Baby Room & Furniture update...

Still waiting on baby crib & dresser. I did FINALLY get the furniture store to answer the phone. I called every 2 min today until I got a real person and not the answering machine. The store says they will make some calls to track our furniture and we should hear something Monday afternoon. Of course Baby E will be sleeping in a bassinet in our room for several weeks so it's not a huge deal, BUT it would just be nice to not have to worry about picking up furniture & assembling a crib while trying to care for two kids and a healing momma.

I've been waiting to post pictures of the baby room until the furniture was in and things hung on the walls but alas we are still waiting. For now I will share with you the few things that we do have done. The room in painted. Curtains are hung (although they need hemmed) and we have a changing table (reused from Baby K, but with new totes that are more masculine). Oh and we did get a picture of a GTO ordered and it is now framed and waiting to be hung.
Here is a slide show of what we have so far. If you want to know how to paint perfect stripe on a wall read my note below the slide show.

Perfect Painted Stripes are not that hard!
Thanks to my friend Janae for her FABULOUS tip!
So we painted the wall the main wall color.
When it was dry we used a laser level to tape the stripe(s). After the painters tape is up, use the same paint you have painted the main part of the wall to seal off the edge of the tape. Give the paint time to dry. Your tape is now sealed. Paint your stripe. Let dry. Peel back your tape pulling it diagonally toward the newly painted stripe.

Since we had several stripes of different colors we taped & painted ours in the following order:
First the white, taped it off, sealed with gray paint, painted white, then pulled up all tape from white stripes.
Then taped off areas for the black and red stripes,
sealed the tape with white paint,
then painted with black and red. removed tape.

Crazy Bedhead & Helping Puppy

Here is a short slide show of the last couple of days. Baby K woke up from a nap this week with some serious bedhead. Cracked me up!
The other pictures are of Baby K taking care of our dog, the dog has some allergy issues right now & cannot stop scratching and chewing herself so she in on some meds and has a cone on her head for a few days. Baby K has been really compassionate and it has been sweet to watch her care for her puppy. Yesterday, I found both of them in Baby K's room & K had brought the dog 3 stuffed toys, was giving her dog food one tiny handful at a time, kissing her, and patting her on the back saying, "ow" and her version of "good girl." The dog can eat from her bowl even with the cone on, but K thinks it's better to pamper her.

Cravings...

So really I've had no real good ideas of what to blog lately.
So with only 12 days left until we meet our new little guy, I thought I'd share my food cravings. Since I'm watching a tv show about food right now. :)
I haven't had many cravings but sadly most of what I have craved is food that is not available in the city I live in. Are you kidding me?! It's torture! LOL
I normally have a sweet tooth but I have wanted sweet baked goods, cookies, cakes, ice cream, candy...ugh, it has been hard to not go totally wild eating these things, especially because for whatever reason what I really crave can only be eaten in Manhattan, KS. Which is a little too far to go just to eat some simple foods.
Fried Pickles, but not just any fried pickles - So Long Saloon Fried Pickles with their cream cheese spread - Off and on I have had very strong cravings for this.
This last week I have wanted a pecan sticky bun or cinnamon roll from Mrs Powell's, also in Manhattan. I can eat these foods from somewhere else I'm sure, or even make them myself, but my mind and my taste buds know...and the craving will go on. So I'm not even wasting my time.
Instead, just pass me a bowl of ice cream. :)

Gearing up...

Baby E's room is coming right along. Hopefully his crib and dresser will be here next week. I will post pictures then.
This past week I went to gymb*oree to look through their sale stuff and use a coupon I had.
I was so excited to find they had several items for boys with tractors on them!
I think Baby E's grandpa will be excited to have a little tractor buddy. :)
Here is what I ended up getting for our little guy to wear this summer...

Just Because...

she makes me smile, and laugh! I came across this picture today and was cracking up - I forgot about it! It was taken on Sept 28th. Oh my this little girl can be silly & brings us such JOY!

What a difference a year makes

Just thinking about Baby E arriving in some 40 days.
I saw a picture of Baby K from last February & thought, I wonder what she looked like on March 29th, 2009? Since my c-section will most likely be on March 29 or 30th.
Well I found this picture from March 31, 2009.
I think I would have laughed like crazy if someone had told me that day I would be having another baby a year from then! LOL
Well here is Baby K on March 31, 2009...

January In Review...

Just pulled this stuff off the camera.

Here are pictures from a day that Baby K decided her Baby Doll MUST be held while she ate lunch. :)

One day I told Baby K it was time for her nap, she quickly went down the hall, this is where I found her, curled up for her nap. Silly girl!

She keeps finding this brown knit headband of hers & wearing it like a necklace. Sunday after church I took her dress off so she wouldn't mess it up while she ate. Underneath her dress I discovered that she had the "headband" on, guess daddy didn't catch that when he was dressing her that morning.

