28 Week Bumpdate

~ Girlmom ~ 4 Comments

For the past week I have been getting a really bad upper right quadrant pain after being active. I finally gave in and went to see my doc. We ruled out the gallbladder or my liver for the cause of pain so I guess it’s just a muscle.. Hopefully it will go away on it own or maybe it’s with me for the duration of this pregnancy. Either way it’s a big fat nuisance.

28 weeks marks the start of kick counts. I am supposed to set aside a couple hours a day to lay quietly and make sure I get 10 kicks out of baby in that hour, once in the morning and once at night. For the most part she is pretty active so I wont need to do this unless she is being sleepy.

Kaili likes to “see” the baby or talk to her at least once a day. She will scream, “hello baby”. Or when she elbows me in the belly, which is a daily occurrence, she will rub my belly and say ” sorry baby, i didn’t mean to hurt you.” She is going to be the best big sister.
photo 2 photo 1
Speaking of big sister, where can I get one of those cute shirts so she can sport it at the hospital? I guess Google can help me out.
There are some last minute home projects we would like to get done before baby A gets here. Shane has been a rockstar getting his to-do list checked off. Me, I am all about sitting in the sun thinking about how nice it would be for someone to come in and paint my living room for me…hint hint. I guess I should probably get on it huh?

Besides the first trimester, this pregnancy has been easy, too easy. I can see why women keep having babies, being pregnant isn’t that bad if things go well. I really hope I didn’t just jinx myself…pregnancy gods, be nice. However that doesn’t mean I am not done being pregnant because I am. Just because a pregnancy isn’t hard, doesn’t mean it’s fun. All those women who say they loooove being pregnant are crazy or delusional. I know it’s taboo to complain about pregnancy when we struggled to get pregnant. All those women who can’t get pregnant, how dare I! I guess I feel like I get a free pass to complain since all I went through to get here,I can say what I want. Nausea, heartburn, aches and pains, allergies, exhaustion, sleepless nights, a constantly full bladder, bed rest, restrictions = no fun. And feeling a tiny human move inside you is the strangest thing ever, an amazing thing but it’s still strange.

I am eager for my next Dr. appt so we can get the due date on the calendar. I am ready to start the countdown. It would be nice for things end on a high note.

Here is baby A at 27 weeks 6 days.

photo 1

 

The Party

~ Girlmom ~ 3 Comments

Kaili’s birthday party was a success. Thanks to family I have some pictures to share with you because I didn’t take more than one. Too much on this gals plate and by the time the party came, I was WIPED.

The party was loosely themed around Minnie Mouse so I made Minnie Mouse cupcakes that I saw on Pinterest. These are SO cute that they deserve a blog post all their own.

IMG_3605

I also made a Minnie head out of styrafoam balls, also something I saw on…you guessed it, Pinterest.

IMG_3752

We kept the food simple ordering pizza’s from Luigi pizzeria and a cake from the local store.

IMG_3726

I made a big batch of Sangria for all the lucky ones that can partake in adult beverages and that was about the extent of it. We enjoyed the company of our friends and family and Kaili seemed to enjoy every minute of the day being all about her.

DSC_2638

DSC_2646 DSC_2625 DSC_0060

DSC_2659DSC_0056

I can’t believe we will have 2 birthdays to celebrate next year.

A Week in Photos

~ Girlmom ~ 1 Comment

Between the gorgeous weather, Kaili’s birthday and Shane’s folks in town, we have been busy soaking it all up.

We went down to Seaport Village and I ate some of the best tacos at Puesto. Lobster, filet mignon and fish, I need these in and around my mouth right now.

IMG_3708Kaili getting friendly with a Pirate.

 

IMG_3713

Blue cheese and chocolate. Have you had that flavor combination before? I haven’t. Strangely it worked.

IMG_3711

Balloon surprise for the birthday girl.

IMG_3714

Minnie Mouse cupcakes for the big day.

IMG_3603

One of many.

IMG_3746

Getting some good use out of her new playhouse daddy built her.

Playhouse

Sunday brunch.

IMG_3745

Shellfish for days.

IMG_3750

 

IMG_3749 IMG_3747

27 Week Bumpdate

~ Girlmom ~ Leave a comment

I am counting 27 weeks as the beginning of my third trimester since I doubt my pregnancy will go past 39 weeks…so there!

