Wise Words

I just can't get over on a daily basis how fascinating the blog world is. I mean, I'm not really a huge part of it, I don't always link up when I think about it, host guest bloggers, try to be a guest blogger, etc. Maybe someday I will be more driven in the sense of "getting my blog out there," but for now I am content with writing about my life, experiences, marriage and adventures. I get super excited when I get a comment and really excited when I have a new follower.

It really is amazing how I feel like I come to "know" these women whose blogs I read because of how personal they get and what they share about their lives. It is really fun to read words that ring so true to me because we are all in similar seasons of life.

I have been a fan of Little Miss Momma for awhile now and although I do think she is super woman, she likes to remind us all from time to time that she is not. She is a real momma who wears sweatpants a lot which usually have macaroni and cheese on them. {Her words, not mine.} So today, she guest blogged over at The Wiegands a really powerful post. I had read this post before on her blog but I just couldn't help reading it again. I think for a mommy-to-be this is a post that is very important to understand.

Another blog I follow, The Arizona Russums, follows a newlywed couple {well, married over a year now}  and their migration to the southwest while working and her in graduate school. Her post cracked me up up today because I had actually been thinking for a few days about writing a similar post. I totally related to what she was saying about her hair and it made me feel better about the daily conundrum I have with my locks.

I just started following a blog, Living Like the Kings, and Kat cracks me up daily and it is so fun catching up on her and her husband's journey as a couple and now delving into parenthood. This post {she was guest blogging on The Mommy Diaries} was hilarious and who knows, in the next year I may find myself in the same predicament!

As always, I find so much wisdom in the posts at the Blue Eyed Bride. She has two beautiful boys and seriously has given me so much insight into what being a mom and now what being a mom of two can be like. Obviously I am focusing on the one for now but I appreciate all of her writing.

One of the first blogs I ever started reading was Life After I "Dew." Honestly, I have never looked back. Shannon's real life writing and sarcasm keep me smiling a mile a minute. A similar blog is I Love You More Than Carrots with AP and C. These women know how to keep it real in the mommying department.

I do read a couple of other blogs like Bower Power and Young House Love which I love for different reasons than the ones mentioned above. However, I do like how these two work in their real life situations as well as all of their DIY projects.

My point being, I really love being able to sit at my computer for hours upon end half an hour and really soak in a lot of information on so many subjects that I am dealing with. The blog world is really amazing and I guess I just wanted to, along with telling you every blog in my reader {just kidding there are way more that I stalk}, hopefully get a big thank you out to these writers. Your blogs are amazing, I appreciate them and always look forward to more advice, insights, laughs and cute pictures of your kids...or houses...or hair. Basically whatever you're willing to share--I think it's awesome!

What are some of your favorite blogs? What wise words have you heard by reading your blog reel? What is the reason you blog or the reason you read blogs?

Baking Binge

I am very happy to report that I have gotten back into enjoying cooking. For a couple of months there, I just really didn't want to do it. I did. But wasn't really loving it like usual. I would get hungry but just really wanted someone else to prepare the food for me.

I am also happy to report that with the cooking has come baking. Maybe it's me getting into the nesting phase. We shall see.

First off, last week, I started with Chocolate-Buttermilk Brownies. I got this recipe out of my trusty standby:

I'll spare you the step-by-step directions because you can simply visit their website to see for yourself but here is what my pan looked like. I added pecans to the frosting which was delicious and I love nuts in my brownies. They also were a little more like a cake and in the cookbook it says that another name for the brownies has been known as a Texas sheet cake. Whatever you want to call it, we called it yummy.

Next up, I had never made anything with yeast. Or that needed to rise. I don't know why. For some reason, bread just sounds intimidating to me. I feel like if one little thing went wrong, I would get discouraged and give up. I know, right? Great attitude. 

Anyway, I was flipping through my Pioneer Woman cookbook and decided I would give her cinnamon rolls a try. The recipe says that it will make 40-50 rolls. Well, Ben and I don't really need that many cinnamon rolls and I didn't want to use all those ingredients if they weren't going to turn out. I mean, 9 cups of flour is a lot! So I decided to cut the recipe into a quarter. I know, it's kind of weird but I thought half even still sounded like a lot. 

I even wrote in the cookbook what the measurements would be so I wouldn't get mixed up. However, for some reason when I got to the flour I only cut it in half. So I heated the milk, oil and sugar like the recipe says. 

