather is still gorgeous even though its in the second half of October. I've been busy which keeps my mind off how large I feel. And even though my husband insists I'm a lot smaller this pregnancy than the last, I feel just as big. Little over a month to go!

Low Point:

Tired. Not sleeping well. Mind keeps thinking too much for me to sink into that deep sleep that I need, not to mention getting comfortable in bed is becoming a real challenge.

A few things I've been wondering about though:

Do you always start with the same foot to put socks on? and does the same go with shoes? I think I always start with my right foot.

Does anyone else besides me like pickles that still have the little stem on them over pickles that don't?

Where do you start your shopping in the grocery store? I always seem to feel most comfortable starting in the produce area.

If you only were offered half a bagel, but could choose top half or bottom half - which would you choose? For some reason, I really like the top half much beter. Same goes with a slice of bread.

When you're getting ready for the day, do you brush your teeth first or your hair first? I always brush my teeth first. It feels all wrong if I don't.

And lastly, when you clean the kitchen or the bathroom, do you wipe the sink dry? To me the kitchen sink especially, just doesn't seem clean unless I wipe the sink dry.

I'm just wondering...

Over Doing It

High Point:

Movie night last night! I made a nice dinner - chicken breasts that I flattened some and then sauteed in fresh garlic and butter (real low cal lemme tell ya), mashed potatoes from scratch, gravy, broccoli (to toss in healthy), and then baked a blackberry pie with french vanilla ice cream to go with. The movie was great as expected! And my husband got a beta invitation to a game we are both very excited about.

Low Point:

Forgetting just how far along I am with this pregnancy and still trying to do more than I should be. I had walked to the store yesterday to pick up some goodies for movie night and then did housework. The lady at the store said, "I can't believe you walked here and are lugging groceries around in the stroller! I mean, from looking at you, I would think it would be hard enough just to bend over!!" (Gee, thanks lady!) And as my husband says with a tone of irritation, "Why are you over doing it?? You need to be more responsible for the sake of teh baby at least. You know, it's OK to sit and relax and do nothing for awhile..." I know he's right, but sometimes my brain get into an argument with itself and the irresponsible side wins.

Thank You and Seconds Please!

High Point:

Even though my husband got home after 10 last night, he still stopped off at the store and bought Batman Begins. And even though he only slept an hour the night before and then worked nearly a 15 hour work day, he thanked me for making the house look nice and for cleaning up. And he helped put the little one to bed. Followed by letting us sleep in this morning and not complaining about having no lunch to take with him to work. I'm going to have to make up for this! AND TONIGHT IS MOVIE NIGHT! Yay!

Low Point:

Being far hungrier than I should be all.the.time. Not taking the time lately to get out and take new pictures. Missing my skinny-person clothes. Not being caught up on the laundry.

Doozy Dolor!

High Point:

Batman Begins came out on DVD today!! Totally stoked about having a movie date night!

Low Point:

Having my husband call and say he won't be home until after 10pm. Bleh. So no movie date night tonight. And I've got this headache the size of... size of... whatever the biggest thing you can imagine is! Hurry up Tylenol and kick in!

The Cooking Cabal Launched

Come take a look, and if you'd like to be invited to contribute, drop me an email. It should be a lot of fun!

Boy Crazy

High Point:

Going out to our favorite little Mexican restaurant for dinner last night and watching the little one flirt her head off with a sevenish year old boy sitting at the table next to us. She was trying so hard to show off and do everything she could to get his attention and he loved LOVED having a captive audience. My husband kept asking me what was wrong with her. "Well, it's called being boy crazy my dear...she's just starting early..." He looks at me, beer firmly grasped with one hand and flagging down another from the waiter with his other hand and says, "Wow - very early..."

Low Point:

Having a horrible, horrible dream last night that felt very real. I dreamt that I lost the baby - miscarried. I had gone into the doctor for my check-up and they, as they always do, asked for a urine sample. I went into the bathroom and that's when I lost the baby. I can't imagine what the horror of that must be like in the waking world, but I can tell you in the dream world when it feels real is terrifying. There was so much blood and body parts...shiver. I went out of the bathroom and ran to the desk and the entire office was desserted. The lights were dim and no one was to be found anywhere - it was so quiet. I stood there calling for help and ringing the bell on the desk and no one came - then I woke up. Yucky.

