Baby Moon

Brett and I had a lovely "baby-moon" last week in Reno and Tahoe. We stayed at the Peppermill for free (we had coupons) and enjoyed a fun day and an incredible Dinner at Chi (Chinese). It felt so funny to sit at a restaurant and just sit. Usually I'm so busy and preoccupied getting Bryson set up and entertained that I don't even have a chance to look at the menu or glance around the room. We also had coupons for a discount on room service, so after sleeping in until 8am, we ordered a huge breakfast of eggs, bacon, toast, fruit, milk, juice, hot chocolate, and 1/2 a dozen donuts. I was in heaven! We then drove over to Tahoe, taking the scenic route, and enjoyed lunch at our favorite Hotel...Monte Blue. We honeymooned there when it used to be Caesars so we always have to go there when we're celebrating an anniversary, or a baby moon :)

Thanks mom and dad for watching Bryson and letting us get away for a couple of days. It meant so much to us!


Here's an amazing view of Tahoe.




I had to take this picture....it's a view looking into the door of Brett's truck. It's like a fun house mirror. The sad thing is it's not too far off from the real thing!



Look at my poor shirt being stretched to the limit.



On another note, my garden is finally putting out edibles. Bryson and I picked all the red cherry tomatoes we could find and some green beans. Bryson devoured all of the tomatoes immediately!

Folsom Lake

We finally got a chance to take the boat out last week. We figured out what was wrong with it and now it runs like a charm. I had been so antsy to get out on the lake because the water is up at Folsom and the weather wasn't too terribly hot. Plus, being in the water eases the pains of pregnancy weight. We took our dear friends the Browns, ate a scrumptious dinner of Taco Bell and swam with geese.

Kirsten took this amazing picture, I stole it from her blog:)



Our cute little family.



Bryson showing off some mad skills driving the boat.



One of these kids is mine...I think.



Momma and Bry Bry.



Coaxing Bryson into the water.

35 Weeks, The Eighth Month

At my 34 week check up everything was fine. I'm still measuring 2 weeks ahead and Chase is very much in the head down position...just ask my bladder! He's been a very active baby and it's been fun to watch the "alien movements" of my belly throughout the day. I'm looking forward to a little "baby moon" (think honeymoon) next week thanks to my parents taking Bryson for the night and Brett and I heading up to Reno/Tahoe. I really, really, really want to ride the Gondola (sp?) and go to the restaurant on top of the hill, but Brett isn't so sure that's the best idea.



It really looks like I'm carrying a basketball. My belly sticks straight out. Luckily I haven't had any back pain...but it looks like I would!



Check out the progress of my garden! I planted everything too close, but it's still doing great. Next time I'll put the taller plants on the outside. This is my first garden and I really didn't know what the plants would look like, or that they would grow into giant monsters. It's a learning experience. Bryson loves checking out the progress everyday. He loves looking at the tomatoes and squash to see what's under those leaves.

Kupkake Kabobs

I saw this on "Cupcakes Take The Cake", see my blog list. I know a couple of my friends who will probabally try this right away....and I want a sample!

Mini cupcakes on a skewer with wafers in between. Don't forget the strawberry marshmallows dipped in chocolate and cookie crumbs!



...and while you're making those delicious Kabobs...wear this!

I Have Very Sweet Friends

My Lamaze group (from when I had Bryson) put on a lunch for me and Jaime (who's also due around the same time) at A Maad Tea Party restaurant. There are three of us that are pregnant right now with our second child and one of us has already had her little girl in May (she beat us :)) We always enjoy getting together and talking about our little ones. We learn so much from each other and it has been wonderful having them in my life. They showered Jaime and me with presents, good food, and wonderful Peach Tea.





I also hosted Bunco at my house last Friday and my Bunco friends (girls from church) surprised me with a wonderful bouquet of flowers filled with gift cards. That was so generous of them and I felt really loved. Thanks girls!



Can you believe this is the only picture I got of my Bunco group? We were so busy chatting and having fun I didn't feel like dealing with the camera.

A Baby Shower For Chase

My baby shower was last Saturday, an intimate event with family and loved ones. It was a beautiful morning and we were so greatful it didn't rain on us. My mother in law, Patrice hosted it at her amazing house with my mom's help with food and setting up. Here are some of the decorations. Theme...Vintage Baby.






Everyone playing a baby shower matching game. Thank you Aunt Dottie for being in charge of such a cute game!




My Aunt Dottie and my Grandma Eloise.



Me enjoying a wonderful lunch of pinwheel sandwiches, everything pasta and french bread. All washed down with refreshing cucumber infused ice water...thank you mom!



The amazing baby rattle cupcakes. My sister in law Tiffany stayed up until 2am perfecting these adorable creations. She has talent!



My double jogging stroller. Pre-baby body, here I come!



My nephew's Jayden and Cameron ( 7 and 2 1/2) made these adorable tye dyed onsies. I was very impressed. They even threw in a tye dyed shirt for Bryson!



"God Made Hugs, Smiles and Little Boys"



I don't remember what I was laughing at...but it is a fun picture.



I made the diaper cake. My mom and another relative wrote the poems, and everyone autographed baby Chase's picture.



The cupcake and the lemon sorbet. Yes it really comes in the acutual fruit... so cool!



My sister in law Katrina enjoying her coconut sorbet.



My friend Kirsten and her baby Emmalynn. Notice her pineapple sorbet. Seriously, those things are soo good!



My friend Anna and me. Believe it or not she's pregnant too, just not as far along...obviously.



An "after the shower" photo opp with the mom's. We're tired but happy everything went off without a hitch. Thank you mom's for all your love and tireless support. I love you dearly. And Troy...get your finger out of your nose!

Baby Chase's 3D/4D Ultrasound

We got a sneak peak at baby Chase today. Yes, that's the name we finally decided on. Here he is at almost 32 weeks. The umbilical cord stayed in front of his face the whole time. He also liked sticking his foot in his eye. Amazing how they are bent up in there!




Just to compare, here's the one we had of Bryson at 35 weeks. Bryson's was done almost exactly a month before he was born. Chase's was done a couple weeks earlier than Bryson's. Remember...I'm following the exact same time line and due date as I had with Bryson.



Bryson 4 days old.

Garage Sale

My friend Melissa and I had a garage sale on Saturday. It was a success! We didn't have a ton of stuff, but it sold. Melissa was able to sell off an entire nursery set (changing table, crib, rocker, toddler bed) piece by piece. The crib was the last big item left for her and it was the one thing she really wanted to be rid of. Just as she was packing up and putting it in her van, a late customer showed up and bought it! I had a lot of little, household decor stuff and everything was priced to sell (ie $1-$3). People loved my homemade soaps and usually went away with one or two (a $1 each). I ended up making around $70 and I think Melissa made over $100. We were very happy to rid our houses of this stuff. It was all part of my nesting instinct. I was eager to get rid of nicknack's that had been laying around. I enjoyed spending the week going through closets and rooms and deciding, do I really need that?
The best part of the garage sale (for me) was going through all of Melissa's baby clothes. She's had 5 kids and 3 of them are older boys so I had a ton to choose from. She let me have whatever I wanted for free and I, in return, gave her stuff that her kids had wanted. We had a good time!

Photographic Evening

Faster daddy, faster!






Superman!




The many faces.






What a cutie.