pumpkin cravings and a jab to the ribs

A craving has finally hit me. Pumpkin. Pumpkin anything.... pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin cheesecake. You name it I will probably want it.

Speaking of pumpkins, I feel like I am carrying one in my tummy. Although people say I am still small, I feel big. I am now 27 weeks, its amazing to think that in 3 short months Ava will be here. She is moving all the time, especially when I lay down and gets her groove on to the music at church. Which means I need to lay down in the bed a good half hour before I want to go to sleep or her dancing moves keep me up. Sleeping has become uncomfortable. I am was a tummy sleeper now I have to sleep on my side and average about 4 trips to the bathroom a night. Ava is sitting very low and I usually feel all of her pokes, jabs and kicks lower than my hips. On Sunday, she was experimenting and jabbed me good in the ribs but returned quickly to her normal position. I guess she is debating on whether or not she is ready to be head down. I go to the Dr. on Friday and get to have my gestational diabetes test. I am really not looking forward to the scale. At this point I have gained around 10 lbs. and am slowly but surely realizing that it is o.k.

Josh is doing really well adjusting to school and is enjoying it. He has already had 2 tests and reads constantly. I told him he could read to Ava, then I decided that his readings are really not that interesting to me so no to school reading materials. He talks to Ava a lot and usually ends up getting hit in the face a couple times. Her love taps make me smile.

easy oreo truffles

Lately, dessert has not been my ultimate craving but every now and then I will crave a specific item. Such as a chocolate milkshake, a piece of pumpkin pie, a cherry pie from mcdonalds or like last week... oreo truffles. They are extremely easy to make.

What you need:
-1 pkg of Oreos
-1 pkg cream cheese
-1 bag chocolate chips
-2 tbsp of Crisco

Smash up the entire package of Oreos and place in a bowl with the package of cream cheese.

Mix together

Melt bag of chocolate chips in a bowl with Crisco. I microwave in 30 second increments to assure the chocolate doesn't burn. Roll Oreo mixture into balls then coat in chocolate. Place on parchment paper, wax paper or foil.

yummy!

the decorating is complete!

We decided to go the vinyl sticker route for the longest wall in Ava's room, here are a few pictures from last night's assembly.

all of the pieces to make a tree, I was scared....to be honest

Josh working on the tree :)

Instead of leaves this tree is covered in flowers, they all are placed individually

the bare tree, it is roughly 7 feet tall. Great with the high ceilings

above her crib we placed a bible verse, 1Samuel 1:27

back to the tree and all the flowers

the finished product!!

one of my new favorite things

We have discovered these:

I think they are absolutely amazing. I received a free sample of them about a month ago. They claim to keep smelling fresh until the next wash, so true! Josh washed our towels and sheets with them and we got hooked. I scoured the internet for another sample because I am not ready to take the plunge of buying them yet. I found a freebie for them on facebook.

http://www.facebook.com/downy?sk=app_169791876424914

Follow this link. You will have to log into your facebook account. Click on like. then click on the "unstopables" tab on the right underneath the Downy image. Sign up for a sample!

Chicken Veggie Pizza

Sometimes I don't feel like eating pizza sauce but I want pizza. I found this recipe a couple of years ago and wanted to share it.

What you need:
-1 pre-made pizza crust (I make one from the pizza dough packet to save money)
-2 cups cubed cooked chicken
-1/3 cup chopped onion
-1/4 cup chopped red pepper
-1/4 cup chopped green pepper
-2 cloves of garlic, minced
-1 can of cream of mushroom soup
-1/2 to 1cup shredded mozzarella

Follow directions for pizza crust to get it prepped for toppings. In a large skillet add onion, peppers and garlic, just to get them warm. Pour in cream of mushroom soup and cubed chicken, heat till simmering. Pour and spread veggie mixture on pizza crust, sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 9-12 minute. Oven temperature will vary based on the pizza crust you use so make sure to look at the package.

nursery update

I guess you could say I have entered the phase of nesting. It started 2 weeks ago when Josh left on a Saturday morning to go study with a friend. I decided that this was a great opportunity to get some cleaning done. Well, some cleaning turned into massive cleaning. So much so that by the time Josh returned home I was scrubbing all of the base boards and door frames in the apartment. Last weekend, (Labor Day weekend) I recruited Josh friend, Brent, to help with painting Ava's room. It is gorgeous!

This weekend, we went to Target to return a couple of items and decided to check out the baby section to see if there were any good sales going on. We stumbled upon a huge clearance rack, of course everything was for summer. Ava will be 6 months around June/July, so we dug for 6 month sizes. Everything we found for her was marked down to $1.12. We got 2 tank tops, 1 onesie, 1 pair of jean shorts, 1 pair of khaki shorts, 1 pair of pink shorts with ruffles on the butt, 1 pink ruffle skirt and 1 dress. It was so cute to see Josh get excited about little girls clothes.

 After loading our arms with clothes. We thought we would check out their rugs. hoping to find one we liked. We have been looking for a rug but we aren't at the desperate state yet. As we headed down the aisle there it was! Marked down to $24 and the perfect size for the space.

Could it get any better? Sure! I wanted to check out their curtains as well. Just to see how easy it would be to get green curtains that matched her bedding. We found great ones. They were about $17 a panel, however they are the Eclipse curtains. Eclipse curtains block out more light, keeps the room cool and also decrease outside noise. Perfect for her room. The sun sets into Ava's room and her room also faces the main road. Overall, a very successful weekend!

Close-up of the curtains

The wall of A's and our absolutely adorable lamp from Hobby Lobby marked down by 50%

easy enchiladas

We love Mexican food! Being on a budget we do not eat out very often so I try to find meals that encourage us to stay in.

What you need:
- 1 pkg of flour tortillas
- 2 cans of chicken breasts
- 1 can refried beans
- 1/2 pkg of cream cheese
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1 can enchilada sauce
- 1 cup shredded cheese


Lay out tortillas. Spread a heaping spoonful of beans down middle of tortilla. Add a small slice of cream cheese on top of beans. Sprinkle some chicken and onions on top of cream cheese and beans. Roll up tortillas lay in 13x9 pan seam side down. Pour enchilada sauce on top. Cover with foil bake on 350 for 30 minutes. Last 5 minutes remove foil and sprinkle cheese on top.

wall of A's

We decided on a paint color last weekend, Pink Mist (which helped me with the vision of Ava's room). Josh recruited a friend from his program at school to come over and help paint this weekend. I am so excited for her room to be transformed into something girly. Because her bedding is not themed there is nothing that goes with it, decoration wise. No matching rug, wall decals, lamps etc. I am perfectly fine with it because we can make it however we want. I have been trying to think of what to put on her walls. Ava'a room is shared with Josh's office, so only two walls will painted to visually represent her space. I want to make sure that I take full advantage of the wall space I do have. I told Josh about my idea of doing a collage of A's above the crib. He thought it was a neat idea but didn't know how we would be able to get a hold of so many A's. We ventured to Michael's Arts and Crafts and Jo Ann Fabrics, our collection is beginning to grow :)