Thursday, March 29, 2012

Oh sweet grapefruit...

I am craving grapefruit right now even though I just had a small bowl full after dinner.

Between you and me - I could eat two of them nicely chilled with their glistening ruby sections neatly cut out and the juice filling a bowl.

And orange juice - I love drinking it although without a baby I never ever drank the stuff.

We went through about $10 worth of watermelon in two days. It broke my heart when it was gone.

Pregnancy cravings are so weird and random. Just look at these celebrity moms and their cravings.

Lately, I have been craving hard-boiled eggs with mustard, grapefruit, fruit and those fruit leather things. But, grapefruit is our new after-meal dessert.

Did you ever have any weird cravings that you just HAD to have?

Jennifer Garner craves cookies and cheese puffs. 
Pregnant Jennifer Garner

33 weeks pregnant

33 weeks! Can I get a whoop whoop. 

I can really feel his feet or hands now and he is moving like a little fish. 

Lady had to have her photo op with baby Ryder 

Four and a half months pregnant with my candy cane girls 

Last Jan! My sweet friend Molly and I were pregnant at the same time - she was nine months or so and I was like five and a half months pregnant.  We had a great time on our double date. 

Just stuck this one in because I love the looks on the girls' faces- they love their daddy. 

Eeeh. 33 Weeks + evening sickness = couch time. #keepingitreal.

Weight gain - around 22 (with evening sickness I am trying to eat my big meal at noon)

Baby purchases - Baby Burt's Bee Wash and Lotion that the girls use and I love to use.

Working out - swimming, running and walking and doing pushups against wall and pushups/pullups in pool with the starting platform. Nice because I am weightless, but still get some resistance.

This week baby Ryder is as big as a honeydew melon. No wonder those kicks are feeling stronger!


I'm not going to lie. I'm not super woman. 

I'm not even wonder woman. 

So being pregnant and almost being done - really nice. I keep asking Brandon, "was I this tired at night with the other girls?" to which he says, "Erin, you have two kids you are keeping up with all day." Ok. 

But for real. How does a woman with say 3,4,5 kids do it?  I think that by 36- 37 weeks you are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel so the tiredness is probably overridden with the excitement of baby. 

I am so lucky to have a really great husband who encourages me to rest when I need it even if I really detest chilling for most of the evening. Most mornings are really great. I have loads of energy - but by night I am d-o-n-e. 

Here's my thankful thursday list to keep it real. 

Crockpots - you are awesome.
Evening walks to decompress - you complete me. 
Warm bath to soak sore muscles - thank you Lord. 
Aveda Hand relief lotion - sweet nectar of the gods (which is also funny because it reminds me of college when Tommy and Nick would call the cafeteria dessert with whipped cream the same name). 
Swimming and being weightless -super sweet. 
Lunch or sweet times with friends - amazing. 
Still able to run and walk! 

Ok. 

And I have been meaning to write down some of my favorite pregnancy helpers. 

Witch hazel is so great for so many things. I use it if my skin seems dull or if I have bags to tighten up my skin. Also, you can use for pregnancy blemishes or to help with the dreaded "h" word. You can also use for stings, bruises and sunburns. I simply put on a cotton ball and apply to my skin.


AVEDA by Aveda Hand Relief--/4.2OZ
Aveda hand relief is a-mazing. Helps your hands feel smooth and look brighter. 
These Crafty Bags Can Be Used As Both Hot & Cold Packs
For some reason, the rice bag my friend Amy gave me works so much better than a heating pad. It's not so hot and helps the dull ache you might get from round ligament pain. I love mine. 
Vitafusion Prenatal, Gummy Vitamins, 90-Count
Vitafusion PreNatals are sugary and gummy and won't make you gag! I adore these. I would take them even if I didn't have to - they have folic acid, DHA and are really easy to chew.





Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. Lam 3:23 




Monday, March 26, 2012

A week of beauty!

Pear trees blooming

3 milers at Glacier Park at sunset - beautiful

Tons of birds and beautiful water 


Pool time in march - fun times and suntan

Surfer girls hopping on their kick boards  

Feeding fish at Antrim Park before our 32-week baby appointment 

New glasses + Ava = Ava wearing her sunglasses to bed 

Ava learned how to swing herself! She was pretty hot here - it was 80 at noon.

Sophia running away from a little boy on the playground who kept on wanting to play with her. She would give him her "Sophie scowl" and run to me every time he came by her. 

Summertime in spring

Our fun new swing set that I love because the girls have something to play on outside. And it will be great for the baby. This was on a 84 degree day in mid-march here in Ohio. 

The sun made little Sophie pretty tired. 


Sophia pushing her little baby "Fifi" on the swing

Fresh salsa - broil cherry tomoatoes, jalep, white onions, 2 cloves of garlic and add olive oil . Broil until tom. blister and then pulse in food processor until crushed. I always put in lime juice, kosher salt and strain out extra liquid. 

