Done.

OK...I am now at the point during pregnancy when I want to be done. Like...I keep hoping that maybe my water will break every time I get off the couch! I am not "due" for another 11 days...and oh my that seems so far!

Don't get me wrong. I am SO happy and grateful to be pregnant and wouldn't change it for anything else in the world. I am so thankful I got pregnant shortly after my miscarriage and I can see now why this is the perfect time for us to be having a baby. With that said...I want the baby NOW and I want to be done being pregnant NOW. Oh my...I sound like my 3 year old during a tantrum:)

I miss wearing clothes other than two maternity shirts and two pairs of sweat pants. I miss wearing shoes other than tennis shoes (that I can barely lace up). I miss being able to breath deeply and without effort. I miss being able to get off the couch without wanting to puke or getting heartburn. I miss walking without hip pain. I miss my previously non swollen hands and face. I miss both of my ankles being the same size (notice how the left is bigger...what's up with that?)

Most of all I just want to see this baby. I want to hold him and see that he is safe and healthy and ours to keep. I want to bring him home and start living our lives as a family of four. I want to see my husband with his son and our daughter with her brother. I want to get to know him and watch him grow.

So here is to the next 11 days...or less...I hope:)

Motorcycle Onesie Redo

 I was productive today...and it was exhausting. I got 6 projects done and didn't realize how long I had been on my feet until I saw they had swelled to about three times their normal size. Oops.

One of my projects was this motorcycle onesie refashion.

                        

I started with a small romper with a picture of a motorcycle on it that I got for $.99 at Goodwill and a plain onesie that I picked up for $.50 at another thrift store. The romper had a glittery heart on the top that said "biker baby" so it was not approved for regular wear by my husband...so that just means I got to do something crafty with it!

I cut out the motorcycle from the romper and turned it into an applique by using the same method as my daughter's Minnie Mouse shirt.

Then I lined it up along one side of the new onesie and sewed it into place. At first I wished I had a white onesie or at least a contrasting color...but once I sewed the applique on, I ended up liking the gray on gray after all. I did use white thread for contrast...and because it was already threaded into my machine and I was too lazy to change it:)

I keep thinking if I make more things for this baby...maybe he will come out already! Oh well, I am only 38 weeks, so I know, I know...my chances of him coming out soon aren't great...but a grumpy swollen girl can dream, right?

I'm linked to:

Tatertots and Jello

Sugar and Dots

Shirley Temple Cupcakes

My brother came in from out of state for the day this week and we went over to my parent's house so we could all have dinner together. My mom gave me "dessert duty" and I decided to make this recipe that I have been wanting to try for a while.

I changed up the cake and frosting recipes just a bit. Here are my versions:

Cake Ingredients:

1 box vanilla cake mix

12oz (1 1/2 c) diet cherry 7-UP

(the original recipe called for regular 7-UP)

1/3 c chopped (and stemmed) maraschino cherries

(I bought the whole ones already stemmed at Target since they were cheaper. I chopped some for the mix and used the rest as garnish)

2 Tbsp cherry juice from jar

1. Mix all ingredients together. It will be frothy at first but will settle as you mix.

2. Fill cupcake liners 2/3 full and bake per cake box directions.

Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 tub whipped cream

4-6oz cream cheese

(depending on how much of a cream cheese taste you want)

1 Tbsp cherry juice from jar

Just beat all ingredients with mixer and let refrigerate for about 10 minutes before frosting.

Once the cupcakes have cooled, Frost and top with left over cherries. To frost them, I used a pastry bag with just the coupler inside...no tip. I laid out the remaining cherries on a paper towel while I baked the cupcakes so they could dry out a little better...I didn't want them to make my frosting runny.

These are SO good! Using the cherry 7-UP made them taste exactly like cherry cake. Plus, who knew that putting cherries on top of cupcakes could make them look so darn cute? My daughter's next birthday will probably be an "ice cream shop" theme...so I can already see these with colorful sprinkles and little decorative straws sticking out of the frosting to look like ice cream sundaes:)

I'm linked to:

Tatertots and Jello

Sugar and Dots

Sunburst Granny Square Blanket

I finally finished my daughter's granny square blanket! It was my last project that I really wanted to finish before we have the baby.

(And yes...my 3 year old is still in her crib...she absolutely loves it!  Oh well, we will tackle the issue before she turns 4 in the spring:) For now I couldn't care less...Mama needs her sleep!)

