big belly, big belly

I think its time for a good belly shot.

and there you have it. That is one big belly. It's hard to believe I still have 3 more months to get even bigger. December 25th is feeling very far away.

Scrumptious

This Salad is so delicious, really it's the dressing I'm in love with, but the whole combination is so good I have to share. The dressing reminds me of the Cafe Rio dressing which I can never get enough of. Ryan and I now put this dressing on pretty much everything....burritos, tacos, sandwiches....you name. it gives a nice zest to any lunch or dinner.

Mexican Salad

Dressing:
1 C Mayo
1/2 C sour cream
1 packet of ranch seasoning
1 bunch cilantro
4 med. tomatillos
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp lime (or squeeze one lime)
1/2 tsp Cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp pepper

In a blender mix ingredients in this order. The only tricky part I think are the tomatillos (they are little green tomatoes that come with a wrapper around them, peal and quarter them before putting in blender).

Salad:
lettuce
tamtoes
black beans - drained
chick peas - drained
Avocado

You will love this, I promise!

My first Tag

Here goes, my very first Tag from my good friend Ami.

Divulging Tag!

1. Briefly describe something stupid that you've done: This one still makes my heart hurt thinking about it. I felt guilty for days afterwards. To preface Sadie had just moved to a big girl bed and was still getting used to all of the new freedoms that come with that. She'd been sleeping great for her naps that week taking extroardinarily long naps for her and this day way just the same. I was feeling very proud of myself for having gotten a ton done while she was napping. I kept thinking, man, she's sleeping a long time today, that's awesome! I'd go to the bottom of the stairs to listen....no sadie yet. So I kept mopping and what not. I eventually made my way upstairs only to hear a faint crying coming from her room. The little bugger had woken up and then shut herself in her closet, lights off, and was stuck in there for who knows how long. Of course I couldn't hear her crying from downstairs from inside the closet. When I rescued her she was so happy to be free! I felt HORRIBLE and only hoped I hadn't traumatized her permanently. She seems to have recovered just fine. I now am OCD about shutting her closet door before bedtime and naps.

2. Name something brilliant that you've done lately: Ryan and I have made it a habit of visiting local garage sales on Saturday mornings and have found some great deals. Today was no different. We found Sadie some great toys including a wooden play kitchen for just two dollars. I love a great deal especially when you would have gladly paid good money for the same item. We have rooms to fill with this new house so we're getting creative. We got a great antique dining room table a couple weeks back at an estate sale that we're going to refinish and recover the chairs. Can't wait to finish that project! nothing beats the high of a good deal.

3. Write a paragraph out of your journal from five or ten or fifteen years ago, closest to today's date. Feel free to change names to protect your dignity:
Sept. 10, 2000 "I got to talk to Annie today for the first time since she left. I miss her so much it was great to hear what all she's up to. So I've decided, looking back on my high school years so far, I'll think of my senior year as my favorite. Even though Annie isn't here to guide me through it all my problems I am still loving it. I think not having her here is helping me be more outgoing. I'm no longer in her shadow. Not that hers is a bad shadow to follow.....I am just being so much more independent now."
Annie always was a hard act to follow, but I have so many fun memories with her from our high school years in Oklahoma. I was always glad I could say I was Annie's sister.

4. What is something you love about yourself (don't worry, no one will think you're bragging): I love that I love to run. Not many people can say that they actually love to run. But really, I do. It was definately an aquired love, but none-the-less it is something that without fail I can go out and do and always come back feeling glad I went. It spurs all kinds of productivity in me, something about being physically active makes me want to just keep going throughout the day and that makes me happy. At the end of each summer I always get a little claustrophobic knowing I'll be couped up inside and it'll be too cold for our morning run outside.

5. Name a useless talent that you have: I am an exceptional smoothie maker. This comes only after years and years of dutifull work at Jamba Juice. I have excellent multi tasking skills when it comes to making smoothies, juicing orange juice, making carrot juice and wheat grass.

6. Tell a short experience that makes you laugh: One of our first nights in Colorado while we were still in the apartments we were watching TV and out of the corner of my eye I saw a little mouse scamper across our floor. I immediately jumped up making sure I had no portion of me touching the ground exclaiming that I wasn't positive...but I think we just might have a mouse in our living room. At that Ryan also jumped onto the couch. We stayed safely on the couch til we had come up with a game plan. Get the broom and run the little sucker out the door. That is much easier said than done. By the end of it we had both couches turned over, a broom and mop in hand, the hallway and bedroom doors all blocked off and each of us guarding a portion of the room. Success finally came after an hour or so of squirmishness and never feeling like you could set foot on the floor again. Since this incidence we have had our fair share of mice encounters and have overcome that fear. One could say we are seasoned mice hunters. Mice beware.

7. Tag whomever, if you want: I Tag whoever wants to browse through their old journals and relive the past a little.

Ode to the Library

Okay, so I'm a library addict, I admit it! take me away. No but really my life isn't complete without my little plastic library card that I keep safely tucked away in my wallet. I for some reason just barely made a visit to my new library. I was excited all morning I even took a shower for the glorious event, packed Sadie a snack, and ditch effort distraction toys as a last resort (any mom knows that taking small children to the library can be disastrous, and almost always is). I was ready, I debated between two equally close libraries and opted with the Commerce City one and headed out on the 20 min. drive (pretty much everything is at least 20 min. from our house so I feel like its quite a trip whenever we go out). I'm driving and the road is getting sketchier and sketchier as I go and finally pull up to this tiny little post-it sized building......seriously....this is it??? Okay that's fine, I can handle this, I go in and there are really only like 3 shelves sparsely stocked with tattered old books. What a disappointment. I was so bummed I decided to drive another 20 min. to the other library in an attempt to redeem Colorado's library system in my mind. Another sad disappointment awaited me. Another very small library stood before me. At this one, as opposed to the first, I did find 1 of the 5 books I had been looking for. This'll hold me over for the next week, but I'm afraid for my future. I have an overwhelming need to feed my reading addiction! Heaven forbid I should actually have to buy a book. gasp!

