I'm sooooooo happy and excited that my Mama and Aunty arrived in Calgary today :D YAYAYAYAYAY!!!! We're all in our jammies, watching one of my favourite movies "Dutch"! John Hughes is one of my hero's!!! :)))
I can't believe I'm 22 weeks pregnant already!! CRAZY!! Jens felt baby girl kick a bunch of times last night before bed, and we both fell asleep smiling like goons :D It's so incredible to feel her move around inside me!
Within the last week I've had some new developments. Lower back pain, heartburn, and I've noticed the veins in my tummy are really showing through. I read that the veins are more visible due to the increase in blood flow, which is helping to carry the nutrients to baby. Nothing to worry about :)
I will write a few more times this week :D Feeling very grateful and inspired.
Big scootches for everyone XoXoXo
Sweet Love,
MLO
Good morning beautiful sunshine!!! I'm so happy we're finally having some nice weather here. It's going to be 18 degrees this afternoon Yesssss!!!! :D
Yesterday was also a really nice day out, so I took my dog Bailey for an hour walk, and then came home to make some refrigerator garlic dill pickles. I hope they turn out good, as it's my first go at it. It's going to be hard to wait five days before eating them! I want them in my belly NOW! ;) I'll let ya know how they turn out. :)
On a more exciting note, my beautiful mom will be arriving in Calgary next Tuesday!! She has taken a year leave of absence from her 25 year government job to come and stay with Jens and I. :)))))) I couldn't be more happy about this!! It's been hard not having my mom here with me through my pregnancy, so I'm very excited that she'll be here for the second half, and get to spend some quality bonding time with baby girl when she arrives. I love you mommy xoxoxo
While walking my dog yesterday, I thought up this lil quote :)
"While passing through the stormy weather, focus on life's simple pleasures"
It's the simple things in life that mean the most... like having a roof over your head, healthy food in the fridge, people that love and care for you, nature, and the ability to smile :D I think I'm going to make a list of things I'm grateful for this weekend... I haven't done that in awhile, and it's always a nice reminder of life's beauty and blessings. I hope everyone has a bright and peaceful Friday Xoxo
Sweet Love,
MLO
So, my girl friend and I went to a shwack of second hand stores today and we had a lot of fun. We found a few treasures at Value Village and at Goodwill, and then went to Lullaby Lane to see what they had for baby clothes and maternity wear. I must say, I was a little disappointed at the prices there. I picked up a pair of maternity pajamas and they were $39.99. That is outrageous for a second hand pair of jammies. I wouldn't even spend that amount on a brand new pair LOL!!! So far my favourite store for baby shtuff is "Once Upon A Child". Prices are GREAT!!!!
I weighed myself yesterday, and I've gained 15 pounds throughout my pregnancy so far. My belly is really starting to show :) :) :) Which reminds me... hubby and I whipped up some homemade pizzas for dinner! Mine had Daiya mozzarella, mater sauce, artichoke hearts, green olives and caramelized onions and mushrooms in a smokey bbq sauce! DELISH!! I also had a side salad with beans and raspberries :) Now it's time for jammies and a cozy movie night!!
Happy Earth Day Xo
Sweet Love,
MLO
Hello lovely peeps :D
Remember that show "Are you afraid of the dark"? .... Well, my brother and I just found it on Netflix, and we're pretty darn excited!! LOL!! We used to watch that show back in the day like it was our job ;) Woot!!!
I prepared a yummy dinner tonight for baby girl and I :) I made Sheppard's Pie, and a fresh romaine salad with raspberries, walnuts and avocado. I also made a delish dijon mustard and apple cider vinegar dressing! Hubby comes home from Toronto this evening, so he'll be happy to have lots of leftovers :) Sheppard's Pie Recipe BELOW.
I had a midwives appointment yesterday, and once again got to hear my lil potaters heartbeat :D As soon as the doc put the doppler on my tummy, baby kicked really hard and we were both surprised at how strong her movement was. So amazing!! I love feeling her move around in there :)
I hope you're all having a wonderful week XoXoXo
Sweet Love,
MLO
Sheppard's Pie Recipe
Ingredients (I try to use organic products as much as I can)
VEGGIE MIXTURE
1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1 small onion
1 (8oz) package of mushrooms
1 medium tomato
1 (300gram) package of frozen mixed veggies (corn, carrots,peas,green beans)
3/4 package veggie grind (I use Yves)
1 tbsp organic ketchup
1 tsp hot sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
MASHED POTATOES
6 medium white potatoes
1/4 cup dairy free milk
4 tbsp vegan sour cream
1 tbsp earth balance butter
2 tsp onion powder
1.5 tsp salt
TOPPERS
1/4 cup daiya shreds (cheddar)
paprika to sprinkle on top
Instructions
Heat oven to 350'
Cut potatoes into cubes and boil for 15 minutes
Dice up the onion, mushrooms and tomato and saute in olive oil
Add in garlic, salt and pepper to taste
Add in frozen mixed veggies
Add in veggie grind
Add in ketchup and hotsauce
Cook for 5-8 minutes on medium heat
Pour the mixture into a 9/13 inch casserole dish and flatten with spatula
Drain potatoes
Add in dairy free milk, sour cream, earth balance butter, onion powder, salt
Mash Mash Mash
Add potatoes on top of the veggie mixture and level out
Sprinkle the Daiya cheese shreds on top
Sprinkle paprika on top
Bake in oven for 25 minutes :D Simple and easy comfort food! YUMBLY!
