Where have we been??

has it really been 3 weeks since my last post? Hopefully, my tumblr pictures have been keeping you somewhat satisfied!

Shortly after my last post my Grandpa passed away in California so we headed out there for a quick too short of a trip. it was enjoyable and relaxing the few days we were there.

 As soon as we got home, it seemed like things got started at a running pace! We've been busy with Gavin destroying, i mean demo-ing his office for his built in cabinets he's been working on.

 Mason- busy being Mason, talking about everything and only some of it makes sense and also cutting his 2 year molars (poor kiddo is drooling like he's 6 months old again!) 

Me- I've been busy with work as usual, being pregnant (my belly has officially popped), being a dutiful bridesmaid for my friend's upcoming wedding in 2 weeks AND my new project that I'vebeen having tons of fun with. Check out my other blog and you'll see- artsyfartsydesigns.blogspot.com

SO to make up for the past 3 weeks of no posts- I finally have pictures to post and of course for ONCE in my blogging life I CANNOT post any photos! Blogger isn't letting me upload and Picasa is taking forever....grrrr so I'll be working on this to post some cute pictures Gavin took!

Oldie but Goodie (Recipe) *ATTN CATHY!*

I got a nice treat today for our day at home- Mason went down for an early nap (thank goodness- we had a morning of meltdowns!) so he slept for over 2 1/2 hours, then Papaw (Grandpa Tony) came over and took him for a walk, THEN decided to take him to the park for an hour- so you could imagine how much I got done today! (nap included!) I still haven't gotten around to pictures, but I think tomorrow has some possibilities for that if I can manage to steal Gavin's card reader :-)
So in my freetime today instead of uploading pictures, what did I do? I organized my craft dresser, organized the slowly being cleared out guest room, and organized some cabinets in the kitchen too. I have a handful of these thin paperback recipe card books my mom would always put in my stockings at christmas, I was going to throw them in the recycle bin today but instead decided to flip thru them, and again, they've gone BACK onto my shelf. (I was trying to purge things, not keep them!) I found a recipe she used to make and again I had everything in the fridge/pantry, so I figured yeah, something different for dinner!

To my one avid recipe tryin' friend- Cathy, this is one you will like, super easy!

The booklet calls it "Chicken n Chips" my mom called it her 'Mexican Cheesy Chicken Casserole'

Need:
1 can (10 3/4 oz) of condensed cream of chicken soup undiluted (my mom would use cream of mushroom too if she was out of cream of chicken)
1 cup (8 oz) of sour cream
2 tablespoons taco sauce- I wasnt sure what they meant by taco sauce I imagined they meant something like a packet of Taco Bell Sauce, so instead I just used Salsa :-)
1/4 cup of chopped green chilies (but I used a whole small can, about 1/2 cups worth)
3 cups of cubed cooked chicken (2-3 chicken breasts cooked in the crock pot worked great for this!)
12 slices process American Cheese (I'm insulted the recipe even says "PROCESS" that almost ruined it for me, but INSTEAD, i used shredded cheddar cheese, none of that processed stuff.)
4 cups broken tortilla chips

Directions:
In a bowl, combine the soup, sour cream (funny thing, the booklet has a a typo and says "Sour SCREAM" haha!) taco sauce and chilies. In an ungreased shallow 2 qt baking dish, layer half of the chicken, soup mixture, cheese and tortilla chips. Repeat Layers. Bake Uncovered, at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly. Makes 4-6 servings.


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ON a side note, its so true that kids will eat when they're hungry. I feel like Mason has barely eaten anything the past few days, well his appetite caught up with him this afternoon. All within a 3 hour time period he ate: a small bowl of fruit from chick fila, 1/2 of a chargrilled filet from chick fila, about 2 oz of jarlsberg cheese, 2 packages of baby mum mums, a slice of turkey meat rolled up, 2 oz of cheddar cheese, 4 large spoonfuls of sour cream (probably wasnt smart on my part, but he wanted to try it!), a small package of his apple chips from Costco, 6 'nachos' i made him (his potato chips with shredded chicken, cheese and sour cream on them), and a bowlful (wasn't very small) of some berry crumble I made for him the other day (organic berry pie filling with a hearty topping of oatmeal mixed with brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg & butter baked) he devoured that the quickest. He was like a human garbage disposal tonight! Thank goodness he'll be going to school tomorrow morning, because I sure as heck don't want to change his poopy! LOL