I had my ultrasound to check on the previa and my stupid placenta hasn’t moved. So I carry on as is until my next Dr. appointment until I am told what happens next. Does this change the c-section date? Will I have another ultrasound? I guess we will find out in a couple weeks.

Baby A looks good. She is head down and weighing about 2 lbs. 2 0z.

photo 1 photo

Other than the allergies that are kicking my ass I am feeling pretty good. My back starts to hurt after being on my feet awhile  but gets better with rest.

Kaili had her first experience at Party City and I think she enjoyed herself.

photo 2

When I turned my back for even a second, she had tossed every item that she could reach into the cart. I might need to take up stripping to afford her shopping habits. Going to have to find a club where  all the clientele have c-section scar fetishes.

I dug up this old picture of me and thought a side by side comparison would be fun. Here is me and Kaili at 3 years old.

photo 3

 

 

 

DIY Insect Repellent Candles

~ Girlmom ~ 1 Comment

We spend a lot of time in the backyard during summer but the flies are out.of.control. Last year we bought some fly repellant candles from Home Depot. Instead of tossing them and getting new ones we decided to make our own.

Michaels crafts should have everything you need but the candle making items were scarce when I went. I ended up finding some oil at Sprouts and ordering wicks on Amazon, but it should be a one stop shop…should.

I used Citronella and Lavender oils because that is what Google told me flies hate the most.

I also forgo the wick holder and used my husbands hand but in all actuality the wicks stood up on their own, so it wasn’t a problem.

What you need

Wax bits- Soy, Beeswax or leftover candles

Wicks

Container for your candles

Essential oils

Wooden spoon

Glass bowl

Wax or Parchment paper

IMG_3580

 

Making these was a lot easier than I thought. All you need to do is…

Melt the wax in glass bowl over a double boiler.

While the wax is melting, put the wick in the container you are going to use.

When the wax is completely melted, remove from heat and stir in your essential oils. I used about 4 drops of each.

Pour wax into container being careful not to knock over the wick.

Continue until you have made all your candles.

Allow to cool until completely solid. Now you are ready to ward off those nasty bugs.

* I bought some lavender leaves to sprinkle on top as a decoration but they pooled together, not exactly what I was going for.

IMG_3588

 

 

 

Three

~ Girlmom ~ 4 Comments

Kaili woke up another year older. Three years old. In some ways it seems like time has passed at lightening speed but when I look at the picture below, well, it seems like three years ago.

IMG_0053

Kaili knows her birthDAY, if  you ask her when it is, she will say “April 29.” But she couldn’t understand why their wasn’t a party going on. I tried explaining it to her but it went way over her head and in the middle of my sentence she wanted to talk about something else. Typical girl.

She LOVES animals but most of all dogs. She talks about the next-door neighbors dogs as they are her own. When she sees letters in their names she will say R for Roxie, her own visualization. It doesn’t matter where you go, if there is a dog she wants to “meet’ it.

She LOVES cookies, chocolate and cake, who doesn’t? “Kaili, what do you want for breakfast?” “Cookies.” She is a good eater when she is really hungry so I find that starving her throughout the day makes her the best eater EVER at dinner. She will eat spicy food that some of her family members wouldn’t even touch and knows she needs to try everything at least once, that works about 95% of the time. It just so happens that she ends up liking it…95% of the time.

She is still a great sleeper but has an internal alarm clock than canNOT be reset. We are lucky to have her sleep to 6:30. It doesn’t matter what time she goes to bed. Actually she sleeps in a tad longer the earlier she goes down.

She might ask to see your nipple and I apologize for that…awkward. She doesn’t actually want to see your nipple, she is just performing a routine skin test and wants to check out your freckles and pimples. I don’t know why she can’t get that word out of her vocab, probably because it makes me laugh every time she says it.

She enjoys the beach but won’t go near the ocean…still. I try to get her to put her feet in each time we go but she clings to me as if I am dropping her off at a concentration camp. One day she will let go.

Kaili woke up to a present and then we hit the beach.

photo 1

photo 3

photo 1

 

After we were all tan and covered in sand we walked to Belmont Park for a ride on the Carousel and some ice cream.

photo 3 photo 5

 

She was wiped at the end of the day. I would say she had a pretty good birthday, even if it was with just mom.