So fine with homemade tacos. Come to momma. 

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Happy Birthday Lukie!

My brother's bday is today and he is 30! So proud of him - he's a great dad and brother and loves taking care of his family. Happy Bday brother!


We celebrated his bday with loads of yummy food that Kelly made - she's a vegetarian - so I loved all of her yum salads that she made. Mom made ribs and I made Jeni's Strawberry Buttermilk ice cream. Yum. 

                                             This salad was so good!
                                            Ribs a plenty.
                                               Kale chips, artichoke dip and salad with strawberries
                                                        Sophia and Charlotte
                                                       Ethan, Sophia, Charlotte and Ava


Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Tom Cruise Run

Tom Cruise is always running in his movies. In fact he has run in almost 75 percent of his movies -- that's right -- running. And he always blows me away with how fast he is running. Maybe sub-6 miler?


I had to laugh when I was watching how Jennifer Lawrence, star of the Hunger Games perfected her run as Katniss because her arm swing reminded me of Cougar Town's rendition of Tom Cruise and his famous running scenes. Brandon and I loved the scene that showed them doing their Tom Cruise run.



Spring is here!

Columbus is hot!

The pear tree is blooming, our tulips are coming out and the hyacinths are almost ready to bloom. 







This week in Ohio is hot. Yesterday our house got up to 78 and today the temp is supposed to be 81! The girls keep asking me if they can go swimming. 

It's that blaring heat that smacks you in the face while you are sitting outside. Yesterday the girls and I took a short nature walk and then made some crafts with our finds. We were going to make shadow art (putting different nature items on construction paper to make sun shadows), but it was windy. So we taped our findings on the paper. It was super simple and fun and Ava loved taping down the grass on construction paper. Sophia did it for about three minutes and was finished.

Brandon and I have also have been doing lots of yard cleanup, including thatching our lawn (love how it looks/feel after it's done), weeding the flower beds and we need to cut down the grasses by our house. 

On Saturday I did a quick run with Jess and then we met Della at Northstar Cafe in Clintonville. It was a gorgeous morning and the sun was just so nice after rain the past couple of days. It was really nice to catch up with the girls. I ordered a shooting star juice, which made me want to buy a juicer for the first time ever. The juice was half carrot/orange juice with fresh ginger. It filled my serious oj cravings. 





Brandon went on a bike ride Saturday (first one of season!) and then I got to meet little Amelia, Ann and Tommy's little baby who was so precious! 

We had a great chill weekend on Sunday after a long week. 

Ava is on "spring break" this week and doesn't have school, which is nice because I don't have to be rushing out of the door two days this morning. Whohoo! 

We are getting ready for Baby Ryder and I made a huge checklist last Friday to organize our projects and to-do items. We are now registered for the hospital, have most of his clothes in their drawers (huge project), and are working on organizing the girls' rooms next, including putting another closet rod in Ava's closet to have room for Soph's clothes. Any advice on making a room work for two girls is appreciated! 

This Thursday is our 32 week appointment. After this appt, I will have them every two weeks. 

Am I in denial? Is this kid coming out in as close as 5 weeks (37 weeks)? Gulp. That is just crazy since sometimes I forget that I am pregnant. 

On Saturday/Sunday I could tell baby was growing since I had that tight sensation on the top of my stomach. It feels like stretching and I used lots of lotion to make the skin softer. Also, my fatigue is back a little, but for the most part I am doing great. I am still exercising and trying to eat somewhat healthy. Brandon loved feeling Ryder kick very hard on Friday night. He was kicking so hard I jumped. Sometimes I can feel an elbow or his bottom. Love that little guy. 

This week I have a great recipe to share - cauliflower gratin - in honor of Brandon's love affair of cauliflower. It's pretty much the same recipe as zucchini/potato grain, but it uses thinly sliced cauliflower with panko bread crumbs. Mmm. 

Friday, March 16, 2012

Two favorite Web sites right now

Daily Mile 

During the middle of last December and the beginning of 2012, I started really getting serious about logging my miles after a really bad case of plantar fasciitis. I wanted to make sure I stayed up to date on my shoes and I thought it would be pretty cool to see how my workouts were going and how many miles per month I run. So I logged on to Daily Mile and set up an account. I wasn't sure if I would use it that much since I am really bad about logging my miles.


Do I like keeping track of numbers? Heck no. I really dislike graphing, tables or anything that involves math. However, Daily Mile is more like the Facebook of workouts. You can invite friends, see how other peoples' workouts are going and check the leader board to see if your on top (never happens to me :) ).

Sample leader board
I may be a late adopter, but I'm hooked. This coming from a girl who is married to an actuary who loves to come home, sync his RunKeeper and check his stats...stat.


Now, I have him beat on number keeping. Weirder things have happened.




