Just a quick mid-week post to share some great news... Jack is walking! Well, not full on walking around, but as of Monday he is able to take 3-4 steps at a time. He is getting more and more confident and I have no doubt it will only be a couple more weeks 'till we have a runner.
Monday was a big day for us, not only because of the walking, but because Jack also finally sprouted his second tooth. It had been well over a month since the first one came in so we were happy to see its companion poking through. Additionally, Jack turned 11 months old on Monday. It was like his little way of telling us that in one more month he will be a big boy and is going to start doing big boy things. Walking, cutting teeth... what's next?
Speaking of birthdays... we are just 38 days away from Jack's Big Birthday Extravaganza! We've been doing lots of planning (when I say we, I mean ME) and I think it's going to turn out just as I had hoped. Because of his birthday coinciding with the beginning of baseball season (and more because Johnny is obsessed) we've decided to have a baseball themed party. I can't wait to post pictures - I think it's going to turn out really cute :)
Finally, a cute video to brighten this cold yucky Wednesday - I saw this on the Today show this morning and it is too cute. Oddly enough, as soon as Jack heard the babies yapping he crawled right over to the TV, stood up, and started mimicking them! Maybe babies really do have conversations?
March 30, 2011
March 28, 2011
Weekend Fail
So I managed to not do a single thing I was supposed to do this weekend. I'm pretty bummed about it - but not at the same time because I had such a fabulous time with my some of my best friends. Becky and Joe were in town for the weekend to run the DC half marathon with crazy runner Lisa. The plan was just to do dinner, but thanks to my wonderful little brother Sam, we had a babysitter for the evening so we decided to stay out. And that's where the rest of my weekend totally went out the window. After an amazing dinner at Sweetwater (where Lisa and I managed to eat an entire basket of those ridiculously delicious sweet rolls...) we headed out to one of my favorite places for drinks - Clyde's Willow Creek. If you live in Loudoun and haven't been there, you need to make a serious effort to get out there. Not only do they have an amazing dinner menu, but they have 4 bars (at least) that all have a different feel, so you can literally bar hop without ever having to leave. A great time was had by all.
I had been looking forward to Sunday for several weeks because my sister and I had tickets to the Capitol Home and Garden showcase at the National Harbor. I knew when I woke up on Sunday that wasn't going to happen. Luckily, she was planning on also going with a friend so my hangover didn't ruin her day too. I heard it was amazing so I'm pretty bummed I missed out - so we'll just have to re-plan for next year.
On the plus side, we had an amazing brunch at my favorite breakfast spot, Eggspectation. I had an egg, spinach, and ham crepe with hollandaise sauce and it was divine. The Leesburg location just opened and there are a few others in the Capitol area - definitely worth trying if you're a breakfast person like me. And even if you're not, they have a full non-breakfast menu.
If you read my post from last week - you know that I promised a new cookie recipe today. Well that was my other fail from yesterday. I made it to the store to grab the one ingredient I was missing, but never actually got around to making them. Laying on my couch was just so much more appealing. But I promise sometime this week I'll debut the new recipe, so keep a look-out :) Hope you're all having a great Monday!
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| Although not in this picture, the boys (Joe, Eric, Johnny, and Adam) were all there too :) |
I had been looking forward to Sunday for several weeks because my sister and I had tickets to the Capitol Home and Garden showcase at the National Harbor. I knew when I woke up on Sunday that wasn't going to happen. Luckily, she was planning on also going with a friend so my hangover didn't ruin her day too. I heard it was amazing so I'm pretty bummed I missed out - so we'll just have to re-plan for next year.
On the plus side, we had an amazing brunch at my favorite breakfast spot, Eggspectation. I had an egg, spinach, and ham crepe with hollandaise sauce and it was divine. The Leesburg location just opened and there are a few others in the Capitol area - definitely worth trying if you're a breakfast person like me. And even if you're not, they have a full non-breakfast menu.
If you read my post from last week - you know that I promised a new cookie recipe today. Well that was my other fail from yesterday. I made it to the store to grab the one ingredient I was missing, but never actually got around to making them. Laying on my couch was just so much more appealing. But I promise sometime this week I'll debut the new recipe, so keep a look-out :) Hope you're all having a great Monday!
March 24, 2011
We Survived!
