Updates, more updates and a dilemma

Hi all! So I promised updates and here they are.



Bathroom- The goal was to have the tub installed and functioning by Sunday afternoon. It is now Tuesday afternoon and when you walk into my bathroom you can see straight down into the crawl space. Why? When the tub was pulled out we discovered several rotting beams in the walls and also on the floor. Instead of replacing them on Sunday Justin "had" to spend the afternoon with his friend Dave while I was at his fiance's shower. After work yesterday Justin did as much as he could but there is still a lot left to do before getting a tub. Complete bathroom in two weeks? Riiiiiiiiiiiight!!!



Pool- We've attempted to get Madison in the pool several times but it was a little chilly. Instead of a happy preschooler splashing around it looked like a cat fighting to stay out of the water. At one point she was just about sitting on my head to stay high and dry! Yesterday after much effort she got in and stayed in for 2 1/2 hours until I dragged her out!!!! Yay! Mental note - Do NOT put pressure on the side of the pool 'cause it will fold over and let the water out!



Baby- No c-section date but everything is going well. I think she has dropped and if anyone else tells me how big I've gotten all of the sudden at that I don't look only 32 weeks I may scream! I also just want to make a note here that the name Stella was chosen way before it became trendy. I care more about liking my kids' names than their popularity BUT this time around I thought I found something that was different without being weird. If you haven't heard Tori Spelling had a little girl yesterday and named her Stella and I just feel the name getting trendier by the second!



Now for the dilemma with Madison. When we got to school she went over to play with two little girls who were sitting on a bench. There was plenty of space for Madison but the one little girl said "You can't sit here. You aren't cool enough to be in our club." Madison stood there staring at them on the verge of tears not knowing what to do. She is THREE! My little girl should not have to deal with rejection already! Anyway I fought the urge to yank the little girl out of the seat by her pigtails and tell her how "not nice" she had been but I decided to call Madison over instead. I asked her what was going on. Her response was that "Barbie (real name hidden) isn't my friend. She doesn't like me anymore". She then proceeded to cling to me with her head on my shoulder. At this point I'm not sure who was more crushed. It took all I had not to run away with Madison in tow and spend the day making her feel super special. I decided to remind her how smart, friendly and beautiful she is. I then told her that what the girl did was not nice and when people aren't nice like that they are not good friends. Did she get it? I'm not really sure 'cause she is only three and I sometimes have trouble remembering that she is still a baby. I asked her if she saw any kids in the class that are fun to play with and she pointed out her little buddy Connor. I asked her if Connor was nice to her and she said "Yes, mommy he's my friend!" If fought the urge to just hold her all day and put her down. She ran off to play with him as happy as could be. There is only 1 day left of school so I decided to not mention it to the teacher. The mom of the little brat also works at the school and is super sweet. I know she would be crushed if she knew what her daughter was doing ans one of her older sisters (she is the youngest of 6 so obviously we know where she learned this) is a student of mine. Bottom line is if there were more time in school left I would mention it but for one more day what will be solved? I did check on Madison throughout the say and she was fine. When I picked her up she mentioned that this girl was not her friend but she had others so she did not forget. Madison even had me call Justin at work so she could tell him how this girl was no longer her friend.

I was just wondering what you would have done in this situation? I feel like what I said to Madison was a way to make her feel better about herself and to help her develop coping skills. Unfortunately Mommy will not always be there to step in so the next best thing will be to have a daughter strong enough to deal with these situations on her own. BUUUUUUUUT Did I mention that she is only THREE? I know kids can be mean but knowing my daughter has to learn this at such an early age is really heartbreaking. Oh well enough rambling. Let me know what you think.

Tasty Tuesday

I am in no way shape or form a vegan or even a vegetarian for that matter. The truth is I enjoy chicken (not so much at the moment) , any type of fish or shellfish and yes even an occasional steak - rare! Or as my husband's late grandmother would say "chop off its ears, wipe its ^&* (rhymes with gas) and put it on a plate! She was from Texas and had been bitten by a rattlesnake on more than one occasion. Bottom line she was pretty tough. Anyway this weekend I was searching for an awesome mac 'n cheese recipe that I found online awhile ago and accidently lost. While doing so I came across this recipe that I decided to post especially for my friend Danielle at New Mommy Rant. To be honest I will probably never try it 'cause I also really love real cheese but never say never (especially if Stella ends up with a milk allergy like Madison had for the first 2 years)! Oh and check back later 'cause I have bathroom and pool updates and also need advice about something that happened at school with Madison yesterday but I don't have the time to get into right now!

