Prosciutto-Wrapped Mozzarella Balls
17 hours ago
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Just Trucking Along.
This past weekend my Mommy was here visiting! Yay for Mommy time! She, as she always does when she comes, helped rearrange my house, cleaned, and reorganized my pantry AND fridge! :) It is so hard to get to those things that need done every so often when I barely have time after work and school to get to the things that need done EVERY DAY, so they always get pushed to the side. Enter Momma E! She bought containers for all my "bagged goods" (I buy most things in bulk so they live in my pantry in the bulk bag until we use them up) and even came up with several frugal ideas I would never have thought of to help things run more smoothly AND save money. Now that, I like!
We had a really great time having her here, Kaden especially. He "made" breakfast with her in the mornings, the first morning making pancakes where he mixed the batter all by himself and then he made eggs, toast, and "coffee" another morning! :) I so miss being home with him during the day. Yesterday I was sitting outside with him (freaking GORGEOUS days we have been having lately!) and he was having a real conversation with me. He is so grown up every day and I am missing it! I hate that. But the positive side is that he makes me laugh so hard at all the new things he says every single day. I always turn to Stu and repeat what he said in excitement/awe and I never stop getting tickled by his expressions.
School is going well. I am holding steady at the A-B range in all my classes (freaking Art History being the pain in the ass class dragging down my average, ugh) and the work is getting easier the more I use my brain on a regular basis. We just finished midterms and I feel pretty confident about how things are looking from here on out.
Work is going along fine too. I find myself busy a lot more often, which helps pass the time, and have been taking advantage of the slow time by doing homework at work so I don't miss anything when I am finally home with my boys.
Pregnancy is going fine too, fast. Except that I have been having quite unbearable sciatica pain. It is getting worse every single day and every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday when I walk across campus to my Art History class (the other two are much closer), I start having contractions and more often than not, one or both of my legs will stop working. There is nothing like being the fat pregnant lady on campus who randomly lets out of cry of pain and has to stop dead in her tracks until my legs decide to work again. Ugh. But I have another doctor's appointment tomorrow and hopefully relief will be in sight not too long after that. Tonight we have a prenatal tour at the hospital (I delivered Kaden there but was very unhappy with my experience and I have a LOT more questions this time around, especially with my goals of a Natural Childbirth VBAC... so hopefully I come out of that feeling more encouraged about the care there.) I'm just a few short weeks shy of my third trimester, so it is time to really get ready now. :)
Stu also has been having back pain these past few days. He thinks he slept on it wrong or something but yesterday was having terrible pain and kept wincing (familiarly, lol) throughout the evening. He's like, "I don't know how you deal with this every day." (Trust me, if I had a choice, I wouldn't. lol)
And that's about it for us. The weather has been so awesome and it has been great to sit outside in the sunshine on the super comfy outdoor furniture and enjoy each other. I also love that it has been getting dark so much later too so we have as much evening time as we want before we have to come in.
We had a really great time having her here, Kaden especially. He "made" breakfast with her in the mornings, the first morning making pancakes where he mixed the batter all by himself and then he made eggs, toast, and "coffee" another morning! :) I so miss being home with him during the day. Yesterday I was sitting outside with him (freaking GORGEOUS days we have been having lately!) and he was having a real conversation with me. He is so grown up every day and I am missing it! I hate that. But the positive side is that he makes me laugh so hard at all the new things he says every single day. I always turn to Stu and repeat what he said in excitement/awe and I never stop getting tickled by his expressions.
School is going well. I am holding steady at the A-B range in all my classes (freaking Art History being the pain in the ass class dragging down my average, ugh) and the work is getting easier the more I use my brain on a regular basis. We just finished midterms and I feel pretty confident about how things are looking from here on out.
Work is going along fine too. I find myself busy a lot more often, which helps pass the time, and have been taking advantage of the slow time by doing homework at work so I don't miss anything when I am finally home with my boys.