Baby K LOVES to read and be read to, I often find her sitting with a book "reading." I tried to sneak some video of her doing this but she caught me. The resolution is poor but it's still pretty cute.

Reading

New Phone

I should upload pictures from the camera to the computer so I can update you on life & how totally cute Baby K is - but I thought while you wait I would share that I got a new cell phone (same number).

It was free & it's Purple & I love it! (I'm sure you really don't care but I'm pretty pumped about it!)

Must Have!

Black & Decker Paint Stick

I told my husband to blog this but he said he "doesn't blog." Well for those of you who don't know my husband you should know that he doesn't often have high reviews of gadgets. You know, the gadgets that are suppose to make a job easier and are good in thought but fail in design. He's an engineer and is irritated by poor design and poor productivity. Makes sense right.

Well we need to paint the baby room. I love to paint but physically am not able to do it right now. My husband is not a fan of painting but will do it (and does a great job) when it's required or if I beg enough. LOL

He found this product online last night and decided to give it a try.

Husband Review: REALLY LIKES IT! I'd say he'd give it 4.5 stars out of 5

Price reasonable. Functionality great. Time saver. We will not likely paint a room without this ever again. Clean up takes some time but not bad.

Too Cute!

I just love it when food (especially sweets) are aesthetically pleasing.

Because of this picture I saw on foodgawker posted by the blog La Casserole

I now MUST buy valentine peeps and make some hot chocolate - I just HAVE to - how could you not want to make something this cute?

On another note I read a cute idea for a Valentine treat the other day. I can't wait to have a reason for Baby K to give this Valentine.

A mom mixed up some rice crispy treats & rather than pressing them out in a cake pan she took the warm mixture and molded portions in a small funnel and then placed on a pan to cool. This made the treats look like "kisses." When they were cool she wrapped each one in foil and added a little strip of paper to each one that read, "A Kiss from (insert child's name)"

Oh my goodness it's just the cutest idea I've heard in awhile and I can't wait to try it someday.

Pancake Poll

I'm taking an opinion poll...
Which do you and your family enjoy more

Buttermilk Pancakes

or

Sour Cream Pancakes?

I rarely eat pancakes, I'm more of a waffle girl. But my family likes pancakes and I've been making them more. I have a buttermilk recipe that works great but I've found some recipes for Sour Cream based pancakes and want to know if they are better, are they as fluffy?

Thanks!

PS - I may not like to eat pancakes but I sure am loving making my sweet daughter "Jungle Pancakes" I got some molds that make Monkey, Lion and Elephant pancakes and they are pretty dang cute! Not sure Baby K really appreciates the cute factor but she does like to eat them & I always show her the "animal" before we cut it up. Last week the Lion had some blue pox - blueberries will do that to a lion you know. hee hee

Cheesecake day...

Today I taught a friend how to make a cheesecake. I've been learning for years and practicing a lot to get the texture and flavor and yumminess of a cheesecake just right. I'm not perfect. I'm not the Cheesecake Fac*tory by any means but I do like to make them and people seem to enjoy eating them.

So because today I shared with a friend some key tips in making a great cheesecake, I thought I would share a few tips on my blog.

Here are my Top 3 Tips (I have more but I can't share all my secrets now can I?)

#1 - smooth batter is key, the best way to soften cream cheese is to place the packets in the oven while you are preheating it for baking your crust. Also, use eggs that have been at room temp if they are cold they will chill parts of the cream cheese and keep the batter from being smooth
#2 - no matter what recipe I am using I always add 2Tb of flour to the cheesecake batter if the recipe doesn't already call for it.
#3 - bake it in a water bath - worth the extra work (it's not that much extra), it will require a little extra cooking time (at least this has been my experience) but it is SO worth it. I tell you this is KEY to having no cracks in the top of your cheesecake, bakes beautiful & even every time.

Stuck

I think it would be fun to blog something new, however I have no idea what to blog about. We are finally having Christmas with my sister and brother-in-law this weekend so there will be pictures for sure. :)

In the meantime I have just been busy being mommy, cleaning up toys, making meals, etc. I have also been in nesting mode/list making mode.

I am itching to paint the baby room. I started it a little but didn't get far. If you're bored and you are a good clean painter then come on over. I'd love some help.

Picture Comparison

For those of you who wanted to see 3D sono pictures of Baby K from 2008 and compare them to the 3D sono pictures of Baby E here are 3 pictures of
Baby K

Introducing Baby E

Here is a slide show of some 3D pictures of Baby E at 29 weeks.
If you double click on the slide show it should link you to the actual scanned pictures and you can view them larger.