Tonight's Dinner

My husband grilled ribs and I was in charge of the salad. Despite the fact that you can only see food for the most part in the above picture, take note that I did put out cloth napkins and the good placemats so the ribs would feel like they were in adequate company of royalty. Originally I had paper napkins out as I was in a hurry and different (yet equally as nice I thought) placemats...but was soon asked for a change so not to tarnish the beautifulness of my husband's ribs. Tee hee hee - Sorry Darlin'!

Flying Off with Fries

High Point:

Watching my little munchkin run off with her Daddy's french fries thinking she's really getting away with something BIG and IMPORTANT. She ran right into her room, plopped her toosh down on top of her pegasus, and giggled to no end probably thinking that soon her magical flying horse would lift off the ground and fly away to Munchkin Land where all stolen french fries can be eaten in peace.

Low Point:

The munchkin absolutely refusing to nap. I don't even really want her napping so much for her own sake, but moreso for MY sake. I'm super tired and want to sleep! C'mon little one - Sleep...sleeeeeeeppppp ....... sleeeeeeeeepppppppp .....Your eyes are getting heavy, very very heavy....

Berry Smoothies For All

High Point:

Watching my daughter really care about hygiene. She adores brushing her teeth. Loves being able to get her grabby hands on a hairbrush and try to make her hair smooth. She'll steal the deodorant and try to put it on not really understanding anything more than the fact it goes somewhere under your arms. Pulls out yards and yards of floss if we don't catch her early enough. Lip gloss. Cheek blush. Nail polish. She always tries to help me clean house whether it's with dusting, vaccuuming, wiping the tables, emptying the dishwasher, making the beds - you name it. She's my little helper girl hooked on cleanliness. That's for sure.

Low Point:

Realizing that my daughter somehow stole both bottles of her Blueberry Smoothie Shampoo out of the bathroom even though they, I thought, were out of reach. She took them into her room and put her hygiene habits to work in giving her dollies and stuffed doggies a bath. Lathered them up nice and sudsy just like Mommy washes her hair when it's bath time. Shampoo was all over. One dollie {{{Shhhh!!}}} had a proper (and yet private, secret, and well hidden) burial into the garbage can as she just had so much shampoo in her there was no saving her. I scrubbed for what felt like forever on the carpet to get some of the soap out - now I'm letting it dry and will tackle the job again in a couple days after it dries. I don't want to put too much water into the carpet. Rotting carpet would be icky. I'm nauseous off the scent of Blueberry Smoothie Shampoo.

Arsty Tartsy

I was in an artsy mood and fiddle faddled with these yesterday:

Me in blue...





Me in natural coloring...

Happy Buckets

High Point:

The little one had her appointment today with her new pediatrician and he is WONDERFUL! The entire clinic is amazing. Beautiful fish tanks, life-size stuffed animals, lots of toys, friendly friendly friendly... Then coming home and sharing some McDonalds and then having my daughter's mood be fun spirited and lively - Currently she's insisting that we each wear a bucket on our head. I get the lime green one - she, of course, is wearing the pink one. Thank gawd I don't have a webcam set up - I look ridiculous.

Low Point:

Not having the energy needed to clean up my messy house. I feel like such a bum right now.

Having Health is a Beautiful Thing

High Point:

No more throw up!! Hooray! The little one is feeling better. She's not entirely back to her old self, but she's not puking and that's DEFINATELY a good thing!

Low Point:

Realizing how fortunate I am that my worries are so trivial in the grand scheme of life. The woman giving out samples of Danish pastry today at Costco began talking to me about children and how they change our lives etc. And boy do they! But she asked if I knew the gender of our coming baby, to which I told her it's a girl. I went on further to say that my husband would soon be drowning in the sea of Disney Princess before he knew it. The woman smiled and reminded me that having a healthy baby is what is most important. This I do know and count my blessings every day for. She explained to me that her son, who is now 21, is about to go in for his third open heart surgery - heart valve replacement. I felt about as small as the tiny sampler of pastry she was handing out. I couldn't imagine the stress and worry of having to have your child go through one open heart surgery, let alone multiple open heart surgeries. And there I was, albeit jokingly, worried about the onslaught of Disney Princess balogna that my future held.

