Planning Something Nice

My friend Barracuda has been amazing. He's been an incredible friend. Helping me through my separation with T, our ongoing divorce, and my pregnancy. He's been so good!

Well, he had a really tough day today. A bad one. He's not been having a nice weekend at all. I feel really bad. Especially since I can't physically be there to be supportive. But we talked on the phone.

Mondays are our days to have dinner together. For a while now, we've been meeting on Mondays evenings. We have dinner. And he helps me do things around my house. Or we just hangout. But I've been wanting to do something special for him. Because he always brings me dinner, or cooks for me. And he never asks me for anything.

At our Baby Shower, his mom let me know, Barracuda really likes chili. And I searched for a good recipe. Remember, I'm not a very good cook. But I found this recipe. And with some changes, I'm going to make a big pot tomorrow. And maybe I can figure out how to make some corn bread. You know the kind, the mix that you just add water to. :)

Ya, I want to do something to help lift Barracuda's spirits. He's been so amazing to me. And I just want to be able to give him support right now too. Wish me luck with my cooking! :) XOXO

39 Weeks

Dear Baby Girl,

We're a week away from our due date. That excites me so much! I just can't wait to hold you. I dream about you every night. About being able to cuddle you. And just to love you.

Our week has been pretty normal and somewhat boring. We're finally sleeping a little more. Which is very nice. But I feel tired all the time. So I'm just trying to relax. Almost all week, we've been sneaking in little naps after dinner. :) I hope you're relaxing in there too!

W is getting excited too. I know he can tell we're about to have a major change. And he just loves sleeping under your crib. It's like he's practicing, for when you come home. We're all excited!

I LOVE feeling the relationship between you and W. He lays his head on my belly. And then I can feel you moving around in there. When he can, W will wiggle mommy's shirt up and put his wet nose on my belly, or lick my belly. That must really excite you. Because you will move around so much. You will kick and then W gets excited too! I just can't wait until you're big enough to play with W. He's going to be a great "Big Brother!"

I can also tell that you're getting ready to be born. I can feel you moving down. We've had some contractions on and off. I can feel you in a different place than before. Although it's a little uncomfortable, it still gets me excited! Because I know that soon, we will get to meet each other. And I'm so excited to just hold you in my arms!

Keep growing strong and healthy. W and I are so excited to meet you. But we are more than OK waiting for the day that you are ready to come. I LOVE you so much princess. I can't wait to meet you! Lots of hugs and kisses!

XOXO Your Mommy

Blueberry Cobbler

Yum! This looks so delicious! I desperately want to make this. I know. I'm not a cook. Or a baker. But it looks so yummy! And I'm feeling confident. Like I can actually make this little beauty. Hmm, I wonder if I have everything that I need. XOXO

30 Weeks

Dear Baby Girl,

I can't believe we're only 10 weeks away from meeting! It makes me so happy!!! This week, we've been pretty relaxed. Actually, your mommy has been pretty tired. So I've been sleeping a lot. But I think that is good for us. At least my doctor agrees.

Most nights, I get home from work, and we eat dinner. W loves to just chill with us. He lays his head on my belly. I think he just wants to feel you. He's going to be a great big brother. You know, even if he's a furry, 4 legged brother. :)

We had a glucose test today too. That stuff is so horrible to drink. I'm sure you got to taste it too. What did you think? I took everything I had to keep it down. But I know that you needed it. We needed it. So that we could see if everything was good. And it was!

This week, I've been dreaming more and more about you. About your little fingers and toes. I just can't wait to meet you. But you take your time. You cook all the way! And when you're healthy and ready, your mommy will be waiting to hold you and kiss you! I love you little angel!

XOXO Your Mommy

Lazy

We have been so lazy today! And by we, I mean W and me. It's Saturday. I didn't really have anything to do. Tomorrow I have no where to be. Other than church. So we've been lazy. Super lazy.

Last night W and I watched 3 movies. I had a good meal from the delivery service. W even got a special treat! Today I did some laundry. Then it was back to movies. I took a little break to water our tomato plants. And back to movies. I need to stop doing this!

But once in a while. You just need a lazy day. I'm glad I got the chance to be lazy this weekend. I feel like I really needed some down time. You know, just to clear my head. XOXO

Consider Me Gone

This song, it comes to mind when I think of my hubby. Did he really call me? And say all those things? Like these 2 babies are all my fault? He's the one that cheated. Not me. I'm done. Beyond done to be honest. And he has the nerve to ask me to wait for him. To let him try this out with his other "Baby Mama." If that doesn't work, he wants to give us a try. I can't be serious. But he is. Oh brother! I'm done. I just can't do this anymore... XOXO

Deceptively Delicious

I'm not much of a cook. Lots of people could back me up on that one. But T and I did get lots of good cookbooks, as wedding presents. And this one, it interested me. My bestie makes lots of these yummy things. And I'm interested in sneaking in veggies to lots of good food.

