It's a ...

GIRL!

Pink, bows, tutus, cute ruffly outfits!  I am excited but also so scared.  I can't even wear a bow or do pig tails in my own hair.  I told my SIL my nursery colors are going to be neon and black...and I am kidding..mostly.  Actually I don't even know if this baby girl will get her own room.  She might be hanging in the pack n play in our room because we will do something silly like move a few months after she is born.  Do I really want to clean out the office / guest bedroom / junk storage room? I am pretty sure some form of panic will set in, and I will HAVE to give her a room and a bed and some decor but for now I am fiddy fiddy.

So the morning of the ultrasound, I was sitting on the floor trying to fold some clothes.  Wyatt pulled out one of my shirts and said "pink"  "wear it" and held it up to me.  He knows the color pink from watching Dumbo 354 times since he has been sick. He never picks out my shirts although he has started to pick out his own.  I took this as a sign that I was having a girl and that he wanted a baby sister so all was right in the world when we got the results and it was indeedy a girl. 

May Product Favorites - Mom and Toddler

I love to watch the videos from I'm A Mommy on YouTube but feel like I never have to time to watch them (although I can read endless amounts of blogs and keep up with facebook???).   My favorites are her monthly product reviews for Mama, Toddler, and Baby.  Check out her May one here.  She has inspired me to write my own faves on a monthly basis so here goes my first one.  P.S. I know pictures make it more fun, but I have to steal / borrow them from various websites so I am not sure if I should do this. 

Mama Product Faves

Jordana Best Lash Extreme Volumizing Mascara - I want a mascara that is easy to put on and easy to take off.  This one works!  This was a gift from my MIL.  Beauty bloggers rave about it and the product is a bit hard to find.  Walgreens carries it in store and Amazon sells online.

Enormous Ziploc Bags - I use the large and extra large bags.  Store your maternity clothes, winter clothes, and outgrown baby clothes in them.  They have lines on the bag for labels and feel pretty durable.  They can easily be stuffed into boxes for the next time your husband's company moves you.

Yes to Tomatoes Product Line - My face is still a mess and I keep trying a new regimen every month.  I have tried caveman-no wash, CeraVe, and Cetaphil over the past few months.  I am on week 2 of Yes to Tomatoes and even though my face is not any clearer I really enjoy the smell and feel and it looks like my skin tone is better...that or I got a tan.  I am using the Daily Clarifying Cleanser and the Daily Balancing Moisturizer (all of the ones that are salycilic acid free).

Toddler Product Faves

 Winnie the Pooh Airplane - We have a hand me down that doesn't look quite as fancy as this one and the lights and sounds never worked, but this is fun for hours!  He is still young enough to like push toys and he can sit on it and ride it (he picks this over a tricycle).  I can hook a rope up to it and pull him on it.  He can put leaves and sticks under the seat.  The fun never ends. 

Alice in Wonderland - The old Disney Alice in Wonderland is on Netflix Instant Play and suprisingly he loves it.  I am not sure why but it really entertains him...maybe more than Mighty Machines and Lightening McQueen.  I am cool with this because it is one of my childhood faves. 

Foam Water Squirters - Fun in the pool and fun with a bucket of water / hose.  This has taken up hours and hours of fun and Wyatt is almost able to refill it himself. 

This and That

Read Lonesome Dove.  I know we have all seen the movie, but you just gotta read the book.  I REALLY enjoyed it. 

Poppy seeds are not easy to clean up.  They stick to the counter, to the floor, and to your kid's hands and feet.  Sweeping them is a great way to distribute them into a larger space. Now I will only be able to make 24 servings of Bloomin Onion Bread instead of 212.

Me, the not baker, managed to make mini banana muffins with some grody nanas that were left out while on vacation all while Wyatt sat still on the couch without getting up.

Me, the observant mama, should have realized that Wyatt was sick if he was willing to sit still for so long.  He also didn't want to go outside and play.  I thought he was just tired from vacay. 

Wednesday is ultrasound day people.  According to my nephew, I am either having a girl or a boy or a puppy.  Can't wait to find out which one! 

I usually take about 3 nights to make it through a Netflix movie because I get sooo sleeepy.  We started the Avengers and then zzzz.

