Making Memories...

Hand-Made Gnome Halloween Costume

2012-11-04T03:08:00.004-06:00

Using some old clothes and material:

18 month old pants that were packed away

Also found some old sweatshirt

Gnome pants are almost ready

I bought material to match the color of the pants

To measure for the costume I used his other vest

Back side (1 piece)

Front side (2 pieces)

Gnome vest is ready

For the hat

40 cm height of the hat by the size of the child's hat

I bought these red fleece boots from the store to complete the costume

Happy Halloween!

Owl Cookies For Halloween

2012-09-19T13:09:00.001-05:00

I saw these in the Parents magazine and thought that was so easy and fun to do with your kids! Here is how they turned out for us:

Ingredients:

1 pkg (16oz) ready-to-bake sugar-cookie dough
1 pkg (16oz) ready-to-bake peanut-butter cookie dough
Assorted dry fruits, nuts, chocolate pieces (I had raisins, white chocolate chips, pecans, some left over cup-cake decorations)

Preheat oven to 350 F
Greece cooking sheet

Place cookies 2 inches apart from each other

Make 1/4-inch balls of contrast color and place them on top portion of the cookie to resemble eyes. Decorate further with nuts and dried fruit. Let your child help you decorate. Have fun!

Bake for 15 minutes or until lightly browned
Let cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then remove and cookies are ready to serve!

Having fun with the background :)

Flesh off

EASY Chicken Breast under Garlic-Sour Cream Sauce

2012-09-13T22:03:00.002-05:00

Ingredients:

2 Chicken breast fillets
3/4 cup of sour cream
2/3 cup of shredded cheese (any kind)
3-4 garlic gloves
Rosemary
Salt
Pepper

Preheat oven to 350°F
Add salt, pepper, rosemary (to your taste), and minced garlic to the sour cream
Mix together

Place chicken breasts into oven-safe dish

Add the sour cream/seasoning mix to the sides and the top of the chicken
Turn around and repeat so it is completely covered in the sauce

Sprinkle shredded cheese all over the top and bake for 50 minutes
Then broil on high until desired color is reached (2-5 minutes)
*Watch the chicken while it is broiling as it can easily burn and flare ups may occur

I made a salad and mashed potatoes for a side
Hope you enjoy!

Spaghetti with Ground Pork, carrots, onions, and tomatoes

2012-09-13T09:07:00.001-05:00

Ingredients:

1 lb of ground pork (or any other ground meat)
1 box of angel hair spaghetti
2 medium carrots
2 medium tomatoes
1 onion
Salt
Pepper
Vegeta

Chop an onion

Shred carrots using a cutting box

Dice tomatoes into cubes

Place chopped onion into a warmed up frying pan and brown for about 5-7 minutes on medium-high heat

Add carrots and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes, then add tomatoes

5 minutes later add ground meat, season, and cook for about 20 minutes

Meanwhile cook pasta in slightly salted water.
Drain the water once pasta is cooked

Combine ingredients together and serve!
Enjoy

Fruit Desert

2012-06-11T13:53:00.001-05:00

Ingredients:

2 sweet pears
2 kiwis
1/2 cup of blueberries
1/2 cup of blackberries
1 cup of grapes
8 oz Philadelphia cream cheese (1 stick)
1 cup of powdered sugar
2/3 cup of heavy whipping cream

Cream cheese should be room temperature

Whip sugar and whipping cream together for about 3 minutes

Add cream cheese and keep whipping until smooth texture

Add blueberries

Whip all together and put in the refrigerator while cutting your fruit

Pears in little cubes

Grapes in circles

Slice kiwis

Blackberries in half

Mix all fruit together

Fill the glasses with fruit and top off with cheese cream frosting

Enjoy!

