Maddie,
You're really starting to irritated your soon to be mama. Will you please make your grand entrance into this world and make me, your daddy and the rest of your amazingly weird family happy, especially your mommy. I'm tired from lack of consistent sleep! I'm sore from all the pressure you are putting on my hips and cellulite ridden legs! I'm hungry 100% of the time, for things I wouldn't eat normally and getting fatter by the minute! I'm practically immobile at the moment - having to literally roll off the edge of the bed to get up! Please please please dear girl, just get here already.
Signed with much love and adoration,
Your soon to be mommy,
Kirsten
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Monday, March 14, 2011
Recycling
I can be honest, I'm a little OCD when it comes to recycling. I'm sure a lot of people can relate. I hate throwing anything that could potentially be recycled in the garbage. But for my personal life the city of Scottsdale makes recycling annoying and difficult and I honestly loath the gentlemen who picks up our recycled products everyday Tuesday (anytime between 5am and 5pm).
So first to vent a little bit before I continue with the real reason I am writing this entry. I tend to always have a full recycling container on Tuesdays, period. I put everything I can possibly put in that container in there. Paper bags, junk mail, magazines, empty bottles, cans, glass - you name it, it most likely will go in my recycling bin. Recently, however, I have had a monstrous amount of cardboard boxes in my house (due to the upcoming arrival a certain someone that I've been talking a lot about on here) and to be quite honest its not the easiest task breaking down huge boxes and putting them into the recycling bin - but, as I found out a couple of weeks ago, the "recycling man" will not take anything that is not in the bin, mainly because he is a lazy SOB! He drives through out cul-de-sac at like a million miles an hour, using his automatic clamp to pick up the bins and dump the recycling into the back of his truck, while doing so continuing to reverse and drive reverse and drive, which in turn leaves my recycling bin and my neighbor's in the center of the cul-de-sac. Every time he drives through I stand in my drive way giving him horribly glaring dirty looks as he maneuvers through as if trying to do it quicker than last week, timing himself. So, with that being said its pretty obvious he would never ever dream of getting out of that big yellow truck and taking a large cardboard box to placing it in the back, because honestly that would just be too much God damned work, wouldn't it, Mr. Recylcing Man!?!? And now that my blood pressure has risen to a point of 100C (boiling point), I will continue on with my purpose for this blog.
I believe it to be a travesty among travesties that there are not more "recycling facilities" in the city of Phoenix as well as Scottsdale. For people such as myself who not only have OCD when it comes to recycling, but also have a ton of paper at work to get rid of, I need recylcing locations to be accessible. Everyone is screaming "Go Green", "Save the Planet", "Clean Air for the Future" type stuff and I 100% agree, but where is the action people??? So we're driving Hybrid cars and walk instead of drive to places near by. That's a good start, but do people honestly think of garbage dumps?? How long it takes for certain items to decompose? I mean I know its depressing thinking about those kinds of things and honestly when I place those useless articles in the garbage can in our kitchen I try to not think about where its going to end up to avoid any guilt - but recycling is the smallest of things we can do on a daily basis. The city should at least provide information for facilities. I spent 30 minutes on http://www.phoenix.gov/ today trying to figure out where our local recycling center was and all I found was a little blurb about how I can make art out of my recyclables? (won't that just end up in the garbage?!?! - idiots I swear!)
So now I'm sitting in my office - really needing to get rid of mounds of paper that I don't need to hoard anymore, knowing that the cleaning ladies will just toss is in the trash and feeling utterly useless. I can't bring it home to recycle that would takes weeks! I need to drop this stuff off at a recycling center, period. Help help help City of Phoenix, where the hell is the closest recycling center??