I ended up only using 72 squares. The blanket was heavy enough already so I didn't want to add any more. I used this pattern....but only rows 1-4 and then a single crochet row around each square. No square is the same...so after 72 variations I was running out of ideas for color combinations:)

To assemble the blanket, I sewed each square together instead of crocheting them together.

Here is a view of the back of the blanket:

I also added a double crochet edge to the entire blanket once the squares were sewn together.

I love the way it turned out...and I also love that I am done with it! I am glad I went with a more random design. It's perfect for the little girl who's favorite color changes every day:) So, that was my last project to get done before this baby get here!

I'm linked to:

Sugar and Dots

Tatertots and Jello

Sausage and Spinach Manicotti

Manicotti is probably one of my favorite comfort foods. I decided to put a different spin on it this time by using Alfredo sauce and turkey sausage. It turned out to be one of my husband's favorite dishes! My 3 year old even ate an entire noodle herself!

Ingredients:

1 package manicotti noodles (boiled and slightly cooled)

1 package ricotta cheese (15-16 oz)

2 eggs

1/2 can of Alfredo sauce (I like the light Parmesan version)

1/2-1 cup shredded spinach

 (you could use a thawed version too...I just used fresh because it's what I already had and use as little or as much as you like)

 1 c cut and cooked sausage (I used turkey sausage links)

2 c mozzarella cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spread a little Alfredo sauce on the bottom of 9x13 baking dish.

1. Mix together ricotta, 1 c mozzarella, sausage, spinach, eggs, and salt and pepper in a bowl. I also mixed in just a couple of tablespoons of Alfredo sauce.

2. Stuff boiled manicotti shells with mixture. I actually cut a slit in the shells lengthwise, place some mixture in the center, and then roll them back up, placing then seam side down in the baking pan.

3. Top the shells with Alfredo sauce (just enough to cover them and keep them from crisping and burning in the oven) and then sprinkle remaining mozzarella on top of that. I also sprinkle a little more pepper and parsley flakes on top.

4. Bake (loosely covered) for 30 minutes and then remove the cover and back an additional 10 minutes (or until cheese is nice and melted).

Enjoy!

I only made a half a batch last night (since that is normally enough for dinner and my husband's lunch the next day for work)...but we ate the whole pan! I guess I need to make the full version next time:) I am also going to try this with diced tomatoes next time too.

10 Things I Have Learned

This is going to be a random post. Just a warning;)

1. I know there comes a time during every pregnancy where you can't see your feet anymore. However...I took this picture of my huge tummy while on a hay ride at the pumpkin patch this weekend....and I can barely see my KNEES! Apparently...you can lose your knees in the ninth month of pregnancy.

Oy.

2. Make sure to watch your 3 year old around your husband's Playstation 3...you might catch her trying to shove one of her toy CDs into the slot. Then threaten her life if she ever tries it again gently correct her with love and never tell your husband what may have happened...

3. Do not attempt to paint your toenails at nine months pregnant. And if you just have to in order to make yourself feel less gross (newly painted toes make swollen feet look smaller...right?) then don't choose red. It will not be forgiving with your lack of flexibility.

4. Don't start an 80 square crochet blanket for your child with 4 weeks before you bring another child into the world. You won't want to get it done...but your mommy guilt will push you to crochet until your fingers hurt.

5. Sometimes just picking up the clutter in your house is as good as cleaning it. Your husband will just notice that everything is off the floor and will think you cleaned.

6. If you want your child to play alone in their room for about 20 minutes...set a timer. Then...stop the timer as soon as they get to the top of the stairs and wait until they ask if the timer has gone off...which may or may not be about 30 minutes later. Don't judge...

7. NYC mascara at Walmart for $1.72 is better than Cover Girl mascara that you have been using for years at $5 a tube.

8. Next time you are at the grocery store on a Friday...just buy a half dozen of donuts from the bakery. It will go against how you feel about bringing junk food into the house...but it will save you $12 when your husband goes to the donut shop the next Saturday morning by himself and it will save your a million calories since there won't be leftover donuts tempting you all weekend.

9. The next time you decide to take apart your toddler's car seat to wash it...do NOT put all the pieces on the counter and then walk out of the room for a minute. Your toddler will take some off the counter and then you will have a fun time looking around the house for them...all the while asking the 3 year old to remember where they put the "shiny pieces".