Dairy Free Macaroni and Cheese (serves 2)

4 oz. elbow macaroni 1/3 cup nutritional yeast

1 T. flour 2 T. vegetable broth powder

1/3 cup dairy-free soymilk 2 T. Water

(use one with a thickening agent like Silk) 1 T. Tahini (aka sesame paste)

Salt, to tast

1. Boil about 3 cups of water in a small stockpot. Add elbow macaroni and cook until al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain in a colander and set aside.

2. Combine nutritional yeast, flour and vegetable broth powder in a small saucepan, mixing together until combined. Add soymilk, water and tahini, and turn on heat to medium-low, mixing until all the powder is dissolved and the sauce is smooth. Heat until just thickened and warm, about 2-3 minutes. Turn off heat and add salt to taste.

3. Add cooked macaroni to sauce pan, coating pasta well. Divide mixture into two bowls and serve warm.

One Step Closer to the Wedding!

We made it through the baby shower! Yesterday was the bridal shower for a friend of mine and thankfully it went off without a hitch! According to the thermometer in my car temperatures were reaching into the 100 degree area yesterday so I was very nervous when we arrived at the restaurant and I saw a brunch line and tables set up on the wrap around porch. Thankfully this was not for our party! We had the shower at the Grenville in Bay Head, New Jersey and they did a wonderful job! It is a gorgeous Victorian hotel/restaurant one block from the beach, everything was decorated beautifully and the food was delicious (even the regular brunch line includes a chocolate fountain!). If you ever find yourself in the area you might want to check it out! Anyway the bride was super surprised. She thought she was attending a baby shower with me. Even after she saw me with camera in hand it took about 30 seconds to register what was going on! Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Of course when you have a group of women there is always one with lots of opinions but not willing to offer any help. I'm usually the quiet one who backs down but after all the hard work that was put into this shower that was not about to happen! I'm happy to say we still ran things the way we wanted and the angrier she got the tighter the stupid bun on the top of her head got! If it got any tighter I think her eyes may have popped out of her head! Sorry about the tangent I was just in no mood. All in all it was a great time! Madison and I. You can tell by my shiny nose and huge hair that it was hot even in the restaurant but nowhere near as bad as outside!
The wedding party
Me, Madison, Joni (groom's sister), Brenna (bride but you could probably tell that by the cool hat I made, Marisa (groom's niece) and Meyling (bride's friend and matron of honor)

Where Am I Going to Pee???

First heat wave of the season, only one bathroom, a 3 year old who waits to pee until the last possible second and a very pregnant wife whose bladder can't go more than 25 minutes without being emptied. If you were a husband that wanted a quiet, calm household what wouldn't you begin doing this weekend? If you said gutting a bathroom you are absolutely right!

We've live in our house for 4 1/2 years and have completely gutted (down to studs) every part of the house except for the bathroom. Not that it didn't need it but it was the project that never seemed to get done. Anyway I have been after Justin a lot lately about it and he has constantly put me off until now. Last night he came home with the new tub and decided to start tearing our bathroom apart. It is now 6:30 on a Saturday night and he is outside playing horseshoes and have a few cocktails with some friends instead of at least making the toilet usable. Luckily my parents live next door but overall I'm pretty cranky about the whole situation especially since I'm already stressed about the bridal shower tomorrow.

Ultimately the bathroom is going to look great (as great as the smallest bathroom in the world can look) and I'll be happy to have it done before Stella is born but for now I'm not happy. Did I also mention that my hubby has no actual sense of time? He thinks this whole huge project will be done in 2 weeks. My guess is it'll be done around midnight the night before we go to have Stella. I'll keep you posted but for now here are some pictures.

Pretty? No. Functioning? Yes!

Bathtub circa 1963

and it begins (Justin and my brother Corey)

6:00 Saturday and the bathroom has been abandoned.


What the %^$# am I going to do at 2:00a.m. ? I may be checking into Casa De Mama's tonight.

My dining room may never be the same!

P.S. No, Madison and I haven't been home all day exposed to all the dust and other junk in the air!

Help Needed for Clothing Issues!

Good morning! I guess I should start out with yes I'm fine and no I haven't fallen off the face of the Earth. This week has just been crazy! It was my last week of teaching although I still have a week of paperwork ahead of me (Yay!!!!! just kidding). This Sunday also happens to be a really good friend of mine's baby shower. Unfortunately I can't make it because I scheduled the bridal shower for the dreaded wedding on the same day. Ooops! Needless to say I've been running around buying shower gifts and completely errands for the bridal shower.