Jack has officially recovered 100% from his first (and hopefully last) surgery. His ear tube procedure went off without a hitch and I managed to not cause a complete scene at the hospital. I did manage to threaten the anesthesiologist but he's probably used to psychotic mothers.
He was admitted at 6:30am and we hung out in his room and watched Elmo DVDs and met all the doctors and nurses. He hammed it up and waved to all the nurses walking by his room. The surgical nurse arrived promptly at 7:30 to take him back to the OR. I was doing great up until this point, when he beamed a huge grin at me over her shoulder as they walked away. I lost it for a few minutes, but a nurse came out just a few minutes later to tell us they had started and everything was going great. We were only in the waiting room for about 20 minutes (felt like 20 hours) when the doctor came out and escorted us into recovery. Jack was awake but completely out of it. I've never been under general anesthesia so I have no idea how he felt. I knew he was going to be just fine when Johnny managed to get a half-grin out of him. We were discharged at 8:45 home by 9:15!
We have a post-op appointment in two weeks where the doctor will let me look in his ears and show me the tubes. They'll also check to make sure they've healed ok and that the fluid buildup is gone. Hopefully ear infections are a thing of our past. I'd even settle for one every now and then. But this whole two-a-month thing has got to stop.
Just a quick post for this week - but keep an eye out for Monday. I'm testing out a new cookie recipe over the weekend and will report back. You won't want to miss this one, it's a doozie :)
He was admitted at 6:30am and we hung out in his room and watched Elmo DVDs and met all the doctors and nurses. He hammed it up and waved to all the nurses walking by his room. The surgical nurse arrived promptly at 7:30 to take him back to the OR. I was doing great up until this point, when he beamed a huge grin at me over her shoulder as they walked away. I lost it for a few minutes, but a nurse came out just a few minutes later to tell us they had started and everything was going great. We were only in the waiting room for about 20 minutes (felt like 20 hours) when the doctor came out and escorted us into recovery. Jack was awake but completely out of it. I've never been under general anesthesia so I have no idea how he felt. I knew he was going to be just fine when Johnny managed to get a half-grin out of him. We were discharged at 8:45 home by 9:15!
We have a post-op appointment in two weeks where the doctor will let me look in his ears and show me the tubes. They'll also check to make sure they've healed ok and that the fluid buildup is gone. Hopefully ear infections are a thing of our past. I'd even settle for one every now and then. But this whole two-a-month thing has got to stop.
Just a quick post for this week - but keep an eye out for Monday. I'm testing out a new cookie recipe over the weekend and will report back. You won't want to miss this one, it's a doozie :)
March 15, 2011
Be The Match!
I just made a big decision and I am so excited to share it with all of you - and hope that some of you will make the choice too. As of today, I am officially registered on the National Marrow Donor list - part of the Be The Match Foundation. Each year, more than 10,000 people suffer from blood diseases such as Leukemia and could benefit from a marrow transplant. Out of those 10,000 more than 70% of them will not have a family member who is a genetic match. That means their only hope of a cure comes from complete strangers willing to make the donation.
When my mother was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer, there wasn't anything anyone could do about it. No donation of any kind would make her healthy again. The thought of simply donating blood (which is the more common method of "marrow" donation today) and saving someones life is absolutely incredible.
There are so many myths about bone marrow transplants that prevent people from giving. The biggest one is that it is a horrifyingly painful process. The more common form of donation today takes place through a process called Peripheral Blood Cell Donation where blood is withdrawn from one arm, filtered for cells, and returned through the other arm - no more painful than donating blood. The less common form of donation is through a traditional bone marrow transplant where healthy marrow is removed from the pelvic bone and harvested for the recipient. When undergoing this type of procedure, the donor will be under anesthesia and will only feel moderate soreness when they wake. Either way - it is in no way comparable to the pain and suffering felt by a cancer patient.
Becoming a part of the registry is super easy and FREE! Once you sign up online and fill out a brief health history survey they will mail you a testing kit. The kit takes about 30 seconds (4 cheek swabs) and you send it back in the postage paid envelope.
Becoming a part of the registry does not in any way obligate you to donate - or even mean you'll ever be picked. Think about it this way - if your loved one was diagnosed with a blood disease, wouldn't you hope a complete stranger would step up to save their life? I do. I hope I am given that opportunity.
Read more and sign up to be a donor TODAY!
