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Verde Holiday Party

Darren is super happy to have a DD, but he can only stay out until 9PM if he wants me to actually be awake when I drive home :)

31 Week Belly

3 lbs. 15 oz.

Baby Williams was 3 lbs. 15 oz. today...and has a sweet face already!

We got to see Baby grab it's toes and stick out it's tongue...click here for more sono photos

Baby Shower

Baby Williams' First Margarita Party

Thanks to our friends & family for a day filled with fun & generosity!

click here for shower photos

POTUS 44

Baby Williams will have Barack Obama as his/her president!

Power to the Peaceful!

91 Days to Go...

We have decided to start calling the baby "Jet Li". No more cute little thumps...Jet Li lets off full kicks and punches now.

Also, our baby will join our family thinking that their Daddy is Mark Wahlberg. Darren has started talking to the baby only in the Wahberg SNL skit lingo. He tells our baby to "say hello to your mother for me, alright" every day!

Making Your Own Baby Shower Gifts

Knit Hat, Receiving Blanket w/ Name & 3 Burp Cloths

Knit Hat 1/2 skein yarn
Cast on 80 sts
Knit in the round until it measures 5" from roll
Decrease each row as follows:
K2tog, K6
K2tog, K5
K2tog, K4
K2tog, K3
K2tog, K2
Decrease to 10 sts, continue to knit 10 sts for a 4" tail. Bind off and loop knot.
You will need to use double ended needles as sts decrease to continue in the round.

Receiving Blanket & Burp Cloths-
Purchase a 5 pack, flannel receiving blanket package. Use 2 full blankets to create named blanket, sewing back to back once name is sewn on. You will need to square off the fabric, they are never the same size. Use the other 3 blankets to create letters and long strips for burp cloths. Use pre-fold, white diapers for burp cloths. Wash and iron all fabrics BEFORE cutting or sewing since they all tend to shrink or pucker. Use Heat Bond Light to tack letters and strips to the fabrics, then use a simple zig-zag stitch to sew the edges. Tie 3 bows with matching ribbon and hand sew at the middle of the bow at the end of the diaper.

Due Date Update!

Baby Williams is scheduled to arrive at 11:30 AM on Monday, February 2, 2009!

Onesie Mania at SMU!

I stole this great craft idea from my friend Leslie.

Best craft project ever, and so easy. I sent out an email to everyone in the office inviting them to bring a onesie to decorate during our lunch hour on Wednesday and it was a HIT. People are asking our boss to have craft time, once a month, in the office now! But, we created 22 onesies in a variety of sizes for our good friend Ali's baby, Sophie.

Here is my contribution to the pile:

Adrienne gets "Best" for execution and real painting skills:

Baby Williams' Wardrobe

Baby Williams- Debuts in February 2009

This blog is about to be taken over by Baby Williams. Click here for baby & belly photos... BABY!

What we know so far....
Due: 2/11/09, probably will arrive early and easy through the miracle of a planned slice and grab job.
Sex: Yes, please! I mean, we are not finding out.
Alias: "Thumper"

Baby's Room: Stripes & Dots click here, baby will be in the suite section of our room so it will have to like what we like. No Winnie, sorry little one!
Baby's 1st Margarita Party: November 23rd at the Ash's
Baby Stuff: Click BabiesRUs or Target

18 Week Sonogram: Baby Yawned, very precious, probably because we tired it out during our quick weekend to Phoenix and was already 11 oz. or basically the size of a can of Coke. 11 oz. of baby has added 10 pounds to mommy!

Toddler Sweater- Knit

This is an EASY Knit sweater. You will only need 1 large/cotton skein of each color(3) of yarn for the 24 month old pattern. Click Here for pattern. The pattern is *free* if you fill out the registration form.

Christmas Star

Use 20 of your cutest photo and nicest holiday cards to create a yearly Christmas Star. Scale the pattern to fit your desired size. This one is a bit big for a tree ornament but looks great on a shelf or mantle. It's a fun way to decorate for Christmas and it doesn't matter if you never put it away! Be sure to arrange photo cards in a way that shows the cutie-pie baby faces all on one side and not creased in the middle of their face.
SUPPLIES: sharpie (to trace on photos), scissors or straight knife, hot glue gun, 5-6 sticks of glue, 20 cards, the pattern and a bit of patience.
Click Here and Here for patterns.

Kiddo Pillow

The kiddo pillow is easy and can be done in the theme of the birthday party if you can find the fabric. It helps to have a die-cut machine for "perfect" fast letters, but tracing and scissors works fine too! You can stuff it or just sew another pillow case for the inside so that a regular pillow can be inserted and it is easier to wash the case alone (and probably more sanitary if they really are going to sleep with it!).

Supplies: 1 yard of juvenile fabric, stencils or die-cuts, 1 or 2 pillow cases, HeatBond Light, & matching thread.

Detail Photo- Click Here

• 1 pillow case and stuffing material for closed pillow
  
• 2 pillow cases, sewn back to back at the open edge after the embroidery stitching is completed. I purchase a pillow so the gift is ready to go when it is given! This is also faster...stuffing a pillow is a lot of work!
• Use HeatBond Light to adhere appliques to cases instead of using pins
• Be sure to wash juvenile fabric and pillow cases and then iron both prior to sewing.

Playbills & Tickets

I have saved every plabill and ticket since my first show (A Chorus Line in 1985) and finally had the time to put them all together for some wall art in our house.

