I Need To Buy a Fly Swatter

...I need to buy a fly swatter... I keep telling myself that. I write it on my lists, I remind myself constantly, but somehow I never buy a fly swatter. I come home from the store and a fly buzzes my nose and I realize I forgot yet again to buy a fly swatter. But then one morning, I got up to find this little prince on my kitchen sink. I asked myself, Do I really need a fly swatter now???

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

I had a little carton of blueberries going bad in my fridge and it was a dull, rainy day. Perfect solution? Fresh-baked blueberry muffins, naturally! Even better, are they, with a warm mug of fresh-brewed coffee.

1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 egg, beaten
2 1/3 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1/8 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen

1. Preaheat oven to 375*f
   
2. In a mixing bowl, cream sugar and butter. Ad egg; mix well.
3. Combine flour, baking powder and salt; add to the creamed mixture alternately with milk. Stir in lemon juice and vanilla. Fold in blueberries.
4. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full.

STREUSEL:
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup butter, softened

Mix dry ingredients together, cutting in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle generously over muffins.

Bake in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes.

YIELDS: 15 muffins

Disposable or Cloth

So back in the day when my mom was having babies, she would often resort to cloth for economical purposes. Being one of the older kids, that meant I got my fair share of cloth diaper experience which included big ol' pins, layers of cotton, unattractive leaky rubber pants, and diapers forever having to be soaked in the toilet before washing. I was convinced early on that disposable was obviously the way to go. So slick, so easy, and no additional stinky laundry involved. Genius invention, to be sure.

But now, years later, it has come to my attention the exorbitant amount of money that parents pay, and their little ones get to so effortlessly poop and pee on it. Suddenly, I'm rethinking this whole disposables-are-a-God-send thing. I have also become aware that cloth diapers are turning into the in-thing. You're a cool mom if your little gerber baby is sporting a fancy bumgenius on his roly poly butt. Cloth has become cute, efficient and most importantly, economical. Being a married woman now, I have a new appreciation for economical, needless to say.

(I'm not even touching on the fact that cotton is so much more breathable and conducive to healthy skin than the synthetic fibers in disposable diapers.)

The point of this post, however, is that as knowledgeable as I may sound, it's all surface knowledge. Aside from knowing that Bumgenius comes highly recommended, I'm not exactly sure where I want to go from here. I'm 100% interested in any feedback you experienced moms might have as to what you recommend.

What are your thoughts on cloth? What is the brand(s) you use? Do you like their absorbency? What's your clean-up method? Do you have a recommended website I can look at? Or are you some sort of coupon-freak-of-nature that gets Pampers for free (I am after all willing to fore-go the whole cool cloth-diapering mom status thing if it means less laundry)?

Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated. Even though it saves gobs of money, the initial purchase of cloth diapers is an investment in itself, and I want to make an educated buy. I'm researching as much as I can, but I'm a bit leary to know where to begin.

Perhaps someday I can write an experienced review of what is THE diaper of choice, THE method that works, and THE way to go. Until then, I wouldn't mind help getting my facts together...

Quotables

My 5 year-old niece in recent conversations...

"Naps are not good for you. You have to close your eyes and then you can not see anything!!"

"Ohh, I wike you so bad!"

Coming up to me and pats my tummy exclaiming, "Man! Yow baby is getting fat. Can you still see yow toes?"

Accompanied with hugs and kisses--"Mmmmm, I wuv you! I wiss I couwd mawwy you if I was a boy."

Sisters Making Cousins

My man and I took a road trip to Nebraska for the 4th of July weekend. On top of all the normal fun that surrounds such holidays, my sister and I had great fun comparing our pregnant tummies. She's due exactly two months after I am on January 7th. It's so much fun to be pregnant "with" someone so close.

Brant & Hannah's Wedding

One month ago, on June 18, 2010
Wedding bells rang for one of my best friends. I'm so happy for her & Brant.

I Love Pregnancy!

photo: 07-05-2010
22 weeks and 1 day pregnant

If it weren't for the fact that the end result would mean finally getting to hold, kiss, cuddle and meet this beautiful baby boy I have dreamed so much about, I would be sad to think that I have reached the over-half-way-point of pregnancy. For now, I will just enjoy his gentle nudges in my tummy and all the attempts he makes to rearrange my organs, and most of all: desperately love him to death! Pregnancy is so underrated.

It's A...

...BOY!

Boy or Girl?

After my husband's loud proclamations that this baby is surely a boy, my maternal intuition was prematurely and permanently hushed. Since he knew I was pregnant a week and a half before I found out, and since he's always right about everything, I'm pretty sure I can trust his judgment on this call. But more recently he has admitted that he's just not so sure this time... Therefore, I just don't know what to expect!

So what's YOUR intuition? Do you have a hunch that leans a certain way?

Our 20 week ultra sound is scheduled for next week, and we intend to find out what this baby is. I promise to tell you the results if you help us pass the time by making guesses at what you think the outcome will be...

Oh you are too kind![winks!]

Sprigs of Sunshine

Believe it or not, even living in an apartment complex I'm still able to adorn my kitchen with vases of wildflowers. I love these summertime beauties. The weather keeps producing wet, rainy days lately, but I get to enjoy the splash of sunshine on my kitchen island.

Try it:
1 handful of fresh-picked daisies, trimmed to desired length placed loosely in a vase or tall glass. Keep water fresh and enjoy their pretty blossoms for days.

My Little Brother Got Married

Gabe & Anna
Saturday, May 22, 2010

Now we're all related finally... AND neighbors to boot.

Distracted

Nothing spells distracted quite like this blog does. I've been distracted by a million things lately... Important things like sewing bridesmaid dresses for a wedding that's happening in a week, as well as sweet little nothings like forever wanting to put my feet up just to feel Baby kicking.

Priorities, priorities... I'm trying to juggle what should be priorities (my mountain of laundry for sure, right? And the dusting that hasn't happened in weeks... And the clean dishes in the dishwasher... And a baby nursery that has yet to be...) I have a million things I need to do, a few more I want to do, and not enough hours in a day...

Because I get distracted...

My chief distraction is my very own Lover. When he's around, well, heck, the mice can play! I love it when he calls me away from my duties to snuggle on the couch, or watch a movie, or just to talk. I've found myself at times consumed with working hard at impressing him by achieving the ideal: making home look like... well, something fit for the cover of Better Homes & Gardens. And then there's the whole good housewife mold of making wholesome 5 course dinners, with a plan and menu's made out each month.

But I have found that my husband isn't impressed so much with that. What he wants is time. He doesn't care when he has to fish a pair of pants out of the dryer in the morning because his drawer is empty, and he would often rather throw together a salad and maybe some leftovers because it's quick.

When I've become consumed with my labors, and my big guy appears to distract me, I don't care, because there's those big hands that come around my waste and poke my tummy and that sweet voice that says, "There's a baby in there." I have found that the measure of his love is not determined by how well I work at housekeeping. For that, I'm lucky, and grateful, and will throw my dust rag on the floor and cuddle up in his arms for a kiss because he is my number one priority.