Month: March 2011


Mar
2011

My Hometown Baby Shower

categories: arkansas, decorating, family

 Even though I’ve lived far away for the last 6 years, my sweet friends from home threw me a baby shower this past weekend.  Jed was on spring break, so we headed to Little Rock on Thursday for a little extra quality time with my family and friends.  We stayed with my parents as usual, but this time there were 7 dogs at the house as well as 7 people.  It was a bit crowded, to say the least.  I’ll post more pics of Dogapalooza ’11 later, but for now you’ll have to be entertained with Julie’s (one of the hostesses) pictures from the shower.  Crystal, another hostess, hand painted the letters shown above for the nursery.  I am in love with them.  I can’t wait to hang them (or more likely make Jed hang them) on the wall above the crib.  So cute!

 Here I am, with my giant belly.  This child is growing like crazy and moving like a fly girl on “In Living Color.”  Does anyone remember that show?  I wanted to be a fly girl so bad.

 Check out that spread, y’all.  My friends worked so hard and made lots of delicious food for us.  We had an incredible brunch of creme brulee french toast, fresh fruit, 2 different quiches, croissants, and brownies, and 2 different cakes.  The cakes were beautifully decorated to match the paintings that Crystal created for the nursery.  I’ll have pics of both later.  Julie created the diaper cake in the middle, which is now decorating the nursery.

 My niece, Caroline, was a big help unwrapping the gifts.  

 Trisha, my mom’s best friend, and her daughter Sarah have known me since Sarah and I were 4 years old.  Now she is the mama of sweet Maya, and I’m pregnant with my first.  I love that we are still great friends after  27 years.

 Marci, Julie, and Crystal put so much hard work into this shower, and I am so grateful for them.  They are dear friends that I’ve known forever.  Julie and I met very young playing in my neighborhood, then went to junior high and senior high school together.  We’ve been roommates in the past and had a great friendship across the miles for a long time.  Marci and I met in junior high youth group and became friends and partners in crime soon after that.  Crystal and I met in college and were finishing each other’s sentences after a week.  I love these girls and they and their families are some of my favorite people in the world.  They are all mamas already, and have given me so much great advice.  They really get me and it is so important to have people like that in my life.  I miss living near them and hope to again someday.

Do you live in your hometown, 
or are you making a new life far away?

Be sure to check out the Spring Fling Day 4 Giveaways:
A Headband with Sweet Interchangeable Crocheted Flowers from Momma’s Kinda Crafty
A Gorgeous Spring Bouquet of Hair Accessories from My Mommy Can

Mar
2011

Glen Rose Getaway – Dessert with the Pie Peddlers

categories: restaurant review, texas, travel
On our weekend getaway in Glen Rose, we happened upon an antique car show in the main square surrounding the court house.  The streets were closed off and lined with fabulously restored antique cars.  This was perfect for us, because I could wander through the antique shops and boutiques while Jed obsessed over the cars.  Every few minutes he would come in a store to see something I wanted to show him, and I would come out to do the same.  Perfect.  We stumbled on a little place called the Pie Peddlers, and had to stop in.  

  The pies are all made fresh daily, and they have a great selection.  Unfortunately we felt that it was a little overpriced.  The slices were $4 each.  I know that is pretty standard or cheap for restaurant dessert, but you know we are super frugal.  We decided to go for it since we were on vacation.

 Jed ordered the coconut caramel, and was definitely the big winner of the day.  It was phenomenal.

 I had the key lime pie, which is my go-to dessert.  It was good, but not fabulous.  I’m a little bit of a key lime pie snob, apparently.

Overall, I would say that stopping in Pie Peddlers is worth it for the ambiance and great service.  The same ladies who make the pies wait on the tables, and are super sweet.  Skip the key lime and go straight for the coconut, chocolate, or coconut caramel.  
What is your go-to dessert?  
Don’t forget to check out the Spring Fling Day 3 Giveaways: 
A Vintage Inspired Necklace at Ask Anna
A Super Cute Apron at While He Was Napping 

Mar
2011

Glen Rose Getaway – Dining at Sunset Ridge Bed and Breakfast

categories: baby, dining out, restaurant review, texas, travel
On our baby moon getaway in Glen Rose, Texas, we found a really special bed and breakfast inn.  Jed searched long and hard online to find a place that fit our needs and our style.  Sunset Ridge is in our price range and is far more modern than many B & Bs.  I’ll post pics of the place later on, and tell you all about it.  The photo above is the view from our private patio during sunset.  As you can see, the name Sunset Ridge is a perfect fit.  Besides the obvious breakfast part of the B & B, Sunset Ridge offers a four course dinner for an extra fee.  The couple who runs the place gives a few options to choose from, and let me tell you, we chose wisely.  