Scenes From Memorial Day Weekend

How many boys can ride on one bike? FOUR

How many boys will look at the camera?  ZERO

How long will a bucket, some water, and water squirters keep boys amused?  HOURS!

We went to Hunter's grandmother's house in East Texas for the 3 day weekend.  We ate 3 meals a day, 3 desserts a day, played til we dropped, and slept not so bad for being on vacation.  We are undergoing a very tough detoxification right now, but are looking forward to the next trip and weight gain camp.

Sneaky Veggies

Wyatt doesn't hate veggies, but he doesn't love many of them.  Here are a few recent successes I have had with sneaking in more veggies.  
 
Carrot Cake Oatmeal by Annies Eats  - He won't eat cooked or raw carrots, but he will eat them in bressert (breakfast-dessert) form.

Creamy Asparagus Pasta by Eat, Live, Run - Kinda like a creamy pesto but with asparagus instead of basil.  This is also one of my very favorite ways to cook chicken in the oven. 

Put it in a taco.  He is sooo my kid.  I can dice up anything small and heat it in a corn tortilla with some cheese and he will eat it.  Muu ha ha. He loves to eat the taco by his big boy self too.

Dip veggies in some ranch dip.  Buy the sour cream and ranch packet.  Give the kiddo a little bowl of dip ( I use those little fruit cup bowls).  He will eat teeny tiny broccolis, big hunks of mushroom, snap peas, and of course cherry tomatoes. 

Do you have any sneaky veggie recipes or tips I need to know about? 

Easy Green Chicken Enchiladas

We have now made two items in our Big Easy.  The big easy is advertised as "A healthy alternative to oil frying, the Char-Broil Big Easy actually does more than just fry turkeys—it can also safely cook chicken, pork tenderloin, beef roast and most large cuts of meat up to 16 pounds, all in about eight to 10 minutes per pound. "

So we have cooked a pork butt and a whole chicken.  We just used a dry rub and had excellent results, but I imagine that injecting the meat would make it outstanding.  Father's Day gift idea anyone?

To get over the boring-ness of just eating leftover chicken, I looked for an enchilada recipe.  I also had leftover rice and beans that we needed to eat so the time was now!  I found this one from Eat Live Run and did some adapting (nice word for copying and not changing very much).  So here is her my recipe.

Chicken Enchiladas Verde

Ingredients:
2 cups diced or shredded leftover chicken
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
28 oz green enchilada sauce
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup Mexican Crema
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 4-oz can diced fire roasted green chilies
8 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
12 corn tortillas

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place leftover chicken in a large bowl with 1/4 cup enchilada sauce, cumin, chili powder, salt, cayenne pepper, diced green chilies and cream. Mix well until everything is well combined.

Pour about 2/3 cup enchilada sauce into the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch pan. Soften your corn tortillas by placing each in a hot skillet for about 10-20 seconds each side. Then, place about 1/4 cup  filling into each hot tortilla along with a sprinkle of cheese. Roll up tortilla and place seam-side down in the pan. Repeat until you have used up all your  filling.

Pour remaining enchilada sauce over the pan and sprinkle cheese on top. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly.

We served with crumbled queso fresco, additional crema, and fresh cilantro.

2nd Trimester

I feel almost like a normal person again! I am 17 weeks along now.  I am gaining 2 lbs a week although I think I am only allowed to gain 1 a week?? I don't mind cooking dinner.  I look at recipes and cookbooks again.  I don't feel like I need to nap to survive. The smell of the dishwasher running, rubber on the oven mitts, tap water, our bathroom does not gross me out anymore.  To everyone who gets sick while pregnant, I am sorry that I complained about my minimal problems.  Please forgive me.

I was not happy living here until a few weeks ago.  "I am too tired to clean or organize. Our tap water is smelly. I have no good memories here.  I have no friends here. Why can't I stop being lazy?" Now I know it was all some kind of emotional pregnancy blip and we are starting to make our happy memories here and get our routine down. I was worried for a bit.  Whew!

And now for some pregnancy facts.  Don't worry, I won't blog about this stuff too often. 

