Christmas

Christmas was great this year (not that it isn't every year, well, except for the one where Brandon was in Iraq but let's not get technical ;) ! We got to spend most of the day at our house and each of our families came over to visit; mine for breakfast (cinnamon rolls of course...it's tradition!) & Brandon's for lunch (we had buttered shrimp (!), roast, mashed potatoes & gravy, corn, broccoli and rolls. All very delicious. I'm kind of bummed I didn't get a picture of my plate.) Later we went to my grandma's house for dinner and the entire family get-together which happens each year since before I was even born! (My family has always had the same traditions since my older sister was little...before I was around!)

I feel like a little kid for wanting so badly to show off what I got for Christmas but I am just really excited by it all! Here's what I got:

My talented mom made me this which will be my brag book after our darling daughter is born. I'll have to show you the "finished" product once she is here and I add her pictures to it. The top two pictures are the front and back of the closed album. The next two are of each side of the fully opened album and the next three pictures are just some (blurry) close ups. Didn't she do a wonderful job?! Be sure to click on the pictures to get a better view! I am so proud of her!

While we are talking about the craftiness. This cute penguin cookie jar is what my sister-in-law made for me. She is about 10 years old. It says "Favorite Cookies" on it. She did a great job too!

My parents also got Brandon and I some cookware. I have been wanting stainless steel pots and pans for quite some time now and I finally got them! This set came with a steamer basket too! I've already gotten to use it and it's the most amazing thing ever! I've actually used every piece in the set! Oh and the bowls all have lids too which works out great for me because I am one of those people that doesn't make sure she has all the ingredients on hand BEFORE she starts baking and has to stop mid-recipe to run to the store and get the missing ingredient. Luckily I only live 4 blocks away from the grocery store! Anyway, these pans are fantastic! Thanks Mom & Dad!

Over the summer while my aunt was in town, we went on a shopping trip to the mall with my grandma. When we were at Bed, Bath & Beyond I found some dishes that I like, commented on them and moved on. Didn't really think twice about it, well my grandma did! She went back and got them for us! We have our first set of dishes that aren't hand me downs! It's enough for 4 people and we are gladly taking donations to get another set so if you are interested in donating please leave me a comment and we can work out some sort of deal ;) Aren't they beautiful? (the picture doesn't show the complete set. We had already begun using them before I started taking pictures...actually that is a lie. I took all the pictures before we used any of the dishes then when I plugged my memory card into the computer to start blogging away my memory card went caput and I lost all of my pictures and had to get a new card. So by the time I got my new memory card we had already used some of the dishes and that is why the complete set is not shown in the below picture).

And Brandon got me (drumroll please...) THE OFFICE DVD BOARD GAME!!!! I was so excited when I opened my gift from him! We started playing Christmas day with his family but none of them have ever watched the show so we quit early and haven't been able to pick it back up yet because we have been back to the daily grind. Brandon has been so busy at work. His shift is over at 6:00 but he is still working right now and yesterday he worked until 9:30 too. It's nice having him downstairs though instead of being away at the office working this late. I feel bad he isn't getting much of a break though. I know how much I like to be done with work; when my shift is over at 4:00 I am outta there! He requested New Year's day off though so maybe we will get to play my new game then!

And look at these adorable shirts my parents got for our little girl! They got them in the size she should be come summertime. I can't wait!

The greatest thing since Vans!

A friend introduced this to another coworker and I today. I don't think she knew what she was starting! The rest of the afternoon we couldn't hold a real conversation without making some sort of Just Kidding phrase and laughing our heads off!

Video Recaps | Full Episodes | Webisodes

Fancy shmancy breakfast

When I don't have to work I like to make special breakfasts that require more "love" than just a bowl of cereal or granola bars. Usually on the weekends we have omelets or my secret recipe pancakes. Actually the secret is that I add vanilla chips to the batter. It makes for delicious pancakes! Anyway, I have today off and I've been wanting to try my hand at crepes for a while so I decided to experiment and here is what I came up with (don't mind the picture, it came out a little blurry):


The crepes are kind of a pain to make because they are so thin and fragile. I think next time I might just do store bought crepes but still make the same filling and toppings. If you choose to make this recipe it makes quite a bit. I halved it and it made about 8 crepes which was more than plenty for just the two of us.

