oh christmas tree...

This year I changed things up and decorated our big tree in red, white and greens!

I love the way it turned out and so does Billy.

Our craft stores in MN don't have any of that fun mesh stuff you ladies down south have :( We need a Hobby Lobby ASAP!  

We have two other smaller trees, I will share those soon as well! I have to take some pictures.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend!

I have a doctor appointment today and the day off, extra long weekend for me :)

my ornament wreath...

before....

 after...

I'll tell you how I made it soon!

18 weeks...

I'm 18 weeks!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 18 Weeks

Size of baby: Baby is the size of a sweet potato.

Total Weight Gain: I’m guessing 8-9 pounds!?

I have an appointment on Monday, I’ll know for sure then.

Maternity Clothes: I'm wearing all my normal clothes still.

Gender: BOY!! Baby Cullen!!

Movement: I might have felt him a time or two although I’m not positive. I can’t wait for those distinct movements so I know it’s him and not my tummy digesting something, ha.

Sleep: Sleep is still great, I love sleeping/napping!

What I miss: not a thing

Cravings: Nothing, although EVERYTHING sounds good! I can’t wait to feast tomorrow!!

Symptoms: None! :)

What I’m looking forward to: We have an appointment on Monday, I can’t wait to hear our little guys heartbeat!!

I have been falling asleep on my left side at night, I almost always do but I always wake up on my back. I’ve read that sleeping on your back while pregnant is not the best for blood circulation to the heart. The weird thing is I wake up with a bulge in my stomach, it’s obviously Cullen but it’s so strange to see!! I will have to take a picture soon! It does not look like a pregnant tummy, it looks like I have a little alien in my tummy ;) hehe

I’ve also noticed already that he favors my right side, Billy has seen it and felt it too. My stomach will look totally lop-sided!

Also, sometimes I’m only comfortable on my stomach but I’ve read that it is totally fine to sleep on your stomach when pregnant and not harm the baby at all. It will get to a point where laying on my stomach will no longer be comfortable.

pics for the week…

I hope you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Gussy does as well.... 

We can't wait to wake up tomorrow and have Billy cook us breakfast and watch the parade!!

Then we'll be heading to my parents house for the day and Billy's sisters house for dessert in the evening.

Gus gets to snack a little throughout the day too, he is a little turkey butt ;) 

Cullen and I plan to eat A LOT hope you all do too!

some of baby cullen's goodies....

The start of his book collection...

 baby monkey shoes...

 cute baby monkey outfit!!

monkey hat, monkey socks, monkey shoes and a romper.

i LOVE it!!

Billy went to a MN Wild hockey game recently and

 brought home this adorable outfit for the little guy...

and a Sophie the giraffe...

I don't understand the price of the chew toy but it's a top recommended toy for baby so he had to have it.

I went through all of Cullen's stuff last night and we already have two bins full of stuff, one just has clothes in it.  I didn't realize how much we had already bought the little stinker. It's all super cute and I can't wait for him to be here!  Shopping for a baby is just way too much fun, especially when it's your own! 

I will be doing my 18 week post tomorrow since Thursday is Turkey Day!!

Happy Tuesday Ladies!

stars and boulevards....

What a weekend, one I won't be forgetting anytime soon....

FRIDAY

I got home from work and changed into some comfy leggins and my new snow boots!

Then Billy and I went to Best Buy so we could each get our Christmas gifts!

I got a new camera!!!

Nikon - Coolpix P100

10.3-Megapixel Digital Camera - Black

It is a fancy point and shoot camera/camcorder and so far I LOVE it!

 

Billy got a PS3 with the move package.

I haven't played yet but I've enjoyed watching him play.

After Best Buy we enjoyed some Buffalo Wild Wings.

Thanks to Kelly always talking about Asian Zing wings I had to try them and they are now my new favorite wings! Billy loved them too!

Once we were home we each played with our new toys then went to bed to watch Anchor Man.

SATURDAY

We enjoyed a lazy day around the house.

I put up one more little Christmas tree, yes I have 3 trees!

I napped and Billy had hockey.

I babysat Saturday night from 6-11:30.

When the parents got home they warned me that it was really slippery out but I had NO IDEA what I was in for.

It was the scariest drive of my entire life!  The roads were beyond horrible. There were over 400 accidents and cars were in ditches and pulled over and stuck in the middle of roads because there was so much ice.  I thought the highway would be okay but it was the worst.  Our SUV has all wheel drive which did nothing for me.  I was almost 1 of the 400 in the ditch, and poor Billy, had to hear it all.  I felt bad calling him and crying when I knew there was nothing he could do but I was totally freaked out.  As I was about to go into the ditch an extended cab Escalade came flying across 3 lanes of traffic right at me, I was terrified!!