Cheesy Chicken Soup

2012-06-01T14:11:00.001-05:00

(Very smooth, cheesy and delicious! Makes a perfect lunch)

Ingredients:

3 chicken breasts medium size potatoes
1 medium size onion
3 carrots
Mushrooms (optional)
fresh dill
1 cup of white rice
Laughing Cow processed cheese
Salt (or garlic salt)
Black pepper

Put chicken in 13 cups of cold water, add salt and pepper and cook 20 minutes after the water starts boiling

Dice potatoes in little cubes

Shred carrots using a box cutter

Chop mushrooms

Chop onion

Pull chicken breasts out of the boiling water, then add mushrooms and rice right after. Continue to boil for 10 minutes

Meanwhile, cool and cut chicken breasts into little chunks

Add potatoes, carrots and onion. Continue to boil for 5-7 more minutes

Add chicken. Continue to boil until potatoes are ready

I add 9 pieces of cheese in the soup and stir it until blended in

Serve with croutons and chopped dill. Enjoy!

Easter, 2012

2012-04-18T14:52:00.000-05:00

This picture was found on this web page

Orthodox Easter in United States

Many Orthodox Christians in the United States celebrate Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday. The Orthodox Christian date for Easter Sunday often occurs at a later date than the Easter date observed by many western churches. The day is also known as Pascha, Easter and Easter Day.

What do people do?

Many Orthodox Christian churches, including the Greek Orthodox and the Russian Orthodox churches, celebrate the “miracle of Easter” on the Easter Sunday date in the Julian calendar. Many people see Easter as the most important event in the church calendar. Orthodox Easter preparations begin with 40 days of strict fasting prior to Easter Day. Many Orthodox Christians attend liturgies during the Holy Week that leads up to Easter Sunday.
Some Americans who are members of the Russian Orthodox Christian community still practice the tradition of laying Easter eggs and Easter bread on dead relatives’ graves. This practice is a way of greeting the dead with news that Jesus Christ has risen. Many Greek Orthodox Christians buy Easter bread, known as tsoureki, and prepare lamb for the Easter feast.
Another tradition observed in many Orthodox Christian churches is the blessing of food baskets. The baskets are usually filled with bread, cheese, meat, eggs, butter, salt, and other types of food used for Paschal celebrations. The fasting period has ended and meat and dairy products can be eaten.

Background

Many Orthodox churches base their Easter date on the Julian calendar, which differs from the Gregorian calendar that is used by many western countries. Therefore the Orthodox Easter period often occurs later than the Easter period that falls after the time of the March equinox.
There are different types of Orthodox churches that are well established in the United States. Some of these churches include the Greek Hellenic Orthodox Church, the Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America, and the Russian Orthodox Church. The Russian Orthodox Church in North America can be traced back to the late 18th century, where a Russian church was built on Kodiak Island in Alaska during that period. Alaska was previously part of Russia until the United States bought the land.

Symbols

The Easter egg is hard-boiled and often dyed red to symbolize the blood of Christ. It was an important symbol connected with spring fertility rituals in many early civilizations. Many Greek Orthodox Christians rap their eggs against their friends' eggs and the owner of the last uncracked egg is considered lucky.

What we did

Coloring Eggs

Boil eggs

Prepare color pallet

Cover working area

Stickers I found at Walgreens are an amazing time saver! Your toddler can participate!

Just put the egg inside the sticker

Using a wooden spoon, slowly insert the egg into the boiling water, hold 3 seconds and your egg is ready!

Within a minute we got them done

I decided to color the white out, but you don't have to. They look very pretty as they are in stickers.

Dying more eggs

Put some glitter on them :)

End product!

Cute Center Piece!

Basket for Lucas

1 small basket with a bunny in it
1 large egg with 2 small cars in it
1 "soccer ball" egg that lights up
3 pencils with Easter details on it
1 sound making stick
1 hand-made carrot full of candy (that he didn't get to eat)
1 necklace/bubble maker carrot
little egg toys

My creation :)

Basket put together

Close view

Cupcakes (All wrapped up and ready to go!)

Easter Cupcake

Easter Video

Chicken Veggies Stir Fry

2012-04-08T16:59:00.002-05:00

(In this recipe you marinate the chicken for about 40 minutes and it turns out SO deliciously flavorful - you will have trouble putting your plate down!)

The recipe itself turned out to be a little random. I wanted to use up some of the groceries I had left in the fridge. You can use other vegetables if you like.

