Domestic-Goddess-in-Training

Gerber baby!

2010-09-09T22:25:00.000-07:00

Any of you who have seen pictures of our handsome little man will agree that he's adorable! (And if you don't agree...shame on you.) At any rate, we're going to enter him into a Gerber contest, The Gerber Generation Photo Search in a Snapshot. The contest is running for 6 months, with a submittal and voting every month to choose six babies. One of those babies has the chance to win it all. "All" is appearing in a Gerber commercial, as well as a $25,000 college scholarship! Every month, people vote for our Tyler, and if he wins for his month, has a chance at the scholarship and the commercial. This is an awesome way to start his college fund! As well as show everyone out there how friggin adorable our baby boy is! Voting for his cycle doesn't start until October 3rd, and when it opens, you can vote once a day, every day, for the whole month. I'm counting on you people! The picture below is the one we've submitted, and I am pretty sure it's everything that they are looking for; he's beautiful, happy, healthy, and wearing a HUGE smile!

Soon we'll be posting the info on where to vote, how often, and for how long. I'll also send out email reminders; wouldn't want ya'll forgetting would I? Let me know if you have any questions!

In the meantime, just look at his little face?! He's such a blessing, he really is. Jake and I couldn't imagine our lives without him, and are already thinking about baby number 2 (in a year or two, but we already can't wait!)

Thanks everyone!

Shameful, Horrible, Unspeakable

2010-08-14T22:41:00.000-07:00

If you've been waiting for a blog; I'm dearly sorry. If you've been hanging in my every breath....again I'm dearly sorry. You new moms know what happened, don't you? Life. Diapers. Formula. Sleep. Crying. Laundry. (Let's be honest, that's become a four letter word.) I had these great ambitions of being a "writer", someone people turned to, to read or just laugh at; kind of an escape for others. I was really hoping that I could keep up with it. The inspiration behind my new blog? (Way back when?) Well I wanted to have a voice, and I wanted to secretly be like Julie from the movie Julie and Julia; she started a blog that chronicalled her cooking throught the book, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking". I wanted to BE Julie Powell. Inside I secretly see myself as someone who has something to say. And that people are ENTHRALLED by me. Of course we know this to be just short of untrue (a bit more than short actually). But I want to write, and I want you to read it. More than that, I want to remember to write, and remember that I have something to say.

I have something to say.

In no particular order:

I'm sad that things aren't going the way I want them to in life; I MISS MISS MISS my family. And not just mine..I miss Jake's family as they have become my family. I wish they all lived closer. We just got back from a Vacation visiting all of our families. Grand Rapids MI, Campbell OH, and Pittsburgh, PA. It was a lovely visit and Tyler got to see all of his family....truly special.

Good Ju Ju, Aisle 15

2010-04-27T22:48:00.000-07:00

You ever have that positive thought Monday morning, "This is going to be a good week, I'm willing it to be." (or some other idealistic variation)?? I do. All the time. Only I replace the word week with day, because a couple of bad apple doesn't mean the bushel is a total waste.

I love to work. I like knowing that I do something productive and that has meaning. There are days that I feel like I'm doing something productive, but that what I do, doesn't really have much meaning. OR there are days when I feel like EVERYTHING hinders on me, and that I'm doing the job of ten people, and that if I don't finish what I'm doing everything falls apart (we know this not to be true all the time...). Those feelings can be a bit overwhelming. But I still like to work. I do. I'm a worker bee and proud of it. I don't always necessarily want to be Queen Bee, but sometimes I get that itch...and think it would be nice to be the QB.

Well today was that thought....It's going to be a great day, I will it to be so!

Today is my hubby's birthday (yay) and he had to go into work early for work stuff (boo) at like 5 am (extra boo) and his amazingly loud alarm blared away at 4:00 am (double extra boo). But I got up at 6, realized that our teething Tyler had slept through the night and just had that feeling....Today was going to be a good one. It was crappy out, rainy icky gross, and I hate driving in that weather mostly because every idiot in a fifty mile radius finds me, and hones in on my vehicle...let's see how much she can take before she cracks....but no...today....gonna be a good day. I started it out with Starbucks ("A secret love affair with Soy Chai Latte's with no water and whip cream on top" Coming to theaters near you). I'm in line, and think...It's going to be a good day, the line is short, and Tyler's in the back seat jabbering away about Tupperware. (at least I like to think it's as interesting as Tupperware). I get up to the very cheerful lady and tell her in my equally if not more so cheerful voice, that I'm paying for the person behind me. Yes. Enter the Ju Ju.

That event was (probably) a catalyst for my good day. (at least I like to think so). I got three compliments on my new shirt (thanks for Ironing honey!) and my boss paid me a compliment about something I didn't even think he noticed work wise (and it meant so much to me...because I work darn hard) and then I got free lunch at a restaurant at work, where I got to dine with 2 of my work buddies, and to top it off, I had a fresh positive attitude, and I felt sassy all day. I felt like things were going my way and that my early morning positive ju ju kicked my awesome day into high gear. I LOVE that feeling. I can't help but think I might have had a good day even if I hadn't done something nice for a complete stranger this morning, but I automatically felt better about myself for being nice to a stranger, with no ulterior motive. And the ju ju feeling....I wish you could bottle that up and sell it at Safeway, next to the sugar, spice, and everything nice.