So first to vent a little bit before I continue with the real reason I am writing this entry. I tend to always have a full recycling container on Tuesdays, period. I put everything I can possibly put in that container in there. Paper bags, junk mail, magazines, empty bottles, cans, glass - you name it, it most likely will go in my recycling bin. Recently, however, I have had a monstrous amount of cardboard boxes in my house (due to the upcoming arrival a certain someone that I've been talking a lot about on here) and to be quite honest its not the easiest task breaking down huge boxes and putting them into the recycling bin - but, as I found out a couple of weeks ago, the "recycling man" will not take anything that is not in the bin, mainly because he is a lazy SOB! He drives through out cul-de-sac at like a million miles an hour, using his automatic clamp to pick up the bins and dump the recycling into the back of his truck, while doing so continuing to reverse and drive reverse and drive, which in turn leaves my recycling bin and my neighbor's in the center of the cul-de-sac. Every time he drives through I stand in my drive way giving him horribly glaring dirty looks as he maneuvers through as if trying to do it quicker than last week, timing himself. So, with that being said its pretty obvious he would never ever dream of getting out of that big yellow truck and taking a large cardboard box to placing it in the back, because honestly that would just be too much God damned work, wouldn't it, Mr. Recylcing Man!?!? And now that my blood pressure has risen to a point of 100C (boiling point), I will continue on with my purpose for this blog.
I believe it to be a travesty among travesties that there are not more "recycling facilities" in the city of Phoenix as well as Scottsdale. For people such as myself who not only have OCD when it comes to recycling, but also have a ton of paper at work to get rid of, I need recylcing locations to be accessible. Everyone is screaming "Go Green", "Save the Planet", "Clean Air for the Future" type stuff and I 100% agree, but where is the action people??? So we're driving Hybrid cars and walk instead of drive to places near by. That's a good start, but do people honestly think of garbage dumps?? How long it takes for certain items to decompose? I mean I know its depressing thinking about those kinds of things and honestly when I place those useless articles in the garbage can in our kitchen I try to not think about where its going to end up to avoid any guilt - but recycling is the smallest of things we can do on a daily basis. The city should at least provide information for facilities. I spent 30 minutes on http://www.phoenix.gov/ today trying to figure out where our local recycling center was and all I found was a little blurb about how I can make art out of my recyclables? (won't that just end up in the garbage?!?! - idiots I swear!)
So now I'm sitting in my office - really needing to get rid of mounds of paper that I don't need to hoard anymore, knowing that the cleaning ladies will just toss is in the trash and feeling utterly useless. I can't bring it home to recycle that would takes weeks! I need to drop this stuff off at a recycling center, period. Help help help City of Phoenix, where the hell is the closest recycling center??
Friday, March 11, 2011
BJs Fave Dinner!
So yesterday morning my husband came home from work (yes he works 3rd shift, so he arrives home from work in the early AM) and he said right away, can we have that Italian chicken for dinner. And being the amazing housewife/working mama that I am I said "of course". So immediately I took the chicken out of the freezer in preparation!
If you're significant other is anything like mine, he/she doesn't eat a whole lot of anything so repetition is the key in terms of meals. I kind of have this cycle with him, so he doesn't get bored of the same foods that we eat over and over and over again! He loves chicken, but only chicken breast. He loves potatoes, any which way you can slice it, dice it, mash it, i think you get my point. One of the only vegetables he will ever eat is broccoli - and the fact that he prefers is raw, is difficult in terms of meal planning. He will however eat a salad loaded with some of his fave raw veg, as long as there is a generous serving of fat free ranch on the side! He loves pizza and pasta, c'mon who doesn't?! Oh, and Tacos. But not tacos in the way that you are thinking of tacos, oh no. His version of the taco is cooked ground turkey meat with taco seasoning atop a bed of crunched tortilla chips and lettuce smothered (and I mean smothered) in ketchup! Honestly, don't knock it til you try it, this kid has a good sense of what tastes good haha cause ketchup on this taco salad concoction, is yummy!! My preference is actually Catalina/French dressing (cause of the base is ketchup just a little less dense) but its all the same. Okay so now that I have reviewed the few things my husband will eat, onto one of the more "advanced" meals...
