Jelly Bean # 2 - Ultrasound

Baby # 2 @ 19 weeks!

Yes, we know what we are having. No, we aren't telling, just yet. But, we are excited to share that all of the fingers & toes are where they should be, and the heart beating perfectly. It was so miraculous to see the tiny little body (only 9 ounces!)

I just love little baby feet...

The ultrasound seems to make it more real...I'm becoming more excited and can't wait for the little one to get here!

Sex Prediction: Old Wives Tales

I have my ultrasound tomorrow morning to search for a penis! Which means today is the last day that I can make any sort-of unbiased guesses as to what jelly bean # 2 might be...I think its just too funny to look at old wives tales that supposedly predict whether its a boy or a girl. I wonder whether there is really something to them, or if they are just random myths. [Mythbusters pregnancy edition? hmmm!] Here are a few of them that I found interesting...

Am I carrying the baby high or low?
High = girl
Low = boy

I feel like at this point it is too early to say...but, I feel like the baby is really low.

Is the heartbeat above or below 140 bpm?
+140 bpm = girl
>140 bpm = boy

At my last appointment, the baby's heart rate was 154 bpm.

Did I have morning sickness at the beginning of the pregnancy or later in the pregnancy?
Beginning - Girl
Later - Boy

I started having morning sickness as soon as I found out I was pregnant

What am I craving?
Sweet = girl
Salty = boy

I am always craving sweets. I'm pretty sure I was born craving sweets! BUT, this pregnancy, I have definitely been craving salt! Like ramen...eww!

According to the Mayans, if the age of the mother at conception and the year of conception are both even or both odd, it's a girl. However, if one is even and one is odd, it's a boy.

They are both even. Because of my birthday - they will almost always be even or odd. Hmm...

Break outs can supposedly be blamed on girl babies.

I have been breaking out a little more than normal.

According to the Chinese Gender Chart...

Girl.

So the final tally...

Boy - 2
Girl - 5

Now for guessing...

I think its another boy. David thinks its a girl.

What do you think? According to your votes so far...

Girl - 11 votes   Boy - 5 votes

Feel free to take a guess!

We will be making "the announcement" Thanksgiving weekend.

Have you heard any Old Wives Tales about sex prediction? Any guesses as to where they came from?

Amelia Jane

My darling niece (the first girl in the family, might I add!) made her debut this weekend! Of course, the first thing I had to do when I found out that she was a GIRL was go shopping...I'm just loving all of the pink! She is just the cutest thing. I am so glad that I got to meet her!

Amelia Jane

A Happy Aunt...

The sweet family...

Mama & Amelia

We are so happy that she has arrived! Click here to view the baby shower for baby Amelia. 

Up in the Clouds: Nursery Update

A whimsical Royal Aero hot air balloon model is now flying over the nursery, amongst the clouds.

The clouds were incredibly simple to make! Literally, it only took about 15 minutes to make them and hang them. It makes me want to hang clouds everywhere in our house...

Inspiration from Rambling Renovators & cloud tutorial from Oh Dee Doh!

Materials & Cost:
Royal Aero Hot Air Balloon Large - $39 (regular price: $73) via eBay
Polyester pillow fill - already had
Fishing line: $1.80 (2.99 - 40% off coupon at Michaels)
.12 mm gauge jewelry wire: $2.99
Scotch Tape - on hand

Total: < $44

Nursery Update: More Storage

I was able to find a temporary toy storage solution in a shoe rack that I had laying around the house, unused. But, it just wasn't holding everything...

Who knew that another, larger solution was also just hanging out in the house...

 This was the bookshelf we used before our installing wall-to-wall bookshelves. 

Storage boxes from Ikea...and galvanized buckets 

 A child's eye view...

Jelly Cats...

Dmitri loves it when I organize his toys. He seems to think they are much more interesting when he gets to dishevel them!

Total Cost of this addition: $10 - Ikea Storage boxes

Nursery Update: Curtains

After painting the nursery, I remembered seeing this amazing apartment design:

With these gorgeous curtains....

They did not say where they came from, but when browsing the Ikea website I happened across them! At $60 a pair, they were a splurge, but I really feel they add something big to the room! And the grey could not be a more perfect match. 

Here they are...

Total cost: $150 - 4 curtain panels (Ikea Stockholm Blad) and 2 curtain rods (also from Ikea)

Fall is in my tummy...Menu Monday

Winter Squash Soup via Smitten Kitchen

I have been in the mood for seasonal cooking with the crispness that is in the air, finally! (Can you believe we were in the 90's this last week...sigh.)

Monday: Tomato & Almond Pesto over Angel Hair

Tuesday: Veggie Subs on fresh Italian bread

Wednesday: Asparagus Hash (with no pork) -we loved it so much, we've eaten it two weeks in a row!

Thursday: Out to Eat since neither of us were home

Friday: Breakfast for dinner: French Toast & Cheese Grits

Saturday: Vegetarian chili with the most amazing sour cream biscuits in the world

Sunday: Butternut Squash Soup  (I left out the acorn squash & I used shredded Parmesan instead of Gruyere) and Pumpkin Pie (made from a REAL pumpkin)

It was a tasty fall week. And I saved $6 this week with coupons.