Don't discount the Ju Ju, even if you are the one making it.

Doing what you say you will do....

2010-03-02T21:53:00.000-08:00

Remember when we were little girls (forgive me, gentlemen, if you don't get to relate to this particular memory in my post...)...and we'd start these journals or diaries. "Dear Diary, my goal, my vow. I promise to write in you every day. One year from today you will see my story..my life. And you, the reader will know I lived." Two months down the road, and you have forgotten all about that beautiful (and costly!?) little black, blue, green book. On to bigger and better things, like Michael Guzman from the 8th grade, who in the end didn't like you, but it seemed like he liked your friend Ellen, but you still kept in touch with him through college....(and incidentally, this would have made for a great journal/diary entry!) That book was supposed to be your mark on the world, even if no one read it but you. Here I sit, almost 15 years after a so called diary period in my life. I actually had a kept a good one one, successfully writing in it for almost a year...maybe more. But it wasn't really a diary for me...more like letters to God about my misdeeds and prayers. You see, back in high school, I was heavily, (and I do mean heavily) involved in my Church. Not that that should be a status of who you are. I was just really into my Church and my youth group, and my friends at youth group. Unfortunately, I also felt like I was into the Faith...and being Faithful became almost a game....I don't know...you always felt like you were trying to be more Faithful or Religious than someone else. I grew out of that thinking, that going to Church, and taking part in the groups, and meetings, and saying the right things...the belief that all those things are what made you a Christian and what made you good to God. When I went to college I learned that it's not those things that make you good for God.....it's the actual Faith you have...and the way you live your life according to that Faith.

Back to my journal....I wrote things in that book I was not proud of...things I had done to friends, that weren't nice. Sure I would sugar coat it, and use one word in place of the real words. I would write things in that book that shamed me. And I couldn't imagine anyone else reading it because those were my private words...my thoughts. My prayers to God. I remember I used to be SOOOO in love with a boy at my Church. And let's be real..I didn't love him...but was a PK (pastor's kid) and he was wayyyy cute...and everyone liked him. To boot..he was younger than me. He liked someone else..my friend...and I was crushed for awhile. But I used to write in that book..I used to pray in that book, to God. Pray to him and say, "Please let me stop liking him...I want to hang out with my friend and he's ALWAYS there..." it was crazy. I was so silly and boy crazy and silly...it's hard to imagine ourselves when are younger...when you think about what you will be like...but I look back on my life and I think about those diaires that we say we're going to finish. I finished mine. I feel like I wrote and wrote and wrote...and didn't really find any clarity or anything that revealed itself to me as a learning opportunity. Instead I just had this book that I carted off to college with me. I'd reread it now and again..and think about this boy and my friend..and think about the bad things I'd done. Things I won't reprint here because let's face it, who wants to relive their misdeeds.

When I moved here to California it was sort of an abrupt move. And right before, I was sick. I was sick for awhile. And I moved home from college with all my stuff, including that book. Then I left. I ran away to California to be with my mom and to have her heal me, like only mom's can do. She didn't heal me...but she did take me in until I got my own place. But sure enough, I left that diary, that journal at my dad's house. Shortly after my quickie move to the West Coast...he and my stepmom kind of went through my things and sorted through junk, which most of it was, and got rid of A LOT of stuff. I always ALWAYS wonder if they got their hands on my journal. Sure I wasn't thinking about that book when I went off to California...but I think about it now....did they read it? What did they think of the journal me...as opposed to the real me that didn't talk about what I wrote. Sure this might seem kind of a silly think to write about. But I do think about it...whether or not they read it....or if they saw it for the secret, private thing that I knew it to be.

I guess what I mean is...I did what I said I would do..to my journal. I kept it. I wrote everything in it. Things I wasn't proud of, things I was proud of. And my transition from child to woman is in that book. My belief structure change is in that book. Where I see what I want to be, and who I want to be....I would give anything to get my hands on that...Because sometimes I really miss feeling that faithful about something. Sure..I believe. I have Faith. But when you are younger it was easier to make you feel more ALIVE...more rejuvinated. Because your "cup" was smaller...as an adult my "cup" is bigger, and it takes longer to fill....But thats ok. That's what makes God great...my cup is still pretty big, but these day's it fills up easier because I have more to be thankful for, more to be faithful to.

Forgetful me....