Anyway onto more pressing issues! If you are a frequent visitor of Celebrity Baby Blog maybe you have noticed all of the gorgeous, long, flowing sundresses that celebrity mommas to be have been sporting. I love them! Angelina Jolie and Gwen Stefani's dresses happen to be my favorites! I've been looking all over for something similar (much more affordable) for the bridal shower this weekend and my sister in law's Sweet 16 next weekend. Unfortunately my search has left me frazzled and tired of trying on moo moos made by Omar the Tent Maker! I've looked online at Motherhood and Mimi maternity but haven't seen anything I love. I also refuse to go on Pea in the Pod because I'm sure I'll fall in love with a $500 something or other on that site and that is way out of my price range. Right now I'm thinking my limit is about $100 but may increase slightly if I become super desperate. Being that this will probably be the most expensive item in my maternity wardrobe (can't seem to part with the major bucks when I'll only be preggers for a few more weeks) I'm also hoping for something not super dressy so I can wear it again. At this point I've all but given up hope for the shower and I do have a couple of so so dresses to choose from but I'ld really like something new for next weekend. If you know of anywhere that may have something that I'm looking for I'ld REALLY, REALLY, REALLY appreciate your help!

MeMe Monday - It's All About The 8's

I was tagged for this Meme by Dana - Thanks for giving me a topic 'cause I was struggling for one today!

Eight Things For Which I Have A Passion For:
1. I LOVE to cook - the everyday stuff gets kind of tedious but I love to have company over for a fancy meal that I can wow them with. Guess I'm kind of a show off that way.

2. Madison, I could talk about all the cute and/or embarrassing things she does and says all day long!
3. Making hand made beaded jewelry. If I weren't 31 weeks preggers I'd be leaving for a huge bead expo in Milwaukee tomorrow :<

4. Anything crafty - needlepoint, crocheting, sewing (I've made all 3 of Madison's Halloween costumes)

5. My hubby - I figured I'd through him in here

6. Clothes, shoes, purses. I don;t really enjoy the crowds or searching for items but I do love to get new things!

7. Makeup and hair - probably should have gone to cosmetology school instead of college. You can't tell that I'm into hair by looking at me though 'cause I always seem to have a frizzy mop or a pony tail

8. Anything beach related- conservation, people watching, hanging on the boat. I've even been known to fish here and there!

Eight Things I'd Like to do Before I Die:
1. Move out of the town that I grew up in (I live next door to the house I grew up in)

2. Travel to Hawaii and Australia
3. Own another convertible
4. Get a boob lift and tummy tuck once I'm done being a baby factory

5. Sky Dive
6. Buy a house with a huge kitchen, tons of closet space and more than one bathroom

7. Use the bathroom or take a shower without interruptions

8. Hire a housekeeper
Eight Things I Say a Lot:
1. Really???

2. Go ask your father
3. I'm sooooooo tired
4. Because I'm the mommy and I said so (yep, I've said it. The "Why stage" is just starting and it is brutal)
5. If I don't wash your hair you'll get bugs
6. Yes you have to go to school today and yes you have to take a nap there
7. If I had more time I could get everything done
8. It was on sale
Eight Books I Have Read Recently:
1. Guess How Much I Love You
2. I Love You Stinky Face
3. Duma Key (yep, adult books do occur sometimes)
4. The Accident Man (LOVED IT!)
5. Bad Dog Marley
6. I'll Love You Forever ( I cry every time)
7. 5 Little Lady Bugs
8. Disney Collection of Nursery Rhymes and Fairy Tales
(Just started the Bourne series but I'm having trouble getting into it)
Eight Movies I Have Seen Eight Times:
1. Top Gun
2. Pretty Woman (was on again last night)
3. Dirty Dancing (I have to watch it every time it is on)
4. Superbad
5. Cinderella
6. Annie
7. Goonies
8. Godfather I & II
Eight People Who Should, but are in no way obligated, Do This Meme:
I'll leave this one up to anyone that wants to join in!

Check Out This Giveaway!

So for any of you that don't know Andrea at The Laughs Will Go On . . .she just had a beautiful baby girl a week ago Saturday. Not only has she been great about posting pics of her little angel and blogging about her birth story, she has also posted a great new giveaway. To be honest I really hope I win but I'll share the info with you anyway! It is for an adorable organic cotton kimono from Tomo and Edie. Just comment Andrea about which of the 3 styles of kimono you like best and post a blog about the giveaway to receive two entries into the contest! Make sure to do it by June 8th. Good luck and thanks again Andrea!