Miss Ellie Inspired

Big News!!! (Small Package)

2010-04-14T15:48:00.001-06:00

Ok. No it isn't a newly discovered galaxy, or a strange smudgy fingerprint, or a kidney. Its a BABY!

I am very happy and proud to announce the newest addition to my little family.

Baby #2!

Today is the 12 week point and out little one is about 2 1/2 inches long, 1/2 ounce and doing great so far! I am due October 27th which is a quick 28 weeks or 6 months away. Better get busy! I know the time will fly! Mr. E is still too young to grasp the concept of a sibling, but he does pull up my shirt and kiss the baby everyday. So cute! Seems like yesterday he was the little miracle in my tummy. Aww. Mushy! Ok so I will be keeping you updated (tummy and sono pics included) all along the way. Wish me luck. Next Dr. visit in 2 days. Yay! All except the pelvic exam part. Yuck!(Sorry Dad) At any rate, we are super excited and I can't express to you how happy I will be to be done with the first trimester next week. Oh and we are majorly hoping for pink! Hope with us will you? Thanks and next post should include new pics. :)

John Mayer in Denver!!!

2010-04-14T15:35:00.000-06:00

Wow! I haven't been here for quite a while. Sorry! I have missed my blog world. So lets jump right back in with all kinds of goodies! It has been an eventful month or two. So much to say and show. But I must talk about only one thing at a time lest I overwhelm you with the sheer awesomeness that has been my spring!

First things first. Now say it with me: JOHN MAYER!!!!!!!

My darling husband bought me tickets to see the man himself for Christmas. The concert was in Denver the end of March and let me tell you, it was aaawwwsome! The venue (Pepsi Center) was pretty nice and our seats were nothing to scoff at and although we didn't get sweated on by the band members, we were close enough. John did not disappoint, playing great songs from all of his albums including Heartbreak Warfare, Stop This Train, and oh so many more. I was in heaven despite the sloppy drunk college kids right behind us. Even my dear hubby (who generally doesn't care for concerts) enjoyed the show and even said he like Johnny Boy himself. *swoon* I have the best hubby.

"Slow Dancing in a Burning Room"

Hubby and me at the show.

A Grateful Heart

2010-03-08T19:20:00.000-07:00

After my not so cheerful former post, I think it is high time for something a little more upbeat. As some of you may know, I have been dealing with a cold/sinus thing for almost a month. Yuck. What is so cheerful about this? My dearest husband. Without him I could not have survived this string of illnesses and frustrations along with our very defiant toddler. My husband is of a rare breed. He puts up with my insanity and occasional selfish rants, brainstorms that make no sense, and full-out emotional freakouts as well as the not so occasional messiness that is my life with a toddler disaster machine.

Honey, I love you with all of my heart. That you for dealing with me so graciously and consistently. You are a wonderful husband and father and I love being your wife.

Dogs, Doctors, and Dumb Companies....

2010-03-03T18:31:00.001-07:00

So lets start out with the dog. A couple of months ago my hubby and I decided to get a new dog for our little guy to play with. We already have a 7-year-old chihuahua who wants nothing to do with our little menace and thought it might be nice to have a sturdier, more easy-going breed around. So we decide to get a beagle. Loony, I know. We didn't want to deal with a puppy and a toddler at the same time so we were searching for a young adult, POTTY TRAINED dog. We scoured the internet in search of the perfect small beagle and lo and behold we find a fine specimen in Salt Lake City. It was love at first sight. I e-mailed the owner a dozen times trying to find out all I could about the little cutie so there would be minimal surprises when we got her home. Most of the inquiries pertained to the housebreaking department. I was reassured that she was trustworthy and knew to go outside to potty. Which is true, I suppose.

A week later, Ruby was home. I was smitten to say the least, although plenty cautious about her as well. She did very well for a while, aside from the temporary inability to differentiate between dog and baby toys. Yes, little Ruby Sue settled in quite well until one night when I was quietly laying my sleeping son in his crib I turned around to see this creature peeing in my baby's closet!!! Mouth agape, heart pounding, I knew not what to do! Do I scold her and wake the baby? Take her to the vet for a UTI? Do I lose my mind? Well, maybe... Anyway as it turns out she had been peeing there for who knows how long. Grrrrrr!!!!!!! So here I am kneeling in my baby's closet cleaning multiple pee spots thinking, "Was this dog a mistake?"