2010-03-01T22:59:00.000-08:00

There are days when I forget...no not forget...just don't remember to see. I don't remember to see what an amazing man I am married to. When I met Jake, I was looking for someone who would REALLY REALLY see me...See the fact that I'm not perfect and all I really want is to be seen and loved. See that I have SO much love to give and just want to be loved and seen back. I know it may sound silly, but in the movie "Avatar", there is a line, "I see you"...and as cheesy as it sounds..Jake sees me. He sees my amazingly large imperfections and me at my worst. I try to show others a big persona...someone who has this confidence in herself. Really...I'm just as unsure as everyone else. "Does this outfit make me look fat?" "My hair looks so stupid today!" "I'm showing a boogie...I can feel it." Things like that run through my head all the time. (Ok not the boogie one)....but Jake sees it and he loves me still. Loves me even more. And we have this amazing son..who sometimes makes me want to pull out my hair...but the rest of the time, I'm in awe. In awe that Jake and I made this amazing, beautiful little person. Yeah...I found all the things I was looking for before I found Jake. He sees the most basic me, and loves me more than I could imagine.

Holy Cannoli!

2010-02-02T22:18:00.000-08:00

Here we are! Tyler is 3 months old, and I've posted I think twice since that blessed day. What a slacker!

In my defense..

I have NEVER been more busy than I am now! At one point in my life, I was going to college full time, and working two waitressing jobs at different restaurants....and that doesn't compare. I'm back to work, and have been so since the beginning of Jan. I was THRILLED to go back, and when I say that, it makes me feel like a TERRIBLE mom..but...I was THRILLED to go back! I'm a worker bee. I'm there working...being bee like. I'm used to that, I thrive in that area. In the beginning I wasn't used to being someone's everything. And that's what I am to my little man. I'm his breakfast lunch, dinner, snack, after snack snack, and dessert! I'm his cuddler. I'm his diaper changer. I'm his giggle maker. I'm his entertainment. I'm his tear dryer. I'm his bath maker. I'm his EVERYTHING. For me, it was very difficult to get used to this feeling and I didn't know how to get there comfortably. And I was SCARED. I was not looking forward to Jake going back to work. I was nervous about what would happen if it was just me and him. And it turned out that all the things I was afraid of happening, ended up happening at almost the same time. So I guess that helped me get over it.

I went out to breakfast with my friend Becky almost a month after he was born. My fears were that he would throw a tantrum in the Purple Place because I wasn't feeding him fast enough. Then that I would have to nurse in public. Then that he would throw up on me because that was the event du jour. Thats what he was doing ALL THE TIME.

****(Side Bar)****
Dear Burp Rag Makers,

Bigger, thicker, more absorbant, and less likely to slide off my shoulder during burp time because thats usually what happens with me and lets face it, no one likes the spit up trail that starts at the shoulder and goes to the butt. Correction, the spit up wearer doesn't like that trail, everyone else gets a chuckle.

Thank you

****(Game on)****

Anyway...Back to breakfast. That's exactly what happened. Although he didn't scream, he did fuss and tell me he was hungry. So I nursed him in public, something I just don't want to do. Then he proceeded to throw up on me. Yeah...saw that coming.

My point is that the things I was nervous about happening ended up happening and early on. So I was able to get more comfortable with Tyler at home. I was still nervous about going out in public, but that's a whole different blog.

Well here I am, back at work. And I'm very happy to be back. I missed my friends and I missed the feeling of working at work. I was DEFINITELY working at home, just now it's different. And now I feel like my life has such purpose. I have this beautiful husband..and we have our amazing son. It feels so much like we're on such a great track! And now I want to work on my career. I really have big plans for work and I'm hoping that I'm able to push that arena. I'm still working on doing Product Reviews! I can finally start doing that again, now that we're in a scheduled routine. Tyler's in daycare part time during the day. And then we hang out together at night, baking things, and trying new food recipes. I feel like my life has taken this fulfilling turn. I can't wait to see what pops up next.

Oh yeah...

In the grooove!

2009-12-09T21:32:00.000-08:00

Here in the Warren house, we've finally settled into a "routine". I use the term very loosely because that routine is probably going to change when I go to bed tonight. But Tyler's finally figured out that night time is for sleeping, and tends to start napping at like 5pm, when it gets dark outside. That is kind of the downside to the idea that nighttime is for sleeping. I say this because he wakes up 3 or 4 times a night if I let him go to bed that early. So my goal is to try to keep him awake until about 7:30 or 8:30 and then let him try to go down for good....

I know.

I may seem a bit neurotic and completely idealistic about this. But I've found that the Tyler gets a good amount of sleep, and I too seem to get more than I thought possible at this stage if I keep him up just a wee bit longer. We had a pretty good system going where he would go down about 7:30 or 8:30 and then sleep for 7 hours. 7. Hours. He's six weeks old and figuring this out already. Momma like...momma really like.

Then we had the storm.

Sunday night, Jake, Tyler, and I were out running errands and just being productive We decorated our tree and the house for Christmas!

We saw some rain, but no snow or anything that would indicate the next day's events. We woke up at 4:57 to a power outage, and this out our back door.

