A very special Thank You

Warning: This post is totally baby related, but I feel the need to express my gratitude here.

I wanted to take a moment to say thank you so much to all the wonderful friends who have given so much to Jeremy and I in preparation for Baby Rea.  Really, words cannot express how touched I am by the generosity.  The swings, bouncers, clothing, toys, etc.

Most recently, a thank you to Heather, who has now stocked over 70% of my maternity wardrobe.   I was just thinking the other day that I was getting tired of the same 5 work shirts (yes, I had a Monday shirt, Tuesday shirt, etc.)  Your generosity has overwhelmed me and I promise I will make good use of them until I am done with this adventure and then pass them onto the next group of friends who will equally find a good home for them.  Especially that super cute black dress!  I hope it still fits in May for the beach wedding I'll be attending!  And while I'm at it, here's a shout out to Heather's new bundle of joy, congratulations, she's so cute!

And in case this post just got a little too sappy and a little to baby oriented, let me just push you over the edge right now with this link to an AWESOME STORY.

How the hell do you make an ice cube?

If you think that is a sarcastic or rhetorical question, then you would be wrong.  You see, not all of us are well versed in the field of ice cube making.  Some of us have been raised on automatic ice machines and fell asleep during those oh so important days in chemistry class.  Fortunately Food.com has helped us out with this problem by FINALLY posting a recipe!  Woo Hoo!

For those too lazy to make the jump, I have reposted this most awesome recipe here... just for you.

Total Time: 2 hrs 2 mins
Prep Time: 2 mins
Cook Time: 2 hrs

Directions:
1. Empty the ice cubes that are left in the trays (if there are any left) into the bin.
2. Take the trays over to the sink and fill them with cold water.
3. Place the water filled ice trays back in the freezer.
4. Replace the ice bin if you had to remove it.
5. Shut the door to the freezer.

The best part is that over 600 people have actually reviewed this!  Some of my favorites:

"This recipe is horrible! Maybe I should have left them in longer than two minutes (the recipe doesn't say how long to leave them in the freezer so I just kind of guessed) but mine came out all watery. I won't be making these again."

"I was wondering if you had a crock-pot version for this recipe. I work long hours and I just don't have the time to invest in this kind of hands-on cooking, but they really look yummy."

"Oh man, so happy to have this recipe! My grandma died and took the recipe with her. You are a life saver!!"

Ah, internet.  You never seem to run out of clever things to make me laugh.

Mardi Gras 2013

Happy Mardi Gras!

Once again this year we had the opportunity to attend Mardi Gras in New Orleans.  What a blast!  I love Mardi Gras!

We stayed at the Crown Plaza on Canal, which was okay.  The room was very clean but the hotel was difficult to get in and out, especially since the only entrance was off Canal street, and for some reason people loved to congregate in front of the entrance.  I will never understand why people choose to just stand in the middle of the sidewalk.  Bourbon street is a block away, go stand there!  We will probably stay further into the quarter next time.

Our friends Christy & Leon and their friends, Shawn & Coy, were also attending Mardi Gras so we spent quite a bit of time with them.  The weather turned out to be pretty good considering they were calling for rain on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.  Fortunately we only had a few light sprinkles on Monday and Tuesday and none of the parades were cancelled.  

The picture above is from the Iris parade, which is an all female Krewe.  We also watched Hermes & Krewe d'Etat on Friday; Iris, Tucks, and Endymion on Saturday; and Thoth and Bacchus on Sunday.  There were a few more on Monday but we just didn't have the energy after watching all those parades. One of the biggest challenges of Mardi Gras is finding a bathroom.  Fortunately we watched parades on Saturday and Sunday Uptown at the Best Western on St. Charles where Christy's family was staying, so they got us wristbands to their hotel and we were able to use the bathrooms there and munch on king cake!  I've discovered that my favorite king cake is from Rouses Market.  They have a Rouses in the quarter on Royal Street and so we were able to snag two cakes to bring home with us.  One plain and one with cream cheese (mmmmmm!)

On Sunday we started watching Bacchus Uptown but decided that there were just too many people crowded around the St. Charles Inn.  So we started walking back from there to our hotel, figuring we would watch the parade along the way.  Turns out, we wound up walking faster than the parade (because it stops so much) that we made it 3 floats ahead by the time we got down to the end (about 2.5 miles).  Along the way we found a less crowded place to stop and get some beads "Hey Mister, throw me something!"  I caught this cool Bacchus cup which I gave to Jeremy.  He was so excited.  I actually had to ask him to put it away because I was afraid someone was going to jump us for it!  

Tuesday was Mardi Gras day.  Though I usually dress up in some fashion each day, eyelashes, skirts, etc, Mardi Gras day is when the full costumes come out.  I had two with me this year and I choose the green fairy mostly because it was too cold to wear the other one.  (As a bonus, I actually found some more accessories for my other costume, which will be great for Halloween or the next Mardi Gras)

I was a ferry.  At 23.5 weeks pregnant even the Large dress didn't quite fit, so I had to add another skirt under the bottom and the back zipper didn't quite make it all the way up.  Jeremy combined two of his costumes and was a cross between Pan and Hunter S. Thompson.  (Dont' worry, the cigarette is fake).

There were a bunch of other great costumes and themes this year.  Check out the full batch of photos (and short videos) HERE!  All of these are off my iPhone, but hopefully I'll find time to pull the photos off my digital camera soon, and I'll add them to the set.

P.S. - Even Malachi got into the spirit.

Leg Workout

After trying on my Mardi Gras costume, I realized two things.

First, this was not designed for a pregnant lady.  What is supposed to lie below my belly button, is now just below my boobs, making it very very necessary to add a black petticoat to the ensamble.

Second, I am not happy with my legs.  I can't say I've ever really been that thrilled with my thighs, but at least my calfs were always in amazing shape from biking.  But now that I've stopped doing that, they too have gone to hell.  So I came up with a new workout routine, and I just completed day #4.  It's pretty rough, but not horrible (well maybe some parts).  And, on the plus side, it's not really cardio at all, so I can do it while pregnant without getting myself too worked up, which I'm told is bad for the baby.

My current schedule is Tuesday, Thursday and once on the weekend, either Saturday or Sunday.

15   Lunges (per leg)
15   Squats
20   Calf Raises (per leg, last 5 do in slow motion holding at the top, 5 lb weight in the opposite hand)
12   Jump Squats
15   Reverse Lunges (per leg)
20   2nd Position Squat Plie Heel Rases
15   Squats
15   Step Ups (per leg)
20   Abduction pulls with bands (per leg, attach the band around the foot, secure with other foot)
20   Adduction pulls with bands (per leg)
15   Side Lunges (per leg, with weight)
25   Clam Shells (per leg)
15   Squats
10   Jump Lunges (per leg)
Repeat one more time
10   Squats (you know, cause you're already at 90, might as well make it 100!)
Finish with a mile walk

Eat Up

Eat up little ants,
For TODAY I will not kill you.
I will not shush you off my countertop,
And try to attack you with bleach.

No, TODAY I will let you eat away.
At the wonderful tasting TERRO "sauce".
Take some home with you,
Back to your colony,
Back to the queen,
For she too must be hungry.

No, TODAY I will not kill you.
But TOMORROW!
Yes, TOMORROW, you will be dead.
You,
And your friends,
And your cousins,
And your queen.

DEAD
ALL DEAD!