~*~*~*~Wishing the best for that family and that the open heart surgery goes over without a hitch.~*~*~*~

Wanted: Single Dose of Fix-My-Munchkin

High Point:

Hmm, if I had to find a high point right now, I guess I'd say that it would be knowing in my heart that this sick little girl of mine is just that - sick - and nothing more serious.

Low Point:

More throw up. Just when I thought we were out of Sickie-Ville, she puked again. This time she had crawled up into our bed and bundled up in our covers holding the remote control. Then BLURRRRGGGGG. I'm so very sick of throw up. I'm doing more laundry now - sheets, clothes, pajamas, and the like. I'm tired and want to run away from home.

I don't really want to run away from home, but all this throw up business is really starting to STINK! and literally too!

Princess Pukey

High Point:

Having a husband that somehow knows when I need his help no matter what time it is.

Low Point:

3:30am and finding out that the little one definately is NOT better yet. Luckily my spidey-senses kicked in and made me randomly sit up in bed at that early hour in the morning...to which the munchkin puked all over her bed just seconds later.

I truly hope she's all better soon. I just feel horrible for her when she throws up. It's so traumatic for her. And smelly and icky for the rest of us. I took the sheets off her bed and got out some clean pajamas for her. Gathered up a dry diaper and a soft washcloth to clean her up. Felt like it took forever for the hot water to arrive. And while we were quiet and my husband was tucked away sleeping soundly, somehow he showed up with a pleasant smile and asked what he could do to help. He picked up our daughter and held her while the water finished heating up - neverminding that she still had some icky throw up on her. He offered to bring clothes to the washing machine...sheets, washclothes, the likes. And as I was trying to get myself into clean, dry pajamas he took the onslaught of the next bout of vomit-ville. He's so darn smart though and held her horizontally over the sink - saved me from having to change her into another set of pjs. He tucked us both into the guest bed, after helping with getting a bottle and towels laid out just in case she got sick again.

It took us a long time to fall asleep, and our morning still started early...

But so far so good. Cross your fingers that Princess Pukey is done with her business.

The Sickies and Sweet Salvation

High Point:

My husband and I making an amazing dinner together. Grilled shrimp, salad, and grilled sweet onions - with dinner rolls that we didn't have room to even take a second look at. I took twice as long to eat tonight just to savour each bite. A margarita would have been such a lovely addition - but not while I'm pregnant.

Low Point:

The little one was sick today. For those of you with children, you know what a day like this entails. For those without children, let me fill you in briefly: lots of throw up, lots of diaper changing, lots of fussiness, lots of crying, fevers, melt downs, and the like. I felt so bad for her. Poor thing. She seems to be feeling a bit better now though - at least she's holding down her milk and she ate some peach/oatmeal/banana mush for dinner that is staying put. Maybe in the morning she'll be back to 100%.

Ninja Chomper

High Point:

A loaded cheeseburger, homemade, for lunch.

Low Point:

Washing my hands and having my little one sneak up to me in absolute silence and take a bite out of my leg.

I honestly didn't hear her sneak up on me at all! And she got me good too - bandaid worthy! Only problem was was that my hands were entirely involved in the washing process and my immediate reaction to the pain on my leg was to grab whatever was causing it. This being my daughter's head, I grabbed her and ended up soaking her. Poor thing was sopping wet. My leg hurt for a few good hours to come. I still don't know how she managed to get a mouthful and bite down without me seeing it coming...

Sing Me a Choo-Choo Lullaby

High Point:

Laying in bed at 4:30am. Awake. With the sounds of a train choo-chooing by in the distance. It brought back a lot of good memories.

Low Point:

Rolling over after the train had passed to nestle in for some sleep only to hear the tick tick ticking of my heart beat beat beating in my pillow pillow pillow when all I wanted to do do do was get some sleep sleep sleep. It was annoying annoying annoying.

I realized that in nearly every house/apartment that I've lived in since moving out on my own has always been within the listening pleasure of a train. I've always really loved listening to the passing trains as I'm snuggled into bed in the dark, quiet house.