Now...I live in Northern California. And we don't normally get snow. This picture was taken Monday morning about 8:10 ish from my back porch. There is STILL snow on the ground around our house. Crazy! Needless to say the power outage and subsequent lack of routine for the day totally threw our system into upheaval. Tyler didn't take well to the lack of power, he likes white noise when he naps. (A positive for me, because our vacuum cleaner sounds like a Lear jet taking off...No it really does.)

So instead of our usual morning breakfast and nap at 9:30. We went upstairs and sat with the neighbors all day. We lit a fire in the first place and all of us sat around talking about our kids, and lives and it was quite nice. I got to really get to know my neighbors and their children. I would have preferred to do it with heat, but we all survived.

Last night, he was still kind of off sleeping wise...but tonight he went down at 8:45. Fingers, toes, arms, legs, and any other thing you can cross (not your eyes, you'd look funny!), cross them, because we want to get some sleep tonight!

A Month Old!

2009-11-29T21:27:00.000-08:00

I know it may sound crazy...but 4 weeks ago today (technically) my infant/toddler son was born! I say infant/toddler because he was 2 feet long almost and about 10 pounds. And today he's at least 12 pounds and over 2 feet long. He's growing SO fast! We've had our first bath in the new bathtub! (HE LOVES IT!)

And Jake is awesome. The last 2 weekends in a row, he's stayed at home with the baby and let me have a few hours off to go see New Moon (SO GOOD!) and to go shopping with an old friend from High School. And I got to take a nap today. Loving it. Doesn't always work out that way.

That would be because Tyler's sleeping habits are completely off kilter.

He's up at 6:30 or 7 am every day. (yes. every. single. day.) It doesn't matter how often he was up the night before. And most nights he doesn't go down until after midnight. (for good..he'll nap on and off before then..but mostly just not until midnight!) And after he goes down for good, he's up at 2, 4, 5:30. And then 6:30. I'm not gonna lie I miss the sleeping. And whats weird is he's UP all day mostly. Doesn't nap that much during the day.

But he's rolling over on his own already. When I put him on his belly, he gets very kicky and then just pushes himself over on to his back or side. He's so big! I love it!

So cute!

First Simple Post!

2009-11-15T21:07:00.000-08:00

Hey guys! My first product review is going to be posted tomorrow on the Simple Website! I'm kind of excited to see it. (Plus I LOVED the product!) I'm hoping to be able to do more of these as the time goes on, and as I get more opportunities. Check out the SIMPLE website to see the blog!

NOT PREGNANT!

2009-11-14T17:26:00.000-08:00

Quick little news flash for those of you who didn't already know! Tyler Jacob finally graced us with his beautiful presence on November 1st at 8:39 am. Almost 3 days of labor and out he came!

He was 9 lbs 15 ounces and 22 inches long, and did I mention beautiful?! I know we've only been waiting 9 (and a half) months for this but it feels like longer!!

We went in on the 29th to be induced...Jake's family was here and were scheduled to leave the next morning. So we were REALLY hoping that he would come out that night. However....he apparently was a reluctant little star.

They sent us HOME from the hospital on the 30th at about 2 in the afternoon. I was so sad. I really though that he would have been here by then. He must get his stubbornness from dad....

Anyway. At about 7:30/8:00 on the 30th (the very night they sent us home) my water broke! YAY! Which led to this:

Hanging out in the hospital...again. WAITING for the goods. :) That was the 30th at about 10pm. They started me on pitocin. And shortly there after gave me the epidural. Late into the evening on the 31st (am on the 1st) the docs let me know I was 1o cm and ready to go! We waited until about 7 am to start pushing and....

OUT HE CAME!! :) At 8:39.

He was loud and boisterous and beautiful, all the things that we hoped for! 10 fingers 10 toes and a head of beautiful hair! We are so happy he's finally here! (Even though they circumcised him on the DAY we took him home, and he cried like bloody murder for about 7 straight hours that night...we're still pretty stoked that he's finally here!)

Better pictures to come! But I'll leave you with this one:

Water Buffalo!

2009-10-26T23:56:00.000-07:00

My last post on the 22nd details an outing and some photos taken at a local apple orchard. That was the 22nd. On the 21st, I wrote a post about having my family arrive and all the emotion and excitement that I felt about them all being here.

Fast forward to today..10/26 (technically 10/27 because it's midnight as I type this). And I'm still very pregnant. I'm oh so pregnant, uncomfortable, exhausted, cranky, tired, punchy...I really REALLY could go on forever, but I won't! Bottom line, I'm still pregnant and really trying to find that patience I was talking about on 10/21....about being patient and letting God run the show. I got up this morning at 4 am...took my dad to the airport and said goodbye...still a pregnant lady. I've been waiting for this moment for so long..having my dad be there to hold my new born baby boy...and while our visit was awesome and it was just great to have him around...I'm SO sad that he's missing the birth. It's not his fault, nor am I blaming him. But I really was just hoping he'd get to experience that.

