Happy Valentines Day

Last night was the "Daddy Daughter Dance". Lydia had her first experience with hair spray :) Shane brought her home a real rose, but she opted to take her favorite silk one to the dance. I teared up as I watched them drive away. Lydia was so excited. It was the sweetest thing ever. Something about a little girl's love for her daddy. It is pretty much unrivaled.

(P.S. Love you Dad)

Winner!

The winner of the Mighty Leaf Giveaway is Stephland3. Congrats! Email me your address I will get you your prize. Check back this Wednesday for my next giveaway!

The Best Valentine treat EVER.

Oh wow. I am not a huge brownie person, but I finally got around to making Ina Garden's Outrageous Brownies this week. Chocolate Bliss. This recipe makes enough to feed an entire classroom. Or 20 REALLY hungry adults. I switched the unsweetened chocolate for bittersweet chocolate to sweeten them just a little more.

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Speaking of sugary goodness.....A couple weeks ago I was at the OB/GYN for a routine pre-natal visit. I had been waiting in the exam room for a while when my doctor's nurse rushed into the room looking angry. "Why haven't you been to see the high risk doctor yet?!" she asked with alarm. I looked at her for a moment and then calmly answered. "Why exactly would I need to see a high risk doctor?". The nurse stared at me, recomposed herself and said "I will go get the doctor to speak to you."

Hum. That didn't sound good.

A couple weeks previously I had been exposed to the parvovirus (also known as fifth disease). Lydia had it, but she didn't show symptoms until she was already past the contagious period. Fifth disease is no big deal for those who have it. Just like a cold with a rash. Unfortunately, it has very serious complications for pregnant women, and more importantly, their unborn babies. I was tested for immunity and received a cheery message from a nurse that all came back back fine and that I didn't need to worry about it. Apparently she had misread the results. I had a lot to worry about.

As the doctor discussed things like heart failure, brain swelling and anemia- I was grateful a friend has offered to watch Lydia during my visit and I was kicking myself that I didn't ask Shane to come with me. The doctor made an appointment to get me into the high risk doctor and calmly assured me that all of this was most likely just a precaution. I smiled and keep my cool.

I called Shane to update him on the situation. I again stayed cool as did he. No reason to worry until we knew more.

On my way home I realized I need to grab something for lunch so I turned into the local grocery store. I grabbed a few things and walked into the bread aisle. There I saw a box of Entenmann's Family pack donuts. Every time I go grocery shopping I look at that box and am tempted. For years I have walked past. This time I grabbed the box and threw it into my cart. There was a large women shopping next to me, grabbing a similar product. She was walking briskly back to the motorized shopping cart that she had been driving around the store.

I was in a huge hurry as I already was much later than I told me friend I would be. I rushed to the checkout lane, but the scooter lady beat me there. I watched her ever so slowly try to put the food onto the belt without actually standing up. I asked her if she would like any help, and she looked at me as though I had horribly insulted her. "No! I can do it." ----Well, duh. I knew she could do it. I saw her basically running in the cookie aisle, but apparently now she was crippled.

After 10 minutes or so, she was finally checked out. Sweetly she asked the checkout girl "Could you be a dear and help me out with my groceries?" My mouth dropped, as did the checkout girls. There was a huge line of shoppers waiting and this was obviously not part of the service this store provided. "Um, I will have to find someone to do that for you." the confused girl finally replied. Then she left. I could see her aimlessly walking around the store, looking for anyone free.

As I watched this shopper, perfectly content to cause so much needless delay, I could not stop all the pent up emotion from welling up and spilling over my checks. I rammed my sunglasses over my eyes, tore the Entenmann's donuts open and shoved half a white power donut into my mouth.

It is amazing how fast comfort food can work. I immediately felt better. Driving home I felt the baby react to the sugar and I was overwhelmed by fear for his well being. I crammed a huge chuck of a chocolate doughnut in my mouth. It tasted exactly like wax, but it was fat and sugar and it was hitting my bloodstream at record speed, so I finished it quickly.

By the time I got home I was working on my third donut and my suede jacket was completely covered with power and chocolate crumbs. I keep my sunglasses on to hide my swollen eyes.

That day I had five donuts. Five. I didn't even feel guilty. I only wished I had picked up some funyuns to go along with them.

