Baby K's Baby Shower!

What a weekend we had in Kansas City. It made us feel so good to be surrounded by all of our friends and family for the three short days we were there. Baby K is loved already and we all appreciate everything we received as gifts for him! It does get hard up here by ourselves (especially for me) and seeing so many wonderful faces was something that was much needed for my sanity. I'm so thankful for each and every one of you.

Here are just some pictures from my baby shower last Saturday! The cupcakes my mother-in-law got were DELICIOUS and were from Smallcakes in Overland Park. My good friend, Erin, and my sister-in-law, Whitney, (two hosts) did an awesome job on the delicious food, games and fun decorations. My other good friend Michelle (another host) made the awesome diaper cake below with an adorable elephant on top!

Frontier Airlines = FAIL

Sunday 10pm; We arrive in Columbus not looking forward to the 2-hour drive ahead of us to get back to Cleveland. We were exhausted from the weekend and walking out to the shuttle when I noticed weird thread pieces all around the top zipper on the front of our huge suitcase that we had checked on the way home. Only when I unzipped it did I realize that the entire compartment had been basically half ripped off and there was NOTHING in it. Now, I have taken the smaller version of that suitcase around the world with me and it's not even begun to come apart anywhere. Whoever did that must have been using extreme force to make it come completely off. Thankfully, the only thing I stuck in there was all of our baby shower cards which the baggage people had moved into the lower zipper compartment. (we have no clue if they got them all picked up and put back in, but we'll hope!).

Sunday 10:15pm; Everyone from Frontier has gone home for the day (of course) and the last two people really have no clue how to make a claim.

Sunday 10:45pm; We have finally filled out a claim form and were directed to bring the suitcase to the Cleveland airport on Monday for them to ship somewhere to get re-stitched. Fine, we can do that.

Sunday 1:20am; We make it home and now I'm in a pissy mood.

Monday 6pm; We take the suitcase to the Cleveland airport and leave it with a lady (with our claim number) who looks really confused. I hope for the best.

Tuesday 10am; I get a call from Continental about "an empty suitcase at the airport" with our name on it.  WHAT?! CONTINENTAL? We were on Frontier! UGH. Somehow it didn't get where it needed to be. I explained the situation and the man seemed to understand and said he'd take care of it.

So now it's a waiting game. I won't be terribly disappointed if they lose it as we would just get a free suitcase out of the deal, but I have somewhat of an 'attachment' to my luggage that has been around the world with me! I just really wish they could be a BIT more careful with checked baggage.

We are, however, so thankful that we didn't have any family baby heirlooms in that pocket or valuable gifts!

Pictures of the Day

Pictures taken at two different times of the day and completely not staged.
"We're just waiting for Baby K to arrive mommy"

(sorry the pics are funky - still learning how to use the new camera)

Working at Home; Year 1

I can't believe that I've already been working at home for a full year. Last year at this time, I was celebrating my last few days in the office before the transition and it was such a bittersweet time. Sure there are perks, but it's hard sometimes to work, eat and sleep all in the same place five out of the seven days a week. I think I've actually successfully learn how to talk to my dogs and understand what they are saying back.

Sad, I know.

I also have become VERY familiar with all of the radio station talk shows and have my favorite's now. That being said, I do miss having interaction with people on a daily basis, especially with my work friends who used to make me laugh all the time. Who doesn't love the occasional prank on a peer?

And in case you're wondering, I was sporting some awesome sweatpants and big baggy sweatshirt along with my fav slippers all day today during work. Why go to the work of putting on uncomfortable jeans when I'm this preggo? I'll chuck that up to another perk of the job.

Baby K's Bear Suit

Since our new little one will be born in the middle of winter, we needed an outerwear piece that he could wear over his special, coming home outfit. Little did I know that most infant jackets/coats can void the warranty on infant car seats. It has to be an actual outfit that they are fully zipped up in head to toe. This one is even better because it covers his little hands and feet also.

How PRECIOUS is his new plush bear suit?

It's SUPER soft and I just can't wait to snuggle him in it.

Heartburn Attack

I've been EXTREMELY fortunate in this pregnancy and had almost zero side effects.

Well that changed today.

At about 1pm, my insides suddenly felt like they were going to explode. Seriously. I had the hospital on speed dial.

Apparently this is call 'heartburn'. A pregnancy symptom that I heard many people talk about but I had yet to experience. I didn't eat anything out of the ordinary, but WHAM; it hits you out of nowhere and is very painful. It last a few hours then finally subsided, thank god!

I guess no one can have a 100% painless pregnancy, huh?!

Remedies/cures freely welcomed.

Brag Blog on the Husband

So I try not to be one of those people on facebook who 'brag' all of the time, but guess what? This is my blog and when I want to brag on here, I sure can!

This post is to brag on my husband who planned a WONDERFUL surprise for me today. I woke up to venture downstairs and found a note on our chalkboard with a "What, When, Where, Why" message involving a surprise prenatal massage at a certain time! I was SUPER excited as my back had been aching for the previous few days and thought it was the sweetest gesture.

This massage was DEFINITELY much better than the first one I had received back a couple of months ago. She had stronger hands, worked out the tension much better and made me WAY more relaxed!

