Unnecessary Spending

As I've been browsing the Internet for baby products I've found a few things that I've just got to share. While there are a host of products out there that look like they would really make your life easier, there are equally as many products, in my opinion, that are just unnecessary. I mean, people actually pay money for these things? Obviously I'm no expert, so if some of you have any insight into any of these products that I'm just not getting, please enlighten me. In no particular order, here are my favorites:

Unborn Baby Kick and Movement Counter
Now, I understand the importance of monitoring the baby's kicks and movements. Since I have yet to feel even a flutter, I don't know what this feels like yet, but my friend Emily filled me in on how she does this and counts 10 kicks at a time. So, when I first saw this, I thought that you put this device up to your belly and it somehow detected the kicks and counted them for you. After reading a bit more about it, it does nothing of the sort. It just helps you count to 10 and plays a tune once you've reached 10. Seriously?! I hope that anyone getting ready to bring a child into this world can count to 10 on her own without the help of this device. Price: $20





Baby Crying Analyzer
According to its description "this product teaches new parents to distinguish the different types of cries of their baby and displays the answer on the easy to read LCD screen." Huh?! Apparently there are 5 different categories: Hungry, Bored, Annoyed, Tired, and Stressed. I have no clue how this product works and frankly don't care. I understand that babies cry for all reasons, including hungry, gassy, wet/dirty diaper,sleepy, etc. and sometimes parents can't seem to understand why the baby is crying. I don't think this gadget knows the child better than its parents. My favorite of the cries is "annoyed" Price: $100!!


The Zaky
This is a set of beanbags shaped like hands that cradle your baby while you are away. You can even wrap it around your neck to rub your scent off on it. I really have no words for this one. This picture just makes me laugh every time i look at it. Price: $50

There are lots more out there, but these are the ones I found to be the most unnecessary. Feel free to leave a comment if you or anyone you know has tried any of these products. I'm pretty sure my mom didn't have any of these products when I was a baby and I think she made out just fine! Stay tuned for a post of things that really look worth the money...in MY opinion of course. After all, it's MY blog!

15 Week Update

How far along? 15 weeks and 2 days

Total weight gain/loss? Don't own a scale, so I'm still sticking with a weight gain of 2 pounds

Maternity Clothes? All my regular clothes with the exception of maternity jeans. Dresses are definitely the most comfortable.

Stretch Marks? Still none!

Sleep? Still getting plenty

Best moment last week? It's all amazing

Movement? Not yet

Food Cravings? Still on the oranges...

Gender? Apparently most of you are thinking girl along with Sterling. I still have no clue!

Labor signs? Thank God, no

Belly button In/out? Again, thank God, In

What I miss? Nothing really. I have had no complaints throughout my pregnancy so far and am still doing all the same things I did before.

What I am looking forward to? Finding out if this baby is a boy or girl and feeling him/her move

And what you're all really here for...a picture of the "bump." Please excuse the concealer eyes. I promise they did not look like that in real life...must have been the flash!

Random Dream

I dreamed I had the baby last night. I've heard that pregnancy dreams can be alot more elaborate than usual and it is common to have dreams about actually having the baby. Given the fact that I have always had very vivid dreams (obviously didn't get this from Dad, who apparently doesn't ever dream), it's no surprise that I have been having some crazy ones lately!

So, back to last night's dream...I had the baby, but couldn't remember ANYTHING about labor or delivering the baby. I had to keep asking Sterling and the doctor to learn all the details. The doctor finally concluded that the epidural must have caused me to lose my memory short-term since that was the last thing I could remember. WHAT?! Can this really happen?? We had a girl, if you were wondering. She had a head full of light brown hair. Is this a sign of things to come pink or just another crazy prego dream?

Browsing for Baby

Since we still have awhile until we find out if we will be outfitting baby in pink or blue, I've had lots of fun browsing the Internet for all things baby. The first item on my to-do list after we find out will of course be the nursery. I was a bit bummed at first that we would not be bringing baby home to the new house, but I quickly got over that. We hope to start building at the first of the year, so baby won't really know the difference. I won't be able to paint the walls here and it won't be exactly how I envision it in my mind, but baby will have his/her own room with all the essentials, and more I'm sure!

