First Ultrasound...OH WOW

So my big news got bigger last week...along with my waistline! Plus hubby got to stay until this Friday, so we've been able to celebrate the news with a short family trip out of town to visit the zoo.  Here's a glimpse of what is to come...

Crossing the Sea

Hubby has been offered a wonderful opportunity, and I am so excited for him--while a bit nervous for me and little guy.  His company asked him if he would like to interview for a temporary position overseas in China for 4-6 weeks.  After some discussion, we decided that he should apply for the position, and that Z and I would stay behind.  The thought of trying to travel on a plane with a wound-up 21 month old was enough to make me shudder, but two other things also stood out as reasons against--first, not knowing the language to try to explain that I can't have gluten and what foods might contain it (or reading something to check ingredients).  Second, my pregnancy.  When he applied, we were still waiting to see if I was pregnant or not, but on the chance that I was (and I was pretty sure of it then), my reasoning stood.  I'm terrified at the thought of being away from my doctor, not having one over there that I trust, and morning sickness in an unfamiliar place...just not happening.  So we discussed and he applied, and sure enough, they accepted him--only a few days after we found out we were expecting. :)

Since his acceptance, it seems like many things are caught up in a whirlwind.  Now he had to rush to get his passport expidited, and also go to the Chinese consulate for a work visa.  Why?  From the time that they said yes, he had about a week to prepare for this trip (he leaves this Friday in the afternoon, and will be returning December 15).  I had no idea how complicated things are!  He has had to travel to Houston twice already, and will be going again on Thursday.  The first time was to get his passport (he had to prove he needed it quickly to not have to wait 90 days), the second time to apply for his visa (we went with him that time--spent the night so he could get to the consulate as early as possible), and returns Thursday to pick up his visa.  Friday afternoon he is heading out...and between now and then, there is packing, getting organized, a trip to the regular doctor for any prescriptions...and he will be missing the first ultrasound Thursday morning while picking up his visa.  :(  I'm sad about that since the OB scheduled it before he left so he would get to hear the heartbeat, but the stars are just not lining up for that to happen.  At least he will get to see the ultrasound pictures before he leaves!

I'm really not too worried about myself with D leaving for a month.  However, Z is used to having both me and his dad around pretty much 24/7, seeing as D works from home 95% of the time.  The first time D went to Houston, Z yelled up the stairs almost all day trying to get his dad to "come down."  We have set up Skype accounts for both of us, D put on international calling, and we are going to set up a schedule so Z can talk to him in the evenings.  Hopefully this will make things a little easier. :)

All in all, I am excited for hubby's great opportunity, and I know everything will trun out great!  It'll be tough, but I am fortunate to have a lot of family close by (my parents and in-laws are in a three mile radius from my house!).  And when he gets home, he starts his holiday vacation--so we will make up for lost time!  :)

Egg-citing News From the Coop!

Back at the end of April, I decided that I wanted chicks for my Mother's Day present--a step towards making my own food (or growing it, or caring for it, etc).  Since they were only "day old chicks" I knew that I was going to have a decent waiting period before I would be getting any of my own eggs.  According to all the books, forums, boards, Facebook pages, and talking to others, I found out that the average wait was about 5 months before the hens would be old enough to lay.  I've been egg-stra patient, counting down the days to when the girls would be ready.  Time passed, and when they were supposed to start laying eggs came and went.  I was beginning to worry that they would never start, that maybe I had done something wrong or fed the wrong food...surely it was my fault that nature wasn't taking it's proper course. 

Yesterday I was chatting with my dad over text about my hubby getting sent to China next week (more on that later), when he mentioned the hens and asked if they were laying yet.  I told him no, they hadn't started, and I was getting a little frustrated with it all.  But on a whim I went out to the coop and decided to check the nesting boxes.  Lo and behold....

And about an hour later, I got one more, too!!  Five awesome eggs, I was so egg-cited!!  Not all of my girls are old enough, only four of the eight.  So soon there will be more, but for now, I am happy!!

Now I need to start searching my favorite website, Pinterest, for some egg-cellent recipes!  :)  Feel free to share your favorites!

New Beginnings

(I wrote this in the wee hours of November 2, 2012....but had to wait a little bit to post it...)

It's a new day...well, it's 1am, so technically it's a new day.  And I can't sleep.  Two reasons, both equally weighing on me.