Italian Chicken (i wish i had taken some pictures)
Basically I take the thawed frozen chicken breasts and slice them vertically so that they are thinner and take less time to cook. I coat the bottom of my non-stick frying pan with olive oil and place all the chicken into the pan so that there isn't even a centimeter of space between the sliced breasts (this is essential to the preparation of this meal). Once the chicken is in the pan I sprinkle some salt, pepper and Italian seasoning over the top and let cook for meh, 10 minutes or so on high heat. What will happen is all the moisture from the chicken will seep out into the pan creating a kind of "broth". The broth that its soaking/cooking in will more or less steam the chicken to a succulent tenderness. Once the chicken starts to look cooked on the edges you flip them over sprinkle more seasonings on the back and wait until all the liquid as evaporated. This is where the oil comes in handy. Oil won't cook away like the liquid will so for the last few minutes the moist chicken will cook in the oil creating a little bit of a pan seared texture on the outside, which I really enjoy! So immediately after the chicken is cooked to my liking I remove it from the pan and add 1/2 a bag of frozen broccoli, easy peasy lemon squeezy! Add about 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of water to kind of steam the broccoli and then again the oil will start to pan sear the broccoli once the water has evaporated. Not yesterday I did something a little different than usual. Once the water had dissipated I added about 2 tbsp of butter. Because I didn't clean the pan between the chicken and the broccoli there was still a lot of seasoning left in the pan with oil. this created kind of a little butter/seasoning coating for the broccoli. I then added cooked angel hair spaghetti (I prefer to use Barilla Omega-3 pasta). To that I added an additional 2 tbsp butter and tossed to make a sort of pasta primavera! Served the chicken with the pasta on the side and BJ looooved it! I had some myself and it was pretty tasty. I added Parmesan cheese to the pasta and it was scrumptious! :)
I'm not the best at writing out recipes for exact measurements and that sort of thing, I tend to just throw things together, but I think they end up being pretty delicious! And minus the butter, the meal was generally healthy :) Next time (which will be soon) I will take some pictures and post, cause it was a pretty meal at that!
If you're significant other is anything like mine, he/she doesn't eat a whole lot of anything so repetition is the key in terms of meals. I kind of have this cycle with him, so he doesn't get bored of the same foods that we eat over and over and over again! He loves chicken, but only chicken breast. He loves potatoes, any which way you can slice it, dice it, mash it, i think you get my point. One of the only vegetables he will ever eat is broccoli - and the fact that he prefers is raw, is difficult in terms of meal planning. He will however eat a salad loaded with some of his fave raw veg, as long as there is a generous serving of fat free ranch on the side! He loves pizza and pasta, c'mon who doesn't?! Oh, and Tacos. But not tacos in the way that you are thinking of tacos, oh no. His version of the taco is cooked ground turkey meat with taco seasoning atop a bed of crunched tortilla chips and lettuce smothered (and I mean smothered) in ketchup! Honestly, don't knock it til you try it, this kid has a good sense of what tastes good haha cause ketchup on this taco salad concoction, is yummy!! My preference is actually Catalina/French dressing (cause of the base is ketchup just a little less dense) but its all the same. Okay so now that I have reviewed the few things my husband will eat, onto one of the more "advanced" meals...
Italian Chicken (i wish i had taken some pictures)
Basically I take the thawed frozen chicken breasts and slice them vertically so that they are thinner and take less time to cook. I coat the bottom of my non-stick frying pan with olive oil and place all the chicken into the pan so that there isn't even a centimeter of space between the sliced breasts (this is essential to the preparation of this meal). Once the chicken is in the pan I sprinkle some salt, pepper and Italian seasoning over the top and let cook for meh, 10 minutes or so on high heat. What will happen is all the moisture from the chicken will seep out into the pan creating a kind of "broth". The broth that its soaking/cooking in will more or less steam the chicken to a succulent tenderness. Once the chicken starts to look cooked on the edges you flip them over sprinkle more seasonings on the back and wait until all the liquid as evaporated. This is where the oil comes in handy. Oil won't cook away like the liquid will so for the last few minutes the moist chicken will cook in the oil creating a little bit of a pan seared texture on the outside, which I really enjoy! So immediately after the chicken is cooked to my liking I remove it from the pan and add 1/2 a bag of frozen broccoli, easy peasy lemon squeezy! Add about 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of water to kind of steam the broccoli and then again the oil will start to pan sear the broccoli once the water has evaporated. Not yesterday I did something a little different than usual. Once the water had dissipated I added about 2 tbsp of butter. Because I didn't clean the pan between the chicken and the broccoli there was still a lot of seasoning left in the pan with oil. this created kind of a little butter/seasoning coating for the broccoli. I then added cooked angel hair spaghetti (I prefer to use Barilla Omega-3 pasta). To that I added an additional 2 tbsp butter and tossed to make a sort of pasta primavera! Served the chicken with the pasta on the side and BJ looooved it! I had some myself and it was pretty tasty. I added Parmesan cheese to the pasta and it was scrumptious! :)
I'm not the best at writing out recipes for exact measurements and that sort of thing, I tend to just throw things together, but I think they end up being pretty delicious! And minus the butter, the meal was generally healthy :) Next time (which will be soon) I will take some pictures and post, cause it was a pretty meal at that!