 We started with homemade Parmesan Black Pepper Crackers and Herb Dip.  We had already dipped into it by the time I thought to take a picture.  The dip and crackers were savory and light, a great starter.  The lighting was also very “romantic”, making it difficult to get a great photo.  Oh well.  You get the idea.

 The second course was a Poached Pear and Blue Cheese Salad.  We were a little nervous about that combination, but it was delicious.

For the entree, we each had a Filet of Beef with Roasted Asparargus and Roasted Fingerling Potatoes.  Jed described the steak as the best he had ever had.  That, my friends, is a great compliment.  We got the recipe before we left, believe me.

 See the above photo for evidence of the deliciousness of our entree.  Amazing.

We shared a huge piece of Double Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Dipped Strawberries for dessert.  It was awesome, and we were fully stuffed after indulging in a fantastic four course dinner.  One of the best things about it was that we only had to walk across the veranda to our room after dinner.  Come back later this week for more about our Glen Rose getaway.

Have you stayed in an awesome Bed and Breakfast Inn?  Tell me about it.  

Spring Fling Day 2 Giveaways:
A Tutu and Bows at Time Well Spent
Handmade Hair Accessories at A Very Dandoislion Life

Mar
2011

Glen Rose Getaway – Dining at the Riverhouse Grill

categories: dining out, restaurant review, texas, travel
Recently, Jed and I went on a little weekend getaway, a baby moon of sorts.  We wanted to keep it close by and frugal, so we went for one night to Glen Rose, a little town southwest of Ft. Worth.  We stayed at a phenomenal bed and breakfast that I’ll tell you about later, and had so much fun wandering around a new town.  We found the Riverhouse Grill just off the main square for lunch, and we so pleased with everything they offered.  The restaurant is family run out of a 100 year old house and features fresh, local, creatively prepared food.  

  Jed picked the chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, and then went double carb with the mac and cheese au gratin.  He loved all of it, but said the mac and cheese was the best he has ever eaten.  Seriously.  He let me try it and it was out of control good.  I don’t know what they did to it, but it can’t be good for you, and made us both want to lick the dish.

 I had the ultimate ham sandwich with parmesan truffle fries.  Wow.  The sandwich was on fresh whole grain bread with 3 different kinds of cheese, local ham, and fresh apple slices.  The fries had a savory flavor from the truffles that was amazing.

If you are ever in Glen Rose, I highly recommend stopping at the Riverhouse Grill.  I love supporting small town, family run places, and this one is a winner for sure.

What is your favorite off-the-beaten-path restaurant?

Mar
2011

Pregnancy Update – Test Results

categories: baby, jesus, pregnancy

Yesterday I got my long awaited test results for the gestational diabetes 3 hour glucose tolerance test. Ok, I really only had to wait over the weekend,but it seemed like an eternity. My results came back totally normal for the whole test! I am so thankful and praising God for the wake up call to eat healthier. We needed it desperately, and had become really lazy about our eating and exercise. Type 2 diabetes runs in both of our families, so we are now on a mission to fight those genetics. This whole ordeal has put Jed and I on the same page nutritionally, which is huge for us. And hopefully will prevent us from being huge in the future. 🙂 Thanks so much to everyone who prayed for Bun and me.

We are praising God for so much today- spring and spring break, good test results, loving family and friends who are kind enough to throw us baby showers, our fabulous and affordable rent house, great jobs that we love, great friends, our neighborhood lake, and so much more.

For what are you thankful today?

Mar
2011

**UPDATE** Our Homemade Baby Book – With Free Printables

categories: baby, crafts, free printables, handmade, pregnancy

freeprintablegenderneutralbabybook

**Update** I’ve added a free printables tab to the top menu of the blog (under crafts/diy).  Click there to find all the baby book pages to print for free in either PDF or Publisher (so you can edit) files!  Enjoy. They are free for personal use only.  I just ask that you share the love on Pinterest and follow my blog through Bloglovin’ or social media.

My quest for the perfect baby book began back in the fall when we first discovered that I was pregnant.  I found so many cute ones for boys and for girls, but NOTHING cute for those of us who don’t find out the gender until the birth.  I did find one gender neutral book at a boutique here in town, but it was $70.  Are you kidding me?  For a baby book?  Come on now, people.