Pregnancy is going fine too, fast. Except that I have been having quite unbearable sciatica pain. It is getting worse every single day and every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday when I walk across campus to my Art History class (the other two are much closer), I start having contractions and more often than not, one or both of my legs will stop working. There is nothing like being the fat pregnant lady on campus who randomly lets out of cry of pain and has to stop dead in her tracks until my legs decide to work again. Ugh. But I have another doctor's appointment tomorrow and hopefully relief will be in sight not too long after that. Tonight we have a prenatal tour at the hospital (I delivered Kaden there but was very unhappy with my experience and I have a LOT more questions this time around, especially with my goals of a Natural Childbirth VBAC... so hopefully I come out of that feeling more encouraged about the care there.) I'm just a few short weeks shy of my third trimester, so it is time to really get ready now. :)
Stu also has been having back pain these past few days. He thinks he slept on it wrong or something but yesterday was having terrible pain and kept wincing (familiarly, lol) throughout the evening. He's like, "I don't know how you deal with this every day." (Trust me, if I had a choice, I wouldn't. lol)
And that's about it for us. The weather has been so awesome and it has been great to sit outside in the sunshine on the super comfy outdoor furniture and enjoy each other. I also love that it has been getting dark so much later too so we have as much evening time as we want before we have to come in.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
It's a BOY... and a BOY! :)
No, no, I am not having twins, but my sister Justine found out she is also having a boy three days after I found out that we are! :) So that means our parents are going to have 3 grandsons and no granddaughters! This is particularly weird in our family because my brother and my cousin Harrison are the ONLY boys in our generation, so starting out the next generation with all boys is definitely new and exciting for the whole family. :) 
The ultrasound went great and he appears to be healthy and growing right on schedule.
Here is our little man! :)
The ultrasound went great and he appears to be healthy and growing right on schedule.
It's a bummer at the same time though because Justine and her new baby will be stuck in Germany until 2013. :( So her baby will be Kaden's age before they can move back to America and we (the family) can have a real relationship with him. That makes me sad since I never really missed much of Justine's life and I wish our little guys could grow up living close to each other and being friends, but that doesn't appear to be in the cards for us.
As far as our busy life goes, it's still going. It's been harder to leave in the mornings lately because Kaden is so vocal and expressive now. He tells me every morning, "Don't go to work Mommy, please!" And it takes everything I have not to cry and just give in to his simple demands and stay home with him. The other morning I said, "But Mommy has to go to work so we can have money to buy food to eat." And he said, "I'll buy money Mommy, it's ok." MELT. My sweet, sweet thoughtful boy. :(
The positive side of being so busy is that this pregnancy is FLYING by. By this time with Kaden I was already sick of being pregnant and just wanted a beer and to sleep without someone kicking me in the ribs. This time, partly due to an anterior-lying placenta, I rarely feel the baby and when I do, this baby more likes to roll around as opposed to violent punches and kicks like Kaden preferred (thought I still want that beer:)). And here I am at 22 weeks and I barely feel pregnant most of the time (except the nuisance my ever-growing belly presents when I want to do such things as tie my shoes).
Also, Stu has been so much more helpful and supportive this time around. It's so much nicer being older and "wiser" with this one because now he thinks to help me out without me asking for help, and does things to make my life easier. And on the flip side, I care so much less about the little, unimportant things, that I find myself so much more relaxed and happy this time around (while still be constantly overheated, sore, and tired :)). Because it isn't "new" to us, we're both able to just be excited about our new family member instead of being scared, apprehensive, etc. like we were with Kaden because it was ALL new and we had no idea what to expect.
So things have been going pretty good. We're both chugging along with school and it's going ok. My English class is without a doubt still my hardest (if anyone has read For Whom The Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway, or Light in August by William Faulkner, and wants to chat about it, lemme know. :)) but also my favorite by light years. I hate my Art History class with the fire of a thousand suns (or the professor, rather... who looks EXACTLY like Moby, as a helpful fellow student pointed out to me, and I can no longer take him seriously), and Math is typical dreadful Math, 'nuff said.
Stu is doing pretty well in his classes (and has a test in one today actually!). He studies hard all the time and is really working for the grades he has. I am so proud of him! If I had to guess, I'd say he probably likes his Psychology class the most and it wouldn't surprise me in the least if we had a change in major in the next few months. :)
It has been so nice outside here lately and I LOVE it. We got Kaden a swingset (thanks Granddad and Momma E!) for the backyard and he is the cutest thing out there on it. He and Jasper are the best of friends and they act just like siblings, playing sweetly one minute, hurting each other the next. Little crappers.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Nostalgia.
It's amazing how much life changes so fast. Before we left Abu Dhabi, it was something we'd both been dreaming about for a LONG time. Now that we're back in America, the UAE seems a million miles away. And I don't mean that physically because obviously it is not very close to Idaho, but mentally. While we were there, America and getting home was all we could think about it, and it feels weird that we don't think about Abu Dhabi more since we've been back. It was our home for a long time after all.
But now we've been away long enough that the bad things don't seem so bad and the things we miss start to nag. We talk about going back all the time, for the money, the simpler life, the shawarmas :). I think we both finally appreciate what we had there, when we can look at it from a distance. Living in America again is every bit as good as I'd hoped, but we fit there too. I was looking back at pictures of how much we did and accomplished while we were there and how much of Kaden's development happened there, and I know Abu Dhabi will always hold a special place in our hearts and memories as we move forward with "real" life now.