The first reason is of all the things that going gluten free did not get rid of, it was my RLS--restless leg syndrome.  This began fairly early pregnancy with Z back in 2010, and has never gone away.  It is very annoying.  Normally I would take my RLS meds and be done with it, chalking it up to forgetting to take it.  But I can't do that.  Why?  For reason number two why I am awake.

Reason number two that I am unable to sleep is that I am excited...SO VERY excited!!  Yesterday (the 1st) was my mom's 60th birthday.  Since we had already had the party, there was no celebration for her, but unintentionally there ended up being a quiet celebration.  It was supposed to be a secret, but when there is big news to be shared and celebrated, it is SO HARD to keep it in.  Especially between mothers and daughters.  And I want to yell it from the rooftops, and dance with joy!! 

Why??  Because.....

 

Coming soon....Summer 2013!!  :-D

Mud Factor 2012

A few months ago, Groupon offered a great deal of a bit over half off to participate in a 5K mud obstacle race called "Mud Factor."  It looked AWESOME, and like it would be tons of fun, so I convinced not only my hubby to sign up, but my dad signed up with us, too.  :)  I was so excited!

A lot happens in a few months time, however.  Unfortunately for this race, my cancer surgery disqualified me from participating this year.  Dad and hubby were not too excited about it starting a week before, as a cold front was going to push through our area the day before and drop the temps from the 80s down to the 50s.  Not a fun thing when it is cold and you have to slog through mud.  We all decided that we were still going to go, and Dad and hubby were going to brave the elements.  Then fate butted in again and hubby had to stay home to take care of our little boy, who unfortunately is in the throes of a nasty stomach bug (that, of course, began at 1:15am).  It was down to me and my dad, and he was having second thoughts. 

We arrived just as the temperature reached a brisk 50 degrees--Dad refused to race if it was below that (and I don't blame him--the wind was frigid!!).  We paid for our parking--something that I think was unnecessary--and then made the LONG hike to the check-in tent.  Despite me not racing, I still had to sign my waiver to get my bandana and t-shirt (but I did manage to get hubby's shirt without the waiver).  Then came a long wait.  So we milled about, and Dad decided he wanted to run in the heat before the one we registered for.  Unfortunately, that was brought to a halt when we figured out that each heat had a designated color on the bib.  Ours was pink, meaning the 11am heat.  Still, a great color--especially for this month!!  :)

As soon as they were letting people in for the 11am heat, Dad ran to the front.  He looked so excited--it was hard not to be excited with him!

Dad and I before the race

Dad waving before they began

Contdown complete, off they go!

I love my dad--he can be goofy!!  Coming around the first corner!

End of the race--going down the slide!

It was a long slide...

Soaking wet out of the pond, Dad still smiling!

Yay!!  He did it!!  25 minutes, 30 seconds!

 

 

It turned out to be a lot of fun--for both of us--despite the chilly air.  I hope that I can run in the next one!!  I don't want to miss out!! 

 

Congrats, Dad!!  You are amazing!!

Better Than....Bread!!

It's not often that you run into a gluten free bread that TASTES like bread, not like crumbled mess of rice or flour of choice.  It's not an easy process to mimic the elasticity of gluten in a "normal" loaf of bread made with the "traditional" wheat.  It is something that I didn't realize that I would miss when I had to go gluten free; I assumed that there were products out there that would suit my needs and help me life the life I was used to living.  It never occurred to me just HOW different my food was going to be.

I managed to create my own loaf in my breadmaker at home, but it's not perfect.  Close, and it's less expensive that those in the stores...but still not quite perfect.  Then, back in early September, we attended the Gluten Free Allergen Free Expo in Dallas, TX.  I still smile thinking about that time spent in that huge ballroom, wandering booth to booth with no worries that I was going to get sick from eating something that was offered to me.  One booth in particular has stuck in my memory, as I was given a sample of the MOST AMAZING bread I have eaten.  Even hubby said that the bread was wonderful, and he's not GF. 