Mason has been showing quite an improvement in his language skills, not quite perfectly clear on alot of things, but he's really attempting words- new things he's been saying- Chocolate, seat, spill, school, chicken, food, eat, books, color, lolly (for lollipop), cereal, blueberry, strawberry, truck, Please, Bye Bye, Baby and ALL his body parts....just to name a few. Again, they're not nearly as clear as I thought his words would be when he'd start talking (I remember Josh doing this too), but he's really attempting words which is great!
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#2 update:
So we know what it is. But we're not saying anything. YET. first off, our sonogram tech was only 90% he knows what the baby is. So you won't hear a peep until we're 100% sure which won't be until next month, okay really we wont even be 100% sure until MARCH, however we'll have a prettty darn good idea (99.9% sure?) next month at our sonogram.
SO NEENERNEEEEENER NEEEEEEEEEENER- I'm not telling! but go ahead and make your bets on a girl or boy! :-)
ALSO, I'm starting to feel #2 and the little fluttery feelings, no defined kicks yet, but a few bumps and flutters a few times. I enjoyed those kicks so much with Mason, I'm almost sad this will be the last time around to feel those amazing feelings. THEN AGAIN, after I've labored for a few hours and just pushed #2 out, I'll be saying, thank god your not kicking my bladder anymore! I'm 16 weeks along now (for those who don't understand that language, I'm starting my 5th month of pregnancy, I can't believe another 4 weeks and we're HALF WAY TO BABY! holy moly SLOW THE RIDE DOWN!

Saturday Ramblings

So we survived Ike. Mason stayed at home all day with his babysitter. The worst I saw of Ike was on my way home from Fort Worth, the rain was coming down so hard, I was going 35 mph on I-35. but it passed, I got soaked a few times today between all our wedding set ups, but the worst of it was south east of us.

Poor Mason's mood has matched the weather today. He woke up super early this morning around 6 am which is REALLY out of the ordinary for him. He woke up crying, and wouldn't go back to sleep, so he started off the day wrong and has been quite the cranky butt all day. Went down for an early nap which meant he was up earlier too, so tonight he was quite the bear. I've noticed his nose running the past 2 days and lots of drooling and fingers in the mouth, so I finally got to check today, and sure enough, bottom right hand side, I could feel some bumps, so it explains the mood! We went to our neighbors for their porch party/hurricane party this evening when I got home, so that at least distracted him for quite some time. Closer to bedtime he got super cranky, so I decided it was time for some Motrin and bed! Finally I got him settled down with a cup of milk and we read a few books before he zonked right out. Now for some quiet Mommy time, but all I want to do is crawl into bed too! What a Saturday night!

I don't like Ike!

Lots of people have been freaking out and stockpiling fresh water and canned goods. I figured my house is backstocked enough with enough diapers, dog food, cat food and kitty litter for a month. We always keep a case of bottled water in the garage and I did my grocery shopping last week. So if we get hit real hard, then we're already prepared! The ONE thing I didn't do is get gas yesterday. Didn't even occur to me. DANG IT. I have a wedding set up this afternoon and for the life of me not sure how much gas I have in the Yukon. I think at least 1/4 of a tank. SO I think Mason and I will have to run out in a bit to get gas, but I'm dreading to see how much i'm going to pay IF I find someplace with gas. Still kicking myself for not getting gas at Tom Thumb yesterday for $3.39 (then with my shopping savings, it would have been $3.29!) grrrr.............
Bring it on Ike!

Forgot 2!

5. Mason's thing recently to do- when I want Gavin's attention i tend call to him "Hey Gaaa-vin?" so Mason has started wandering around the house (and sometimes he'll be standing right next to Gavin) and yells, "Gaaaaa-giiiiin?" (he used to do it but call "Da-Daaa!" So guess I need to start calling Gavin "Daddy" LOL!

6. I tend to call Mason "Babe".Tonight I realized how much I say it! I'll say things like, "lets put your shoes on Babe!", "lets go babe!", "hey Babe, where's your sippy cup?" Tonight when I was trying to get him out of the bath and I said, "lets go, Babe" and he said, "NO BABE." hahahahahaha.

Okay I had another funny one, but its late and I've forgotten already in the short time it took me to type this. oops.

Masonites

Mason's been quite the talker lately with his usual funny self. doesn't say a whole lot, but when he does, its pretty cute.