-Sorely disappointed library frequenter-

a baby no more

It's time to face the facts, yes, I've known this for a while now, but it is starting to sink in. Sadie's just not a baby anymore. I watched her and Ryan come inside from getting the mail the other day. Sadie strutting down the hall with her funny little saunter chattering up a storm to her dad and thought, my goodness when did she get so big! My baby now....

• has definate opinions of her own that she shares freely


• will tell me how cute my clothes are along with all of her dolly's


• thoroughly appreciates a pretty dress


• loves to help make dinner


• thinks she can run SO fast


• talks and talks and talks!


• thinks she is pretty darn funny


• sleeps in a big girl bed


• has conquered going down the slide after being afraid all summer


• loves to play with other big kids
  
• and loves to snuggle

Though she's getting bigger I think she'll always be a baby to her mom and dad. I'm getting very baby anxious lately, it's a good thing this growing belly is a daily reminder of what we have to look forward to in December! I don't think I ever posted what we're having.....dum da da dum......... A GIRL! and yes, I couldn't be happier. I am so excited Sadie will have a sister to buddy up with. She'll be such a good big sister I have no doubt. She is always taking care of her baby dolls and shushing me when they're napping, she'll be good to her sis. I'm 25 weeks now and can feel this little girl kicking like crazy every evening when Ryan and I sit down to enjoy a little TV. I love that feeling, it doesn't get old. (not yet anyway).

ps. the move to a big girl bed went so smoothly, we did it when we moved in because we didn't feel like setting up her crib just to take it down in a few months. She loves her new bed and still sleeps great. Sweet girl.

Lots and lots to post about

We are all moved in and for the most part settled into our house and are thoroughly enjoying all the extra space. We've had visitors for almost the last three weeks and have loved every minute of it. First my parents came down and brought some furniture and good stuff and helped us celebrate Sadie's 2nd birthday. We had so much fun and they helped us TONS and tons with getting organized and figuring out some of the more tricky projects on our home list.

Sadie enjoying her birthday loot

The day my parents left, Ryan's mom came in town stayed for a week and helped organize and helped out with all sorts of the random move-in errands. That same night she came in, Dave and Jodee Luke came to visit us for the night! It was so great to catch with close friends and get the Milwaukee scoop from them.

After our company left we decided to go camping that weekend up near Georgetown. It was this great spot up the canyon not too far off the road, but you felt like there was no one around forever. We ended up leaving a little later than planned and by the time we got there it was dark and soggy. Not so easy to get a fire going when all the ground is soggy and wet. My boy scout Ryan pulled through and we got a god enough fire going to cook up our hot dogs and s'mores (and really that's all you need right?). In the morning we hiked around a bit and then rode our bikes through Georgetown. The town has some great old houses that are quite charming. It was a fun way to spend the Saturday for sure.

trying to keep warm, notice our breakfast of sandwiches..... the gourmet pancakes and eggs kind of flopped so we ditched em and had lunch instead

some of Sadie's mannerisms just kill me. This is one of them. She'll walk around with her hands clasped behind her back or perched on her hips. She looks like an old lady when she does it. who knows where she got it from.

we came across this great estate sell and Sadie went crazy over this doll. I got some pretty sweet sewing finds myself. This doll has proved to be endless hours of entertainment. Unfortunately this homemade gem couldn't quite handle that much Sadie. By the time we got home one hand kept falling off and the face kept pealing off. poor thing.

she is a very conscientious mommy. This baby never went without her bottle.

The next week, Jason, Aimee and the kids came to see us for a few days. They brought a whole carload of fun with them and their 5 kids. Sadie had a blast with her cousins and we had a big birthday bash for the twins. Here are a few highlights.

We checked out the Butterfly Pavilion. It proved to be very entertaining.

Okay so not many pictures to document our fun withthe kids, but really there were few hands to spare for picture taking. I have a whole new respect for Aimee who can and does do everything and still has time to play with her cute kids and not lose her sanity in the mix of it all. It's a good thing kids come gradually that's all I've got to say or else I'd be down and out after a good week.

Right after Aimee and Jason left we met up with them and the rest of the Donohues at the Ranch down in Southern Utah for Labor Day. I think this goes down as one of my favorite Ranch trips. I don't know if its because we haven't been in so long, or because the whole family was there or that Sadie was old enough to run around and enjoy it all whatever it was, it was a blast. We rode 4 wheelers, played card games, ate way too much food, had picnics, played bocci, and soaked up having everyone together. I fell in love with the ranch again this trip, I'm so glad we're close enough to visit now!

Sadie snugglin with her Papa John

Tyler and Rory going at each other

Papa steve and all his grandbabies

dirty, dirty Ryan after a long quad ride

one last look at the ranch

That was a seriously ginormous post but I guess that's what happens when you only post every few months. I still need to take pictures of our house to post, but that'll have to wait till another day.