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Update. I am seeing the high risk doctor weekly now. So far the baby seems to be fine. The doctor is hopeful that within 8 weeks we will know for sure either way. I feel pretty good that all will be well. Prayers on his behalf are always welcome. - I like my new doctor. He is really handsome and charming which pairs nicely with his Spanish accent. I feel like I am on the set of Grey's Anatomy when I see him. His office is gorgeous. Even his nurse is incredibly attractive. (Shane verified that for me.) I would normally play along and imagine I am the stylish and mysterious patient, but Lydia having an "accident" in the exam room kind of breaks scene.

Advice for the New Mommy

About a month from now, my sister Emily will give birth to a little boy. She will be the first of my siblings to have a baby and I was thinking about what advice I would give her. I'm not an expert. I have only one child with one on the way. Still, I know a few things:

• Start wearing a night bra now. I would recommend this for anyone pregnant, starting at about 5 months. Your "girls" get big. Night bras really can save them from unnecessary gravitational damage. You will definitely want one if you are nursing, but I recommend wearing one from now on, even after nursing. They are totally comfortable and so worth the return. You can find them at Motherhood for under $15.


• Invest in a really comfy, but cute black "sweat" outfit. Black yoga pants with a matching hoodie would work great too. Most new moms choose one comfy thing that they wear basically as a uniform for a month or so after their new little bundle arrives. Choosing something black hides that unfortunate weird shape your body will take on. Also, people will be showing up with food, gifts and just wanting to see the baby. For some reason, when you are in all black, you look like you are trying. So many people mentioned to me how they were impressed I was already getting ready for the day, when in reality I was just wearing my black sweat outfit that I had been in for days, had thrown my unwashed hair into a high ponytail and (maybe) brushed my teeth. Remember, you will be as big as you were at about 5-6 months, so that is a good time to buy your outfit.


• Read Happiest Baby on the Block. It is a non-controversial, easy read about calming a screaming newborn. Reading this before you have a screaming newborn is much easier than waiting until you really need it. Have your husband read it too.


• If you are wondering what you actually need for your baby, and what to register for, read Baby Bargains. Seriously, this book saved me so much stress and money. It basically rates every possible baby purchase and tells you what you actually need - and what you can re-gift at a different baby shower. (You don't need a wipe warmer. Just hold the wipe in your hands for a few seconds and it will be nice and toasty.)


• Ignore most advice. Of all the advice I give, this is the most important. :) Most advice really won't apply. Before relating my next experience, let me say that I love my mom dearly. She is a wonderful mother and did a fabulous job raising 5 children. However, these 5 children were the easiest babies imaginable. She remembers mostly holding them close as they slept. Mostly I will remember screaming into a pillow as mine screamed in the next room. - One day on the phone with her I was trying to explain the nightmare I was living. She replied, "I remember when you had colic. It was horrible." I was amazed. I hadn't known I had had colic. She continued, "Yes, I remember it happened one day. I couldn't get you to stop crying all afternoon. I was a mess." I just sat in silence as the epiphany hit me. My mother's worst memory with a baby was ONE afternoon of crying. That is what she thought colic was? I had been dealing with constant screaming and no sleep everyday for over a year. I realized that while my mom knew a lot about being a mother, she could give little advice that would help me at this time in my life. (I will be stalking her right around the time I have teenagers though.)

Every baby is so different. I remember watching Lydia's best friend Kate for the first time and just staring at her. I was doing everything I could to keep Lydia from scratching my eyes out, and Kate just sat on the floor. For hours. She just played with a few toys and looked around the room. She needed no comfort, no stimulus. She was just...easy. She just came that way. Mine...came a different way. People gave me well meant advice, but usually it just did not apply to my situation. It applied to the situation the advice bearer was used to.

I will say something that 2 years ago I never would have believed could have come out of my mouth. I am grateful for that difficult first 18 months of Lydia's life. I am such a better mother because of it. I seriously have developed some super-human calmness when it comes to her. I understand her and the huge spirit within her. Had I not had that difficult experience with her as a baby, I probably would not have become the mother Lydia needed. - As for this next baby, I have "requested" an easy one. I pray for you Emily, that you will get an easy one too. If not - call me me anytime. I probably won't have any good advice, but you can vent all you want.

Oh - and one last thing. If they offer the epidural, take it.