Speaking of real life now, I am freaking exhausted! Haha. Maybe that is why remembering the days when ALL I had to accomplish was keeping my son alive, and having dinner ready for my husband, seem so fancy. In all honesty, it is absolutely harder to be away from Kaden all day than I thought it would be. I always miss him and regret that I am not there to share his day with him. Not to mention with the pressures of school and that little part about growing another human, and my days are pretty tiring. But soon this semester will be over, a new baby will be here, and we will fall into yet another new routine with our new addition and I'll probably miss these days. :)
Speaking of the new baby, I had my 20 week check-up yesterday (half-way done! :)) and everything looks great. I am right on track (if not a little behind) with my weight gain, MY vitals are perfect, and baby's heartbeat is 151 and super strong. We go in this Saturday (only three days! woot woot!) to find out what we are having and do the anatomy scan to make sure everything is growing as it should be. While I still FEEL like I am having another boy, I can't help but hope for pink! :) Plus Kaden is adamant that he wants a sister and not a brother, so who am I to dash our hopes until we know for SURE? :)
But now we've been away long enough that the bad things don't seem so bad and the things we miss start to nag. We talk about going back all the time, for the money, the simpler life, the shawarmas :). I think we both finally appreciate what we had there, when we can look at it from a distance. Living in America again is every bit as good as I'd hoped, but we fit there too. I was looking back at pictures of how much we did and accomplished while we were there and how much of Kaden's development happened there, and I know Abu Dhabi will always hold a special place in our hearts and memories as we move forward with "real" life now.
Speaking of real life now, I am freaking exhausted! Haha. Maybe that is why remembering the days when ALL I had to accomplish was keeping my son alive, and having dinner ready for my husband, seem so fancy. In all honesty, it is absolutely harder to be away from Kaden all day than I thought it would be. I always miss him and regret that I am not there to share his day with him. Not to mention with the pressures of school and that little part about growing another human, and my days are pretty tiring. But soon this semester will be over, a new baby will be here, and we will fall into yet another new routine with our new addition and I'll probably miss these days. :)
Speaking of the new baby, I had my 20 week check-up yesterday (half-way done! :)) and everything looks great. I am right on track (if not a little behind) with my weight gain, MY vitals are perfect, and baby's heartbeat is 151 and super strong. We go in this Saturday (only three days! woot woot!) to find out what we are having and do the anatomy scan to make sure everything is growing as it should be. While I still FEEL like I am having another boy, I can't help but hope for pink! :) Plus Kaden is adamant that he wants a sister and not a brother, so who am I to dash our hopes until we know for SURE? :)
Monday, February 1, 2010
School, et al.
So, I opened up a window for Blogger early this morning when I got to work. Then I realized how behind I was in reading my many favorite blogs and the reason and desire to blog were suddenly lost.
Now, I am back from class and I am feeling only slightly more interested in it, but I feel like the world's worst blogger and I can't help but feeling like I have become exactly like every other blog I used to read, whose owner went back to America and dropped off the face of the blog-world.
Determined to not be so cavalier with my blog (heh :)), I am here to recap what's been going on.
We still have Jasper, though after a few days of him being a particular pain in the ass, I found myself silently wondering if it would be SO horrid to cash in on their "30-day policy". Doubts aside, he really is a great dog and Kaden just loves him. They play together so much longer than Kaden used to play by himself. And although they do find double the trouble to get into, they are two of a kind and have become the best of friends. I'm glad we got him (and have kept him! haha)
School is going fine. There are some days when I get home (night class days in particular) where I fall into the nearest comfy chair and feel sorry for myself for having left before the sun came up, and gotten home after it went down. It can't last long though, because I have a husband and toddler to cuddle, and typically a crap-ton of stuff to get done to prepare for the next day to do it all over again. I do try to remember, in my darkest moments, that there are so many people out there less fortunate than me, and while I envy my husband's ability to stay home with Kaden and only have to focus on school, it could really be so much worse (I could live in Haiti...). I have a good breakdown about once every two weeks or so for now though.
Work is fine as well. Again, working full time and going to school and growing another person, is really all hard work by themselves, together they are downright debilitating some days, but I just keep telling myself, "tomorrow will be better" and it usually is. We've been taking full advantage of the time we DO have as a family and it has made those moments even sweeter.