When my mother was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer, there wasn't anything anyone could do about it. No donation of any kind would make her healthy again. The thought of simply donating blood (which is the more common method of "marrow" donation today) and saving someones life is absolutely incredible.
There are so many myths about bone marrow transplants that prevent people from giving. The biggest one is that it is a horrifyingly painful process. The more common form of donation today takes place through a process called Peripheral Blood Cell Donation where blood is withdrawn from one arm, filtered for cells, and returned through the other arm - no more painful than donating blood. The less common form of donation is through a traditional bone marrow transplant where healthy marrow is removed from the pelvic bone and harvested for the recipient. When undergoing this type of procedure, the donor will be under anesthesia and will only feel moderate soreness when they wake. Either way - it is in no way comparable to the pain and suffering felt by a cancer patient.
Becoming a part of the registry is super easy and FREE! Once you sign up online and fill out a brief health history survey they will mail you a testing kit. The kit takes about 30 seconds (4 cheek swabs) and you send it back in the postage paid envelope.
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| Here's my kit - 4 quick cheek swabs to determine my DNA compatibility. |
Becoming a part of the registry does not in any way obligate you to donate - or even mean you'll ever be picked. Think about it this way - if your loved one was diagnosed with a blood disease, wouldn't you hope a complete stranger would step up to save their life? I do. I hope I am given that opportunity.
Read more and sign up to be a donor TODAY!
March 14, 2011
Oatmeal Applesauce Bread
Since our last effort with quick bread was such a success (see my post about banana bread...) I decided to give another recipe a try. Quick breads are super easy and so delicious. You can add pretty much whatever ingredients you want to the base recipe and create your own delicious treat. I especially love quick breads because with the right ingredients, I have an easy and healthy snack for Jack. We had some homemade chunky applesauce in the fridge that needed to be eaten/used so I found an easy recipe for Oatmeal Applesauce Bread. Here it is...
1 cup applesauce (the chunkier the better!)
1/2 cup granulated sugar (splenda also works here)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup butter or margarine (I used a trans-fat-free margarine)
1-1/2 cups flour (whole wheat)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs (or three egg whites)
1 cup oats
1 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease one loaf pan.
Mix applesauce, sugars and margarine together. In separate bowl, combine flour, salt and baking powder. Stir together applesauce and flour mixtures. Add eggs, oats and vanilla and stir to combine.
Pour into loaf pan. Bake 50-60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center of loaf comes out clean. (sprinkle with oats about halfway through to create a yummy crust)
And here's Jack chowing down:
Next on the docket, pumpkin bread. I realize spring is just a few days away, but you can get canned organic pumpkin all year 'round :)
1 cup applesauce (the chunkier the better!)
1/2 cup granulated sugar (splenda also works here)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup butter or margarine (I used a trans-fat-free margarine)
1-1/2 cups flour (whole wheat)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs (or three egg whites)
1 cup oats
1 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease one loaf pan.
Mix applesauce, sugars and margarine together. In separate bowl, combine flour, salt and baking powder. Stir together applesauce and flour mixtures. Add eggs, oats and vanilla and stir to combine.
Pour into loaf pan. Bake 50-60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center of loaf comes out clean. (sprinkle with oats about halfway through to create a yummy crust)
And here's Jack chowing down:
Next on the docket, pumpkin bread. I realize spring is just a few days away, but you can get canned organic pumpkin all year 'round :)
March 8, 2011
Welcome to the Plastic Jungle
I've decided to add a new segment to my blog - Website of the Month. I spend A LOT of time on the computer so I come across some pretty cool sites every now and again. I figured why not share them so you all can enjoy too?
The first site I'd like to feature is PlasticJungle.com.
Plastic Jungle is an awesome site where you can purchase discounted gift cards, or even sell gift cards you don't want for cash. The discounts range anywhere from 3% to 50%+. A lot of the gift cards are electronic so they will email you the code so you don't even have to wait for it to come in the mail.
Here's an example of how much you can save using Plastic Jungle. For the last few months I have been coveting the Benchwright Buffet Table from Pottery Barn. We've been looking for something to put along an empty wall in our living room and this table is perfect.