His visit was great for me. I missed him so much and remembered all of the reasons why I love having him around. We've always been close and have much of the same sense of humor. Not to mention same big ears and big smile (poor Tyler, I hope he gets Jake's ears). I cried when we dropped him off, not only because I'm an exhausted hormonal mess, or because I'm terrible at goodbye's, but because I looked back at my life over the last 10 years...and I haven't been the best daughter I could be...and I regret not keeping in touch more and insisting on really being more of a family. Even from opposite side of the country. This visit really helped rekindle our family bond, and it helped to introduce him to Jake's family. I won't let years go by before we see each other again...I can't.

So here I am....on the 27th of October, past my due date...and largish. I was sitting at the kitchen table with Jake and his dad...and I announced to the room in general that I felt like a water buffalo...and I DO! I feel like a giant water buffalo. I'm SO ready. So everyone reading this...give me your ju ju...give me labor ju ju! I am really...really ready to welcome Tyler into our lives. Trust me on this.

Excursion!

2009-10-22T22:01:00.000-07:00

Just a few pics of what we did today!

We went to an Apple Orchard on Apple Hill. Honey Bear Farm, and they specialized in organic product (as you can see).

Ethan the adorable helped pick out a pumpkin for us! He had a blast!

My sister in law Jaime took this picture.....It's my FAR my favorite picture taken of me and Jake. Even our wedding photos! :) I can't wait to see what she'll take of the baby!

Below are some pics from the orchard:

My husband, dad, father in law, and

nephew!

They're here!

2009-10-21T22:27:00.001-07:00

So everyone's arrived! With the exception of my beautiful baby boy...who has decided to stick around out of the spotlight for a wee bit longer. While I'm COMPLETELY impatient about it, and can't wait to hold him in my arms, watch my husband hold him, and my dad too....(not to mention the high level of uncomfortability..) I'm ok with him taking his time. I am blessed with a healthy baby..he looks great on sonogram and my doctor loves that he's doing the breathing motions already in the womb (smart little guy!) He's healthy and growing and even though I'm slightly uncomfortable I couldn't ask for more.

Yeah...I am ok with him taking his time. We've been waiting for this moment for SO long...him to be here. We're days away, possibly a week and a half at most, and I feel like I can wait a little longer. I love laying in bed and feeling him roll around in there, (with the small amount of room that's left) love to feel his little elbows, feet, arms and back roll around. It shows me how strong he is! And I know he will be.

I wonder about the kind of parent I will be...I had a minor panic attack about it the other night, and I just wonder..will I be the overconcerned mom...the lax let it happen if it's gonna happen mom....or the mom that hovers. I don't want to be that mom. The mom that hovers and doesn't let her son grow and learn and triumph...and fail. Because everyone fails in life at some point. Not like Epic Failure. But I want to be the mom who is prepared to let him fall off his bike and get boo boo's, climb chain link fences like I did as a toddler (not joking), build tree houses with friends, and get hurt. And by hurt I don't mean serious injuries...but I have learned much in my life by my failures and "hurts"...and the knowledge that I gained is something I wouldn't give back ever. It sucked completely to hit bottom or to make that huge error that ended up costing me a lot..but the climb back to the middle (not the top because even now, I'm still growing), that climb to the middle was hard and ever time I had to start over...it went faster and I learned so much about myself in each life journey. I want to be the parent who will be there for him when he needs me, and when he doesn't....

One of the things I love about my new family is the comfort I feel in them. His mom is just this amazing person who I already love! She's been this supportive figure from day one. And I can't even tell you how nice it is to have one more adult woman figure in my life who will give me advice on how to be the best mom I can be! His dad is a great father and good man. I see a lot of Jake in him, and I can't wait to see Tyler in them both. His sister is strong and smart and beautiful and a great mom to her little tyke. I'm so blessed to become a part of this family. And that's not even all of them. His brother arrives on friday and if what I've been a part of so far is any similar, I know I'm going to love him too!

My dad...seeing him at the airport today made me cry. I'm still daddy's little girl, at 28 and living so far away. It's been 5 years since I've seen him. And regretfully...we've grown apart over that time. (One of those "hurts") But I've been pushing to connect with him and he's here for Tyler's birth, (hopefully Tyler realizes that grandpa needs to be on the plane on monday @ 6 am hehe). I can't believe he flew out! It was the best feeling to see him...and he's meeting and the in laws for the first time ( just like me) and love it. I'm so glad he's getting to be a part of this big event in my life.

Yeah...I'm content to wait for a little bit longer. A huge part of me is going "Liar Liar pants on fire!!!" inside...and it's true, I can't wait to hold him and love him with hugs and kisses and share this beautiful thing that Jake and I made. But the rest of me is saying....God has plans for you...and for your son. He's not ready yet...but he will be soon. Trust God. I don't know what you believe...it's hard for me NOT to believe that there's a God out there who has my best interests at heart (and already planned). I may not always lead by the best example, or do what most Believers would do...but I do believe. And for now I'm content to wait and trust that God's plan is gonna work, and that Tyler's taking his time...and that I can be patient....