1. We have a corvette book that I've had since college that I used for a project, it has a picture of a newer red corvette on the back. Mason brings it to me, points to the red corvette and says "Papa's Car!" I thought 'hmm, okay red sports car probably looks just like it to him' so I showed him another red sports car and I asked what it was he replied with "Car." I showed him ANOTHER picture of a new red corvette and Mason bursts out "PAPA's CAR!" his attention to detail just blows my mind!

2. Yesterday our beloved housekeeper was over cleaning (which means Mason watches her VERY closely and usually copies what she's doing, so he was happily playing with his new toy vacuum) and I was getting ready to go run some errands and I asked Mason, "do you want to go Bye Bye with Mommy?" he responds with "no." I said, "Why not?" he said, "I keen. (Clean)" -oh boy- that's just music to mommy's ears!

3. Mason is so fascinated with his new vacuum (it turns on and makes sound and has a hose type attachment, just like our Daddy Vacuum-mason calls it "Dada voom") not sure if he calls it that because its the bigger Daddy version, or if its because Daddy mostly uses it. ;-P
Anyway, when he finally decides he's done with it, he puts the hose back where its supposed to be and wants to put it in the closet next to the daddy vacuum.
The first day Mason got to play with it, he wouldn't take a bath unless the vacuum was in the bathroom too. Then he threw a full on toddler tantrum because we wouldn't let him vacuum naked anymore and it was time to put jammies on. Same thing happened when we had to put the vacuum night night. He went to bed rather upset, but he did have one of the yellow hose attachments in bed with him that night. BOY. I'm not quite sure what to think of his fascination with cleaning objects, but so far I don't think its unhealthy, right?? LOL

4. I think Mason will have to be a cute puppy dog for Halloween. We have a bath towel for him that has a hood on it that's a dog. He's recently realized what it is, and of course its the one thing that he'll get out of the bath for (except the vacuum) so I can dry him off and put it on his head. He then enjoys to stare at himself in the mirror and bark! So I think he's got the dog role down, so we'll just have to find a cute dog costume.

PS- I'm WAY behind with uploading pictures from his first day of school and some other cute ones, so i promise i'll have some this weekend! :-D I've been busy!(okay maybe lazy too!)

Mommy Monday!

This year Mason is in MDO 4 days a week. I've been working alot more, and so has Gavin, so its working well for us. Mason started last tuesday the day after Labor Day, so this is his first monday, which also means my FIRST MOMMY MONDAY! Mondays are my days off. WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH MYSELF FOR 6 WHOLE HOURS?
Oh the possibilities are endless! I look forward to Mommy Mondays!
Today I think I might:
-Go to the Gym
-Do the 3 loads of laundry that are staring me down
-vacuum out my truck
-Go to the Post Office to mail some packages
-Vacuum the play room
-clear off the kitchen table (things seem to clutter there since we don't use it)
-Take a nap
-Upload some new pictures of Mason (if I decide to not take a nap that is!)

:-)

Pregnancy Comparison

I love to compare this pregnancy with Mason's, I can't believe how different they are, yet alot of things are still the same!

Things that couldn't be more different:
-I can drink ORANGE JUICE! (and i crave it!)
- Not a single bit of heart burn (Water gave me heartburn with Mason- DAILY)
-I don't have a gag reflex (I remember brushing my teeth and gagging, not this time around.)
- Corn dogs gross me out. (i ate them almost daily with Mason, not so appetizing this time around.)
-Chinese food grosses me out. (loved Panda Express last time, not so much anymore! Actually I can't get past the smell!)
-I crave Chicken Salad Sandwiches on a Croissant (it MUST have grapes & nuts, and no celery- thankfully Market street has the perfect combo.)
-Sushi, Not craving it as much this time, although I do enjoy it occasionally but not weekly this time.
-I don't crave spicy foods nearly as much this time around, I do enjoy them, but not as extreme as last time!
-Oreos. goes best with milk.
-Quesadillas. yum.
-Things with potatoes and bacon- like potato soup with crumbled bacon- that's awesome.
-Smells. I don't remember smells being so strong before. This morning in church the man in front of me had on WAY too much cologne (it was Cool Water at least, but dude- LAY OFF!) and the woman next to me had rank breath, I was practically sitting on top of poor Gavin!
-apparently I have to eat more often. Everyday this week I've had a headache, except yesterday. I took my sisters advice and ate an extra small meal/snack late in the day and sure enough, no headache started. That's the thing, I'm not hungry! Really I think my body is confused, something is telling me i'm not hungry and something is telling me i am. apparently that little extra bit of protein helps.