My MIL was in town this weekend and we went to Woodland Furniture to just browse around. I had never been and it had been years since she had been. If you are in the market for some furniture, I highly recommend you head on over to check out their huge variety and GREAT prices! After that plug, they should give me a discount on the items I picked out. Ha! While we were there, I picked out two cribs that I really liked (a boy one and a girl one):

This is similar to the boy crib, but the one I liked had only 2 panels on the back instead of 4 and was a darker finish. I'm not really into matchy matchy stuff, so I will just get the crib, not the set. Isn't that such a blah nursery pictured?

This is the exact girl's crib but without the drawer underneath. I really like the feminine curves and details on this crib alot. Obviously the chandelier doesn't come with the crib, but what girl doesn't need a crystal chandelier in her bedroom?! Too cute!

Both of them are convertible cribs meaning that they start out as baby cribs convert into toddler beds, then the headboard and footboard can be used with a full mattress. Neat, huh?

We also found this chair and oh.my.goodness. This was one of the most comfortable chairs I have ever sat in. It is a rocker/glider and would be perfect for reading bedtime stories or rocking the little one to sleep. I could have fallen asleep myself sitting in that chair yesterday! It comes in lots of styles and fabrics, but this is just an example. We stopped by Flexsteel yesterday while we were out and about and ran into a friend of ours that used to work with Sterling. She has really gotten into sewing the past couple of years and she offered to do the baby bedding for us. So, we had a productive day yesterday. We also got a new TV from her, but that's a story for another day!

Since I know you read this blog Mrs.Phyllis, I had a great time this weekend! Oh, and don't worry everyone, we didn't actually purchase any of this stuff, just looked! I'm not that impatient...

14 Week Update

I've seen these on other people's blogs and I thought they were cute, so I will attempt to do these weekly along with a pic once there is something to show

How far along? 14 weeks and 2 days

Total weight gain/loss? Gained 2 pounds

Maternity Clothes? Even though I have only gained 2 pounds, my waist is definitely becoming a bit thicker. Right now, it just looks like I ate one too many cheeseburgers. Most of my pants still fit, but they are becoming uncomfortable. Yoga pants are my best friend. I broke down and bought a pair of low-rise maternity jeans from Old Navy earlier this week that were on clearance since my jeans were pretty tight pre-pregnancy. I really needed another pair of jeans and figured there was no reason to buy new regular jeans.

Stretch Marks? Nope! I bought some Bella B Tummy Butter in anticipation of this event and have been religiously slathering it on twice a day per the directions.

Sleep? I have always been a girl that loves her sleep! I am usually a 7-8 hr sleeper, but now I need more like 9-10 hrs. Minus the interruption of having to go to the bathroom more frequently during the night, I'm snoozing like a baby.

Best moment last week? Getting to hear Baby Dahl's heartbeat

Movement? Not yet

Food Cravings? Oranges! This started about a week ago and I have to eat 1-2 oranges a day. The more sour the better. I keep telling myself that this is alot better than donuts

Gender? Prediction: Sterling thinks 100% girl and I not letting myself form an opinion either way. CAST YOUR VOTE ON THE POLL TO THE RIGHT!

Labor signs? Thank God, no

Belly button In/out? Again, thank God, In

What I miss? Sleeping on my stomach

What I am looking forward to? Having a legitimate baby bump

Oh, Baby!

Not sure if you've noticed the new ticker going across the top of our blog, but we're having a baby! Words cannot explain how excited we are! I've never been one to keep a journal, so this will be my way of documenting what goes in during my pregnancy and after the baby is born. Also, since my parents now live in Texas (dislike) and I have relatives that live overseas, this will be a good way for them to keep up with things as well. Since I have known for AWHILE now, let me start from the beginning:

July 5th: We were at my grandparent's house celebrating the 4th and I had some suspicion that I might be pregnant. Sterling kept telling me I should wait a few more days that it may be too early, but patience has never been one of my virtues, so I couldn't wait! Got a positive test! We were excited, but reserved because we knew it was early and lots of things can happen.

July 7th: Went to the doctor and it was confirmed that I was pregnant! For several reasons, we had an ultrasound, but was so early you really couldn't even see anything...we didn't even get pictures to document, but I was pregnant for sure!