I can't believe I'm already half way there!! 20 weeks today :D Overall, I'm feeling pretty good. I had a few dizzy spells this week, but all in all everything seems to be going smoothly. Hubby brought me home the Snoogle pregnancy pillow a few days ago, and to my surprise I didn't really like it. I found it to be a little too long, and a bit too high up for my head. So instead, I strolled on over to Walmart and purchased a $12 body pillow. It works just fine, and it saved us some cold hard cash ;) The Snoogle is overpriced at $80! Yowzers!
My sister in law and I took a trip to "Once Upon A Child" yesterday, and we both found some cute items for our lil ones :) It's a second hand, baby consignment store, and it's FABULOUS! Probably my new favourite store! I washed everything as soon as I got home, and hung them to dry in "her" closet :D EEEEE!!! I can't help myself... I keep going in her room just to look at all the pretty clothes hung up. Makes me feel like she's already here!! LOVE*
Before I started writing this I prepared some garlic potatoes and put them in the oven to roast. It smells like a delicious dream in here!! YUMBLY!!! Nom Nom Nom! ;) I hope everyone's having a happy weekend!! Xo
Funny side note... I had to go out and buy some granny panties today lol! My pretty undies don't fit anymore.... the joys of being pregnant ;)
Sweet Love,
MLO
Last night while I was laying in bed.... I felt her :) How AMAZING!!! She must've been having a dance party for one in there, because the fluttering went on for at least 10 minutes!!! I was waiting patiently for that special moment, and it just makes everything so beautiful and REAL :) Happy*
On another note, I must say it's been kinda yucky coming home from 30 degree sunshiney weather in Las Vegas, to this dreary cold here in Calgary. I am SO looking forward to SuMmEr SuNsHiNe. I find that I function a lot better in a bright and warm climate. My brother was teasing me a couple of days ago while we were video chatting on facetime. He saw that it was snowing out the window here, and then showed me out his window in Nashville! Bright blue sunny sky.... gorgeous cherry blossom trees.... and I'm sure there were birds chirping "The sound of music" ;) Little brat!!! Gosh I just LOVE Nashville!! I can't wait to live there one day :D My most FAVOURITE restaurant is there as well. It's called "The Wild Cow".... best vegan food EVER!!! I want to live in that restaurant!!!!!
Anyhoo, baby girl and I just got really hungry :) Time to whip up some delish breakfast!! Lets make our own bright and beautiful day Xoxoxo
Sweet Love,
MLO
Hi lovelies,
Jens and I had our 2nd ultrasound appointment yesterday :) It was so amazing to see how much the lil potater has grown. The technician observed baby, and said everything looks perfect so far :D
We're super duper excited to tell the world that WE'RE HAVING A PRECIOUS LITTLE GIRL!!! YAYAYAYAYAYAY!!!!!! We couldn't be happier!! As soon as the tech said those words, tears of pure joy flooded down my face! I had no intuition of the baby's gender, so it felt like a big shock. I think it would have either way :) A beautiful and special moment that we'll treasure for the rest of our lives!
I've been feeling so much excitement over the wonderful news, that I just had to do something "sweet" to celebrate! Soo, I decided to bake a two layer strawberry cake, with creamy vanilla frosting... all from scratch :D I also made the lil baby girl on top out of paper. So fun!!! Jens,
Shaun (my brother), and I had a slice for dessert tonight and all I can
say is DELISH! :)
I hope everyone's having a happy and peaceful weekend XoXoXo
Sweet Love,
MLO
Jens and I had such a fun and memorable honeymoon in Vegas :D It was an absolute BLAST!!! When we finally arrived to the strip it was around 8pm, and when I saw everything for the first time I lost my bananas :D I was crying out of pure excitement!! We stayed at the Flamingo, which was such a perfect location. It was right in the middle of all the action! This is what we got up to in a nutshell.... We ate a TON of yummy food. Chillin' on the Margaritaville patio a bunch of times, as they had quite a few vegan options on their menu. We ate at a couple of breakfast buffets at other hotels, including the rainforest cafe which was DELISH! But on our last night we had our favourite meal by far. We went to "Sea Thai" for dinner at Bally's, and it was hands down the best Thai food I've ever had!!! YUMBLY IN MY TUMBLY!! Aside from delicious food, we went to see Shania Twain perform at Caesars Palace. She was incredible, and her voice is definitely back!! Jens and I loved her show!! We also went to see X Burlesque which was at the Flamingo!! It was actually pretty entertaining if you don't mind seeing a few taters ;) We took a trip to the Luxor Hotel to see the Titanic Exhibit, which was phenomenal! We got to touch a real iceberg, and saw so many recovered artifacts from the ship. They also had "The big piece" displayed. A huge part of the ship that they recovered in 1998. So cool!!!
We walked up and down the strip, visiting as many hotels as we could, and played a few slots here and there. I was really bothered by the smokey atmosphere in every casino. I think the Venetian is the only hotel with a non smoking section. YIKES!! None the less, Jens and I had fun playing the Ghostbuster, Batman, and Monopoly penny slots!! We also drove to Freemont St. which was really neat, and spent a bit of time at the pool in our hotel. Our feet were so swollen and sore after days of walking... but it was so worth it!! Definitely a trip I will never forget!! I can't believe after three years of loving someone so much, that there's any possible way to love them more...... but I'm constantly amazed that my love keeps growing for my amazing husband :D Best thing that's ever happened to me!!! TEAR*
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!! Xoxoxo
Sweet Love,
MLO