So here's to the best husband in the world. LOVE YOU BABE!

Why I Love Etsy

I absolutely love perusing http://www.etsy.com/ in my free time and wish I was crafty like all of these sellers!

Last week I found a seller who made little, distressed blocks that can be custom ordered to the colors and letters of your choice. I knew I wanted to use these in my maternity pictures and also in the nursery to decorate as they are adorable. Seeing as how we don't have a name picked out, I ordered the word 'BOY' in light blue lettering.

Here's how they turned out -

Don't you LOVE them?!

Apple Cake

Derek's aunt sent me a recipe a couple weeks ago for an Apple Pear Cake to help use up the tons of apples we had from the orchard. She had previously modified it to just be Apple Cake and so I followed in her footsteps.

This cake turned out EXTREMELY moist and delicious which means only one thing; I must post the recipe and share with the world.







Ingredients
4 c finely chopped peeled apples.
2 c sugar
1 c canola oil
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3 c all purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp salt

Directions (I would suggest using a large kitchenaid mixer as opposed to a hand-held!)
1. Combine oil, sugar, and eggs.
2. Mix well , add vanilla chopped apples and mix.
3. Add all dry ingredients, after being sifted together, and mix until thoroughly combined.
            * You can also add ½ cup raisins and ½ cup pecans.
4. Bake in a 10x15 jelly roll pan at 350 for 35-40 minutes.
5. Frost with cream cheese icing or leave plain.

HAPPY FALL EATING!

Nursery Progress

I've had a few requests to update the blog with nursery pictures. I will warn you, though, that it's still pretty empty! This weekend the big tree wall decal went up and looks AWESOME, but we're still missing a ton of decorations, the rug, bedding, drapes, etc, etc! If you'll remember, we already had the crib, dresser and glider set up also. Click here to see again.

The wall decal was quite a tedious project, but WELL worth it -

It's hard to tell, but the walls ARE a light green. They look really washed out on here, but it's a really cute, light green color. Below is a pic of the final tree as well as the constructed bookshelf and cute baskets I found:

More updates to come once we have more in there!

Mapleside Farms Trip

So my new favorite fall place is officially Mapleside Farms in Brunswick, OH! Derek's work had a get-together there this past Sunday complete with a bonfire, smores, cider and a hayride! We had already picked our apples out at the previous dinky place, so we didn't venture down to the orchard. Instead, we just sat and enjoyed the amazing views, ate some good food and mingled with his co-workers. On the way out we picked up the most amazing apple fritters as well as a jug of the cider to take home!

Next year will be so fun when Baby K is around to entertain and enjoy the sites with!

Date Night Surprise!

So I have a few places that I have wanted to indulge in during this pregnancy that I don't get to enjoy while watching my normal weight and counting calories. These include a Chinese buffet, McDonald's, Original House of Pancakes, etc. This past weekend, Derek took me to Red Lobster which is also on that list for the pure enjoyment of eating endless cheesy biscuits!

But then he surprised me with tickets to see Legally Blonde (the musical) that he had bought almost two months ago! I've always loved this movie and was SO excited to see the musical. It was a SUPER sweet surprise! The best part though? Derek even laughed quite a few times and seemed to enjoy the show also!

Maybe he's buttering me up so that I don't scream his head off here in a couple months when I give birth?!

Goodbye Grandma

"Our death is not an end if we can live on in our children and the younger generation. For they are us, our bodies are only wilted leaves on the tree of life". ~Albert Einstein 

At almost 92 years of age, my dear grandmother passed away early this afternoon. While it's heartbreaking that we are here in Cleveland instead of with family in Kansas City, a sense of peace still comes over myself when I think of her in Heaven. I know she is with my grandpa who passed earlier this year as well as their little pet and best friend, Toy, among other passed family. I also know she died in peace, having lived life to the absolute fullest and touching everyone she met.

 
In several discussions today, I was reminded of the circle of life. When my grandfather on my dad's side passed three years ago, my cousin had a beautiful daughter born into the family. When my grandfather on my mom's side passed earlier this year, my other cousin gave birth to the cutest little boy, Jackson. And now, I will carry on the circle of life when our son is born in January, only a few months after my grandmother passed.
 
 

Grandma; You were warm and gentle, always smiling and kind.

We will miss your presence and beauty greatly.

Love always,

Sarah and Derek

 

Pregnancy Questions Answered!

I thought it would be fun to share some of my thoughts/feelings so far with this pregnancy.
Here it goes....

What is the best part about being pregnant?

Feeling Him Kick!

What's the hardest part about being pregnant?

Not being able to run

What is the scariest thing about being pregnant?

Slipping and falling this winter

(other than the obvious not having a healthy baby!)

What is my 'allowed' indulgence?

Skinny Cow 150 calorie ice cream

What can I not get enough of?

Firm Red Grapes and Golden Grahams

 

What is my food aversion?

Pistachios

(used to love them!)

What do I crave that I can't have?

Sushi

What do I miss most?

Alcohol
(sorry mom and dad but a nice glass of wine or beer would be amazing now and then!)