Swedish Pancakes

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs
3 cups whole or 2% milk (do not use skim milk)
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
salad oil for frying pan or griddle (I used PAM spray and it worked just fine)

Place everything in a blender and mix thoroughly - first 1 1/2 cups milk, 3 eggs, 1 1/4 cup flour, 2 Tbsp sugar, 1/2 tsp salt & the other 1 1/2 cups milk; mix thoroughly then mix in the 1/4 cup melted butter.

Slowly heat a non-stick frying pan until a drop of water will sizzle and roll off. Brush pan lightly with salad oil (or spray with Pam).

Stir batter before using. Pour approximately 1/4 cup ino a frying pan - tilting pan so batter spreads around. When the surface of the pancake bubbles, turn quickly and brown the other side. Serve immediatley or keep warm while the rest of the pancakes cook.

for the filling:

I mixed together about 1/2 cup cool whip with 2/3 cup ricotta cheese and about 2 tsp sugar. This should be very slightly sweet and a little thick.

I also sliced up bananas and cooked them with a little bit of sugar on the stove.

Then I heated some frozen blueberries with some sugar on the stove.

to assemble:

Spread ricotta mixture in a line a little off-center in the crepe, place on some bananas then add a drizzle of maple syrup. Roll up then garnish with cool whip (or whipped cream) and blueberries.

Shrimp Update

For those of you that are curious from one of my recent posts, they did NOT have shrimp at the Christmas party for Brandon's work. I was thoroughly disappointed. All they had for meat was ham and roast beef. I think they almost made up for it with their mashed potatoes, the gravy was amazing! The potatoes weren't dry either; you know what I mean. Sometimes mashed potatoes are so difficult to swallow because they are super thick and dry. These had great flavor and went down smoothly!

Penguin Waddle

For some reason lately I've really been getting a kick out of penguins and any time I see something penguin at the store I stop to look at it. My mom has caught onto my recent obsession and got a cute little penguin mug for me. She said it stays at her house and I can enjoy some hot cocoa in my special mug anytime I come over. It's a special thing at our house. When we were growing up my mom would always surprise us with hot chocolate when we got home from school during the winter. It was always so nice to have a warm cup waiting for us when it was so cold outside. My favorite thing to do during the winter is snuggle up in front of the fireplace (with a nice fire going of course!) with a cup of hot chocolate, a nice book and a fuzzy blanket. The book could easily be skipped if I had some nice company. My mom and I used to just sit there for hours visiting and watching the snow fall outside.

Speaking of my mom, I thought I'd share a picture of a cute tree she has decorated at her house. It's a year round decoration she made and I think it's adorable so I snapped a picture of it when I was over earlier today to share with you.

Help! I need SHRIMP!!

I had several days of vacation left that had to be used before December 12th so I've been taking random days off since Thanksgiving. Yesterday was one of those lucky days off! I've been treating these days like I would if I were to stay at home permanently. I'm loving it! I'm getting house work done and not minding doing it plus I have some time to sit and relax a little which is really nice, especially being preggo I just have to get off my feet, sometimes even 5 minutes makes a difference. I also can make a nice lunch for Brandon and I. Brandon is working from home now! He does the same thing for the same employer only he now does it from our office at home. Even though he is working and I can't bother him unless its important I can feel the difference just knowing he's in the house here with me. It's so much better!

This is the time of year for lots of Christmas parties. The one for my work was this past Saturday. It was nice; my biggest memory from the evening was the prawns. Oh my, oh my! They were fantastic! The dinner selection was between Salmon with a white sauce, rice pilaf, & mixed veggies OR steak, twice baked potato & breaded prawns. Each meal came with a delcious salad and tasty rolls. I would have been happy if all they brought me was a plate piled with prawns (and the salad and rolls too). They were so buttery and the most tender, delicious things ever. The Christmas party for Brandon's work is tonight. It's held at the same place as the party for my work so I'm really hoping they will have prawns there tonight! I try and try to make shrimp at home and it always turns out chewy and has a slight crunch to it that really should not be there at all. I get pretty discouraged when it comes to making shrimp because I've yet to make it successfully, but that hasn't been enough for me to give up! If anyone has any tricks or tips, please, please, please let me know! Does it have anything to do with the fact that I always buy the bags of frozen shrimp? I make sure to get the raw kind that I still have to cook myself and not just reheat. But does it really make a difference to buy it fresh from the seafood counter? All I can think about are those delicious prawns!!