Let the Wild Rumpus Start!

2009-10-18T23:35:00.000-07:00

This week marks some EXCITING things happening in our lives here in the Warren House. Starting off with the most important: my technical due date, is the 24th of October. So little Tyler has less than a week to make a grand entrance...(or I'm going to be slightly even more uncomfortable than I already am!)

Tuesday marks the beginning of Family arrival! Jake's parents, Mike and Suzanne, as well as his sister, Jaime and nephew, Ethan all arrive on Tuesday at 11. I'm THRILLED about this, because although we've never met, I've become extremely close with his family! They have been so so soooo supportive of Jake and I throughout the entire pregnancy. And on a side note I'm excited about having his family here for the birth of Tyler! Thursday, Jake's brother Jeremy flies in! He's staying until Monday.

Wednesday afternoon my dad arrives! I haven't seen my dad in a little over 5 years!! I'm so excited about the visit! He's going to meet my husband and get to see the birth of our son! He'll be visiting for about 6 days, and he'll get to meet the rest of Jake's family as well.

This weekend, (the 24th actually) more of Jake's family arrives from Oregon and Northern Ca. His Grandma, Aunt, and various amounts of cousins! CRAZY! They will be staying the weekend, and I can't believe how lucky we are that they are coming down to see us, and the birth of our little guy!

It's going to be a busy week, and I hope that Tyler arrives on schedule, or BEFORE WOULD BE FABULOUS!!!!!!!! (not that I'm impatient or anything). I can't wait until we have him here...and I can hold him! (and he won't be so heavy in my belly!)

I'll be posting baby pics as soon as I can! :)

Still Pregnant

2009-10-15T13:08:00.001-07:00

For those of you who are unaware of my lack of patience....SURPRISE! I have a lack of patience, as a child and well into my adult years, suffice to say, it's just sad frankly. I'm ready to rush rush rush! And finish things, and do things, and keep the momentum going. Being 9.1 months pregnant is not really conducive to my lack of patience. So to fill my time, aside from walking, (and walking, and walking and more walking...did I mention WALKING?!) I have embarked on several projects in the house that have...kept me busy. For those of you who don't know I HATE TO CLEAN...I mean I'm no slob, I clean when I have to. But I loathe it....I would rather do laundry allllllll day then clean. (I loooooove the smell of fresh laundry). So the projects keep me busy while I try to get my husband to scrub the bathrooms and clean the kitchen. I know I'm wicked...but really, I'm ok with it :)

Here are some of the things we've been working on! (we as in me and Tyler..and sometimes Jake)

The original curtains are older ones that Jake had from his house in Michigan. The back of the curtains are heat resistant...so that when it gets to be 100 degrees outside, little Tyler's room won't bake like an oven! On the front of the curtains, I did some fun stuff! Instead of gluing the little safari animals on, (that's the theme for his room), I sewed the Velcro pieces on to the curtain itself, and then glued the Velcro pieces on to the back of the animals as well. This way I can still wash the curtains and just pull the pieces off when I'm ready. (I though this was pretty snazzy!) Jake loves the curtains! AND a great friend of mine bought little letters for Tyler's name, and on each letter are safari animals...guess what they match!!!!!!????? (more pics to come from that once we have hung the letters).

I tried hot glue and a hot glue gun, because I was feeling crafty. But the hot glue didn't stick! The little Velcro pieces fell off! So I used Gorilla Glue....this stuff is incredible! There is no NO NO Way the Velcro pieces are coming off the animals now.

Speaking of still being pregnant....(ok I spoke of it, there's my lack of patience again!)

This weekend my husband, and some friends of ours went to Ikea. I like going to Ikea because I don't have to buy everything, but I get some fabulous ideas! Well when we first got there, I had to use the little girls room...Ikea is about an hour from our house. Anyway..I waddle in there and some nice woman was just enamored with me. "Oooh look at you! You look about ready to pop. When's your due date?" I told her...I mentioned that I was ready N.O.W. and that my due date was the 24th of October. This is the response I got. "Oh...you still have a long way to go yet. New mommies don't understand this...but 1st time babies just don't come out near their due dates...they come out a week to two weeks after." My eyes kind of glazed over....I've heard this story and many variations of it quite often. She takes my silence for encouragement and continues, "It's not like I'm trying to give you bad news, but new mommies don't really understand that it takes time for him to come out, so not to get your hopes up, you do look about ready to pop, but you've still got a few weeks left." I mumbled my thank you for the invaluable information, and practically ran out of the restroom. ***

At 9.1 months pregnant...I'm here to tell you that I refrained from striking this poor clueless woman. But...I was very close. And LIVID the rest of the visit. She almost ruined my Ikea experience, but then I bought some mixing bowls and all was right with the world. But really...why do women say that. And it's not like she was offering the advice in a comforting way or a friendly way. She was completely condescending and semi rude. Had I not been in a good mood, I might have let her have it. I was complaining about this to my friend that Jake and I had gone with and she suggested that I have some fun with it from now on. She gave me a few witty comebacks, that I will SURELY be using in the future!! I'm posting a link to her blog about it because it was so HILARIOUS! She's just funny in general, but I really enjoyed these. The blog is titled "Pregnant Friends Please Read." Enjoy!

