Red Shoes and a Really Good Recipe

I got some new red shoes this weekend and they are spicy and delicious! I couldn't resist. My old red shoes have seen better days, so I decided it was time to invest in another pair. Yes - I love me some red! I plan to wear them to work tomorrow with gray pants and a black shirt. Who says I can't be a stylish preggo mama?


And for the really good recipe...my own mama introduced me to an amazing new dip. It's quick, easy, and extremely tasty!!! Would be great for entertaining or as an appetizer:

BAKED CORN DIP

1 can corn, 15oz, drained
4 oz canned chopped green chiles
4 oz chopped pickled jalapenos
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup grated cheddar cheese, divided

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
-In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except for 1/2 cup of grated cheese.
-Coat baking dish with non-stick spray, then pour dip into dish. Top with remaining cheese.
-Bake 20-25 minutes or until bubbly. Serve with Fritos, Scoops, or other chips.

Bon appetit!!

6 months and back to the land of the living...

Am officially 24 weeks today. Bump is huge. Have I been eating too much Taco Bueno and too many milkshakes? Experienced death and have come back to the living after fighting through a vicious stomach bug that took me out for a couple days last week. Would not wish that on my worst enemy! I had hoped to be able to say I made it through my entire pregnancy without "praising the porcelain god," but that is no longer a possibility. While my discomfort with the whole having-a-baby process in general remains mild, I'm pretty sick of being gassy. Am going to have to start eating smaller meals throughout the day as the my-stomach-is-so-tight-I-feel-like-it's-going-to-explode feeling is pretty unbearable.

On a non-baby topic, K and I were watching Dirty Jobs last night. Mike Rowe was working at a mattress recycling place. The guy told him that a new mattress weighs 90 pounds, and an old mattress weighs about 110 pounds. What? Apparently the difference in weight can be attributed to dead skin. 20 POUNDS OF DEAD SKIN IN YOUR OLD MATTRESS. That is so, so, so gross.

Random Update

When I look back on my last few posts I realize that this is turning into somewhat of a pregnancy blog. After baby comes into this world, it will likely be a blog all about our new daughter. This is what's going on with us right now, this is what my thoughts revolve around, and hence this is what I write about. Life, as I know it, is changing.

Apparently baby is now the size of a mango. Today at work I looked down at my stomach and saw it moving. Was an amazing thing to watch what I've felt internally for a few weeks now become so strong and all of a sudden visible to the outside eye. People are much kinder now - opening doors and stopping their cars, allowing me to cross into the parking lot after coming out of a store exit. Thankfully I have not had any random strangers reaching out to touch my bump, although if they tried I'd likely be indifferent.

Nursery designing continues. We finally decided on our bedding, which ended up being neither of the initial options I'd selected. Our ultimate choice, I feel, is much more flexible with both pinks and blues, allowing it to be spiced up for boy or girl. Thank you, Land of Nod. Due to technical difficulties am not able to post pictures, so click here to see.

I also have an amazingly crafty friend who has graciously offered to make a project for baby's room. Erin - you seriously inspire me and I wish I had the creativity that you do!!! Thank you for being so willing to add your special touch to our sweet daughter's new room. This will be hanging over baby's crib to keep her occupied. I LOVE it!!!!!!!



To sum things up, I’m finally getting more excited about baby getting here. I know we still have a ways to go, but for awhile this phase has resembled that of before getting married. You are so excited to spend the rest of your life with the person you love most in this entire world, but at the same time you’re “mourning” the loss of your single life. With baby I’ve gone through “mourning” the loss of K and S time. I know when she gets here the joy and fulfillment will be incredible, but right now it’s in a way that’s unimaginable to me. I was never distraught about getting pregnant as it’s something we were planning and wishing for, but it’s nice to finally move past the “mourning” and into the hopeful excitement stage. Am loving getting to plan more and think about being a mom!!

Babies R Us

I have a bone to pick with Babies R Us (BRU). If I may step up onto my soap box momentarily...

I really do not like this store, mainly because I think it is ridiculously overpriced. I would like to give specific 3 examples of their gouging techniques:

Example #1 - Fisher Price Rainforest Jumperaoo
BRU Price: $104.99

Example #2 - Graco Swing and Bounce 2-in-1 Infant Swing
BRU Price: $167.99

Example #3 - Baby Einstein Musical Motion Activity Jumper
BRU Price: $89.99

Now. People sometimes call me cheap. I have been known to watch my $; however, my main motive in doing so is opportunity cost. For example, I would much rather use my paycheck to travel to China rather than shop at Juicy Couture. But I digress...