Happy birthday my sweet girl, I love you to the moon and back!

IMG_3615

A Week in Photos

~ Girlmom ~ 1 Comment

Oh hey, so I passed my glucose test, not that I was worried. Okay maybe I was a tad worried but it’s just because this pregnancy has been going so smoothly that I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. Maybe enough shoes dropped last pregnancy and there aren’t any shoes left..?

I have been having fun making things for a birthday party that’s coming up.

IMG_3567

Shane has been busy installing solar tubes throughout our house, it’s awesome.

photo

IMG_3637

 

We spent Saturday down in Little Italy visiting my dad and his art at the ArtWalk.

IMG_3576

IMG_3575

Kaili hard at work on our dinner.

IMG_3590

IMG_3594

With summer comes the flies and they love to attack us when we are eating outside. DIY bug repellent candles. I will post more on these.

IMG_3580 IMG_3586The girl is all SoCal.

IMG_3631

 

A Week in Photos

~ Girlmom ~ 2 Comments

Easter has finally come and gone. It seems like it lasted an entire week this year, no wait, it did last an entire week.. Kaili had four Easter egg hunts and WAY too much candy.

Hunting goodies at the beach in La Jolla.

IMG_3365

 

It was so much fun she did it again with her class.

IMG_3393

Easter goodies from Grandma Sandy

IMG_3398

Taking a break from all the fun to have lunch at the airport.

IMG_3381

Dying Easter eggs.

IMG_3404

Easter Saturday in Coronado. Pancake breakfast, a meeting with the Easter bunny and another egg hunt.

photo IMG_3451 IMG_3471

Of course we can’t forget Easter Sunday. Checking out her loot from the bunny.

IMG_3503

One more egg hunt to finish up the holiday.

IMG_3506 IMG_3527

The rest of the day was spent in the hot sun.

IMG_3549

Hope you all had a great holiday.

Mango & Chili Glazed Shrimp

~ Girlmom ~ 5 Comments

Let me start by saying that this would have been better with big ass prawns, new culinary term. I didn’t have any big ass prawns so I used shrimp. Since I was putting myself through the trouble of skewering these shrimp I decided to toss all the marinade/glaze ingredients in the food processor. Choose your battles.

Making the marinade was as easy as pie. BUT don’t turn your back on it once it’s done because your 2 1/2 year old might pour it on the salad you just made, like mine did. I only freaked out for a minute, okay two.

I let the shrimp marinade for a few hours before skewering them, my least favorite thing to do. Once they have all been at your mercy you can throw them on the grill. The shrimp cooked in no time so I only glazed one side after I flipped them, before I knew it they were done.

This sauce would be good on anything really, I might try salmon next time.

IMG_3370

 

Ingredients

2 pounds large Prawn
1 large mango, peeled and chopped
3 tablespoons honey
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 sprigs mint
2 tablespoons chili paste
2 limes juiced
1 ime zest
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon coconut oil
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper, or to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Puree all above ingredients in food processor.

Pour all but 1/3 cup mango puree over shrimp in plastic bag. Let marinade in refrigerator 2-3 hours.

Pepare grill. Grill prawns 2-3 minutes per side until done, glazing each side with reserved marinade.

Brush with glaze one last time before serving. Serve hot.

The Magic Word

~ Girlmom ~ 2 Comments

Years ago, somebody told me “no one wants to hear about what happens in your dreams.” I have never forgotten that. I think I started keeping them to myself more often than not since that moment. But sometimes dreams are just too crazy not to share.  It’s good to know you’re not the only one with deranged thoughts.

I also remember being told that if you die in your dreams you die in real life. Then one night I saw myself perish in a plane crash and well, I am still here, so clearly I am God. Or Jesus, or Jesus’ sister. Wait did Jesus have a sister? I know he had brothers, I bet he did but the bible writers were all “nah, let’s keep it just the guys.” Typical.

The past few months I have had some gnarly dreams. Most of them revolve around something bad happening to Kaili, really bad, scary things. I will spare you the details because…well “no one wants to hear about what happens in your dreams.”  I assume it’s because my hormones are all cray, but they make me want to bind her with bubble wrap and keep her from growing up. Because there is NO way I am letting her  do anything alone and I am going to follow her around until she goes to college.

For now I will relish  in this video. My most favorite word ever.

The Magic Word video