The booth was for a small company called Local Oven.  What is more astounding than the absolutely heavenly flavor of their breads is that they have so many different varieties of bread products--such as baguettes, dinner rolls, hot dog buns, hamburger buns, biscotti, pita pockets and bread brumbs.  Plus they are hinting at a new tortilla that they are going to be introducing that is pliable and can hold up to a wrap!! What I was so excited to see this morning was the "leak" on their Facebook page that they will be entering the grocery scene soon in the freezer section! :-) I can't wait to see what they will be putting in the stores...yum!

So if you are missing bread, I do suggest that you give them a try.  I'm not promoting them because I am paid or asked to...I am doing it because I truly believe in their product and I want everyone to try them!!  You won't regret it--and you will be supporting a small busines, too!!  Sign up for their newsletter, "like" them on Facebook, and enjoy an absolutely heavenly taste of bread.  :)

Happy eating!

Wordless Wednesday

The time has come...and I can't wait for it to be over with. 

60th Birthday Party for Two

For the past month and a half, I have been working on putting together a birthday party for my parents--both of them are having their 60th birthday this year, within two weeks of each other!  Dad turned 60 on the 14th, and my mom will on November 1, so I decided to throw this party inbetween them.  I was limited on the choice of the date, however, as hubby, Dad, and I have a mud run on the 28th (which I can't run in anymore since it is still in my six week recovery time...boo).

It started with sending out about 70 invitations to friends and family.  I was thinking about creating the invitation, but it got to be a big complication.  Instead I created the response card, prestamped them all and addressed them back to me so all they would have to do is fill it out and pop it back into the mailbox.  I think it turned out cute, and I had a few funny ones come back. :)

 

 

Next week, these and the photos that we took will be put into an album that I am going to make for them.

 

Since I ended up having surgery in the middle of the planning, I enlisted the help of my mom (plus, I knew that she would want to see what was going on!).  She wanted to make favors of chocolate lollipops, whereas I wanted to have little favors of paper plantable seeds to hand out.  So we did both--I made the favors of seeds, she made the lollipops.  They both turned out cute!!

 

 

 

I also wanted to do something special for taking pictures of the guests.  After seeing some cute ideas on Pinterest, I recruited my dad and hubby to build me a super big picture frame with stand out of the scrap wood and old parts of the fence we had by the shed.  I was THRILLED with how it turned out! Then I bought some garland with fall leaves (the theme), detached the leaves from the garlands, and glued the leaves to the wooden frame.  It was so big we couldn't put it together until we got it to the party, and even then we had to use a trailer to get it there! :)

 

 

And finally, after much planning and organizing, the day arrived.  Right on time, too--I was getting tired from losing sleep over all the things I needed to get done!! I even did most of the food for the 50 people we were expecting, not because I am totally nuts, but because I didn't trust catering to not cross-contaminate the food with gluten (and I really didn't want to spend the party time sick after all of this!).  I did have the cake made by someone else, but I made my own GF cupcakes.  There was brisket, green beans, Tahiti salad, pinto beans, pickles and onions, and loaves of bread (kept away from the other food).  All super yummy!!

 

The cake table

The cake! (inspired by Cake Wrecks)

Gluten free cupcakes--yum!

The dinner buffet being set up

The favors table

The table where guests were to sign a photo mat for my parents, and place birthday cards

The photo mat guestbook and basket for cards

The assembled frame where guests had their pictures taken

One of the tables

Another table setting

 

 

The party went wonderfully.  :)  Everyone had a great time, got to mingle and catch up, and my parents were very happy.  Every last bit of effort and planning was totally worth it--I would do it all over again!! 

 

 

 

Happy birthday to the most amazing parents!!  I love you!!!









Testing a Pin--Green Onions

It's no secret to those around me that I have a bit of an addiction to that heaven-sent website, Pinterest.  I'm trying to get my mom interested, as there are a lot of things that I know would inspire her do or make things that she would find.  I'm jjust going to have to make time to teach her the joys of Pinterest! :)

Before my in-laws moved here at the end of last month, I wanted to learn some Korean recipes (my mother-in-law is Korean) to show that not only I can cook (and do it well!!), but also that the traditional recipes can be made gluten free and taste just as wonderful as it's gluten-laden counterparts.

One of the recipes I wanted to tackle was the green onion pancakes...it looked good, easy to make, and I knew that they would love it.  However, in the whirlwind that accompanies the purchase of a home, paperwork, me suddenly going in for surgery and a toddler--well, things fall to the wayside.  The pancakes were forgotten, and more "normal" meals were made since they were easy to do on the cuff.