A few updates on the house

I know it's been TWO months since I last posted about our fence and honestly it was completely finished probably within two or three days after that posting and I am just a HUGE slacker in getting the completed picture posted. I'm sorry! I'm sorry!! I finally snapped this picture with my cell phone yesterday morning before work just so I'd have a picture. Lately when I get off work it's too dark to get a picture and I'm usually way to hungry to even take the time to go outside with my camera and snap one! I hope you'll forgive me! We are super excited about the fence and love the improvement it made to the house. It's amazing the way it added to the looks of the house. We've had neighbors commenting that they love what we've done with the place (turning the carport into a garage & upgrading fences). I'm glad to know they aren't sentimental and in turn "disappointed" with the changes being that the house has been the same for 50-some years!

Hopefully I will have some pictures up soon of the baby's room. We have painted the molding and my mom & I made curtains for the room. Both just need to be hung then I can show you step 2 of the room. I know it's been a long time with that too and really the room hasn't been on total stand still. We HAVE put the crib and changing table and such in there. And my parents bought some adorable crib bedding too! The room is now filled with clothes and blankets that we got at the shower. So there has been progress and as I say HOPEFULLY I will posting that soon. I just want to wait until the curtain & molding is hung. That's what I've been waiting for this whole time.

Tried and True Cafe

My mom and I just started our very own cooking blog today! We are "souper" excited! I will be adding a link to my "side bar" so it'll be just one simple click away! I just made a recipe for a babyshower today that I've added the recipe for. It's absolutely delicious! What are you waiting for?! Go check it out!!!

Oh my!

Here is a picture of me 5 months pregnant. I just read this morning that babies usuallly at this point start growing about 6 ounces per week so I'm expecting my belly to get really big in a very short amount of time!

Jennifer and my mom had a baby shower for me this past weekend and it was a blast! Unfortunately I don't have any pictures to share. I set my camera down when guests started to arrive and it got left alone on a table until the cleanup afterwards. My mom has a few pictures up on her blog if you'd like to check them out. We got so many cute things for our little one and I'd take some pictures of those for you but I won't allow myself to take anything back out of their bags until I get all the thank yous in the mail. I am a huge procrastinator when it comes to things like those so this is my way of motivating myself to get them done. See why this helps motivate me?

It looks like a disaster in there doesn't it? The room really isn't all that big so having these gifts in there in bags really takes up a lot of space. The delay at this point is because I am making my own cards and it's been a slower process than I thought it would be. I only have 9 done so far and I need about 30 of them! I do have a picture though of the babyshower invitations. Aren't they adorable?!?!

I decided I'd take a picture of at least one of the gifts since it's not in the bag. I set it inside the crib so it'd be safe and because it's so darn cute!

I figure while I am at it I will show you some of the cute shoes we have for our little girl. She is going to be stylin'! Between my mom & I getting her shoes she already has several pairs. Here are a few.

I also wanted to show you a picture of the cloth diapers we are going to use, which, by the way, if you plan to use cloth diapers I highly recommend ordering from Two Little Whales. The owner is awesome!

I decided to go with a one size fits all diaper that I can use from newborn until potty training. I tell you what this thing is super adjustable! I can make the waist on this thing so teeny that you'd almost never guess that a baby could actually fit into it but yet it adjusts so big that it'd fit a giant teddy bear! I can't wait to get to try them out. I'm not really nervous about the whole cloth diaper experience. I've had a lot of people tell me I'm crazy but I think with the new style of cloth diapers this actually won't be so bad. Also, do you realize how much money this is going to save us?! In my opinion, that alone is totally worth it! Not to mention that we are doing our part to help the environment. :)

Too much

It snowed this weekend. Yesterday it didn't stick but something changed and today when we woke up there was snow covering the ground and it hasn't yet gone away. Bummer.

I have so many things requiring my time lately and yet I also have so much to write about. Unfortunately the other things take priority over writing. I wish I could just say the magic words and they would be done for me so I could spend my time doing the things I really want to do. I'm letting you know this because I may not be posting for a while as a result of it but hopefully it really will not be long at all. I also wanted to share the news:

We are having a girl!!!!

We had our ultrasound on Wednesday and it was the most amazing thing! We recorded it onto a VHS tape and I have watched it so many times already. It's so precious, at the very end of the video we caught her sucking her thumb (we all gasped then ahhhed when we saw it)! We got to watch for a little while but then she pulled it out which was really precious to watch too. After seeing the ultrasound though makes me even more anxious for February to arrive when I can actually hold her in my arms!