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Impatience
Patience is a virtue right?
I'm trying so hard to be patient right now. Everything has moved so quickly this entire pregnancy and now with 2 weeks left I cannot stand the suspense. I want to meet the little nugget and see what she looks like outside the womb!! Everyone is telling me to cherish these last few weeks and the extra sleep and being able to pick up and go on a wim, but I can't really do any of that right now anyway! I'm enormous and I found my first stretchmark yesterday ugh!! I have gained a grand total (so far) of 48 lbs! Its depressing to think about it really, the only up side is that there is a greater purpose and that is my daughter. Wow, that's insane... I am going to have a daughter, I am going to be a mom! Holy Sh*t! Maybe I can wait...
Monday, March 7, 2011
Maddie's Room
Maddie's room is officially done!! Now we are just waiting for the arrival of the princess herself :) hopefully sooner rather than later. Anyway without further ado...pictures of her room...
This is the door to her room. Unfortunately the wreath no longer looks like that because those were all fresh flowers from the baby shower, but you get the idea! :) The M was purchased from Stephanie's in Scottsdale and will most likely replace the wreath entirely once the wilted pedals start making a mess.
Lastly I wanted to show a picture of her shutters!! They were installed a little over a week ago. They replaced the brown pull up shades that were there before (blegh!) I think it really completes the clean look of the room and when the shutters are sealed up tight, its super dark and when you tilt them open in allows all the morning sunlight in! :)
This is the door to her room. Unfortunately the wreath no longer looks like that because those were all fresh flowers from the baby shower, but you get the idea! :) The M was purchased from Stephanie's in Scottsdale and will most likely replace the wreath entirely once the wilted pedals start making a mess.
This is what you see right when you enter her room. It is a bit snug, but its so super cute, I love it! So I mentioned a lot of the furniture we got for her room in a blog post a couple weeks ago, but here you can see what I was talking about actually in place. So you have her super comfy and plush glider to the left with the matching stool. The Pottery Barn sleigh night stand right next to it and the Pottery Barn Ultimate Changing Table directly under the window. The pink flower balls hanging from the changing table were so super adorable, but unfortunately like the wreath were made from fresh flowers and are currently very wilted. A couple of additions that I have made are a throw pillow for the glider, its cover being sewn from the extra material purchased from Serena and Lily (Aqua Melon Mosaic print). My mom has purchased 4 small baskets for the top row of the changing table and 3 for the bottom and has made matching pink and blue alternating covers for those. I'm toying with the idea of changing that lamp shade on the night stand and matching it with the extra material that I have, but we will see when that might happen. And lastly the shades have been changing on her window. We had white plantation shutters installed on 3 of our windows in the house (the front 3) and they are spectacular! I will write a post boasting about the company I did them through in the future, but you will see a picture of the shutters in her room just a bit later in this blog.
As you continue to turn to the right you will see her huge closet, which is already completely full of clothes, toys and other baby goodies. I installed the closet system about a month of so ago and it was super simple. It was purchased from Ikea and although you can't see it very well in this picture, behind both the right and left doors the shelves continue, but also with 2 sets of 2 drawer units. Its clean and fresh and looks great. I'm really glad she has a huge closet because I honestly don't know what I would do with all her stuff if she didn't!