• I can feel the bebe moving this week. Exciting!  :)
• People with due dates after mine already know if they are having a boy / girl and that kills me.
• I think I am having a girl but I kinda want a boy so I don't have to buy/borrow new stuff and play dollies and trucks at the same time. 
• Bebe is the size of an avocado.
• Bebe has toenails!
• I hated how large my face got while I was pregnant with Wyatt.  I would look in the mirror and see a stranger.  I keep waiting for that day to happen, but I know it is more of a sneak up on you kinda thing. 
• I am starting to feel a bit uncomfortable while sitting, bending over, and sleeping and it seems like I have way too much time left to feel like that already
• My pregnancy insomnia is baaa-acccck.  Wake up to go the bathroom, lay back in bad and try to keep brain from having any thoughts, lay there wide awake for a long time, lay there so long I get hungry, drift off to sleep right about the time Hunter or Wyatt wakes up.
• I will never buy Target maternity shorts / pants again.  I have purchased 3 items (comfy shorts, some longer shorts for around town, and some pants that were super on sale).  I want to burn them all.  I guess you really do get what you pay for some times.  I would rather repeat wear my Old Navy or Destination Maternity bottoms 100 times. Dresses and tops from Target...we can still be friends.

Wyatt - 20 Months

Stats
20 months old
Around 21 lbs
12 teeth
Size 5 diapers
Clothes size 18 month

Eating
3 meals a day, 2 snacks a day.
Loves milk, water, and an occasional jooce (has to be in the box).
Will eat any kind of pasta (red, green, butter, macaroni)
Only likes dark meat chicken
Eats endless amounts of cherry tomatoes, blueberries, cheese, yogurt
Beans and rice are STILL always a winner
Peanuts and grapes are his new favorite snack...its like PB&J without bread.

Sleep
8:30 PM to 7:00 AM and a nap between 12:00 PM and 2:30ish PM.
He takes a really long time to fall asleep but has a routine.  It goes something like..."night night toys, night night books, night night puppy, night night bear, night night loader, night night tractor.  Big tractor.   Green tractor.  Dirty diaper (always a little scary to hear but he just talks about it). Blue diaper."  A series of bed angels.  A series of stick feet through crib slats.  Rotate 180.  Stick feet through other side of crib slats.  "Night night Thomas. Night night choo choo." Roll over onto tummy...zzzzz. 

Skillz
Throwing a ball
Talking pretty good...yah, I know, I have nothing to compare to.
Helping...sweep, put clothes in dryer, stir, put trash in trash, put drink in fridge and close door.
Steering..he is pretty durn good steering his "bike" around.
Buckling his own car seat and high chair buckle...just hoping he doesn't learn the unbuckle part.
Leaving mama behind at the gym, playground, wherever...no separation anxiety right now.
Remembering....I say you can watch tractor videos when daddy comes home.  When nap is over...Daddy? At work.  Tractors? When Daddy comes home.  Do that?  Yes, when Daddy comes home. The second Daddy walks in the door.  "DO THAT"  "TWACTORS!!"

Dislikes
Holding my hand when crossing the road.
Me trying to brush my teeth, fix my hair, or get dressed. 
When I ignore his request...he has learned to get in my face and repeat the command. Or say it louder.  Or grab my mouth.  Twactors, TWACTORS, TWACTORS LADY!!!!!

Likes
Going on walks to check the mail, see the cows, and pick dewberries.  He could eat unlimited amount of dewberries but I am scared of poison ivy.
Saying "wawa".  He says the word wawa about 20 times a day.  Maybe it is his word for something he doesn't know.  Drives me crazy because I can't figure it out. 
Wearing his light up sandals and his McQueen slippers.
Giving hugs and kisses....to me especially, but also to his trucks, tractors, snacks...anything.
Having his friend Bear do everything he does.  And now Puppy and Loader too.  I am scared for him to see any more stuffed animals.  There are only so many times I can pretend feed each "friend" per meal. 
Bike rides...loves it.  Not sure what to do once my belly gets too big.
Playing with all of his cousins.
Riding tractors. Sitting on tractors. Watching tractors. Talking about tractors.
Same sentence as above but for trucks.
Playing in the silverware drawer while I am trying to cook.  Licking the silverware or stirring something dirty and then putting it back into the drawer.  I stopped trying to wash everything. Beware if you come over to my place.
Saying "More"

Our latest photo shoot

Sandy crackers

Mother's Day at the beach.  More water!