Valentine Lady

Did you have anything that you did in your family that you just assumed everyone did? Some tradition that you were surprised later in life to find was totally unique. My Mom invented the tradition of "The Valentine Lady". (She says it is based on how Valentine's day use to be. In the olden days.) This was basically the equivalent to the Easter Bunny. Every Valentine's day - usually after dinner, the doorbell would ring. All the kids would race to the door, only to find gifts left for us by the Valentine Lady. No matter what we did, we could never catch her. Each child would get a few things: some candy, a card, two or three small gifts. One year I was thrilled to find a pair of pale pink dress shoes. I remember this because I was about 11, the age when I was way too short for my weight. Every photo of me for a year has those pink shoes showing off some major kancles. Lovely.

Anyway, it was such a fun tradition, Shane and I are continuing it for Lydia. I thought maybe you would like to start this Valentines day tradition in your home.

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I am 6 months along today! I really need to start preparing for this baby!

Still Dreaming....

A few months before Lydia was born, I was shopping with Shane at Ethan Allen. I discovered there my dream "rocking chair". I just stared at it before sitting down in its downy bliss. I closed my eyes and imaged rocking my baby and drifting to sleep while she nursed. I opened my eyes to discover a $1600 price tag. "What the What?! Is it made of gold?" Even for Ethan Allen it was pricey. - They have since stopped carrying my dream chair, but Pottery Barn picked one up that is pretty darn close. Funny they call it the Dream Rocker.

A few weeks later I was returning a shower gift to Wal-mart and I saw a little rocker being raffled off. Nothing too special. Just a Wal-mart rocker. I thought to myself....who is going to bother buying a raffle ticket for that? Then I smiled, bought 5 tickets at a dollar a piece. The next week I took my chair home. :)

So it isn't my dream chair. There is no way I could fall asleep in it and after rocking Lydia for 3 years the cushions are basically pancakes. Tonight I am going to dream that all is right with the economy and that for this next baby I could justify buying my dream chair. Cash.

Valentines Day Giveaway - Mighty Leaf Tea

If you have been reading my blog long, you already know that I am a huge herbal tea connoisseur. I blame it on the fact that I grew up Mormon in Washington. I was constantly frequenting the local cafes, but I did not drink coffee or straight tea. (For more on my strange fixation with coffee houses, click here.)

Mighty Leaf Tea carries the absolute best selection of herbal teas, and now they have started carrying something that makes me gitty. Just in time for Valentines day....Chocolate teas. Be still my heart.

Now, don't think these drinks are going to be thick like hot cocoa, or cloyingly sweet. They are still teas, but with the infused flavor of dark chocolate. The smell alone is heavenly. I have put all my other teas aside for a while to focus on this new line. Hello, non-fat, basically no calories but still chocolate? What is not to love?

Mighty Leaf is going to send one lucky reader a box of Chocolate Mint Truffle herbal tea - along with their Chocolate Truffle Tea Collection.

This collection comes with 3 boxes of loose Truffle herbal teas and 3 boxes of Truffle Black teas - if you don't drink black tea (like me) you may want to gift these to a someone who does.

To enter - visit Mighty Leaf Tea and let me know in a comment which product is the most tempting to you. For a second entry, let me know in a separate comment that you are a Natalie's sentiments subscriber/follower.

I will announce the winner on Valentines day. Good luck!

Princess Party

I know everyone has been biting their nails in anticipation to see photos of Lydia's princess party. No? Oh, that must just be my mom. In any case, here they are:

Right after Lydia woke up, Shane and I gave the birthday girl her first gifts. A princess dress and a REAL tiara!

I'd like to say that I served only healthy refreshments....but on the counter are boxes of pizza and glasses of pink lemonade.

The entertainment...Princess Sing A-long Movie.

As a side note - I am really not a fan of the of the big screen TV above the fireplace. I hope this architectural trend doesn't last long. We bought our home new, but finished, so we didn't have a choice on this particular element. Our next house will have a nice empty mantle all ready for Christmas stockings and family photos. The first architect who designed the big screen TV above the fireplace was most definitely a man.

So about the cake....I decided to try and do the entire thing myself. I'm not too bad at cupcakes, so I thought, how hard can it be? Apparently I need to take a few cake decorating lessons. Still, it tasted good.

And of course, after all the effort, Lydia would have nothing to do with it.

Opening treat bags. I can't believe my stomach is already that big.