The only downfall of this beautiful table - after shipping and taxes, this sucker was going to be $1725. Ouch. Well, lucky for us, we still have a 10% registry completion discount. That brought us down to $1559. Still not good enough. Enter Plastic Jungle. I was able to purchase $1559 worth of Pottery Barn gift cards at 14% off their face value. I then used the gift codes that were delivered to my email to pay for my table. My final cost was $1340.74. That's $384 in savings!! Even if we didn't have the registry completion discount we would have saved $242. And it was SO EASY. Why not save the money when you can. Now we have $384 to put towards the matching coffee table : )
Happy shopping!
The first site I'd like to feature is PlasticJungle.com.
Here's an example of how much you can save using Plastic Jungle. For the last few months I have been coveting the Benchwright Buffet Table from Pottery Barn. We've been looking for something to put along an empty wall in our living room and this table is perfect.
The only downfall of this beautiful table - after shipping and taxes, this sucker was going to be $1725. Ouch. Well, lucky for us, we still have a 10% registry completion discount. That brought us down to $1559. Still not good enough. Enter Plastic Jungle. I was able to purchase $1559 worth of Pottery Barn gift cards at 14% off their face value. I then used the gift codes that were delivered to my email to pay for my table. My final cost was $1340.74. That's $384 in savings!! Even if we didn't have the registry completion discount we would have saved $242. And it was SO EASY. Why not save the money when you can. Now we have $384 to put towards the matching coffee table : )
Happy shopping!
March 1, 2011
Banana Bread and The Oscars
Over the weekend I tried out a new banana bread recipe for Jack and it was a HIT. The kid gobbled the stuff down and screamed when I wouldn't give him anymore. And the best part is that I don't feel guilty letting him have it because it's actually healthy. Besides the two cups of banana puree, the recipe also calls for a cup of cauliflower puree, and three egg whites, instead of two whole eggs. There is only a little extra sugar b/c the extra-ripe bananas give so much natural sweetness. I also used whole grain flour instead of the standard enriched white. Even knowing this isn't traditional banana bread, I can say this stuff is delicious. It's super moist and dense and perfect for a mid-day snack for Jack to take to grandmas. I didn't want any to go to waste so I opted to make three mini loaves instead of one regular sized loaf. I simply wrapped two of them up in cling wrap, put them in a freezer bag, and popped them into the freezer for later. This way I can take out a fresh loaf and not worry about throwing any away. We know God loves us because he gave us the freezer :)
These are the loaf pans I have and they are great! You can make any type of bread (or pound cake, whatever) in these and just adjust the cooking time. You can let them thaw on the counter or pop them back into a warm oven for a few minutes for a fresh-from-the-oven taste. Yum!
In other exciting news - the Oscars were on Sunday! For the most part, I really couldn't care less about who wins because nine time out of ten, I completely disagree with whatever "The Academy" thinks. Everyone knows it's all about the fashion. Here are a few of my favorites from Sunday night:
There was only one dress I HATED and here it is...
Happy March everyone!! Only 19 more days 'till Spring :)
These are the loaf pans I have and they are great! You can make any type of bread (or pound cake, whatever) in these and just adjust the cooking time. You can let them thaw on the counter or pop them back into a warm oven for a few minutes for a fresh-from-the-oven taste. Yum!
In other exciting news - the Oscars were on Sunday! For the most part, I really couldn't care less about who wins because nine time out of ten, I completely disagree with whatever "The Academy" thinks. Everyone knows it's all about the fashion. Here are a few of my favorites from Sunday night:
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| Holy cow, Mila Kunis is gorgeous. I love this girl as both an actress and a fashionista. This dress was sexy and ethereal and she should never wear anything but this dress for the rest of her life. Love it. |
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| In general - I HATE purple. But this year the Oscar ladies rocked it in every shade. I didn't like this dress at first, but the more I looked at it, the more it grew on me. Maybe because I love ScarJo? And who doesn't love a cut-out back? |
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| Not a fan of Gwynnie - but a huge fan of Calvin Klein and this dress! Whatever the material is, it is gorgeous and I love the subtle gold. Not in your face shiny. |
There was only one dress I HATED and here it is...
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| Girlfriend, fire your stylist stat. Not only was it poor fitting, but everyone knows bubble hems are so 3 years ago. And what color is this anyways? Black? Eggplant? It's bad. That's all I can say. |
Happy March everyone!! Only 19 more days 'till Spring :)
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