Things that haven't changed:
- I love milk. Can't get enough of it.
- I love sleep. Can't get enough of it.
- I love fruit, craved it like crazy with Mason, same thing again.
- Salads. Preferrably the salad at my favorite sushi place.
-Indian Food- if only it were closer I'd eat it more.
- Doesn't matter what stage you are in your pregnancy, summers in Texas suck.
-Stretching Pains. Seriously, i think i can feel my uterus growing daily.

Layers

Sorry, your getting this tonight instead of Mason's pictures from his first day at school today! I'm being lazy instead of uploading pictures. Deal with it. For once its me, not Mason!

LAYER ONE:
Name: April
Birth date: February 20
Birthplace: Long Beach, CA
Current Location: Colleyville, Texas
Eye Color: Blue
Hair Color: Blonde!
Height: 5′7
Righty or Lefty: Righty
Zodiac Sign: Pisces

LAYER TWO:
Your heritage: I'm a mutt- French, Welsh, German, Cherokee Indian
The shoes you wore today:brown flip flops
Your weakness: chips & queso, spicy things (jalapeno poppers), birthday cake (woohoo Gavin's is in 2 weeks!!!), and MILK. this baby likes milk.
Your fears: Things that I cannot control hurting my children (cancer/terminal illnesses in childhood)
Your perfect pizza: pepperoni and jalepenos AND PINEAPPLE. Craig Fergusen says pineapple does not belong on pizza....when your pregnant it DOES!
Goal you’d like to achieve: Lose the weight I want to lose and keep it off, not get preggo again (I'm stopping at 2!) and make sure we have a happy family life.

LAYER THREE:
Your most overused phrase on AIM: I don't use AIM
Your first waking thoughts: Have to PEE. Shut up CAT.
Your best physical feature: Eyes, Hair, legs, feet?
What you miss the most: My Mom. and then my pre college body.

LAYER FOUR:
Pepsi or Coke: neither. bleh!
McDonald’s or Burger King: seriously? okay, mcdonalds breakfasts are pretty good.
Single or group dates: it depends, i'd prefer a date night with my hubby, but we don't see our non parental friends very often.
Adidas or Nike: Nike
Lipton Ice Tea or Nestea: which one is fresh? i don't like the canned or bottled stuff.
Chocolate or vanilla: Vanilla!
Cappuccino or coffee: neither. i'm not a coffee drinker.

LAYER FIVE:
Smoke: nope
Cuss: No. I have to be really stinkin' flippin' mad to let one slip.
Sing: horribly.
Take a shower everyday: Most days - I did today...(because I thought I stank bad!) LOL
Do you think you’ve been in love: Of course!
Want to go to college:already did.
Liked high school: I really enjoyed it but wouldnt say i LOVED it.
Want to get married: already done.
Believe in yourself: majority of the time. i surprise myself alot though.
Get motion sickness: YES, thanks for that gene mom.
Think you’re attractive:not right now! my hair is a mess! ha!
Think you’re a health freak: FAR from it! I am for Mason. I eat somewhat healthy, just havent been so good at exercising.
Get along with your parent(s): Yes I do. I got along wonderfully with my mom, she was one of my best friends. I'm working on getting closer with my dad now.
Like thunderstorms: I LOVE them.
Play an instrument: I used to play the flute, piccolo and piano. yes, I was a band nerd. but a good one!

LAYER SIX:
In the past month…
Drank Alcohol: no, can't do that when you're preggo.
Smoked: No
Done a drug: Does Tylenol count?
Made out: Sure...I guess.
Gone on a date: Yes.
Gone to the mall: I don't think so?
Eaten an entire box of Oreos:Okay the box is not finished yet.
Eaten sushi: Yes
Been on stage: No.
Been dumped: nope.
Gone skating: No.
Made homemade cookies: No, but I've really wanted to!!
Gone skinny dipping: No.
Dyed your hair: No but I should, I'm trying to hold out for one more month.
Stolen anything: No.