Ingredients:

2 gloves of garlic (not in the picture)

1 green pepper
1 cauliflower

1/2 package of frozen broccoli (not in the picture)

1/2 package of shredded carrots

Rice for a side dish

Beans for a side dish (I never ended up making beans)

2 chicken breasts

4 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp stir-fry sauce by Kikkoman (not in the picture)

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp white vinegar

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

Cut chicken in stripes

Combine 4 tablespoons oil, 2 tbsp stir-fry sauce, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tsp vinegar, salt and pepper in the bowl and mix it well together

In the plastic bag combine chicken and sauce mixture together. Seal the bag and refrigerate for at least 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, I put frozen broccoli in the water and microwaved for about 3 minutes, then discharged water

Add 2 tbsp olive oil in the frying pan and squeeze 2 garlic gloves. On medium high heat fry for about 2 minutes or until light brown

Add carrots and brown for about 5-7 more minutes or until soft

Add broccoli and cauliflower

Reduce heat to medium, add 1 tsp of vegeta to the vegetables

Cut green pepper in stripes

Add green pepper and fry until veggies are soft and ready

Drain and discard marinade from the bag

In a large skillet, saute chicken in 1 tbsp of olive oil for about 8 minutes on medium high heat

Make sure all the pink is gone

This is what it looks like when its ready

Add vegetables to the chicken and mix really well

Serve on the bed of rice. Enjoy!

What an 11 month old can do?

2012-04-02T14:38:00.121-05:00

Your baby understands surroundings very well at this age and knows when you talk about him
Makes animal-like noises and imitates words and intonations
Knows exactly what to do when you give him simple tasks like: "give me", "sit down", "bring me", "drop it", or "pick it up"
Waits for your praise and approval of the actions
Nods affirmative for "yes" and negatively shakes head for "no"
Waves at people when saying good bye
Repeats the same action over and over in order to improve it
Tries to eat with a spoon; good at drinking from a cup
Climbs stairs up and down and actively crawls
Makes an attempt to walk

At 11 months old most babies change their sleeping schedule. They play a lot more now and sleep a lot less. The best schedule that worked for us:

Wake up at 8:00 am
Breakfast at 8:30 am
Play time at 9:00 am
Lunch at 12:00 pm
Nap at 1:00 pm till 3:00 pm
Play time
Dinner at 6:30 pm
Going to bed at 8:00

Your child loves to impress you and make you happy. It feels amazing to throw away his own diaper, bring your slippers to you, or point out body parts on you or himself over and over again, just to see positive emotions it brings to you.
Sadly for me, at 11 months old Lucas was getting intrigued by the toys less and less. Sadly - because I LOVE buying him toys! At this age, any adult thing found around the house is a new toy! Especially the ones he knew he couldn't have, they become most desirable. Time for childproofing you house? I think it is :)
You child wants to copy anything you do! He will pretend to brush his hair or teeth, or press buttons on TV remote, and etc. That's a good time to start involving him into some of your daily activities. While you are cooking - let him play with pans and pots, while you washing your dishes - let him splash teaspoons in a bowl of water, while you are shopping - let him put groceries in the cart for you and so on. Doing that will help to build a strong base for your child as he grows.
Another very important thing I noticed about Lucas at 11 months old, he became extremely interested in other children. Every time we had a play date his personalities would come out the way they never did before! Lucas was getting bored in the house by himself, but if there is another child he could be restless playing and communicating with him. I suggest it to any other moms out there, play date - is an amazing tool for your baby to develop! Try to let them interact with each other, they need to learn to play with each other without your help, but don't leave them alone and always watch them.

Video of Lucas at 11 months old

Fluffy Dream Cones

2012-03-26T13:01:00.005-05:00

I used to love these when I was little. You could buy them in the store and they would always be absolutely delicious! Now I know how to make my own :)
It did get a little tricky with the cones though. Since I didn't have any baking paper, I used heavy weight construction paper for the base. But I suggest you use baking paper on top of carton.

Ingredients:

1 package of Puff Pastry
3 Eggs
1 cup of Sugar
1 teaspoon of lemon juice
1/3 cup of boiling hot water
Any desirable fruit for decoration

Unfold the pastry sheet on the work surface and leave to thaw for about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, I made paper base for cones. I used a 9 by 12 in paper cut in half

I made a cone out of half of the paper and stapled it together

I needed 6 of them

Preheat oven to a 400 F.
Cut each sheet in 6 stripes

Use 2 stripes per a cone

Add a tsp of water to 1 egg in the bowl

Mix it together well

Brush mixture over the Puff Pastry to create a rich, golden sheen when baked.