Thankfully I got the truck back across the 3 lanes and ended up driving half on the shoulder and half in the lane just for some traction. I, along with all the other traffic, drove under 10 MPH the entire way to my exit. The exit ramps were the worst but for some reason when I got to the one I decided to take, there were no spinouts or cars blocking the exit, I made it off and about started crying in excitement!!

My regular 20 minute drive, ended up taking me over 2 hours and I was SO thankful I made it home safely.  I know a lot of people didn't.  My blood pressure was probably through the roof but I was so glad I was home with my boys.  My legs finally stopped shaking and I was able to get to bed a little past 2.

SUNDAY

I was traumatized from the night before but my family had a baby shower to attend an hour away, so back on the roads we went.  Thankfully they weren't bad at all.  The shower was a lot of fun! It was for an old neighbor girl I used to babysit for.  Imagine that, her and I are both pregnant at the same time and I'm 9 years older than her ;)  She is a sweet girl and I'm happy for her! 

Once home I took an almost 3 hour nap then Billy and I went to my parents for a chili and cornbread dinner!

I ordered these cute little hockey skates from Etsy and I can't wait for our little guy to have his picture taken in them with a little stocking cap!!

I'm so thankful to have 3 short days at work and then a 5 day weekend!! :)

I hope everyone had a great weekend!!

17 Weeks...

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 17 Weeks

Size of baby: Baby C is the size of an onion!

Total Weight Gain: I’m thinking around 7 pounds. You can tell in the pictures, I’m growing!

Maternity Clothes: Nope.

Gender: BOY! Baby Cullen

Movement: Not yet.

Sleep: Sleep is great!

What I miss: Caffeine

Cravings: None, still eating anything and everything ;)

Symptoms: None :)

Best Moment this week: I ordered Cullen’s crib blanket from Etsy, my parents are giving it to him for Christmas! :) I just LOVE it!! I ordered a bookshelf for his room today as well!!

pictures for the week… 

I think this is the last week I’ll be wearing tank tops in my pictures! Ick!

other stuff….

*I haven’t been to the gym in probably 2 weeks! Life has been busy, I plan to go tomorrow and all weekend and hopefully get back into some kind of routine. My knee is still bothering me but its bearable pain and I desperately need and want to be working out.

*I need snow boots! Although I don’t like snow boots, they are not cute and I don’t want to spend a lot of money on them. I’m hoping to find some at Target this weekend.

*The new babysitting job is going great! The kids are so cute and fun to be with.

*I’m meeting a friend for dinner tonight at Ruby Tuesday, I think she missed my FB announcement so I’m excited to tell her about Cullen in person!

*We have a doctor appointment a week from Monday and I can not wait to hear baby C’s heartbeat. I’m not looking forward to finding out how much weight I’ve gained, especially since Thanksgiving is a week from today!

*Speaking of Thanksgiving, I’m beyond excited to feast!! Ha! I have short hours next week and a 5 day weekend, woo hoo!!!

*I put up 2 of our Christmas trees over the weekend!! I will take pics and post soon!!

I hope everyone has a great day and a wonderful weekend!!

dinner and dessert....

 Monday nights always seem busy for me,

after a weekend you'd think they would be the opposite.

Last night after work I had to run an errand and grocery shop and then stop over at my parents.

When I got home I knew I wanted to bake some chicken breasts for lunches this week.

I also planned to make two simple dishes, shepherd's pie for dinner and no bake chocolate peanut butter bars for dessert.

I got everything done although it was 9:00 by the time we ate dinner. All worked out perfect, billy had a hockey game to attend and wasn't home until 8:30.  We ate dinner and watched Pawn Stars which is one of our new favorite shows, haha!  Have any of you ever seen it? 

By 10 I was ready for bed and I was out like a light by 10:10.

Here are the recipes, I got both from Kraft:

Shepherd's Pie

What You Need:

1 lb. ground beef

2 cups hot mashed potatoes

4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, cubed

1 cup KRAFT Shredded Cheddar Cheese, divided

Garlic and Onion powder to taste

4 cups frozen mixed vegetables, thawed

1 cup beef gravy

*I substituted light sour cream in place of the cream cheese

*I also chopped up a whole sweet onion

Make It:

Heat oven to 375

Brown meat and onion in large pan

Mix potatoes, 1/2 cup of cheese, garlic and onion powder and sour cream

Combine meat, vegetables and gravy in baking dish

Cover with potato mixture and top with remaining cheese

Bake 20 minutes...