Lydia got so many great gifts. I have to say though, I am obsessed with these dolls that my sister Emily made. I want to design Lydia's new room around them.

Since Lydia was turning three I told her she could invite three princesses to her party. They all looked so adorable!

In all, Lydia's day was a fun success.

Thank you to everyone who helped make it special.

He He He

Much to my delight, I would like to welcome my friend Katie to the blogging world. Why is this so delightful? Because until recently she was the most adamant self-proclaimed blog hater known to man. Don't feel bad Spade. It happens to the best of us. A little known fact, the month before I started my blog I actually sent a mass email to friends and family asking them to stop pressuring me to start a blog...it wasn't going to happen. Of course, it did (you can feel the thinly veiled disgust in my first post), and here we are. I think as it as a tool for multi-tasking. Family gets photos of Lydia. Check. Keep in touch with distant friends. Check. Have some kind of an outlet so I don't go completely insane with the snot wiping, tempter tantrum, dish washing days that make up so much of motherhood. Check. (Remember those days of grown up conversations? Me too. Well, now they are all cyber.) Welcome. :)

Philosophy and New Clothes

I thought that I would be pretty stocked for maternity clothes this time around. However, when I got all of my wares out of storage I discovered loads of pristine work clothes, and completely trashed "comfy clothes" (worn for months after Lydia was born. Most of them were still stained with spit-up) Unless I wanted to wear a black suit or silk trousers to the park, I was going to have to do some shopping. My old comfy clothes have be demoted to workout wear or to the trash.

I'm not a huge fan of the Gap or Old Navy. They are fine, but I think working at the Gap in college just left me a little bored. However, for Maternity clothes, you can't beat them. Good prices and good fit. I don't like to spend a lot on maternity clothes.

I subscribe to the "Price per Wear" philosophy. This states that the bargain of an item is not based on the actual price of the item, but the price per wear. For example: Lets say I buy a orange wrap blouse that is kind of cool, but at $9, I can't pass it up. During the next year I wear said blouse twice. That would make the price per wear - $4.50. Next, I find a pair of black pants that are incredible. Fit perfect, perfect length, make my butt look fabulous. They are $75. A bit of a splurge? Well, lets say you wear these once a week for a year. That makes the price per wear $1.44. Lastly you find a great pair of jeans like the ones I found here for $19.99. Perfect fitting dark rise jeans. (My personal staple.) I wear these jeans 2 times a week for a year. This makes the price per wear less than 20 cents! The jeans are an absolute steal, the black pants a good deal, the top - even though it is only $9- is the splurge.

It is because of the Price per Wear philosophy that I don't spend a lot on Lydia's clothes. She is growing out of them too fast. For her, I tend towards consignment sales. As for Shane, I buy him more expensive clothes to fit with his work needs. He might wear one pair of black wool pants once a week for three years. A few things that don't fit into this way of thinking is the wedding dress, formal attire and holiday wear.

So - back to the topic at hand. Since I don't wear maternity clothes for very long, I try to stick to well priced basics. I won't be wearing them long, but I will be wearing them a lot for about 4 months. So nothing too trendy. I just received my on-line order and these were my favorites....

This Old Navy Sweatshirt is crazy comfortable (I fell asleep in it last night), yet cute enough to wear out.

I am a huge fan of the full panel pants. They look old lady off the rack, but they are so comfortable and no ugly line on your bulging belly. When I put on these Old Navy Jeans I seriously started giggling. They made me look skinny! - Well, as skinny as I could look at 5 1/2 months pregnant...

This Gap tee is my new favorite top, maternity or not. So flattering, so comfy. I just wished it came in more colors. I try to stay away from white. Gap is having a great maternity sale right now. FYI.

This Old Navy Blouse was just a random purchase. I like to fill my on-line cart so that I don't have to pay shipping (With Gap and Old Navy free shipping for purchases over $150). Then I just send everything back that I don't love. (Free shipping on returns too). I was seriously shocked how cute this was top was once I got it on. I need at least one nice piece for Spring. For $15, you can't beat it.

I bought a swimsuit too. I haven't gotten the nerve to try it on yet. Anyone know where I can find maternity board shorts? Even at the gym, I am not confident enough to walk around all pasty and pregnant in just a swimsuit.

Now I just have to find a modest, maternity bridesmaids dress that hits below my calf. That should be fun....