In one picture he is holding his big toe with his hand. He had his tongue out in a few pictures but you may not be able to notice since they are a little small. I just want to scoop him up and kiss him but I think for now I will let him stay safe inside me, where he is also quiet and easy to please. ;)

Baby E: Photo shoot and more

Ok, so I'm going to try & scan/post the 3D sono pictures we got of Baby E today.
I have to say, "MAN! Our kids look like their daddy and that's all there is to it!"
Baby E is definitely a boy if there was any doubt about it, there is no more (note: I will not be posting the proof of this of which I'm sure Baby E will thank me one day!)
Not only does he look like his daddy he also looks very much like his big sister,

Also I would like to say Craig*slist is awesome. I found the double stroller we need by posting a WTB (Want To Buy) ad on there and someone read it, had one in good condition and with extra seat covers and for much less than the sale retail of a new one and after checking it out yesterday we are now the proud crazy owners of a double stroller! WooHoo!

I went shopping this afternoon and found several clothing items marked 75-85% off and bought items for $3.00 or less for our little man to wear. Things from newborn to 12 months and hopefully seasonally appropriate, unless he starts packing on the pounds too fast. ;)

Now we just need to paint the baby room & order a crib. Oh, and change out the pink ribbon and lace on the bassinet for the little guy.

More Christmas Pics

Here are pictures of Baby K enjoying our Christmas celebration at Grandma & Grandpa W's house.
We had a lot of fun.

Oh My Oh My...

If you are not a fan of the blog Cake Wrecks then I'm pretty sure you are missing out.
Today's post was about Baby Shower Cakes and since I am pregnant I just had to share these with you...
Seriously, who comes up with these ideas? Who actually gives these cakes to their friends??? Is the mother-to-be suppose to act like she loves the idea or the "creativity" or is she suppose to laugh? I think it would be difficult to mask my thoughts about receiving a cake like these, and maybe even more difficult to eat a piece.
She has several past posts about baby shower cakes if you want to do a search. Seriously, there is a post from several months ago where someone ordered a C-Section cake! (looks like mommy's belly with incision & baby coming out - WEIRD!!!!)
Ok here is the cake post from today...
http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/2010/01/labor-of-love.html

Perspective

Well I really need to post pictures from the rest of our Christmas Celebrations. We had Christmas with my husband's family after New Years. We had fun hanging out with family and Baby K had a BLAST running around with her cousins. I will load the pictures soon. I just keep forgetting to bring the camera downstairs.


Anyway,
I saw this picture on a blog today and I thought it was fitting as an illustration of some thoughts I've had recently. I may ruffle some feathers with this one. Oh well.
I found it sad that the media & those the media interviewed New Year's eve (and the days that followed) all of the responses seemed to be something along the lines of, "Thank God 2009 and this whole last decade are OVER! They were the worst!" "Bring on 2010 - it is going to be amazing! It has to get better than last year, right?"


WHAT?! Agreed, some horrible things happened in the last 10 years. Terrorists, War, Death, Economy tanks, etc. But really the WORST ever? Maybe I feel this way because I'm sitting her in my warm heated home while it is freezing outside (and only getting colder). I wish I had Oprah's cash flow so I could buy out stores and stores of long underwear, blankets, hats, gloves, warm hotel rooms, food, and send people out to warm up the homeless and rescue them from this awful Artic cold. People are on hard times, no jobs, no money, no home. People have loved ones fighting against terror & hate. Agreed these are all horrible things. But do we let them drown out all the good things? Is life really that bad?

We still have freedom(s), we still have people who have money and food and jobs and homes who are sharing with others. Most of us are living on less than before but on the other hand most of us are not hoping against hope we survive living on nothing. Most people in America can find clean water to drink. Food to eat (even if it's not your choice of food, it's food). Most of us have shoes, even if they have holes in them, still they are shoes.
Most important, no one is telling us we can't worship Jesus. No one is stopping us from trusting God to provide for us. Most of us have someone who loves us, who shares their possessions or time or talents with us. I'm confident that as a whole, our 2009, even our past decade, most of us have had it better than the majority of the human race.


So my question is, why are most of us ungrateful for what we did have and only looking on to what we might have in the near future? Why are we so entitled to have a better 2010?
I am looking forward to what good things God has planned for 2010. I love stories and experiences of reconciliation, repentance, hope, love, joy, peace, life, provision, etc. I hope when the bad things come (because they will) that God gives me eyes to see what I do have and that my heart & mind have the strength to believe that's enough.

Fun Easy Treat!

FOUND: Impressive treat that is easy, cute and sweet!

Check out what I found at the Decorated Cookie

She suggests making these for New Years party, I also think how wonderful these would be for a girls birthday party, carnival theme children's party, a princess themed birthday party, a baby shower, a bridal shower, etc. Oh the possibilities! Love it!
I also think what a fun activity to make with your kids! You could even do this with 2 yr olds (if you can keep them from eating themselves into serious hyper activity! LOL).

Directions for glittery marshmallows:
Skewer marshmallows or put on lollipop sticks.
Working with one marshmallow at a time, very quickly dip a marshmallow into the water, remove immediately, blot on a paper towel and immediately sprinkle with the sprinkles to coat. Let dry.