I've flagged a few recipes. And I'm determined to make a few this week. I'm off of work. And I have a lot of time on my hands. Besides, the brownies really do sound good. And who doesn't like a warm brownie, with iced cold milk, on a cold wintery night? XOXO

Flank Steak

Yum! Flank steak sounds so yummy! T used to BBQ for us a lot. He's very good at the grill. And since I'm on my own, well I need to start figuring out these things for myself.

After watching this video, it doesn't seem so tough. But now, I'm so hungry. Looks like I have to go grocery shopping tomorrow. You know, on my way home from work. This is what's going to be for dinner. :) XOXO

Feeling Like Baking

I was going through some of our Wedding Presents. And I came across this baking set of pans. It makes me want to bake something. What? I don't know. But I'm still not feeling very well. And I'd love to get out of this funk. And baked goods usually help me feel better. Hmm, maybe I can make some boxed muffins. Or something easy like that. XOXO

Good News

I got some really good news tonight. It was totally unexpected. But I'm so excited about it! Doesn't the saying go something like, "All good things in life, come as a surprise."

Well, I'm surprised. And so excited! You'll just have to come back later in the week to find out what it's all about. Until then, I'm going to head to bed. Sweet dreams! XOXO

Southern Spoon Bread

We live in the south. Neither T or I are originally from here. He's from up north. I'm from the southwest. But this is where we live. And where we'll live during his entire career. And I'm more than OK with that. I moved here as a teen. I fought it then. But I love it now.

But one of the things about living in the south, everyone wants you to be able to cook. And cook the classic southern dishes. So I'm trying. Again, thanks to Betty, I found a good recipe for Southern Spoon Bread. Now, let's just see if I can make it. :) XOXO

Candles

Candles. I've never really been all into them. On occasion, I'd buy 1 at Wal-Mart. You know the ones. They have a cheesy smell. And I would put them in the bathroom. Something nice to liven up the room.

But I've never really been into them. Until my bestie came to our home. She was adding some little touches here and there. Putting up pictures, adding accessories, and...candles. Not a whole mess of them. She has a bunch of candles around her house. But they look amazing! Because she has them mixed in with all the other stuff in her house. On bookshelves, on table tops, in little nooks. It really looks amazing.

So when she started to put them around our house, I was getting a little nervous. But late last night, when we got home, T started to light them. And all these candles just made this beautiful light! Glowing. It was so beautiful. And there was no horrible smell. Just a light fragrance in the air.

I'm not sure where she got them. Or what kind of candle they are. But they really are amazing! I will definitely be lightening them more often. And just enjoying the magical light they give off. T really enjoyed them as well. I'm telling you, we experienced something completely new and different. Now I just need to know where my bestie got these amazing candles from. XOXO

Sharing a Bit

I figured I'd share a few things about our home with you. To begin with, my hubby picked the paint color. It's a dark brown. And it reminds me of chocolate. Every time I walk into our bedroom, I get a sudden craving for chocolate. But it's beautiful!

We picked out the furniture together. Which was a task people! It took forever. I picked the style and he picked the finish. I couldn't find a picture of our furniture. And I still have no clue where our camera is. But the furniture has a "bit of a modern feel." At least that's how my bestie described it. But it's not really hard and harsh. It has some feminine touches too. So my hubby chose a black finish. And I have to say, it looks really nice.

So that left me with the decision about the bedding. I didn't want anything too girly. Or too manly. But I knew it had to be dark. I've learned that much about living with a man. I've always had blue and white bedding. But this time around, I was looking for something darker.

The picture above is what I chose. It looks kinda grey in the picture. But really, it's a blue color. And we also bought some dark brown pillows. It looks really nice. The blueish grey bedding and curtains, against the dark brown walls is so pretty! Especially with the black furniture. I'm really loving it! It's the perfect mix of feminine and masculine. XOXO

Bubble and Brown...and Happy Cinco de Mayo

We got these for a wedding present. They're the Rachael Ray "Bubble and Brown" set. I wasn't sure what I was going to use them for. But like I said before, we finally getting settled in our new house. And things are finding a home. Which means, I'm trying all sorts of new things out.