Then I added the yeast.

Then I added too much flour. And the mixture was really dry. However, I still didn't catch my mistake. So, I mixed it the best I could. And set it out to let it rise. I let it "rise" for about two hours. I came home and it looked exactly the same.

I was discouraged. My mom stopped by and looked at it. We couldn't figure it out. All of a sudden the light bulb went on and I remembered how much flour I put in. I started over. First two steps down, mixed in the flour, let it rise and the rest was history.

Oh yeah, I added pecans to these, too. We like pecans.

Frosting mixture.

Well, hello lovelies.

On goes the goodness.

These were so good. I am so happy they turned out because I would have been discouraged if they didn't. Now that I have made them and know what to do, I would up the batch next time. They also really aren't that time consuming. Just simple, sugary, buttery, cinnamon-y goodness. And the maple frosting is to die for. We enjoyed them all weekend. Go to the PW website and make these and I promise you will please anyone  you want with these babies.

Etsy Dreamin'...

What better thing is there to do for a girl that is into relaxin' these days than to peruse Etsy? It's kind of like window shopping except I can do it from the comfort of my couch with my feet up. How perfect.

I was reading Miss Mommy's post this morning and she mentioned the Etsy store Brag About It and I figured I should probably check it out. What cute stuff! I love this cute, new mommy gift.

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I always love the finds in Little Miss Momma's shop and this table runner doesn't disappoint. A little rustic, a little vintage, simple yet eye-catching.

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I am also slightly obsessed with this adorable necklace. 

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I love the work in this shop as well. Whimsey & Co. has some really nice work and I am just having a hard time deciding what to personalize for the baby!

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I already ordered a couple of headbands from Simply Carly--one for me and one for baby girl--however, I came across this one the other day and feel like I may need it too.

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I think Etsy is just so great. What a great community and that it just promotes creativity and small businesses. I love that most of the stuff is original and the stores I have already dealt with--Little Miss Momma and Simply Carly-- have been very easy to communicate with and very professional.

What are you coveting on Etsy these days? What are some of your favorite stores?

The Time has Come...

A few weeks back when I got really excited about fall I got some mini Reese's peanut butter cups covered in fall foil to set in the coffee table candy dish. Well this little girl got to them:

Definitely came home one day and the bowl was empty. And then a few days later I came home and foil was regurgitated on the throw rug. Poor girl. 

Anyway, since the pup eating the candy, I haven't picked up anymore. However, I am getting a real hankering for my favorite fall candy:

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I don't know what it is about candy corn or when I even started liking it but I really love it. I could eat a lot of it I think. 

Obviously, my favorite flavor of the season is pumpkin spice. I love pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, cupcakes and would even like to try pumpkin pull apart bread.

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I may have to try this recipe at home.

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I am sorry but how good does this bread look? 

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It's really too bad we didn't grow any pumpkins in our garden this year. Maybe that can be on the docket for next year...

What are your favorite fall treats?

"Art," A Place to Lay Her Head, Some Joes and a Random Chicken

So there is another crafting supply that I love almost as much as mod podge. It is scrapbooking paper. I know, kinda random. And simple. But honestly when I can create fun, quirky "artwork" for my daughter's {did I really just type "my daughter's"?!} room for around $5 per piece of "artwork," I really can't pass that up! I got some cheap frames in 2 packs at Ben Franklin and while I was originally going to spray paint them to make them more colorful, nothing was really standing out to me in the color department so for now, they are brown and white which look fine to me. This is the beginning of a frame collage but I just think it's so darn cute I thought I would share now.

I guess my approach to sharing the nursery is bits and pieces and then a "big" reveal when it's "finished." If I will ever say it's "finished." To see some of the furniture check out this post.

Birds on the left, then monkeys, alphabet and numbers, then
lions-hippos-alligators

I made these lil' guys a few months back with my two favorite crafting supplies plus wood and some paint and I am so happy to finally hang them up. They are just 4x4 pieces of wood with paper mod podged on and then Ben stapled some pop tabs to the backs to hang them. There are two of each style.

Ben and I went and got our crib mattress this past weekend. I know, I know, I'm sure it's pre-mature because we obviously have no intention of putting her in there right away but I couldn't resist putting her bedding on any longer.

I guess you could say our "theme" for the room is colorful. We are loving it so far!