***Ahh you noticed the asterisks again....while I am athletic...running at 9.1 months isn't something I do...so I didn't really run. AND the conversation is not verbatim. You understand that in my present state, I forget more things than I remember...sooo....this is a general view of the overall conversation, I'm sure you get the point!!

Oh my pregnant taste buds!!!

2009-10-09T15:31:00.000-07:00

My very first job ever was a Dairy Queen located in Pittsburgh, PA. (First ever legal working job where I payed taxes, where Uncle Sam and I started our tumultuous relationship, and where he started hogging all of my money!!!! DON'T THINK I HAVE FORGOTTEN!)

Ahem....My first ever job was at a Dairy Queen. I worked with ice cream ALL THE TIME. One might incorrectly assume that at the end of that job, I would be SICK of ice cream. This is not the case. I LOVE ice cream. But the thing is, it has to be something that really makes me happy. And these days...most food does.

But there I was grocery shopping at Safeway, and perusing the dessert ice cream area. I like dessert, I like icre cream, really, I was meant to be there. AND THEN I SAW IT...

OH MY SWEET HEAVEN!

It was

combined with:

Quite possibly the best thing I've ever eaten. Jake tried to have some, and I said...well..no. And that this one was mine, he could find his own. (In truth, I bought another flavor, so it's not like he didn't get any ice cream. I'm not completely heartless) And in the end, I ended up sharing, because I wanted someone to experience the amazing flavor!! (And I'm not completely heartless.)

Get some for yourself!

Ben & Jerry's Cinnamon Buns Ice Cream

New Endeavors

2009-10-06T22:13:00.001-07:00

I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am about becoming a new mom! I feel like I've been waiting for this moment my whole life. And I know it hasn't been that long, but I'm so glad that my time; me and Jake's time is here. That we're going to have this beautiful little blessing in our lives every day. I'm very excited about the new things that are going to take place, and the many blessings I feel are to come.

Speaking of new things...

With my amazing husband there are some perks. He's got this family that is just fabulous. They are loving, caring, and supportive. All the things I want in my family, and all the things that I hope that I am. His mom and dad are both out of this world supportive...I mean when we told them that we were pregnant, his mom started quilting and making things, and sending out care boxes FULL of extremely useful and awesome baby stuff. (She's a complete Rock Star! I love her.) His brother, Jeremy has reached out and he and his wife Shamay (awesome name!) have sent out a care package too, they are both parents to these two adorable kids. So cute!! And his sister, Jaime, has become one of my favorite people to talk to, and even though we haven't "met" in person, I feel like we are fast becoming great friends. And she's a photographer and takes these AMAZING photos! She's so talented!

Also, she's introduced me to a company called Simple, and has offered me an opportunity to be a reviewer for the website.

S.I.M.P.L.E.
Showcasing Interesting Mom Products Loved Everywhere
http://www.simple-momreviews.com/

This website is run by 7 women who are all moms, and who all have something that they want to contribute. All write reviews based on actual use of a product that moms will love! Jaime has given me the opportunity to be one of the reviewer moms! And I CAN'T WAIT! So not only will I share it here on my blog, but if you visit the above website, you can follow along with my review there as well! Plus, if you are a mom too, you might find a product you REALLY love, and after hearing a review, LOVE IT EVEN MORE. (I know I know...hard to believe!) And there's more! The website offers giveaways! The new Harry Connick Jr. (swoon!) CD is being given away on the 11th of October. Check out the website above to see details, as well as to get info on the moms who do the reviews!

I baked!

2009-10-03T15:32:00.000-07:00

A very good friend of mine (Annika) and her husband (Allen) are throwing an Oktoberfest party..full of German beer tasting, TASTY home cooked German food, and possibly German music, although no one will be able to attest to that until later.

Annika has baked some serious events into my life. My most recent birthday cake, my WEDDING cake (kind of a big deal) and more recently, some amazing cookies that stole the show at my Baby Shower. She has been an inspiration. I like to bake, but I am not even in the same neighborhood as she is...let alone on any level near her.

SO.....for the Oktoberfest party..I opted to bake. I made CREAM PUFFS! I'm making them German because....

A: I am German...therefor these are German Made Cream Puffs.
B: I drizzled (melted and then drizzzzled) German Chocolate* on top of these AMAZING cream puffs. (I will post pictures and you will be subsequently amazed...just wait...)

While baking, I remembered why I LIKE to bake...the smell. The house smelled utterly divine while these puffs were puffing.... Lets hope I can make this a habit!

*ahh..you saw the asterisk...(meaning that the Chocolate may or may not be German...)