LAYER SEVEN:
Ever…
Played a game that required removal of clothing: Crap my short term memory loss has gotten me.
If so, was it mixed company: see above.
Been trashed or extremely intoxicated: Well, that is how I've gotten pregnant both times...ahem..........
Been caught “doing something”: Got caught holding a cigarette in high school. (seriously? of the things I did, thats what I got caught for.)
Been called a tease: Probably so...
Gotten beaten up: No, because I was the one doing the beating up. (Yes I did get into 1 fight into high school.)
Shoplifted:Nope.
Changed who you were to fit in: No. I've never cared what others thought of me, so if I wasn't popular because of it, I didn't care.

LAYER EIGHT:
Age you hope to be married: I was married at 23? gosh i think i was young now!
Numbers and Names of Children: Mason James 20 months old. #2- ETA in March. Sex unknown. Hoping for a Maddox (that's todays wish at least!)
Describe your Dream Wedding: Already had it...
How do you want to die: comfortably, peacefully- knowing my family knows how much I love them.
Where you want to go to college: went to UNT.
What do you want to be when you grow up: I enjoy what I do now. When I grow up, I want to be a domestic manager and get paid to sleep and do crafts, on our family compound. hehehhe, joke we have.
What country would you most like to visit: oh boy the list goes on. Ireland, Scotland, EASTER ISLAND (Chile), Russia.... i want to go back to NZ, Aussie, Thailand, Italy.....so many places to go!

LAYER NINE:
Number of people I could trust with my life: a few
Number of CDs that I own: no clue. I can't remember the last cd i bought!
Number of piercing: 2 - one in each ear! :) I did have 5 total in both ears & a tongue ring at one point. (College)
Number of tattoos: ZERO, although I'm seriously contemplating it. Can you get one while preggo?
Number of times my name has appeared in the newspaper: Not sure.
Number of scars on my body: too many to count. I played Field Hockey, Crew & Rugby- so I have many scars. Oh yea and I drove a motorcycle to school when we lived in bangkok. Do stretch marks count too?
Number of things in my past that I regret: WIsh I told my mom I loved her more than I did everyday.

Labor Day Recipes

Happy Labor Day!
As a mom, labor day is no different- constant work right? As if I don't do enough, I'm cooking today! But these are some recipes I'm excited about! Today we're heading over to my Dad's house to grill with my family and Gavin's family too. Gavin is making his delish Burgers & I'm making all the fixin's and things to go with it.
My first recipe I'm making is PW's Queso-(Ree Rocks. She and I are on the same wavelength with creative cooking.) http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/06/chile_con_queso/ instead of the canned green chilies I'm going to add in one of my hatch green chilies- YUM. Who doesn't love queso? I may be adding it on top of my burger to make my own Gruene's Gristmill Signature Burger. (drool.)
I'm also making another appetizer- I came across this one at Market Street a few weeks back- ironically they don't have a name for it, so I guess I'll name it: Grilled Garlic Ceasar Shrimp. I got to try this yummy shrimp at the store where they made it and it was tasty & looked super easy, not to mention majority of the ingredients I already had in my fridge (just not the shrimp.)
Here's how it goes-
WHat you'll need:
2 dozen (or more) peeled and deveined shrimp
Bamboo Skewers (soaked in water for 30 min)
1/4 cup PLUS 1 tablespoon Garlic Caesar Salad Dressing (I specifically used "World Classic Caesar Garlic Salad Dressing"
Salt & Pepper
1/3 cup of Mayo
1 teaspoon minced Garlic
1 teaspoon paprika

Directions:
Preheat Grill to Medium.

Pat Shrimp dry with paper towels, and place on bamboo skewers. Brush shrimp with 1/4 cup dressing, sprinkle with a generous amount of salt & pepper and place on the grill for 2-3 minutes per side. My shrimp were already cooked but I plan on grilling them anyway just to warm them up a bit and help bring out the flava. baste if you like, or if you're like me throw everything in a bowl at the beginning and then put them on the skewers.

In a small bowl, combine mayo, 1 tbsp of garlic dressing, 1 teaspoon of minced garlic & 1 teaspoon of paprika. Use this as a dip for the shrimp. I actually doubled the dip recipe because I made up about 50-60 of the shrimp, but it still looks like enough dip for all that!

It smells delish and can't wait to try out my new recipe! I'm not a big shrimp cooker, but I do enjoy it. I think that this would go over great on a yummy salad with some garlic french bread or even a little pasta. Hmmm, if I get daring one night, i might actually try it! :-)