What I Want for Mother's Day

Hunter....in case you are out there and haven't already bought ALL of my gifts this is my Mother's Day Wish List. ;)

A manly mama breakfast.  I am not a french toast or a crepe kinda girl.  I am all about the breakfast tacos, migas, loaded hashbrowns with eggs on top (wish I could eat em runny), or some bacon-bacon. Lots of jalapenos and varieties of salsa por favor.

A cleanish house.  I am ok with the toy clutter.  I just would like to have a moment where all of the dishes are done, the laundry is put up, and the bathrooms look visibly clean.

An activity to make me feel like fun Janet again. I used to be a fun person.  I promise.  Then I got responsible and now I focus on things like nap time, dinner preparation, and logging hours at work when I have free time.  Boooooringgggg zzzzzz.  How about a trip to the beach, a bike ride to somewhere fun for lunch, or a snow cone stop. 

A pedicure.  I don't think one or two a year is asking too much.  I don't really know any places to go here so I can't tell you where to get me a gift cert to.  Just send me out the door and tell me to go find one. 

The last Sookie Stackhouse book. I own all of the books so I have to keep up with collecting the real ones instead of the e-books.  No kindle versions please. 

Wyatt memories.  A new video or picture of Wyatt always makes me smile.  

If I think of more, I will be sure to let you know.

One of the few pics I have of me and baby Wyatt.

I Live 42 Miles Away From Thai Food

I thought I was a country girl, but I guess I can't hack it because I miss Thai food and Pho and Sushi and some other things I can't think of right now.  Don't get me wrong.  I love me some burgers and some Tex Mex, but I guess I got my fix for a while and have moved onto other cravings.

I came across this Pad Thai recipe from One Lovely Life.  Mine turned out ok, but not great.  I kinda left my noodles too al dente.

Pardon my crummy iPhone pic

I also follow Eat, Live, Run and she has a recipe I can try. 

I suppose I can try this one from AllRecipes, but it doesn't get amazing reviews. 

I like my pad thai with shrimp baby.  And I like it for $7.00 including ice tea.  I also like my pad thai within driving distance.  Thank you!

My Sick Baby - Can't Breathe Routine

Poor Wyatt.  Can't breathe and runny nose.   He keeps saying "nose" and "wipe".  He learns fast, but not fast enough to learn to blow his nose.  He is feeling ok....celebrate!  He only had one bad night....celebrate more!  He is not quite himself though.  When we go on walks to see the cows or pick dewberries he wants to be carried for most of it. 

We spend a big chunk of our days in the bath tub "sauna".  Come to think of it....going way back to Wyatt's first round of shots as an infant...we spend most of our sick time in the bath tub.  It soothes him for some reason. 

Get the bathroom nice and steamy to help with the breathing

Smiles and happy boy in the bath tub

Bubbles are a special treat since he has some sensitive skin

No more temperature and please admire the Aquaphor shine

Our arsenal...it helps him to feel better for at least a little while...saline spray and NoseFrida are my heroes

Maternity Workout Cothes

I'm sorry.  The websites call it active wear...not maternity workout clothes.

But seriously? I feel ugly just looking at them.

For any of the shorts that I think look kinda cute, I read the description and they all say DO NOT WEAR IN PUBLIC.  Your bootie will hang out.   Most of them cost something silly like $40!

I guess I will buy these from Destination Maternity for $27?  I can't commit. And one pair of shorts / capris will not cut it. 

And then I can buy some more t shirts from the Tarjay?  Me and Liz Lange can be friends.  If only Liz Lange had "active wear" that wasn't ick.

A Garden Baby Shower

We had a baby shower for my sister over the weekend.  Yayyy...finally a little girl in our family.

Orange Juice Punch and Strawberry Water

Fruit cups with Paula Deen fruit dip

Rice krispy treats with pink candy melts

Flower cupcakes for our garden shower

Plenty of tutus, flowers, pink, and of course some camo!  I can't wait to meet Calleigh.

Our Menu:
Mini Pigs in the Blanket
Mini Quiche
Fruit Cups with Dip
Chicken Salad
Croissants
Ranch dip with various vegetables and dippers
Rice krispy treats
Flower cupcakes
Orange Juice Punch
Strawberry water (I forgot lemons)