Grease baking sheet. I used Pam for baking

Put in the oven for about 15 minutes or until golden brown

Add cup of sugar in the saucepan

Add boiling hot water and put on medium low heat

Add 1 tsp of lemon juice

When you see little bubbles on the bottom remove from the heat. Do not boil

Separate 2 egg whites into the mixing bowl

Beat egg whites into a heavy white foam (about 5 minutes on high)

Very slowly pour hot sugar mixture into foam while continuing beating the mixture on medium speed

Continue beating the mixture for about 7-8 more minutes, once sugar is added to whites. It should look very glossy and gooey when ready

Cool cones for about 15 minutes

Pull the paper out (it should be a lot easier if you have a cooking paper)

I filled a zip lock bag with cream and made a little hole in the corner

Fill cones with cream and decorate with a fruit
(you could also add fruit inside as you are filling the cone with a cream)

Recipes For Sunday

2012-03-06T12:02:00.086-06:00

Home-Made Light Crust Pizza with fresh mozzarella, tomatoes and baby peppers

Ingredients:

1 Sheet of Puff Pastry (your taste)
4 Large Tomatoes
4-6 Baby Peppers
10 oz of Fresh mozzarella
Dry Basil
Black Pepper
Salt

Preheat your oven to 350 F.

Unfold frozen puff pastry and let it thaw for 10 minutes. Then lay it on your baking sheet

Cut tomatoes in circles (not too thin)

Cut mozzarella cheese the same width as tomatoes (I had 2 different types mozzarella cheese

Lay tomatoes and cheese in layers one after another

Add spices to your liking (salt, black pepper and dry basil), and put it in the oven for 20 minutes

Take it out of the oven and add fresh cut in half circles peppers
Put it back in the oven for additional 10 minutes

It's ready! Let it cool for about 10 minutes and serve!

Chocolate-Covered Cherry Cake

This cake is unbelievably soft and delicious! The harmony of semi-sour cherries covered with an amazing cream cheese frosting and milk chocolate shavings

Ingredients:

3 Eggs
2/3 cup of Sugar
2/3 cup Flour
1 cup of Heavy Whipping Cream
1 stick of Philadelphia Cream Cheese
2/3 cup of Powder Sugar
1.5 cans of Cherry Pie Filling
2 sticks of Milk Chocolate

Preheat oven to 350 F
Add sugar and eggs into a mixing bowl

Beat eggs and sugar for 5 minutes, until looks creamy

Add flour and make batter

Grease baking pan

Add batter into a greased pan and put in the oven for 25 minutes

Meanwhile, add heavy whip cream, powdered sugar, and cream cheese into a bowl and mix it together well, until smooth and creamy

*Note: cream cheese should be room temperature when mixing with other ingredients for best results

Cool cake for about 10 minutes

Cut through in 2 pieces

Spread 1 layer of cream cheese frosting as you would spread peanut butter on the sandwich

Return top portion of the cake back and spread cherry juice on top of the cake to make it more moist

Layer cherries on top

Spread the rest of your frosting on top and sides of the cake

Shave milk chocolate for the decoration of the cake

Enjoy!

10 month old Lucas

2012-02-29T13:24:00.007-06:00

What a 10 month old can do?

Listen close to people's conversations and try to copy it by making sounds;
Think that every joke includes him and would start laughing when everyone else is (mine still does at 20 months);
Makes funny noises and laughs at them;
Gets exited to see a favorite toy or activity;
Sit, crawl, and walk with support;
Shows an extreme interest towards other kids;
Understands words like: sit down, come here, and etc.