Baby List
My other favorite find is Baby List. I have a couple of family members that asked for some kind of list of needs for baby Ryder. Since he's our third and because we were insanely blessed with Ava and Sophia, I felt almost remorseful even doing this list. But it was fun to gather items in one place as a sort of checklist. 


Baby list is an online registry that was created so that moms/dads can add items from ANY web page or store, including Etsy. I love Etsy because they have items that boutiques have but way less money. Paying $45 for a hat? No, thank you. 


This hat is on registry and is on sale! 


Here's an example of a Baby List - list


Any favorite Web pages you love? 

SALE - Bear Beanie Photo Prop Custom Pick Your Size Crochet Baby Hat Toque Gift or Photo Prop Boy Girl
zoom



Thursday, March 15, 2012

Surprise!

Do you ever have pity parties? Like full-fledged "whoa is me" what is this world coming to parties? Yep. That has been me several times during this pregnancy.

Chalk it up to the crazy things that my body has been going through, lack of sleep or possibly the now present morning sickness/evening sickness that I had during the first trimester that has "returned."

My personal theory is that every new thing that comes my way is pretty much brand new. I have never experienced it before and I have zero coping mechanisms for it.

Penicillion allergy and hives? PUPPS? Crazy body things before baby? Morning sickness again in the third trimester that strikes around 5 pm (like crazy no garlic, no crazy meat, even outside air stinks)? Are you kidding me? I mean, give me a list and tell me at 31 weeks my evening sickness will return -- I would be mentally there.

Show up one random day and "surprise me" and it's just a mental exercise to keep up with the things pregnancy does to your body.

I'm sure moms know what I am talking about - sick kids throw a wrench in your days plans, car accident that comes out of nowhere, unexpected bills that take out your monthly budget, etc.

It's really about expecting the unexpected. And knowing that we just cannot plan our tomorrows.

It's about 9 more weeks until Baby Ryder comes and I am intent on enjoying the next couple of months with him. Love the verse below that promises that God goes before us and is always with us.

Week 31
Cravings: ice cream, steak, mashed potatoes, watermelon, fruit leathers, fruit, pistachios
Weight gained: about 20 lbs depends on day
Exercise: Running, swimming and walking
Ryder: nursery is painted and ready for orange accents! Washing tons of clothes and girls are in same bedroom and sharing a full size bed. They love snuggling together.
I can feel little Ryder's bottom against my right side sometimes and his feet kicking on my left side.

The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Deut. 31:8

Sunny days

I made this for dinner one night and it was amazing! Crispy prosciutto is bacon's first cousin. 

Ava working on her tracing. The girl has some made artistic skill and is getting really interested in art and design. 

Sophia cutting out rectangles. 

Playday at Recreation Unlimited with Sophia during Ava's preschool. 


This playground set was 'reduced' from 26,000 to 17,000. Kind've would rather have a car. 



We had a fun time at the park with friends eating pizza and salad. 

Sarah and baby Norah, kissable cheekies. 

barefoot kind of day with Nadia 

I was running and laughed at I saw my reflection. That baby bump is out there. 

beautiful night for a run 

Sophia has started doing this and it makes me laugh every time. Ava and her were watching there babies outside. 

babysitters watching their little stuffed animals on the driveway

Ava with her little walking puppy she got for Christmas 
Do you want to try an awesome Spring recipe? The top picture I loosely used Martha Stewart's recipe and tweaked it by crisping the prosciutto in the oven at 350, bake. I crumbled it on top and it was amazing! And pretty cheap since I only got about 5 slices of porscuttio at Whole Foods for $3.50. I used De Cecco pasta, heavy whipping cream, frozen peas and parmigiano reggiano.

We had a great and busy time this week soaking up the sun outside by visiting a park, going to the zoo with Momma Kuhns and Kelly and Ethan and Charlotte and I got a run in. The girls have really enjoyed playing outside on their new swing set someone gave us. We just had to buy the swings and some bolts. Very nice!

Life is pretty busy right now getting ready for Ryder and fitting in family time and work out time. I got up at 5:30 am on Monday (wince) for my third swim lesson. It was a ton of fun learning how to swim and kick properly with my fav. -- flippers. Those flippers make you swim so fast you have to put the brakes on. The DST def. made the 5:30 am slot a little more tiring and I was dragging until I warmed up. But, I really enjoy swim lessons and learning something new.

Today I swam about 1,100 yards and worked on kicking drills. The last sets felt really good and it helped stretch out my legs after walking all day yesterday. I also ran Wed. night 3 miles and felt pretty good. The weather being 70-plus had me pretty tired toward the end. I loved seeing the belly profile in the above pic - I didn't think you could tell so much.

Have you ever seen this tech loop clip from Portlandia? It's hilarious and made me laugh because I always jump when I hear any iPhone beep.

Internet tech loop -
so funny and yet so true.