For example, last night we got to christen our new fire pit we got this weekend. It was great. We made frozen pizza for dinner and had a "picnic" (which Kaden ALWAYS thinks is the coolest way to eat a meal... and let's be honest, isn't it???) outside by the fire. Then we made s'mores of course! I did take some pictures but didn't have a chance to upload them yet, so I will post them later.
Yesterday was also Joslyn's baby shower. For those who aren't on Facebook, or don't keep up, Joslyn and Aaron have had a hard time having a baby. After several miscarriages, this one is a keeper after Jo underwent a cerclage, but he is likely going to have some trouble with an arm and possibly a leg. The neonatal surgeon won't know the extent of the surgeries the baby may have to undergo until after he is born. For now, Jo has a scheduled c-section on February 22nd. We're hoping everything goes well and he is not as bad off as he could be. But the party went well, I think everyone had a good time, and it's always nice to see people you rarely get a chance to see.
That's about it from me for now. Back to the grindstone! :)
Now, I am back from class and I am feeling only slightly more interested in it, but I feel like the world's worst blogger and I can't help but feeling like I have become exactly like every other blog I used to read, whose owner went back to America and dropped off the face of the blog-world.
Determined to not be so cavalier with my blog (heh :)), I am here to recap what's been going on.
We still have Jasper, though after a few days of him being a particular pain in the ass, I found myself silently wondering if it would be SO horrid to cash in on their "30-day policy". Doubts aside, he really is a great dog and Kaden just loves him. They play together so much longer than Kaden used to play by himself. And although they do find double the trouble to get into, they are two of a kind and have become the best of friends. I'm glad we got him (and have kept him! haha)
School is going fine. There are some days when I get home (night class days in particular) where I fall into the nearest comfy chair and feel sorry for myself for having left before the sun came up, and gotten home after it went down. It can't last long though, because I have a husband and toddler to cuddle, and typically a crap-ton of stuff to get done to prepare for the next day to do it all over again. I do try to remember, in my darkest moments, that there are so many people out there less fortunate than me, and while I envy my husband's ability to stay home with Kaden and only have to focus on school, it could really be so much worse (I could live in Haiti...). I have a good breakdown about once every two weeks or so for now though.
Work is fine as well. Again, working full time and going to school and growing another person, is really all hard work by themselves, together they are downright debilitating some days, but I just keep telling myself, "tomorrow will be better" and it usually is. We've been taking full advantage of the time we DO have as a family and it has made those moments even sweeter.
For example, last night we got to christen our new fire pit we got this weekend. It was great. We made frozen pizza for dinner and had a "picnic" (which Kaden ALWAYS thinks is the coolest way to eat a meal... and let's be honest, isn't it???) outside by the fire. Then we made s'mores of course! I did take some pictures but didn't have a chance to upload them yet, so I will post them later.
Yesterday was also Joslyn's baby shower. For those who aren't on Facebook, or don't keep up, Joslyn and Aaron have had a hard time having a baby. After several miscarriages, this one is a keeper after Jo underwent a cerclage, but he is likely going to have some trouble with an arm and possibly a leg. The neonatal surgeon won't know the extent of the surgeries the baby may have to undergo until after he is born. For now, Jo has a scheduled c-section on February 22nd. We're hoping everything goes well and he is not as bad off as he could be. But the party went well, I think everyone had a good time, and it's always nice to see people you rarely get a chance to see.
That's about it from me for now. Back to the grindstone! :)
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Jasper.
This weekend was great. My Mommy came into town from Coeur d'Alene and it is ALWAYS so nice to have her around. It made both Stu and I want to move to CdA to be closer to them. Kaden was absolutely in LOVE with his "Momma E". He followed her around and wanted her approval for everything he did. It was so great.
We ended the weekend by getting a puppy! :) He is a 14-week-old black lab mix from the Humane Society and he is so sweet. I had been adamant that we couldn't get a dog yet. We were both starting school, another baby on the way, we just didn't have enough time or love for a puppy right now. But then he did the unthinkable and showed me a picture of a sweet little 14-week old puppy with a blue bandanna around his neck. I melted. I caved.
We jumped in the car with my Mom and my cousin Flower (who had also fallen in love with him by just his picture) and headed down to the Humane Society. It took us less than ten minutes to locate him and then before I knew it, we were signing adoption papers and picking out a collar and leash.
We named his Jasper and brought him home and then Stu and I set off in search of a doggy bed and supplies for him. He got to go play with my Uncle Doug's dogs (Woodie and Ozzy) and then we all went home. He has been so great so far with potty training and getting used to his new place in our family and we have been happy to have him. Kaden and Jasper play for much longer than Kaden used to play by himself and last night he didn't go potty in his "kennel" (our mud room) at all! So that's great!