Continuing again to the right we see her crib! The piece we were waiting for :) it only took a week to delivery which was really exciting. It landed on our door step in an enormous box (not very heavy) we dragged it into the house, open it and up and in a matter of 20 minutes the crib was assembled her mattress and bedding were put in place and her nursery was complete! I was relaxing in the glider when I took this picture :) my favorite spot in the room, I could sit there for hours (and most likely will be in the very near future)
One last turn to the right and we are back where we started. Here is a better picture of the full wall though. I'm calling this her reading corner! We hope to read her to a lot when she is here and I have already started reading to the belly almost everyday :) Here you see her glider with the little giraffe blankie and tooth fairy pillow (compliments of Melissa). Behind her glider is her reading tree that my mother in law purchased and applied to the wall for us! I think it is the cutest thing :) She got it at BuyBuyBaby, I think it was $40. A little the left is her hanging shelf purchased as a gift from Jen :) So perfect for her towels and the most innovative hair clip organizer made by our dear friend Maria, such a great idea!!
Lastly I wanted to show a picture of her shutters!! They were installed a little over a week ago. They replaced the brown pull up shades that were there before (blegh!) I think it really completes the clean look of the room and when the shutters are sealed up tight, its super dark and when you tilt them open in allows all the morning sunlight in! :)
I'm so so so happy with the way her room turned out, its honestly perfect for her. I cannot wait until she arrives so that she can enjoy everything we have prepared for her :) I will post a picture later, but I completed my belly cast the other day and it will be hanging in her room as well :) What an exciting time...i'm sooo anxious to get the show on the road!
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Tater Chips
Had a domestic moment today when I turned to a bag of potatoes that I was going to just chop up and throw in the oven and thought to myself...homemade potato chips!
So fun to make and so easy!! I put 1/2 a bottle of oil into a deep pot and then sliced up the potatoes using my De Buyers slicer I got as a wedding gift (first time use, love it!)
There potatoes could not have turned out prettier. Perfect thickness, perfect slices! So simple, so fast!
After slicing up only 4 potatoes and threw them into the pot of boiling oil on med/high heat they cooked in there for a good 7-10 minutes or so...which seemed a little long because I've never made potato chips before, but it needed the time to crisp up.
I removed the potatoes after frying using tongs, which wasn't the easiest method, I would have preferred one of those chinese net things with the wooden handle - may be my next investment!
Lastly I sprinkled a little Lawry's Seasoning on the warm newly fried potato chips and tossed them in the paper towel (soak up excess oil and catch excess saltiness) Result: perfectly crisp and slightly seasoned potato chips!! Yummy :)
So fun to make and so easy!! I put 1/2 a bottle of oil into a deep pot and then sliced up the potatoes using my De Buyers slicer I got as a wedding gift (first time use, love it!)
There potatoes could not have turned out prettier. Perfect thickness, perfect slices! So simple, so fast!
After slicing up only 4 potatoes and threw them into the pot of boiling oil on med/high heat they cooked in there for a good 7-10 minutes or so...which seemed a little long because I've never made potato chips before, but it needed the time to crisp up.
I removed the potatoes after frying using tongs, which wasn't the easiest method, I would have preferred one of those chinese net things with the wooden handle - may be my next investment!
Lastly I sprinkled a little Lawry's Seasoning on the warm newly fried potato chips and tossed them in the paper towel (soak up excess oil and catch excess saltiness) Result: perfectly crisp and slightly seasoned potato chips!! Yummy :)
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Nook Sleep Systems
So amazingly enough, I'm having an awful lot of luck in the "getting deals" department in regards to preparations for Maddie's arrival. Her crib arrived today and I immediately put it together. I also put her crib skirt in as well as her bumper (for aesthetic purposes only). Unfortunately I am a procrastinator at heart, and most likely will be forever, so I haven't purchased her mattress yet. Eek!