One memory that came to me was when I had first started college. My boyfriend (now husband) and I were living in a seven floor dorm building off campus. We both lived on the top floor just down the hall from each other. As luck would have it, his room happened to be the only room on the floor that had a water pipe burst in the ceiling. That meant him and his roommate would be reassigned rooms with new roommates and no longer would the room they were in be called 'home'. So on the last night of residence in that "lucky" room - the roommate had already been reassigned rooms - I was invited over to take advantage of an evening without pestersome company. He had moved the bed in front of the big window that took up the entire wall and over looked the city in which our college was in. He had picked up food and music. Definately went out of his way to make the last night in that room special. The view from his room of city lights sparkling in the dark night's sky was really beautiful. And as we drifted off to sleep that night, we could hear the trains in the distance lulling us to dreamland.

Grilling Insomnia

High Point:

A successful trip to Costco. A grilled dinner at home of steak, golden potatoes (on the grill), Spring Mix of assorted lettuce with homemade garlic vinaigrette tossed with yellow, orange, and red tomatoes, and avacados - chips and salsa to snack on while the bar-b heated up. Followed by an easy kitchen clean up with help and a movie on TV. With fresh cookies that I baked just before dinner for dessert - chocolate chip with coconut. Then getting to talk with my Aunt on the phone that I haven't talked to in a very long time.

Low Point:

Waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to get back to sleep due to a racing mind about being prepared for the coming addition to my family.

And yes, Manababies and John, I know I ruined a perfectly good cookie in your eyes by adding coconut.

Healthy Heartbeats and Quiet Punishments

High Point:

Going to the doctor and having him tell me that I'm very healthy and that the baby is very healthy -and- being told that I'll probably be induced the first week in December. Time is ~flying~ by!

Low Point:

Forgetting to turn the TV off while the little one was in a time-out. No wonder she was so quiet and took her punishment so well. Dummy me! Live and learn.

I can't say it enough - It sure is nice to be feeling better. I've been pushing my limits a bit much the last couple days though and am feeling it, so today I've been trying to rest. Although all this rest has me dreaming up a loaded Costco run and all the other fun places I could galavant off to tomorrow.

I just adore Costco - sigh

Teppanyaki-A-No-No, Pizza-A-Go-Go!

High Point:

Watching my daughter have so much fun playing and eating at Chuck E. cheese.

Low Point:

Originally going to a Japanese teppanyaki restaurant, and having the little one scream her brains out so badly that we paid for our drinks and salads and left.

In truth, the munchkin probably saved us all from some nasty food poisoning. The Japanese restaurant was really yucky and I know in the back of all our heads we were screaming right along there with my daughter. I don't know if it was the vibes of the place or if it smelled really bad to her or what, but she just definately was NOT going to stay there. She's only acted that crazy in a restaurant once before in her life and that was when she was four months old.

She had a FANTASTIC time at Chuck E. Cheese though. She ran my mother-in-law ragged. Unlike the first time we went, she hated the little cars this time and she also ventured into the big kid play area without a care in the world. I thought for sure she would have been run over by the bigger kids, but she held her own pretty darn well. She also beat on one of the ticket games so badly (without a token even) that it gave her eight tickets probably out of mercy just so she'd stop banging! But the prize lady was very nice and let her buy a prize with her eight tickets. We bought her a balloon and when a birthday party left they forgot to take a couple of their balloons with them and the woman cleaning up the mess gave them to my daughter too. Let me tell you, she was in heaven.

Hippo in Denim

High Point:

We closed on the piece of property that we really wanted awhile ago and drove out to look at it this evening. It's so beautiful. I'll update Planning Paradise soon with some pictures.

Low Point:

Feeling like the size of a house and having my denim, prego capris barely fit.

Also, really looking forward to Iron Chef America tonight!! I wonder what the secret ingredient is!

Update: The secret ingredient was asparagus.

No Time For Cookies

High Point:

Getting a haircut and having my husband grill chicken for dinner. It turned out awesome.

Low Point:

Not having the energy to make chocolate chip cookies tonight to eat while we watched television.

I've been trying my best to drink my extra liquids, but gosh that's hard to do. And I really really really wanted fresh chocolate chip cookies, but I just didn't have the energy to stand up any more to make them. In truth, I really just wanted to eat the raw cookie dough.

It feels great to have newly cut hair that's shaped and manageable.

I'm still trying to catch up on lost sleep and my body is trying to recover from all the stress it's been under - slowly but surely.