10. Be content. Most of the time I can't wait for this pregnancy to be over. I just want to hold this baby and relax knowing that he is safe and healthy. But I am realizing that I will never be able to get back to this point in my life and I need to remember how it all felt and enjoy it. Don't wish away the days...but find happiness where you are...even if it's a hard place. Live in the moment. Dance when your toddler wants you to dance, pack a picnic for the park, and laugh a lot, and choose your battles...life can already have drama of it's own...don't add any more.

OK...time to crochet some more granny squares. Only 20 more!

Fall Days

We have been trying to get the most out of our last days as a family of three before we turn into a family of four. This weekend we went up north and took our daughter to a pumpkin patch.

The day was filled with riding on Daddy's shoulders (I'm going to be so sad when she gets too big for that):

Inflatable slides and bounce houses:

Butterscotch kettle corn:

Walking through a field of pumpkins...looking for just the right one:

And being very happy when we found it:

Oh, and a Daddy ride back to the car because someone was too tired to walk.

I love the fall. It's hard to believe we will have two little ones running around the pumpkin patch next year! I can't wait:)

2 Step Steak Chili

I have a confession to make. I realized the other day that I have not bought ground beef from the grocery store in a year. One whole year. Don't get me wrong, we go out for burgers and such...but I have not used ground beef in one single recipe at home over the last year. Is that weird?

I figured it's because I got pregnant last fall and the thought of ground beef would have me gagging. Then I got pregnant two months later and same thing. With the cooler weather this week I decided to make chili. I went to the store and picked up a pound of ground beef. It squished and grossed me out...but I put it in the cart anyways. Then, the thought of cooking it up made me gag so I put it back and just picked up a package of thin lean steaks...which were actually only $1 more (and there was enough for me to use the rest for another dinner).

SO...that's how I got to steak chili:) I mean, really, aren't chunks of steak more appetizing than ground pieces of beef anyways? I know my husband wasn't sad about the new substitution at all:)

Ingredients:

2 c steak (cut into bite size pieces)

1/2 c diced onion

1 can of kidney beans (I like the light red)

1/2 can of black beans

1/2 can of pinto beans

1 can diced tomatoes

1 small can of tomato sauce

1 chili seasoning packet

about 1/2 c of water or however much to acquire the consistency you like

Directions:

1. Brown steak with onion on med-high heat.

2. Add rest of the ingredients and bring to boil for 10 minutes

Either serve directly from saucepan, or throw into a crock pot on low until dinner time.

This recipe can really be customized however you like. That's what I like about chili...add as much or as little of anything you want. Enjoy!

A Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Kind of Day

Today is the first day in the 80's that we have had since March! I finally turned off our air conditioner and have the front door open with a breeze coming in. Natural air is flowing into my living room! Can you believe it? I won't get too attached to it though because we are supposed to have 95 degrees again by the end of the week...but for now...it feels like fall. So, with wonderful new weather comes my all time favorite cookie:

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip

I have been a horrible cook and baker lately. I just don't have the brain cells to think of things to make...let alone follow a recipe correctly! I love this cookie though because it is SO easy. I use this recipe but I use semi sweet chocolate chips instead and I double the cinnamon cause we love us some cinnamon in this house!

So...I won't confess to how many cookies I actually ate off the cookie sheet while they were still cooling , but nothing can really make this look any bigger than it already is, right?

36 days to go! OK...time for another cookie...

Work in Progress

I haven't been crafting much this week. I got a lot done during my crazy nesting phase..but now with just under 6 weeks to go until this baby is born, I'm finding that I'm too tired to do much anymore.

Since I can't just "sit" without feeling like I'm going crazy, I started a crochet blanket for my daughter. She thought that the striped one I made for the baby was for her. Ah, sibling rivalry already! So, I decided to make a very special blanket just for her.

I knew I wanted more of a patchwork type blanket for her and when I found this pattern for a sunburst granny square...I knew it would be perfect. I am using up the colors in my yarn stash since there is really no rhyme or reason to my color choices. My daughter likes "all the colors" as she says...so that's what this blanket has!

27 circles down...only 62 to finish total:) My goal is to have it done before I have the baby that way she can have it with her at my parent's house while we are at the hospital. Think I can get it done in 6 weeks?:)