Two carpet shampooing sessions, about a thousand "Go outside, Ruby."'s and a few weeks later, we thought we were in the clear. There hadn't been any accidents since she was caught in the closet. Then a few nights ago, we had our friends over and were having a good, if not a little late, evening. Our guests left and we were settling in for the night when I noticed a HUGE pee spot in my living room! Thanks alot Ruby! This time we felt partly responsible for not watching her like a hawk and taking her out every 10 minutes, but come on, really? Two nights later, I am once again transferring the sleeping child to his bed when she pees again in the same spot in my living room! Now I don't know what to do. On top of this she has started digging a pit in my freshly landscaped backyard and NEVER coming when she is called. One thing I know for sure, we should have gotten a puppy that we could train from infancy. I also know that she continues to melt my heart despite her flaws. This is now to be know as the Dog Dilemma. To keep or not to keep.

Now on to the Doctors. The hubby and I have been battling this mean sinus infection cold thing for almost 3 weeks. Yuck. Finally, when Z, who we thought had recovered, started getting yet another oncoming infection, we decided that enough is enough. Time to see a doctor. After a slightly wild goose chase, we arrived at Urgent Care early this morning, munchkin in tow. I was delighted to see a relatively clean and uncrowded waiting room. Overall, I am impressed with the center and will not hesitate to go there again if need be. Good job GJ! We each were seen and given antibiotics. Hopefully this will be the end of the seemingly never-ending illness.

On a side-note. The doctor who treated me was a former co-worker of my mother's and former physician of mine. What a small world. It has been several years and a few relocations since I had seen her last. She remember my mom and me and had nothing but kind words about my mother, calling her a "gentle soul," which she is.

Last but not least is the Dumb Company. I guess I can't really say the whole company is dumb. Maybe just the packaging and distributing departments. Seven, count them, s-e-v-e-n weeks ago, I ordered a desperately wanted and needed new desk and storage cabinet from Bush industries. Now, I could have gotten this at Amazon and not dealt with the issues to come, but for some reason, my mind was not where it should have been come ordering time. Okay I think one of the main culprits here is Cymax stores. This is who I ordered it from. I am not one to complain about companies or products but this one is just getting ridiculous. The desk had great reviews and it was very affordable and attractive. So when I still had not received a confirmation email, tracking number, of shipment for that matter, after 2 weeks, I called...and called...and called. Never spoke to anyone but managed to hear all about Cymax for, not kidding you, 45 minutes at a time while I patiently waited to talk to a human. Finally I got ahold of a young man who expedited my shipment, which I was very pleased to receive after the agreed-upon 5-7 business days.

Z and I marveled at the well-made product as we(he) started putting it together. Then as we got to the last piece in the box, we realized the desk top was completely broken in half. Ugh! I called Cymax twice more before receiving the direct number for the manufacturer. They promptly shipped a new top. The only thing was, it was supposed to arrive in 5-7 days and when yet another 10 days passed by with no top, I called. It had been delivered and signed off by the driver. Only no one knew where it was. Certainly not at my house! Once again a replacement was shipped. This one actually arrived a day early. The next day a strange looking man arrived with the original desk top that was said to have been delivered a week earlier. Good gracious!!!

My dear husband worked diligently on our desk this weekend and when it came time to put the last 2 pieces in place, they were no where to be found. Double Grrr!!!! Once again a replacement part order has been placed and we are crossing our fingers that it all works out. I really love the desk and can't wait to use it but simply cannot believe the process it has been to get this thing going!

Happy Birthday Dad!!!

2010-02-23T13:33:00.002-07:00

My dad's birthday was on Wednesday, but I have been too sick to post this week so today will be all about birthdays.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD! You are in Mexico now enjoying (hopefully) sunny, warm weather. I hope you are having a great time on your post b-day vacay!

Despite my poor complexion, this is my favorite dad and me pic. Aww...Love ya Dad!

Happy Birthday Mom!!!

2010-02-23T12:16:00.001-07:00

Today is my sweet mommy's birthday!

Here's to you Mom! If only I was talented enough to make these for your day.

My mom loves birds. She has saved several injured or abandoned baby birds over the years. Feeding them with eye droppers, making raw meat milkshakes for them, and giving them more than enough love to live on.

Aren't these two cute?

Mom, thank you for all of the love and support you have given me and my brothers and sisters consistently throughout our lives. You are the best mom we could ask for and I hope to one day be as good of a mother as you are. I love you!

Best Dinner Ever!!!

2010-02-15T10:26:00.003-07:00

I think this Valentine's Day was the best one of my life. My husband is wonderful and we have never been happier. I have a beautiful son and we are all healthy. Thank you God.

Now on to the food. All I can say is yum, yum, yum. I made strawberry cupcakes, which were delicious, but sadly my strawberry meringue buttercream was not pretty. It tasted great but wasn't the right consistency. Fail!