Something funny

2009-10-02T14:44:00.001-07:00

So I'm 9 months pregnant and in this "delicate" condition....I've managed to somehow attract a non-aggressive form of Road Rage. For those of you who know me, I'm someone who enjoys driving. And this late in my pregnancy, I'm surprised that my husband still lets me. (He's seen the non aggressive road rage in person) Here's a funny little something that happened yesterday that helped quell my road rage and made me cry with laughter.

My good friend Julia and I like having our toes done together. And yesterday was a celebratory day....it was my first day of Maternity leave and we were going to celebrate by having my feet (our feet) decorated...at this point I can't see or touch my feet so I was pretty ok with it. During this amazing time, something happens that makes it IMPERATIVE for us to drive to Roseville (A city outside of Sacramento), something so important, that as soon as our toes were dry, we set off in 4:30 pm traffic to head "down the hill".
**(Sidebar: Let's be clear that Julia has not seen the pregnant road rage, and although it is non violent...it does contain a small [large] amount of yelling, gesturing, and hand waving, all done by me. Needless to say that at first glance, a 9 month pregnant woman doing these things does not instill a vote of confidence in her ability to get you from point A to point B without her going in to labor...[or so I've heard] So upon first experiencing this "phenomenon" one should feel some sympathy for Julia.)**

So we're driving, and some MAN, impossible to believe, is going altogether too many miles under the speed limit. And then some CHICK, again impossible to believe, cuts me off when there is CLEARLY no room for her car to fit between mine and the car in front of us. The yelling has begun. The gesturing soon follows. After that Julia has probably already expected the hand waving. We're coming into Roseville....and seeing as how she was unprepared for the drive in; I started to worry about the drive home. (We hadn't even reached our destination yet).

We finally made it to the Mall, (an overly done structure full of stores with Clothes I can't fit into at the moment) and we're walking around. Julia goes to the store she needs to go to, and then to another store where I discover that my eye makeup skills are COMPLETELY lacking. (Apparently another thing that makes me feel large and whalish is that I can't do my eye makeup like the super cool looking girls at this store.) After this, Julia and I are walking around the mall, and decide that McDonalds is where dinner will be. Especially since I've been craving the fries with too much salt for days...days. (I said it to my husband the night before as he was coming to bed...I think he ignored me in the hopes that I would fall back asleep, and it turns out he was right, because shortly after I don't remember asking for fries.)ANYWAY...We're leaving the mall, and as we approach the Hamster (my car's name), I see something that drives me over the edge. I know the fries should have calmed me down but I'm full of hormones that keep sneaking up on me and unleashing themselves on the world without my knowledge. We are approaching the Hamster, and I see some big man idiot in a Dodge truck has parked his sweet behind SO close to me and my 9 month pregnant belly that I can hardly get in the car. I start, at this point, yelling at no one in general. "Are you kidding me?! How am I supposed to get in my stinking car! What the heck!" I might have said more, but really you get the gist of where I'm going. I was throwing an adult pregnant woman, hormone driven tantrum. A woman and her children are walking towards us, and upon hearing my rant have retreated to the far side of the street in order to not make eye or verbal contact with the lunatic yelling at no one.I finally maneuver myself into the vehicle, still ticked that this guy (and I know it was a guy), has managed to send me over the edge. I'm backing out, and Julia (sweet hilarious Julia), is rolling down her window and unscrewing a bottle of water...I am paying no attention to this, I'm still angry at no name bad parking guy. As we are passing the truck she whips the top of her open bottle of water at the truck and starts yelling, "Who's got your back?!", while splashing the defenseless truck with her bottled water (premium car wash here, friends). All the while, she is also splashing water on the inside of the Hamster, but I didn't notice it until she pointed it out to me minutes later. My mouth had fallen open and I was sitting there, kind of shocked. I pull forward a little more and then the laughter starts and does not stop, in fact I'm laughing about NOW, more than 24 hours later. I laughed so hard I know I cried. And she's saying, "I got it in your car!" I could care less. She attacked the no name bad guy for me with her secret weapon...bottled water. All the while saying, "Who's got your back" and I couldn't stop laughing.

That my friends, is how my road rage was quelled.

So if you find yourself riding in my vehicle and my nostrils start to flair and my voice starts to get octaves louder than it should, say something funny or roll down the window and start splashing things...that oughta do it.

2009-10-01T21:32:00.000-07:00

I am 28 years old and love talking to people! I’ve lived many different places and love the idea of moving around. I come from a Navy family and married a man who came from the same. Jake and I are expecting our first angel this month. And we are THRILLED to be adding Tyler Jacob to our family! We are the yin to the others yang and I feel pretty blessed that he was able to find me! I love books, music, movies, and baking (not so great at the cooking, but that’s why I got married!). I’m toying with the idea of possibly doing some heavy duty writing, I’ve always enjoyed that, and feel like people would get my sarcastic yet appealing sense of humor! My life is blessed…and the only thing missing is a big dog to slobber and love on our family….