So, I decided the search was over and I would create my own.  I found a couple of great coupons for Hobby Lobby and bought an 8 1/2×11 chocolate brown scrapbook and a big package of bright primary colored cardstock.  You can also find a great deal on 8 1/2 x 11 cardstock and scrapbook albums on Amazon. I decided to go with the primary and bright colors instead of traditional pastels, because they seemed more fun.
I found a great gender neutral and baby book appropriate font called Drummon here.  It reminds me of printed handwriting with cute dots on each letter.  I love the simplicity of it.
I printed out each page on a different bright color of scrapbook quality paper.  The pages are red, blue, orange, yellow, and green.  Hopefully using the high quality paper will prevent fading or bleeding over time.
I’ve already filled out all of the pages that I can, and will continue as the baby is born and begins to grow.  Now I’m adding some fun stickers and more personal touches.  So far, this project has cost me about $17.  I probably could have found a lame baby book for less than that, but I love how personal this one is, and how I can continue to make it more so.
There is a page for my side of the family, too.
Please feel free to download them for any time from my “free printables” page.  They are for personal use only.  I just ask that you share the love by pinning this page and following my blog through Bloglovin or social media.  Thanks! I’d love some feed back about what pages I should add.  The problem with not having an actual baby book to work from is that I don’t know what I’m missing.
What pages should I add?

Mar
2011

Things Are Swell(ing) Around Here.

categories: baby, pregnancy

Everyone’s favorite 3rd trimester pregnancy symptom, swelling (or edema if you want to get technical) has reared its ugly head at my house.  Or more specifically on my feet.  I’m basically down to flip flops at this point, which is fine because I love them and it’s warm outside.  On our babymoon we did a little hiking at Dinosaur Valley State Park, so I wore athletic socks and my hiking shoes.  As you can see above, my tootsies did a little swelling during the hike and the socks had a pattern.  That pattern became magically indented into my feet.  Awesome.  I had never experienced anything like this before, so I felt the need to document the occasion for your enjoyment.  I’m sure you have many more puffy feet and cankle pics to look forward to.  Get excited, people.  Please know that I’m not really complaining, but more laughing at myself and my puffy feet.  A girl has to keep herself entertained somehow.


Mar
2011

Pregnancy Update – 28 Weeks and Complications

categories: baby, pregnancy

I am now 28 weeks along in my pregnancy, which means I have about 12 weeks to go.  I went to the lab yesterday for my 1 hour glucose tolerance test, and I tested very high.  I had an appointment with my OB today, and she ordered a 3 hour glucose test for later on this week.  She thinks that I have gestational diabetes because of the high test result and my massive weight gain during the last month.  I will not be at all surprised if the test show that I do have GD.  I’ve felt that something wasn’t right with my body, and that I was gaining too much weight despite trying to eat healthy and walking more.  After the test yesterday I felt like I’d been run over by a truck, and couldn’t get out of bed the rest of the day.  I am so not looking forward to the longer test on Friday.  My doctor told me to go ahead and start eating like I do have it, until we can get the test results and know for sure.  She instructed me to cut out carbs and concentrate on lean protein, fresh vegetables, and fruit.  Hopefully I can regulate my diet and exercise more and get this thing under control.

I hate having complications with this pregnancy.  Worry can consume me so easily.  I’ve had a few other complications so far, as I’m Rh Negative and have a fast growing fibroid tumor on my left ovary.  The good news is that my body hasn’t started producing antibodies towards a Rh positive baby.  I was able to get the shot today to prevent any issues arising there.  I’ll just have to get one more shot after the birth, no big deal.

The fibroid tumor is fast growing, but isn’t causing any issues right now.  Its placement is such that it is out of the way for the delivery and not causing problems with the uterus.  It is growing rapidly.  At 12 weeks it was the size of a plum, and by 20 weeks it had reached the size of a grapefruit.  We will see how much it has grown again at 32 weeks.      

On a more positive note, Jed took these pictures of me and Baby Bun at Dinosaur Valley State Park in Glen Rose.  I don’t love them, but I don’t completely hate them either.  Which effect do you like best?  We had a lovely baby moon in Glen Rose that I’ll tell you about later.  I hope that I’ll have good news to tell you next week about the 3 hour glucose tolerance test.  Please pray with me that the test will come back negative for gestational diabetes, and that I can be diligent about controlling my diet and exercise.