For Toys/Babies R Us Shoppers

These stores normally irritate me, but with their corner on the market I shop there anyway. Today they surprised me though. I got an email telling me that the two gates we bought 8 months ago for the stairs have just been recalled. There have been reports of kids busting through the wood slats. Toys R Us and Babies R Us have a free rewards card you swipe (or have them easily look up by giving them your phone number) when you check out and you get coupons in the mail as you accumulate points. Now I know that they also keep track of what you buy and notify you if one of your purchases gets recalled. So many products are recalled and if it doesn't hit the news you'll probably never find out about it. If you shop at these stores you may want to think about getting the rewards card- both for the coupons and for the recall notices.

I hate pregnancy heartburn

That's all.

Baby Shower for Ethan!

Last week my friend, Christy, threw me a fabulous baby shower. We had good company, good food, and a good time. Thanks to Christy, all the people that helped her make it special for me, and everyone that came to celebrate!

I can't believe my friend, Naomi, made this cake for me and bought the cutest little "baby cakes" to go with it! I was really touched, seriously. You wouldn't guess it by the picture, but this mom of two had never baked a cake before and she learned how just for me and made it super adorable. She also kindly took all of these pictures. She's been our family photographer since I was pregnant with Audrey. Her website is www.pitterpatterphotos.com.

What a cute idea! Christy gave me some hand-me-downs and displayed them on a clothesline for decoration.

Adorable diaper cake from Erika.

Presents! I can't believe all the blue! Thanks, everyone, for the great gifts! We really appreciate it!

Audrey (17 months) and her cousin, Caleb (5 months).

I love my husband :-)

And my Audrey :-)

Chris's mom gave Ethan this blanket she made for Chris when he was little. It's an adorable blanket and we're touched that she saved it for him, but had to laugh when we saw the date that was stitched on it. It took more than a few years to finish for Chris.

Grandma and Caleb

Tuckered out!

Poor Christy...she even gets teased when she's wearing heels!

Cheese!

The fam...thanks for coming to Austin!

3D Ultrasound

We had a 3D ultrasound done on March 19th at Clearview Ultrasound. The grandmas were in town for the baby shower so we were happy to have them join us for the experience. This place was great and I highly recommend it. We're going back for another ultrasound in 4 weeks. They let us split our time into two separate visits for no extra charge. Ethan (well, maybe it will be Ethan) was 28 weeks. Next time he will be 32.


Boy parts

I love my balloon

Another first for Audrey today. She has discovered the joy of playing with a balloon. She had balloons for her birthday, but wasn't interested in them. The cashier at HEB gave her one when we checked out today and, boy, she loved it! It's fun to see her take an interest in new things. It also had a lollipop tied to the end, but fortunately she didn't recognize it. She's only had a lollip once before and that was a sticky icky mess! I might have to take her grocery shopping more often now.

Microwave cake in a mug

Here's a recipe for a little cake you make in a coffee mug in the microwave. How cool is that?! Ok, so it's not quite as good as Betty Crocker (a little dry), but hey, at 2:00am who cares? It's kinda fun and only takes a few minutes. I already had all of the ingredients on hand.

3 Minute Microwave Cake

4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
A small splash of vanilla extract and your favorite liquour
1 large coffee mug

Add dry ingredients to your largest mug and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips (if using), vanilla extract and a drop or two of your favorite liquor, then mix again.
Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts (high).
The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed!
Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired.
EAT! (this can serve 2)

Where did I get this recipe? Oddly enough, from someone in Spain that I just met online last night. The one thing I've really missed since I quit working is speaking Spanish. I found a website called www.sharedtalk.com (owned by Rosetta Stone) where people around the world can log on for free and chat with each other in whatever language they want to practice. So far I haven't met anyone creepy and they all have a common interest- learning languages and about other cultures. You can text chat or use a microphone and voice chat. I've really enjoyed it and have learned a lot...even how to make a cake in a mug.

In my defense...

Ok, so I have 3 things to say about Chris's post...

1. It's called accuracy. Maybe Christopher never saw The Brady Bunch episode where Marcia and Greg did an obstacle course to see who was the better driver. What did it come down to? Who could pull closest to the cone (in my case $1000 custom garage cabinets) without knocking the egg off of it. Here's the scene on Youtube. Girl power!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0xaVfzD1OI&feature=related

2. It's also out of necessity. The pictures below are what I have to deal with in the garage. Since I have a hatchback I have to pull up real close to be able to get into the trunk.

And look at all the junk that's piled in the front of the garage! I have to pull right up to Chris's punching bag to fit the car in. In the picture you can also see his lovely bicycle and science posters on the wall. He studies the solar system, maps, the periodic table, reads about the Marriage of Figaro, DNA, and the brain the two times a year that he uses his punching bag. Instead of painting the garage hot pink like I wanted, he made it all educational. Blah!

3. Note to self- hide all cameras or this could turn into a virtual war. :-)

On another note...Since Chris mentioned the cake show I went to, here are a few of my favorite entries.

Don't let Amber park your car

Amber went to a cake show this weekend with a friend. Since Audrey stayed home with me, she took the Protege (the car I usually drive, which doesn't have a car seat) and left the Matrix at home.

When she got home, I noticed her parking job:


... plenty of room in the back ...


Whoa!

Here's shot from above of the front. You can't even slip a finger between the fender at the garage cabinets...

Booby Trap!

I keep a pair of sandals in the kitchen for when I go out the back door.


Yes, that's an entire piece of raisin bread hidden inside one of the them.