Stu and I both grew up with black labs so it is a nice tradition to pass down to our son. :)
Jasper playing with the other dogs at Marcia's house.
Taking a little snooze.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Christmas 2009 Update.
I have just been a bad blogger since I got home. What a shame. I keep forgetting I even have one. How's THAT for being otherwise prioritized? Haha. I used to LIVE on this blog.
Anyway, so we've been pretty busy the past few weeks getting our house organized more and unpacking the mounds of boxes I didn't even know we had (and tossing a great majority of it).
Christmas was fun. My little Kaden boy delighted in opening his cool gifts and partaking in the magic of Santa. His favorite part that was Santa actually ate the cookies and milk we left out for him! He was amazed. :)
We also went sledding with friends up in Idaho City and made time for Christmas lights and of course some Christmas movies.
The rest of the week I had off, Stu and I got into the routine of organizing/unpacking in the morning then after lunch Kaden would go down for nap and we would cuddle up on the couch (and recline of course! hehe) and watch Man v. Food, Anthony Bourdain, and the Discovery Channel to pass the nap time.
Now I am back at work and we are trying to get our house ready for both my Mommy's upcoming visit (no fog this time!!! I mean it!) and starting school in less than two weeks. My evenings get drastically shorter once school starts (as does my lunch, heh) so I want to have as much done and ready to go as possible.
We found out how unorganized we still are when this weekend Kaden came down with a pretty gnarly fever and we couldn't find any of the 3 or 4 thermometers were had. So I had to make a run to the store for a new (super cool 8-second) thermometer and Children's Tylenol to soothe my poor sick baby. Luckily, thanks to his super immune system, after two doses of Tylenol and a good deal of lounging in from of the TV all day, he was back to his happy, mischievous self the next morning. Thank God.
Stu is adjusting well to being back home. Though he did have his first twinges of reverse homesickness last night, saying, "I miss it there sometimes." I had talked to him about this phenomenon while he was still over there, to which he replied, "No way, I hate this f**king place. I won't miss anything about it." Told ya! :) But otherwise he is starting to get bored of being home all the time with Kaden and seems eager/anxious to start school.
I have been pretty good. I feel pretty "normal", though I definitely have a belly now that wasn't there before. I'm not feeling nearly as sick as often and only certain smells trigger it for me now. Which is way better than everything making me ill. Everyone keeps asking, but I still don't have a good due-date yet. I'll let you know when I know. :)
Anyway, so we've been pretty busy the past few weeks getting our house organized more and unpacking the mounds of boxes I didn't even know we had (and tossing a great majority of it).
Christmas was fun. My little Kaden boy delighted in opening his cool gifts and partaking in the magic of Santa. His favorite part that was Santa actually ate the cookies and milk we left out for him! He was amazed. :)
We also went sledding with friends up in Idaho City and made time for Christmas lights and of course some Christmas movies.
The rest of the week I had off, Stu and I got into the routine of organizing/unpacking in the morning then after lunch Kaden would go down for nap and we would cuddle up on the couch (and recline of course! hehe) and watch Man v. Food, Anthony Bourdain, and the Discovery Channel to pass the nap time.
Now I am back at work and we are trying to get our house ready for both my Mommy's upcoming visit (no fog this time!!! I mean it!) and starting school in less than two weeks. My evenings get drastically shorter once school starts (as does my lunch, heh) so I want to have as much done and ready to go as possible.
We found out how unorganized we still are when this weekend Kaden came down with a pretty gnarly fever and we couldn't find any of the 3 or 4 thermometers were had. So I had to make a run to the store for a new (super cool 8-second) thermometer and Children's Tylenol to soothe my poor sick baby. Luckily, thanks to his super immune system, after two doses of Tylenol and a good deal of lounging in from of the TV all day, he was back to his happy, mischievous self the next morning. Thank God.
Stu is adjusting well to being back home. Though he did have his first twinges of reverse homesickness last night, saying, "I miss it there sometimes." I had talked to him about this phenomenon while he was still over there, to which he replied, "No way, I hate this f**king place. I won't miss anything about it." Told ya! :) But otherwise he is starting to get bored of being home all the time with Kaden and seems eager/anxious to start school.
I have been pretty good. I feel pretty "normal", though I definitely have a belly now that wasn't there before. I'm not feeling nearly as sick as often and only certain smells trigger it for me now. Which is way better than everything making me ill. Everyone keeps asking, but I still don't have a good due-date yet. I'll let you know when I know. :)
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