After they went home to pack, I was going through my fridge for ingredients to make dinner when I ran across the poor, withered green onions I had bought to make those pancakes.  I almost threw them out.  But then I remembered a pin that I had seen earlier about green onions--and how to make them a perpetual crop just by putting the white ends (the green chopped off) in some water.  Wow!  Maybe I had been the only person who never knew this, but I quickly chopped off the withered greens and plunked those little bulbs in a glass of water on my window sill.  A few days later...

 And now a week later....

 

Ready for harvesting!! 

 

 

And according to the comments and other posters, this can be done over and over again!  Now to attempt the pancakes...and will update if the recipe works out!

From Colorado to Texas, With Love

Last December, we moved for the last time (I really hope).  This house is what I consider to be my "forever home"--the last house I will live in.  I love it, and despite the few cosmetic changes that I am planning on making over the course of the next few years, the house is perfect for me and my family.  We have already started making the changes...the kitchen was the first place that we started.  The tile on most of the counters have been replaced, along with sink and faucet.  It was supposed to just be the grout, but it kinda blew up after a bit of work started.  :) 

Before (trying to clean the grout)

The destruction of the old

New tile!!

Backsplash and tile around range (which needs to be replaced--next on list)

New sink and faucet! :)

 

 

Ok, but this isn't what my post is about.  Although it does make me happy.  :)  But my point is, I don't plan on moving any time soon, and hopefully never.  My parents are a short three miles up the road--almost literally up the street.  Hubby's parents have lived in Colorado the past 30 years, and even tho D has been here since the late 90s, they had only seriously tried to move down here once.  Now, munchkin and I have entered the picture, and they have a more compelling reason to be close to family--and extended family on my side (aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc all are also close by in either the next city or up to three hours away).  So a few weeks ago they made the trek down here to do some house hunting.  It took only three hours to decide on a house and put in an offer.  Two weeks later--last Saturday to be exact--they officially moved a mere 1.3 miles from us, in our neighborhood!  Munchkin is thrilled to have his other grandparents so close, as he has gained two more happy playmates.  They, too, see their new home as their "forever home" since family is where home really is.

 



Their new home!

 

They are slowly getting settled in, and I know that is a process that takes awhile.  Despite being here for almost a year now, I am still trying to find things in boxes we have in the attic!  Looks like when the weather cools some more, I will be climbing back up there and doing some organizing.  :)  Lucky for my in-laws that the weather here has been quite mild and not the dreadful heat from last summer--makes the chore of moving just a tad more tolerable!  Plus there is the bonus of having all the family in a three mile radius, something that is invaluable!

 

Fall has Arrived!

This summer was surprisingly mild, with only a handful of days over 100 degrees and several major rainstorms to keep the drought that we had last year at bay.  And with the beginning of fall comes one of my favorite things...pumpkins.  :)

There happens to be a pumpkin patch that they set up at a church here in town at the beginning of October.  Yesterday it opened, and with it a wonderful photographic opportunity for munchkin!  This year I am so excited that he is going to be able to enjoy it more than he did last year (he was busy learning to walk last year at this time--both a happy and sad time for me!!).  He already picked out a costume (well, pointed and kept saying "rooster" as we walked by the costumes in the store), and tho we won't be going trick-or-treating, he'll get to dress up and be his silly self.  :)  Needless to say, I can't wait to see him!!

After finding out that the pumpkin patch was set up and open, I decided to take Z out there after his nap while everyone was at work or school.  Clothes that I was sure were too big for him suddenly fit, and I found a pair of overalls that I have adored since he was tiny that was perfect for the pictures I wanted to take.  All dressed and ready to go, I packed up little man and off we went to the land o' pumpkins!

As my little guy has gotten older, he has realized what a camera is.  He also knows that I want him to look at it...and has lately decided to look every where EXCEPT the camera!  So I spend a lot of time snapping pictures of him looking off to the left or right, up or down, and sometimes I will be lucky to catch a smile at me. :)  I am hoping that he outgrows this unfortunate habit, but--in my opinion--he's adorable no matter what angle I get of his super cute face!

We had a lot of cars driving by, and so he felt compelled to wave at a lot of them.  :)  My super friendly baby!

Now...I can't wait for him and his Halloween costume!