If you have any fun questions that I could answer, just leave them in the comment section!

Spooky Pooch Parade

We had seen an advertisement for a dog parade in Lakewood this past weekend and decided to go and get our fill of cute, dressed up pups! It was perfect weather and there was hundreds of dogs with great costumes!

This little guy stole the spotlight though. He was one pooped pup with all of the attention.

And before you ask, we didn't take our girls as they would have been crazy to go play with the other dogs. Maybe next year!

 

Pregnant Plunge

So I ran for 20 weeks into the pregnancy and have walked now for another 8. I try to go daily, or every other day, so that I would hit 4-6 times weekly and keep my legs in as good shape as possible.

But now I must slow down again. My bulge has gotten larger and speed walking is now beginning to get too uncomfortable. Yes, I could slow my pace or walk for shorter amounts of time, but the point is to get exercise so that I CAN eat those two cookies, right??

So I took the plunge.

I bought a maternity swimsuit and we went to the lap pool two times this week already. It was GREAT! I felt so light and loved that I felt so sore the next day. It's such a wonderful, full body workout and definitely easy on a pregnant body.

It will also be a nice workout for the coming winter since it's indoors and kept at about 80 degrees!

Now I just need to find some cheap, underwater headphones to help me through each lap and I'll be golden!

  

Baked Cinnamon Apples

What else is there to do with a ton of apples other than to find fun recipes and bake with them!?!

We tried these delicious cinnamon apples made with brown sugar, cinnamon and melted butter and fell in love!

If anyone else has any great recipe's for with apples (especially Golden Delicious), send them my way!

Orchard Excursion

So we drove a good 30 minutes to pick some apples at an Orchard here in Cleveland this past weekend and were not impressed. The website made it seem like this place was gynormous with a HUGE maze for kids, hundreds of trees to pluck apples from and endless pumpkins.

Well it wasn't.

I won't even name the place we went as there was 25 trees (mostly picked over) and the smallest pumpkin patch ever. I'm talking like 50' x 100' small!

Oh well... we got some YUMMY, cheap apples and a few pumpkins for the front porch so I guess you could say it was still worth it?

Work trip to Miami

This past week I had to take a work trip to Miami for one of my accounts. I'm super glad I got to go somewhere warm with palm trees, but my body did NOT like it at all!

On Tuesday night I had a big scare when I took off my heels to see that my feet and ankles were extremely puffy and even starting to turn blue. I elevated and iced immediately but was worried that I would have to find a hospital that night and get them checked before I flew home.

Luckily, the next morning they were WAY down and almost back to normal and I was extremely relieved. I hopped on my flights home and was exhausted. Then, the following day I came down with a horrible stomach ache after finding out I had a TON of work to do before the weekend. The week just wouldn't end!!


My recommendation to those 26 weeks pregnant - do NOT take 6 flights within 5 days. It's just wayyyy too much on the body!

But for now, I'll leave you with a picture of the hotel that we stayed in and all of it's 1970's pink and turquoise glory. It was pretty sweet.

Baby K Update

We're about 3 months from the due date and are getting extremely excited!

At just over 2 pounds, Baby K is growing just fine and his heartbeat sounds perfect according to the doctor.

No names finalized yet but at least we've got the nursery started and registries completed!

He's definitely earning his 'frequent flier miles' seeing as how I've been on 6 flights with 4 different airlines in 3 cities all within 5 days earlier this week. WHEW! Feels good to be home!

The picture on the left is from this past weekend. My little bump has blossomed quite a lot these past few weeks!

And yes, those are heels.  :)

Shortest Weekend in KC EVER!

Derek and I flew home early on Sat morning and came back late last night from KC to attend a wedding and spend (a bit of) time with both immediate families. It was the shortest weekend ever in KC, but nice to see our families faces and catch up a bit in person.

As for the wedding, it was beautiful! Congrats to our friends Scott and Desiree!

Early Push Gift!

While I think the idea of a 'push gift' is somewhat silly seeing as how the male has to endure a lot too in 9 months, Derek went ahead and called my baby bag his early 'push gift' to me!

The choice, however, of what baby bag I would carry was quite a journey of researching and shopping. I absolutely love Vera Bradley, but didn't want something bright that says "Hi! I'm a baby bag!" I love the Kate Spade bags, but they didn't have any currently that I felt were large enough for everything I'll need to shove in there.  I also wanted something that looked a bit more gender-neutral, and preferably in black, in case Derek has to carry it!

After months of looking in stores and online, I found the PERFECT diaper bag! There was, however, a slight problem though. It was sold out everywhere. I mean everywhere. There wasn't a single website online that had it available.

So two months later, I realized that I had not actually gone to the manufacturer's website to look there. Who would have thunk right? Duh. Obviously would have been somewhere you'd think I would know to check!

Well guess what?! IT WAS THERE!!!! I immediately told Derek that I found it online and he was excited that he was finally able to purchase it for me. (He had told me a long time ago he wanted to get me a good diaper bag for Baby K!)

So here it is!

The Marc Jacobs Eliz-A-Baby Diaper Bag

It is washable, large, black and full of pockets! I couldn't love it more.