I am absolutely, 100% okay with being called cheap if it means that I can get the exact same product for less money. My brother in-law would call this frugal. You tell me if you had the choice between Babies R Us or Amazon that you wouldn't shop at Amazon every day. Take the exact same examples from above.

Example #1 - Fisher Price Rainforest Jumperaoo
Amazon.com Price: $74.00 with free shipping and no tax [SAVINGS OF $30.99 or almost 30%]

Example #2 - Graco Swing and Bounce 2-in-1 Infant Swing
Amazon.com Price: $113.50 with free shipping and no tax [SAVINGS OF $54.49 or 32%]

Example #3 - Baby Einstein Musical Motion Activity Jumper
Amazon.com Price: $69.00 with free shipping and no tax [SAVINGS OF $20.99 or 23%]

**Notably, Wal-Mart has prices almost identical to Amazon.com. And have you checked BRU's shipping costs recently?? Out of control!!!

So seriously, why would anyone shop or register at Babies R Us? I don't know. Despite all of this madness, I'm ashamed to admit that I'm still registering at BRU. It's like I can't resist the bandwagon - I mean EVERYONE registers at BRU, right?? We even have a Buy Buy Baby in Dallas - which is a WAY better alternative. They're owned by the same company as Bed Bath and Beyond, and they even take the 20% off coupons from Bed Bath and Beyond!! (but only if they're not expired...)

If you feel inclined to support baby Bowen (which by the way this post is by no means a ploy to encourage that in any way, shape, or form), then please - scan our BRU registry (a work in progress) and purchase elsewhere. There is no Buy Buy Baby in H-town (where many family and friends are located), and our sole reason for not registering at Amazon.com is that we don't want to have to deal with mailing returns on duplicates that we might receive. Please people - spread the word and save your money!!!!!!

Almost 21 weeks and Christmas Recap

Sooooo baby continues to grow as evidenced by a belly that now "sticks out farther than my boobs," as my lovely husband likes to point out. I will be 21 weeks tomorrow, and am still feeling great, thankfully. I have felt baby move with a couple powerful kicks / punches here and there. Every day I hold her Baby Einstein take along tunes toy up to my tummy and play her a classical jam. (thank you, Bubbie!) I mostly feel her dancing around in the morning and at night, around 11:00 pm or so...

We had our sonogram on December 14, and it was one of the most amazing things I've ever experienced. To witness a live being moving around and yawning inside my stomach, watching her heart beat and seeing 10 tiny fingers and 10 tiny toes, is such a testament to how incredibly awesome and amazing God truly is. This little being is such an intricate miracle who will soon be born into this world with a specific purpose for her precious life. I truly was in awe and on the verge of tears the entire time we watched her on the screen as the doctor inspected her organs and body, thanks to some seriously mind-blowing technology.

Our parents believed that our sonogram wasn't until Dec 30, so they both were beyond surprised when they opened up our Christmas present to them - a pale pink frame with the 18-week sonogram picture outlined with "Oh baby" at the top and "It's a Girl!" at the bottom. For whatever reason, both sets of parents failed to initially recognize the message we'd hoped to convey with our gift. My mom unwrapped the frame for both my parents and replied, "oh it's the peanut! thank you!" (clearly referencing our first sonogram picture in which I labeled our baby a 'flashing peanut' versus the most recent one that was actually framed). I said, "Mom - did you look at it?" prompting the following reaction and a scream:


Since we were in Houston for the holidays, we called K's parents on Christmas Day and had them open their present as well. I kid you not, his mom literally asked us after she opened it, "Do we know if it's a boy or a girl?" READ THE FRAME!! was our joint response, and of course they both were extremely excited and happy to hear the news.

All of our presents this year were amazing. You know you're getting old when you get REALLY excited about getting an electric toothbrush. I used to think these were a waste, but then I got one and it broke. For the past year or so I've been without, and it is of no comparison to the way my teeth now feel after brushing with my brand new splendid Sonicare. Heavenly...

I got K a sweet newborn onesie - this is one of my favorite pictures. :-)


While in Houston we were also able to spend a day with my mom's side of the family, which was such a treat as we rarely all get together during the year. 3 of the cousins now have babies with 2 more in the oven, so it was really fun watching the little ones play. It's hard to believe that we'll have a 7 month old running around at this time next year!


As for NYE, we were in bed by 11:15. Yes, we could've made it up till midnight, but I've always felt that New Year's is overrated anyways. Today we're tasked with undressing the tree and boxing up our Christmas decor until next year rolls around. 2010 will be an amazing year of change. Get ready!!!!!!!