Sunday we had philly cheesesteak sandwiches which we made out of a chuck roast with peppers, onions, and provolone.

The next night, we still had some of the roast left and for some reason, Sloppy Joes came to mind. So I looked up Pioneer Woman's Sloppy Joe recipe and it was delish. And super easy. Made from all things I had on hand plus the leftover meat and bread.

{Sorry about the weird shadow at the bottom. Still getting used to the new camera.}

Tonight's dinner. Kind of weird. I had a whole chicken on hand. So I put some barley, garlic, onions, a packet of french onion soup and some chicken broth in the crock pot and then put the chicken on top. In a couple hours I plan to add zucchini, green pepper, carrots, mushrooms and maybe some crisped up bacon. Kind of a "clean out the fridge" kind of meal. Shh, don't tell Hub, he usually likes anything that comes out of the crock pot. 

Yeah, raw chicken isn't really that appealing.

Well, except that one time I burnt something in there. Who burns something in a crockpot? Oh, I do when I put teriyaki sauce in there and it's pure sugar so it burns to the botton. Nice.

Sorry about the random post but these were all things I wanted to share and didn't think they each needed their own post.

Happy Wednesday!

I Love it When...

I love it when...
...I have a free afternoon when I get off work to be lazy around the house, read a book, take a nap or make a good dinner.
...My husband tells me he loves it when I fall asleep on him...even if it is at 7:30 in the evening.
...I find great stuff for the baby room on sale.
...The afternoon turns out surprisingly sunny instead of what I thought would be rainy.
...Strangers ask when my baby is due.
...Sweet customers {as opposed to customers like this} give me homemade baby gifts.
...I actually take the time to paint my nails. I feel so much more "put together."
...I have time to take a bath.
...My husband cleans out my car for me.
...I get to hold my friends' babies.
...I hold my friends' babies and think 'Not long until my lil' babe is here.'
...My dog puts her head on my lap and stares at me.

What do you love?

30 Weeks

Is that really a three and a zero? Yes it is. For some reason, all of a sudden, I feel like 30 weeks is pretty far along. I mean, that's only about 10 more weeks to go. 10 weeks?! So exciting! This week has been pretty good. I am pretty tired on Fridays by the end of the work week. This past Sunday I had picked up an extra shift and I will just say my patience isn't as good on the weekends as it is during my regular shifts. Go figure.

I started writing in a little notebook that I am going to carry with me because I cannot remember anything. Whether it be grocery list items, the ongoing list of "things to do before baby arrives," questions for the midwife--seriously, anything.

Case in point, I made a list of three items to go to the store the other day and forgot one item. Honestly, I don't think it gets any worse than that.

Hopefully my notebook helps.

Baby Center tells us that she is just over fifteen and a half inches long and almost three pounds. It also talks about her amniotic fluid decreasing as she gets bigger and the development of her eyesight still progressing. Her movement is definitely changing everyday. She feels more like a little human in there trying to poke out. Sometimes it feels like there is an earthquake going on in my belly. It is quite entertaining.

I got another pair of maternity jeans at Target on sale which was a nice find. They fit great and look a little different than the other ones so that is nice. I generally wear jeans quite often so I figured it would be hard if I only had one pair. Tops I am enjoying tend to be of the looser nature or of stretchy fabrics.

Sleep is actually pretty good this week. I kind of have a little routine of waking up about three or four hours after falling asleep, getting up, taking some Tums, using the bathroom and going to get a little glass of apple juice and then falling right back to sleep. I think it helps me to actually get out of bed to fall back to sleep rather than tossing and turning to find a comfy position. At my massage last week she had a body pillow for me to use and that just might be on my list of things to pick up this week. I think my "two pillow trick" of one between my legs and one up by my body just isn't quite cutting it anymore.

I have been making a little progress on some wall decor for the nursery which is exciting. I found some great frames on sale and then some scrap book paper on sale as well so I can't wait to show the frame collage when it's done.

I have been eating ice cream like crazy it feels like. I want it all the time. It seems to settle well no matter what {which is more than I can say for a lot of food} and it sometimes even chases away the awful heartburn. I even had some with my breakfast the other day. Shhh, don't tell Ben!

We went on a date night last night which was really nice. I have had a gift certificate to use for a few months but the restaurant is about an hour away. We decided we didn't really have big plans so we made the trek. Have to take advantage of the alone time while we can before the lil' peanut arrives!