Schedule that worked for us:

Waking up @ 8.00 am
Breakfast @ 8.30 am (8 oz of breast milk/formula; serving of mashed fruits or veggies; cheerios)
Play time @ 9.00 am
1st nap @ 10.00 - 10.30 am
Waking up 12.00 - 12.30 pm
Lunch @ 12.30 pm (8 oz of breast milk/formula; 1/2 cup of chicken noodle soup w/ carrots, mash all the ingredients or cut into little pieces; serving of mashed or real fruit, such as banana, kiwi or mango)
Play time, or perfect opportunity to go for a walk in the stroller @ 1.00
Snack @ 2.30 pm (juice; some finger food)
2nd nap @ 3.30 pm
Waking up @ 4.30 - 5.00 pm
Dinner @ 5.00 pm (8 oz of breast milk/formula; 1 meat ball or couple pieces of turkey or chicken; 1 spoon of mashed potatoes or mac' and cheese; apple sauce)
Play time @ 5.30 pm
Snack @ 7.00 pm (4 oz of water; finger foods, 1 serving of baby cereal/mashed veggies)
Bath time @ 7.30 pm
Preparing for bed time @ 7.50 pm (soft pajama on, 5 oz of breast milk/formula served warm; reading book in the dim light, or snuggle on the rocking chair)
Sleep for the night @ 8.00 - 8.15 pm

10 SIMPLE RECIPES: Blueberry Crepes

2012-02-28T11:24:00.001-06:00

10 SIMPLE RECIPES: Blueberry Crepes: I saw it on CandidMommy's YouTube channel and I decided to make them for Lucas. I did change the recipe a little bit though. I've made a sho...

Flower Aplication

2012-02-21T14:10:00.002-06:00

So much sunshine outside, it feels as if spring is right around the corner! This quick and easy project could make a very cute card for someone or it could be a seasonal decoration for your wall!

I used the same materials I had for decorating a window on Valentine's Day, and this is what turned out! Enjoy! :)

I made 4'' by 1/3" "stem" and a little less than 1" diameter circle for "stigma"

You will need 10 circles that you can make using 1 inch in diameter hole puncher. Using a pencil, fix every circle by giving it more of a "leave" shape

These are my samples

These are the colors I picked for my application

Using scissors, I cut out 10 leaves:

4 blue

4 yellow

2 green

I saved shavings to use later for "grass"

Bend your "leaves" in half to create a visual effect on the application.

When all the parts are cut out and ready to go, use glue to put your flower together the way you like

I also added some beads to the picture, using same glue

About your 9 month old, and a little bit of mine

2012-02-16T14:05:00.000-06:00

Developing is easy! :)

Did you know that your 9 month old child finds your house extremely fascinating! They want to know absolutely everything: why do cabinet doors open and close, why are there windows in the house, what is furniture for, and why does it end where it ends?
If you see your baby doing the same move over and over again, don't worry, it's a learning process of how to start and when to stop, it helps your baby to make a decision! At this stage your child can hold things with both hands, clap, stand on his/her feet with your support, and remember games he/she played yesterday!
Walking skills
If your baby is making an effort to walk - don't run to the shoe store yet, wait until they walk on the street regularly! Walking barefoot assists to strengthen the muscles of the foot and ankle of your child and allows him/her confidently hold an equilibrium as he/she feels the structure of surface better.
Observing
At 9 month old children are unbelievably observant. They watch your face and reaction to anything they do and repeat after you. This is the time for you to teach your baby complicated tasks like pressing the buttons, turning knobs, gently putting away toys into the cabinet and pulling them back out.
My son loved everything about cabinets. He would play with pots and pans for hours, drooling all over them, but I could tell that every little brain cell was developing through that process! At first, me and Mike installed cabinet locks everywhere, but then I took some of them out. I read in the Parents Magazine that it is very beneficial to have at least 1 cabinet devoted to your baby! You can stuff it with a lot of safe things for them to discover (not necessarily toys). Let them pull it all out and than put it all back in!

Separation anxiety

It is normal for your child to have an extremely strong attachment to you and fear everybody else.

It could be a real challenge for grandparents that love their bundle of joy unconditionally! If you need to leave your child with someone, you can help the situation by getting there a little earlier, so you have some time for your baby to adopt to the new place or a person, while you are still around. That way, when you go, your baby is not overwhelmed by too many things happening at the same time.

My sweet 9 month old

Hand-Made Decorations for You and your Baby!