I linked up to Menu Monday!

Changing a Light Fixture: Back Porch

Our back porch was starting to feel neglected, but with the weather becoming slightly cooler (it's been 87 here the entire week...), we are coming out of our summer hibernation in the South and enjoying some outdoor time. Dmitri especially loves playing amongst nature. And we have been eating most of our meals on the back porch.

This has brought to my attention the forgotten back porch, and the half-finished makeover that is underway. The light fixture was such eye-sore.

The birds liked it...

But me? Not so much...

So, we replaced it with this pendant from Ikea...

 

  

And now we are all much happier and enjoying our more aesthetically pleasing porch and light fixture.

Total Cost: $29.99 - Ikea Ottava Light Fixture

Well worth it!

Project Nursery: Step 1: Paint!

We have been wanting to start on Dmitri's playroom for a while now. The fact that I am approaching the halfway mark in my pregnancy with jelly bean # 2 has put a little bit more pressure to get it started, so first on my list was changing the backdrop.

I have had a long argument in my head about whether to paint it at all, since it was a nice blue color. I asked your opinion, and you said without hesitation that it was worth it to paint it. My vision for the room has changed a little bit, one reason being that we want to keep it "gender neutral" (as if colors could have gender...) since we don't know what this baby will be yet (We find out next visit!).

So we picked a slightly blustery grey.

Here is the before...

And here it is now!

 I like that it has softened the room, like a fluffy cloud on a windy day.

I am planning to add accents of orange, red, yellow, and pink!

Any ideas for accents?

The color is Olympic's Georgian Silver!

Branching Out: Menu Monday

Since my recent discovery and obsession with Smitten Kitchen, I have felt much more inspired in the kitchen. If you are ever feeling the dark cloud of blasé cooking overcoming you, then Smitten Kitchen is the antidote. I made a mental goal since starting Menu Monday of trying one new recipe a week. This week I might have overdone it a little with three new recipes...but I have found a recipe that will definitely be added to the favorites list. We are so obsessed, you will see it again, next week!. So here you go. The weekly line up:

Monday: Vegetarian chili with sour cream and cheddar biscuits . These biscuits are to die for. I made them with whole wheat flour, and you would never know the difference!
Tuesday: Spinach, tomato, and cheddar cheese omelets
Wednesday:  Blue cheese and red potato tart Honestly, this was more work than it was worth. Maybe it's because I'm not a big fan of blue cheese...The husband loved it!
Thursday: Out to eat!
Friday: Asparagus Pancetta Hash -vegetarianized and served with an egg on top. Simply amazing. There wasn't a single bite left in the skillet. Simple with only 3 ingredients. And just delicious!!


We had company in from out of town and midterms during the week, so there was less cooking than usual.

In other news, I have begun to coupon. I have thought about trying for a year or two, but I have been daunted by the lack of organic coupons. I have decided this time that sure, I might not be able to lower my weekly grocery bill to $10 and get $150 worth of food, but every dollar adds up. This week, I started by saving $5.

New recipes you've tried this week?


What about coupons? Do you?

I linked up at Menu Monday!

Fireplace Mini Makeover: Black Magic

Our living room started out like this...

Underwent a pretty major transformation, thanks to some paint and primer...

 

But I just didn't feel like it was "finished" yet. For a while I couldn't figure out quite what it was...and then I realized, I need to paint it black! Thanks to some black magic, I feel complete..

Ok, no promises that I won't change something up again, but for now...I'm loving it! 

Paint: Olympic's Black Magic (No-VOC)

My Custom Made Sign: Inspired by The Lettered Cottage

When we installed the bookshelves, I knew immediately what I wanted to go above the doorway...

A close up of the lettering...

The bottom two photos are from the wonderful lady who made it...

Does it look a little familiar? That would be because I absolutely fell in love with Layla Palmer's sign at The Lettered Cottage.  So, I was able to contact Susie Harris, a truly amazing sign maker, to make me one very similar to it. I changed the wording in honor of David's and my favorite coffee shop in Highlands, NC, where we got married. We have spent many wonderful hours sipping coffee in the cozy small town coffee house, and I love being reminded of that every time I look at our sign! If you are looking for a custom sign, I highly recommend Susie! She was super fast, and the sign turned out perfectly.

Here is Layla's:

What do you think? Any ideas on what to put on top of the bookshelves? I was thinking baskets...

Are you hungry yet? Menu Monday

This week I wasn't quite as good about sticking to our menu, but I do have the excuse of being really sick for about half of the week. So, here is what we actually ate...

spaghetti squash

Tuesday: Homemade veggie subs on an Italian loaf
Wednesday: Too sick to have an appetite (fruit)
Thursday: Homemade red-pepper pizza
Friday: Take out
Saturday: Heirloom tomato sandwiches & garlic roasted potatoes
Sunday: Roasted Spaghetti Squash topped with marinara sauce (an easy and delicious fall dish!)

Baking: Blackberry muffins (I took a blueberry muffin recipe that I had, added 1/2 c. of honey, and used blackberries instead of blueberries. Delicious!)

Hopefully this next week we will be feeling and eating better! I linked up at Org Junkie!

How was your week? Any delightful recipes you'd like to share?