So I decided to try my hand at enchiladas today. I called my bestie and she gave me a list of food to buy. Then she walked me through the process. I LOVE her so much! She is so patient and helpful. :)

By the time T got home, I had the enchilada casserole in the oven. I even made some rice. T made us some guacamole. And we had dinner. It was so good! And this "Bubble and Brown" was so good to bake our dinner in! It made everything so crunchy and yummy. I'm definitely going to be using this a lot more. Because it was so easy to use, made our food dinner, and was super easy to clean up!

If you don't have one of these, I think you should go out and buy one. Because they are incredible! And you can fit so much food in them! It's a bit ridiculous. But you could easily make a big casserole and invite 8-10 people over. :) This is a great piece! Oh, and Happy Cinco de Mayo! That was my inspiration for dinner tonight. :) XOXO

Compromise and Brownies

So I'm no big cook or baker. But even I can manage to make some brownies from time to time. Mostly because T and I really like them. And I can buy the mix and you only add oil and nuts! Easy peasy!

But both T and I only like the edge pieces. They're more crispy. Just taste better. Yes, the edge pieces just taste better! And we generally don't eat the middle. I know that's ridiculous. But we have enough friends that come around here. So they usually eat the middle part. And in a pinch, well the gooey brownies are good with vanilla ice cream and some chocolate sauce. :)

And after finally unpacking some more of our wedding presents, I found this little beauty! She makes all the brownies with crispy edges. Yummy! Now T and I don't have to fight over the edge brownies. We can eat the entire pan! I'm not sure if that's good or bad. But I made brownies tonight. And they were so yummy! Thanks to our amazing friends who gave us this perfect brownie pan. It's literally changed our lives! XOXO

Where Can I Buy This?

I was doing a search on google for something. I don't even now what. And this picture popped up! I'm in love with this mirror and those vases! I've already found the vases online. But I can't find this mirror anywhere. Does anyone know where I can find it? I have the perfect place in our house for it too! XOXO

Artichoke-Spinach Dip

Are you serious? Betty is definitely a genius! I LOVE artichoke-spinach dip. It's my favorite! And the sole reason I drag T to Applebee's a few times a month. But this looks super-duper easy to make. Yum! Now I need to go grocery shopping. :) XOXO

Searching for Mirrors

I don't think I've mentioned it, but T and I moved into our house. The big house. And for a few weeks, it was really kinda of funny. We just moved our clothes and personal items. We had a bedroom set. And that was it. But we travel all the time, so it wasn't that bad. Because we're gone at least 4 days a week!

But my bestie came to our rescue. And she's been helping me get T and I's house in order. She took me shopping for furniture one day. T didn't really care what we bought or how much I spent. He just wanted some comfy furniture. It took us about 2 weeks to order and buy all our furniture. But it was so nice when things started arriving.

We've gotten to the point of actually decorating the house. You know, when the house becomes more of a home. And this is the fun stuff. I send links to my bestie. And she just kind of makes all these great decisions. Everything that she brings is so T and me!

But there are things that she wants us to do. Like pick more of our style. Then she can narrow down the decisions for us. This leads us to mirrors. They're important. At least that's what she tells me. So here we go...



Do we want to go more traditional? You know, with a clean look...clean lines and expected colors. Nothing too out of the ordinary.



Or more funky? Fun shapes, colors and styles. I'm thinking more funky. But maybe a funky design in a more neutral color.

What do you think? We have furniture that has clean lines. But everything that we've added to the house is fun and funky. It makes the rooms feel comfortable. Like all the over sized pillow and blankets in the den. And the fun vases and stuff on the bookshelves. XOXO

Crock Pot Turkey

I never thought of this before. A crock pot? I thought that was only for grandmas. Or keeping nacho cheese warm. But I might just have to crack mine out of the box. Yes, lots of our wedding presents are still in the boxes. I'm a little embarrassed to admit. But it's true. :)

But turkey in the crock pot. Betty is like a genius! She should have a blog too! So I could read about her recipes. But I really enjoy her videos. I just might have to try this one out. I'm feeling a little domestic here. Married life is wonderful! XOXO

Happy Easter

Happy Easter everyone! I'm really excited about today. T and I are going to cook us a little dinner. And later, we're going to meet some friends. To help them hide eggs for the little ones. Should be a fun day. And it's definitely been nice to have a Sunday off. It doesn't happen most. But I definitely enjoyed sleeping in today! Hope everyone has a great day with their family and friends. :) XOXO