Look What I Bought!

Since watching Julie & Julia three years ago, I have been pining for a Le Creuset. However, I could never bring myself to spend the big bucks on their price tags. Last fall, I decided just to do it, but I decided to shop around for the best deal. I also started thinking of all the things I could make in it....besides Boeuf Bourguignon. For the last few months, I've stalked the Williams-Sonoma outlet in San Marcos and more recently the Le Creuset outlet.

Williams-Sonoma never seemed to have the right size or color. I would have taken several colors, but not black or tan. I wanted one of the bright colors they were known for! Finally, this past Monday, the Le Creuset outlet had a 30% discount, which brought the price down to about half of retail. And I did, I bought my first Le Creuset!

Cobalt Blue

I think I could just leave it sit on the stove...it's so pretty!

The first dish

Slow cooked beef with veggies

I wanted to make something this week, but I was having a hard time deciding what? I ended up just winging it. I can honestly say this is the first time I just "made-up" a recipe and went with it. And I must say, I was pretty proud of the results...or maybe it was all the pot!

I also made a pie yesterday for Pi Day. I didn't realize it was Pi Day when I started, but after reading several updates on Facebook, I figured it out. So my pie was coconut cream...one of my favorites. I had never made it before because it always seemed so hard, but actually it was pretty easy. And quite tasty.

Baby G - Week 35

For a while, I thought the real thing might be happening this week. On Tuesday and Thursday evening, I had constant, strong (at least I think it was strong) pains in my abdomen. Of course, Jonathan was in Raleigh this week so that just added to the craziness. Tuesday, I spent several hours sitting, walking and taking a warm bath before the pain went away. Nothing else seemed unusual so I went on as usual, and Baby G was still as active as ever.

On Thursday, I had the same pain and my back hurt this time. Again, I spent several hours walking and laying before they went away. I had an appointment with the doctor on Friday so I wasn't too worried. I told the doctor about the two previous evenings. She measured the belly, and I'm still measuring ahead so she decided to check out my cervix. As it turns out, I'm 1 cm dilated and 30% effaced. Granted, I could be like this for another month, but the way I see it, only 3 more centimeters until I can have an epidural! And the doctor said it's not unusual to have early contractions at this point. She wants me to rest at much as possible this week...good thing I'm on Spring Break. We go back this Friday for a growth ultrasound to see if we can better determine when this little guy might be arriving. At this point, it seems like anytime between now and April 10.

Jonathan spent much of yesterday morning assembling baby items. I feel like Baby G is starting to take over the house, and he isn't even here yet! It's crazy how much stuff we have!

The teachers at my school hosted a shower this week as well. It was so sweet of them. And the icing on these cupcakes was amazing. I had two just because of the icing! All of the teachers decorated white onesies for Baby G to wear. The creativity and humor put into the designs was awesome. I can't wait to put these on Baby G...I will be laughing all day! I'll post a few pictures of my favorites later!

We had our last baby shower yesterday in Austin. Kristen and Elizabeth were so nice to throw us a couples shower. They are both extremely busy so I felt honored they took the time to host for us. We had the chance to see many of our friends who we don't get to see as often as we should, and I had the chance to spend some quality time with my best girlfriends. Guests were asked to bring their favorite children's book so Baby G is well on his way to having an outstanding collection of reading material. I only hope he loves to read as much as I do.

I didn't take many pictures because Drew and Emmanuel became the official photographers at the shower and agreed to take newborn pictures of Baby G. So I'll post some of the pictures when we get them. We played a few baby games, including tasting jarred baby food. The experience just affirmed my desire to make Baby G's food....it was awful. Just look at the jars below...#3 was chicken noodle soup and the one on the right was lasagna. Yuck!

Grapevine Shower Pictures

Here are a few pictures from the shower last weekend in Grapevine. Thanks Becky for being the photographer! I realized I make some weird faces. After looking back at these pictures, I wondered what I was thinking/doing in most of these.

Christie arranged beautiful flowers! So talented!

It was a western theme...super yummy!

Jonathan's grandmother Sue made a quilt for Baby G. It was one of my favorite gifts!

And then, this little guy came home. This is Hayden, Dana and Coby's little boy. He was checking everything out and was very interested in posing for a few pictures.

Baby G - Week 34

This week I discovered why so many women hate being pregnant. It's like everything hit at once...my feet and back started hurting, I can't get comfortable, heartburn, trouble breathing and I'm exhausted. So far I think I've had a pretty easy time, but I'm ready for Baby G to arrive! I'm still having a lot of trouble sleeping. This past Tuesday, I slept one hour...it was not pretty the next day. Luckily, the doctor said I could take Benadryl or Unisom (just not every night). So I have some ready for when it strikes again.

And yes, I've been counting the number of school days I have left...19! Luckily, I have most of my things together just in case Baby G comes early. I'm hoping to get the rest wrapped up this week and over Spring Break. This weekend, Jonathan and I went to Grapevine for a shower. Technically, I don't think I was supposed to travel quite that far, but I didn't mention it to my doctor. And we made it back without going into labor.

I had a great time at the shower and received some very special gifts for Baby G (I'll post pictures later). Our car was packed on the way back to Austin, and it led us to the conclusion we may need to get a bigger car sooner rather than later. And Jonathan has several new assembly projects in the coming days. It's official, Baby G has more clothes than I do...I think we're probably set for the first year.

Baby G is still most active in the evenings. And I'm pretty convinced he has his days and nights mixed up. The nights when I can't sleep he is moving almost the entire time! I'm still not a fan of most meats...I generally just prefer something else. I love spicy food and greasy burgers, but I'm also still getting my share of fruit.

Baby G - Week 33

Jonathan and I went to a CPR class this morning. We thought it was a good idea to know the basics just in case something happened once the baby arrived. Hopefully, we never have to use it, but I feel better knowing some of the basics.

So Baby G definitely has his days and nights mixed up. You may be wondering how I know this little fact? Well, Wednesday night was a rough night. I was lucky if I got two hours of sleep, and throughout the entire night Baby G was on the move. He's always been active in the evenings starting around 5ish. And usually when I lay down, around 9:30, I get several strong kicks. But this week, I learned he moves most of the night! I told Jonathan, I usually feel him periodically throughout the day, but Wednesday night I felt him way more than I feel him during the day. He wasn't the reason I couldn't sleep; I just couldn't get comfortable. I tried the bed, the couch, the guest bed, the recliner and finally back to our bed. Thursday afternoon, I came home and slept for two hours and had no trouble going to bed at 9:00 that evening.

I am pretty worn out in the afternoons when I get home from school. Within the past week or so, I've really started to notice that I'm short on breath even when I'm doing simple things like walking around the classroom. I guess everything is really starting to get squashed. I also feel like I live in the bathroom. During the night, I usually get up anywhere between 3-7 times. All I can hope is that this is preparing me for after Baby G is born.

We went to the doctor yesterday, and everything is moving along just fine. The heartbeat was 151, and so far I've only gained about 18 pounds...this after eating a giant, greasy burger and fries for lunch! I've been eating pretty much whatever I want...I certainly don't feel like I'm going without! Jonathan and I have had our share of Blue Bell and girl scout cookies :) I do eat quite a few fruits and vegetables each day...I pack several snacks for school each day. As for meat, beef is still my biggest turn off. I can handle ground beef, but things like steak and BBQ...yuck! The only other thing that is completely gross to me are bell peppers...weird, I know.