Large Poster Frame- $25 World Market
25 lb or heavy duty picture hanger for the wall (it's heavy)
Hot Glue Gun & Glue sticks
Double Sided Tape

The difficult part of this project is arranging them and then "flipping" it- in tact- without loosing it's shape or organization.  I chose to use the entire booklet for each playbill which made this heavy and difficult (especially as a solo project).  This is where the glue gun came in handy.  It also keeps anything from 'slipping' as the years go by as it hangs on the wall.  This was done 4 years ago and still looks perfectly placed.  I don't think tape would have held up as well.  I did use tape to arrange the tickets. 

Not your Grandma's Vegas

Going to Vegas for a non Elvis wedding and mini vacation takes on a whole different flavor, literally. This Vegas had amazing food, outlet shopping and a day at the Mandalay Bay Pool with the best Cabana Host in Vegas! It costs considerably more, but being able to say that you didn't eat at ONE buffet the whole time is worth it :) This picture is at the bar at Bouchon, a French restaurant in the Venetian. It was one of the best French meals I have had, even compared to France itself. Dining in Vegas has taken on a whole new meaning if you want to drop the cash and want a meal that doesn't involve standing in line for peel and eat shrimp.

My two Vegas Men!

Why Iron Man?

I tend to get excited about Super Hero movies. Maybe it's because of my love of Wonder Woman or growing up with Underroos or maybe it's just because they are so much fun. The hard part is that so many of them are really not that good. Enter...Iron Man! This movie had an early trailer that made me NOT want to see it. It seemed weird and strange, I didn't even know who Iron Man was other than the beginning of a kick ass Ozzie Osborn song (or was it Black Sabbath?). Anyway! The reviews came out and it sounded like a movie worth seeing, despite the trailer I had seen months before. I am here to attest...go see Iron Man for the following reasons: Robert Downey Jr. is amazing, it is funny, legitimately funny and it makes you root, silent, in your seat for the most believable manufactured Super Hero in a very long time. Batman Returns, awesome! But, Iron Man is giving it a run for it's money because it is smarter than it is dark.

15 Minute Mexican Rice

This recipe really only takes 15 minutes and taste better than it should for that amount of time! Of course, it's not authentic Mexican Rice, but Darren loves it.

Shopping List

Minute Rice- 4 servings

Chicken Broth- 2 cups

Ground Lean Pork- 1 lb

El Pato Mexican Salsa- 1 can

Rotel Diced Tomatoes- 2 cans

Green Onions- 2 or 3

Cilantro- 1/4 bunch

Pantry Ingredients

Garlic Fresh- 4 cloves

Garlic Powder- 1Tbs

Garlic Salt- 1tsp

Peel Garlic Cloves and slice, lengthwise (do not chop).  Prepare Minute Rice, using 2 cups Chicken Broth in place of water with sliced garlic cloves, cover and micro as directed.  While the rice is cooking, saute Ground Pork with Garlic Powder until it looses it's fleshy color but now browned.  Pour El Pato salsa over pork and simmer until the salsa reduces and creates a "heavy" coating on the pork.  Chop Cilantro and Green Onion while El Pato is reducing, set aside.  Remove rice from micro, fluff and let sit for 2 minutes.  Pour Rotel into simmering pork and let simmer for 1-2 minutes.  Pour hot rice into skillet, stir in green onion and cilantro.  Let sit for 2 minutes and serve with Garlic Salt to taste.

FYI

I prefer the Green or Red El Pato (the little can with the Duck) Mexican Salsa, but the yellow can works just fine too.  There are several types of Rotel Chopped Tomatoes and Chilies- I use 1 can of Mexican Fiesta and 1 can of Original.  If I am making it just for Darren (& his Mom) I use the "Extra Hot" can of Rotel instead of Original.  They like it HOT, but that is usually a bit too spicy for me.  Of course, you can spend more time and use traditional rice (40-50 min cooking time). You can substitute Ground Turkey for Pork (pork adds a better flavor) and be sure to check that the pork or turkey is extra lean (then you don't have to drain it!)  I can honestly say that Darren is always amazed that dinner is finished so quickly.  It is a great 1 skillet meal for those nights you get home late from work.

8 days in France- For less than $600

Rick Steves- eat your baguette out!  Ok, so maybe you would need fabulously adventurous friends (Brook, Marissa & Max) to move to France and a husband who travels all the time to do it!  But, it can be done using frequent flyer miles, crashing at your friends house and a bit of restraint on the shopping day in Paris.  I even got to drive while I was there and luckily it was late enough at night that I had the round about to myself!

Click HERE for pictures from my trip

Rangers Opening Day

Thanks to our friend Jennifer, who we met on the cruise in September, we were welcomed into the Rangers Opening Day Party!  We have been to 2 Rangers games and went to Frisco yesterday to see the AA Rangers team, the Roughriders, play the Midland Rockhounds.  It is more fun watching the Roughriders than the Rangers right now ;)  It makes us miss Phoenix, since the Diamondbacks are kicking so much MLB butt right now.  The Ranger fans boo'd their #1 players (Kinsler & Young) on opening day...terrible!  It was fun cheering for Kinsler, since he played at Central. And, I will be going to see the Rockhounds play the Roughriders again tomorrow since my friend from CAC, ASU Softball Coach Clint Myers' son, Casey Myers is the hitting coach and will be catching the game.  It was great to see him in the bullpen yesterday!  I think I am going to try to give Alyssa Milano a run for her money with her Dodger Blog!  I mean, really, I doubt she can keep score like me!  She does, however, have her own line of MLB clothes for women that are pretty darn sexy & cute (kind of like her).