2012-02-10T13:28:00.000-06:00

Me and Lucas are making cute heart decorations of our hand prints to go on the wall for Valentine's Day! As a result he had to take a bath afterwords. Our bond time that I enjoy so much!

Hope you like it too!

Hand-Made Decorations!

2012-02-01T10:38:00.000-06:00

Decorating big and boring window

What I needed to complete this simple project:

Using a pencil, draw the shapes you like:

I drew 2 size heart shapes: one bigger, one smaller and a bunch of circles (because I had the circle stapler)

Then, using glue, start putting your designed string together. I put the string between the two shapes and glue them together.

Examples:

Start hanging your strings (I used regular scotch tape)

Valentine's Day Special Ideas

2012-01-31T14:07:00.000-06:00

Surprise for your loved one on Valentines Day!

- Take a book that your loved one is reading on daily basis and highlight the letters from different words, creating a love message for them. You can tell them what they mean to you, write a poem, or make a compliment. Use your imagination!
Hint: Start with the page they currently stopped at, there is a chance they will never see your message if you start from the beginning of the book.

- Make 15-20 paper hearts and hide them anywhere you want (outside or inside of your house). On each paper heart you should write something sweet about that person and give them a hint where to look for the next one. You can lead your second half to discover a present, or a card, or, perhaps, a romantic dinner that way. It is a very unusual way to give someone a present and it will bring a lot of excitement to both of you!

- You can make your own Genie Bottle, spraying it with gold paint, maybe drawing couple hearts on it or writing a message on it. After you finish your dinner together give him "the lamp" and tell him you will be his genie for the rest of the evening.

- Make fun muffins for your family!

Blueberry Cream Muffins Recipe

The frosting for these cupcakes is absolutely delicious!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup of fresh blueberries

2 cups of flour
14 tablespoons of butter
1 cup of sugar
2 teaspoons of vanilla
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon of baking soda

Cream (frosting):

1/2 cup of fresh blueberries

1 stick of Philadelphia Cream Cheese
½ Cup of Heavy Cream
1 1/4 Cup of Powdered Sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine butter, sugar, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Mix it at low speed for 2 minutes.
Add eggs, mix it on high speed for 1 minute.
Add flour and baking soda, mix it at low speed for 1 minute, than add blueberries and mix everything together on high speed until smooth (1-2 minutes)
Grease your heart shaped cupcakes pan (I used baking spray), and fill liners 1/2 to 2/3 full of batter. Do not overfill.
Bake 30-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.
Cool muffins for 15 minutes and frost them the way you like!

Making blueberry-cream frosting:

Cream cheese has to be room temperature before mixing it in.
Start with cream and sugar, mix it very well, then add cream cheese and blueberries.
Whisk together until the mixture looks like a blueberry yogurt mass.
Put in the refrigerator while waiting for cupcakes.

Enjoy!

Decorating for Valentine's Day!

2012-01-31T12:56:00.000-06:00

Slowly transforming Winter Wonderland into a Heartland!

Watch how we made these decorations on the video!

Lucas' Baptism at 3 months old

2012-01-28T12:33:00.000-06:00

Beautiful Serbian Cathedral looks a lot like Russian Church I was used to when I was a growing up. Same religion, style, decor, and atmosphere inside the church. I wanted for Lucas to have a little something that would be Russian about him, and, somehow, it turned out to be his Baptism.

I couldn't be proud enough of him that day! On the cold October 2nd, at 3 months old, Lucas did not even cried once. Not through the whole hour of ceremony, not even when they put him in the water. He was my perfect little angel!

Slide show through pregnancy

2012-01-20T10:51:00.000-06:00

Our Story

2012-01-16T13:38:00.000-06:00

Life can be taken away so easily, but creating a human being is a long, difficult, and sacrificing process!

        My pregnancy was not planned or accounted for, that's why finding out was quiet a shock for both of us. Mike, my boyfriend of 4 years, kept telling me throughout our relationship that he would love to have children someday, but not just yet. He said he wasn't ready to be a dad, he had too many things on his mind he wanted to do first. I was teasing him saying kids will make his priorities change and create a whole new level of fun for him! But deep down inside I knew I was not ready ether. I, myself, couldn't possibly imagine being a mom yet. Well... At least that's what I thought.
        When I was about 16 years old, I couldn't stand watching babies drool, I didn't really find them cute, I had no connection to them whatsoever. By the age 20 I began to find a lot of toddlers extremely adorable, and hearing them say "Mommy" or "Daddy" would warm up my heart! But even so, the feeling of having my own didn't hit me yet. "Someday", I kept telling myself...