As for dinner, I think I died and went to heaven! We had amazing bruschetta, steamed artichokes with hollandaise sauce that I could have eaten until I exploded, and king crab legs with, of course, tons of butter to dip them in. Everything was from scratch and everything was a success.

I could eat artichokes and hollandaise for the rest of my life. So Good!!!

Not too shabby for my first crab legs.

Did I mention butter? It was the star of the show.

I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's day as well. No matter what your relationship status is, love is always something to be celebrated.

Ellie

Valentine's Day!!!

2010-02-12T14:46:00.002-07:00

Now tell me these are not the cutest dang cupcakes EVER! I am loving the owls! You must check out www.cupcakestakethecake.blogspot.com for the bestest cupcakes! These are from Blue Cupcake(www.bluecupcake.com).

Okay...I think I will have to make a batch of Valentine's strawberry cupcakes for my hubby. Yummmm!

Valentine

If That cuteness isn't enough, Look at these ditties I stumbled upon at Cupcakes Take the Cake.

I love the Sparkly one!!

Alright enough with the cuteness, for now. It's time to talk about my day. Now I know that having a toddler can present certain challenges, but never did I expect one of them to be trying to count how many oral contraceptives my son just swallowed. Yikes! I immediately called Poison Control (a mother's best friend) and was reassured that unless he is allergic to them or they have iron in them (which they did not have), he should be fine. Whew! The sweet nurse on the line and I were able to see the humor in the situation once the possibility of danger had cleared the room. This was not my first call to Poison Control and I will bet $$ it is not my last. Thankfully E is not a big "eat everything in sight" kid. He does love the sweets though! Gee, I wonder where he gets that from???

On another note, I was able to work on the boy's quilt a bit today. It is a panel kit so it is super simple and I can finish it lickety split as long as there is not a curious little boy climbing on my arms and changing needle settings on my machine while I sew. I promise there will be pictures once it is completed.

My dear husband is on his way home from a verrry long work week. I am very excited to spend a 3-day-weekend with the man. We are going to be super low-key for V-Day. Perfect! A card and cupcakes work for me!

What should I make for dinner??? Any thoughts???

Alright, friends, I must go undo the days destruction. I am surviving on the hope that my son will one day pick up after himself and even take over some housework. Won't that be the day!!

Have a wonderful evening and be sure to think of all the people you love this weekend! *heart*

Ellie

Good Morning Friends!!!

2010-02-11T09:21:00.001-07:00

It is an icy cold day today and the crisp scent of impending snow is in the air. I love mornings like this. I woke up with my hubby at 5:00 this morning. Wow. Early, but my sweet son, E, slept all night (yes!) so I was well rested. After surveying the damage that my "Greasy Mess" had caused the kitchen last night, I went about my morning routine of thoroughly enjoying a cup of super sweet coffee, letting dogs in and out, and playing challenging, yet time-waisting brain games until my little guy woke up pouting.

My morning cuddle time with E is one of the best times of the day. He is usually very sweet and loving and it makes me forget sleepless nights and evening tantrums. Ah, the joys of toddlerhood. Then I talked to my mom for a while, like I do every morning and a few times during the day. We both stay at home with toddlers each day, so it is nice for both of us to have some adult conversation periodically. The crazy thing is that most of our dialog is concerning the kids in our lives. Ha!

Now here I am, the boy has been changed, apple juiced, and fed. Now he is learning baby signs with Baby Einstein while I share my morning with you!I mentioned "Greasy Mess" earlier. If you are not familiar with my cooking I will explain. Greasy mess is a term my wonderful mother-in-law and husband use to discribe the cooking process and aftermath of homemade chicken-fried steak with mashed potatoes and gravy. My kitchen truely becomes a "greasy mess." Oh but it is well worth it! We crave greasy mess! Just not the clean-up. *wink*

Well, my friends, I am off to get busy on this house. I am certainly no tidy Tammy but there is always work to do, kitchens to clean, babies to entertain.

Enjoy your day!
EllieQ

Welcome to my world!

2010-02-10T15:15:00.001-07:00

So this is it! I actually started my first blog! I hope this will become a creative outlet, a journal, and an all-around fun place to hang out. I would love to write professionally one day, but I haven't found my niche yet. This will be a great way for me to practice writing while sharing my daily goins-on with all of you. I have the most beautiful son in the world and my sweet husband somehow puts up with my ever-growing to-do list for life. After almost 10 years together, he is still trying for figure me out. Not an easy task I'm sure. I am a mess! A fun mess though, I must say.

I hope my blog will be a place where you can feel free to kick off your shoes and relax a bit. Please enjoy my little pink world. There may be days of chaos, days of sheer excitment, and days of dreams and longing. This is my life. Welcome!!!

Ellie