My sister suggested a brand/model called the Nook Pebble. After going to their website and reading about their mattresses and why they are so special I was sold. On top of that they are having 25% their Nook Pebble Organic mattress for the month of March only! Down side...price for this mattress is still $412.50 (Originally $550) Holy moly man?! For a baby mattress?! But I'm still in love with the concept. This particular pebble mattress is made with organic latex for the most comfortable sleep for your child. Its mite and microbe resistant, you honestly have to read up about it. Still sticker shock, yikes! They also have another option though, which I was very pleased to find out after calling their customer service number and being connected to an operator instantaneously. This option is called the Nook Pebble Lite. Its not organic so if you are in the department for a "green" crib mattress or you are totally into organic only then its not an option for you, but for me...its over $100 less! This product is made with a non-organic foam enveloped in the same mite and microbe resistant "wrap" is what they call them. SOLD! Now shipping is not that expensive it's roughly $15, but I don't want to wait! So I called a local baby store called Little Artika at the Biltmore Fashion Park and I believe they are the only store in the valley that carries this product. They have the Nook Pebble Light in the Cloud color in stock in the store ready for pick up, same price as the website - $295. I mentioned to her on the phone about sales tax and how its about an additional 9% and OMG can you believe she told me what she could do for me in terms of the sales tax was give me a gift card back to the store for that exact amount, so its as if I'm not even paying sales tax, but legally its okay because they are giving me a gift for purchasing an expensive item from their store. Talk about customer satisfaction people! That's a $25 gift card! Not much, but hey better than paying shipping and tax online! Plus its a win-win for
everyone.
Maybe I'll do a little review once Maddie has slept on it. She won't for a while because she'll be in her bassinet in our room, but once she does sleep there hopefully it will be peacefully and comfortably! My husband and I sleep on a latex mattress so I was thinking I want my daughter to sleep on a nice/some what comparable mattress too. I think its a good investment considering she'll be using it through her toddler years - oh did I mention that 1 side is purposely engineered for infants and the other for toddlers! Pretty sweet! :)
My sister suggested a brand/model called the Nook Pebble. After going to their website and reading about their mattresses and why they are so special I was sold. On top of that they are having 25% their Nook Pebble Organic mattress for the month of March only! Down side...price for this mattress is still $412.50 (Originally $550) Holy moly man?! For a baby mattress?! But I'm still in love with the concept. This particular pebble mattress is made with organic latex for the most comfortable sleep for your child. Its mite and microbe resistant, you honestly have to read up about it. Still sticker shock, yikes! They also have another option though, which I was very pleased to find out after calling their customer service number and being connected to an operator instantaneously. This option is called the Nook Pebble Lite. Its not organic so if you are in the department for a "green" crib mattress or you are totally into organic only then its not an option for you, but for me...its over $100 less! This product is made with a non-organic foam enveloped in the same mite and microbe resistant "wrap" is what they call them. SOLD! Now shipping is not that expensive it's roughly $15, but I don't want to wait! So I called a local baby store called Little Artika at the Biltmore Fashion Park and I believe they are the only store in the valley that carries this product. They have the Nook Pebble Light in the Cloud color in stock in the store ready for pick up, same price as the website - $295. I mentioned to her on the phone about sales tax and how its about an additional 9% and OMG can you believe she told me what she could do for me in terms of the sales tax was give me a gift card back to the store for that exact amount, so its as if I'm not even paying sales tax, but legally its okay because they are giving me a gift for purchasing an expensive item from their store. Talk about customer satisfaction people! That's a $25 gift card! Not much, but hey better than paying shipping and tax online! Plus its a win-win for
everyone.
Nook Pebble Lite $295
(all 3 color options pictured)
www.nooksleep.com
www.littleartika.com
(all 3 color options pictured)
www.nooksleep.com
www.littleartika.com
Maybe I'll do a little review once Maddie has slept on it. She won't for a while because she'll be in her bassinet in our room, but once she does sleep there hopefully it will be peacefully and comfortably! My husband and I sleep on a latex mattress so I was thinking I want my daughter to sleep on a nice/some what comparable mattress too. I think its a good investment considering she'll be using it through her toddler years - oh did I mention that 1 side is purposely engineered for infants and the other for toddlers! Pretty sweet! :)
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