October 3rd, 2009, me and Mike were playing ping pong in our basement, and I kept thinking to myself how out of shape I feel! Heavy, clumsy, and out of breath. I also knew I have gained some weight, because my clothes didn't fit me right. I told Mike I had to go to the bathroom and I better be pregnant, because there is no better excuse for me to feel so bloated! Of course it was a joke and we laughed at it, but as I was going up the stairs my heart started beating really fast and panic mode hit me. "What if I am?.."

I had one pregnancy test left in my drawer. Just one! Oh, help me God! I take the test. Positive result shows almost immediately. I stare at it and then go into my closet and seat down on the floor. Why closet, you ask? I have no idea!

Mike was in the basement, waiting for me to come back. Poor guy couldn't find me anywhere. I have to be honest with you, I was very scared to tell him. I just needed the world to stop spinning for a while... His words kept popping in my head: "I'm not ready to be a dad yet. Not yet. Not yet."

He finds me in the closet, and he instantly knows. We both know. We got nothing but silence to share. I'll never forget that moment. Most women always dream of that perfect moment, perfect man by their side, perfect tears of joy! It wasn't there for me. It was a bad day for us. It was a breaking day for us.

He went golfing for the rest of his day. I understood. I needed a drink, I needed a cigarette, I didn't know how to comfort myself, but I had to figure it out, because I couldn't do none of those things for comfort anymore. I never touched a cigarette even once, while this baby was inside of me. I just couldn't.

If I only knew, how fast I will transform into mom! I wanted to know everything that's going on with my little bean. I surfed Internet like never before. I had million questions! I read about the food I should eat, what are the trimesters, daily baby development, prenatal vitamins, doctor appointments, and, of course, the scariest of all, labor and delivery process.

My due date was set to be June 6th, 2010. I loved that baby instantly! Mike, on the other hand, was handling it a little differently. He was skeptical, quiet, nice, yet cold. Please don't get me wrong, as a responsible guy, he went to a lot of appointments with me, purchased a lot of things for the baby, provided both of us while I was going to college. He even decided for us to get away and go to Hawaii for 10 days while I was 18 weeks along and could still travel. But his heart just wasn't in the comfortable spot. It wasn't feeling what my heart was feeling. He was telling me that it won't feel real until it gets real.

While we were in Hawaii, I first felt the baby move. It was an unbelievable feeling! Mike felt it too, it was very cute, but I guess not real enough. He never really made an effort to feel him, it was my hand grabbing his hand and putting it on my belly. When we came back from Hawaii, we went to our 20 week ultrasound and found out we were having a boy.

Life kept on going. Everyday was a day closer for me until I meet him! I couldn't stand the wait. As I was getting closer to my due date - I was getting way bigger too. I started off being 125 pounds and was at the mark of 180 when they last checked me before my labor. I couldn't sleep at night, I couldn't sleep during the day. It was getting hot outside and I could barely stand being there. My mom would go for a walk with me, but the pain of pressure gaining down was not making it easy for me. I was so anxious going to bed every night and thinking "Tonight might be The Night!"

I kept wondering where will it happen and how. But it never did. Of course, knowing myself (inpatient and anxious) I just assumed I will have my baby after I hit 37 weeks. Funny story, that I had to be pregnant for another month!

Induction was scheduled on the 17th of June, 2010 at 7:30 am. On June 16th Mike came home from work and we had such an amazing night together. All I ever asked him was to go for a walk with me and hold my hand. I never got it, until that last day of just the "two of us". Weather was perfect, warm and comfortable, I felt great! We caught some random stage play by college students, we walked and talked and held hands. That's all I needed from him is to feel secure, feel as I am not alone in this, because that's what it felt like the whole 42 weeks of pregnancy. That night was so important to me. I'm so happy I have that memory of us...