July 21st: Went back to the doctor, had another ultrasound and we saw a tiny dot, only 0.24 cm long! But that was our tiny dot! I lay there while she showed us the pictures and just cried. I tried taking a picture of the ultrasound to post, but it's so small you really can't see anything. It's literally a .

August 4th: Only 2 weeks had passed since we went to the doctor, but look at the difference! In just 2 weeks, Baby Dahl went from 0.24 cm to a whopping 1.53 cm. I was now 8 weeks pregnant and although it was too early to hear the heartbeat, we were able to see it fluttering on the screen at 164 bmp! As a side note...they say a heart rate above 150 is a girl. We went to Austin for Presley's birthday that weekend and told our parents. That was the hardest secret I had ever had to keep and I was glad to get it out!

I had not felt one drop of nausea, morning sickness, or really any other noteworthy symptoms, which had me worried at time, but every time I went to the doctor, we got to see our baby, so I knew that he/she was in there! My doctor said I was just one of the lucky ones. In fact, to this day I have not been nauseated one time, had any food aversions, or had any morning sickness!

September 8th: Heard Baby Dahl's heartbeat for the first time! He used the Doppler to listen to the heartbeat and it was the most amazing sound I have ever heard. He went back and forth beween my heartbeat and the baby's and there was such a difference. Baby's heart rate was 151. In other news, I only gained 2 pounds since my first visit. After all the Labor Day festivities, I was convinced that I had already gained a minimum of 5 pounds! All my bloodwork came back great too!

So as of today, I am 14 weeks and 2 days pregnant! My due date is March 15th, 2011. Sterling is 100% convinced that Baby Dahl is a girl. The pencil test that has been correct on everyone in my family predicts for both of us, independently, we will have 2 girls (not at the same time of course!) So, we shall see. I'm not trying to get my hopes up either way. My only prayer is that he/she will be healthy. We have names picked out for either gender so let the monogramming can begin once we find out! I go back to the doctor on October 6th. I will be 17 weeks, but he said we won't find out the gender until the next appointment the first week in November. So unless I can convince him otherwise, I will just have to keep practicing that virtue of patience. No real bump to speak of yet, but once it pops I will post a pic.

For now, please keep us all in your prayers for a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby come March!

Bite-Sized Treats

You know the saying "Good things come in small packages"...well I think this applies to food as well. There's something about turning food into a tasty one or two bite morsel that I just love! I mean, everything is just cuter bite-sized. This past weekend, I helped host a shower for Kayla and Baby Tullos and tailgated with friends for the MSU game. Obviously, both of these events included lots of food! Here are 2 tasty bite-sized treats that were really delish!

Peanut Butter Brownie Bites (What's not to love? Peanut butter AND chocolate in ONE bite...yes please!)

3/4 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar, packed

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 eggs

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

60 mini Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray mini muffin pan with non stick spray.

In a medium bowl, mix melted butter, sugars and vanilla. Beat in eggs one at a time. Gradually add flour, cocoa, and salt and mix until combined. Fill each muffin slot slightly more than halfway but not more than 2/3 full. Place a peanut butter cup in each slot pressing it down until it is almost level with the batter. Bake in preheated oven for 15-18 minutes or until done. Allow the brownie bites to cool for 5 minutes before removing from the cupcake tin.

Mini Crustless Quiches

So, this recipe would be perfect for breakfast, brunch, or a morning tailgate. This recipe makes about 36 mini quiches and the best part is they can be frozen and reheated for 10-15 minutes in the oven the morning of your event.

This recipe is very versatile as to what you can put in your quiches. Ya'll know I'm not much for measuring or following recipes verbatim, so here's what i did:

I decided I wanted to make 2 different kinds of quiches. In one, I did sauteed mushrooms, smoked turkey sausage and roasted red peppers topped with cheddar cheese. For the other, I did turkey bacon, spinach, and caramelized onions and topped with parmesan cheese. You can add whatever seasonings you like. I pretty much eyeballed how much filling I would need. I would say 1-1.5 cups all together. Mix all the filling ingredients together, MINUS THE CHEESE and add 1 teaspoon to each slot in a well greased muffin tin.

For the liquid, beat 4 eggs and add 1.5 cups of heavy cream or half-and-half. Pour the mixture over the filling until almost full and then top with the cheese of your choice.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

Hope you enjoy these bite-sized treats as much as we did! Stay tuned for some exciting news...