 

No-oven Peanut Butter Squares

What You Need:

1/2 cup butter or margarine

2 cups powdered sugar

1-1/2 cups NABISCO Graham Cracker Crumbs

1 cup peanut butter

1-1/2 pkg. (8 squares each) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate (12 squares), melted

Make It:

Line 13x9-inch pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides of pan.

Melt butter in large microwaveable bowl on HIGH 45 sec.

Add next 3 ingredients; mix well.

Spread into prepared pan; cover with chocolate.
Cut partially through dessert (I did not do this, oops) to mark 48 squares.

Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.
Use foil handles to remove dessert from pan; cut into squares.

What the finished product should look like...

I added red, green and white sprinkles to our bars...

& after refrigeration, I could NOT cut the bars!!! haha!!

So I just broke off pieces for Billy and I.

I wanted to display the bars all pretty on my Christmas tree platter.

That wasn't going to happen...

They tasted delicious and they were super easy to make! :)

Well it's Tuesday which means my longest day of the week.

I left for work at 7:10 this morning and I won't be back home until at least 10:00 tonight.

I'm babysitting right after work. No complaints from me though, the kids are super cute and easy to watch and the extra money is nice :)

I hope everyone has a great day!!!

It's that time of the year...

Christmas/Holiday card time that is!! 

I am not exactly sure what we will be doing this year for our cards.  Billy and I have always taken family pictures with my family and I've sent that out as our card.  Since we are married now and expecting a baby, I think it's time we have a Christmas card of our own!!  We could include a picture of baby C and Gussy and a picture(s) of ourselves.  I'm really looking forward to designing our first family card!!

I know a lot of you have posted this and seen lots and lots of posts offering the great deal from Shutterfly.  So I am sure you all know by now that Shutterfly has offered an amazing deal to bloggers for 50 FREE Holiday Cards!!!  You can easily take part in this as well and I suggest you do! You have nothing to lose.

There are SO many cards on their site that I LOVE and I have no idea how to choose!

Here are a few photo cards that I really like/love/am obsessed with... 

SNOWFLAKES - BLACK

BRIGHT BLOOMING TREE

CINNAMON CANDY LACE

SNOWFLAKES AND WISHES

SWEET STOCKING

PUZZLE PIECES CHRISTMAS

STARLIGHT RIBBON

 Visit Shutterfly, and see what they have to offer when it comes to holiday photo cards!
Shutterfly also has a lot of awesome photo gifts, be sure to check those out as well!!

 Ladies in years past I have sent and received cards from some of you.  I would love to do that again this year!  I have your address if we have exchanged cards before.  If you new to my blog or would like a card from us this year, please send me your address.

chaptersofourlife@yahoo.com

Hope you all have a great weekend!! :)

16 weeks...

I'm 16 weeks!

That is 4 months people!!! Crazy how time just flies by!!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 16 Weeks

Size of baby: Baby is the size of an avocado.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Still growing every day, I have no idea how much I’m up right now but I’m guessing around 6-7 pounds!

Maternity Clothes: I'm wearing my normal clothes and loving leggins!

Gender: BOY!! Baby Cullen!!

Movement: None yet but I can’t wait!!

Billy feels my belly all the time, he can’t wait to feel the baby C move either!

Sleep: Sleep is good….great…fabulous, I love sleep.

What I miss: not a thing

Cravings: I’ve been craving Subway/Jimmy Johns/Erberts and Gerberts, I guess just a yummy sandwich. I have not yet had one so I’m still craving one!

Also, on Tuesday night I didn’t get home until 10:30 and I was hungry for egg salad so my wonderful hubby peeled and chopped eggs and made me a giant egg salad sandwich. It was perfect. Love him!

Symptoms: None! :)

Best Moment this week: Ordering stuff for baby C from Etsy!

I took a break from the gym. The pain in my right calf went away but my knee is still really bothering me at times. Thanks for all the sweet comments from my last two posts, ya’ll are seriously the sweetest ever!

pictures for the week

front view...

 left side view...

 right side view...

 I'll spare ya'll the back side view, ha!

And with a comfy shirt on the tummy is hardly noticeable ;)

I love this top, I have it in black too.



Well, it's Thursday ladies!!

Finally Friday tomorrow :)

In other news...I started babysitting for a new family this week.

Twins that are 22 months, a girl and a boy and a 4 year old boy.

I am watching them again today after work.  They certainly keep me busy!

I hope ya'll have a great day! :)